Mayor McCheese: Officially Health-Conscious, Bloomberg Loves the Junk Food

Who doesn't love Cheez-Its?

Mayor Bloomberg is a bit of a hypocrite, at least according to the Times.

No, they're not talking about his politics, or his stance on term limits, this time, its his eating habits.

Hizzoner, whose administration has pushed bans on smoking and trans fats, and is behind the a stomach-turning ad campaign against sugary soft drinks, is a fiend for junk food, according to thePaper of Record.

His snack of choice is Cheez-Its, the Times'  reports, but he also has a fondness for hot dogs, cheeseburgers and fried chicken. He tends to accompany his meals with Merlot, perhaps appropriate given the fact that he loves to put extra salt on everything, even saltine crackers.

And Bloomberg likes his popcorn so salty that it burns other people's lips, according to the Times.

Another favorite: Burnt bacon and peanut butter sandwiches.

The Times points out that Mayor Mike's "food issues have become New York City's," and his battle against unhealthy habits -- he is a former smoker -- have become ours.

Regarding his push to pull back the veil on the nutritional information of fast food, the mayor recently said, "I like a Big Mac like everybody else... I just want to know how many calories are in it."

The Times also included a round up of some of the mayor's favorite dishes at his regular haunts.

At Quatorze Bis, a French bistro on East 79th he tends to go for the half chicken with herbs, and french fries. At Shun Lee Palace, on East 55th, he likes the Sichuan shrimp. "He likes very spicy Chinese food," owner Michael Tong, told the Times.

He tends to go for the pedestrian rather than the haute: At Union Square Cafe he passes over the crispy duck for staples like salmon chicken and pasta. "If we had meatloaf on the menu I'm sure he would order that. He's not a fancy eater," owner Danny Meyer told the paper. "He orders what he wants to eat, not what the thinks he is supposed to."

At Viand, a Greek diner near Bloomberg's Upper East Side town house, the manager noted how much salt the mayor likes on his morning bagel.  When he gets done, "it's like a pretzel."

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