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Tag: Food

  • Horse Meat in School Meals Found in the U.K.

    The U.K.‘s Food Standards Agency (FSA) today revealed that horse meat was found during the DNA testing of beef products. The beef products tested would have been found in school and restaurant meals.

    The DNA testing, so far, covers 2,501 samples. Of these, 29 of the samples were found to be positive for presence of horse DNA at or above the level of 1%.

    “Since this incident began on 16 January, businesses have been carrying out a large number of tests,” said Catherine Brown, FSA Chief Executive. “We said that industry should share those results with us, and the public, and we asked for the first results to be with us today. The results so far date from when businesses began their testing four weeks ago. They include results which were received by companies up to around 10am this morning.”

    Companies were asked to test composite beef products, such as burgers. The FSA report shows that horse meat was found in beef burgers, beef lasagne, and spaghetti bolognese.

    Though those 29 positive samples make up less than 2% of all the samples tested, that’s still too much for the FSA.

    “We’ve asked industry to test for horse DNA down to a level of 1%,” said Brown. “There are two reasons for this. First, that’s a pragmatic level above which we think any contamination would be due to either gross incompetence or deliberate fraud; it’s not going to be accidental. Second, some laboratories can only test accurately down to a level of 1%.

    “But that does not mean that we’re not concerned with, or that we accept, levels below 1%. In terms of faith groups, there remains a significant issue about trace levels of other species below 1%. So we have a separate programme of work under way with Defra to look at the issues around that, too.”

    The horse meat scandal in the U.K. began in January, when horse meat was found in beef products sold in Ireland.

    Though the cases were not explicitly linked to the horse meat scandal, police this week have arrested several individuals from the Peter Boddy Slaughterhouse in Todmorden, West Yorkshire. Police have also conducted related raids in Hull and Tottenham, where they collected “computers and documentary evidence”, as well as “meat samples.”

  • Groupon CEO Andrew Mason Is Pissed Off About Mayo

    Groupon CEO Andrew Mason is not very happy with the state of sandwich shops. More specifically, he’s not very happy about their mayonaise policies.

    The quirky executive took to Twitter today to rant about the issue (hat tip to Forbes).

    One can only help but wonder if any of Groupon’s restaurant customers are guilty.

  • Taco Bell’s Cool Ranch Doritos Locos Tacos Coming March 7th, Announced with a Vine

    Taco Bell, one of the best companies around in terms of social media presence, has just announced the official launch date of their new Cool Ranch Doritos Locos Tacos on Twitter, with a Vine video.

    We already knew that the Cool Ranch followup to Taco Bell’s Nacho Cheese Doritos Locos Taco was coming soon, but today’s announcement gives us a specific date: March 7th.

    “On March 7, 2013, Doritos Cool Ranch fans won`t have to wait any longer. Today Taco Bell announced it will launch another soon-to-be blockbuster Doritos flavor to the Doritos Locos Tacos line-up: Cool Ranch Doritos Locos Tacos. The announcement was made today directly to Taco Bell`s most ardent fans across social and digital media channels, and via a six-second Vine video announcement, the first-ever product announcement made by Taco Bell using the Vine platform,” said the company in a press release.

    But here’s how most people saw the announcement today:

    In case you were wondering about pricing, caloric intake, and all that other stuff that you shouldn’t really care about when you’re stuffing Taco Bell into your face, the new Cool Ranch Dortios Locos Taco will be $1.39 and will pack 160 calories. The supreme (with sour cream and tomatoes) will run $1.69 and have 200 calories.

  • You Should Be Drinking Your IPAs Out of This Glass

    If you’re a beer-lover who thinks that it’s important to drink certain styles of beer in certain styles of glasses, this new product from two major American breweries may interest you.

    Purveyors of tasty brews Dogfish Head Brewery and Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. have teamed up with Spiegelau glassware to create the ultimate glass for India Pale Ale lovers. They call it the “new standard for IPA glassware.”

    “I’ve been a longtime believer in the importance of using quality glassware to enhance the enjoyment of quality craft beer,” says Dogfish Head Founder and President Sam Calagione. “The process of collaborating on the design of this hop-centric glass takes this concept to the next level.”

