The nation's best burger is at In-N-Out Burger, according to a new survey of fast-food restaurants by Zagat.

The California-based chain won top nods for its burger in the survey of 6,107 consumers. Wendy's, Burger King, McDonald's and Whataburger rounded out the top five. The second annual survey of fast food looked at both full service and traditional fast food chains. In the full service category, Red Robin won for its burgers, followed by Ruby Tuesday, the Cheesecake Factory, Steak 'n Shake and Chili's Grill and Bar.

McDonald's won for best fries, Panera Bread for salads and KFC for fried chicken.

See which coffees won after the jump.

Earlier today, my mom called me to say she had sent me a link to an article she thought was interesting and might make a good Slashfood post (she's always looking out for me, that mother of mine). When I got home, I checked my email and found a link to this article, published on January 2nd, that discusses a study in which people in 13 countries were asked whether they agreed or not with the statement, "I like the taste of fast food too much to give it up."

Forty-five percent of Britons agreed with the statement, just barely ahead of the 44 percent of Americans who agreed. Canadians are in third place, with 37 percent of them unable to give up their junk food. Only 19 percent of people from France thought that junk food was too tasty to give up (and who can blame them, food in France is amazing).

They also asked questions about how people from the different countries thought it was best to lose weight, how often they weighed themselves and how often they went to the gym.

Although some children will be quick to point out which foods are healthy ones to their parents, not all children have reacted so positively to the recent changes in school lunches. At least, they haven't in the UK. The BBC conducted a survey of secondary schools (middle and high schools) and found that at 60% of them, there had been a drop in the number of students that were opting to buy the school-provided lunch since the switch to a healthier menu. Only 10% of schools had an increase in the number of students taking lunch since the change.

It's too bad that there isn't any US data on this phenomenon after so many schools and school districts have placed restrictions on what types of food are appropriate for kids to have access to during the day, but it seems likely that the problem would be a similar one, especially with older kids who can easily leave campus or go out after school to get the fries and pizzas that they have always had access to at school until now.

The problem is one that will gradually go away over time, as the kids who were used to the "old way" of doing things graduate and the number of students who think that they are entitled to something greasy and unhealthy will decrease compared to he number of children who might actually look forward to a healthier lunch.

The Zagat Survey recently released some stats from its new 2007 edition of America's Top Restaurants. According to Zagat, the citizens of Houston, Austin and Dallas/Ft. Worth dined out the most, all about four times per week. (Houston also frequently tops the Men's Fitness list of America's fattest cities.) The average meal is also a little cheaper in Houston ($27.04), compared with some of the more expensive dining cities on the survey, such as New York City ($39.43) and Palm Beach, FL ($38.56). Also, west coast diners apparently tip a percentage point or so less than East Coast diners, according to Zagat. Average tips out west hovered around 18 percent, while averages on the other side of the country were around 19 percent. There are still plenty of chowhounds out there too, apparently; 63 percent of those surveyed said they would drive 45 minutes each way for a good meal. Restaurant News Resource has the full Zagat press release with lots more info.

The folks at Lenny's, er, Denny's, surveyed hundreds of late-night eaters a few months ago. Some of their findings are available at Restaurant News Resource. The survey defined late-night eaters as folks dining out between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. on a weekly or monthly basis.

For the most part, the trends in responses aren't anything too earth-shaking: most of the people surveyed were out for typical American food like burgers and fries. I was a little surprised that only 6 percent said they were out late at night for dessert, however. I'm not totally clear on just who Denny's surveyed, but aside from the Slams and skillets, some folks said they wanted things like fried tofu and goat's milk. To those of you in front of the refrigerator drinking goat's milk from the carton at 3 a.m., you are not alone.

The single biggest factor that prompts people into overeating is portion size, and when more and more meals are eaten outside of the home, it is restaurant portion size that can cause a problem. Not only are the portions often huge, but they set a benchmark that distorts what people perceive as an appropriate amount of food.

