We’re living in strange times when grabbing a burger and fries sets you back more than a decent sit-down meal used to cost just a few years back. Americans across the country are staring at their receipts in disbelief, wondering when fast food stopped being, well, fast and affordable. Between 2020 and 2025, the restaurant …
Megan Fairchild
Eggs Benedict Eggs Benedict (Image Credits: Pixabay) Many restaurants have simplified or eliminated this dish entirely, unable to justify the labor costs and potential waste associated with hollandaise preparation, with shortcuts compromising the dish’s integrity when it does appear. Let’s be real, making hollandaise sauce isn’t exactly a quick task. Morning visits to McDonald’s reportedly …
Walk into a grocery store below the Mason-Dixon line and you’re stepping into a world where certain aisles tell stories that stretch back generations. These aren’t your average supermarket finds. They’re the ingredients of Sunday suppers, church potlucks, and roadside stands that define regional pride in ways that outsiders might not immediately understand. Here’s the …
Think about the last time you saw chicken à la king on a menu. Can’t remember? You’re not alone. American cuisine has evolved dramatically over the past few decades, leaving behind a trail of once-beloved dishes that have practically vanished from restaurant menus and home kitchings alike. These aren’t just random recipes that faded away. …
The Fermentation Factor Makes the Difference The Fermentation Factor Makes the Difference (Image Credits: Flickr) When you bite into a slice of sourdough, you’re tasting something that goes far beyond regular bread. Unlike conventional breads that rely on commercial yeast, sourdough is made through a natural fermentation process involving wild yeast and lactic acid bacteria. …
Your Pan’s Scratches Could Be Leaching Millions of Particles Into Your Food Your Pan’s Scratches Could Be Leaching Millions of Particles Into Your Food (Image Credits: Pixabay) Research reveals that a single scratched nonstick pan can release up to 2.3 million toxic micro and nanoplastic particles, with even a single surface crack causing the release …
Feeling exhausted even after a good night’s sleep? Experiencing strange tingling sensations in your hands? These seemingly unrelated symptoms might point to something surprisingly common yet often overlooked. Low or marginal vitamin B12 status without obvious symptoms is much more common, at up to 40% in Western populations, especially in those with low intakes of …
Buffets are everywhere these days, from the big casinos in Vegas to your neighborhood brunch spot. We think we know the drill, right? Grab a plate, load up on whatever catches your eye, and go back as many times as possible. Simple enough. Wrong. Let’s be real here. The truth is, most of us are …
Hamburgers and Cheeseburgers Reign Supreme Hamburgers and Cheeseburgers Reign Supreme (Image Credits: Pixabay) By mid-2024, hamburgers, french fries, and grilled cheese sandwiches ranked as the most popular American dishes, with roughly 84 percent of respondents expressing positive opinions – levels that have largely held steady into 2025. There’s something deeply satisfying about biting into a …
Superior Cuts Are Where You Should Splurge Superior Cuts Are Where You Should Splurge (Image Credits: Unsplash) Dennis Turcinovic owns the historic Delmonico’s steakhouse in New York City and he’s pretty clear about one thing. When you’re at a high-end steakhouse, skip the filet mignon and go for something with more personality. Turcinovic recommends seeking …
Ask for Fresh Food and They’ll Actually Make It Ask for Fresh Food and They’ll Actually Make It (Image Credits: Unsplash) Fast food fries often sit under heat lamps with timestamps, and workers know exactly when they’re getting stale – sometimes for more than twenty minutes. Here’s the thing most people don’t realize. You can …
Searing Meat Doesn’t Actually Seal In The Juices Searing Meat Doesn’t Actually Seal In The Juices (Image Credits: Wikimedia) The belief that searing meat seals in juices has been widespread and repeated since Justus von Liebig first proposed this theory around 1850, embraced by legendary cooks including Auguste Escoffier. Here’s the thing though: it’s completely …
What Exactly Is Fried Rice Syndrome What Exactly Is Fried Rice Syndrome (Image Credits: Pixabay) Fried rice syndrome is food poisoning caused by a bacterium known as Bacillus cereus (B. cereus), though honestly, the name makes it sound way more delicious than it actually is. The term “fried rice syndrome” originated from the first reported …
The Meat Divide: Pork vs. Beef The Meat Divide: Pork vs. Beef (Image Credits: Wikimedia) Southern barbecue is mostly pork while Texas barbecue is mostly beef, and this fundamental split creates the biggest point of contention among pitmasters. Texas barbecue is all about the beef, with Texans preferring beef brisket, a cut that can take …
A Booming Market Worth Billions A Booming Market Worth Billions (Image Credits: Flickr) The market size of the Chinese Restaurants industry in the United States is $28.4bn in 2025. That’s not pocket change. As of 2023, the United States had around 37,000 Chinese restaurants, with businesses growing at a CAGR of 1.8% between 2020 and …
Most of us have heard that saffron is expensive. Some might even know it’s a spice that comes from a flower. Still, few truly grasp why this crimson thread commands prices that rival precious metals. Here’s the thing: when people call saffron “red gold,” they’re not being poetic. They’re being literal. In many markets around …
Pandemic Paranoia Changed Everything Pandemic Paranoia Changed Everything (Image Credits: Unsplash) Honestly, buffet restaurants are still taking hits from the pandemic – some scars might never fully fade. Garden Fresh Restaurants, which operated Souplantation and Sweet Tomatoes buffet chains, was losing about $1 million per week after closing its 97 locations in March 2020, ultimately …
All-you-can-eat buffets once defined American dining culture. Families gathered around endless trays of comfort food, kids ran wild near the chocolate fountain, and the promise of unlimited refills made Sunday afternoons special. Yet something fundamental has shifted in recent years. Walk through any major city today and you’ll notice fewer buffet chains than a decade …
You’ve probably seen those reassuring words on your favorite snack package or drink bottle: “Made with natural flavoring.” It sounds wholesome, right? Pure. Like something your grandmother might have used in her kitchen. The clean label movement has exploded in recent years, with half of industry professionals identifying clean label ingredients as the leading consumer …
Have you ever picked up a brightly colored snack at the grocery store without a second thought? Most Americans don’t realize they’re consuming ingredients that other countries have deemed too risky for their citizens. While European nations have implemented strict precautionary measures to protect public health, the United States continues to allow these controversial additives …
Something peculiar happens when you bite into a perfectly grilled American burger halfway across the world. The juice runs down your chin in Tokyo or Dubai or Sydney, and for a moment, you’re eating something unmistakably familiar yet somehow transformed. It’s hard to say for sure, but the classic American burger has traveled farther and …
Ever accidentally offended someone at dinner without even knowing it? Dining customs vary wildly around the world, and what’s perfectly polite in one place might be shockingly rude somewhere else. From slurping your noodles to never touching your fork with your mouth, these cultural quirks can make or break your dining experience abroad. Let’s be …
Casu marzu has earned recognition from Guinness World Records as the world’s most dangerous cheese. This notorious Sardinian delicacy contains thousands of live maggots that wriggle through decomposing sheep’s milk cheese. It’s been banned by the European Food Safety Authority which means it’s illegal to buy or sell. Yet it’s just one of many seemingly …
You probably think reheating last night’s rice is harmless. Most people do. Thing is, that innocent-looking bowl sitting on your counter could be brewing something sinister that even high heat can’t kill. Let’s be real, we’ve all done it. Cooked a big batch of rice, left it out for a few hours while we ate …