I was wondering if y'all knew what the hold up at the eggo plant is. I ran across the attached signs while at the grocery store the other night, then tried to follow up on the eggo website which linked me to an error page. What is the world without mass produced waffle goodness?

What, indeed?

Since Kimberly wrote in, Kellogg's has fixed their site's FAQ, and it now tells waffle seekers:

Several recent events have lead to supply issues for Eggo waffles. We want to apologize for the inconvenience this has caused you, our loyal consumers. We are working hard to return to business as usual as quickly as possible. Please be assured that Kellogg is committed to continuing to deliver the high-quality products that our customers and consumers know and trust.

What are those "recent events?" Well, there was September's recall of a few thousand cases of Eggo waffles due to listeria contamination.

We checked with Kellogg's to see if they can give us any updates on waffle production, and will pass on any information we get.

Contact Us/FAQs [Kellogg's]

It is a good idea to get in a nice workout prior to the meal as well. This is a great way to get your metabolism running at full speed and burn off some calories that you'll surely be adding right back up. I recommend a large amount of cardio exercise preferably running, biking or swimming....

It is acceptable to go around slow diners as long as there is room on the other side and you will not be needing to reach back towards the skipped individual. A powerful technique here can be the "accidental" elbow bump in order to encourage them to move on. It is also important to steel yourself from others use of this maneuver....

I try to allot a large portion of my meal to high cost items, while sampling things that look tasty and also making sure that I get to those items that I know and love....

You'll want to be sure that you have to further commitments for at least 3 hours and preferably the remainder of the day....

Are you an all you can eat aficionado? What tactics and etiquettes do you follow to get the most out of your smorgasboard?

The All-Inclusive All-You-Can-Eat Buffet Guide [Eating The Road] (Photo: Bryan Maleszyk)

So goes the jingle for the Subway $5 footlong campaign whose success has the sandwich chain within striking distance of McDonald's, and is all the more surprising considering that the idea started not at headquarters or in an ad-agency, but was the brainchild of a guy who only owned two Subways trying to boost sagging weekend sales.

It's a cool story that shows how entrepreneurs can break through even in a tough economy by creatively offering customers a little more value.

The Accidental Hero [Business Week] (Photo: NickNguyen)

Staring back up from her preparations for Sunday dinner was a whole dead frog, an unwelcome interloper who arrived via a bag of Glory Mustard Greens. "I hate frogs," said Carla.

Walmart said they are going to work with the manufacturer and refund the customer's money.

Carla plans on getting her salad from a different source in the future. "The next greens I eat will be growing in my garden outside," she told UPI.

Check out the video on Digital Journal.

Will this force Best Buy and Amazon, among others, to lower their TV prices? If you've been saving up for a new TV, this might be a fun season to comparison shop.

"This is the proven and effective method they deploy using major categories to drive loyalty and to take marginal sales away from the competition," Richard Hastings, a Charlotte, North Carolina-based consumer strategist for Global Hunter Securities LLC, said in an e-mail. The strategy may force others to lower prices, he said.

"Walmart Cuts Turkey, Television Prices to Grab Holiday Sales" [Bloomberg]
(Photo: laurgasms)

He writes:

I went to a Subway store in South Beach Fl, specifically in Washington Ave and 5th street, and ordered only a $5 footlong sub for lunch.

When I was told the total was $5.45, I asked why I was being charged those 45 cents, and the attendant only replied it was because the sales taxes. Since I clearly know sales taxes in Miami-Dade county (where South Beach is located) are only 7%, which calculates to 35 cents over the sub's price, I asked her why the overcharge, and she simply responded she didn't know and that it was what the register calculated.

For the mathematically impaired:

$5.00 + 7% tax = $5.35

$5.00 + 9% tax = $5.45

I wonder if that extra 2% in sales taxes this Subway store charges is for the "privilege" of finding something cheap to eat while you hang out in South Beach.

UPDATE: Subway isn't doing anything wrong here. The extra 2 percent comes from a tacked-on Food and Beverage Task.

(Photo: Morton Fox)

No, I'm not being sarcastic. This is legitimately good chicken wing eating technique. Enjoy.

