I was looking through my towns Police Dispatch log for today — killing time, and noticed an odd insert that read the following ...

Police Response: Incident Desc: Disorderly Subject OFC:[redacted] Received: 10/28/2008 4:13:52 PM
Disp: ADVI Location: [redacted]
Event Number: [redacted] ID: [redacted] Priority: 3 Case No:
Comments**
10/28/2008 4:19:17 PM SB CUBIT, UNK IF TURNED ON BARGER OR CONTINUED TO ECHO HOLLOW
10/28/2008 4:19:17 PM *** MGR REQ T/
10/28/2008 4:17:51 PM BLOCKING DRIVEUP FOR LAST 6 MIN, STILL REFUSING TO LEAVE
10/28/2008 4:17:51 PM DRIVER/ WM, 20'S, RED JKT
10/28/2008 4:18:53 PM NOW LEAVING DRIVEUP - DOT/ THRU PARKING LOT TOWARD CUBIT,
10/28/2008 4:16:48 PM LV/ 598BLV, OR COMPACT, TAN SUBJS STILL AT DRIVEUP WINDOW
10/28/2008 4:16:48 PM UPSET BECAUSE THEY WANT FREE TACO'S FOR ALL OCCUPANTS OF THE VE
10/28/2008 4:16:48 PM H (SPECIAL IS FOR ONE PER VEH THRU DRIVEUP )
10/28/2008 4:15:27 PM LV/ UNK PLATE, COMPACT 4D TAN IN DRIVE THRU, REFUSING TO LEAVE,
10/28/2008 4:15:27 PM YELLING AT EMPS OCC X 4 WILLING TO SIGN FOR TRESPASS

Then looking at Consumerist, I made the Taco Bell connection ... what a connection it was.

Oh, my. For what it's worth, the official rules don't say anything about "one taco per vehicle." Here they are:

Limit one (1) Free Crunchy Seasoned Beef Taco per person. Participating Taco Bell restaurant manager reserves the right to deny Free Taco to any person he/she reasonably believes has already received a Free Taco or has engaged in any other fraudulent activity. All eligible consumers: Everyone in line at a participating Taco Bell restaurant before 6:00 p.m. local time will receive a Free Taco, even if it is provided after 6:00 p.m.

Last time we wrote about this promotion, we suggested you thank Jason personally. This was apparently not the right thing to do, because he's had to change his phone number.

"I changed over my phone this morning, and I didn't transfer the numbers yet," Bartlett said. "I'm getting all these text messages but don't know who they are yet."

Asked whether he was being given a hard time by his friends, he said, "No, they're saying 'Thank you.'"

Steal A Base, Steal A Taco

Much to our delight, the Curiously Australian President of Taco Bell, Greg Creed, was on hand to make the announcement. We love Greg Creed. He's so... curiously Australian.

To get your free beef crunch taco, go to any participating Taco Bell from 2pm to 6pm on October 28th. Oh, and if you were wondering (as we were) if the base had to be officially stolen in order to qualify for tacos — it did. There were to be no free tacos awarded for defensive indifference.

Steal A Base, Steal A Taco
(AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

Oklahoma City Mayor Mick Cornett says, "[Taco Bell] got on board really early and we helped them promote those items hoping people would take advantage of it."

He goes on to say, "They said when you get 100,000 pounds, we have a special prize for everybody in Oklahoma City and sure enough here it is. Everybody in Oklahoma City gets a free fresco taco."

Taco Bell promotes its "Fresco menu" as having 9 items under 9 grams of fat, but somehow we don't see fast food tacos with mystery meat as part of a healthy diet. Probably some angry reader will say we're being restaurant elitists for assuming that just because a food is cheap it's worthless, and at least Taco Bell is offering something healthy to eat. But considering that 45-50% of the Fresco taco's calories come from fat, we have a hard time equating "Taco Bell" with "nutritious diet."

