Side Dish, the XXL Edition

Hello and welcome to Side Dish, our weekly round-up of industry news, hot goss and things you might have missed. Now, let’s get to it...

• Here's a sentence we never thought we'd say: "The flamingos are ruining the risotto!"

• The MTA and Nathan’s turned the N, F and Q into the glizzy express, hot dog seats and all. Coney Island never looked so delicious.

• London’s hottest restaurants are serving NYC with USDA steaks, martinis, Levain-style cookies and chewy bagels. Big Apple energy, hold the airfare. 🍎✈️

• Gluten-free snackers, rejoice! Cheez-It’s finally joining the party with a GF version of its iconic cracker, dropping sometime in 2026.

• The mussels are muscling in. Fishwife drops two new tins 7/15. Stock your pantry accordingly.

• In case you were wondering, the new McDonald's Snack Wrap pairs beautifully with a nice, chilled Pinot Grigio.

• Looking to fruit for protein? Passion fruit packs the most punch.

• Fish milk is real. It’s pink, protein-packed and supposedly tastes like the dairy you know, sort of.

• Grocery stores are the new churches, and Trader Joe’s is the high priest.

• The Waldorf is back: A $1.95B makeover and three buzzy new restaurants are ready to open.

• Punch shines a spotlight on the Best New Bartenders of the year. We’ll drink to that.

• If the 'Basket of Fries' just didn't cut it. McDonald's Malaysia is testing out the XXL Fries Meal. Big backs, rejoice!

• Watch out matcha, hojicha is coming for your crown.

• The fruity pairing we didn't know we needed: strawberry and pasta.

• The L.A. Times charts the meteoric rise of Dave's Hot Chicken. From parking lot to billion dollar baby.

• You'll like it, it's sweet. Why are RTD drinks like BuzzBallz and XXL so popular?

• Tomato, to-mahto. Caramel, carmel. Sherbet, sherbert? The debate rages on.

• Which city was just named the #1 food destination in the world? The answer might surprise you.

• Tom Sietsema calls one dish at Marcus DC "the taste equivalent of a three-ring circus." Not that there's anything wrong with that.

• Burned out? Away’s new campaign is your boarding pass to sanity.

• Jenna Bush Hager's top travel tip? A secret lesson from Barbara Bush that’ll change how you act abroad (and what you pack).

• LA’s thrift scene is not for the faint of fashion. Come for the chaos, stay for the caftans.

• Sneakers at fine dining and stroller-friendly metros? Copenhagen tops 2025’s liveability list for good reason.

• USA Today tells us, "Can't afford to go to Spain? Check out...St. Augustine, FL" instead. Not sure how that's going to land.

• In our "Travel News: Breaking Bad edition" - probably best to leave your burner phone at home.

• Guys, we're not trying to be alarmist here, but there's something called a Lasagna Speakeasy and we're not ok.