FOOD AND FATNESS NOW AND THEN: One argument as to why people are fatter now has to do with restaurant portion sizes, which are a lot bigger than they used to be. Despite other arguments, Helen and I are always reminded of that when we visit Long’s Drug Store, a Knoxville landmark that hasn’t changed much since it opened fifty years ago.

As you can see, Helen’s lunch is pretty small: Nothing supersized here. Of course, all she got was two eggs scrambled and toast.

But I got a cheeseburger. Still, it’s no Monster ThickBurger — just a modest piece of ground beef and some fries. (The crinkle-cut kind, still the best despite the McDonald’s little-fry heresy.) They were actually more generous with the fries than usual.

Whenever we eat here (not all that often, alas) I think that it’s a James Lileks kind of place, though it’s perhaps more fifties-homey than fifties-glitzy, which seems more Lileksesque.

The other nice thing about our lunch is that it cost $7.16 — plus tip, which was rather more than 15%. I don’t feel like the waitresses should suffer for the low prices.