As we all know, yesterday was President Barack Obama’s birthday.  And what kind of cake did the Commander-in-Chief receive?   How about the disaster you see above.   Does this cake fit the President?  I think not.  This is not the essence of cool.  This is more like fireworks shooting out of your nose while the Star Spangled Banner is playing.  And do you think there is room for another seal on that cake?  Come on…

H/t to NBC Washington for the cake pict.

Bookmark It

Hide Sites

I’ve mentioned before that Domino’s is a client of mine and my company’s, so some of you are probably wondering what the heck are Chocolate Lava Crunch Cakes?  Well Domino’s describes them as:

oven-baked chocolate cakes, crunchy on the outside, with a rich warm flowing chocolate inside… inspired by a combination of chocolate and textures.

I’m not a chocolate guy myself, but I imagine some people’s mouths just started watering.

Bookmark It

Hide Sites

So what did Bill Clinton order? A double hamburger with all the fixings but no mayo. He opted for the combo side, which includes both fries and onion rings. To drink, he went with an apple pie flavored milkshake. NBC Washington has a collection of 9 photos from his trip.

Update: Everyone’s favorite right-wing host, Bill O’Reilly featured a segment on Bill Clinton’s visit, even calling Clinton a “pinhead”:

Bookmark It

Hide Sites

The film’s website describes the documentary as a film that:

Lifts the veil on our nation’s food industry, exposing the highly mechanized underbelly that has been hidden from the American consumer with the consent of our government’s regulatory agencies, USDA and FDA. Our nation’s food supply is now controlled by a handful of corporations that often put profit ahead of consumer health, the livelihood of the American farmer, the safety of workers and our own environment.

The film addresses the issues of genetic engineering, cloning, farm worker protection, environmental impact, factory farming, pesticides and healthy eating.

We talk a lot here at So Good about fast food companies, and frequently I’m writing about food products that are about as unhealthy as it gets – I recognize this, and just because I write about something does not mean I’m endorsing it or encouraging you to eat it.  The bottom line is that So Good looks at the world of food through the angle of what products are the most absurd, and what marketing campaigns are the most interesting. Since a lot of fast food is incredibly unhealthy and unnecessary for people to buy, these companies work extra hard to create absurd new products and creative new marketing strategies – which, in turn, makes it more interesting for me to write about.

I’m certainly not a vegetarian, and I will mock the organic/eat local/save the world people when their rhetoric gets too silly not to be mocked, but the fact of the matter is that these issues are important to me, and they should be important to you.  I feel relatively powerless as just one consumer, but I would love to see a massive cultural shift in the way our country approaches eating, food and the food industry. There are so many better safeguards our government can put in place, and there are  many buying habits that American consumers can change.

The bottom line is that Americans eat crap, and a lot of it. Whether it be foods that are high in fat, overly processed, or full of chemicals. We are incredibly disconnected from our food supply, and many people LIKE living in ignorance, fearing they wouldn’t want to eat their favorite foods anymore if they knew how it was produced.  It should be a major goal of our country to change our eating habits no matter how much pressure we get from big agri-business or the major food companies.  I’m not advocating taking away the choice of consumers to eat whatever the hell they want, but education can go a long way towards motivating people to, on their own, make wiser choices.  In many ways, the health and the lives of our citizens depends on it.

Check out the Food Inc. trailer below.  Hopefully this film will make its way to DC at some point soon.

H/T to Cold Mud for the trailer.

Bookmark It

Hide Sites

Politico reports that yesterday afternoon, President Obama and Vice-President Biden stopped into Ray’s Hell Burger, a burger joint just up the street from my office.  For those of you outside DC or unfamiliar with this place, let me just say that Obama has excellent taste in burgers. This place is hands down one of the best burgers you’ll ever have.

With 10 oz patties and a bevy of toppings, this burger is messy. It’s the kind of burger that once you pick it up, you can’t put it down. Both because A) it’s f-ing tasty and you don’t WANT to put it down, and B) if you put it down while eating it, you risk it totally falling apart.

USA Today reports that Obama ordered a basic cheeseburger and asked for spicy mustard.  Biden ordered his burger with swiss cheese and jalapeno peppers.

(photo via DC Nearly Weds)

Well played Obama, well played.