    Why does this glass make the IPA-drinking experience better? According to its designers, a whole bunch of things. For instance the glass’ walls are thin and rounded, allowing proper temperature regulation. The shape also helps to “amplify hop aromas,” something that any IPA drinker will know is important.

    The glass also has “wave-like ridges to aerate beer on its way in and out of the glass” and “a laser-etched logo on the bottom of the bowl to sustain carbonation and head.”

    Spiegelau VP Matthew Rutkowski believes that If pilsners, saisons, and other styles of beer have universally-recognized glasses that maximize flavor and regulate consistency, why not the IPA?

    “The goal of this initiative was to develop a glass that would serve as the new global standard for the American IPA style of beer, just as the world recognizes wheat, pilsner and other beer glass styles,” Rutkowski says. “We are thrilled to have collaborated with two of America’s pre-eminent IPA brewers on this project, as this further validates that we are offering beer drinkers a glass that will maximize their tasting experience to its fullest potential.”

    You can order one of the new IPA glasses from the Dogfish Head store. It’ll run you $9. Even if you think the whole “glass matters” thing is bullsh*t, it’s still a pretty cool glass.

    (image)

    Man, I’m thirsty.

    [Dogfish Head Brewery]

  • Foodspotting Joins OpenTable in $10M Deal, Will Continue to Operate on Standalone Basis

    Restaurant reservation powerhouse OpenTable have just announced their intent to acquire food photography-based recommendation app Foodspotting.

    According to a release, the deal will be for $10 million

    OpenTable and Foodspotting have been partners for some time already – OpenTable reservations on Foodspotting and Foodspotting food photography on OpenTable, so this acquisition doesn’t come as a huge surprise. But according to Foodspotting, this is all about better integration:

    “We’ve already been working closely with the OpenTable team as partners: In addition to making restaurant reservations via Foodspotting, you may have seen Foodspotting photos from select restaurants popping up on OpenTable. But we both realized we could create smarter experiences if we could integrate more deeply by, for example, recommending dishes when you make reservations to enabling restaurants to showcase their best dishes. We look forward to augmenting your dining experiences with Foodspotting’s recommendations to forge the shortest path between you and great food,” says Foodspotting co-founder Alexa Andrzejewski.

    Foodspotting users shouldn’t worry – the app will remain a standalone product. Foodspotting says that the only thing that will change is that users will have access to better recommendations and restaurant information.

    “We’re proud to welcome the talented Foodspotting team to the OpenTable family,” said Matt Roberts , Chief Executive Officer of OpenTable. “The Foodspotting team is as passionate about dining as we are, and we’re looking forward to leveraging their unique expertise in the areas of imagery and social sharing to enrich the OpenTable experience for diners and restaurants in new and exciting ways. By adding more visually compelling content to help people decide where to dine and discover dishes they’ll love, we hope to make it even easier to find the perfect table for any occasion.”

  • It’s My Food and I’ll Instagram It If I Want to: A Defense of Amateur Food Photography

    Apart from posting a copious amount of baby photos on Facebook (nobody cares and your kid isn’t even that cute anyway), and going overboard with the politically-charged rhetoric (nobody cares and your opinion is stupid anyway), there’s not really a social media faux pas more common and more annoying than the oversharing of food photography. Personally, I enjoy a well-shot, delicious looking culinary masterpiece appearing in my news feed every once in a while. But too much is never a good thing. Unless you’re the one actually eating the food, in which case go ahead and gorge yourself you lucky prick.

    Apparently, your social media followers aren’t the only ones that are becoming increasingly annoyed with your photos of that spectacular marinated pork belly with garlic-miso glaze and asian slaw. It looks like the guy who made it may be just as sick and tired of your culinary documentation as everyone else.

    The New York Times has published a piece entitled “Restaurants Turn Camera Shy,” which details the growing number of high-end establishments that are taking measures to stop the flood of amateur food photography. According to the report, some restaurants are implementing bans on flash photography, and some are even outlawing photography altogether.

