A Midtown Manhattan sandwich shop got less than stellar marks from the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene decided to integrate its ‘B’ grade into some inaccurate, possibly ironic advertising. [More]
restaurants
Tips On Getting Less Fat & Less Poor When You Dine Out
By 9.13.10
We’ll admit that we tend to focus on the more outrageous end of the restaurant menu, both because it’s fun and it’s what we (well, at least I) eat. But leave it to our more sensible cousins at Consumer Reports Health to come up with a list of ways to eat out at a restaurant while saving money and watching your waist. [More]
Things Chefs Will Never Tell You
By 9.10.10
An anonymous survey of chefs across the country revealed insider tips about how to get the best value when eating out, as well as some other things that might curdle your appetite: [More]
Restaurant Owner Admits To Hiring Undocumented Workers, Pleads 'Not Guilty' To Doing So
By 9.8.10
Along with hotels, the food preparation industry may be the sector that relies the most on undocumented workers. A White House crackdown on employers of such workers has been in effect since April of last year is putting increased pressure and heightened consequences — including tighter scrutiny increased fines — for business owners who take the risk of hiring such workers. A San Diego restaurant owner is going all in to fight the regulation. He has been indicted by a federal grand jury for hiring illegal immigrants, but has entered a not guilty plea and kept the workers in question on the staff. [More]
Yelp Reviewer Gives 1 Star For Restaurant That Hasn't Opened Yet
By 9.1.10
As with any community-sourced online content, Yelp’s reviews can vary widely in quality. Still, this may be one of the most ridiculously self-entitled and clueless reviews anyone has ever posted about a restaurant: [More]
Chef Fined For Licking Toads In The Kitchen
By 8.17.10
The chef at a Japanese restaurant in Iowa was fined $335 after health department officials watched a video of him licking and kissing toads, then putting them in his mouth and then back on the prep table, in the restaurant’s kitchen. His brother taped the stunt and posted it on Facebook. [More]
Faking Seizures For Free Food Doesn't Just Make You An Ass, It Will Land You In Jail
By 8.11.10
There are those who believe we’re all growing more jaded and less willing to help our fellow man. That’s not hard to believe when you read about a jackass like the Baltimore man who repeatedly faked seizures in order to get out of paying his restaurant bills. [More]
How Long Will You Wait In Line For A Restaurant?
By 8.6.10
Inching forward, popping up on your toes to look over their heads, rarg! How much longer?! Waiting in line to get into a restaurant can be excruciating. Or a time to catch up with friends and engage in some delightful people-watching. Depends on what kind of person you are. So, how patient are you? Or busy? Or hungry? What’s your upper max for how long you will stand in line at a restaurant? Sound off in the comments! [More]
Celeb Chef Mario Batali Sued By Staff For Alleged Tip Skimming
By 7.30.10
We know that tipping is a touchy subject here, but not as touchy as it is to the wait staff at the restaurants owned by celeb chef Mario Batali. The red-headed TV personality is the subject of a class action lawsuit that alleges he’s been screwing his employees over by skimming off the top of the tip pile. [More]
5 Secrets Your Waiter Doesn't Want You To Know
By 7.29.10
The kitchens and pantries of restaurants are a strange and mysterious place to many people. We’ve all heard horror stories on the news about staffers committing heinous acts of food molestation or heard whispers that you should never eat the shellfish special. But the editors at Reader’s Digest went straight to the source and spoke to real restaurant wait staff to get the inside scoop. [More]
Florida Pizza Joint Adds A 15% Tip Automatically
By 7.27.10
A pizza place in Jacksonville, Florida has decided to pay its servers a higher wage and in order to pay for it, automatically add a 15% tip to each order. Signs are posted and you can ask the server to take the tip off the bill if you want. [More]
Chili's Server Says Chain Is Getting Portable Payment Devices
By 7.23.10
It’s always a tense moment when you hand off a credit card to your waiter. There are so many potential pitfalls: Your card could slip out of the folder, an unscrupulous employee may skim your data or inflate your tip, and you could forget your card at the table. [More]
Soup Nazi Back In Business, But Not Actually Around To Yell At You
By 7.22.10
Al Yeganeh, the man who inspired Seinfeld’s Soup Nazi character, closed up shop six years ago, but this week he re-opened his business at the same location on 55th Street in NYC under the name “The Original Soup Man.” The company is now a franchise with locations in nine states and Washington, D.C., and unfortunately (for us, but probably not for him) Yeganeh doesn’t actually do any counterwork–he’s just the brand at this point. [More]
Will Proposed 5-Year Lobster-Harvesting Ban Cause Prices To Rise?
By 7.21.10
You wouldn’t notice from the relatively affordable cost of Lobster in the region these days, but in many areas of the Mid-Atlantic the populations of the tasty crustaceans have sunk to alarmingly low levels. So much so that later this week, members of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission are meeting to discuss a proposed five-year ban on lobster harvesting in the waters between Virginia and Cape Cod. But the most important question is — what impact is this going to have on restaurants and lobster lovers? [More]
How Long Is Too Long To Linger After Finishing Your Meal?
By 7.9.10
If you’ve dined out enough in your life, you’ve likely been on both sides of the waiting game… You’re the one standing at the front of the restaurant, scanning the room for diners who seem to be wrapping things up. Or you’re the ones sitting at the table, finishing up dessert or sipping your third cup of coffee, even though people are waiting for a table. [More]
Two Weeks After Visit, Restaurant Still Hasn't Charged My Card
By 7.5.10
Joe paid for his restaurant meal, except he apparently didn’t. Two weeks after he paid his check by debit card, the charge has yet to show up on his account. The thing is, he wasn’t happy with the meal or the service, so he’s not all that motivated to call management and tell them they probably forgot to charge him. [More]
Nice Try, Restaurant, But You Can't Trick Me Into Buying Bottled Water
By 7.2.10
A blogger who complains about food at Bon Apétit magazine is tired of restaurants attempting to trick him into buying bottled water when all he wants is some lovely, refreshing tap water with ice in it. The free stuff that comes out of the tap. Instead, the staff offer water without offering tap as an option at all. Most diners either didn’t notice the ruse, or didn’t care. [More]
The $25,000 Hot Chocolate
By 6.25.10
What’s the best thing to eat in your $33,000 bed? A $25,000 “frrrozen haute chocolate” from Serendipity 3 in New York, obviously. [More]
