Everyone knows what a bistro is...right? And a la carte is a term that even a fifth grader knows...well, maybe not. And what exactly does smart casual mean? There are so many words and terms in English language that are taken for granted, including those used in restaurant industry. In a public service to diners from Boston to Bakersfield, Boston's Hidden Restaurants presents a glossary of useful, as well as totally useless, restaurant terms. (Note: This page is part of our restaurant features section.)

A La Carte A term used by more upscale, expensive restaurants that means each item is separate. If a restaurant says that bread and water are a la carte, flee as quickly as you can.

Bar Pizza A type of pizza served in bars (duh!) that is smaller in diameter (usually about 10 inches) and greasier than pizzas found in restaurants or sub shops. Bar pizza tends to taste better with beer, and MUCH better after many beers.

Bistro A small restaurant, usually informal, that typically has a decent wine list. If a place that calls itself a bistro does not have a wine list, it is simply known as a "small restaurant."

Captain An employee at a restaurant who supervises waitstaff and typically seats patrons. These people used to be called "hosts," but for some reason, many restaurants now call them "captains." Some restaurants include a place on bill for tipping captains. If you see this, flee as quickly as you can.

Chef Typically, chief cook of a restaurant staff. Don't ever call a chef a cook; he or she will not like that and may put some extra MSG in your food.

To defend their position cow's milk critics maintain that humans are only mammals that consume milk in adult age. This has never convinced me, because except when we humans become aggressive, we do everything different from animal kingdom.

In first place we should keep in mind that milk is a food, and treat it as such. Before modern measurement methods broke down every nutritious substance to smallest possible unit, people relied on traditional knowledge, real life experience, and their own body intelligence to decide if a food was healthful for them. Likewise mothers' intuition regarding their children's nourishment was accepted as most natural thing on earth.

Don't get me wrong, research is necessary and very useful, but it is not absolute. It has an incidental byproduct, which is that regarding nutrition too many consumers prefer to rely blindly on general recommendations, become lazy, and forget that an essential part of staying healthy is listening to their own body signals.

Most adults tolerate one glass of top quality or organic milk a day quite well. However, any amount of milk can cause stomachache if you insist on drinking more of it than your system can take. But isn't it same with all foods?

Cow's milk is not only good source of calcium, which seems to be main worry. For example, dark green vegetables and hiziki seaweed contain easily absorbable calcium. Real vegetarians need fifty per cent less calcium than those who eat meat every day.

If you love milk products, a reasonable compromise is drinking 8,5 ounces or 250 ml of warm cow's milk a day, at most, and rest as fermented forms of milk like kefir. Or you can emulate Mediterranean who add some milk to their morning coffee and that's it for day.

Lactose Intolerance And Cow's Milk Allergy