Mediavore

Upper Crust Plans Expansion; Six People Choke on Rice Cakes in Japan

• Lawsuits be damned: the Upper Crust pizzeria plans to open a 19th location at 109 State Street. [Boston Hospitality Industry]

• President Obama is expected to sign the second iteration of that $1.4 billion food-safety bill today, and some House Republicans are pissed about it. Eh, what’s new? [Bloomberg]

• If you want to lose weight, keep a food diary. It forces you to be honest about what you’re eating, instead of pretending that muffin in the break room didn’t count because you picked at it and consumed it in crumb-size nibbles. [US News & World Report]

• If you thought this country’s binge-drinking year-end traditions were bad, consider this: At least six people in Japan died this year after choking on the New Year’s rice cakes known as mochi. [Guardian UK]

• The latest food thought to have magical powers is almonds, which might ward off type 2 diabetes. Awesome; we’ll be over here with our red wine and chocolate, thanks. [Sydney Morning Herald]

• Jeez, one minute the New York Times is celebrating fried “lake trout,” and now it cites a study that warns battered fish is the major contributor to the so-called Southern “stroke belt.” Make up your minds! [NYT]

Upper Crust Plans Expansion; Six People Choke on Rice Cakes in Japan