An obesity researcher at Penn State University had 300 chefs from fine and casual dining restaurants take a survey that asked what things influence what size they make their portions. 4 out or 5 served more than the recommended portion sizes. 70% said that presentation was the biggest concern, getting a "wow" factor into the dining experience that might cause a customer to return. Value and portion size are often connected in the minds of the consumers, so larger servings come into play more than the actual plating. 65% said that cost influenced how much food they served, and 52% cited "expectations, which was primarily true of chain-restaurants and categories (like steakhouses, for example) that are known for being generous. Only 16% considered calories.

Chefs are not necessarily dieticians and their job is not to tell you what to eat or how much of you plate to clean before taking the rest home. It does make you wonder, however, if our priorities and theirs are in the right place when a 1-pound "serving" of pasta starts to look normal.

While in Britain they may have a hard time giving up potato chips as a favorite snack, not everyone is eating so unhealthily. In Canada, a recent study determined that the number one snack is fresh fruit and noted that it was chosen over other snacks about 20% of the time. The next most popular snack foods, in order of popularity, were chocolate, yogurt and cookies, each of which were chosen roughly 7% of the time. Potato chips were consumed at just 6% of snacking opportunities.

The survey also noted that more than two-thirds of all healthy snacks were eaten during the day, with more indulgent treats - chocolate, potato chips, ice cream - appearing in the evenings.

Fruit has been the most popular snack for some time now, but there is a definite trend towards healthy eating, marked by the presence of yogurt in the number 3 spot this year. "In 2005, 21 per cent of individuals ate yogurt in an average week compared to 15 per cent of individuals surveyed in 2001." Increasingly, consumers are opting for the "guilt-free" snacks, and since their interest is increasing, so is the quality of the products from the manufacturer's side, continuing the trend

The UCLA School of Public Health recently finished a study that found that men and women who ate a cup of salad each day had higher concentrations of folic acid, vitamins C and E, lycopene and alpha and beta carotene in the bloodstream than men and women who did not. Because many people do not get enough nutrients even when taking nutritional supplements, this is good news to anyone who can make room in their diet for an additional 90grams (1 cup) of salad on a daily basis.

Salad, as it was counted in the study, is considered to be raw vegetables, salad greens (lettuce, etc) and dressing. Scientists say that the results of this study should help to dispell the concerns that they body may have difficulty absorbing nutritents from raw vegetables, though a little bit of low fat dressing couldn't hurt - not to mention that salads are just a little bit more interesting with an added layer of flavor.

The British kitchen equipment firm Kenwood conducted a study that found that 33% of Britons have never cooked a meal. While it's safe to assume that beans on toast doesn't constitute "from scratch" cooking, they didn't specify what level of culinary proficiency was needed to qualify, although they noted that only 34% cook completely from scratch, so there was clearly a middle ground that was taken into account. Cooking aside, it is difficult to ignore the fact that most of their survey respondents said that they prefer to bring in all or part of a meal, rather than cooking it themselves, and that 7 in 10 spend less than one hour on each meal they make.

A nutritionist who analyzed the results said that cooking is perceived as taking time, effort and money, but the fact that 5 in 10 people said they were "happy to spend £100 or more on a meal out" suggests that perhaps people really just don't like to cook -or even that they simply can't, despite the popularity of food programming on TV - rather than that they feel they are spending too much time or money when they do.

A new study published by the USDA's Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion says that Americans aren't eating enough servings of fruits and vegetables. The USDA looked at the results of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey III from 1999 to 2000 to collect data from over 8,000 people, ages 2 and up and compared them to the new (MyPyramid) and old (5 servings a day) nutritional guidelines.

They found that based on the old guidelines, only 40% of people were getting the recommended amounts. Based on the new recommendations, which are significantly higher, only 10% of people would be eating the suggested amount of fruits and vegetables.

