At the rate at which new "world's biggest burgers" are cooked up by restaurants all across the world, we should probably give up in trying to say which one is the biggest. After all, it will only be a few weeks before it is replaced with something larger. That being said, there is a new giant burger on the block, this one from the Clinton Station Diner in New Jersey. The Diner was previously known for its 50-pount Mt. Olympus burger, which is nothing compared to the 8th Wonder of the World. The massive cheeseburger weighs 105 pounds and is 28 inches across and 11 1/2 inches tall. After measuring the heavyweight sandwich for the Guinness Book of World Records, it was carved up and passed out to customers - in 7 pound slices.

More photos after the jump.

[via Competitive Eaters]

Every year, Forbes picks the most expensive restaurants in the world, pinpointing the upper limit on what people are willing to spend for a meal. Their 2006 list is complied with data that the Zagat survey provides and is based on the cost, per person, of one entree, one alcoholic beverage and a tip. Presumably, the entree prices and drink prices are an average amount and, of course, the inclusion of a tip shows the US-bias in the way that the list is set up, since in many places tipping standards would not be set up the same way, if at all. It does not seem to include any restaurants where prix fixe or tasting menus are the standard.

Topping the list, for the second year in a row, is Tokyo's Aragawa at $368 per person for a Kobe beef steak (they basically only have one entree). Alain Ducasse au Plaza Athénée, in Paris, took second place at $231 per person. The rest of the list included: Gordon Ramsay, London ($183); Acquarello, Munich ($125); Sushi Kaji, Toronto ($109); Queue de Cheval Steak House , Montreal ($85); El Amparo, Madrid ($70); Whampoa Club, Shanghai ($63) and Boeucc, Milan ($62)

Food bloggers love food to the point where they have made a hobby out of not just finding, cooking and eating it, but out of sharing it with the world. Melissa, at The Traveler's Lunchbox, came up with a brilliant way that food bloggers could share their recommendations on the very best of what and where to eat in the world with the The Foodblogger's Guide to the Globe. The Guide is a meme in which every participating food blogger chooses their top five things to eat before you die. The original post has a shorthand list of all the suggestions, with links to their full descriptions on individual blogs.

The only problem is, of course, that there are so many food bloggers that you might never be able to try them all - or if you decide to start, you could find yourself jet-setting around the globe in search of food.

Not that there's anything wrong with that.

Intelligentsia Coffee is on a mission to get the best beans money can buy, and they have an unusual strategy for getting results. Instead of seeking out beans and trying to get the at the lowest price point possible, they seek out direct trade relationships with growers, help them to grow the best coffee they can and then pay them far more than the going rate for the beans. In fact, they pay growers over 25% more than the Fair Trade coffee prices. They charge their customers a fair price, too, and no one is complaining.

Their goal is "to create a culture of quality" on "the grower side and the consumer side."

Why isn't Fair Trade's standard good enough for Intelligentsia? "Fair Trade relates to working conditions, not the quality of coffee beans." And while the working conditions are important, it is the beans, not the workers, which flavor the coffee. With the growers, Intelligentsia offers financial incentives and trains them to improve their growing methods, producing premium beans. They also help communities develop coffee tasting centers and teach them to evaluate their own products, because Intelligentsia pays individual farmers based on their products, not a flat rate to a production company or co-op. Furthermore, one of their guarantees to their growers is that their rates will only increase over time.

The company's promise to consumers is some of the best coffee in the world.

They supply coffee to restaurants like Alinea and sell their blends online, as well as at retail stores in Chicago.

A $38,000 bottle of Scotch whiskey, The Macallan Fine and Rare Collection, 1926, made the top of Forbes Magazine's list of the most expensive whiskies in the world. Bottles of the stuff are sold out, but apparently you can still get a $3,000 dram in some restaurants and bars. Coming in second, at a perfectly respectable $10,000 a bottle, is a 1939 Macallan. Forbes' resident boozehound Nick Passmore tries to put some of these outrageously priced bottles in context by describing the current movement towards not only collecting, but actually drinking and appreciating ultra-premium spirits. Unfortunately, like other Forbes lists, you have to use a painfully clunky separate browser window to view information on each bottle.

The International Law Enforcement Educators and Trainers Association (ILEETA) will host a donut eating competition for past and present law enforcement officers as part of a training conference and expo to be held next week in Arlington Heights, Illinois. The event is dubbed the 2006 World Cop Donut Eating Championship. While contestants are allowed whatever non-alcoholic beverages they want, the contest rules state that they may not dunk their donuts in said beverages. Bummer. Officers will have three minutes to down as many donuts as they can. Each eater will be monitored by an "official Donut Deputy." The winner will receive a trophy and, according to the ILEETA site, a "quality handgun." The Sydney Morning Herald has a story about an Australian law enforcement officer who will be attending. Contest entry fees will go to an ILEETA scholarship fund and the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund.

Planning on doing some traveling this summer? Looking for a list of the dining hot spots that you should stop by for a memorable meal? Start with the go list from Food and Wine magazine, which picks out 376 restaurants chosen by "plugged in correspondents" from 50 cities around the world. They have the goods on restaurants like Michael Mina in San Francisco, Rockpool in Sydney, Ferran Adria's Fast Good in Madrid and Felix in Hong Kong, including a picks at both the high and lower ends of the price range.

Now, it's not possible that a list like this, even such a large one, would have all the great eats of any given city, but you aren't likely to have a bad meal by picking any of their choices. If you're traveling somewhere a little off the beaten path that isn't on the "go list," or are looking for something specific, it might be best to turn to another source of restaurant information. And the best resource, in my opinion, when traveling and looking for good eats is still Chowhound. Take some time to browse through their archives and look for recommendations, or pose a question on their message board if you're looking for something specific - like the best mexican food in Boise, ID.

If you are planning on doing any traveling in 2006, it might be worth checking out the Don't Gross Out The World quiz. The quiz features eleven multiple choice questions about the culinary quirks of various cultures, from Canada to Japan. The answers reveal the proper manners you need to exhibit to show your enjoyment and appreciation when dining at foreign dinner tables. Even if you are not planning on visiting Iran or the Inuits this year, it is still an enjoyable way to spend a few minutes. Raise your glasses, your fork and your mouse and take the quiz. My score was 9 out of 11. How did you do?