Consumer Products and Services

Expect a Marlboro Snus Infection

Dallas-Based Kimberly-Clark Makes Procter & Gamble Want Its Mommy

Hot Dish

BeloWatch

BeloWatch

Funny money

Kimberly-Clark gets benevolent with Florida county's cash

Hot Dish

Kimberly-Clark gets benevolent with Florida county's cash

Our Man in Saipan

Dick Armey thinks he's found a free-market paradise in the Marianas Islands, a U.S. territory where the workers never complain, the factories never quit, and wages are so low, even welfare mothers can hire a Filipino maid

Smoke-filled room

When Dan Morales brokered Texas' $17.3 billion tobacco settlement, he blew away Governor Bush. He also made sure his friends got a few puffs.

Toy boys

The great Furby hunt begins

Valley View Center Loses One More Tenant, as Borders Closes the Book on Waldenbooks

​A Friend of Unfair Park sends word: Borders Group is removing from its shelf 200 Waldenbooks locations across the U.S. -- including, as you can tell from the headline, the longstanding Valley View Center location, which opened in October 1999. Employees there only found out about the closure, sch ... More >>

Eisley Has The Battle Scars to Prove Their Coming of Age.

​A Friend of Unfair Park sends word: Borders Group is removing from its shelf 200 Waldenbooks locations across the U.S. -- including, as you can tell from the headline, the longstanding Valley View Center location, which opened in October 1999. Employees there only found out about the closure, sch ... More >>

AMC Grapevine Converting Theaters for Dine-In Movies

​The nation's second-largest theater chain is opening a dine-in theater at Grapevine Mills tomorrow, suggesting the movie world's major players aren't ready to cede the "watch and eat" model to smaller operators. Grapevine is the sixth entry in AMC's growing Dine-In Theater concept; a seventh ... More >>

It's Official: The Good Guys Are Gone For Good

Courtesy FOX BroadcastingBradley Whitford's days taking a free spin on the Fair Park merry-go-round have come to an end.​Janis Burklund, head of the Dallas Film Commission, just called with disappointing but not entirely surprising news: The Good Guys will not return for a second season. Which mea ... More >>

Enchanted Rock: Not Just a State Park Near Fredericksburg Anymore

​Another Texas vodka has reached the Dallas market, although an owner of Rebecca Creek Distillery says his spirits company won't confine itself to vodka for long. "These are the first two products," Brian Lowrance says of Enchanted Rock vodka and a single malt barley whiskey set for release n ... More >>

T Bone Burnett To Be Honored By The Producers & Engineers Wing of the Recording Academy In Ramp-Up To 2011 Grammy Awards

T Bone Burnett​The Producers & Engineers Wing of the Recording Academy swears it's kind of a big deal, having created a "best practices guideline" and leading various charges, etc., since forming 10 years ago. OK, whatever. Doesn't really matter.Because, if nothing else, what it's doing in the ... More >>

Get Epically Stoned Tonight At The Common Table, Meet Jim Koch Friday At Ginger Man

​Paul Hightower at Dallas Craft Beer Examiner has a good round-up of the month's beer events on his January Craft Beer Calendar, and Brian Brown of Plano Craft Beer Examiner has a more thorough run-down of the week's area beer events. Both of them mention something I've had penciled on my calendar ... More >>

Southern Cheeses Snubbed at Good Food Awards

The cows certainly are happy in California.​Southern cheesemakers were shut out of the Good Food Awards, a new initiative to recognize the best-tasting artisan edibles made in accordance with sustainable principles. In a weekend ceremony hosted by Alice Waters, eight awards were given in the c ... More >>

Breakfast Tacos: Taste What You're Missing, America

Get a clue, America.​Restaurant owners are growing increasingly excited about the prospects for breakfast pizza, but breakfast tacos don't show any signs of making significant inroads nationally. Breakfast pizza is typically a tomato sauce-less concoction of eggs, cheese and meat -- sort of l ... More >>

If You Think It Sucks Dallas Can't Buy Liquor on Sundays (And Especially This Sunday) ...

