Omnivore Atlanta

YUM/YIKES: Good news and bad news for The Cheesecake Factory this month.

The Cheesecake Factory has shown up on two interesting lists this month: the 2009 Zagat Fast-Food Survey and the Center for Science in the Public Interest’s 2009 Xtreme Eating Awards.

The Zagat reader feedback survey gives Cheesecake Factory the top spot in five out of 11 categories under the “Full-Service Chains” section (a sweep of almost 50 percent!). The restaurant wins in Best Salads, Best Coffee, Best Appetizers, Best Desserts, and Best Value.

Cheesecake Factory also takes it home in three out of nine categories in the Xtreme Eating Awards, but this recognition is of a different sort. The CSPI is on the lookout for the most fattening, most caloric meals available. The Cheesecake Factory wins for its over three day’s of recommended saturated fat in their Fried Macaroni and Cheese, for the 2,500 calories in their Chicken and Biscuits, and for the three day supply of sodium in the Philly Style Charbroiled Flat Iron Steak with fries.

The Cheesecake Factory has four locations in Atlanta.

(Photo by TriviaKing via Wikimedia Commons)

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We Castleberry Hill residents have been on a lucky food and drink streak lately. Johnny Cakes, the soon-to-open Chocolate Bar and now, the No Mas! Hacienda & Cantina folks have opened Adios Cafe, a chocolate and espresso bar. The cafe serves a wide variety of homemade Mexican treats such as Panecillo (corn muffins), freshly made churros, Mexican truffles infused with tamarindo and savory empanadas filled with chorizo, eggs, black beans, peppers and cheese. Choose from a long list of Mexican coffee and chocolate drinks (e.g. coffee laced with cinnamon and cocoa, hot chocolate with chili de arbol and the like), Mighty Leaf teas and chilled bottles of Jarritos sodas to enjoy alongside the pastries and desserts. The Cafe opens at 7 a.m. and closes at 10 p.m. daily. There is plenty of parking and ample seating in the vividly adorned cafe attached to the equally vibrant restaurant and furniture store. They even offer free WiFi. Stay tuned for more in an upcoming Cheap Eats…

(Photo by Jennifer Zyman)

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I’ve been running into marshmallows a lot lately. Star Provisions has been making its own heavenly version of s’mores for several years. I recently sampled a take on a banana split at the Chocolate Bar; it featured “marshmallow fluff.” And my favorite of all is the shaggy pink coconut cupcake with marshmallow icing at the Cupcake Factory.

It seems marshmallows are all the rage. USA Today in fact reported Tuesday, Sept. 4, that America has gone marshmallow crazy:

The everyday marshmallow is toast.

Replacing it: gourmet, fancy-dancy marshmallows made with everything from caramel swirls to chocolate chips to passion fruit.

Even giant Kraft (KFT) is jumping on board. Earlier this year, it rolled out Jet-Puffed StrawberryMallows — its first flavored entry — and the strawberry version already is outselling plain ones 2-to-1. No wonder Jet-Puffed sales are up 9% this year.

Kraft and rivals aim to prove “gourmet marshmallow” is not a contradiction in terms.

The gooey treats are being reinvented as more than stuffing for s’mores over campfires or garnish for hot cocoa.

“Consumers have started to snack on marshmallows,” says Gwen Gray, Kraft’s marketing director for Jet-Puffed. As kids go back to school, Kraft is adding chocolate to its marshmallow mix and putting its three flavors into 90-calorie variety snack packs.

After several years of inconsistent sales, the innovations have the $132 million marshmallow industry up 7.4% though July compared with the same period in 2006, according to ACNielsen.

Nutritionists, however, aren’t going soft on the treats: “Warning to parents,” says Stanford University nutritionist Jo Ann Hattner. “This is packaged sugar.”

The article goes on to list a number of upscale marshmallow treats new to the market. Get the details here.

(Photo from The Wit of the Staircase, the blog of the late screenwriter Theresa Duncan.)

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