    It’s as if their crab-stuffed ravioli with pureed parsnips in a basil aioli and pickled watermelon rind is in danger of being damaged, like an ancient fresco.

    Oh I’m sorry. I thought this was America.

    The following is a defense of amateur food photography, from an infrequent food photographer who is often annoyed by food photography.

    The NYT points to one restaurant in particular, Momofuku Ko in New York City, that has banned photos altogether. It tells the tale of one woman, whose embarrassment has forced her to remain anonymous, and her brush with the food photography police.

    “I was definitely embarrassed…I don’t want to be that person…But I was caught off guard,” she told the NYT.

    “That person” was a person attempting to take a photo of her plate inside a small, Michelin-starred restaurant – a flashless photo nonetheless.

    The Times goes on to name another half-dozen restaurants who have implemented restrictions on photography in their dining rooms. Many discourage flash photography only.

    Table photography “totally disrupts the ambience,” said one executive chef.

    “Some people are arrogant about it. They don’t understand why. But we explain that it’s one big table and we want the people around you to enjoy their meal. They pay a lot of money for this meal. It became even a distraction for the chef,” said another.

    Restaurant owners and chefs: I know someone else who also paid a lot of money for their meal. Notably, the guy trying to take a photo of his food.

    Not only did he pay a great deal for his meal, but it’s highly likely that this meal is special to him. He probably doesn’t get to eat the kind of high-quality food sitting in front of him everyday. Not many people do. There’s a good chance that he simply wants to remember the experience through photography, and possibly share it with his friends.

    Maybe he’s a food blogger, and that’s his livelihood or hobby.

    Maybe he’s…it doesn’t matter why he’s doing it. He paid for his meal and wants to take a picture of it. Loosen up a little. Take it as a compliment. Or take it as whatever. The point is, just take it. There are too many social networks that feature too much food photography. Don’t turn against the tide.

    Oh, and there’s the simple fact that HE PAID FOR IT, GODD*MNIT.

    Plus, any photo of your perfectly-cooked gnocchi that gets posted to Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Foodspotting, or any other social media service is free advertising. People rarely post photos of terrible food.

    And if you’re worried about flash photography, I agree. Flash photography is usually terrible for food photos. But if I can’t see my hand in front of my face (restaurants can be pretty dim at times), how the hell is my iPhone camera going to be able to see my fennel-crusted rack of lamb with creamed leeks?

    To be fair, some of the restaurateurs featured in the Times’ article have come up with interesting solutions to the problem. One chef has decided to allow patrons into the kitchen, to photograph their food before it hits the dining room. Another has offered digital photos of the food, taken by the restaurant itself when the meal is complete. But this still means that they frown upon patrons whipping out their cameras and snapping a quick pic of their own.

    Don’t misunderstand me; I encourage courteous, inconspicuous food photography. Don’t draw attention to yourself and don’t act like an as*hole. Even with that, it can get annoying at times, I don’t doubt that. But to ban it or make people feel bad for wanting to document something that they paid a lot for and is probably really special to them? You can go fork yourself.

    [Photo via Instagram]

  • Epic Meal Time Kidnaps Jamie Oliver, Prepares 60,000 Calorie Fish Sandwich

    Jamie Oliver, the British chef known for his love of celery and other healthy (possibly calorie-neutral) foods, is probably the last person you’d expect to see on the hit YouTube series Epic Meal Time. All I’m saying is that the food constructed on Epic Meal Time, while indeed epic, is way beyond anything Jamie Oliver would recommend.

    But I guess they wanted him on the show, so they kidnapped him. They kidnapped him with the intention of forcing him to eat some of a nearly 60,000 calorie fish sandwich. Yeah, 60,000 calories.

    Check out the video below to see how that plan unfolded:

    Anyway, I think I’ll have a “don’t tell me what to do” when I get home tonight.

  • I Would Not Use This Anti-Loneliness Ramen Bowl, But It’s Still Pretty Neat

    I’m probably never going to buy this new anti-loneliness ramen bowl. It’s not because I don’t like ramen. I love ramen. I really, really love ramen. It’s also not because I’m not lonely at times. Who isn’t? It’s also not because I don’t approve of our global dependency on constant stimulation from our mobile devices, even while we eat. Let’s be honest, I’m on reddit during well over half my meals.