Update—a reader sent in the following:

As many commenters in that story pointed out, meat grading is entirely optional, and has absolutely nothing to do with it's fitness for human consumption. (Indeed, the optional grading takes place after the required approval for human consumption.) Meat is largely graded by the degree of fat marbling throughout the meat. Given that ground beef would chop any fat up into tiny little bits, no matter how nicely marbled, it would be kind of silly for a ground beef producer to pay extra to have the meat graded.

So, of couse Taco Bell doesn't know the grade of their meat, as it likely doesn't have one. If you went to your local grocer, you would discover that almost all of the ground beef there was ungraded also. To imply that Taco Bell uses "Mystery Meat" simply because they use ungraded beef is really quite unfair to Taco Bell. There are a lot of things you could point out when arguing against eating at Taco Bell, but their use of ungraded beef is not one of them.

"Taco Bell Rewards Metro Residents" [KSBI-TV]

The article says,

A KFC spokesman, Rick Maynard, said KFC is committed to the highest levels of food safety.

"Our franchisee does not agree with the court's verdict, and they are looking at their legal options," Maynard said Monday.

The suit also alleged that Andrew, his wife and their children were victims of an employee scheme that targeted police officers.

"Employees maintained 'special servings' of food reserved for ... officers," the lawsuit said. "The 'special servings' had been urinated in or spit in by KFC/Taco Bell employees."

The employee accused of urinating and spitting in the Andrew family's food, Casey Diedrich, pleaded guilty last year to violating the Nebraska Pure Food Act and fined $100, according to court records. The prosecution was for the same incident described in the lawsuit.

A company spokesman said last year that Diedrich eventually was fired for missing work but not for any of the incidents the lawsuit cited.

What's even more shocking than the food contamination itself is that the management did nothing to prevent the family from consuming the tainted food. We can understand how the concept of CYA (cover your ass) may have been a factor, but when information has been brought to your attention that directly impacts the safety of your customers, as a restaurant manager, the only reasonable action is prevent anyone from consuming that food. Now, I'm starting to wonder about all the times that KFC has left me feeling nauseous—I better not.

Neb. cop, family win $40K over urine-tainted food [AP]
(Photo:Scott Ableman)

Yum Brands Serving Tomatoes [Fox 5]
(Photo: ableman)

New Wearable Feedbags Let Americans Eat More, Move Less[The Onion]

TV stations all over the country recently got together and tested a bunch of dishes from chain restaurants and fast food places to see if the nutritional information they were advertising actually matched the food. The report targeted menu options from chains such as Applebee's, Macaroni Grill, Taco Bell and Chili's that were marketed as healthy. So did the calories in the food match the calories on the menu? Nope. Of the items tested, all but one were way over on calories, or fat content... or both.

For example, the Pollo Magro Skinny Chicken from Macaroni Grill was supposed to have 500 calories and 6 g of fat. It actually had 1022 calories and 49 g of fat. (This total includes the bread and huge vat of cheese that comes on the side) Chili's Guiltless Grill Salmon claimed to have 480 calories and 14 g of fat when it actually contained 664 calories and 35.5 g of fat. Taco Bell's Fresco Grilled Steak Soft Taco is billed as having 160 calories and 4.5 g of fat. Watch out if you plan on eating a few of these, because the sample they tested contained 297 calories and 19.6 g of fat.

You can see the rest of the results here.

What's On the Menu [WXYZ](Thanks, Jack!)

