Burger King just keeps getting negative press. Corporate headquarters asked (well, really more like told) franchisees that they need to stay open late, but they're not keen on the idea. Here's the story from CNN:

The franchisees, who filed the lawsuit Tuesday in Miami-Dade Circuit Court, also allege that Burger King's actions violate their franchise agreements, which had contained provisions for shorter hours.

Starting June 1, Burger King began to require that all franchisees keep their stores open until at least 2 a.m. local time on Thursday, Friday and Saturday to better compete with fast-food chains like McDonald's Corp. (MCD) and Wendy's International Inc. (WEN).

The franchise agreement states that stores only have to stay open until 11 p.m., according to the lawsuit.

The company also required stores to open at 6 a.m. instead of 7 a.m. Monday through Saturday.

Burger King Franchisees Sue Over Late Hours [CNNMoney]

As much as I hate writing about the Starbucks closures again (I'm not a big coffee drinker, and I've never quite understood the cult of Starbucks), I know that lots of people depend on them for their morning coffee fix, and I'd like for these people to be prepared if their favorite Starbucks location is closing. The last thing we need in South Florida is a bunch of people going through caffeine withdrawals on the road. So here's the list of closures:

Palm Beach:
• 13910 Jog Rd in Delray Beach
• 1200 Town Center Dr (Abacoa) in Jupiter
• 801 N Congress Ave (Boynton Beach Mall) in Boynton Beach
• 11701 Lake Victoria Gardens Dr (Dowtown at the Gardens) in Palm Beach Gardens
• 3101 PGA Blvd (Gardens Mall) in Palm Beach Gardens
• 5100 PGA Blvd (PGA Commons Central) in Palm Beach Gardens
• 650 S Rosemary Ave (City Place) in West Palm Beach

Broward:
• 1100 W Broward Blvd in Fort Lauderdale
• 3399 N State Rd 7 (Lakes Mall) in Lauderdale Lakes
• 9439 W Atlantic Blvd (Coral Square Mall) in Pompano Beach

Miami-Dade:
• 9600 SW 160th St in Miami
• 750 NE 125th St in North Miami

A few thoughts: Palm Beach Gardens is really bearing the brunt of the closures, although after looking at the locations, it looks like the company might have really over-saturated the market there. I should note the Lauderdale Lakes closing also, which Michael Mayo at the Sun-Sentinel wrote was the one that Magic Johnson brought to town. It's one of the few Starbucks in predominantly black neighborhoods.

'Magic' evaporates at Lauderdale Lakes Starbucks [Sun-Sentinel]
Starbucks [Official Site]

• The first Hardee's opened in Greenville, NC near the East Carolina University campus.

• Burgers cost 15 cents at that first Hardee's.

• Hardee lost controlling interest of his company after just one drunken night of cards in the early 1960s. He was playing with his two business partners, and he bet his stock. Hardee obviously wasn't a good card player, because by the end of the night, the other two partners owned 51 percent of the company.

• Hardee's is fourth among the fast-food chains in the US, behind McDonald's, Burger King, and Wendy's.

• That Thickburger pictured above packs a whopping 1,420 calories and 107 grams of fat. Eat enough of those and you likely won't live to see 89.

Founder of Hardee's Dies at 89 [ABC News]
Hardee's [Official Site]

Photo: OPBuzz/flickr

Things are not looking good for the West Palm Beach-based Roadhouse Grill. Yesterday the company got court approval to liquidate its assets, which mainly include the leases of its 20 remaining restaurants.

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Paul Hyman granted a motion by Roadhouse to use liquidation provisions of Chapter 7 of the federal bankruptcy law, according to court papers filed Wednesday.

"There remains no ability for the debtor to continue operations as the debtor's only asset was the remaining 20 leased stores," Roadhouse said.

The company said it failed to cure defaults on the leases by May 9 in accordance with a May 5 court order allowing it to assume the leases. Roadhouse said a $1.3 million loan from MCF Development LLC didn't come in time to make the payments.

Roadhouse and RHG Acquisition Corp., owner of 85.5 percent of Roadhouse Grill shares, filed for court protection for the second time on Oct. 7. It listed assets and debt of less than $100 million in a Chapter 11 filing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in West Palm Beach.

