--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It’s the method of consumption, not…" description: "\"It’s the method of consumption, not what’s on the plate.\" — Patton Oswalt" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/98c/patton-oswalt-2795_consumption_it-s-the-method-of-consumption-not-what_2610005.png" --- # It’s the method of consumption, not what’s on the plate. ![“It’s the method of consumption, not what’s on the plate.” quote by Patton Oswalt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/98c/patton-oswalt-2795_consumption_it-s-the-method-of-consumption-not-what_2610005.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/98c/patton-oswalt-2795_consumption_it-s-the-method-of-consumption-not-what_2610005.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/98c/patton-oswalt-2795_consumption_it-s-the-method-of-consumption-not-what_2610005.png) > “It’s the method of consumption, not what’s on the plate.” [Patton Oswalt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patton-oswalt/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The way we consume food matters more than the food itself, emphasizing habits and context over ingredients. **In simple terms:** Consumption habits outweigh food content. Key Takeaway Focus on mindful eating habits. Themes nutrition behavior culture Mood thoughtful practical Type health behavioral When to use this quote - diet planning - public health campaigns - personal habits Key Concepts mindful eating food industry health trends Questions to Reflect On - How do habits shape nutrition? - What steps improve mindful consumption? A Different Perspective Changing habits is challenging. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Consumption](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consumption/) [Food](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/food/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) ## Related quotes > [What's that plate that's above a saucer but below a plate?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-pilkington/what-s-that-plate-that-s-above-a-saucer-but-below-a-plate/) [Karl Pilkington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-pilkington/) > [The nature of catastrophe is, after all, reasonably unvarying in the way it ruins, destroys, wounds and devastates. But if something can be learned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-winchester/the-nature-of-catastrophe-is-after-all-reasonably-unvarying-in-the/) [Simon Winchester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-winchester/) > [If you were handed power on a plate you'd be left fighting over a plate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-stoppard/if-you-were-handed-power-on-a-plate-you-d-be-left-fighting-over-a/) [Tom Stoppard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-stoppard/) > [I can't cook, but I have a nice book of menus... and I can plate and set the table.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-rock/i-can-t-cook-but-i-have-a-nice-book-of-menus-and-i-can-plate-and-set/) [Chris Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-rock/) > [I am a better person when I have less on my plate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/i-am-a-better-person-when-i-have-less-on-my-plate/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [Of course, with well-masticated food playing the role of social glue, it's absolutely essential that everyone clear their plate. Sod the starving kiddies in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-self/of-course-with-well-masticated-food-playing-the-role-of-social-glue/) [Will Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-self/) > [Sometimes it's like you're a big pie settin' on the table, and everybody runs up and gets their piece of you. When it's over'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loretta-lynn/sometimes-it-s-like-you-re-a-big-pie-settin-on-the-table-and/) [Loretta Lynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loretta-lynn/) > [And as many of the plates as Joseph Smith translated I handled with my hands, plate after plate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-harris/and-as-many-of-the-plates-as-joseph-smith-translated-i-handled-with/) [Martin Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-harris/) > [I'm relaxed at the plate. I'm not trying to do too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-damon/i-m-relaxed-at-the-plate-i-m-not-trying-to-do-too-much/) [Johnny Damon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-damon/) > [Patience is very important, especially at the plate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-reyes/patience-is-very-important-especially-at-the-plate/) [Jose Reyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-reyes/) > [The fact is I am growing old too fast, alas! I feel it, and yet work I will, and may God grant me life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-james-audubon/the-fact-is-i-am-growing-old-too-fast-alas-i-feel-it-and-yet-work-i/) [John James Audubon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-james-audubon/) > [I try to always step up to the plate, be professional, be good at what I'm doing and deliver on the character. In Hollywood,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-lawrence/i-try-to-always-step-up-to-the-plate-be-professional-be-good-at-what/) [Martin Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-lawrence/) > [There is only one way to pitch to Musial - under the plate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-durocher/there-is-only-one-way-to-pitch-to-musial-under-the-plate/) [Leo Durocher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-durocher/) > [I don't just want the belt, I want every one of their heads on a plate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/conor-mcgregor/i-don-t-just-want-the-belt-i-want-every-one-of-their-heads-on-a-plate/) [Conor McGregor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/conor-mcgregor/) > [We all have to be dishes on a plate eventually, with the way we are marketed, but I have no intention of being a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mika/we-all-have-to-be-dishes-on-a-plate-eventually-with-the-way-we-are/) [Mika](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mika/) ## More by Patton Oswalt > [The process is to me is going onstage night after night after night after night until I get a new hour. And then once…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patton-oswalt/the-process-is-to-me-is-going-onstage-night-after-night-after-night/) [Patton Oswalt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patton-oswalt/) > [I can't say that I ever abided nerd stereotypes: I was never alone or felt outcast.