[via BuzzFeed]

Among the many ideas offered by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services in an annual guide to ditching the candy without tossing your cookies, are a few we think are pretty good:

How are you dealing with your HFCS overload? Post your tips in the comments. And don't forget to floss.

What do you do with all that leftover Halloween candy? [MCT News]

(Photo: Morton Fox)

Even milk-covered desert cereals like Lucky Charms, Reese's Puffs, and Cookie Crisp have 3-4 health claims on their boxes, the report finds. And most of the cereals with the lowest nutritional content are still pimp themselves out as being "better-for you" or "Smart Choices."

The cereal companies typically "dual-market." From one side of their mouth, convince parents that it's a healthy and wholesome start to the day. Out the other, tell kids that cereal is a fun game.

Someone should tell these companies childhood obesity is no game. Parents need to make smart purchasing decisions, but regulators need to start taking on these bogus health claims.

Mixed Messages From Sugary Cereal Makers [The Atlantic]
Cereal FACTS:Evaluating the nutrition quality and marketing of children's cereals (PDF) (4-page summary (PDF))

Kroger says:

It is true our website is behind at the moment due to a website issue we had a few weeks ago, and we are answering emails as quickly as we can to get caught up. We have been receiving several emails from customers stating coupons are being rejected by stores simply for being printed from the internet. This is against our policy and is currently under investigation. I have actually been working with our divisional office on this matter to determine why store directors are telling customers they are not accepting any internet coupons. It is our corporate policy to accept any print-at-home coupons, provided they fall under the guidelines I provided for you in my original email. The reason I provided those guidelines for you is so you have access to the actual corporate policy. I completely understand your frustration, and we have not yet determined why the coupons are being denied, as this is still under investigation. If you would like, I can forward the case I set up regarding your incident to the store director and request he/she contact you back regarding the matter.

The bottom line remains the fact that this should not be happening. We offer print-at-home coupons on our websites and we completely encourage their usage in our stores, as we understand how hard times are these days and how every little bit helps. The case that I initially set up regarding this incident has already gone through the store director and has been acknowledged, but as I said before, if you prefer, I can most definitely have the store director follow up with you on the matter if you prefer.

It's nice that Kroger is admitting it has a problem, but inexplicable that the issue is happening in the first place. Have any of you ran into such chicanery at the store?

(Photo: So Cal Metro)

Use "Catalinas" right then and there- coupons that come out of the register when you buy certain items and are used like cash on your next purchase. Guess what? That next purchase is now. Use the Catalinas right away.

Combine store sales with coupons - If it's on sale for $1 and you have a $1 off coupon, you just got it free.

Find coupons online - Get started at sites like super-couponing.com. There's a million of them out there. So...

Narrow your search - Find a coupon blog that deals with your local area.

Results may vary - Cashiers with different training, or in different moods, may react unevenly to certain coupon combo moves.

What are your favorite coupon tricks?

Supermarket Sweep - Using coupons to get free groceries [Slate] (Thanks to Joanne!) (Photo: laurgasm)

A few recent highlights:

• Easy pumpkin soup: $4.29 recipe / $1.07 serving
• BBQ chicken dinner - $9.68 recipe / $2.42 serving
• Cherry Almond Danishes - $8.48 recipe / $1.06 serving

• Oh yeah, and there are cocktail recipes too. The recipes are sized for four to eight portions, generally, making a few days of good leftover eating if you cook for only one or two people.

  Budget Bytes (Thanks, Mary Sue!)

  RELATED:
  What's Your Favorite Recipe Site?
  Is It Cheaper To Make Or To Buy? Six Foods Tested

KFC's latest freebie will be minus Oprah Winfrey's star power from a May giveaway and, KFC President Roger Eaton promises, without the snafus when a free grilled chicken coupon on Oprah's Web site overwhelmed the chain, with some stores running out of the meals.

[...]

This time, things will be orderly and efficient, he promised. "We gear the shifts up so we make sure we've got the staffing, we make sure we've got the chicken," Eaton said.