Roadhouse Grill gets court OK to liquidate [Bloomberg News via Palm Beach Post]
Roadhouse Grill [Official Site]

Photo: edublogger/flickr

The hole that Burger King was in after the failure to agree to a penny-per-pound increase for tomato workers has just been getting deeper and deeper. Last week, we learned that a vice president in the company wrote some blog posts criticizing the Coalition of Immokalee Workers. There's also talk of some e-mails sent from the BK server that were sympathetic to the group.

And today we learned that Burger King actually hired someone to spy on another group, the Student/Farmworker Alliance, that works with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers:

In March, a woman named Cara Schaffer contacted the Student/Farmworker Alliance, saying she was a student at Broward Community College. Her eagerness aroused suspicions, but she was allowed to join two of the group’s planning sessions. Internet searches by the alliance revealed that she was not a college student.

Ms. Schaffer is the 25-year-old owner of a private security firm. Her company, Diplomatic Tactical Services, seems like the kind of security firm you’d find in one of Carl Hiaasen’s crime thrillers. Last year Ms. Schaffer was denied a private investigator’s license; she had failed to supply the Florida licensing division with proof of “lawfully gained, verifiable experience or training.” Even more unsettling, one of her former subcontractors, Guillermo Zarabozo, is now facing murder charges in United States District Court in Miami for his role in allegedly executing four crew members of a charter fishing boat, then dumping their bodies at sea.

According to the company, the spying was done for security purposes in an effort to prevent any violent acts and ensure the safety of its employees and assets. Which would be justified if the group had a history of violence, which it does not. At all.

So, this could be fun. Sit back, relax, and watch the corporate backpedaling.

Burger King probes e-posts [Miami Herald]
Burger with a Side of Spies [New York Times]
Coalition of Immokalee Workers March Today On BK Headquarters [MP: South Florida]
Burger King [Official Site]

Look out Daniel Boulud — a $167 hamburger (GBP85) has debuted at select Burger Kings in London.

Burger King's new Kobe beef burger will be topped with blue cheese and will be sold at the chain's Kensington and Chelsea locations in London. According to Lucy Barrett of British mag Marketing, it's all just one gonzo PR stunt:

"The idea of a burger that no one buys is not as ludicrous as it seems. Burger King will use it to promote a gap in perception between it and McDonald’s. It could lead consumers to reassess the quality of the brand."

The burger, which will use wagyu beef, was inspired by a similarly priced truffles-and-brie sandwich that UK chain Selfridges was supposed to roll out. However, there was one change made to BK's sandwich: they ditched the idea of topping it with foie gras after encountering pressure from PETA.

No word about how the animal rights activists feel about all that yummy, yummy beef.

Burger King Goes Black Tie [Portfolio]
Burger King to offer exclusive London burger [Marketing]
Burger King agrees to drop foie gras from GBP85 burger [Marketing]
It's a whopper of a price [The Sun]

Sonny's Real Pit Bar-B-Q [MenuPages]
Sonny's Real Pit Bar-B-Q [Official Site]

Burger King has just licensed out their name for a series of, err, "potato snacks." Not potato chips. Potato snacks.

We just got word from snack makers Intensely Different that they have officially unveiled a line of Burger King potato snacks. The chips/snacks/whatever come in two flavors: "Ketchup & fries" or "flame broiled." Yes — hamburger flavored chips. Are they the American version of British bacon flavored crisps? Who the hell knows. But, because we love you, here's the company's description of the "flame broiled" chips:

The BK™ spin on chips is nothing short of a revolution. Our hearty flavor now packs a crispy punch. A savory bag of crunchy, bite-sized flame-broiled taste whenever you want it.

Meanwhile, we admit this sounds like an April Fool's kind of post. I mean, hamburger flavored potato chips? But it's not. However, here's a fast food related prank for you.

Intensely Different [Official Site]

Soon you'll be able to get your Whopper in some fancy new digs. Burger King is unveiling the Whopper Bar, which will offer more Whoppers but fewer of the other typical BK menu items:

The menu and size of the Whopper Bars will be smaller than a typical Burger King, but they will sell Whoppers not typically available at all times in the chain's traditional restaurants. Executives say they haven't finalized the menu, though it could include as many as 10 types of Whoppers, such as the Western Whopper, the Texas Double Whopper and the Angry Whopper, a version topped with spicy onions. One menu sketch has a section called "Pimp Your Whopper," where patrons can chose from additional toppings like jalapeno peppers, bacon and barbecue sauce.
Russ Klein, Burger King's president, global marketing, strategy and innovation, said he began thinking about the concept about four years ago when he visited a Burger King in Germany that had knocked out the back of the restaurant and created a bar section. Mr. Klein said the Whopper Bar is akin to McDonald's Corp.'s creation of McCafe coffee bars, except that it is built around the chain's signature sandwich.