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patton-oswalt/i-can-t-say-that-i-ever-abided-nerd-stereotypes-i-was-never-alone-or/) [Patton Oswalt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patton-oswalt/) > [“If I hear the term ‘healing journey’ one more f–king time… It is not a ‘healing journey.’ It’s a ‘numb slog.’ It’s just a,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patton-oswalt/if-i-hear-the-term-healing-journey-one-more-f-king-time-it-is-not-a/) [Patton Oswalt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patton-oswalt/) > [I think I realized it was an art form at the beginning, but it took me a really long time before I was able…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patton-oswalt/i-think-i-realized-it-was-an-art-form-at-the-beginning-but-it-took-me/) [Patton Oswalt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patton-oswalt/) > [I wish I had a really cool, esoteric answer, but what the process is to me is going onstage night after night after night…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patton-oswalt/i-wish-i-had-a-really-cool-esoteric-answer-but-what-the-process-is-to/) [Patton Oswalt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patton-oswalt/) > [If I were to just focus on stand-up, I could actually, paradoxically enough, be home way more, because I would leave on a Friday,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patton-oswalt/if-i-were-to-just-focus-on-stand-up-i-could-actually-paradoxically/) [Patton Oswalt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patton-oswalt/) > [“hobos' (a slang term that combines the words 'hope' and 'bowl of beans given to me for free by a woman who then initiated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patton-oswalt/hobos-a-slang-term-that-combines-the-words-hope-and-bowl-of-beans/) [Patton Oswalt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patton-oswalt/) > [As much as I know people love the method and what you can draw out of yourself, a lot of acting is very imaginative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patton-oswalt/as-much-as-i-know-people-love-the-method-and-what-you-can-draw-out-of/) [Patton Oswalt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patton-oswalt/) > [We're rewarding either the reality or the appearance of youth, which is why you have all these people in their fifties trying to act…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patton-oswalt/we-re-rewarding-either-the-reality-or-the-appearance-of-youth-which/) [Patton Oswalt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patton-oswalt/) > [With a comedian, it's the opposite. You put that album out, and they've heard it. If they're coming out to see you, you'd better…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patton-oswalt/with-a-comedian-it-s-the-opposite-you-put-that-album-out-and-they-ve/) [Patton Oswalt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patton-oswalt/) > [If you actually do cold readings, it's very close to how people actually talk, because you're experiencing these thoughts anew every moment, and trying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patton-oswalt/if-you-actually-do-cold-readings-it-s-very-close-to-how-people/) [Patton Oswalt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patton-oswalt/) > [What I was trying to say in that bit, without saying it out loud, is that there were things - you're right, everything is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patton-oswalt/what-i-was-trying-to-say-in-that-bit-without-saying-it-out-loud-is/) [Patton Oswalt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patton-oswalt/) > [Is it bad when you refer to all alcohol as "Pain Go Bye-Bye Juice"?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patton-oswalt/is-it-bad-when-you-refer-to-all-alcohol-as-pain-go-bye-bye-juice/) [Patton Oswalt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patton-oswalt/) > [It wasn't until I went to college and met different people from different areas of life - and then went to San Francisco and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patton-oswalt/it-wasn-t-until-i-went-to-college-and-met-different-people-from/) [Patton Oswalt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patton-oswalt/) > [I have a lot of friends who were stand-ups, and they just stopped after a while, because they didn't like that battle, or they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patton-oswalt/i-have-a-lot-of-friends-who-were-stand-ups-and-they-just-stopped/) [Patton Oswalt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patton-oswalt/) [Explore all 150 Patton Oswalt quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patton-oswalt/) ## More Consumption quotes > [Life as we know it is fundamentally unsatisfying. I think most folks feel this to be true. They know that a life of aimless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-yates/life-as-we-know-it-is-fundamentally-unsatisfying-i-think-most-folks/) [Michael Yates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-yates/) > [“Truth is commodity in political consumption.