"KFC unveils another free-chicken offer" [Arizona Daily Star]
(Photo: kevinpoh)

I especially like the one where the bowl of fries is grabbing the bottle and shaking it onto themselves. Underneath each design is a student's name and school. Turns out it's part of a Heinz packet design contest for schoolchildren. Kids get some name recognition (and $1,000), teachers get a free lesson plan (and $1,000 in art supplies), and Heinz gets to infiltrate the minds of K-12 students (and give schools $1,000 of their ketchup). Wins all around. [KetchupCreativity]

This has us wondering, what other restaurant or fast foods would you like to recreate in your own kitchen? Any good recipes to share? Tell us in the comments.

The Fake Shack [Serious Eats via Buzzfeed]
(Photo:I. M. Bitter)

Here's another idea. What if we use the money generated by fast food purchases to subsidize the prices of healthy food, like fruits, vegetables and fresh fish? Right now, fast food is generally cheaper than a healthy meal, and much easier to come by. There are fast food restaurants everywhere, but the healthy, cheap and easily accessible options are much more scarce. By channeling the money from junk food to good food, we are not preventing anyone from eating a burger...we're just making it way more easy to buy a similarly-priced healthy alternative.

I would argue that calling the tax what it is—perhaps a "junk food tax"—is better than saying "fat tax." No one calls tobacco taxes "lung cancer taxes."

Would this help create more healthy food options in poor neighborhoods? Probably not. Will people pick up a whole trout instead of a slice of pizza for a quick lunch? Probably not. Slapping a tax on every prepared meal that someone (who?) deems bad for us is an oversimplification, but is this a good idea?

Should There Be a "Fat Tax" on Junk Food? [WiseBread]

(Photo: Paxton Holley)

Alan says:

Here is a menu for a local restaurant where I live. The interesting stuff is on page 4.
Of particular note:

Item C14 is "Beef Brisket in Wikipedia Flavor"

I guess when you have to come up with names for hundreds of items, you must get a little punchy toward the end.

The Herbal Menu on the right side of page 4 is ideal for those who want to take the edge off their appetite so as not to order too much. It includes words like: "internal bleeding," diarrhea, sweat, phlegm,
urination, and nausea.

We wonder what the flavor of Wikipedia is. Maybe halfway to your house the delivery driver decides to throw in some extra carrots. Then, when he stops for gas, the gas station guy adds some onions...

[Full Menu]
[Green Tea II]

EaterSF says that when their tipster asked about the logistics of the "Las Vegas," the cashier said, "We do it right here!"

Well, there ya go.

Special Oakland Creperie Will Spank You For A Mere $25 [Eater SF] (Thanks, DK!)
(Photo:Eater SF)

The program consists of 14 days of Nutrisystem menu, free shipping, access to weight-loss counseling and free membership in Nutrisystem's online community, and is priced at $148, the company said in a statement.

Apparently the company has been hurting as people cut back on expenses due to the recession.

Are you more likely to try this diet if it's available at Walmart?

NutriSystem to sell its weight-loss product at Wal-Mart [Reuters]

From Anemona Hartocollis at the New York Times:

The study... tracked customers at four fast-food chains - McDonald's, Wendy's, Burger King and Kentucky Fried Chicken - in poor neighborhoods of New York City where there are high rates of obesity.

It found that about half the customers noticed the calorie counts, which were prominently posted on menu boards. About 28 percent of those who noticed them said the information had influenced their ordering, and 9 out of 10 of those said they had made healthier choices as a result.

But when the researchers checked receipts afterward, they found that people had, in fact, ordered slightly more calories than the typical customer had before the labeling law went into effect, in July 2008.

There are two things to note before gloating that the policy doesn't work, or railing aginst the inability of consumers to look out for their best interests.

The first is that the study focused on poor neighborhoods where people are possibly more concerned about immediate food costs than long-term health costs:

"Nutrition is not the top concern of low-income people, who are probably the least amenable to calorie labeling," said Michael F. Jacobson, executive director of the Center for Science in the Public Interest, a nonprofit health advocacy group in Washington.

The second is that the study took place right after the law went into effect, and there has been subsequent nutrition education by the city. However, that also means there's been more time for consumers to grow used to the labeling and stop noticing it at all.