Burger King Whopper To Be Feted [Wall Street Journal]
Burger King [Official Site]

Our favorite Miami-based fast food chain will be selling new items this year, among them Kraft macaroni and cheese for the kiddies. They're also planning some sort of wrap, called the BK Wrapper, smoothies, and two specialty Whoppers:

The new items discussed Wednesday include an Angry Bacon and Cheese Whopper with spicy, crispy onions, and the Indy Whopper, which will have bacon and pepper jack cheese and will be promoted together with the new Indiana Jones movie this summer. (A regular Whopper with no bacon or cheese has 670 calories and 39 grams of fat, according to Burger King's Web site.)

Also in the works are a BK Wrapper, three new flavors for its iced coffee line, a steakhouse burger, smoothies and even Kraft macaroni and cheese.

Burger King unveils new items [Forbes]
Burger King [Official Site]

Photo: Flickr

We know there are some of you out there who cannot function without a Starbucks coffee at various times of the day, so we thought we'd give you advance warning that 7,100 Starbucks stores will be closing for a three-hour training period on Tuesday, February 26. They're wisely doing it in the evening, from 5:30 p.m. until 8:30 p.m.; we imagine a morning closure would lead to riotous behavior from the severely caffeine deprived. Why the nationwide shutdown? There are going to be some changes in Starbucks everywhere:

"We will have all new standards for how we create the drinks," said spokeswoman Valerie O'Neil. "They will be trained in creating the perfect shot, steaming the milk and all the pieces that come together in a drink."

Some people have speculated Starbucks will return to manual espresso machines, but O'Neil said the espresso-making equipment will be the same. "It's really about ensuring that the customer experience that we provide is the best that it can be."

. . .

The retraining is part of Starbucks' plan to revive its brand and sales growth, which by one measure sank to an all-time low last quarter. Chairman Howard Schultz last month returned as chief executive to oversee the turnaround.

Starbucks already has said it will slow U.S. expansion, grow faster in foreign countries and stop selling warmed sandwiches.

Monday, it announced a switch in wireless Internet providers and said it will offer two hours a day of free Wi-Fi to certain customers.

Starbucks stores to shut 3 hours on Feb. 26 for retraining baristas [The Seattle Times]

Anthony's Coal-Fired Pizza is expanding at a break-neck pace. Not only are they planning to have 15 South Florida locations by the end of next year, they're also looking to break into the holy grail of the chain restaurant business: Orlando.

Anthony's Coal-Fired Pizza Inc., a South Florida chain of pizza restaurants, is looking to break into the Orlando market. The pizza eatery is sniffing around the region for real estate, according to Tom Prakas of the Prakas Group, which is handling the leases. As its name implies, Anthony's uses coal-fired ovens to bake pizzas in about four minutes. The Fort Lauderdale company has eight locations in South Florida and is reportedly looking to open five or six locations in Central Florida. The chain has no connection to existing Central Florida pizza parlors operating under the Anthony's name.

Anthony's Coal-Fired Pizza Expands [MP: South Florida]
Coal-Fired Pizza needs a home [Orlando Sentinel]
Anthony's Coal Fired Pizza [Official Site]

Remember the Whopper Freakout? It was genius:

Burger King, which began running the TV ads Dec. 9, credits the campaign for helping boost Whopper sales in the quarter that ended in December by a double-digit percentage. It "drove significant brand relevance and incremental sales," executives said on an earnings conference call last week.

The videotaped hoax was a twist on a market research technique called "deprivation research," in which marketers measure how loyal consumers are to a brand or product by taking it away from them. The insight gained helps marketers design new marketing and ad ploys that will resonate better with consumers.

Hey, No Whopper on the Menu?! [Wall Street Journal]
The Whopper Freakout [MP: South Florida]
Whopper Freakout [Burger King]

At least that's what we think this article says. It's all restaurant-industry business speak. But we think there will be BK-branded chips in vending machines and BK restaurants:

The Inventure Group, Inc. (Nasdaq:SNAK) today reported that vending channel test marketing results for Burger King brand salted snacks exceeded managements' expectations in the fourth quarter of 2007. Based on these results, Inventure intends to pursue a national rollout of the brand into the vending channel. Inventure expects this national channel expansion to improve capacity utilization at its Bluffton, Indiana manufacturing facility, where all Burger King snacks are produced.

