"to go" news and stories

As Nicole already mentioned, you can get a lot of picnic mileage out of simply prepared fresh vegetables. Another way to get a salad to your picnic without the hassle of bowls, forks and dressings is just to wrap it up in a tortilla or other flat-bread. Lately I'm fond of making wraps with hummus or soft goat cheese topped with peeled carrot, cucumber, tomato, dill, spinach and lemon juice. The main thing to keep in mind is the water content of what you're wrapping. Seed things like tomatoes and cucumbers first, and if you plan on using a dressing, go easy. Bringing along a lemon to squeeze into the wraps at the last minute will help keep the tortillas dry.

In January, the city of Oakland, California, just across the bay from San Francisco, instituted a tax on businesses that they believed created the most litter in the city. The city council felt that businesses needed to be more socially responsible for their customer's actions, while business owners opposed the measure, saying that packaging is necessary to sell goods - particularly food items - in a safe and sanitary manner.

Now, city businesses have to change the way they package their food, in addition to paying for it, because the city has just banned styrofoam food packaging.

Due to take effect in January, the measure says that all food packaging must be biodegradable when composted with food waste. Supporters of the law point out that 15 percent of the litter collected in storm drains is styrofoam/polystyrene packaging. They gained additional support from the fact that there are 100 other cities, including Portland and neighboring Berkeley, which have similar bans, and San Francisco is expected to join that list later this year.

The city will use fines ranging from $100-$500 to enforce the measure and businesses that still use styrofoam will have have to find another way to keep their food warm.

 

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I far prefer to stop at a Starbucks than a fast food restaurant when I am on a long drive because, most of the time, I will pack my own snacks are simply want to get a drink. I'd rather have the extra caffeine of a coffee versus a soda and prefer the far-better taste of freshly prepared coffee than the "coffee" that comes out of a dispenser at the gas station convenience store. Starbucks also generally tend to have well-maintained bathrooms, which I appreciate.  But unless I really need to stretch my legs, I will find myself pulling up to the drive-thru window at many highway-side Starbucks. Driving thru takes about the same amount of time as going inside the store, with the added benefit that you do not have to get up. This is especially useful when it is cold outside and you don't want to put on several layers to walk a few hundred feet to the door.