Michael Phelps' 12,000 calories a day notwithstanding, I'm dubious that the US Olympic teams are marching en masse to the Beijing Mickey D's for their pre-event chowdown. Still, that shouldn't stop you from pole vaulting on over to Facetheglory.com to download a coupon for a free Southern Style Biscuit or Sandwich today. Come armed with a hearty appetite and a color cartridge, 'cause the coupon is valid from August 15th through September 1st, and only if it's printed in color.
Yeah, I know that the analagous Chick-Fil-A sandwich tends to be the crowd favorite 'round these parts, but really, are you gonna look a gift chicken in the mouth?
*A reader just brought to my attention that a medium or large drink must be purchased to receive the freebie. I highly recommend the Sweet Tea.
One of my favorite early Saturday Night Liveskits was featured John Belushi as an Olympic athlete. The scene opens with clips of Belushi doing a high jump and running around a track, then cuts to a shot of him at the breakfast table. Clutching a cigarette, Belushi looks into the camera with complete gravitas and tells about his secret to staying fit: "I downed a lot of donuts. Little chocolate donuts. They taste good and they've got the sugar I need to get me going in the morning."
The commercial played off the classic "Wheaties" ads, which featured Bruce Jenner. The prevailing wisdom in those days stated that top-class athletes had to eat extremely healthy foods, like whole grain cereal and skinless, boneless chicken. However, as I recently read about Michael Phelps' daily eating regimen, I was surprised to see that his diet is much closer to John Belushi's than to Richard Simmons. To begin with, the Olympian consumes approximately 12,000 calories a day, roughly six times the RDA for a man his age. Second, it is heavily skewed towards carbohydrates and fats, which most diets eschew. Given Phelps' amazing energy expenditure (in the average week, the guy swims five hours a day, six days a week!
At any rate, Phelps' average daily menu is after the jump...
Anthony Bourdain they're not! Canadian Olympians have their own chefs and caterers along for the ride, rather than diving into Chinese cuisine at the next Olympics.
It's mighty convenient, but there are some things to think about when ordering wine by the glass.
Restaurant Review: The Bread Bar -- not bread, but "very nearly the best Indian food I've encountered in Canada" according to reviewer Chris Nuttall-Smith.
In Japan, the "flavor of the month" isn't barbecue, or citrus, or licorice, it's...citrulline.
Sound strange? It's an amino acid found in large amounts in watermelon, and it's being touted as a performance enhancer to the Olympic athletes in Beijing, China. It widens blood vessels, allowing for improved circulation, as well as increasing levels of nitric oxide, as well as breaking down lactic acid, (which, as our readers have gently reminded me, is not the scary substance we once thought it to be).
L-Citrulline has long been available in supplement form, but the Japanese are seeing how far they can market it, putting it into sports drinks, sports bars and even gum.
But mainly, it's just another excuse to eat a huge, juicy slice of watermelon.
Every Olympic year, the torch goes on a journey from Athens to wherever the Games will be held that year, making stops in a good number of participating countries. This time, the Olympic torch will make only one stop in the US: San Francisco. And Ben and Jerry's is headed there, too.
Ben and Jerry's is sending a caravan to that city to intercept the torch. The move is intended to bring attention to China's involvement in Sudan. The hope is that the three vehicle convoy, which each carry a replica of the Olympic torch and sport mobile billboards, will put a spotlight back on the troubled Darfur region.
The torch is scheduled to be in San Francisco on April 9th. The arrival of Ben and Jerry's caravan is slated to be the same date. The vehicles will make stops at college campus' and Ben and Jerry's stores along the way. Wow! What do you think about this one?
Needless to say I would rather raise a glass to the athletic-bods in
Turin rather a ski or a curling thingie. So here are three cocktails I am going to test out tonight...
White Knuckle Ride Shooter
½ shot Coffee Liqueur
½ shot Irish Cream Liqueur
½ shot frozen vodka
Layer each ingredient in a glass by careful pouring in the order above.
Ski Breeze
2 shots Absolut Kurant
3 shots Apple Juice
3 shots Ginger Ale
Pour ingredients into a Collins glass, filled with ice, and stir.
Olympic
1 ½ shots Cherry Brandy
1 ½ shots orange curaçao
2 shots orange juice
Stir ingredients with ice and strain into a martini glass.