Via.​... imagine how the people who sell it feel. Actually, no need to imagine it: The D.C.-based Distilled Spirits Council of the United States issued a press release today demanding the state of Texas drop its "outdated law banning Sunday liquor sales," especially considering the many millions i ... More >>

Nation, Grab Your Spoons and Go to Ben & Jerry's

​Four years ago, Stephen Colbert and Ben & Jerry's teamed up to create a new ice cream flavor, Americone Dream, and today the flavor is available at all Ben & Jerry's locations. Today you can get two-for-one scoops of Americone Dream, vanilla ice cream blended with caramel and bits of fudge-c ... More >>

Peticolas Brewing Company Sets Sights On Dallas Location

​Deep Ellum Brewing Company looks to be on pace to be the city's first non-brewpub microbrewery, but it may not be the only one for long. Attorney and homebrewer Michael Peticolas was looking into investing in a new brewery in another city. Yet the more he investigated, the more he wondered why Da ... More >>

Houston Beer Lovers Plan Dallas Extravaganza

​The organizers of Dallas' first-ever Beer Week say the city's lack of microbreweries has proven to be a selling point in luring leading craft brewers here for the November event. "Because there aren't a lot of local breweries here, other breweries stand a chance," Cathy Clark explains. "Brew ... More >>

Texas Wine Industry Considers Identifying Best of the Bunch

​Texas wine enthusiasts seeking a better way to convey to consumers which local wines deserve their attentions are broaching the possibility of creating a wine quality program. Russ Kane, a wine writer who's moderating a panel on wine quality at this week's Texas Wine and Grape Growers Associ ... More >>

Texas Wineries Ask "What Do Hispanic Wine Drinkers Want?"

​Hispanics represent a growing share of Texas' wine drinking population, but wineries are still grappling with how to pitch their products to them. "No information is available about the Hispanic wine market," Natalia Kolyesnikova, assistant director of the Texas Wine Marketing Research Insti ... More >>

Texas Craft Liquor Makers Belly Up to the Bar to Challenge Kentucky Bourbon.

​Hispanics represent a growing share of Texas' wine drinking population, but wineries are still grappling with how to pitch their products to them. "No information is available about the Hispanic wine market," Natalia Kolyesnikova, assistant director of the Texas Wine Marketing Research Insti ... More >>

Miss Turkey and The Top Five Shameless Carl's Jr. Ads

Carl's Jr - YouTube"To help you remember we put Miss Turkey in a bikini": Carl's Jr. new ad for their turkey burger.​Carl's Jr., which opened a new spot in Dallas late last year, has added a new entry to their weird, not funny food-meets-porn marketing strategy. The commercial popped up on Eater t ... More >>

Sigel's Discounts Mysterious Cheap Wines

Sigel's is readying to put its 90 Cellars wines on sale, making the label Time recently described as a "magical combo" of good wine and cheap prices an even better deal. ​90 Cellars, the subject of a feature story in The Boston Globe this week, has been garnering attention for its unique bu ... More >>

Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream Czar Hunter Rose Has The Coolest Job: Handing Out Free Cones

​If a mega-tornado strikes Oak Lawn or zombies take over the city, there's one thing we here at the Observer won't have to worry about while we're barricaded in the break room: a food shortage. Not only do we have enough of those neon orange crackers to feed everyone for three days, we also g ... More >>

A Piece of the Record Pie

A Store-by-store Breakdown of this Year's Record Store Day Events Around Town

Details On Two Beer Fests, Tactical Tasting, Stone Brewing Co. Events And More Beer Quick Hits

​Lots of Brews News and Brews Clues to drink in after the jump.For starters, Flying Saucer on the Lake has announced the lineup for its spring beer festival as well as an opportunity to taste Brewdog Tactical Nuclear Penguin. There's a beer festival a-brewin' in Plano. The Common Table is tapping ... More >>

How Many Record Stores Do You Think Exist in the Dallas-Fort Worth Region? Really. Guess.

​Tomorrow, as you now doubt are well aware by now, is the fourth annual official Record Store Day, in which we all get together and celebrate the brick-and-mortar shops that have managed to survive through the economy and the Internet stealing all of the action.But, really, just how bad are things ... More >>

What Would Happen if the Proposed Beer Legislation Becomes Law?

​Three bills bouncing around the Texas Legislature are being trumpeted as game-changers for the state's beer industry. In quick review: HB 660 would permit brewpubs to sell directly to wholesalers and distributors; HB 2436 would allow small breweries to sell their product for on- or off-site c ... More >>

World Beer Company Bottle Shop Pub and Store Soft-Opens Saturday, and More Local Beer News

No word on whether Obama beer is among the 500 available at World Beer Company Bottle Shop.​A hat tip, along with a couple of corrections, to UrbanDaddy, which scooped us on this beer bar and package store, but must have spent a little too much time coming up with a trademark story-ending zinger t ... More >>

A Steel of a Deal at Anvil Pub

​Quittin' Time brings you tips on where to spend your happy hour drinking money. Where: Anvil Pub, 2638 Elm St. What: $1 off all liquor, most beer. Service industry Monday, half price food Tuesday, Texas booze Wednesday. When: 4pm-8pm Monday through Friday. Additional discounts all night Mond ... More >>

Irving T.G.I. Friday's Bites the Dust

​Even restaurants with God in their names aren't immune to the economy. (Or maybe God got shorted on his order of potato skins.) The T.G.I. Friday's chains Irving location at 1001 MacArthur Park has closed. Every piece of T.G.I. Friday's flair and signage has been removed and all that remain ... More >>

The Civil Wars Fight For Recognition

​Even restaurants with God in their names aren't immune to the economy. (Or maybe God got shorted on his order of potato skins.) The T.G.I. Friday's chains Irving location at 1001 MacArthur Park has closed. Every piece of T.G.I. Friday's flair and signage has been removed and all that remain ... More >>

Calais Winery Launches Recycling Program. Not Convinced? It Involves Free Wine.

