Even as I prep for my adventure to the extravagant Aspen Food & Wine Classic this weekend, I’m still focused on the current recession and the depressing state of the economy. Job growth slowly inches up, home sales are slowly increasing, people might actually start eating out again.
Your neighbors are still struggling, though. Food banks across the nation continue to report increases in numbers of those in need, particularly from non-traditional families – those previously considered to be in the middle to upper-class arena. I read an article just the …

Food documentary Food Inc. opens nationwide today! Interested in finding a theatre near you? Check out the master list! Looking for a few reviews of the controversial film? Variety has one here and we linked to few on our initial post about the movie.
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Oooh, the food blog world is all a-twitter about the possible leak from Bravo’s Top Chef Masters. YumSugar reported this morning that food writer Grace Ann Walden announced the show’s winner in her newsletter last week. The rumored winner? Frontera Grill’s Rick Bayless. Even if Rick is …

Good grief! At this point, it seems like the only safe foods are the ones growing in your backyard! 
Nation’s Restaurant News tells us today about three more food recalls – two ground beef producers and one duck confit/kolbase sausage company – with a total of 100,000+ pounds of recalled food!
Illnesses have been reported with all of the recalled meat items. The tainted ground beef was distributed in Oregon, Washington, Ohio, Illinois, and Pennsylvania, with the duck and sausage distributed throughout the East Coast. If you’ve purchased either of these …

With my guest writing gig over at Accidental Hedonist ending this month, I’m a little sad I won’t have such an outlet to voice opinions and incite discussion on food-related items. Over the past few months, I’ve tackled restaurant cleanliness, organics, tipping, travel, and food blogging ethics – and much to my surprise, the response has been overwhelming.
So here, on Daily Blender, we’re implementing a new column/category called ‘The Side Dish’, where I’ll talk a little less news and a little more opinion on food-related tidbits that are hot topics, …

Posted by Jennifer Heigl
Not your average job posting! Thanks to MediaBistro.com, we’ve discovered that celeb chef José Andrés is in search of a new Executive Assistant! The available position is located in Washington, D.C. with the ThinkfoodGroup, his restaurant management company with restaurateur Rob Wilder.
Interested? Make sure you have three years of senior level administrative experience, an understanding of Microsoft Office, and a fluency in both Spanish and English. The position does require an average 45-55 hour work week, with occasional nights and weekends – but, come on! José Andrés! …

Well here we are in the Easter afterglow. While I maintained my tradition of not eating traditional on holidays (it was a pizza and ice cream cake kind of day) I hope all of you enjoyed your fabulous food holiday.
Our friends over at Food & Wine were kind enough to point us in the direction of this year’s Peep competition held by the Washington Post this last week. The guidelines were pretty flexible for the Peep dioramas, and the entries were spectacular. Be sure to take a look at the …

Inauguration seems to be the word on everyone’s lips this week. With Obama’s inauguration coming up on Tuesday, foodies across the land are offering their thoughts on presidential food and wine.
Bill Daley of the Chicago Tribune chimes in with wine suggestions for the president-elect. Noting the increase in sales of a South African sparkling wine after the Obamas reportedly imbibed on election night, it seems the public is very interested in possible White House selections. Here here for the support of sustainably produced wines!
The Los Angeles Times had a great …

Oy! Here we are at the end of the year where folks are either reminiscing about the past or trying to predict the future! Tell us, oh great Internet of answers, what food and drink will be trendy in 2009?
Food industry and research firm Technomic released their Top Five Restaurant Trends for 2009. Local? Check. Experimentation due to failing economy? Check. Upscaled kids’ menus? Ok, that one surprised me.
The National Restaurant Association also determines future alcohol and food trends based on their annual Chef Survey, with over 1600 professional chefs …

The Toronto Film Festival finished up last week with a new documentary by producer/director Robert Krenner, entitled FOOD, INC. taking much of the attention.
The tagline comes: “You’ll never look at dinner the same way.”
The synopsis:  “FOOD, INC…lifts the veil on our nation’s food industry, exposing the highly mechanized underbelly that’s been hidden from the American consumer with the consent of our government’s regulatory agencies, USDA and FDA.”

It’s a foreboding statement that’s certain to raise contention as concerns surrounding food quality/quantity increasingly occupies the public.  The question is whether the film will bring …

We must be preoccupied with food.
Earlier this week the Bravo Network announced plans for Top Chef: Masters, a spin off to its successful food competition, where by “some of the brightest stars in the world of food, award-winning, widely-renowned Chefs, will compete against each other in a series of weekly challenges.”

Also this week, the Wall Street Journal sized up the two vying presidential candidates by reviewing their favorite eateries.  It was revealed that both men have an affinity for Tex-Mex and pizza.  And while McCain is more of “a regular-guy diner-out, happy to follow …

Earlier this month, the Environmental Working Group released findings of an investigation into the toxicity of food packaging chemicals after DuPont and other chemical companies promised to phase out PFOA, a “human carcinogen” commonly used to make Teflon. According to the investigation, the group found that there was almost no data publicly available on the health risks of new chemicals being used.
“Calling these replacement chemicals ‘green’ is like saying you’re safer driving a car at 150 miles an hour instead of 200,” said Olga Naidenko, PhD, an EWG senior …

I have to admit – a recent post by the Food Dude over at had me squirming in my seat. In the first sentence about his visit to Portland’s famed Le Pigeon, my stomach twisted and turned with every phrase – “Foie Gras,” “Lamb Belly”, “Foot and Tail Croquette”. How, in my worldwide pursuit of great food, had I not grown to appreciate some of the fine dishes revered by other foodies?
In thinking about May’s theme for b5 – insight we’ve gained from kids – I realize that perhaps my …

For you lucky readers in the NYC area, don’t forget to put on your finest and head out to the New York City Wine and Food Festival this fall. Presented by Food and Wine Magazine, as well as the Food Network, the NYC Wine and Food Festival features eatery favorites from across the city – and benefits some of our favorite charities – the Food Bank for New York City and Share Our Strength.
The New York Food and Wine Festival will take place October 10-12, 2008. For more information, be …