Y&H is not a political animal. I don’t hang on every breath coming from a politician’s mouth to understand how one new word may indicate a change in policy. It’s the truth, and perhaps I should be embarrassed by this fact. I know what you’re thinking: I live in the wrong town.

I’ll table that discussion like a chickenshit politician and get to the point here: Washington City Paper, as a whole, cares a lot about local politics, its food writer notwithstanding. CP and the Kojo Nnamdi Show have just commissioned a cool new poll in which we’ve asked 802 registered Democrats a number of traditional and non-traditional questions about the upcoming mayoral election and other matters. One has to do with food:

In the past month, have you eaten at a restaurant where your bill came to at least $25?

I’m not sure exactly what relevant information we were trying to unearth with the question, but I suspect it has to do with class divides and whether, in this economy, we still indulge in pricey meals. I just have one issue with the question: its vague wording.

The “bill” in question could be for one person, two people, or a whole table. If there’s more than one person involved in the meal, $25 is chicken feed these days. Two people can’t walk out of one of the area’s new pizzeriaswithout spending $25, unless they split a single pizza or something.

Y&H has already waded briefly, and superficially, into these waters with this year’s Dining Guide. High-end dining is hanging on in this town, but its share of the market has shrunk. More casual, neighborhood places are the trend, but even here, you can drop some serious cash before the evening is out.

So here’s the poll question that Y&H would like to offer: In the past month, have you and another (spouse, friend, family member) spend $100 on a meal? Bonus points for telling me where it was.

I have a feeling that many of these meals were spent in casual, neighborhood restaurants.