Housemade vs. Homemade

[chefgunshow]

And, once and for all: is "house made" one word or two? What about "homemade?" Is it ever proper to use "homemade" in a restaurant setting as opposed to "house made?" I have about a dozen writing-oriented "things" that torment me, and this is one of them.

 

I like "house-made." But I'm kinda of a hyphen-phile. Get it?

Homemade sounds a little folksy for me, but the message is conveyed. Wouldn't it be awesome if the phrase wasn't even necessary? In a perfect world, if the laws of time, money, and labor percentages were suspended, we could make EVERYTHING ourselves. Harvest salt, grow our own veggies, slaughter our own rabbits. Including the furniture. That would be sweet.

Don't get me wrong. The fact that cooks take pride in doing things themselves makes me love my work even more, and challenges us all to take more on.

Just waxing the platonic (pastoral?) ideal.