    It’s actually because I’m just an embarrassingly sloppy noodle slurper. I would splash porky, miso-y juice all over my device. It wouldn’t be pretty.

    Design company MisoSoupDesign unveiled their idea for a hands-free iPhone dock ramen bowl back in November, but it’s just now gaining traction on the interwebs.

    The ramen bowl, dubbed the “Anti-loneliness” bowl, allows noodle eaters to slurp while browsing the web. Or while watching a movie, or whatever else noodle eaters like to do when they are eating. The design is simple, but useful.

    Just a few minutes ago, in a Facebook post, the company said that due to all of the interest in the ramen bowl they are currently accepting a limited number of pre-orders. You can express your interest by sending them a Facebook message or shooting them an email.

    [MisoSoupDesign via CNET]

  • Yelp Now Displays Health Inspection Scores for Restaurants in Participating Cities

    Yelp has partnered with the local governments in San Francisco and New York to put health inspection scores on the pages of the cities’ restaurants. It’s part of a bigger open data initiative, however, that Yelp hopes will enable other cities around the country to follow suit.

    Participating restaurants’ health scores will be displayed alongside the other business information like hours, price range, etc. If a user hovers over the score, Yelp will display an info box that tells them what it is they’re looking at.

    “Yelp works with local governments to show health inspection scores, ranked on a scale of 0-100,” it says.

    Yelp Health Scores

    You can click on through to access a more detailed report, which includes a list of the specific violations, the date in which the inspection occurred, and whether it was a routine inspection or another kind. You can also look at all of that information for previous inspections (but only in San Francisco currently).

    This new metric is enabled through Yelp’s new “open data standard” called the “Local INspector Value-entry Specification,” or LIVES for short. They say that LIVES was developed with the encouragement of the White House.

    “Public/private partnerships like this don’t necessarily provide a direct contribution to Yelp’s bottom line, but evidence suggests the LIVES open data standard will have a positive impact on society,” says Yelp.

    In the future, LIVES could be used by other city governments to follow suit with the inspection ratings on the site – if they so choose. Of course, governments are not always keen on opening up their data to the public.

    “We hope other cities will join San Francisco in fully embracing this new open data standard,” says Yelp.

    The first two cities to partner with Yelp in the venture are San Francisco and New York, but Yelp expects more to roll out in the coming months.

    [Photo courtesy Don McCullough, Flickr]

  • Google Adds New Photo Sharing Options For Google+ Local

    Google announced the launch of a new Google+ Local feature in a Google+ post last night. Now, when you upload a picture of a place or of food you ordered at a restaurant, you can easily share it with friends, using the Google+ Circles (or public) functionality.

    Here’s what Google had to say about it:

    Google+

    Google+12 hours ago

    When you upload pics of your favorite spots and dishes (you know who you are!) on Google+ Local, you might want to make sure your friends see them too. 

    Starting today, it’s easier than ever to make it so. After you upload your photos to a restaurant’s local Google+ page, you can also quickly share them with the world – or just the people in your circles – in one easy step.

    Try it! Just upload your photos, and click “Publish.” Add a comment, select who you want to share with, and see what people say about your pics! 

    #googleplusupdate  

    520    59 Powered by socialditto

    Google may soon find that it has some new competitive challenges to face when it comes to local search – particularly social local search. Facebook, as you may have heard, revealed its new Graph Search on Tuesday, which will enable users to tap into their social connections to discover local businesses (among other things) based on what their friends like.

    Obviously, Facebook has a huge advantage over Google when it comes to friend connections. Google is going to want to encourage this kind of local business-based sharing more than ever, to help keep local business search relevant to users on a social level.

  • McDonald’s Chicken Wings Test Expands, Twitter Obviously Reacts

    McDonald’s Chicken Wings Test Expands, Twitter Obviously Reacts

    It stands to reason that by now, you’ve heard that McDonald’s has chicken wings at some locations (they’re called “Mighty Wings”). You may or may not have heard that they’re now offering them in more locations.

