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Multi-Purpose Restaurants: Love It or Hate It?
Recently, I laughed out loud while reading an article about a flu-shot clinic held at a wine bar. The wine-and-flu-shot setup got me thinking about restaurants that serve other functions along with their food. In San Francisco, you can grab a beer while you run your laundry load at Brain Wash Cafe & Laundromat, or fix your motorbike over breakfast at MotoJava.
World's Largest Burger Among New Record-Setting Foods
It's a tale that'll go down in burger history. At an event this week in London, Guinness World Records revealed a host of new record breakers, among them a 185-pound, $499 whopper of a hamburger, which is officially the world's largest. The record belongs to Mallie's Sports Grill and Bar in Southgate, MI.
Trend Alert: Publications Peddling Wine
As newspapers and other media outlets have struggled to bring in revenue, they've begun offering a different kind of paid service to customers: wine clubs. Most have little to do with their publications' wine columns; rather, these services compete directly with online wine retailers.
In September last year, the Wall Street Journal joined the likes of Forbes and Sunset to become the first countrywide paper with a wine club.
Coming Soon to a Store Near You: Camel Milk Chocolate
So you're willing to eat mushroom-flavored chocolate — but what about chocolate made from camel milk? Soon, chocolate addicts with adventurous palates will have the opportunity to try the world's first camel milk chocolate. Dubai confectioner Al Nassma, which claims to be the first chocolate made of the unconventional milk, announced yesterday that it plans to expand into other Arab markets, Japan, Europe, and the United States.
Salad-Topped Sandwiches and Pizzas: Love It or Hate It?
With a growing emphasis on farm-fresh vegetables, lately I've come across many renditions of lightly dressed salads — and not just as stand-alone items. In restaurants around town, salads have become common add-ons — from the black forest ham, fig jam, and arugula sandwich at Sellers Markets to the pancetta, lettuce, and heirloom tomato pizza at Gialina. At this weekend's Great American Food & Music Festival, Anne Burrell even gushed about how much she loves adding arugula to pizza.
Poor Economy Spawns "Recession Flexitarians"
With cost increases, the economic downturn and a focus on all things green, could meatless meals be poised to become the next great food trend? Last month, Ghent, Belgium, made headlines when it became the first city to go meatless once a week. Then a recent vegetarianism poll generated surprising results: more than 25 percent of you said you're vegetarians, and nearly another quarter of you eat fish and not meat.
Have You Jumped on the Gardening Bandwagon?
Now that Spring has sprung, there's one thing that can't stop growing — the urban gardening rage. First Alice Waters was all over the news, then the Obamas planted a garden in the White House, with California's first lady following suit shortly thereafter. And a few days ago, we told you this dainty mixed-herb garden was one of our must haves for April.
Custom Blends: Frozen Yogurt's Newest Trend?
If the new pomegranate flavors from Pinkberry and Red Mango don't do it for you, consider this: what if you had an endless number of flavors to choose from?
High-tech blending processes may be the next big wave in the frozen-yogurt trend. That's what I discovered when I visited the San Francisco outpost of Yogen Früz, a fro-yo chain with a high-tech yogurt concept.
Hoping to Heat Up Sales, Chains Turn to Jalapeno Burgers
Last month, we got acquainted with Burger King's Angry Whopper, a spicy take on the chain's bestselling burger. But as it turns out, the highly anticipated, spicy-hot sandwich available for a limited time only isn't quite as unique as it might seem. Restaurant chains across the country have enhanced their menus with jalapeno-laden specials, hoping consumers' fiery appetites will lead to sizzling sales at the cash register.
Happy Hour: Lavender Martini
Much like hibiscus, lavender has become an increasingly popular ingredient at the table. I'll admit that when I first tried lavender in food, I wasn't crazy about it, as I'd always associated the flower's aroma with spa treatments.
Lavender first began to grow on me last November, when I tried Loft, a new line of flavored organic liqueurs and proclaimed the line's lavender infusion as my favorite.
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