Intelligence Briefs

A weekly compendium of food and drink-related news stories gathered from a variety of sources here and around the world. Published every Monday morning.

Intelligence Briefs

On Nailing Tim Horton’s to the Wall and the Restaurant Industry’s Many Pre-Existing Conditions

In her latest read of the food and drink headlines, Talia takes note of how the industry is responding to an unprecedented crisis.

Intelligence Briefs

On Being Kind to Grocery Clerks and Operating Restaurants in a Dangerous Time

In her latest read of the food and drink news, Talia looks at the wide-ranging impacts of Covid-19 on the hospitality trade.

Intelligence Briefs

On Restaurants Versus COVID-19 and How We Can Help Them Weather the Storm

In her latest read of the food and drink headlines, Talia stares into the abyss of COVID-19 and how it's effecting the hospitality trade.

Intelligence Briefs

On Better Ways to Waste Vodka and the Great Restaurant Panic of 2020

In her latest read of the food and drink headlines, Talia finds a focus on resilience and local restaurants getting squeezed.

Intelligence Briefs

On British Columbian Cooks Going Camping and the Fascinating Sex Lives of Trees

In her latest read of the food and drink headlines, Talia learns about insanely-priced Irish whiskey and the courage of seagulls.

Intelligence Briefs

On Mythical Sugar Highs and the Growing Acceptance of People Who Don’t Drink in Bars

In her latest read of the food and drink headlines, Talia takes in some cocktail history and all things crispy.

Intelligence Briefs

On Side Orders of Coronavirus and Never Working a Valentine’s Day Shift Again

In her latest read of the food and drink headlines, Talia finds award-winning local booze and firefighters saving giant bottles of wine.

Intelligence Briefs

On Accidentally Tipping Thousands and Bad People Making Counterfeit Wine

In her latest read of the food and drink headlines, Talia learns of wine fraudsters and the economics behind cheap buffets.

Intelligence Briefs

On Beautiful Fast Food Spots and the City of Vancouver Failing its Restaurants

In her latest read of the food and drink news, Talia finds comically heroic pop-up bars and feasts on Superbowl food ads.

Intelligence Briefs

On Restaurant Staffers Getting Healthy and Oscar-Winners Portraying Bad Boy Chefs

In her latest read of the food and drink headlines, Talia learns about spilled wine and Hong Kong restaurants at war.

Intelligence Briefs

On How to Close a Restaurant and Not Drink Beer Named After a Murderous Druglord

In her latest read of the food and drink headlines, Talia finds warm whisky cocktails and gets a lesson on whole hog BBQ.

Intelligence Briefs

On the Kind of Person Who Steals Menus and the Midlife Crisis of the Restaurant Review

In her latest read of the food and drink news, Talia gets curious about tater tots and finds a Michelin chef in full droop.

Intelligence Briefs

On Predicting 2020 Food Trends and the Weird World of New Year’s Eve Traditions

In her latest read of the food and drink headlines, Talia finds blue foods abounding and a battery of year-end lists.

Intelligence Briefs

On the Coming Holiday Drink Tsunami and the Trouble With Reindeer Orgies

In her latest read of the food and drink headlines, Talia finds sinking gingerbread cities and efforts to conserve genetic diversity.

Intelligence Briefs

On Awkward Family Dinners and Iconic Restaurants That Disappear in the Night

In her latest read of the food and drink headlines, Talia learns of Michelin drama and new arrivals from Tokyo.

Intelligence Briefs

On America’s Best New Restaurants and the Growing Need for More Noodles

In her latest read of the food and drink headlines, Talia finds poisoned blueberry fields and fast food phasing out plastic toys.

Intelligence Briefs

On the Joys of ‘Immigrant Food’ and Teasing David Chang’s Upcoming Memoir

In her latest read of the food and drink headlines, Talia learns of shipwrecked booze and why sandwiches should always be buttered.

Intelligence Briefs

On Forbidding All New Restaurants and Making a Big Mistake Behind the Bar

In her latest read of the food and drink headlines, Talia finds a record-breaking crab and McDonalds messing with your mind.

Intelligence Briefs

On the Art of the Spicy Interview and Open Season on Eating Roadkill

In her latest read of the food and drink headlines, Talia gets tempted by Salt Spring Island and awaits the new Bourdain documentary.

Intelligence Briefs

On Canada’s Best New Restaurants and the World’s Most Expensive Whisky

In her latest read of the food and drink headlines, Talia finds booze on the ferry and people wearing moldy fruit gemstones.

Intelligence Briefs

On Scotch Having a Tough Go and the West Coast Coming of David Chang

In her latest read of the food and drink headlines, Talia finds restaurants firing servers and the rediscovery of American brandy.

Intelligence Briefs

On All-Hamburger Diets and the Coming End of a West Coast Restaurant Institution

In her latest read of the food and drink headlines, Talia anticipates more Ugly Delicious and the taste of space beef...

Intelligence Briefs

On Labour-Inducing Burgers and Cancelling the Tofino Food & Wine Festival

In her latest read of the food and drink headlines, Talia learns of a new donut shop and a death in the restaurant family.

Intelligence Briefs

On New Tipping Models and Avocado Toast Being Eaten by the Shark It Jumped

In her latest read of the food and drink headlines, Talia finds Charles Dickens' liquor log and gets a chef's picks for Tofino.

Intelligence Briefs

On the Upcoming Anthony Bourdain Auction and the Sudden Death of Celebrity Chef Carl Ruiz

In her latest read of the food and drink news, Talia finds Cory Booker eating hot dogs and a restaurant that thinks its a library.

Intelligence Briefs

On Cemeteries With Liquor Licences and Keeping Up With a Ketchup Guardian

In her latest read of the food and drink news, Talia finds influential bars and the museum world's taste for ancient food.

Intelligence Briefs

On Animating Sushi Construction and Bringing a Gun to a Chicken Fight

In her latest read of the food and drink headlines, Talia finds Germans cracking beer codes and depictions of a bygone Golden Age.

Intelligence Briefs

On Pumpkin-Spiced Nightmares and Threats of Violence in the Restaurant Trade

In her latest read of the food and drink headlines, Talia finds reimagined Egg McMuffins and chicken sandwich debates.