How is the expression ‘an Indian’ not offensive?

[Yellownotblue]

As in, an Indian take away or delivery meal.

I find it quite odd to hear one specific type of cuisine referred to like this. Would you say “ we’re going for a French tonight” or “he invited me to his place for an Italian”? Somehow it seems dismissive and disrespectful.

For full disclosure, I’m not Indian but my husband is of Asian ancestry and our children have dual heritage. I’m British (first generation migrant). I was born and brought up in North America and can’t remember the expression ‘an Indian’ ever being used as short for Indian food before I moved to Britain.

@Pluas 😂😂
The horror!
Actually now i am curious if it's possible to eat ONLY food with Anglo-Saxon credentials and still eat well🙈

Meat, bread and turnips?

I say having a curry, having Mexican, Italian a Chinese, and Thai.

Im trying figure out why I say a Chinese, but I think it's just what other people say.

I'll let you all figure out my ethnicity

kidadl.com/articles/anglo-saxon-food

😁

I wasn't far off then.

Well I'm having "an Indian" tonight, last Sunday I had "a Chinese' we say it for whatever we're having, Italian, Indian, Chinese, chippy tea, even when we just go to weatherspoons we're having "a spoons" 😂

During lockdown we’ve had takeaways from every nationality. Anything to ring the changes. We refer to them as the country they are from - an Italian, an Indian, a Thai, a Mexican etc. Thought that was the norm?

Am so looking forward to actually going to a restaurant for a meal.

What about chocolate brownies? Are they PC or not?

Anything with the word ‘chocolate’ in it is PC!

@Xenia

It offends me in terms of grammar! I fight every day against people using adjectives as nouns. Indian describes what follows eg an Indian meal or a Chinese meal I would never say I am going for a Chinese - sloppy poor English. [I won't add a Prince Philip joke there....]

Not that I would ever eat foreign food. I don't even eat British gravy and detest curry!

This is the most ridiculous yet the most predictable post on this thread.

I say an italian, an indian, a chinese as shorthand for an indian meal or an italian meal. You are being completely ridiculous.

@Xenia

It offends me in terms of grammar! I fight every day against people using adjectives as nouns. Indian describes what follows eg an Indian meal or a Chinese meal I would never say I am going for a Chinese - sloppy poor English. [I won't add a Prince Philip joke there....]

Not that I would ever eat foreign food. I don't even eat British gravy and detest curry!

Adjectives used as nouns ‘offend’ you? You must really struggle.

The rich, the poor, the meek, the fortunate, the unemployed, the English, the American, the deceased, the successful, the homeless, the injured, the old, the young, the accused?

I’m actually quite fond of Xenia in the way you are fond of your weird uncle who says embarrassing things at Christmas dinner when drunk
She’s come a long way since her “ why doesn’t everyone earn £1000a day” post but is always consistent.

@Handsoffstrikesagain

The more xenia posts on here, the more I wonder how long it’ll be before we finally all find out who he/she is behind the account. It’s like elaborate satire, becoming more and more ridiculous and exaggerated over time.

She has revealed so much about herself you can easily find a dailymail article about her.

I fight everyday against people using adjectives as nouns.

Well yes, I get that. It passes the time I suppose but we are not permitted to do so in person, so I suppose its keyboard only.

Ah, for those halycon days when one could enjoy a real life skirmish with a faulty adjective user.

Isn't Xenia's son a chef who busies himself creating and selling ethnic food to entrapped students?

@cansu

I say an italian, an indian, a chinese as shorthand for an indian meal or an italian meal. You are being completely ridiculous.

Just coming on to say this! Shall we have a Mexican, an Italian, an Indian, a Chinese, a Turkish, a Japanese, a Thai TAKEAWAY / MEAL? People just miss off ‘meal/takeaway’ because they are lazy. But fgs, we all know what they mean.

@Yellownotblue

I’m specifically referring to abbreviating it to ‘an Indian’. I don’t think I’ve ever heard anyone say they were going for ‘an Italian’. Maybe I’m wrong or it’s a regional thing?

Must be regional because people round here say going for an Italian, Indian or Chinese - it's just a turn of phrase.

I actually do say we are having “a Thai” if it’s takeaway. We also say “having an Indian” and having “a Chinese” or “an Italian”.

Seriously stop looking for offence everywhere. Just coz you’ve not heard it growing up outside of the UK, does not mean it’s offensive. And even if it is offensive to you, so what?! Nobody ever died of offense. Sick to bloody death of shite like this woke policing of language.

@waitingfor40

Well I'm having "an Indian" tonight, last Sunday I had "a Chinese' we say it for whatever we're having, Italian, Indian, Chinese, chippy tea, even when we just go to weatherspoons we're having "a spoons" 😂

Omg yeah I forgot “a spoons” are we being offensive to cutlery?!

@ThaimForTea,I think some sort of linguistic police force should conduct a survey of food providers and assess their level of outrage.