"cafeteria" news and stories

Processed chicken nuggets, syrupy chocolate milk, heaps of salty French fries: It's no real secret that the state of American public school lunches is a mess. But things are even more depressing than you thought: Inmates – yes, actual criminals behind bars – are probably eating better than our kids.

In a recent article for the Tennessee's Herald-Tribune, reporter Tracey Hackett investigated what comes out of the kitchen at the state's Putnam County Justice Center. She found that each inmate gets two meals a day, breakfast and dinner. (Inmates can buy lunchtime snacks if they have an account, as many do). Hackett found that inmates were typically eating from-scratch, balanced meals -- a far cry from the frozen, chemical-laden processed food our kids are getting.

Sarah Parsons at Sustainable Food, a division of Change.org, makes no bones about it, writing that "When you take a look at the school lunches kids receive in America's cafeterias, jail food looks like a meal at a five-star restaurant."

One of the last surviving chains from the golden age of Southern cafeterias is abandoning the classic cafeteria model for buffet-style service.

"It's a completely different experience from what folks have been accustomed to," Furr's Jill Gouge Laird says of the restaurant's new Fresh Buffet concept. "Now they really control the experience."

As recently reported by the Dallas Morning News, the Texas-based chain has opened nine Fresh Buffets over the last five years, and plans to open as many as a dozen additional stores by 2012. Existing restaurants will continue to operate as cafeterias, but Laird confirms all future outlets will be structured as "scattered buffets."

Cafeteria rocks.

Cafeteria is a restaurant in New York's fabulous Chelsea area. Open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, Cafeteria caters not only to its trendy local neighborhood, but to the nearby Meatpacking District where people party till all hours, and to the rest of the night owls (and jet-lagged) in the city.

P-Diddy is reportedly a fan, and celebrity spottings are not uncommon. Most importantly, the food is great. Sometimes you need meatloaf (pictured) at 6am. And that can be hard to find.

According to manager Lori Kistner, the two must-try items on the menu are the Meatloaf and Mac and Cheese. They offer three Mac and Cheese varieties: Original, Gouda & Bacon, and Truffle Oil. And don't miss the desserts. Deep fried Oreos? Breakfast of champions!

See all three, as well as some other delicious-looking items and an interior shot in the gallery below. Cafeteria is located at 119 Seventh Avenue on the corner of 17th Street in Manhattan.

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Today's Washington Times features an odd little story about how congressional cafeterias in Washington, D.C., have apparently abandoned the terms "freedom fries" and "freedom toast" and returned to using the word French to describe the fried treats. Times reporter Christina Bellantoni didn't have much luck getting comments from either of the politicians that introduced the patriotic name change back in March 2003, however. "I really don't see how this is a story," one representative's spokesman said. Still, regardless of how the shift in menus came about, it appears that changes have been made.

Rapper 50 Cent is entering the battle against obesity. He is one of the judges in a nationwide cooking competition that is aimed at promoting good health among school-age children. The Free Lunch Money Contest, which is sponsored by Glaceau, asks student chefs to come up with the most nutritious cafeteria lunch recipe. The grand prize is a $100,000 college scholarship.

50 Cent is part owner of Glaceau, which also sells his grape-flavored vitamin water, Formula 50. He told USA Today that while he maintains a healthy lifestyle now, at 29, he didn't always do so and thinks that it is tough for kids to stick to a healthy diet. Today, the rapper works out regularly and has his meals prepared by a personal chef, instead of indulging in fast food. He also doesn't drink alcohol, but admits to sneaking the occasional soda in a diet where he largely avoids sugar.

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