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HED:
Welcome to Open Tab, a weekly roundup of the news, gossip, and stories that have stayed open in my tabs all week. Last time we covered Jason Kelce’s endearingly odd anti-data center protest.
Welcome back to Open Tab. This week, I have a laughably-specific recommendation that I hope at least some of you will be able to try: the egg sandwich at Thai Diner which I ate just hours ago. Close your eyes, if you will, while I paint you a picture of what is inarguably the best breakfast sandwich in New York City—I expect and welcome your angry emails about this claim. This thing’s got silky scrambled eggs, scallion mayo, herbal sai oua pork sausage, gooey cheese, and the whole shebang comes snugly wrapped in a buttery roti. A masterpiece.
This week, there’s been more drama for David Protein, which is embroiled in a California class action suit arguing that the protein bars do in fact contain sugar, despite the company’s claims otherwise. The lawsuit comes after a key ingredient in David’s products, allulose, has been deemed a sugar, and it builds on a similar suit filed against Chobani.
A few months ago, I wrote about the impending Sysco merger which would, undoubtedly, raise prices for restaurants, making it even harder for them to operate. Now, Democrats in Congress are raising those same objections, and pushing the FTC to investigate the merger. A restaurant supplier monopoly plus rampant inflation equals a nearly impossible landscape for independent restaurants.
And finally, the Cheesecake Factory’s stock appears to have outperformed Nvidia’s so far this year. Make of that what you will. To me, it is a sure sign that while the AI bubble may burst, cheesecake is forever.
Also in this week’s Open Tab: the upsetting AI-generated food pictures some restaurants are using, the meteoric rise of Loonen Water, and food influencer Keith Lee steps in during a crisis.
What’s up with restaurants’ gross AI food pictures?
You know what makes me not want to eat a burrito? A deeply unsettling, disgusting AI-generated photo of a burrito. Unfortunately, that’s exactly the type of image some restaurants are using to advertise. This AI Foodslop photo features a dish made with something akin to shrimp, but perfectly round like a doughnut, with neither head nor tail. Here, what looks like 3D-printed quiche. Some AI-generated signs advertise items that the shop doesn’t even sell.
Why would literally anyone use these messed up AI photos to advertise their restaurant? It’s cheaper and easier than hiring a person to do it, of course. But there’s evidence that AI-generated photos of food can be genuinely appealing, when done correctly. A 2024 study showed that people were drawn to AI-generated photos of food when they weren’t aware of its origins, but were more drawn to human-made images of food when they did know the origin.
All this to say: As every corner of the world becomes more infused with AI everything, I’m finding myself drawn to real tangible craft—watching someone cook the food I’m about to eat, mix the drink I’m about to sip, perform the music I’m listening to.
I’ve been writing about water since I started working at Bon Appétit four (four!) years ago. I’ve done taste tests to determine the best sparkling water. I spent weeks talking to water sommeliers, which, yes, exist. And I’ve reported on the rise of the Gen Z-ified Liquid Death as it replaced La Croix as the water of the moment.