Times says the city is doing its own, broader study and will release the results "in a few months."

"Calorie Postings Don't Change Habits, Study Finds" [New York Times]

It's funny because on one level you value the origination factor, and think that there's something special, or better by going "straight to the source." But when the product is now internationally distributed and subject to strict quality controls, and the "source" is just a symbol, that's not the case.

The cart Schnitzel & Things was opened earlier this year by an investment banker who was laid off by his firm in January. The Cupcake Stop, which enjoyed a lot of media attention (at least in the NYC area) this past summer, was started by a law school grad who couldn't find work. And there's The Big Gay Ice Cream Truck, opened as a "summer job" by a bassoonist. We're not sure what makes ice cream any gayer than it already naturally is, but if we see the truck around town we'll try to investigate.

One interesting thing about all three street carts is that they're not small-scale operations, at least not when compared to traditional street vendors. All three operate out of food service trucks, and have websites to promote their menus and locations. Another one we've seen around parts of Brooklyn is Wafels & Dinges, a Belgian waffle vendor. And another one, Street Sweets, was seen as enough of a threat to nearby restaurants that they've done everything from hire a moving van to take up parking space, to call the police, fire department, and HAZMAT teams on various trumped up complaints.

The investment banker says he only makes about half of what he made at his old job, but that he enjoys running his own business. We don't know if the number of fancy-style food carts will continue to grow, or if this is an economy-fueled trend. But hey, there's an annual awards ceremony for them called the Vendy Awards.

"Street-Cart Economy: Banker Savors Life as Food Vendor" [CNBC] (Thanks to Cindy!)
(Photo: CNBC)

Lose The Weight And Keep It Off: Mission Impossible? [Newsweek]
Midlands Man's Weight Loss Inspires Others [WLTX]
344pounds [Tyler's blog]

The New York City-funded study looked at 1,127 Starbucks purchases and 1,830 from Dunkin' Donuts, and included surveys of customers at 42 Starbucks and 73 Dunkin Donuts. After reviewing the data, the CDC concluded:

Blended coffee beverages have many more calories than does a brewed cup of coffee or tea, to which calories are introduced mainly from added milk or sugar. One high-calorie blended coffee beverage sold at Starbucks is the Strawberries & Crème Frappuccino Blended Crème; the largest size ("venti," 24 oz) with whipped cream contains 750 kcal, or approximately 38% of the 2,000-kcal diet often used as a benchmark for total daily calorie intake. A large Dunkin' Donuts Vanilla Bean Coolatta (32 oz) contains 860 kcal.

While most of the data collected by the CDC might seem obvious to anyone who's ever tasted one of these drinks, the agency does make some good points about how coffee chains could offer customers lower-calorie alternatives:

Small changes on the industry's part could also help reduce calorie intake. The high calorie content of blended coffee beverages is attributable in part to the large portion sizes. At Dunkin' Donuts, the sizing for small, medium, and large ice-blended drinks is 16 oz, 24 oz, and 32 oz, respectively, and the average calorie content we calculated was 397 kcal. However, if Dunkin' Donuts adopted Starbucks sizing of 12 oz, 16 oz, and 24 oz for its ice-blended beverages, the average calories in beverages offered would drop to 285 kcal.

The report also acknowledged efforts undertaken by both Starbucks and Dunkin' to introduce lower-calories drinks. In the end, though, the findings were somewhat inconclusive, stating that the drinks "most likely contribute to the obesity epidemic." Hmm. Sounds like it's time for another study.

Calories From Beverages Purchased at 2 Major Coffee Chains in New York City, 2007 [CDC via Gothamist]
(Photo: basheertome)

In response to sky-rocketing commodities prices, food and consumer product manufacturers started reducing the amount of product you got in various boxes and packages while keeping the price the same. Indeed, readers continue to find new examples to this month. We dubbed this practice the "Grocery Shrink Ray." At the time, I expressed my skepticism that when commodities prices eventually fell again that manufacturers, having acclimated us to getting less for our money, would pass on the savings. Looks like this Cassandra was right on the money.

