Food News January 26, 2005

John T. Edge eats Tex Mex with Robb Walsh. "A few months back, I made the mistake of disparaging Velveeta while talking with someone who had the chops to call me on it. I was on the phone with Robb Walsh, restaurant critic for the Houston Press and the acknowledged go-to guy when it comes to matters of Texas gastronomy. Velveeta is the dairy equivalent of fool’s gold, I said—all silk and sheen, but no substance."
More from Attache MagazineJohn T. Edge.

Yet another reason to shop your local farmers market... "Monsanto said Monday it is spending $1.4 billion to buy a California company that will take its molecular breeding technology from soybeans to salads. The combined company will be the world leader in sales of large-scale row crops, as well as in small-acreage crops including beans, cucumbers and peppers."
More from St. Louis TodayRachel Melcer.

When you think about it, it's the perfect food," says Oriental Dumpling King waitress No. 005, known to her friends and family as Huang Yibo. Chinese restaurant staffers tend to be identified by numbers, which can reach a dizzying six digits -- a combination of the remnants of communist bureaucracy and the Chinese obsession with numerology.
More from CNNTed Anthony.

Follow up from last week: Wish you were there. The Madrid Fusion Food Festival. Only the chosen few get to actually attend...Melissa Clark was one of them. She reports on the latest trends to come out of Spain, including exploding desserts, solid soups, smoking cocktails, electric milk, fish eyes (whites only), plankton, and fish scales.
More from The New York TimesMelissa Clark.

Sad, But True - The Fish Myth. "Top hotels in several Asian capitals have stopped ordering sea bass and sole from waters off their tsunami- ravaged coastlines to ease diners' concerns about fish feasting on corpses. Health officials say fears of fish are unwarranted and insist that there is no evidence of a risk posed by eating fish from the Indian Ocean, where at least 157,000 people died in Asia and Africa. But, in a region that suffered through bird flu and other recent food scares, several top eateries and their suppliers are unwilling to take chances."
More from The Alaska Fisherman's Journal. Related: "Sri Lankans stop eating fish." More from CBS News.

"He’s done, he’s toast." North Carolina baker convicted of stealing secret bread and roll recipes from a Norristown baking company valued at $30 million, gets jail.
More from The Mercury Margaret Gibbons.

Ted Turner's Montana Grill drops $9,342 for prime bison meat.
More from The Denver Post Melissa Cassutt.