    According to the Associated Press, the fast food chain is pressing on with an expanded test of the offering, but has yet to confirm a full U.S. launch. The wings hit Chicago this week, reportedly, in three-piece, five-piece and ten-piece options.

    As a longtime chicken wing fan, it’s hard for me to wrap my head around this offering not being a hot seller, warranting a wider release, but of course, it has to make financial sense for the company. Then, I suppose, there’s always the question of whether or not people really want their chicken wings from the restaurant more known for burgers and McNuggets.

    Opinions vary:

    Image: Todd Brock (Serious Eats)

  • Pinterest Acquires Pinterest-Like Recipe Site Punchfork

    Pinterest has just announced that they have acquired the Pinterest-like recipe startup Punchfork for an undisclosed amount.

    Punchfork was first launched two years ago, with the mission of “helping home cooks discover new, high quality recipes and share them with family and friends.”

    CEO Jeff Miller says that Punchfork will continue to be operational for a short time, but after that the site, API, and mobile apps will all be shut down.

    “We believe that a unified destination benefits our users in the long run, and the Punchfork team will focus on contributing to Pinterest as the premier platform for discovering and sharing new recipes and other interests on the web,” he says.

    “To cooking aficionados, Pinterest needs no introduction. It stands as one of the fastest growing online services in history, and millions of people use it to find recipes every day. Pinterest is often described as a platform for inspiration, and we feel this aligns perfectly with the goals of Punchfork. We couldn’t be more thrilled to join forces with the Pinterest team in San Francisco.”

    Considering the fact that food is such a big part of what’s pinned to Pinterest users’ pinboards, the acquisition of Punchfork makes a lot of sense. Punchfork currently uses social factors from Pinterest, Facebook, and Twitter to power the site.

    This is the first major acquisition for Pinterest.

  • E-Cookbook Compiles Techie Recipes for Charity

    If you’ve ever wondered what figures in the tech community are eating? Want to donate to charity? Well, with a purchase of a new ebook called “The Startup Chef” you can fulfill both of those desires.

    Published and showcased via Leanpub, “The Startup Chef” currently sports 75 recipes from people all over the tech spectrum. It’s the work of YouTube’s Hunter Walk and ABC News’ Maya Baratz.

    “What does the founder of the most popular blogging platform on the internet make for breakfast? What type of creative pastry do Randi Zuckerberg and her sister Donna whip up for their family during the holidays? It’s all in here, with their own personal stories and recipes, for you to make and enjoy (in a totally non-creepy, non-Single-White-Female sort of way).And of course it wouldn’t be a launch if there wasn’t that ‘one more thing’: all proceeds from the book will go to charities aiming to end hunger — ranging from feeding hungry children in the US to helping feed families severely affected by Hurricane Sandy,” they say.

    Here are some recipes from some notable people that you’ll find in the ecookbook:

    • Double Marinated Tenderloin / Fillet of Beef by Daniel Ek, CEO Spotify
    • Porcini Mushroom Pasta Sauce by Soraya Darabi, Foodspotting
    • Mom Crowley’s Sausage Soup by Dennis Crowley, Foursquare
    • Eggnog Cinnamon Chip Scones by Donna & Randi Zuckerberg, Zuckerberg Media

    They suggest that you pay $20 for the cookbook, but will accept $10. They say that the book will receive new recipes and updates as they come in, and you’ll receive all of those for free. You can sample the cookbook here.

    [via Business Insider]

  • Restaurant Plays Peeing Patrons Their Negative Yelp Reviews

    Online reviews have been pissing off restauranteurs for many years now, and Yelp is one of the biggest offenders. I feel their pain – I mean, some woman gets in a fight with her boyfriend and then has one cold fry at your burger joint and she goes on to pen an epic teardown of your establishment that’s on record forever. But on the flip side, online review sites like Yelp and Urbanspoon have helped me avoid bad experiences in the past.

    But for a restaurant owner, I’m sure the terrible Yelp reviews are more memorable than the good ones. One restaurant is getting proactive by putting the bad reviews on display in the most clever place possible – the crapper.

