Welcome to Delicious or Distressing, where we rate recent food memes, videos, and other entertainment news. Last week we discussed McDonald’s new $200 wedding package.
Logan Paul, generally thought to be a bad person, is now being investigated for over-caffeinating the children of the world. The caffeine content of one of his apparently very popular Prime energy drinks equals that of six cans of Coke or two Red Bulls—unshockingly, too much for a small child. It’s already been banned at some schools in the UK and Australia, and now Senator Chuck Schumer is calling upon the FDA to investigate the brand for irresponsibly marketing the beverage to his following, which skews toward the Youths. Love influencer accountability via federal investigation.
Also this week, a United Airlines passenger, livid over his in-flight meal choice, threw such a tantrum that the entire plane had to be grounded. TikTok’s latest diet fad is various things dipped in cottage cheese and mustard—some people are vibing with it, and others are mocking it. Lastly, IHOP released a pancake taco, which is also just a normal pancake folded into the shape of a taco.
Here’s what else is happening in food moments on the internet this week.
The FDA is investigating Logan Paul’s energy drinks, which contain the caffeine of 6 Cokes
I regret to inform you that shortly after seeing this news about Logan Paul’s potentially cursed energy drink Prime that I realized I had tried it recently. I did not know it was associated with Paul, a YouTuber who I first heard about after he uploaded a video of a corpse that had died by suicide. Thankfully, the version I had was not caffeinated, as the Associated Press reports that the 12-ounce beverage contains as much caffeine as six Coca-Colas, or close to two Red Bulls. That much caffeine could be fine for adults, but surely not for me, a pregnant person, and probably not for children, who Sen. Chuck Schumer warns could face “serious health” issues after consuming it. Prime claims that the caffeinated version notes that it’s not for people under 18. But has a label like that ever stopped anyone under 18 from wanting to try something popular? Surely Paul has…met a teenager, which may be why he’s marketing so well to them in the first place? As for me, I am somehow horrified that my hard-earned dollars somehow went to a product created by a particularly awful YouTube influencer. It was essentially a classic sports drink; Gatorade tastes better. Mine may have not had caffeine, but I’d like my money back anyway. 4.7/5 distressing —Serena Dai, editorial director
A United passenger, upset over his meal choice, diverted the whole flight
Are the business class bros okay? Seemingly not. A United Airlines flight from Houston to Amsterdam had an unexpected pitstop in Chicago on Sunday after one unruly dude lost his shit, reportedly because his first meal choice was unavailable. The plane had to circle in the air, dumping fuel into the atmosphere until it was light enough to land. It should have given him plenty of time to simmer down and assess his life choices. Enough time to say, “I’m sorry, the ricotta salata and wild honey manicotti will be fine.” Or maybe, “My bone broth start-up is in trouble and I was projecting.” Sir did not do that, and was instead escorted off the plane by Chicago authorities. Do not get me wrong, I am hysterical (on the inside!) when JetBlue runs out of complimentary Cheez-Its and I have to eat the sad muesli bar, but I am a grown-ass woman (with snacks in my bag, obvi). Men will honestly divert a plane before going to therapy—a 4.9/5 distressing. —Ali Francis, staff writer
TikTok is obsessed with mustard and cottage cheese
If you’re familiar with the war chant “[insert crudités]...with cottage cheese and mustard,” congratulations: You’ve made it to TikTok’s latest viral diet fad. The diet consists of just that, vegetables (and sometimes sausages) dipped in cottage cheese and mustard, and scores of creators on the platform are touting its supposed health benefits. This snack sounds perfectly delicious at face value—would try—but any diet conceived on the internet is a slippery slope. Plenty of dietitians online caution that the veggie-cottage-cheese-mustard smorgasbord shouldn’t replace meals, but supplement them. Other TikTokers are mocking the trend and dubbing the original sound over clips of them dipping fried chicken in various sauces or cookies in milk. It all seems pretty harmless for the time being—let’s just hope it doesn’t influence TikTok-goers to neglect the other major food groups to the extreme. 2.1/5 delicious. —Li Goldstein, digital production assistant
TikTok content
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IHOP is making pancake tacos
If there’s one thing I believe, it’s that tacos are God’s gift to me personally. I assume, as a Bon Appétit dot-com reader, you already understand the endless virtues of tacos, but if not here’s a quick primer of their best qualities: portable, flavorful, affordable, not snooty. I love a taco at any hour, but when I saw that IHOP is introducing pancake tacos, I felt what I can only alliteratively describe as taco trepidation. Sure, I can get down, albeit hesitantly, with a sweet taco. I already know and love breakfast tacos, and I would happily throw caution to the wind to try a fried chicken taco. All that being said, I think we, as a community of people who eat tacos, need to examine what we’re calling a taco. I guess what I mean to say is: If we’re calling folded pancakes tacos, what’s next? A folded mini-pizza for a taco shell? Wait, hold on—was I actually a genius for a second? I’ll be contacting my patent lawyers, but in the meantime I’m rating this news a fluffy, chewy 3.6/5 delicious —Sam Stone staff writer