下面一起来看看外卖的由来以及"take out"（“外卖食品”）和"Take home"（“带回家的食品”）的区别。

The evolution of modern American take-out is a fascinating convergence of social history and packaging technology. A survey of articles in the New York Times confirms the 1950s as the "start date" for modern take-out meals in the United States. This also coincides with the explosion of family restaurants and backyard barbeques.
美国现代外卖食品的发展是社会历史和包装技术的一种奇妙结合。通过调查《纽约时报》上刊登的多篇文章可以证实：20世纪50年代是美国现代外卖食品的“诞生时期”。这段时期又碰巧是家庭式餐馆和后院烧烤急剧发展的时期。

The term "take-out" describes both a style of eating and a growing list of prepared foods that consumers purchase from a restaurant or food stand and eat in another location. Delivery format, packaging, and types of food vary greatly, ranging from hamburgers to expensive gourmet fare, but all may be categorized as takeout because of this off-premise consumption. In the United States, take-out food is often viewed as synonymous with fast food.
“外卖”这个词描述的即是一种饮食方式，又指品种日益增多的现成食品，即消费者可从餐馆或小吃摊购买、在其他地方食用的食品。递送形式、包装和食物的品种都花样繁多：有汉堡，也有价格昂贵的美食大餐。不过这些都可以被归类为“外卖”，因为它们都不是堂食的。在美国，外卖食物常被视同为快餐。

The concept of take-out food and the practice of buying prepared foods for consumption elsewhere date to early civilization. Roadside stands and food stalls in busy urban markets were commonplace in ancient Greece and Rome. Almost every culture in every era has had its version of take-out foods. Urban industrial workers in nineteenth-century America further popularized take-out foods. Food vendors sold various sausages and stews from carts outside factory gates, catering to workers with little time or money.
外卖食品的概念和购买现成食品并在别处食用的习俗可以追溯到早期文明社会。在古希腊和古罗马，路边摊和大排档在繁忙的城市市集上就已经很常见了。不同时期的不同文化几乎都有其特有的外卖食品类型。到了19世纪的美国，城市中的产业工人进一步推动了外卖食品的普及。卖食物的小贩推着手推车在工厂大门外出售各种香肠和炖菜，这迎合了那些时间和经济都很窘迫的工人们的需求。

In many urban areas, Italian and Chinese restaurants competed with early hamburger outlets for take-out customers. Small storefront pizzerias sold inexpensive pizzas and Americanized Chinese foods on a primarily take-out basis. Using broad, flat white cardboard boxes for pizzas and small waxy paper cartons for chow mein and chop suey, these ethnic restaurants standardized distinctive take-out packaging. Although popular in city neighborhoods, ethnic restaurants long composed only a small share of the take-out industry. Automobiles revolutionized the take-out food industy, requiring larger-volume production and specialized delivery systems.
在很多市区内，意大利餐馆和中国餐馆与早期的汉堡店争夺购买外卖食品的顾客。临街的比萨小店也主要以外卖的形式出售便宜的比萨和美国化的中餐。这些外国餐馆都使用标准化的特殊外卖包装：又宽又平的白纸板盒子用来装比萨，涂蜡的小硬纸盒用来装炒面和炒杂烩菜。尽管这些外国餐馆在市区很受欢迎，但长期以来它们只在外卖产业中占很小的份额。汽车的普及使得更大批量生产及专门运送系统成为可能，外卖行业从而取得了突破性进展。

Take home meals 带回家的食品

"Take home"differs from "take out" in that it is marketed as a home meal replacement rather than fast food. It is not necessarily cheaper nor is it always quickly prepared. What sells take home? Convenience and taste. Like take out, this dining option was introduced after World War II.
“带回家的食品”和“外卖食品”是有区别的，前者是买来代替家庭用餐的，而非快餐。这种食品未必便宜，也并不一定总是很快就会做好。“带回家的食品”的卖点何在呢？就在于它的便利性和味道。和外卖一样，这种用餐选择也是在二战后兴起的。

Restaurant chains throughout the U.S. are building up new departments which sell meals for home consumption. Restaurant sales of food for the home are definitely a new industry trend. It won't be long before the average housewife will be buying take-home foods like groceries.
美国全国各地的餐馆连锁店都在增建新的部门来销售可带回家享用的食品。餐馆针对家庭销售食品无疑是一种新的产业趋势。不久，普通的家庭主妇们就会像购买日用品一样购买“带回家的食品”。

The take-home sales should be sold at lower prices than regular restaurant meals because they eliminate waiters, dish washers, table linen, plate breakage and loss of utensils. One of the reasons given for increased demand for prepared meals was television in the home. Some restaurants in New York have regular television menus made up for take-home orders.
“带回家的食品”应该比在一般餐馆吃饭更便宜，这是因为它们免去了服务员、洗碗工、餐桌布、盘子破损和餐具损耗等费用。对现成食品需求上升的一个原因是受家里电视的影响。纽约的一些餐馆有固定的“电视菜单”供（人们）订购“带回家的食品”。