    San Diego’s Craft & Commerce is taking a fun approach to negative reviews. They’re recording them, and playing them for patrons to hear when they’re going #1 or #2. You know what they say: if you can’t beat them, associate them with human waste.

    Craft & Commerce has a 4-satar rating on Yelp with over 900 reviews and boasts a Michelin-award winning chef – so it makes sense that they allow themselves the room to poke fun at themselves.

    But if you ever visit the restaurant, here’s are some of the reviews you might hear while taking a pee:

    What a disaster. Don’t think it was a typical night and the cocktails/mixology was as advertised but the kitchen was full of smoke and after waiting for an hour and a half we left without eating. BTW the ladies room was having serious issues as well. Sorry, truth hurts!

    On the surface, this is creative vibrant pub with loads of potential. What i found, was that if im not a hipster, neck beard vespa rollin’ type, I gets no love here. Terrible service, me and all my friends from work were blatantly dissed just because we opted to buy drinks instead of food and drinks. This ain’t Cuba!
    F$#% yo couch.

    3 of us walked in for dinner last Sunday. The menu print is too small to read in the dim light. No vodka. Great burger, but they don’t serve ketchup. This place takes it’s identity and itself too seriously. How can you have a burger and fries with no ketchup? They could make their own if they think Heinz is cheesy. Drinks are too froufrou. No vodka soda? You’d gain 10 lbs drinking all the sugar drinks. Would not go back.

    And they would probably sound something like this:

    [Foodbeast via Fark]

  • Adam Roberts (The Amateur Gourmet) Talks @ Google [Video]

    Adam Roberts, creator of the award-winning blog The Amateur Gourmet, recently gave an @Google talk. Google posted the speech in its entirety to YouTube in one of the latest in its Authors@Google series.

    Other recent talks in the series include: Nate Silver, Joel Stein, and Magnus Nilsson.

  • A Chef From One Of The World’s Best-Rated Restaurants Speaks At Google

    Many of us have food on the brain today. If this includes you, why not take a half hour to listen to what the head chef of one of the world’s top rated restaurants has to say?

    Google posted the following video of Magnus Nilsson, the head chef of Fäviken Magasinet restaurant in Jamtland, in a remote part of Northern Sweden. It’s been ranked one of the 50 Best Restaurants in the World (number 34, actually).

  • Epic Meal Time Cooks Epic Meal for Soup Kitchen

    Some of our favorite extreme eaters, the folks at Epic Meal Time, have just posted a new video and it details their latest calorie-dense cooking event – a giant meal for the needy.

    They cooked the epic meal for Someone Cares, a California soup kitchen that has served the needy 300 meals a day for the past 20 years.

    It’s that Epic Meal Time craziness for a good cause. Sure, it’s not the most healthy thing to serve the homeless, working poor, unemployed, and the elderly – but hey, it’s lot of food for those who need it. And who says only the fortunate are allowed to indulge themselves once a year?

  • That Hilarious Guy Fieri Restaurant Review Has Over 45,000 Facebook Shares

    In what has to be one of the most viral reviews of all time, a New York Times restaurant review has hit a ridiculous number of shares on Facebook. Today, the social network announced that “As Not Seen on TV,” the uncompromising teardown of Guy Fieri’s new Times Square restaurant, has over 45,000 shares across the site.

    I know I’ve seen at least a dozen of my friends post the article. Funny photos and memes can get thousands of shares on Facebook – even hundreds of thousands (just ask George Takei). But for an article to get this kind of viral reach is pretty unusual.

    The whole review, written by Pete Wells as a series of questions to owner Guy Fieri, is a giant f*ck you to the whole food network celebrity chef culture. Or maybe just the worst of it.

    (image)

    Facebook + Media1 hour ago

    This viral review has now been shared more than 45,000 times on Facebook.

    (image)Restaurant Review: Guy’s American Kitchen & Bar in Times Square
    What the food and service at Guy Fieri’s Times Square establishment conjure is pure bafflement, among other things.

