Combo Plate: Fat tax, alcohol slip-up and more

 
--That's some potent apple juice: By now, you might have heard about the flap involving an Applebee's employee who mistakenly served a margarita ... to a toddler. The kid later registered an alcohol-content of 0.10 at the emergency room -- above the legal driving limit. But here's the real news: This isn't the first time this has happened.

--Sad news: Chef-owner Giorgio Baldi has died. The Hollywood Reporter quotes a source as saying that  Baldi died while on vacation in Ensenada, Mexico. He was believed to be in his late 60s, and his eponymous restaurant in Santa Monica has been a favorite of the Hollywood crowd since 1995. We called the restaurant but a woman who answered the phone said no one was available to answer any questions.

--File under "Duh": A new study claims to have figured out why we love French fries so much. It's the salt.

--The Sweet Life: A day in the life of a pastry chef and blogger, Brave Tart.

--Goop, delivered? The week kicked off with rumors that Gwyneth Paltrow was in talks to launch a new food magazine. Then the rumors were debunked. We'll have to stay tuned on this one.

--Them's fightin' words: Should there be a fat tax? 

--Rene Lynch
Twitter / renelynch 

Photo: Los Angeles Times

Comments

[abrooks]

Hi All – I work with Applebee’s corporate and want to reiterate how sorry we are about the events in Michigan. I assure you that we’ve implemented new beverage protocol in light of Friday’s events, including switching to single-serve containers of apple juice that are served at the table. We will immediately retrain all servers on our beverage pouring policy, emphasizing that non-alcoholic and alcoholic beverages must be stored in completely separate and identified containers. Our official statement (http://bit.ly/hqVtye) has more details, as well as a breakdown of what exactly took place on Friday. Once again, we send our sincerest apologies to the child’s family and to you all.