Test marketing in convenience store, drug store, and grocery store channels beginning in the first quarter of 2008 have generated significant retailer interest. Mass merchandiser and club store tests are expected to commence in the first half of 2008. Burger restaurants are scheduled to test the Ketchup & Fries snack product throughout the first quarter of 2008 in certain markets in Ohio and Florida.

Inventure is developing additional new items for the Burger King snack brand for potential test marketing in the second half of the year to complement the Ketchup & Fries and Flame Broiled items.

Burger King to Test Branded Chips [QSR]

Pollo Campero seems to have made a big splash in Boynton Beach, where Central American immigrants are flocking to get chicken from the popular chain. We thought Boynton Beach was an interesting choice for the first location in Florida, but it doesn't look like it'll be the only one for long; the company is planning to open four more sites in Miami-Dade later this year.

The Pollo Campero on Congress Avenue, in the new Boynton Town Center shopping development, was packed on Friday as community leaders, residents and company officials from the United States and Guatemala celebrated the chain's Florida debut.
...

Pollo Campero, the largest Latin American chicken restaurant chain, is on the cusp of a global explosion.

The family-owned fast-food franchise has more than 260 restaurants with 10,000 employees in 11 countries, including 37 locations in the United States.

Its goal is to reach 2,000 stores worldwide by 2013, including 500 in the United States, said Chief Executive Officer Juan Jose Gutierrez, whose father, Dionisio, founded the company in 1971.

It's an ambitious plan, Gutierrez said, but he's confident in the recipe his father concocted in the family's kitchen years ago.

It is still the chain's mainstay today.

"He didn't visualize what he really created," Gutierrez said of his father, who died in 1974. "In the next five years, we're going to have a lot of work to do."

The company hit $380 million in sales last year, with 2008 projections of $435 million, he said.

We have yet to try the chicken. Has anyone gone? What did you think of it?

Guatemalan sensation brings flavor of home [Palm Beach Post]
Pollo Campero [Official Site]

Photo: Flickr

For some reason or another -- corporate stinginess, or a simple inability to control the wages its suppliers pay to their workers -- Burger King won't pay an extra penny per pound of tomatoes picked by workers in Immokalee. So now, the company is exploring some options that don't involve Immokalee at all:

The Dec. 18 letter to suppliers came just a few weeks after Burger King was the target of a major march in Miami organized by the Coalition of Immokalee Workers, which hopes to expose what it calls unfair wages and working conditions in the fields where Burger King's tomatoes are picked by migrant workers. The group wants Burger King to agree to pay a penny more per pound for its tomatoes to improve wages, similar to deals signed by McDonald's and Taco Bell.

But Burger King and the tomato growers have argued that those deals violate federal anti-trust and labor laws. Burger King has remained adamant it won't sign on to the deal because the chain buys its tomatoes from repackers, not from growers, so it has no way to get money to the workers. The extra penny per pound would cost the firm about $250,000 a year.

In the letter to suppliers, Grover wrote: ''In an effort to protect the BKC brand and supply system from disruption, we are developing contingency plans to assure our long-term supply of tomatoes.'' He went on to ask the suppliers to ``submit contingency plans for the possibility that we would choose not to purchase tomatoes grown on farms in the Immokalee, Florida region.''

Burger King executives tried to downplay that the ''contingency plan'' is a direct result of the coalition's activities. Any move would be a ''phased implementation,'' starting with the 2008-2009 growing season.

''If they won't work with us, we've only got one other option: to move,'' Grover said. ``It's a distraction to our business. They're trying to get a lot of groups turned against us.''

Burger King eyes new tomato sources [Miami Herald]
Coalition Of Immokalee Workers March Today On BK Headquarters [MP: South Florida]

We were amused by a photo we found of a Scion totally decked out in Pollo Tropical advertising. Think that's a private car and someone is getting paid to advertise the restaurant chain? Or do they make deliveries in that thing? And one commenter on the photo posed a good question -- aren't those types of tints illegal?

