Butchers: Sex Symbols of the Food World

Shocked parents, Web campaign drive her out

(NEWSER) - A British headmistress has resigned after shocking parents and kids by sending a student-raised lamb to the butcher. Andrea Chapman quit the Lydd Primary School in Kent for "personal reasons" after an animal rights Internet campaign rallied support in a bid to save woolly Marcus. Despite school community and Facebook protests, Marcus was slaughtered. The experience was intended to show children how meat was raised, Chapman said at the time. More»

64-ounce takeaway bottles offer cheaper alternative to bar-hopping

(NEWSER) - Looking to host your Super Bowl party with beer that’s a bit more interesting than Coors Light? Look no further than the current beer trend sweeping New York: Growlers. The 64-ounce glass containers allow for fresher, cheaper, more interesting beer in the comfort of your own living room—and everyone, including parents with kids in tow, is jumping on the bandwagon, reports the New York Times . More»

Don't just cook with it; mix a drink with it

(NEWSER) - After decades relegated to a spot in the cooking aisle, sherry is making a comeback. The Spanish fortified wine is becoming a trendy cocktail ingredient, especially in Los Angeles, the Times reports. The drinks can get pretty swanky—one involves gold dust; another, reportedly loved by Frank Sinatra, flamed orange oil. “You see a lot of going back to classic cocktail ingredients,” says one restaurateur whose establishment aims to recapture “Old Hollywood swell-egance.” More»

One new highbrow bottle, with 27% alcohol, costs $150

(NEWSER) - Beer with a high alcohol content is in the spotlight after two breweries announced supercharged creations—Boston Beer Company's Utopias, with 27% alcohol, and BrewDog's Tactical Nuclear Penguin, with 32%. Are they good for the average guzzler? Salon gets details from expert Brooks Hamaker:

• They don’t come cheap: Utopias will set you back $150 a bottle.
• Yes, it is beer: Regardless of alcohol content, it’s made from barley, malt, hops, water, and yeast—but it’s not carbonated, "or at least not very well," because of its high sugar content.

From onion blossoms to overhyped chefs, these things need to go away

(NEWSER) - Asked to name the decade's worst dining trends, chefs and other food experts couldn't shut up. There were too many (including "mache, water sommeliers, organ-meat entrees, unisex bathrooms, bacon tattoos on chefs, over-flaunted kitchen burns, chefs tables") for Christopher Borrelli to list them all, but he hits the top 10 in the Chicago Tribune:

• Fried onion blossoms: Too sweaty, too greasy, too little onion, and too much fried stuff.
• The $40 entree: When your neighborhood bistro has hit these heights, it's time to say enough is enough.