(Thanks to Steve518!)
PREVIOUSLY: Grocery Shrink Ray thread
BONUS: United States of Shrink Ray Anthem

Pizza Hut iPhone App [iTunes Store] (Thanks to Dirk!)

According to published reports, the two 17-year-old girls, who were visiting England from Italy, squeezed two blueberry muffins, and purchased a third, before being stopped by security as they tried to leave the store. The Sun reports that, after being questioned in the store's basement, the girls were released with a warning that included a threat of criminal charges:

Staff told them they had committed an offence of "food contamination" and gave them a document containing formal advice. The pre-printed piece of paper warned of the potential criminal action the girls faced and instructed them to call a lawyer.

A Tesco spokesperson said the girls had been seen "damaging" the muffins, adding that "they were stopped outside the shop, taken back in and told what they had done was wrong."

We can only wonder what Tesco would have done with Mr. Whipple.

We'll sue for muffin squeeze [The Sun]

Everything from McDonald's burgers and fries to Pizza Hut dishes to candy and soda is sold in public schools, often in lunch rooms. While companies that market to children have adopted guidelines that ostensibly ban in-school food marketing to kids under 12, the rules are ambiguous, to say the least. The Children's Food and Beverage Advertising Initiative's Fact Sheet on the Elementary School Advertising Principles [pdf] allows for so many loopholes—marketing on vending machine exteriors, branded display racks, sponsored curricula—that the limits are mostly useless.

Want to support a bill to study food and food marketing in schools? If so, write your Representative using this handy form and ask him or her to support the National School Food Marketing Assessment Act.

Food Industry Seeks to Maintain Junk-Food Marketing in Schools [Center for Science in the Public Interest]

(Photo via The Gifted Photographer)

We went up to Baltimore to watch our Red Sox play the Orioles. We prefer Camden Yards to the overpriced Nationals Stadium in DC, and we usually go up to Baltimore a couple times each season. On Friday and Saturday we purchased Super Dogs, a gigantic and delicious hot dog that could could only be better if the concession stand provided onions. As far as ballpark hot dogs go, these were tops.

When we went to Sunday's game, we purchased a Super Dog. The foil wrapper was kind of crumbled, but we thought nothing of it until we opened it up to dress it. It was a very sad hot dog. Look at this thing:


Whereas the previous days' Super Dogs were moist and plump, this was withered and pathetic, like one of those forgotten franks rotating alone at a 7-Eleven. We'd say there was a pretty good chance that this was a hot dog from the previous day that had sat around somewhere overnight. We tried to bring it back to life with lots of ketchup and mustard, but our efforts were in vain.

We foolishly took a bite of the dog, hoping that the inside was somehow still good. It wasn't.

Fortunately, a sign near our seats informed us that if we needed assistance, we could text "Orioles Issue Location" to a number and someone from the Orioles would respond. So we did:

Portending the failure that was ahead, it took eight minutes for the Orioles's bot to even get back to us:


We wrapped the dog up and stuck it under our seat, waiting for help to arrive. No one came. After a few hours, we reminded them that we were still waiting for assistance:

But no one ever responded, and we watched the Sox sweep the O's on an empty stomach. We probably should have just returned it, but we didn't want to lose the proof in case someone from the Orioles actually showed up with a substitute dog. Like some other parks, Camden Yards lets fans take outside food and drink into the stadium. We like ballpark hot dogs, but we'll be bringing our own snacks from now on.

(Photo: coneslayer)

From the NYT:

About half of the chicken parts sold to China are wings and feet, which are worth only a few cents a pound in the United States. As delicacies in China, they fetch 60 cents to 80 cents a pound, a price that no other foreign market comes close to matching, according to industry experts.

Mr. Aho said the big chicken feet result from the American preference for white chicken meat. A bird bred for big breasts is necessarily bred to have big, strong feet and legs, he said. The United States is by far the world's leading supplier of king-size chicken feet.

China is threatening to cut off imports of American chicken, but experts think they are too cracked out on our awesome chicken feet to go through with it.

"We have these jumbo, juicy paws the Chinese really love," said Paul W. Aho, a poultry economist and consultant, "so I don't think they are going to cut us off."

You know, it's nice to be good at something.