Pollo Tropical [Official Site]

Photo: Flickr

Burger King may be lagging behind when it comes to worker issues, but hey, at least PETA thinks it's making great progress! The organization deemed BK the "Most Improved National Food Chain" at its fifth annual Proggy Awards. ("Proggy" stands for progress, apparently.) Here's why Burger King won:

Once the target of nearly 1,000 PETA protests for its suppliers' cruel treatment of animals, Burger King has since taken the industry lead in upgrading its animal welfare standards. In 2003, the company introduced the BK Veggie--the first meatless burger to be offered by any national fast-food chain at all of its U.S. locations. Last March, the company announced that it would start purchasing a portion of its eggs and pork from suppliers that don't confine their animals to tiny cages and crates and would give preference to suppliers that switched to a less cruel method of chicken slaughter called controlled-atmosphere killing. As a result of Burger King's leadership, several other fast-food chains and some of North America's largest meat suppliers have followed suit.

Burger King [Official Site]
Coalition Of Immokalee Workers March Today On BK Headquarters [MP: South Florida]

Looks like we're going to get a lot more of them. They signed a deal with Wal-Mart to operate 500 of the in-store restaurants through 2012.

Wal-Mart greets Latin American restaurant t [Bradenton Herald]
Pollo Campero Finally Comes To South Florida [MP: South Florida]

If you enjoyed the Whopper Freakout, you might be interested in reading this, an interview with the man who directed it. Here's an excerpt:

HAR: It was by far the most logistically complex shoot I've ever been on. It wasn't just reality TV, it was tricking real customers with fake BK employees who we had to train to use the machines and how to work the systems. There's a whole complex assembly line of people back there and (actors) had to integrate into a real working bk staff making chicken sandwiches and fries. There was one woman (a BK employee) who was so deadpan we ended up hiring her as part of our fake bk staff. She delivered the line so well. All the other real staff would tend to giggle and I'd demote them to the back.

Meanwhile we were trying to bring the really interesting customers into play. You'd get some great characters—there'd be a guy who would come in and it would look like he's been up all night and he's wearing a velvet fedora and then he steps up and he just wants a chicken filet. Then there were certain people you wanted to avoid who looked too crazy and you knew they wouldn't take the joke too well. The manager knew a lot of the customers and knew who were locals and knew who had good sense of humor and who didn't–I was getting live commentary from the manager. I was also dressed up as manager in training. I would stand around the front a lot to pick out the people who would maybe be OK on camera.

Via A Hamburger Today

There are outlets in California, Chicago, New York, Texas and DC and its suburbs. So now, finally, the most popular chicken chain in Central America is expanding to South Florida; Guatemala-based Pollo Campero will be opening a branch in Boynton Beach sometime this month. After that, the chain is planning to open at least four more restaurants in the area: three in Dade (Little Havana, Cutler Ridge, and near Dolphin Stadium) and one in an unspecified Broward location.

Campero has been making headlines with restaurant openings in Los Angeles and other U.S. areas with large Central American communities, drawing crowds and posting record sales from immigrants seeking a taste of home.

But debuts in Boynton Beach and South Florida could be different, as the chain appeals more to a crossover market including Cubans, Puerto Ricans and many non-Latin Americans who don't know the brand, Denegri said.

Already, Campero has adjusted its menu to reach out.

The South Florida locales will offer black beans popular among Cubans, not just pinto beans popular in Central America. And the U.S. outlets will highlight grilled chicken for the first time — partly to take on Pollo Tropical, the Miami-based chain known for its grilled dishes.

"We knew we needed grilled chicken to compete in Florida," Denegri said.

Central American chicken chain comes to South Florida [Sun-Sentinel]
Pollo Campero [Official Site]

We have to admit, we found this pretty funny. (And don't worry, BK didn't actually discontinue the Whopper. Corporate just 'punked' the customers at a particular Burger King.)

No Whopper for You! Burger King 'Discontinues' Its Signature Sandwich [A Hamburger Today]
Whopper Freakout [Burger King]

Looks like one of the Orlando McDonald's is getting a 1950s-style makeover, in hopes of attracting more diners. And we must say, those big arches along the sides definitely look cooler than your average McD's. According to an article in the Orlando Sentinel, it costs 20 percent more to build one of these retro McDonald's than a regular one. Funny how it's expensive to make stuff look old, huh?

The eye-catching restaurant on East Colonial Drive is slated to open Wednesday. It will be the first of its kind in Metro Orlando and among a handful of 1950s-style stores throughout the country.

