How Far Has Man Really Evolved?

According to the former Food and Drug Administration Commissioner, David Kessler, restaurant food is loaded with fat, sugar and salt. In his book, “The End of Overeating: Taking Control of the Insatiable American Appetite”, Kessler describes Buffalo wings as the fatty part of a chicken, often fried first at the manufacturing plant and refried at the restaurant. The red sauce is sugar and fat and the creamy sauce is fat and salt. In other words, Buffalo wings are fat on fat on fat on sugar on fat and salt – but I bet Kessler would like to eat his words.

The NASCAR Café at the Sahara Hotel in Las Vegas started 2009 with “The Bomb” – a 2-foot, 6-pound, cheese-and-guacamole burrito. Any customer who eats the whole thing wins 2 unlimited roller coaster passes on a roller coaster that goes both forward and backward, a T-shirt that says he “Conquered the Bomb” and he doesn’t have to pay for the burrito. Those who accept the challenge, but can’t finish the burrito have to take a picture with an extra small, pink T-shirt that says, “Weenie” - and weenie doesn’t refer to the price of the unfinished $19.95 Bomb.

Fifth Third Ballpark in Comstock Park, Michigan is the home of the West Michigan Whitecaps – a Class A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers – and it has a new item on its menu. The $20, 4-pound burger has 5 beef patties, 5 slices of cheese, about a cup of chili and generous amounts of corn chips and salsa - all on an 8-inch, sesame-seed bun. A pizza cutter is available for those wanting to share the enormous burger, but anyone who eats the 4,800 calorie burger in one sitting receives a special T-shirt - likely available only in size extra large.

“RoadKill Cook-Off” occurs on the last Saturday in September. That’s when thousands of people flock to Marlinton, West Virginia for this annual event. All dishes must use animals commonly found dead on the sides of roads – such as deer, squirrels and snakes - as their main ingredient, but the meat doesn’t have to be actual roadkill. In fact, judges deduct points for teeth chipped by gravel left in roadkill. Past popular dishes have been Pothole Possum Stew, Fricasseed Wabbit Gumbo and Smeared Hog with Groundhog Gravy. At this cook-off you’ve got to hope there’s no truth in the saying “You are what you eat”.