5@5 is a daily, food-related list from chefs, writers, political pundits, musicians, actors, and all manner of opinionated people from around the globe.

Editor's Note: Ron Eyester is the owner and chef of Rosebud restaurant and Family Dog bar in Atlanta. He doesn't like when people come to his restaurant and move around the chairs or pretend it's their birthday. You can also find him on Twitter as the Angry Chef.

As a chef and restaurateur, although the nature of food is undoubtedly the primary source of my passion, I am very intrigued by human behavior and how our relationships with people truly impact the dynamic of our business. As the owner of a neighborhood restaurant, I feel it is absolutely essential to have a vested interest in my immediate community and allow our neighborhood’s character help shape the culture of our restaurant.

I am very proud of the relationships that my staff and I have developed with many of our regular guests, but there is also another “special demographic of folks” that are worth mentioning.
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Lists! Lists! Lists! At this point in the year, our brains are collectively ground down to cornmeal mush, and second helpings of some tasty posts from the past twelve months seem like just the ticket. Tomorrow, we'll share our personal favorites, but today, we're serving up the top ten most read, shared and commented-upon posts from 2011.

Pull up a chair, strap on your feedbag and feast on the posts that posts that got folks clicking, chatting and passing along.

Most read

1. My first Thanksgiving with white people

2. Most honey sold in U.S. grocery stores not worthy of its name

3. Chocolate company CEO Pietro Ferrero dies in biking accident

4. The truth about Mexican food

5. Starbucks barista spills the beans, gets canned
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Sink your teeth into today's top stories from around the globe.

• Our kind of athletics: The annual World Beer Pong Series returns to - where else? - Sin City. - Las Vegas Review-Journal

• In Spain, eating 12 grapes in 12 seconds at midnight on New Year’s Eve is held in high superstitious regard. Here's how to do it without choking. - Food Republic

• Velveeta Cheesy Skillets take a bite out of Hamburger Helper sales. In related news, we're now "a nation whose Hamburger can no longer be helped." - Gawker

• Sorry Charlie, no more topless restaurants in Montreal. - CTV News

• You can now ponder that new Honda Accord purchase over your Salade Niçoise: Car dealerships rev up on-site restaurants. - Nation's Restaurant News

While you're frying up some eggs and bacon, we're cooking up something else: a way to celebrate today's food holiday.

Peter Piper would be thrilled - December 29 is National Pepper Pot Stew Day!

Warm up your chilly bones with this thick, hearty stew that is just steeped in U.S. history.

During the American Revolutionary War, we've heard the tales of a particularly harsh winter that crept across Valley Forge in 1777. Rather than daring to rely on the unstable currency of the American rebels, farmers sold their crops and food to the British soldiers for pounds.
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Pssst! Got a sec to chat?

We are utterly thrilled when readers want to hang out and talk – whether it's amongst themselves or in response to pieces we've posted. We want Eatocracy to be a cozy, spirited online home for those who find their way here.

Consider the daily Coffee Klatsch post as your VIP lounge – the primary comments thread for readers who'd like to chat about topics not related to the articles we're running. That way, everyone knows where to find each other, and each post's comments section remains on topic.
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