The store includes hallmarks of early McDonald's restaurants such as a slanted roofline, glass-plated storefront and sweeping golden arches on the sides of the structure. Strong sales at existing throwback stores persuaded franchisee Gilchrist Enterprises Inc. to replace its aging McDonald's on East Colonial near Primrose Drive and invest in a new restaurant.

"We've had our eye on this building design," said Howard Hughes, director of operations for Gilchrist Enterprises, which operates seven McDonald's in Central Florida including two at Orlando International Airport. "It seems to be a hit with customers and really has an excellent track record for improving sales," Hughes said.

McDonald's franchisees typically pick up the tab for building or remodeling a store. Hughes said the retro-style costs about 20 percent more than a typical McDonald's store design.

His store will also include the company's new R Gym, touted as an exercise spot for children with climbing walls, basketball goals and slides. Hughes said the East Colonial location also will be among the first in the region to sell McDonald's new drinks, including cappuccino and latte, starting in mid-February.

Anyone else amused by the idea of cappuccinos and lattes in a '50s-style diner?
McDonald's golden arches go retro in Orlando [Orlando Sentinel]
Photo: Flickr (of a similar retro McDonalds in Maine)

As if you needed further evidence that the once-agricultural Homestead/Florida City area was becoming increasingly suburban. Now, they have a Starbucks. And soon, they'll have another!

The Starbucks at 76 Palm Dr., which opened Nov. 25, is the chain's first standalone store in Miami-Dade south of Southwest 205th Street and Old Cutler Road in Cutler Bay. A second Starbucks is planned for 1029 N. Homestead Blvd. in the Publix shopping center, and a third site, also in Homestead, is under consideration, according to Lillian Delgado, a city spokeswoman.

"It's awesome," 17-year-old Victor Morales said of the new store a day after the Florida City store opened. "I can get coffee real close. I've been going all the way to Kendall to get coffee."

Morales, who lives down the street from the Starbucks in the Venetia community, was working on his fourth cup of coffee for the day, a mocha frappuccino. It was not yet noon.

Homestead to get Starbucks [Trading Markets]
Starbucks [Official Site]

This story is just a teensy bit old, as in it came out in late November, but we've been so preoccupied that we forgot to write about it. And it's a fairly big deal, we think. Florida will get its first LEED-certified restaurants when two branches of Pizza Fusion open in Palm Beach Gardens and Weston this month. The Fort-Lauderdale-based eco-friendly company is also planning additional new restaurants in Atlanta, Pittsburgh and northern New Jersey; each of these will also be the first LEED-certified restaurants in their respective states.

For those of you who don't know what all this LEED certification business is all about (don't feel badly; we had to look it up), we'll give you a quick summary: it stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. The program provides an independent third party verification that the building does, in fact, comply with "green" standards. It all goes hand-in-hand with Pizza Fusion's motto of "Saving the earth, one pizza at a time."

Pizza Fusion Addresses Organic Demand with LEED Expansion into South and Northeast Markets [Franchising.com]
Pizza Fusion [MenuPages]
Pizza Fusion [Official Site]

The Coalition of Immokalee Workers is leading a nine-mile march from downtown Miami all the way to Burger King headquarters near the airport. The reason is BK's refusal to demand that its tomato providers pay an extra penny per pound to its workers. (Most tomato pickers in South Florida earn about 45 cents for each 32-pound bucket they pick.) Eric Schlosser (he of Fast Food Nation fame) actually summed up the whole story quite nicely in yesterday's New York Times:

In 2005, Florida tomato pickers gained their first significant pay raise since the late 1970s when Taco Bell ended a consumer boycott by agreeing to pay an extra penny per pound for its tomatoes, with the extra cent going directly to the farm workers. Last April, McDonald’s agreed to a similar arrangement, increasing the wages of its tomato pickers to about 77 cents per bucket. But Burger King, whose headquarters are in Florida, has adamantly refused to pay the extra penny — and its refusal has encouraged tomato growers to cancel the deals already struck with Taco Bell and McDonald’s.

This month the Florida Tomato Growers Exchange, representing 90 percent of the state’s growers, announced that it will not allow any of its members to collect the extra penny for farm workers. Reggie Brown, the executive vice president of the group, described the surcharge for poor migrants as “pretty much near un-American.”