Here's the actual BBB complain that went unanswered by Taco Bell:

About 3 weeks ago i called the 800# asking what grade of beef they use. All they could tell me was usda approved. I called 4 times and got the same, twice i left my # and was told a nutritionalist would call me back....no call ever came. I next e mailed corp with the same question. I was answered by a Sandy Shakelford telline me:I have located a phone number contact in which you can inquire about our meat. Taco Bell Corporation 949-863-4500 and ask for the QA Department. I called a total of three times first got a prompt telling me to put in MY voice mail # to get my messages. Next i was transfered to a recording telling of bad cheese both plain and mixed and to throw them out and call in for a credit. Third was disconected. 4th i got a voice mailbox in the Quality control dept. i think his name was Steve...Again i left my question and # and again no call back. On Feb 27 i e mailed Sandy telling her what my phone experiance was and had not got an answer to my question...That was 10 days ago and again no contact from Sandy nor Taco Bell. Side note the web sight says contact us call 1800 TACO BELL when its actually 800 TACO BEL....The companys resistance to answer my question tells me what i was told by a friend that worked there that they use poor yet usda approved beef could be true.

Taco Bell Training Illustration: Not Fit for Public Consumption [ANIMAL]

The nutritional information calculator on Taco Bell's website "inadvertently includes red strips" when it calculates the info for the Fresco Zesty Chicken Border Bowl. The actual bowl contains 8g of fat and 350 calories, as advertised. Rob says: "Appreciate you bringing this to our attention as we are currently working to fix it." [Consumerist]

So your charger has a few bite marks on it.... Infinitely less horrifying.

T-Mobile Wipes the Slate Clean in the West Village [Racked]
(Photo:Racked)

PREVIOUSLY: Rat Infested KFC/Taco Bell Closed Forever And Ever

"I bawled for three days after I got fired," she says. "I was the most loyal, dedicated employee they could have. In 30 years, I never called in sick or was late to work. Not once! And I was good at my job. Damn good."

Shilson started at the Zantigo on W. 7th Street in St. Paul in 1977 (Taco Bell later bought Zantigo). Her pay was $2.85 an hour, not enough to make her husband, a truck driver (now retired), think that it was worth the inconvenience of having his wife, and mother of their four kids, take a job.

"He wouldn't even look at my paycheck the first two years," she says. "Then one day, I said, 'We need a new clothes washer' and he said, 'We can't afford one.' That's when I said, 'Well, I can!' That changed his mind."

Shilson rose rapidly, working 60-hour weeks and becoming general manager at the W. 7th Street store and, later, at the Richfield Taco Bell. She was robbed at gunpoint twice, including the time she was shot while opening the W. 7th restaurant one morning in 1998.

Nick Coleman: After 30 years, Taco Bell didn't even offer her any hot sauce [StarTribune]
(Photo:thicket23)

Also, a whole lot of couches people bought back in March are now free, thanks to an insane furniture store promotion, and people have been writing in saying Southwest Airlines is randomly giving out extra frequent flier miles to customers who live near Boston, just because the Red Sox won.

Congrats to the Boston Red Sox for the insane amount of free shit people are getting off them this year, and a special thanks to Greg Creed for being so amusingly Australian. We love you.

The taco will be of the "Crunchy Beef" variety and can be obtained by visiting any Taco Bell from 2-5pm on Oct 30.

Thanks, Jacoby.

The promotion is called "Steal a base, steal a taco," though Reuters assures us: "Despite the promotion's name, stealing the taco will not be required."

Thanks, Reuters. We'll stop polishing our six-guns.

Taco Bell's World Series bet: free tacos for all [Reuters] (Thanks, Tricia!)

In addition to their regular fare, Mexican Taco Bell will serve American favorites such as ice cream and french fries. The "taco" will be called a "tacostada," which is a play on the words "taco" and "tostada," because (let's face it) a Taco Bell "taco" isn't really a taco.

From the San Diego Union-Tribune:

"What we are bringing to Mexico is not Mexican food, it's our exciting quick-service restaurant brand," said Rob Poetsch, a spokesman for Yum Brands. "We feel the timing is right, and we've done quite a bit of consumer research to validate that this goes beyond product. It's about value and convenience - that's the universal appeal."

Antonio Zambrano, a 42-year-old businessman who was having a meal at one of Tijuana's many KFC outlets yesterday, said many Mexicans will like Taco Bell "precisely because it is different."

