Eccentric Eating
Japan now has a game show in which contestants hang out in a regular-looking room and try to figure out what things in it are actually made of chocolate. Which leads to many, many gifs of people biting hopefully into shoes, picture frames, and other objects. [Kotaku] —Tanya Pai
We have serious problems in this world that need solving, but sure, go ahead and spend millions creating Mountain Dew Cheetos. [Brand Eating] —Chris Campbell
A town council member in Pomfret, New York, was sworn into office wearing the traditional headwear of the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster. Afterward, he remarked that he was feeling extra saucy that day. [Laughing Squid] —TP
Wintry Mix
The polar vortex: not just a weather phenomenon, but a way to make ice cream. [Food & Wine] —Anna Spiegel
It’s cold outside, so local administrations are salting the roads with everything from beet juice to pickle brine. Seriously. [Huffington Post] —Sophie Gilbert
By Popular Demand
Tickets to see the Pizza Underground, Macaulay Culkin’s pizza-themed Velvet Underground cover band, sold out so quickly the Black Cat had to move the March 21 show from backstage to the main stage. [Black Cat] —Benjamin Freed
We can pickle that! The Portlandia crew plans a cookbook for 2015. [Eater National] —AS
Another trend that isn’t going away: my fascination with weird food photography. This time, it’s food that’s been cut in half. [NPR] —CC
You’ve been warned. The US beef industry is going to refocus its marketing efforts on the millennials. [Minnesota Farm Guide] —BF
There’s a Velveeta shortage. No one really knows why, which means it’s probably a marketing ploy to get you to panic and scoop it up wantonly from the supermarket shelves. [NPR] —SG
Drinking and Reading
Anytime you can hilariously nettle the folks at Starbucks I will be on your team. So glad I hate coffee. [FoodBeast] —CC
This list of the most popular bar in each of the 50 states might be just the motivation you need to finally plan that trip to North Dakota. Um, several months from now. [BuzzFeed] —TP
Aversions
To be fair, I think anyone subjected to a serving spoon’s worth of mayonnaise would probably have a similar reaction. [Grub Street] —TP
The Paleo diet is terrible for many reasons, and now it’s official: It came in last on US News’s Best Diets list. [CNN] —SG
Food scientists are really struggling to find a natural sugar substitute that’s as good as sugar, probably because sugar is one of those things for which there is no good substitute. [New York Times] —BF
Answers!
Among the questions Jerry Seinfeld answered during his Reddit session: “What’s the deal with airline food?” [Reddit] —BF
Another in the long line of “We’re eating X food incorrectly” videos—this time, because it’s playoff season, a tutorial on properly eating chicken wings. [YouTube] —CC
