There's something to be said for a Saturday afternoon spent glued to the television as over-exhuberant moms and their thrifty pals ran willy-nilly through the aisles of a grocery store, grabbing everything they could fit in their carts in a minute and a half. The nail-biting drama of Supermarket Sweep is just missing from cable television these days.

GIFSoup

Luckily for St. Louisans, Dirt Cheap Liquor (8455 Gravois Road, Affton; 314-351-7714) is bringing this great American pastime back at its second annual Dirt Cheap Party Sweep. Unfortunately, Gut Check missed the deadline to apply to be one of the lucky sweepers. The good news is the Party Sweep is somewhat of a spectator sport, so we don't have to miss all the action.

And did we mention there's a giant dancing chicken in a tie-dyed shirt?

We didn't? Well there is. And she's glorious.

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Little Debbie Chocolate Cupcakes and Cloud Cakes.

On a recent expedition to Shop 'n Save (7355 Manchester Road, Maplewood; 314-644-2908), Gut Check was heartened by the realization that recent seismic shifts in our personal snack-cake tectonic plates are not as soul killing as we'd originally feared.

What, you ask, was the sight that so warmed the Gut Check cockles?

Why, the generously appointed display of Little Debbie Chocolate Cupcakes and Cloud Cakes, twin dead ringers for Hostess Cup Cakes and Twinkies.

Read more:
- Hostess files for bankruptcy
- Hostess to shutter St. Louis plant

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Nicole Westbrook singing into a non-PETA sanctioned turkey leg.

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals has a bone to pick with Nicole Westbrook, the 12-year-old South County-native who's been burning up the webwaves with her single "It's Thanksgiving." (If you don't know what we're talking about you need to go here immediately.)

Westbrook has gotten her fair share of abuse. The haters claim various reasons to be offended -- as recording artists, as lyricists, as people with ears.

But PETA members have a new one. They are offended as vegetarians.

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Wolfgang Hirn

Spice gal: Its "Cantina Bell" menu going head-to-head with Chipotle, Taco Bell hired South Florida-based chef Lorena Garcia to Latina 'em up.

Earlier this year, Taco Bell brought on celebrity chef Lorena Garcia as a consultant for its new "Cantina Bell" menu, aiming to take a chunk out of rival Tex-Mex purveyor Chipotle Mexican Grill's, er, avocado.

Has the gambit paid off? It would seem so.

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Last week Politico broke down information from a recent review of Federal Election Commission reports detailing Mitt Romney and Barack Obama's campaign spending. It contains everything from office supplies and gas expenses to which hotels and restaurants the respective campaigns patronize most often. Gut Check doesn't particularly care where Romney or Obama choose to buy staplers, but sandwiches? That's a subject near and dear to our heart.

In preparation for tonight's presidential town hall debate at Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York, Gut Check has compiled lists of restaurants that Romney and Obama's teams opt for on the campaign trail to act as, shall we say, themed-menus for the occasion.

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Image via Pioneer Woman

According to the Internet, -- and other credible sources, like Waffle House -- the first week of September is National Waffle Week. Our first thought at Gut Check International Headquarters was: Why do pancakes only get one measly day of celebration, while waffles are awarded an entire week? It was a divisive question, spurring loyalists on both sides of this age-old breakfast debate. Today we dissect the subtle nuances of both in an attempt to answer the question: Which is the superior A.M. carbohydrate, waffles or pancakes?

On the heels of a limp defense of waffles, Gut Check throws down for pancakes.

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How do we love thee? Let us count the ways...

According to the Internet, -- and other credible sources, like Waffle House -- the first week of September is National Waffle Week. Our first thought at Gut Check International Headquarters was: Why do pancakes only get one measly day of celebration, while waffles are awarded an entire week? It was a divisive question, spurring loyalists on both sides of this age-old breakfast debate. Today we dissect the subtle nuances of both in an attempt to answer the question: Which is the superior A.M. carbohydrate, waffles or pancakes?

First up, Gut Check makes a case for waffles everywhere.

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Whip cream vodka? No thanks, says Taste's Ted Kilgore.

There's a war going on among modern mixologists -- a war over a spirit. Vodka has recently been outed as the unwanted stepson in many restaurants and bars that specialize in house and hand-crafted cocktails. After all, even the priciest vodka is both colorless and flavorless, and many alcohol aficionados just don't see the point.

But it was Jen Agg, owner/bartender at the Black Hoof and the Cocktail Bar in Toronto, who turned a low-level grumble into a ruckus. In a blog post declaring, "Vodka is stupid," Agg writes, "The vodka martini should be called 'I like getting drunk,' because that is its only purpose." Ouch.

So what of customers who enjoy an ice-cold dirty vodka martini? Do they need to fear being sneered at? Should they drink something they don't like to avoid being labeled imbeciles by their bartender?

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Wikimedia Commons

Not every Girl Scout sells cookies door-to-door.

Believe it or not, despite our grumblings, Gut Check is heavily involved in Girl Scouts. We co-lead a troop of Brownies who, yes, spend one month a year selling Girl Scout cookies.

With all the kerfluffle in Hazelwood about a pair of Girl Scout sisters selling cookies from a stand in their driveway, we examined our official cookie-selling literature to see what rules are set forth by the honchos from Girl Scouts of the USA.

Not many, it turns out. From the Girl Scouts' website:

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Chrissy Wilmes

Yes, it was painful. But we've been through worse.

After our spicy eating challenge failures at Pearl Cafe and Market Pub House, Gut Check was beginning to worry we weren't cut out for competitive eating.

And then we found a challenge that was made for us: a frozen custard-eating contest.

On Saturday afternoon, we signed up for the frozen custard-eating contest at Eugene's Custard Company (1138 Town and Country Crossing Drive, Town & Country; 636-227-7300) ready to win. We're St. Louisans. We know frozen custard. And with highs in the 90s and 100s, we've been looking to chill out; it just so happens that our favorite way to cool down is pigging out on frozen treats.

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