"Plus, sometimes you're looking for more than the food," Zambrano said. "You also want good service, you want to be served quickly and you want to have a meal in a clean environment."

Adrián Beltrán, a 34-year-old taco shop worker at the popular Tacos El Gordo in this city's Rio Zone, said there is no competition between traditional Mexican food and the products Taco Bell offers.

"Competition? Please," he said. "Personally, I like the Jack in the Box tacos. Now those are good tacos. How come those guys don't come here?"

Americanized tacos returning to Mexico [San Diego Union-Tribune]
(Photo:kylemagnon)

The employee's behavior was discovered by other employees of the restaurant who reported it to management. According to the lawsuit, the employee was not disciplined and was allowed to continue working for 2 months. The employee, Casey Diedrich "pleaded guilty to violating the Nebraska Pure Food Act and fined $100," according to the Sioux City Journal. Yuck. —MEGHANN MARCO

Lawsuit alleges Taco Bell employee spit, urinated in food [Sioux City Journal]
(Photo: soundman1024)

Starbucks and Cracker Barrel fared well, along with several upscale chains, including Bonefish Grill, Ruth's Chris, Legal Sea Foods, and Morton's. The survey attributes the faltering satisfaction levels to record expansion and a lack of innovation.

"They all drowned in the sea of sameness," he said, asserting that they had failed to innovate and largely had similar menus. "They overbuilt and underwhelmed."

Eateries found failing to deliver [Chicago Trib]
Restaurant-Beverage Demand Today 2007 [Kanbay Research Institute]

Since the incident, this KFC-Taco Bell restaurant has been closed for business, and it will not reopen.

Godspeed little vermin. There will be a next time. —MEGHANN MARCO

FIRST QUARTER - 2007 EARNINGS INFORMATION (05.01.07) - UPDATES ON INCIDENTS AFFECTING U.S. BUSINESS [YUM! Brands]
(Photo: Adam Lawrence)

PREVIOUSLY:Yum! Brands Shuts Down Rat-Infested Franchisee After More Failed Inspections

Rat Infested KFC Passed Health Inspection The Day Before

KFC/Taco Bell Rats Gone Wild: Raw Video Footage

Massive Pound-And-A-Half Rats Infest KFC/Taco Bell In The West Village

From Newsday:

After a thorough investigation, DOI found a disturbing lack of diligence on the part of the public health sanitarian who inspected the restaurant as well as a breakdown in the supervision of the inspector," DOI Commissioner Rose Gill Hearn said.

The DOI said the inspector, Cemone Thomas, "underreported the rodent-related findings and failed to take proper action ... which constituted a 'gross dereliction' of her duties."

On Feb. 22, Thomas documented only 87 rat droppings and didn't cite an additional 20, which would have caused the restaurant to fail the inspection and could have forced it to close immediately, the DOI said.

The DOI said evidence in the case suggested that Thomas simply couldn't be bothered to do a more comprehensive report because she might have been trying to "avoid the additional time it would have taken for further enforcement steps."

PREVIOUSLY: KFC Taco Bell Rats Gone Wild: Raw Video Footage
Massive Pound-And-A-Half Rats Infest KFC/Taco Bell In The West Village

Excited? It's only available in certain test markets for now, but if the people in Omaha, NE like it... Taco Bell Breakfast could be coming to you. Didn't they already try this, only to fail miserably?

If anyone actually tries anything off the menu, send photos of the food to our Flickr pool. We're curious. —MEGHANN MARCO

Omaha Gets To Try Taco Bell's Breakfasts [KETV]
(Photo: nevrlndtink)

The manager said two men in a green car ordered food just before midnight and she told them she was out of certain condiments they had requested. About 20 minutes later she said a man called yelling at her that he did not get all his food. She told the man the store was closed, but he could come by the next morning and talk to the day manager. Five minutes later she heard a loud bang at the drive-thru window and found food splattered outside, according to the report. The manager said she saw the same green car driving away toward Interstate 40.