The wonderful food that Turin, Italy is famous for is not making its way onto the plates of the Olympic athletes. In
fact, there have been numerous complaints about the food, including accusations of food
poisoning from the Canadian curling team. Athletes from all over the world, including America and Lithuania,
are saying that they "expected more from an Italian kitchen" and wonder "how can you
screw up pasta?" Because the Olympic Village is not in a central location, with athletes spread over many
villages, the food is not all being prepared by the same kitchen staff. Some athletes are fortunate enough to have a
personal or team nutritionist who will prepare all their meals, while others can only look forward to the time that
they can spend in Turin itself, sampling the city's non-Olympic offerings.
I've always been attracted to Caffarel's yellow wrapper and stylized Italian logo. But it wasn't
until the Olympics began and I learned all about the mysteries of gianduia, the hazelnut-flavored
chocolate native to Olympics host Torino, that my attraction turned into a purchase. Last week I brought home the
beautifully-wrapped, gold-accented chocolate bar.
It was a few days before I tasted it, and when I did, I was truly
in a new cioccolato heaven. From this day forward, Caffarel will be my chocolate of choice when I just need
something incomparably creamy, rich, melt-in-mouth-able.
You know how most chocolate bars settle on one extreme
of the creaminess scale, either too soft and sticky, or so hard they hurt your teeth when you break off a chunk?
Caffarel's gianduia bar is so soft and delicate, it's already melting when it hits your tongue; but yet the bar is
solid, easily broken into chunks by hand. And still, no chocolatey fingerprints. The hazelnut taste is perfect, just
the essence of flavoring, not tipping the balance to bitter, as so many hazelnut-flavored chocolates do. I give
Caffarel the chocolate gold medal. My bar was $3.89 (definitely not cheap) at Pastaworks. Hopefully I'll be able to afford it more than once every four
years.
Cybele, at Candyblog.net, was lucky enough to get her hands on some official
Olympic candy, straight from Torino, Italy, courtesy of a friend. The candy is gianduia chocolate, which means that it
is a combination of chocolate and ground hazelnuts. It has a slightly chewy, sticky texture that lingers on the tongue.
Check out her site for a full review, but I
definitely wouldn't mind if these bite-sized chocolates made their way over to the US. I'm willing to have a piece of
chocolate (or two) to support the athletes!
McDonald’s debuted
its new nutritionally conscious labels today at its franchises in Turin, Italy. The nutritional information of the
foods is printed in easy to read bar charts with the fat, calorie, carbohydrate and protein content clearly listed,
along with information about how their values compare to the recommended daily amounts. Not only will the release of
this new packaging improve the perception of McDonalds as a restaurant option that can be included in the diet of a
healthy lifestyle, but the 26 outlets in Turin should benefit. The 2006 Winter Olympics, which begin on February 10th,
have attracted huge crowds to Italy, many of whom might be more inclined to visit the fast food restaurant to see the
new wrapping first hand.
By the end of the year, McDonalds plans to have the new packaging at all of its outlets worldwide. The packaging
will be released across the US beginning in February. You can take a sneak peek of the packaging at Fast Food News.
Michael Phelps' 12,000 calories a day notwithstanding, I'm dubious that the US Olympic teams are marching en masse to the Beijing Mickey D's for their pre-event chowdown. Still, that shouldn't stop you from pole vaulting on over to Facetheglory.com to download a coupon for a free Southern Style Biscuit or Sandwich today. Come armed with a hearty appetite and a color cartridge, 'cause the coupon is valid from August 15th through September 1st, and only if it's printed in color..jpg)
One of my favorite early Saturday Night Live 
Every Olympic year, the torch goes on a journey from Athens to wherever the Games will be held that year, making stops in a good number of participating countries. This time, the Olympic torch will make only one stop in the US: San Francisco. And 
Needless to say I would rather raise a glass to the athletic-bods in
Turin rather a ski or a curling thingie. So here are three cocktails I am going to test out tonight...
The wonderful food that Turin, Italy is famous for is not making its way 
I've always been attracted to 
McDonald’s 
What Can I Get You Folks? - Server Revenge
Reality-Show Celebrities Serve Up Chef Curtis Stone's 'Hundred-Dollar Burger'
Foods Celebrity Chefs Hate
