one packet at a time

One of the most frustrating parts of restaurant doggy bags is the sheer amount of waste that comes with bringing your food home. But there are many ways you can make your dinner leftovers more eco-friendly.

One way that I've failed in being less wasteful is in bringing styrofoam containers home from restaurants.Years ago, I started attempting to bring my own Rubbermaid container with me to restaurants where I might have leftovers. However, I only remembered about 1 out of every 4 trips out. It WOULD work...if I would do it.

When I do need a container, I at least always ask for the smallest option available. And I request no plastic bag if I only have one container to bring home.vfggggggggggggggggggggggggggggg```````````````````````````

Hi Milo.

And then there's the dilemma of ordering food to-go and receiving enough napkins, disposable chopsticks and condiment packets to supply a football team. It seems simple enough to just ask for no condiment packets, but the odds are against you on that one. But you can still be eco-friendly even if you do end up with a bag full of disposable stuff. If you have a collection of condiment packets, use them up instead of buying new containers of the same condiments. Pack them in your children's lunch bags, or bring them with your own lunch.

My boyfriend recently had an idea to not buy ketchup or mayonnaise and use only the condiment packets we happened to end up with. It's great idea in the way of saving money, if you don't use condiments much at home, like we don't (except for crawfish dip and potato salad). While smaller packets are more wasteful than one large container, it's a good practice to use everything you bring home.

My boyfriend's friend would also like to add that you should not save condiment packets for too long, or they will not be edible…he says from experience.

You can also find creative reuses for extra sets of plastic forks and chopsticks. Green Philly Blog listed a few ways to reuse chopsticks, such as using them for garden markers, which could also go for plastic forks!

The best way to cut down the amount of waste from restaurant leftovers is by bringing your own containers or refusing extra cutlery. But if you forget or the restaurant makes a mistake, just make the most of it and use everything you bring home!