Fast-food fury [Asheville Citizen-Times]
(Photo: compujeramey)

From the LA TImes:

Boskovich Farms Inc., the Oxnard green onion grower linked and then cleared in Taco Bell's E. coli outbreak in December, is firing back at the fast-food chain.

The grower contended in a lawsuit last week that the Irvine-based chain's actions libeled the farming concern and destroyed much of its business.

Taco Bell continued to link its onions to the outbreak that sickened more than 70 restaurant patrons in the Northeast in December even after it knew the produce was not contaminated, the lawsuit said.
...
The false connection between the farm and Taco Bell's E. coli problem has cost Boskovich "millions of dollars of business," said attorney Thomas Girardi, but he declined to state a specific dollar amount. "We had a whole crop of green onions that we couldn't even give away. It was just plowed under."

He added, "Taco Bell engaged in an irresponsible and intentional crusade to save its own brand at the expense of an innocent supplier."

Farm claims libel in E. coli scare [LA Times]
(Photo: Morton Fox)

The city spends $8 million a year on rodent control and has a team of more than 100 inspectors who close about 500 restaurants each year.

"We can always use more to address the problem. It's a big problem," says Deputy Health Commissioner Jessica Leighton.

Leighton points out rats are a quality of life issue, not a health risk.

"They are not what causes food borne disease; they are not what causes poor health conditions," says Leighton.
...
"For certain communities, the reasons that they have high rodent problems will be different than in other communities and we are trying to address the underlying factors," says Leighton.

Health Commissioner: Rats Are Not A Health Risk [NY1]

PREVIOUSLY: Massive Pound-And-A-Half Rats Infest KFC/Taco Bell In The West Village
KFC Taco Bell Rats Gone Wild: Raw Video Footage

Aside from the obvious answer: "There are a lot of Catholic people living on the planet." Why is Yum! so obsessed with Lent? From their KFC Lent Fish Snacker Press Release:

"People can enjoy the flavor of the new Fish Snacker any day of the week, but we believe it will be especially popular on Fridays," said James O'Reilly, Chief Marketing Officer for KFC. "It's perfect for an on-the-go lunch or any time of the day when you need a quick snack but don't want to sacrifice taste."

(Photo:ashi)

PREVIOUSLY:KFC Asks The Pope To Bless Lent-Themed Fish "Snacker"

After a day of reinspections yesterday, the company that owns KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut decided to close all its ADF Companies franchises that have not yet been inspected by the Health Department.

"These few franchise units, operated by ADF in New York, obviously do not meet our strict restaurant standards based on health inspection reports," said Emil Brolick, President U.S. Brands, Yum! Brands, Inc.

"They will remain closed until we are absolutely certain they will operate at our high standards. We apologize to our customers and are taking every action, with the assistance of external sanitation experts, to get to the bottom of this. We are redoubling our efforts to inspect every restaurant and are reinforcing all our restaurant cleaning and sanitation procedures," Brolick said.

Inspectors close more city restaurants [WABC]
(Photo: Adam Lawrence)

The health inspector - whose name was not released - was "removed from restaurant inspection duty," while the city's health department reviews other inspections the staffer performed since being put on the job in June 2006, officials said.

"Our February 22 inspection of the KFC/Taco Bell was clearly not up to standard," said Health Commissioner Thomas Frieden. "We are redoubling our efforts to ensure all inspections are conducted effectively."

PREVIOUSLY: KFC/Taco Bell Rat Apologist Comments On Vincent Ferrari's Blog
Rat Infested KFC Passed Health Inspection The Day Before
KFC Taco Bell Rats Gone Wild: Raw Video Footage
Massive Pound-And-A-Half Rats Infest KFC/Taco Bell In The West Village

We agree that the situation at the Greenwich Village restaurant is totally unacceptable and, as you may know, the restaurant has been closed until further notice. Some construction in the building's basement last Thursday temporarily escalated the situation, and we are correcting that. Everyone at KFC and Taco Bell is working hard to take care of the issues at this restaurant.

