Oatmeal Gets Upscale Reheat

Opens Evolution Fresh near Seattle

(NEWSER) - Instead of venti cappuccinos, veggie juices: Starbucks has opened its first juice bar, called Evolution Fresh, in Bellevue, Washington. Customers can purchase smoothies or bottled fruit and vegetable juices (sample: the Spiced Carrot, made with carrots, blueberries, and cinnamon); calorie-conscious food options include vegan options. It's not clear yet how many locations Starbucks plans: Health food is a $50 billion industry, Reuters notes, but juice bars may not boast the profit margins of Starbucks' coffee shops, analysts say. More»

Tall coffees to cost 10 more cents in much of US

(NEWSER) - Some of us will have to shell out an extra dime for each coffee this year. Starbucks is planning a price hike of approximately 1% in the Northeast and Southern US. While the company hasn't named all the states that will face increased prices, they include New York and most of the South, plus DC, the AP reports. "Tall" coffees will cost 10 extra cents, and some six other drinks will see price hikes—though "grande" drinks won't cost any extra. Competition and commodity costs prompted the increase, a Starbucks rep said. More»

Fast-food places have plenty of little-known options

(NEWSER) - In-N-Out Burger’s “secret menu” (veggie burgers, etc.) has gotten way too famous to really be considered a secret anymore—but Coupon Sherpa rounds up little-known items at other fast-food joints:

• Chili’s: Though it’s not on the menu anymore, you can in fact still order the restaurant’s namesake dish.
• Long John Silvers: Ask for a side of crumbs and you’ll get—for free—a box of fried batter parts that fell off the fish or chicken.

Starbucks makes comfort food trendy

(NEWSER) - The mushy breakfast you pushed away as a child has become Starbucks' most successful food launch ever—knocking reduced-fat coffeecake to No. 2 on the best-sellers chart, Advertising Age reports. Oatmeal heads up a line of healthier breakfast options the chain introduced in September. The steamy offering, which comes with packets of brown sugar, nuts, and dried fruit, has been a surprise hit among women and "millennials." More»

Even 'healthier' options can be too hefty, would-be splurgers horrified to find

(NEWSER) - As chain restaurants waddle their way toward compliance with a New York City law that requires them to post the calorie counts of food, the numbers behind the items have diners grappling with some unappetizing knowledge, MSNBC reports. The restaurant skinny is turning out to be anything but, from 630-calorie Dunkin' Donuts muffins to a pecan-crusted chicken salad at TGI Friday's, whose 1,360 calories trumped a burger and fries on the same menu. More»