Cosi's bread looks like an alligator, or maybe tree bark.

Those of us who fervidly celebrate the joys of immigrant cooking and its eventual assimilation into the standard American diet―think tortilla chips and guacamole, beef stroganoff, wonton soup, and IKEA's bouncy Swedish meatballs―may still be occasionally dismayed at the way certain dishes enter our collective gastronomic vernacular. One such discouraging example is Cosi Sandwich Bar's new chicken mole sandwich.

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Aspiring rapper Mr. B, a.k.a. Belmont University freshman Blake Mankin, became the king of fast-food viral videos when this Wendy's drive-thru-inspired rap was featured on the Today Show's "What's Trending Today" segment. Mr. B heads to Wendy's with some pals to order burgers -- "I want everything on it, except no lettuce!" -- four Sprites, and some Vanilla shakes. Things get crazy are completely normal and the young rapper and his friends get super drunk and throw up all the food eat their grub on the side of the street.

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Flickr/istargazer

It's been quite a week for fast food companies around the world. After finding traces of horse and pig DNA in meat last week, British grocery chain Tesco recalled all its meat products made from a questionable producers. Now, Burger King has dropped Silvercrest Foods, one of its main meat suppliers in the U.K. and Ireland, for selling meat of the same kind. The restaurant chain issued a statement that there was "no evidence to suggest any of the product supplied to Burger King was affected" but the AP reported Silvercrest shut down its production line and recalled 10 million burgers from supermarkets in Britain and Ireland.

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Facebook.com/TacoBell

Taco Bell posted this photo on Facebook last night with the caption, "Anything could happen in 2013." After their release of the Nacho Cheese Doritos taco, we can only hope to believe them.

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A sign in the window flogs 7-Eleven's Italian sausage, part of an aggressive fast-food campaign at area stores.

As I was walking past the 7-Eleven -- one has just gone in across from the Voice offices just south of Cooper Square -- the Italian sausage caught my eye and my hackles were raised. How dare they bomb into town, these reverse carpetbaggers, and try to sell us Italian sausages made somewhere else, when Italian sausages made here are the best in the world? Still, curious to try it, I swallowed my scruples and barged in the door.

[See More Taste Tests: Urbanspace Meatpacking: A First Food Foray | There's a New Teriyaki Joint Near Union Square]

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The pastry presents a luscious evening skyscape.

Though the -- eagerly anticipated? -- Men In Black 3 doesn't open till tomorrow, Death-Star fast-food empire Dunkin' Donuts has already trundled out its gastro tie-ins: a cup of branded iced coffee and a star-shaped donut.

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The spicy chicken sandwich laid bare -- but there really should be more stuff inside the bun, like onions and tomatoes or something.

I was kinda excited when the McDonald's hype machine cranked up to tout the new spicy chicken sandwich, and more so when the TV commercial told me it was part of the Dollar Menu, even though that means the thing will cost you $1.89 in Manhattan.

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The cheaper of the two is the one to get.

In an amazing act of cross-branding, Taco Bell has painted its hard taco shell bright orange with a chemical-tasting spice mixture -- and called it a Doritos. Or maybe what's amazing is that they didn't think of it before -- from 1978 to 1997, PepsiCo (the corporate parent of Frito-Lay) owned Taco Bell, and several other fast-food franchises, as well.

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The crust is delectable, but may be suffering from smallpox.

As a kid who loved Swanson's pot pies -- pulled from the freezer and heated one hour in the oven -- I couldn't wait to try the Colonel's new entry in the uncrowded field of chicken pot pies.

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McNugs on the left, McBites on the right

Did it seem strange to you that McDonald's, with McNuggets looking over its shoulder, decided to sire another chicken offspring? Maybe it was hoping for a baby like the full-piece fried chicken sold at Roy Rogers or KFC. But no, the baby turned out strange, tiny, and very chewy, in an extreme multiple birth.

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