Coming off its $450 steel gift card offer from last year, which was successful if you consider the fact that people were selling the sold-out cards on eBay for $5,000, Starbucks is once again reaching out to the caffeinated 1%. [More]
Food & Personal Care
Los Angeles Might Treat Sale Of E-Cigarettes Like Regular Smokes
By 12.5.13
It’s not just has-been actors like Stephen Dorff and Jenny McCarthy who smoke electronic cigarettes. They have become increasingly popular not just with smokers trying to quit but with people who want the fun of smoking without the whole “ashtray lung” after effect. Additionally, e-cigs don’t come with most of the pesky sales limitations of their tobacco counterparts, making them easier to buy and sell for some folks. But if the Los Angeles City Council gets its way, electronic cigarettes will soon be treated exactly the same as the unplugged versions. [More]
23andMe Stops Marketing Of Genetic Test Kits, But What About Everyone Who Already Has One?
By 12.4.13
Shortly before Thanksgiving, the Food and Drug Administration ordered that Google-backed 23andMe stop marketing its at-home genetic testing kits because the company had failed to get regulatory clearance for many of the product’s advertised uses. On Monday, the company announced it was abiding by that decision but hopes to work something out with the FDA, but has yet to tell any of its current customers what is going on with their kits. [More]
NYC Park Banning Hot Dog Vendors But Of Course, Mario Batali’s Gelato Cart Can Stay
By 12.2.13
Ah, the humble New York City hot dog cart. There it stands, its water tanks full of hot dogs sloshing around, staying warm until the moment some hungry passerby is in need of $2 sustenance. But those street meat carts are an eyesore to one park’s conservancy group it seems, which is pushing two hot dog vendors out while allowing other more upscale offerings to stay. [More]
Pizza Hut Wants To Hire Back Manager Who Refused To Work Thanksgiving
By 11.29.13
Earlier this week, a Pizza Hut manager in Indiana was all over the news for taking a stand against his bosses’ demand to open the restaurant on Thanksgiving — and losing his job in the process. Now the folks at Pizza Hut HQ are finally talking about the subject and say it was all a big misunderstanding. [More]
Pizza Hut Manager Walks Away From Job Rather Than Open On Thanksgiving
By 11.27.13
A 10-year employee of Pizza Hut claims he was given no choice but to leave his job when faced with the company’s demand that the restaurant open on Thanksgiving. [More]
This Walgreens Math Is So Fuzzy, Maybe Someone’s Messing With Customers
By 11.27.13
Kenny noticed this bit of fuzzy math while shopping at Walgreens. We know that buying in bulk can save you money, but this looks like some kind of experiment designed to test customers’ powers of observation, or possibly their desire not to buy extra drugs they won’t need and waste them. [More]
Check Your Insurance Before Getting Flu Shot At Walgreens & Other Stores
By 11.26.13
Retail pharmacies are now responsible for around 1-in-5 flu shots given to Americans each year, and many of these stores advertise low-cost or no-cost shots for customers on certain health plans. But a survey of Walgreens locations in New York City and Los Angeles finds that nearly half of the flu shot recipients at these stores are getting bad information about whether their insurance policies cover the cost of the shot. [More]
Would You Pay $65 To Have A Starbucks Espresso Drink Every Day For A Month?
By 11.25.13
Do you have a debilitating Starbucks addiction, buying multiple espresso drinks per day? Do you want to develop a debilitating Starbucks addiction? Either way, the coffee chain’s Black Friday deal just might be for you. You pay $65 for a stainless steel tumbler that comes with an entire month’s worth of free espresso-based beverages. [More]
Cheese Made From Skin Microbes Might Be The Only Cheese I’d Ever Turn Down
By 11.25.13
As many of our regular readers may have gleaned from past posts, we here at Consumerist HQ are pretty big fans of cheese. Grill it in a sandwich, melt it atop a pile of hamburgers, sleep with it under a pillow — basically any way you want to enjoy any kind of cheese is A-OK with us. But scientists using microbes from skin to make cheese might’ve passed a line we cannot step across. [More]
FDA Orders Halt To Marketing Of 23andMe DIY Genetic Test Kits
By 11.25.13
Alleging that the makers of the popular, Google-backed 23andMe at-home genetic testing kit are violating federal law by marketing the product for things like disease diagnosis without regulatory clearance, the FDA has ordered an immediate halt to sales of the kits. [More]
Federal Appeals Court Says Yes, Starbucks Baristas Have To Share Tips With Supervisors
By 11.22.13
Starbucks baristas had kept fighting to keep customer tips out of the hands of shift supervisors after a court ruled in June that they’d have to share. Assistant managers are still out of the loop, but the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals says that because shift supervisors do a lot of the same work as baristas, they deserve the extra cash. [More]
Taco Bell Gives In, Reinstates Free Tacos For Michigan State Basketball Fans
By 11.21.13
Taco Bell has a long tradition of giving away free food tied to the results of certain sporting events, like the World Series. But only weeks after pulling the plug on its 14-year free chalupa promo with the Portland Trail Blazers, the Bell angered Michigan State basketball fans by ending the deal that offered free tacos to everyone in the arena if the Spartans scored at least 70 points. [More]
Butterball Doesn’t Know Why Its Fresh Turkeys Aren’t Getting Big This Year
By 11.19.13
When you’re a big-name turkey titan like Butterball and use phrases like “plump and juicy” on your packaging, it’s problematic when your birds don’t grow to the heft you expect in time for Thanksgiving. That’s why the folks at Butterball are looking into this year’s flock of skinnier than usual turkeys. [More]
FDA Scientists Find Amphetamine-Like Ingredient In 9 Diet Supplements… So Where’s The Warning?
By 11.19.13 — Updated: 2.8.17
Scientists from the Food and Drug Administration have found nine “all natural” dietary supplements that contain a “non-natural” amphetamine-like compound. But then why hasn’t the FDA itself issued any kind of warning to the public about using those products? [More]
McDonald’s Launches Spicy Pork McBites In China
By 11.18.13
Do you enjoy popcorn chicken and shrimp, but wish that they were much porkier? You’re in luck! For about $1.50, you can pick up a container of about 18 popcorn-sized fried pork morsels, covered with crispy breading, salt, pepper, and MSG at McDonald’s. The bad news: you’ll have to travel to China to get them. [More]
FDA Ruins Everyone’s Weekend With French Fry Health Notice
By 11.15.13
Like many of you, I plan on enjoying yummy french fries this weekend, because they taste good. But in doing so, I’ll have to ignore the downer of a reminder from the FDA about how fries and other fried foods may contain an animal carcinogen called acrylamide. [More]
Starbucks Once Again Fails To Stop New Hampshire Company From Selling ‘Charbucks’ Coffee
By 11.15.13
It’s been a couple years since we last heard about the Starbucks v. Charbucks legal battle, pitting the Seattle coffee colossus against Black Bear Micro Roastery, a family-owned operation out of New Hampshire. At the time, a federal court had shot down Starbucks’ claim of trademark dilution, but that didn’t stop the company from appealing… only to lose in court again this week. [More]