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toba-beta/truth-is-commodity-in-political-consumption/) [Toba Beta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toba-beta/) > [Is the minor convenience of allowing the present generation the luxury of doubling its energy consumption every 10 years worth the major hazard of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-r-brower/is-the-minor-convenience-of-allowing-the-present-generation-the/) [David R. Brower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-r-brower/) > [The obsessive documentation is itself adjacent to hyper-consumption in our society. The desire to just have everything all the time and adjacent to that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-leo/the-obsessive-documentation-is-itself-adjacent-to-hyper-consumption/) [Ted Leo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-leo/) > [Over-consumption is a cancer eating away at our spiritual vitals. It distances us from the great masses of broken bleeding humanity. It converts us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-j-foster/over-consumption-is-a-cancer-eating-away-at-our-spiritual-vitals-it/) [Richard J. Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-j-foster/) > [The Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program is a very effective way to raise awareness and consumption of two vital food groups that are sometimes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-dean-crapo/the-fresh-fruit-and-vegetable-program-is-a-very-effective-way-to/) Michael Dean Crapo > [On the whole it may be observed, that the specific use of a body of unproductive consumers, is to give encouragement to wealth by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-malthus/on-the-whole-it-may-be-observed-that-the-specific-use-of-a-body-of/) [Thomas Malthus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-malthus/) > [Gentlemen, comrades, do not be concerned about all you hear about Glasnost and Perestroika and democracy in the coming years. They are primarily for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-gorbachev/gentlemen-comrades-do-not-be-concerned-about-all-you-hear-about/) [Mikhail Gorbachev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-gorbachev/) > [We are being conditioned, as a population, to never wait, to never delay our gratification, to accept thoughtless, constant consumption as the new norm.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenna-wortham/we-are-being-conditioned-as-a-population-to-never-wait-to-never-delay/) [Jenna Wortham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenna-wortham/) > [Americans don't eat horses. They are not raised as food animals and they are treated with chemicals that render them unsafe for consumption. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willie-nelson/americans-don-t-eat-horses-they-are-not-raised-as-food-animals-and/) [Willie Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willie-nelson/) > [You might think of consumption as a fairly passive activity, but buying new products and services is actually pretty risky, at least if you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-surowiecki/you-might-think-of-consumption-as-a-fairly-passive-activity-but/) [James Surowiecki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-surowiecki/) > [“Every society clings to a myth by which it lives. Ours is the myth of economic growth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-jackson/every-society-clings-to-a-myth-by-which-it-lives-ours-is-the-myth-of/) [Tim Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-jackson/) > [You cannot control your own population by force, but it can be distracted by consumption.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/you-cannot-control-your-own-population-by-force-but-it-can-be/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [“The regular consumption of amino acids improved my health.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/the-regular-consumption-of-amino-acids-improved-my-health/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [At the outset of the creation of the euro in 1999, it was expected that the southern eurozone economies would behave like those in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-greenspan/at-the-outset-of-the-creation-of-the-euro-in-1999-it-was-expected/) [Alan Greenspan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-greenspan/) [Browse all 771 Consumption quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consumption/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It’s the method of consumption, not what’s on the plate.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Patton Oswalt" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patton-oswalt/it-s-the-method-of-consumption-not-what-s-on-the-plate/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Consumption" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patton-oswalt/it-s-the-method-of-consumption-not-what-s-on-the-plate/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/98c/patton-oswalt-2795_consumption_it-s-the-method-of-consumption-not-what_2610005.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/98c/patton-oswalt-2795_consumption_it-s-the-method-of-consumption-not-what_2610005.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/98c/patton-oswalt-2795_consumption_it-s-the-method-of-consumption-not-what_2610005.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It’s the method of consumption, not what’s on the plate.” — Patton Oswalt", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Patton Oswalt", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patton-oswalt/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "It’s the method of consumption, not...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patton-oswalt/it-s-the-method-of-consumption-not-what-s-on-the-plate/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patton-oswalt/it-s-the-method-of-consumption-not-what-s-on-the-plate/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```