<正> Generally speaking, American food is rather bland and unspiced. Salads are much liked and are served all year round. Many American people are trying to keep down their weight and so they are "calorie" conscious. This is evident in menus offering "low calorie" or "weight watchers" meals. In markets one can find "No Cal" drinks (meaning without calories) such as ginger ale or cola. "Diet" foods without sugar or salt are also available in food stores. Waiters in American restaurants tend to assume that everyone drinks coffee. If a waiter suddenly asks "Now or later?" what he means is "Do you want coffee with your meal