Burger King's biggest item yet & Japan as its ironic first customer

(Ignore the current no.1 cause for a heart attack on your left) To begin with, when you're asked to think about the biggest burger a fast food restaurant has to offer, what comes to your mind? A whopper? A big mac? Maybe you imagine something ridiculous, something like stacking two whoppers on top of each other. Crazy? Well Burger King is taking the cake on this one with their introduction of Meat Monster -- which doesn't really sound too great but (seriously) does justice for its name.

So what is it?

Meat Monster (ˈmētˈmän(t)-stər) n., The best burger in the world *ahem* An invention created by Burger King that may be composed of 2x whopper patties, 2x slice of cheese, 3x slice of bacon, lettuce, tomato, onion, IN ADDITION TO a grilled chicken breast.

Unfortunately, it is only in Japan but it's no mystery to the world as to how much it is packing and at 1,160 calories per serving, you wonder, "WHY JAPAN?!" Actually, you might not wonder why. But you should if you take a look at their society. On one hand, for those who do watch a lot of Japanese media, you pick up on the idea that there's always a convenience store nearby -- that's true. You also pick up that a lot of people, at least for the majority, are skinny. On the other hand, let's face it. We, as Americans, are helped with the biggest servings in comparison to the rest of the world -- probably.

So why is it ironic? Calorielab provides coverage as to why Japan is so "skinny:"

• Peer pressure. Japanese society is largely based on how one fits comfortably and unabrasively into society, way more so than most Western societies. There is a huge amount of peer pressure to conform, and the pressure on women in particular to stay slim is tremendous.
• More unplanned movement. Usually people who live in Japan, especially the urban and suburban areas, just have to move a lot more. Cars aren’t practical at all except for longer trips, so almost everyone commutes by public transportation. That’s not to say there aren’t any gyms and such (there are, tons of them) but people just naturally get more exercise than in a typical American city.
• Portions are way smaller. This is true in general, despite recent supersizing trends. There are Mega-Burgers and Extreme Meals and all of that, but the average portion sizes are still quite a bit smaller than in the U.S.

Their coverage is actually quite lengthy and provides a good insight as to the differences between America's and Japan's habits in regards to weight and food. Now do you know why it is ironic? While we're ordering a medium which is probably their large, Burger King just introduced the most heart throbbing burger in Japan.

...Heck, maybe I'm just exclaiming my disappointment in not being able to experience it first. *Sigh*

\\via CalorieLab, via Food in the News

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Posted in: Fast Food,Ken

Radiation in your life? Nonsense!

Let's give it up to the idiots who assume that every little dose of radiation is a guaranteed trip to cancer. But as a result of such nonsense, I'm here to take a break from coffee art and present to you the reasons why the recent events concerning Japan's failed nuclear station may mean absolutely nothing to food with an increased level of radiation -- to a point.

As many of you may know, the resulting leak from the nuclear plant did not only result in local increases of radiation but tests have shown that radiation has been detected in milk as far as California. So should we be worried? Should we, who find ourselves under the sun all the time, be seriously worried that we are drinking milk that "may give us cancer?" No, no we shouldn't. As presented to you by a well known webcomic, here is a radiation exposure chart  created and presented by XKCD:

 

Clicking on the image will allow you to view the actual size of it. The chart works in a clockwise manner, starting with the top left chart. 

*Ahem* As you can all see, we're constantly exposed to radiation no matter where we live. But what I'm truly saying is that we should be concerned by the AMOUNT of radiation we are exposed to RATHER than the idea that so and so is completely unsafe because there is an indication of radiation.

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Posted in: Fast Food,Ken,radiation

New York City: No Toying Around

Do your kids like collecting toys from fast food restaurants? They might not be able to do so for long.

It has been recently unveiled that some New York City council members are planning to propose a bill to ban toys from being given away with meals from fast food restaurants. Why would they do this? City Council Deputy Majority Leader Leroy Comrie claims " banning toy giveaways would reduce the allure of fast-food restaurants for children and encourage the industry to provide healthier options." While this proposition looks good on paper, would it really solve the issue? While removing the toys could lessen the overall consumption of unhealthy food among children, it doesn't take away the fact that the children with problems related to consuming fast food are those that like those foods and are addicted to them. Taking away the toys could probably even be detrimental to the childrens' development as it could possibly stunt their creativity.

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Posted in: Fast Food,Herb,NYC