Chewy Chicken Feet May Quash a Trade War [NYT] (Thanks, Cory!)
(Photo:Stewart)

"Report: Consumers crave premium burgers" [Boston.com]
(Photo: GorillaSushi)

"It took only seconds for the extremely high temperature of the interior portion of the food item to severely burn and blister (Cullen's) skin," attorney Joseph K. Curran Jr. wrote in a complaint filed in Norfolk Superior Court.

Before handing the hash brown to her son to eat, the boy's mother, Robin, checked it and found it was "lukewarm," the suit states. The family claims the hash brown heated up "unevenly" and that the food's interior temperature was "unsafe for public consumption."

The family's attorney insists that this case is absolutely nothing like the infamous McDonald's scalding-hot coffee case, and have not yet explained what kind of amazing heating device cooks hash browns from the inside out.

Parents feel burned after Dunkin' Donuts visit [Boston Herald]

(Photo: Morton Fox)

"If you don't have a credit card, you can use a debit card," said the restaurant's co-owner, Tony Zazula. "If you don't have a debit card, you probably don't have a checking account. And if you don't have a checking account, you probably shouldn't be eating at Commerce to begin with."

The Wall Street Journal says the owner got the idea after riding on an American Airlines flight. We hope that's as far as his brainstorming goes; we'd hate to see what kinds of surcharges a creative restaurateur could come up with in the spirit of air travel.

"New York Restaurant Loses Its Appetite for Cash " [WSJ] (Thanks to Chad!)
(Photo: gailf548)

Health experts, the FDA, and the USDA aren't impressed with the criteria that allows Lunchables and Froot Loops to be designated a "Smart Choice."

"You could start out with some sawdust, add calcium or Vitamin A and meet the criteria," said Mike Jacobson from the Center for Science for Public Interest. Well yeah, sawdust is pretty much all fiber, so this new vitamin-enhanced fiber sounds great!

For Your Health, Froot Loops [NYT]
(Photo: ninjapoodles)

Edd says:

Our local Wal-Wart put up a Pepsico soda and chips display in the center of the toy department. As you can see it isn't an accidental deal. It is exactly in the middle of the length of the aisle, and between the girl and the boy toys. In other words, dead center of their toy department. It is amongst the Nerf, and across from My Little Pony.

My wife asked, and was told that this was an order directly from a central office...

There appear to be some DVDs next to the snacks, which we suppose is the rationale. What do you think? Is this cool with you?

This footage, shot with a hidden camera at Hy-Line Hatchery, shows male chicks systematically culled and ground up alive, due to their inability to produce eggs. If seeing the merciless machinery shown here doesn't turn your stomach, a brief interview with one of the food processors will. The assembly-line worker casually talks about maimed chicks-the ones who slip through the cracks-as if they were sparkplugs or staplers... and, in a way, I suppose, they are.

Still, there's gotta be a better way than veganism.

Undercover Investigation at Hy-Line Hatchery [Mercy for Animals via Alternet]

PREVIOUSLY: Secret Film Of Hy-Line Hatchery Shows "Inappropriate Action" Of Workers

The "Bites" menu is the most confusing, probably because I struggle with the concept of paying someone to pour water in an Instant Lunch cup and serve it to me.

- Quaker Oatmeal Express Golden Brown Sugar $3
- Maruchan Instant Lunch – Chicken $3
- Pringles Chips – Original $3
- Nabisco Mini Oreo Cookies $3
- Twizzlers – Strawberry $3
- Planters Daybreak Blend Apple Cinnamon Trail Mix $4
- Blue Diamond Almonds – Roasted Salted $5

The menu also features a breakfast "Fruit, cheese and meat platter" ($7), sandwiches and salads for dinner, and, interestingly, cocktails for $8. Because there's nothing like a premixed pomegranate martini when flying to a conference in Houston.

If they're going to charge for in-flight meals, this isn't too bad, but the lack of vegetarian options that aren't up in the "snack" column is a little dismaying.

Soda and coffee, however, remain free.

US Airways MarketPlace™ - food, drinks & more (Thanks, Marti!)

(Photo: Food in Real Life)