'Hearty Eater' Says Buffet Banned Him

Homer Simpsons: All you can eat? Ha!

Lionel Hutz: Mr. Simpson, this is the most blatant case of fraudulent advertising since my suit against the film, The Never-Ending Story.

From Yahoo! News:

HOUMA, La. - A 6-foot-3, 265-pound man says a restaurant overcharged him for his trips to the buffet line, then banned him and a relative because they're hearty eaters. A spokesman for the restaurant denies the claim.

Ricky Labit, a disabled offshore worker, said he had been a regular for eight months at the Manchuria Restaurant in Houma, eating there as often as three times a week.

On his most recent visit, he said, a waitress gave him and his wife's cousin, 44-year-old Michael Borrelli, a bill for $46.40, roughly double the buffet price for two adults.

"She says, 'Y'all fat, and y'all eat too much,'" Labit said.

Labit and Borrelli said they felt discriminated against because of their size. "I was stunned, that somebody would say something like that. I ain't that fat, I only weigh 277," Borrelli said, adding that a waitress told him he looked like he a had a "baby in the belly."

Houma accountant Thomas Campo said the men were charged an extra $10 each on Dec. 21 because they made a habit of dining exclusively on the more expensive seafood dishes, including crab legs and frog legs.

"We have a lot of big people there," said Campo, who spoke for owner Li Shang, whose English is limited. "We don't discriminate."

Labit denied ever being told he would be asked to pay more than the standard adult price.

The argument grew heated, and police were called.

The police report states, "The incident was settled when the management advised that the bill was a mistake and, to appease Ricky, the meal was complimentary."

Labit said he insisted on paying but was told not to come back. He complained that when seafood on the buffet line runs out, the restaurant only grudgingly cooks more.

Campo said the proprietress tries to reduce waste of quality food, he said.

"Food is for eating, not toys for your child," reads a sign posted on a wall in typewritten text. A handwritten addition reads "Or 20% added."

The boy who can only eat 6 foods

I feel bad for people who can't eat dairy. Then there's people who can't have any gluten (so beer, among many other things, is out. Although you may be able to drink Lakefront New Grist).

But the kid in the article below can barely eat anything! He's alergic to wheat, gluten, dairy products, eggs, soy, and most other things he's tried.

Twelve-year-old Tylor Savage doesn’t have to ask what’s for dinner. It’s chicken or tuna with carrots and potatoes and maybe some grapes or an apple — the only foods to which he is not allergic.

MSNBC has the complete article.

Beer vs Baby Food

The New York Times has an interesting article about the proposed merger of SABMiller and Molson Coors in today's paper.

It seems that analysts feel that antitrust regulators will likely approve the merger. But a similar deal seeking to combine the No. 2 and No. 3 players in a consolidated industry — sometimes called a 3-to-2 deal, because it reduces the industry leaders from three to two — was blocked on antitrust grounds a few year ago.

That was Heinz’s attempt to buy the maker of Beech-Nut baby food, a $185 million transaction Heinz ended up abandoning.

Together, Heinz and Beech-Nut would have controlled nearly 33 percent of the retail baby-food market; Gerber, the industry leader, controlled 65 percent. Compare that with the numbers in Tuesday’s proposed deal, in which a combined MillerCoors would have a 29 percent share of the U.S. beer market, and Anheuser-Busch would have 49 percent.

Will the beer merger be approved?

Nuts and Beer

An article from ABC News today says that the health benefits of certain foods are magnified when they're combined with other foods.

Here's their short list. Read the article for details:

• Salsa and Avocado
• Nuts and Beer
• Garlic and Fennel
• Exercise and Caffeine

Since I don't like fennel or exercise (plus exercise isn't a food), I think I'll stick with nuts and beer.

Sitting at the bar while eating nuts and drinking beer is not a path to heart disease, but may in fact be a healthy pastime. In fact, nuts boost good cholesterol, HDL, and lower bad cholesterol, LDL. And alcohol acts as a blood thinner and helps prevent blood clots. In both cases, though, moderation is key.

Swedish researchers have also found that the fat and fiber in nuts slow down the absorption of alcohol, smoothing out the effects of moderate alcohol consumption.

For best results, try to eat about 15 minutes before taking that first drink.

Mick Jagger's Beer Diet

It sounds like Sir Mick's on the same diet that I'm on.

British rock musician Mick Jagger credits his love of food and beer with keeping him slim. The musician was quoted on online sources stating that “I have to eat and eat and have a few beers to keep my 140 pounds going.”

The lanky 5 foot 10 inch Jagger’s lean frame has remained constant throughout his almost 45 year career with the Rolling Stones.

Consumer Reports rates light beers (and hot dogs)

Last weekend I was reading a recent Consumer Reports magazine that reviewed hot dogs and light beers. I enjoy a good hot dog from time to time, and I was interested to see their rankings.

Hebrew National won the blind taste test for best-tasting hot dog. I've never had a Hebrew National hot dog before, although I never shy away from kosher foods. If I had a choice between a kosher dill pickle and one that's not kosher (meaning that it probably fell on the floor since it wasn't prepared under rabbinical supervision), I'd take the kosher!

