Lexington BBQ Festival

The Barbecue Festival takes place every year for 1 day out of the year. Each year close to 150,000 visitors attend the large event.

The opening ceremony is scheduled for 9:00 AM and bbq tents will be open starting at 10:00 AM. The festival is set in the historic Uptown Lexington on Main Street and the adjoining side streets between 5th Avenue and 4th Street.

There will be 6 stages with continuous entertainment for the entire family. Performances include those by Shaggie Maggie, Ken McIver Davis, Allison Crowell & The Drones, Nicole Rapisardi, Eva Katherine, Matt Walsh, and plenty more.

The festival is free to attend, and food is relatively cheap. It is only $2.00 for hot dogs, $3.00 for french fries and $4.00 for a barbecue sandwich.

The Lexington Barbecue Festival is listed in “1000 Places to See in the USA & Canada Before Your Die”. It certainly is one festival you must attend if you love barbecue food.

Taste of Atlanta

Taste of Atlanta 2010 will feature food from over 70 of Atlanta’s restaurants. There will also be celebrity chefs from all over the country putting on live cooking demonstrations. The festival will also include wine and beer tasting tents, as well as educational seminars about certain wines.

Tickets to Taste of Atlanta are $25 in advance, if you purchase them prior to October 22 at midnight, or $35.00 at the door. Children 13 years of age and younger will get in free of charge if they are accompanied by a paying adult. The event will begin at 11:00 AM on October 23 and 24, and close at 6:00 PM.

Some of the restaurants that will have booths at the event include: EVOS, FIGO Pasta, Cafe Campesino, Gilbert’s Cafe, Genki, Desta, Der Biergarten, Crepe Revolution, Capozzi’s Decatur, California Dreaming, Big Chow Grill, New York Prime, NOON Midtown, Pacci, The Melting Pot, and lots more. There is sure to be something to eat no matter what your taste.

The McRib Locator isn't needed

The famous McRib sandwich was first released close to 30 years ago in 1981. It was a big hit in some regions, and not such a big seller in others. However, since 1981, the sandwich has been making temporary returns at some regional McDonalds Restaurants. It hasn’t ever been sold nationwide all at once. The sandwich had become so rare at one point, people were driving up to 12 hours in order to get their hands on one of the tasty McRibs. One fan even create a website called the “McRib Locator”, which allowed people to enter the locations that were currently selling the hard to get sandwich. The website is still up, although there have been problems accessing it today due to a high amount of traffic. The McRib Locator can be seen by clicking here.

Even though the McRib is considered to be a boneless bbq rib sandwich, in fact it really isn’t. The sandwich really consists of ground pork, pickles, onions and barbecue sauce, served on a McDonald’s roll.

The sandwich has made some returns over the years since 1981. In 1994, it was brought back and tied-in with “The Flintstones” movie. In 2005, McDonald’s announced that they would be permanently removing the McRib from their menu. With that announcement, they also announced a website dedicated to fans of the McRib that wanted it brought back.

In 2007, a McRib farewell tour brought the sandwich back to the United States. Then again in October of 2008, another farewell tour brought it back again. It has been brought back a couple of times since, although it has not been available at every store nationwide.

On November 2, the sandwich is planned to be sold nationwide. There may be no need for the McRib Locator any longer.

McDonalds Monopoly

Monopoly game pieces can be found on classic menu items, which include the Big Mac, French Fries, Filet-O-Fish, McNuggets, McGriddles, Hash Browns, McCafé beverages and fountain drinks.

Players can win up to a $1 million prize, as well as a 2011 Ford Shelby GT500, a $5,000 shopping spree to Walmart, a Beaches Vacation, free McDonald’s food and more. The game will run from today, October 5, until November 1, or while supplies last. It will be available at almost 14,000 restaurants in the United States.

The complete details of the 2010 McDonalds Monopoly Game can be found at www.playatmcd.com

Restaurant.com Coupon Today

Unfortunately, so many people know about this sale that the website has been down for the past few hours.

In order to get the discount, you must use coupon code “WOW” when checking out.

Has anyone been able to access the website today?

Dez Bryant

When all we said and done, and Bryant and his teammates finished dinner, the check came. All in all, the food and drinks for the Cowboys team, totaled $54,896. Dez Bryant paid for it.

Of course, the $54,000+ that Bryant had to pay for dinner is nothing compared to the $8.3 million dollars he is guaranteed to received after signing a contract with the Dallas Cowboys, this past offseason.

Imagine the tip that some lucky waiters and waitresses got on Monday night. 20% of $55,000 is a whopping $11,000. There is no word on how large of a tip was left or if the tip was included in the total.

The 21-year-old Bryant is off to a pretty good start this season as a rookie. He has 14 receptions for 158 yards this season, after getting drafted out of Oklahoma State.

Taste of Madision

If you like food, you will certainly love the Taste of Madison. The 2010 event will include more than 75 local restaurants, and 20 beverage stands. The stands will sell a huge variety of different food dishes which are extremely affordable. Dishes will be priced from $1 to $4, and admission is totally free.