"Temporarily escalated the situation..." Translation: "There was a whole bunch of rat nests in the walls that we broke open during the construction and the all the rats were like hell yeah, KFC." — BEN POPKEN

PREVIOUSLY:
Rat Infested KFC Passed Health Inspection The Day Before
KFC Taco Bell Rats Gone Wild: Raw Video Footage
Massive Pound-And-A-Half Rats Infest KFC/Taco Bell In The West Village

Here it is, your guide to secret menu items. Sure, it's not the secret rib eye at Nobu, but it's something. Before reading this please note that this article has not been fact-checked. This report is based purely on reader suggestions. We are posting them entirely without confirmation and are not going to try to order any of this crap in order to confirm its existence. We would die of heart disease, be broke, and our ass would be the size of Texas. This is the internet, the internet is not fact-checked, and these are your secret menu items. Enjoy.

Taco Bell: Everything Taco Bell makes is comprised of a few basic ingredients, so they'll likely make anything they have the stuff for, which is probably pretty much anything they've ever served. Examples to attempt: Cheesy Gordita Crunch, Cheesy Fiesta Potatoes, Encharito.

Wendy's: A tipster tells us, "order a "Grand Slam", It would otherwise be called a Classic Quadruple, were it on the menu." Reader bringafajita suggests trying to get a "Quarter Pound Double Stack with Cheese." FishingCrue tells us to try "Everything" (lettuce and tomato) on a Wendy's Double Stack, sometimes it's even free. If they look at you like you're crazy, tell them there's a button for it. A double stack with everything, add bacon is a decent sandwich for somewhere south of 2 bones."

Chipotle: Chipotle will, like Taco Bell, make anything they have the ingredients for. Unlike Taco Bell, this is an official policy. Some suggestions: Nachos, Quesadilla, Individual Tacos, Taco Salads, Tiny Bean Burritos Using Taco Shells, Fresh Cilantro on Your Tacos, whatever you can think of.

Subway: Subway will still make the "pizza sub," and many other former menu items. Also, they can't sell "broken cookies," so they may give you some for free.

Jamba Juice: Jamba has an entire secret menu of "unhealthy" smoothies named after things that would involve copyright violations were they to be included on the menu. The ones we know of:White Gummi Bear, Red Gummi Bear, Green Gummi Bear, Raspberry Dreamin', Pineapple Dreamin', Sourpatch Kid, Tropical Tango, Pacific Passion, Berry Depressing, Now and Later, Peanut Butter and Jelly, Apple Pie, Fruity Pebbles, Rainbow Sherbet, Strawberry Shortcake, Push Pop, Skittles, Andres' Surprise, and Lemonade Lightnin'. (Thanks,ronaldscott!)

In-N-Out Burger: Has their "secret" menu posted on their website, but a tipster writes in: "Not only can you get an animal style burger but you can also get animal style fries which are amazing. It's fries piled with onions, cheese and sauce and they come with a fork." In addition, we hear several voices calling from the mist, whispering that the secret menu doesn't stop at 4 x 4., but may, in fact, go on to infinity. Or at least to 100 x 100...
(Thanks, xapplexjuicex!)

Starbucks: Starbucks will make you absolutely anything you want no matter how insane it is, according to our tipster.

"Baristas might try and tell their customers that no, we can't do that with the blenders. This is a lie. Starbucks corporate policy is that the customer is ALWAYS right (even when the request is stupid). If you really insist that you want your iced soy latte blended, the baristas HAVE to do it. If they continue to refuse, ask to speak to a manager and either they'll realize they're about to get in trouble and will fill your request, or the manager will come out and politely tell the barista to make the customer happy.