The coalition negotiated with Burger King, and three representatives attended the company's annual meeting, which ended yesterday, but no agreement was reached:

"If you're going to pay people for a measure of work, it's important to measure the work and a person accurately," said Steve Grover, head of quality assurance and regulatory affairs for Miami's Burger King Corp. He said he wasn't convinced that could be done under the coalition's proposal.

Burger King said that it based the decision on the fact that it has no direct relationship with the growers. Unlike Taco Bell, it purchases tomatoes from repackaging companies, generally located near the farms where the tomatoes are picked.

We tried to create a map of the route, although it didn't turn out as clear as we'd hoped. But it gives you a good idea of where the marchers will be. They began this morning at the Goldman Sachs offices downtown (Goldman Sachs owns a large stake in BK) and will be at the Burger King headquarters by 3:30 p.m. for a rally.

Penny Foolish [New York Times]
Burger King rejects tomato price hike, but offers job help [St Petersburg Times]
BK protesters march through Miami streets [Miami Herald]
Coalition of Immokalee Workers [Official Site]

The Hungry Man's "Weekly Dish" usually features a plate of food that he enjoyed. This week, however, he took a departure and instead featured a "Dish of Disgust:" Domino's new Oreo pizza. Yes, he says, it is that bad:

There’s just one problem: Oreos are great on their own (one of the few commercially made cookies I’ll consider eating, in fact). They’re even better when dunked in milk. But they just don’t work when used as a topping for a way-too-crackly crust that tastes like a graham-cracker that has gone through the dry-cleaner’s. (Trust me, there’s really something off about it.) And the glue that holds topping and crust together? An overly sweet white icing that looks like, well, glue. (Seriously, Elmer’s should sue these folks.)

The Weekly Dish (of Disgust): Domino's Oreo Pizza [The Hungry Man]

When did these Bonefish restaurants start popping up everywhere? We're getting another Bonefish Grill, this one in Coral Gables, at 2121 Ponce de Leon Blvd. Doors open for lunch on November 19.

But if you have a pressing desire to get in earlier, the restaurant will be hosting a charity event on Saturday, November 17 for Neat Stuff, a South Florida-based group that helps provide clothing to needy children. And it's not a bad deal: donate $25 and get complimentary drinks, appetizers and a main course tasting. Now that we think about it, this is a great way for the kitchen and waitstaff to do a test run, and there's charity involved, which means good press! Yes, it's a genius idea, and if we ever open a restaurant (not likely), we plan to do something similar.

To RSVP for the event, call 305-638-5878.

Bonefish Grill [Official Site]

We're willing to bet it wasn't a fancy gourmet burger involving ground sirloin and brie. Our cooking repertoire at that age consisted of oatmeal cookies and cornflake-crusted chicken fingers. Joey Yarwick, a 12-year-old from San Diego, would've kicked our pre-teen ass in a cooking competition. His gourmet burger creation, "Au Brie Burger a la Francais," won the Red Robin "The Next Gourmet Burger Kids' Recipe Contest" and will be featured on Red Robin menus. We're...jealous. His burger creation sounds incredibly rich and decadent: ground sirloin, croissant, brie, potatoes, butter, cream, (ah, the blissful ignorance of youth, before those cholesterol numbers begin to creep up) fresh rosemary, and pomme frites. We tried to find photos of the burger but unfortunately were unsuccessful. The three burgers selected as runners up: "Totally Tuscan Turkey Burger," "Chicken Al-FRED-o Burger," and "Oh My Thai Burger." Seriously, who are these kids? Did they get parental help here? Wow.

12-Year-Old San Diego Boy Invents America's Next Gourmet Burger [CNNMoney]
Red Robin [Official Site]

Pollo Tropical is going trans-fat free. The chicken never had any trans fats, but some of the sides and baked goods did; trans fats were in the oil used to fry plantains, yuca and french fries and in the key lime pie, tres leches, dinner rolls and the spare rib marinade. But that's all gone now, and Pollo Tropical executives say that customers won't notice any difference in taste.

In other Miami-based fast food chain news, Burger King's profits are up 23 percent for the first quarter (the three months that ended on September 30), thanks to some shrewd marketing campaigns tied in with "The Simpsons Movie" and "Transformers." The article contains lots more boring figures, all of which come to the same conclusion: people are eating at Burger King. A lot.

Pollo Tropical sheds the trans fat [Miami Herald]
Pollo Tropical [Official Site]
Burger King 1Q profit up 23 percent on promotions, strong sales [Herald Tribune]
Burger King [Official Site]