Thursday, December 24, 2009

Going Xmas Shopping: Food Court

Let's see what they got:

"McDonald’s feeling recession’s bite" by Associated Press | December 9, 2009

No, I wouldn't want to have a stomach ache on the way home.

CHICAGO - The world’s largest burger chain is still faring better than its competitors. But the economy is getting in the way....

A softening dollar [helped] translate foreign revenue into more dollars....

And it made things more expensive for you, American.


--more--"

Where is that dollar menu, right?


What else they got down here?


"White House staff readies for a capital-sized holiday

WASHINGTON - Christmas at the White House is supersized.

Take quantities that might work in a private home - guests, cookies, parties, cards, whatever - and add some extra zeros to get a feel for a White House-size holiday season.

As in 50,000 guests, 28 parties and open houses, a couple hundred thousand holiday cards, and untold quantities of cookies, cakes, brownies, truffles, and the like to feed the Obamas’ holiday throng.

As 1 in 7 Americans is hungry or starving!

“They eat like crazy,’’ says a former White House executive chef, Walter Scheib, who cooked for the masses under Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush....

Yeah, elite White House guests are real pigs, huh?

Pastry chef Bill Yosses’ shop stockpiles mounds of cookie dough in the freezer to keep up with day-to-day demand for holiday sweets. His rule of thumb for receptions: four bite-size dessert items per guest. (Some of which are discreetly slipped into purses and go home as souvenirs.)

Why do RICH ELITES have to STEAL?!!! What is wrong with them?

This year’s menu for the White House dessert buffet table: lemon layer cake, brownies, assorted cookies, pecan pralines, pumpkin pie, chocolate truffles, and more....

I think I'm going to be sick and I haven't even eaten anything.

--more--"

Related:
Obama Talks With His Mouth Full

Let's try the next booth:

"About 5,000 VIPs began entering Aria after 6 p.m. for a gala, greeted by smiling cocktail servers with trays of Dom Perignon champagne and displays of hors d’oeuvres of caviar, seafood, and other savory treats."

They won't even let us in there!

I think I found a spot.

"Here’s a beef: Chain’s steak was a bit shy

Don’t scrimp on the steaks.

That’s the message from the Massachusetts Office of Consumer Affairs to the restaurant chain Ruby Tuesday, whose supplier was fined $700 for serving steaks smaller than advertised at five restaurants - in Attleboro, Springfield, Swansea, Taunton, and Worcester....

Oh, THAT HAPPENS a LOT and EVERYWHERE! I've noticed A LOT of things have gotten SMALLER -- despite what the packaging says!!!

And the restaurants?

SMALLER PLATES make a SMALLER PORTION look BIGGER!!!

Consumer complaints triggered the state’s investigation, which found that Ruby Tuesday’s 7-ounce and 9-ounce sirloins, as well as its 12-ounce rib-eye, all came in underweight. Ruby Tuesday, on its website, promotes its meaty entrees - including the 9-ounce “Cowboy Sirloin’’ and 12-ounce rib-eye - as handcrafted steaks “that are seared to perfection and topped with seasoned butter.’’

I'm not leaving a tip.

--more--"

Maybe I'll just stop at the grocery store on the way home:

"Inflation warning signs not yet worrying Fed; Bernanke expects slow recovery to keep prices down" by Martin Crutsinger, Associated Press | December 16, 2009

WASHINGTON - The Kroger grocery chain, for example, posted a lower quarterly profit in part because it’s had to cut prices to compete - even as its own costs have risen.

Awwwww!

When is someone going to worry about YOU, American?

--more--"