I've now come to understand that a kosher dill pickle is usually not kosher in the sense that it was prepared under rabbinical supervision, which would ensure that no utensil in contact with the pickles had been in contact with food that was not kosher. Rather, it is a pickle made in the traditional manner of Jewish New York City pickle makers with generous addition of garlic to the brine. But that's not my point here.

I respect Consumer Reports and I think that the hot dog test is good one. But then I read the light beer article. The light beer results are oh so wrong!

The big "winners" of the test were as follows:

1. Michelob Ultra Amber
2. Michelob Light
3. Michelob Ultra
4. Coors Light

I've tasted a Michelob Ultra before and it's a perfect choice for people who don't like beer. It basically tastes like water with some sugar and artificial beer flavoring. It's definitely in the bottom 10 beers I've ever had (and I've had pizza beer brewed with garlic cloves and oregano). Beer Advocate even gives it a 96% disapproval rating. It's quite bad.

I've also tasted Coors Light and basically rank it below every beer starting with the letters BUD (and that's a bad thing).

Sam Adams Light was 5th on the list and I agree that it should be up there somewhere. That's the one shining star of their rankings. Miller Lite finished 11th and despite the fact that Miller's own blind tests showed Miller Lite has more taste, Bud Light finished 8th. There were also bunch of other bad beers that finished in the top 10 like Keystone Light, Busch Light, and Natural Light. But those are cheap, light beers and everyone knows what they are getting to when they buy them. Michelob pretends they are a premium drink.

Supposedly the Consumer Reports taste testers focused on "whether a beer tasted fresh and had a balanced mix of floral, fruity, malted grain, hops and other appropriate flavors." I guess I agree that Michelob Ultra tastes fresh - just like water!

I guess I don't like light beer in general, but if I had to drink one it certainly wouldn't be anything made by Michelob (thus by Anheuser-Busch).

Do yourself a favor - skip all the Consumer Reports light beers and have a local craft beer instead. If you're worried about the calories, have one less beer.

The best of Getto

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel has an article today about the late Dennis Getto's pet peeves and favorite dishes. Here are some interesting selections:

Most creative cuisine: Sanford (1547 N. Jackson St.) and Dream Dance (in Potawatomi Bingo Casino, 1721 W. Canal St.). I've been to Sanford once and had a great squash soup that was served in the squash shell. I've never been to Dream Dance but I've heard great things about it. The picture on the left is pea soup at Dream Dance - made from fresh spring peas and served like lobster bisque - poured over a lump of freshly cooked crayfish.

Best view: Bartolotta's Lake Park Bistro (3133 E. Newberry Blvd.), Roots Restaurant and Cellar (1818 N. Hubbard St.) and Coast (931 E. Wisconsin Ave.). I agree that the view from Roots in Brewers Hill is great and mom and dad raved about the view from their center window seat overlooking Lake Michigan at Lake Park Bistro.

They also list his picks for best steak, best seafood, and more, and have some online chat highlights.

Getto's pet peeves included being seated near the kitchen, being ignored, waiting too long when you have reservations, piped-in music that's too loud - and waiters who don't handle silverware properly.

Ice Cream vs. Beer

Heather and I were discussing which was worse for you: ice cream or beer. Heather loves ice cream and I’m a big fan of beer.


While Heather was enjoying a chocolate-dipped vanilla cone from Dairy Queen today, I claimed that beer is MUCH better for you than ice cream. Since it’s made from things like hops and barley, it’s basically as wholesome as bread.


The internet tells us that beer contains vitamin B6 which prevents the build up in the body of a chemical called homocysteine - thought to be linked to an increase in the risk of heart disease. It also protects against heart attacks, stroke, hypertension, diabetes and dementia.


Beer is so good for you, I’m calling for the FDA to add beer to the food pyramid, and somewhere near the top.



















I checked the Dairy Queen website and the Miller Brewing website, and both have a section for looking up nutritional information. Here's the breakdown:


Beer is better for you than ice cream! Some of the stuff at DQ is actually really bad for you. The dipped cone that Heather ate today even contained some of the dreaded trans fat.


The worst dessert for you to eat at DQ appears to be the Large Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Blizzard (Heather loves these too, but probably not the large sized one). One of those has 1320 calories, 52 grams of fat (6 grams of trans fat), and 193 carbs. You could have 15 beers before you'd reach the carb level of one of those Blizzards!



An intern at my work used to eat a 7½" Pepperoni Melt from Cousin's Subs every day for lunch. He was a growing boy so sometimes he would even eat 2 of them. After all, who wouldn't enjoy a hot sub made with ham, pepperoni, and melted Provolone cheese prepared with mayo, lettuce, onions, tomatoes, and seasoned with oregano. We looked them up at cousinssubs.com and found that they are quite bad for you too: 730 calories, 45 grams of fat, and 50 carbs. He stopped eating so many of them after learning that. But the Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Blizzard puts the Pepperoni Melt to shame!


The worst beer for you (that Miller makes) appears to be Sparks Plus 7%. I never heard of Sparks Plus 7% but I generally stay away from Malt beverage/Energy drink combos. Sparks Plus 7% has 288 calories, 37 carbs, and 7% alcohol by volume.


The worst real beer that Miller makes is Leinenkugel's Apple Spice with 208 calories and 26.8 carbs.