Black garlic takes Toronto, Christopher Walken chickens out, the world’s largest hamburger

• Christopher Walken has posted a YouTube video showcasing his cooking skills. In the video “Man Makes Chicken With Pears,” Walken walks viewers through the whole recipe. Emeril he is not. His kitchen reminds us of our first apartment, complete with cat sniffing around the food. Our favourite quote? “I love this chicken neck,” he says with his trademark spookiness. “It’s great.” [YouTube]

• Through his eponymous supermarket, Mark McEwan has almost single-handedly created a food craze: black garlic. The item is just a regular bulb of garlic (organic, of course) that has been placed in a special fermenting machine. The machine monitors the heat and humidity for three weeks until cloves have turned black. The resulting flavour is mellow and savoury. Loblaws is looking to start selling the stuff, as is Whole Foods. Pusateri’s had better start sourcing its supply soon. [Toronto Star]

• Steve Mallie, owner of Mallie Sports Grill in Southgate, Michigan, has created a real whopper: a 185-pound burger. The sandwich is literally one for the record books; Guinness just declared it the world’s biggest burger. With a price tag of $499, we’re thinking anyone brave enough to buy it should save the same amount for a gym membership. [Dlisted]

• Producers of chicken-esque products should be wary of lawsuits. Two have recently come to light: Quorn Foods Inc. is being sued for not disclosing on its labels that some people have had violent allergic reactions to the main ingredient in the appealingly named Chik’n—a fungus-based product that can substitute for chicken. Separately, Kentucky Fried Chicken is being sued for not disclosing that its grilled chicken supposedly contains PhIP, a chemical that is said to increase a person’s risk of developing cancer, even if consumed in only small amounts. [L.A. Times]

• Tavern on the Green, the long-standing Manhattan restaurant on the fringes on Central Park, has filed for bankruptcy. Tavern generated about 60 per cent of its income from luncheons and buffets, which have evaporated in the wake of the recession. Compounding problems was the City of New York Parks Department declining to extend the Tavern’s licence to operate in the park. Looks like we’re going to have to find another tourist destination to hit on our next trip to the Big Apple. The Rockettes are still playing, right? [New York Times]