Absolutely any concoction that you can think of (involving any type of milk, syrup, coffee, etc.) will be made for you. The limits to Starbucks "secret menu" are merely the limits of your imagination. You can even bring supplements from home and ask the barista to please include that in your drink."

(Photo: cogdogblog)

"It doesn't look like the inspection that was done Thursday met our standards," said Geoffrey Cowley, a health department spokesman. "I don't want to prejudge that. We're concerned and we're going to carefully reevaluate that inspection."

Officials To Review Rat-Infested KFC Inspection [WCBS]

PREVIOUSLY: KFC Taco Bell Rats Gone Wild: Raw Video Footage

PREVIOUSLY: Massive Pound-And-A-Half Rats Infest KFC/Taco Bell In The West Village

They are big. A pound or a pound and a half. Rats! Plump, healthy-looking and oh-so-agile.

CBS 2 cameras caught dozens of them early Friday morning through the window of this closed KFC-Taco Bell in the West Village.

And now CBS 2 has learned that the Department of Health will keep the restaurant closed until it can reinspect it.

Health Dept. Closes Village KFC For Rat Invasion (With Extremely Disgusting Video) [WCBS]

UPDATE: Much More Awesome Raw Video of Rats Gone Wild (with bystander comments)

(Photo: Morton Fox)

A 16-year-old boy says he suffered "severe and permanent personal injuries" after eating food from a Long Island Taco Bell.

In papers filed in Manhattan Supreme Court, James Robinson, of Rockville Centre, says he "experienced great pain and suffering" and was hospitalized with E. coli poisoning after his mother picked him up some dinner at a now-shuttered Taco Bell in Hempstead.

L.I. Teen: Bell Made Me Taco Ill [NYP]

PREVIOUSLY: Super Exciting News: Governor of Pennsylvania Eats At A Taco Bell

1 in 3 Fast Food Customers Will Avoid Taco Bell

Police arrested 47-year-old Davis Katlaps of Lake Oswego, Ore., and charged him with driving under the influence after he reportedly blew .283 on an Intoxilyzer

Apparently, Katlaps "drove the wrong way through the drive-through and crashed into the building. Police estimate the damage to be several thousand dollars." It just goes to show when a drunk needs his burritos, nothing, not even an Arby's, can stand in his way. —MEGHANN MARCO

Drunken Driver Crashes Into Arby's, Goes To Taco Bell [KOIN]

Greg writes:

Greg Creed President Taco Bell Corp. 17901 Von Karman Irvine, CA 92614

January 31, 2007
Mr. Kevin Federline
c/o Marilyn Lopez
FYI Public Relations
New York, NY 10023

Dear Mr. Federline,
First off, congratulations on your upcoming Super Bowl ad. We heard it's generating a lot of talk, particularly about working in the fast food industry.

We know you respect those who work in our business. In fact, last year you said in an interview, "My kids are going to have to learn what a real job is, what life is. You don't have it easy with me. Period. My kids are going to work at Taco Bell."

We're flattered, but obviously they're too young to work for us. So here's our offer to you: Come work for us, just for a one hour shift. We'll get you a uniform, a custom name tag and show you what a great place Taco Bell is to work. We'll even reward customers who visit that restaurant with an order of our new Carne Asada Steak Grilled Taquitos for free.

We encourage you to continue to "Think Outside the Bun" and hope you accept our tasty offer.

Sincerely,
Greg Creed
President
Taco Bell Corp.

Yaaay. —MEGHANN MARCO

Annals of Opportunistic Marketing: K-Fed Invited To Explore Outside the Bun Career Path [Defamer]

California lettuce linked to 2 E. coli outbreaks [Seattle Times]

"Maybe," thought the governor and the governor alone, "I should get eat some Taco Bell, on TV, with the curiously Australian president of Taco Bell, Greg Creed."

And what did the Governor of Pennsylvania order? His "favorite," the taco salad. —MEGHANN MARCO

Ed Rendell Eats At Taco Bell In Exciting Story [Philadelphia Will Do]