    Powered by socialditto(image)  7 likes ·  2 comments

    Here are some select gems:

    Why is one of the few things on your menu that can be eaten without fear or regret — a lunch-only sandwich of chopped soy-glazed pork with coleslaw and cucumbers — called a Roasted Pork Bahn Mi, when it resembles that item about as much as you resemble Emily Dickinson?

    and…

    When you hung that sign by the entrance that says, WELCOME TO FLAVOR TOWN!, were you just messing with our heads?

    or how about…

    What accounts for the vast difference between the Donkey Sauce recipe you’ve published and the Donkey Sauce in your restaurant? Why has the hearty, rustic appeal of roasted-garlic mayonnaise been replaced by something that tastes like Miracle Whip with minced raw garlic? And when we hear the words Donkey Sauce, which part of the donkey are we supposed to think about?

    and in closing…

    Is the entire restaurant a very expensive piece of conceptual art? Is the shapeless, structureless baked alaska that droops and slumps and collapses while you eat it, or don’t eat it, supposed to be a representation in sugar and eggs of the experience of going insane?

    Ouch. The article, while undeniably hilarious, is pretty mean-spirited. Guy has had some people come to his defense.

    But that’s irrelevant. What’s relevant is that, at least according to popularity on Facebook, this review is one of the top food articles of the year.

  • Jamie Oliver And Zynga Team Up For Charity

    Jamie Oliver is a world-renowned chef and host of the now canceled Food Revolution, but he’s also head of a good cause – the Jamie Oliver Food Foundation. It’s purpose is to teach children the benefits of eating healthy foods. Now Oliver is teaming up with Zynga to bring that message to more people than ever.

    Zynga announced that Jamie Oliver will be joining the case of chefs in ChefVille for a limited time. For the next two weeks, Oliver will lead players “on a series of quests focused on fresh ingredients, gardening and cooking up nutritious, satisfying food.”

    During the next two weeks, Zynga will also be offering a ChefVille charity pack that includes unique items that will only be available during this period. All the proceeds from the sales will go straight to Oliver’s Food Foundation and other charities working to provide healthy food to children around the world.

    Zynga is hurting, and it would do the company good to bring in sales of limited edition items. It’s a swell move on the company’s part to donate all of the proceeds to charity instead of pocketing even just a little bit to fill its coffers.

  • Yelp Adds Restaurant Menus With User-Uploaded Photos

    Yelp is rolling out a new Menus feature, which compiles visual menus along with Yelp reviews and user-uploaded food pictures. These will be accessible from business pages, on the website and the Yelp app. You can find them under “Explore the Menu”.

    “Specifics on menu items, like description and price, will match up with Yelp’s user generated photos and reviews mentioning that particular dish,” explains a Yelp product manager in a blog post. “Feeling indecisive? Pick something with the “popular” tag – items Yelpers can’t stop talking about – and you’re guaranteed a good meal.”

    Yelp Menu

    Yelp Menu

    Yelp Menu

    The feature is starting to roll out today in the U.S. Yelp is quickly expanding its operations in Europe, so I would not be surprised to see the feature launch there in the near future.

    Interestingly, Yelp says this the first time it has rolled out a new feature on its website, mobile website and mobile app all at the same time.

  • Here’s What Wendy’s Is About To Look Like

    Wendy’s is undergoing a transformation it says is aimed at “energizing the brand and dramatically improving the customer experience.” This includes a new logo that will debut in March.

    “Key initiatives of the transformation include reinventing the restaurant environment, unveiling a new logo, a successful new advertising campaign, additions to the Mobile Nutrition App and continuing to launch new and innovative products,” a Wendy’s spokesperson says. “New luxuries will be featured in the bold, sleek, ultra-modern restaurant design, allowing for lounge seating, flat-screen TVs, Wi-Fi and digital menuboards. The brand transformation is an evolution of Wendy’s over an extended period, however, Wendy’s won’t change their core values.”

    Have a look at the new logo, and let us know what you think.

    The New Logo

    Wendy's New logo

    A Timeline Of Wendy’s Logos

    Wendy's Timeline

    What Restaurants Will Look Like

    Wendy's Restaurant

    Wendys Restaurant