-A vast expansion in the power of the FDA to regulate food
-Better overall food safety
-Slightly higher food costs

Yahoo! News breaks it down in more detail. I encourage you to give it a read.

I was so excited I made my coworkers stop so I could take a few photos of the fans camping out, eagerly awaiting the grand opening.

I chatted with a few people, some had come as far as Springfield, IL, a few hundred miles away.

It’s a powerful spot, but a little dramatic. However, their point is accurate. We should eat less meat. More fruits and vegetables. It may actually put years on your life.

McDonald’s and Wendy’s top the list, each with Kid’s meals in the 800 calorie range.

Wow. I bet that’s as much as most children need to eat in a day. Parents, take note. Fast food should be treated as an occasional treat, don’t feed this stuff to your kids everyday.

Here are the rules. In honor of my post on the worst fast food restaurants, tell me your least favorite fast food restaurant and why. I’ll mail out the card to a random poster.

Warning: I’ve had this card sitting around for a long time. It doesn’t look to be expired, but I won’t be held responsible if it doesn’t work.

Contest ends next Wednesday. Happy posting!

McDonald’s New Angus Wraps:

Can you say gross? The Mushroom and Swiss looks particularly disgusting. I was hoping the Big Mac Snack Wrap would be the end of the burger wrap, but it must have done better than I predicted.

Cantina Tacos from Taco Bell:

Looks like Taco Bell is trying to copy authentic, taqueria style tacos. Good luck with that. I personally have no desire to order these. Luckily for me, if I want good, authentic tacos I just need to walk out my door in any direction. My neighborhood is packed with good taquerias.

If any one sees commercials for these posted online, let me know.

In Defense of Fast Food?

Finally, in a bit of brain twisting, mind-boggling food irony, UTNE Reader published an article called: In Praise of Fast Food. You know that got my attention.

In short, the article points out that “fast food” has long been an ideal of human kind, and that the current movement back to traditional/slow food is counter to human progress. Check out this excerpt:

For our ancestors, natural was something quite nasty. Natural often tasted bad. Fresh meat was rank and tough, fresh fruits inedibly sour, fresh vegetables bitter. Natural was unreliable. Fresh milk soured; eggs went rotten. Everywhere seasons of plenty were followed by seasons of hunger. Natural was also usually indigestible. Grains, which supplied 50 to 90 percent of the calories in most societies, have to be threshed, ground, and cooked to make them edible.

Excerpt from In Praise of Fast Food
by Rachel Laudan, from the book The Gastronomica Reader

She goes on to explain that industrial food may not be quite as bad as we make it out to be. I’ll save you the full summary, but this is great read for any foodie.

I think she makes valid points. I like natural foods, but there’s no way I’m giving up some of the great canned conveniences of modern times. Just think of Plumpy Nut, basically a mix of peanut butter and powdered milk, a miracle industrial food that is helping eliminate malnutrition and starvation in third world countries.

I wasn’t able to find anything online about this sandwich. It’s obviously a copy of Chick-fil-A’s chicken sandwich formula. White bun, friend chicken breast and pickles. I’m wondering if this is a Chicago area test. Has anyone else heard about this?

Eatocracy.CNN.com – CNN has joined the revolution, the food blog revolution that is. A few weeks back they launched their own food based site, a virtual cornucopia of chow. A little late to the party, but worth checking out.

In-N-Out’s Double Double, Animal Style – Great Serious Eats post about one hungry New Yorker that sets out to make his own Double Double. Good writing and great photos. Check him out.

A Hamburger Today Leftovers – Yes, time for shameless self promotion. If you didn’t get a chance to see it, Fast Food Reviewed was featured on A Hamburger Today’s Leftovers section last week. Pretty cool, I’m jazzed to be mentioned on such a great site.

Cheeseburger found in South Carolina Gas Tank – While America may run on cheeseburgers. Cars don’t.

Ten Worst Fast Food Chains

10. Jimmy John’s
I know I’m going to take some heat for this one, but Jimmy John’s is not good. I don’t get the hype. Very plain, boring sandwiches at surprisingly high prices. I know it’s been a bad day when I eat Jimmy John’s, because I’m in the mood for plain food and willing to be priced gouged to get it. Two words sum up Jimmy Johns: overpriced and overrated.

9. Chicago area combination fast food hot dog, char-burger, pizza puff, gyro, pizza puffs and chicken places.
If you’ve ever lived in Chicago or the surrounding area, you know what I’m talking about. These strange fast food stands that try to serve everything under the sun. While some pull it off, many are just a complete disaster.

8. Long John Silver’s
Want some deep fried fish sticks? Cause that’s what this place sells.

7. A&W
I used to love this place. It was the only fast food spot in my hometown when I was really young. It was a classic drive up, only open in the summer. But since then, this chain has fallen apart. They’ve tried to become like every other burger spot. Their root beer is still great, but the rest pretty much sucks.

6. Dairy Queen
Hear me out. Dairy Queen has great Blizzards and ice cream treats, but their food is sub par.

5. Combination Pizza Hut/Taco Bell/KFCs
Make up your mind already. It’s just too much choice. Do I want fried chicken or tacos or burritos or a personal pan pizza? Something is inevitably neglected at these mini food courts. Fail.

4. Sonic
I really shouldn’t be passing judgment on Sonic. I’ve only been once. BUT they have an aggressive commercial media buy. I see their commercials all the time, yet I can’t ever try their food because THERE ARE NO SONICS WHERE I LIVE.

3. White Castle
Steamed grilled beef. Gross. I’ve enjoyed visits to White Castle, but more for the novelty than the food. Their burgers are sub par, and most White Castle’s I’ve been to are filthy and run down.

2. Jack in a Box
Or as my brother calls it “Yack in a Box”. I’ve only been to the Jack a few times, but was not impressed. Also, I’ve never  been able to get over the E. coli breakouts back in 1993. They made a big impression on my young mind.

1. Carl’s Jr./Hardees
Not only does this place boast some of the most unhealthy entrees in fast foodom, but the quality of the food is suspect. Every time I’ve eaten at either, I’ve left with a queasy upset stomach. Maybe partly due to my personal guilt at having eaten a “Monster” burger, but something just isn’t right at Carl’s Jr.

Opinions? Am I crazy? Did I miss something? Sound off in the comments.