The Taste of Madison festival will benefit the United Cerebral Palsy of Dane County, and gives vendors a chance to entice the public to visit their local restaurants in the future.

There will be 3 event stages, including rock and country bands, as well as DJs spinning music. Performances will start at 11:30 AM on both days.

If you happen to be in Madison, Wisconsin, the Taste of Madison is a must taste event.

Ground Beef Recalled in 4 States

The strain of bacteria found has caused at least 6 cases of illness between April 8 and June 18, 2010, and another in February of this year. All of the meat that contained this strain had been distributed between October 2, 2009 and January 12, 2010 in the four states mentioned above. It was also distributed internationally, but there is no word to exactly where as of yet.

Because of the dates in which it was distributed, the majority of the meat has probably already been eaten. However, some people tend to freeze meat for longer periods of time. The FSIS is asking consumers to please check their freezers to make sure they do not have any of this contaminated meat. If any of the meat is found in a freezer, it should be thrown out immediately.

Bill the Butcher Inc. opened a neighborhood butcher shop in Magnolia today, bringing the company’s total to five, said J’Amy Owens, chief executive officer.

Located at 3800 34th Ave West in Seattle’s Magnolia neighborhood, the new butcher shop sells organic and natural grass-fed meat (including pasture-raised beef, pork, poultry and lamb) and wild seafood along with complimentary items such as barbeque rubs, spices and marinades. Bill the Butcher is open from noon to 7 p.m. seven days a week.

“We work directly with local ranchers and farmers who follow sustainable and organic practices so we can bring you quality meat that is healthy and good for the environment,” said Owens. “We really are out to change the world one steak at a time.”

Ross Arrington, who has 35 years in the meat business, will be Magnolia’s lead butcher and store manager. He also serves as The Head Buyer for Bill the Butcher Inc. Most recently, he was lead butcher at Bill’s Madison Park butcher shop, and previously was meat team leader at Whole Food’s Redmond store. Joining Arrington in Magnolia is assistant butcher Joe Kennedy.
Bill the Butcher works with small farmers and ranchers who treat animals humanely and share the belief that grass pastured meat is far healthier. Bill’s five Seattle locations sell natural and certified USDA Organic meats from grass-fed animals that have been raised both locally and nearby in Wyoming, Montana and Oregon. Bill the Butcher’s Washington suppliers farm in Carnation, Arlington, Marysville, Mount Vernon, Lopez Island, Anacortes, Duval, Bow and Spanaway.

“Our farmers and ranchers follow strict practices that meet our exact specifications,” said Owens. “Some of our partners’ ranches are certified USDA Organic. Others follow organic standards but have chosen not to become certified. We call this meat ‘Bill the Butcher Natural.’ Bill the Butcher Natural meat is raised without the use of growth hormones, antibiotics, steroids or genetically modified feed.”
Bill the Butcher’s mission is to:
1) Support the return of the sustainable way of raising animals on grass.
2) Return freshness, flavor and healthful benefits to your meat.
3) Help support the growth and economic vitality of small local farmers and ranchers
4) Improve the health and longevity of the land and the environment.

Representing more than 150 retired U.S. admirals and generals across the country, a retired U.S. Army Major General from California told a Congressional panel today that child obesity rates are so high they pose a threat to national security.

Retired U.S. Army Major General Paul Monroe, a former head of the California Army National Guard, urged Congress to move quickly to pass new child nutrition legislation to help reduce the child obesity epidemic and expand the pool of healthy young adults available for military service.

“Make no mistake. Child obesity threatens our nation’s security,” said Monroe, who cited recent Defense Department statistics showing that 27 percent of all young adults, an estimated 9 million Americans ages 17 to 24, are too overweight to join the military. “When 1 in 4 young adults is too overweight to defend our country, then something is seriously wrong.”

Testifying before the House Education & Labor Committee, Monroe represented Mission: Readiness, a non-profit, bipartisan group of retired generals and admirals who support major new investments in the nation’s school nutrition program. The committee, chaired by Rep. George Miller, D-CA, also heard from U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack and other experts on child nutrition.

General Monroe noted recent research showing that up to 40 percent of children’s daily calorie intake occurs at school and that 80 percent of children who were overweight between the ages of 10 to 15 were obese by age 25. Improving school nutrition is therefore a crucial area for reducing or preventing child obesity, Monroe said.

Monroe told the panel that retired military leaders are calling on Congress to enact a robust child nutrition bill that would:
Get the junk food and remaining high-calorie beverages out of the nation’s schools
Support increased resources for child nutrition programs that would improve nutrition standards, upgrade the quality of meals served in schools and enable more children to have access to these programs, and
Help develop new school-based strategies, based on research, that help parents and children adopt healthier life-long eating and exercise habits.

“In 1946, Congress passed the National School Lunch Act as a matter of national security,” said Monroe. “In the past retired admirals and generals have stood up to make it clear that America is only as healthy as our nation’s children. Childhood obesity is now undermining our national security, and we need to start turning it around today,” he said.