Los Feliz’s own Figaro Bistrot — also known as Figaro Cafe, also known as Figaro Brasserie — makes a guest appearance in a new commercial for sloppy burger chain Carl’s Jr. View the ad here. (It’s for their artery cloggin “Monster Breakfast Sandwich.” Holy moly, that thing must be 10,000 calories!)
In comparison, here’s how the Figaro normally looks, via its website:
Three years ago, we wrote that new Dunkin’ Donuts owners Bain Capital planned a massive expansion of the chain — which hasn’t been seen in Los Angeles in at least 13 years.
We’re still waiting to see if Dunkin’ makes its way back to L.A. — but if this NPR report is any indication, the chain plans a massive push into the American Southwest over the next few years.
According to NPR, the “nine new stores in Phoenix is just a start. Dunkin’ Donuts has plans for 150 in this (Arizona) area. And 10,000 new stores in the next decade, starting in the Southwest, and then moving toward Starbucks’ home territory in the Northwest.”
(Thanks to SeanYoda for the link!)
(Flickr pic by Weighty Matters.)
Back in May, I wrote about the calorie counts on New York fast food (and coffee shop) menus, and wondered whether the idea would make it out West.
Turns out it did. As the L.A. Times reported last week, Los Angeles County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky has adopting a similar plan in unincorporated portions of L.A. County.
The paper writes:
“Most people do not have a clue how many calories they are taking in when they have a milkshake or a double hamburger with cheese and fries,” Yaroslavsky said. “This is an incentive for people to make the right dietary choices.”
The proposal would require chain restaurants in unincorporated parts of the county to include a caloric breakdown for all their offerings. The issue is expected to come before the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday; the supervisors will be asked to call for the drafting of an ordinance. If all goes smoothly, the measure could be in place by the end of the year, Yaroslavsky said.
The California Restaurant Assn. does not oppose the measure, although it has concerns about how it would be carried out.
“We understand that consumers want it,” said Jot Condie, president and chief executive of the organization, which represents 22,000 chain outlets in the state.
But he said it should be up to restaurants to decide how best to make this information readily available to consumers. He said he also wants to see a uniform policy applied throughout the state to cut down on retailer and consumer confusion.
First taco trucks, now this! Fine, Zev, we get the hint. Hello, Jenny Craig?
(Pic via Weighty Matters.)
Last year, New York began requiring restaurants to include calorie counts on menu boards.
That means everything. At Starbucks, it even lists the calorie count for regular, drip coffee at “5.” Spending the week here in NY (yes, that’s why the post count has been low at Franklin Avenue), I actually began to appreciate this. Do I really want that “reduced fat” coffee cake at Starbucks? Now I know, it’s 450 calories. So no, no I don’t.
Should we bring this trend to L.A.? It reminds me of a comment the Militant Angeleno left in a post below — we’re a town devoted to hamburgers, etc., so why do we still have this “healthy eating” rep?
(Pic via Weighty Matters.)
Last year, New York began requiring restaurants to include calorie counts on menu boards.
That means everything. At Starbucks, it even lists the calorie count for regular, drip coffee at “5.” Spending the week here in NY (yes, that’s why the post count has been low at Franklin Avenue), I actually began to appreciate this. Do I really want that “reduced fat” coffee cake at Starbucks? Now I know, it’s 450 calories. So no, no I don’t.
Should we bring this trend to L.A.? It reminds me of a comment the Militant Angeleno left in a post below — we’re a town devoted to hamburgers, etc., so why do we still have this “healthy eating” rep?
(Photo: Karen Tapia-Andersen/LAT)
Los Angeles is a hot dog town, the L.A. Times’ Food section proclaims:
We have our old-time dog houses such as Pink’s in Hollywood, Cupid’s in Northridge and the notorious Oki Dog, with its indefensible topping of pastrami and cheese. A lot of Angelenos are waiting to find out what will happen to Hollywood’s famous Tail o’ the Pup stand, which has languished in a warehouse since 2005. Look on the Internet and you can read of the grief felt when Sherman Oaks’ 36-year-old Wiener Factory closed last New Year’s Eve.
I’ve always loved that as much as L.A. is a health food capital, we’re also home to some of the best not-so-healthy fare in the country as well.
OK, so maybe this sounds a little more stereotypically L.A.:
“Our motivation was to pay homage to the hot dog as an iconic American food,” says Murray Wishengrad of the Stand chain (Encino, Century City and Westwood), “to elevate the hot dog in both quality and environment. All our places have beer and wine licenses, so you can have a glass of Merlot with a great hot dog.”
The story goes on to talk about some of the new gourmet hot dog spots around town, the opening of two Chicago hot dog chains in the region, and a quick history of frankfurters.
(Photo: Karen Tapia-Andersen/LAT)
Los Angeles is a hot dog town, the L.A. Times’ Food section proclaims:
We have our old-time dog houses such as Pink’s in Hollywood, Cupid’s in Northridge and the notorious Oki Dog, with its indefensible topping of pastrami and cheese. A lot of Angelenos are waiting to find out what will happen to Hollywood’s famous Tail o’ the Pup stand, which has languished in a warehouse since 2005. Look on the Internet and you can read of the grief felt when Sherman Oaks’ 36-year-old Wiener Factory closed last New Year’s Eve.
I’ve always loved that as much as L.A. is a health food capital, we’re also home to some of the best not-so-healthy fare in the country as well.
OK, so maybe this sounds a little more stereotypically L.A.:
“Our motivation was to pay homage to the hot dog as an iconic American food,” says Murray Wishengrad of the Stand chain (Encino, Century City and Westwood), “to elevate the hot dog in both quality and environment. All our places have beer and wine licenses, so you can have a glass of Merlot with a great hot dog.”
The story goes on to talk about some of the new gourmet hot dog spots around town, the opening of two Chicago hot dog chains in the region, and a quick history of frankfurters.
Spotted this big ad on the front page of the Los Angeles Times’ website, promoting Dunkin’ Donuts. One problem: There are no Dunkin’ Donuts in Southern California.
Following up on last month’s post about the L.A. arrival of Pacific Northwest-based Mexican chain Taco Del Mar, we went ahead and checked out the first outpost here (in Glendale).
I was especially intrigued after several commenters vouched for the chain. But I wasn’t impressed.
We ordered their signature fish taco. Fish was limp, breading was soggy. Sauce was uninteresting. One bright note: Taco Del Mar’s spicy salsa is indeed quite tangy. But that’s about it. Given all the taco trucks in the area, Taco Del Mar faces some tough competition in gaining any traction here.
(Taco Del Mar is located at 4204 San Fernando Rd. in Glendale, next to the legendary Dinah’s Fried Chicken.)