Wait - 1999? The problem with the study is that it is comparing old data to our new standards. Granted, people weren't eating enough vegetables in 1999 and you can be sure that not all people are eating enough now, but dietary trends have changed enough that the comparison might not yield accurate results. In the past 7 years, there has been a tremendous growth in organic and natural foods, heirloom fruits and vegetables and in healthier eating overall. The trends are so much more prevalent now than they were when the data for the survey was collected, that it is likely the numbers are more encouraging, even if we're only up to 15% instead of 10%.

A new poll reveals that 80% of Americans say that they read nutritional labels when they purchase food, but half of those people buy the food no matter what the label says. So, why do they bother reading a label when it's not going to influence their decision to purchase?  "I don't know, force of habit" was one woman's response.

This is surprising because, in the past, other studies have indicated that consumers change their buying habits when confronted with an unhealthy food label.

Of those who do check the labels, they look for things like calories and trans-fats, but not necessarily for overall nutrition. Other things that the survey found are the women are most likely to read a nutrition label, followed by men and then single men, and that women are more likely to place importance on what they read there.

It sounds as though people simply don't know what they're "supposed" to be reading, even though there is no right answer on the label. The information for all the food eaten during the day is what should be taken into account, not just for one product.

 

After years of being stuck with a reputation for being a country  that loves bland, overcooked foods (and fish and chips), a new study shows that the British are the most adventurous eaters in Europe. More than 70% of Brits believe it's important to be open-minded about trying new foods and, in fact, that seeking out these foods is important as well. A full 50% of the British, according to the survey, regularly went out of their way to try new foods. Only 44% of French, 34% of Germans and a low 25% of Spanish eaters were likely to look to non-traditional foods.

Critics might say that there was no where to go but up as the British started moving away from "traditional" fare. The issue, however, isn't the food itself, but the acceptance of the idea that food from other countries and parts of the world might have as much, or more, to offer.

Too bad the study didn't include the US. I would have been interested to see where we fell along the continuum, though I'm fairly sure we wouldn't have topped the charts.

According to a survey conducted by the National Restaurant Association, people say that they want to eat healthier than they really do, especially when it comes to eating in restaurants. In fact, only 36% of people ask for healthier substitutions and fewer than 50% of diners will order off a "healthy" menu when it is offered. People eat more meals out of the home than ever before, diminishing the idea of a restaurant meal as "special occasion" food, which may have once justified indulgence. 63% of diners do not want to see nutritional information on the menu, looking for permission (by omission) to eat whatever they want to.

Why is there this willful ignorance of what goes into a plate of food? Is there some stigma attached to ordering something healthy (or at least, less bad) at a restaurant?

 

A recent Pew Research Center survey of over 2,000 adult Americans found that only 39 percent enjoy eating "a great deal." (That is, they enjoy the act of eating, not eating a lot.) This is 9 percent drop from the results of a 1989 Gallup survey. Many of the people polled in the more recent survey attributed their lack of enjoyment to concerns about their weight. Interestingly enough, the overall figures for enjoyment of cooking have stayed the same. Roughly one third of those surveyed said they enjoyed cooking "a great deal." The number of men that enjoy cooking has increased, however, from 25 percent in 1989 to 32 percent today. The Pew site has plenty of other interesting figures concerning eating patterns, junk food consumption and overeating. A Washington Post story on the survey results is available here.

[Image: Pew Research Center]

Considering a career as a chef or elsewhere in the restaurant industry? StarChefs.com has released the results of its annual salary survey of restaurant industry professionals. Executive chefs, perhaps unsurprisingly, make more money than most in the industry, though they also work the longest hours. The results may be skewed by the fact that some chefs make dramatically more than others, pulling up the average. Salaries also vary by region, with pastry chefs in Las Vegas making over 30% more than their colleagues in California and Florida. Age, job satisfaction and both ethnicity and gender were also taken into account in parts of the survey, so the results are a good starting point to learn about potential careers and where to start them.