Bookmark It

Hide Sites

I’m sure many of you were closely following the Inauguration this morning, as I was, knowing the historical impact of this incredible event.  Then, like me, once the event was over, you probably thought, what will President Obama’s first meal be?  Like everything else on this day, these details have been planned for a long time, and the theme of the luncheon is ‘A New Birth of Freedom’ (honoring the 200th anniversary of President Lincoln’s birth). 

Therefore, the menu features some of Lincoln’s favorite foods, which is actually pretty cool.

MENU

First Course: Seafood Stew
(Paired with Duckhorn Vineyards 2007 Sauvignon Blanc, Napa Valley)

Second Course: A Brace of American Birds (pheasant and duck), served with Sour Cherry Chutney and Molasses Sweet Potatoes
(Paired with Goldeneye 2005 Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley)

Third Course:
Apple Cinnamon Sponge Cake and Sweet Cream Glace
(Paired with Korbel International “Special Inaugural Cuvee,” California Champagne)

I hope the afternoon schedule is light, because there are lots of glasses of wine going around!

H/T to NY Daily News for pict.

Bookmark It

Hide Sites

AP Photo/Gerald Herbert via DCist.

Ben’s Chili Bowl is famous for their half-smoke, which is served “All-the-way” with chili, mustard and Onions. (Don’t know what a half-smoke is? See Serious Eats description or check the half-smoke Wikipedia page).  As I wrote back in March, the Ben’s half-smoke is also the signature food item at the new Nationals Park.

The occasion is being praised by the National Hot Dog & Sausage Council who released a press release hilariously titled, “President-Elect Obama’s Historic Trip to Famous DC Hot Dog Restaurant Reflects Excellent and All-American Taste in Cuisine.”

Ben’s Chili Bowl previously had a sign that for years read: “Who Eats for Free at Ben’s: Bill Cosby. No One Else.” However, in December, Ben’s updated this list to include the Obama family.  Bill Cosby made an appearance on Meet the Press this weekend, discussed Obama’s trip to Ben’s Chili Bowl and expressed concern that Obama apparently didn’t know what a half-smoke was.

The AP has footage of Obama’s trip to the famous DC eatery:

Bookmark It

Hide Sites

In the clip, Obama discusses a soul food restaurant in his home neighborhood of Hyde Park called Dixie Kitchen and Bait Shop.  The episode will air for the first time on January 16th on WTTW.

Bookmark It

Hide Sites

Wikipedia describes spam musubi as:

a very popular snack and luncheon food in Hawaii made in the tradition of Japanese onigiri, also known as a musubi. A Spam musubi is composed of a block of salted (not vinegared; that would be sushi) rice with a slice of Spam (cooked or uncooked) on top, and typically nori (dried seaweed) surrounding it to keep it in shape.

In April, Serious Eats provided a tutorial on how to make spam musabi, and this short YouTube clip also gives you an idea of how it is made:

Bookmark It

Hide Sites

Now comes the news that the owner of Italian Fiesta Pizzeria, cited in So Good’s post as one of Obama’s favorite restaurants, has been invited to DC to serve up pizza during some of the inauguration festivities. Check out a report below on the news that this pizza joint has hit the big time:

Bookmark It

Hide Sites

Sarah Palin dishes up some moose chili for her family.

Say what you will about Sarah Palin, but it’s clear at this point that eating moose is most definitely not a stunt. This woman and her family LOVE their moose. Oh yeah, and during the interview she also made sure to call bloggers “kids in pajamas.”  Right. That’s not an antiquated view of bloggers at all.

Bookmark It

Hide Sites

Adrants likes the design of the ads, and I agree they are interesting from a design standpoint. However, the Marijuana Policy Project is calling it the “lamest anti-marijuana campaign yet.” My thoughts? We have a hell of a lot of serious problems to fix in this country. It’s embarassing that my country’s priorities still include wasting money on crap like this instead of using tax dollars to solve real problems.

Bookmark It

Hide Sites

Big props to Al Dente and Flickr user lazerdave for the picture, and my friend Andy for bringing this to my attention.

Bookmark It

Hide Sites

Mmmmm….candidates eating.

Bookmark It

Hide Sites