​On Saturday, Calais Winery will launch its new wine-bottle recycling program with the first rendition of what will become semi-annual event. From its rustic little shop on Commerce, the winery will accept empty bottles from any Texas winery. In exchange, generous winos will receive free tas ... More >>

Adventures in Lousy Sports Stadium Logic, Starring University of North Texas and D

Researchers say the new UNT stadium will pump $29 million a year into Denton's economy. You'll never guess where the researchers work.​The University of North Texas unveiled its shiny new football stadium last week, a $79 million complex designed to bring some juice to Denton come college foot ... More >>

Brew At The Zoo: Where Else Can You Taste Craft Beers in the Presence of Giant Predators?

​By now you've probably noticed the banners across the top of our blogs or seen the Mixmaster post touting Brew at the Zoo September 10, but perhaps were hesitant to commit to a $30 ticket without knowing just which beers would be available. How about I just tell you that the ticket includes zoo ... More >>

Stomp Then Sip

​By now you've probably noticed the banners across the top of our blogs or seen the Mixmaster post touting Brew at the Zoo September 10, but perhaps were hesitant to commit to a $30 ticket without knowing just which beers would be available. How about I just tell you that the ticket includes zoo ... More >>

As Fame Chases Him, Bon Iver Keeps Running

​By now you've probably noticed the banners across the top of our blogs or seen the Mixmaster post touting Brew at the Zoo September 10, but perhaps were hesitant to commit to a $30 ticket without knowing just which beers would be available. How about I just tell you that the ticket includes zoo ... More >>

Unknown Mortal Orchestra's Internet-Fueled Rise

​By now you've probably noticed the banners across the top of our blogs or seen the Mixmaster post touting Brew at the Zoo September 10, but perhaps were hesitant to commit to a $30 ticket without knowing just which beers would be available. How about I just tell you that the ticket includes zoo ... More >>

Dallas Beer Week Vs. Meddlesome Moth: Drama in the Craft Beer World

​After the first Houston Beer Week last year, Houstonians Cathy Clark and Jay Rascoe (aka Guns and Tacos) decided Dallas needed its own week to celebrate craft beer as well, as we first told you back in February. Since then, the events planned for Dallas Beer Week, November 12 through19, have draw ... More >>

Break Out Your Bubble Gum: Maid-Rite Corporation Is Coming to Dallas

​Des Moines, Iowa-based Maid-Rite corporation promises to descend en masse upon the DFW metroplex, blanketing the area in its popular "loose meat" sandwich, tucked inside a mass produced white-bread bun. The 85-year-old corporation has targeted a Arlington's Green Oaks Shopping Center at the ... More >>

Record Store Day Comes Early This Year as Record Stores Celebrate Black Friday

​If you're reading this blog, it's likely you frequent a record store, and there are several good ones in the area to choose from.  But, if you didn't realize that purchasing music online is a mild sin, and if your record store of choice is the iTunes store or Amazon.com, you might be out of ... More >>

Rachael Yamagata Gets By With a Little Help

Crowd funding from fans frees her to create Chesapeake.

New Dallas City Council Rules Should Get Food Trucks Rolling into Dallas

So Cal Tacos​Over on Pegausus News, DFW Food Truck Foodie reported yesterday that the Dallas City Council has released the headlock they'd had on many North Texas food trucks by resolving a few code compliance issues. The biggest change is to allow retrofitted trucks. Previously the code allo ... More >>

Try All Five Local Breweries and Support Texas Brewers at March Beer Dinner

​Just days after Texans celebrate the state's Independence Day on March 2, drinkers can support its independent brewers and try offerings from all five of the DFW area's functional breweries. (That number won't be five forever, but more on that later.)Corey Pond at The Common Table says Rahr & ... More >>

Reunion Brewing Company, Dallas' Next Brewery, is Coming to the Design District

​Lakewood Brewing Company is nipping at the heels of Peticolas Brewing Company and Deep Ellum Brewing Co. to be the third Dallas-area beer maker, but it's not the only start-up on the way. According to its Facebook page, Reunion Brewing Company last week signed a lease for a space in the Design Di ... More >>