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Published: February 17 2012

Buzz Fleischman - Columnist Page Is the doggy bag unique to America? It is, and for one reason; portion size.

Here in America a single restaurant portion has been known to feed the entire defensive line of the Miami Dolphins.

To be more 'diner friendly' for the ever-expanding waistline, restaurants should adapt the words on the rear view mirror to say 'objects on plate are smaller than they appear' even if they aren't. And they're not.

In the popular Travel Channel show, 'Man V Food,' host Adam Richman does what everyone wishes they could do; travel around the country attempting to shove more food in his mouth than anyone else and still live.

It's also about who is setting portion size. Kraft, makers of Chips Ahoy Cookies, Oscar Mayer Wieners and Nabisco Crackers, wanted to limit their portions to more healthy levels. Their idea of portion size is about like a legislator saying to a lobbyist, "No, that's too much money, just give me half." Let's be real; when did two Mallomars ever constitute a serving size? Remember, it's only a suggestion.

Does anyone remember when a cookie was made of flour, butter, milk, sugar and eggs? Try pronouncing today's ingredients. It's like looking at a new car engine and the only thing you can identify is the battery.

Mars Inc., the company that produces Snickers, Twix, Skittles and other popular candy brands, has announced it will stop selling chocolate products with more than 250 calories in them by the end of next year. All it means is we'll have to buy twice as many.

Portion size has gotten out of hand, especially at Denny's Beer Barrel Pub in Pennsylvania. They serve the world's biggest burger at NINE pounds total weight. It includes two whole tomatoes, a half-head of lettuce, 12 slices of American cheese, a full cup of peppers, two entire onions, and all the mayonnaise, ketchup, and mustard you can fit in a pick-up

For you less hearty eaters they've also got a 2-pound Challenger, a 3-pound Baby Boy, and a 6-pound 'Ye Olde 96er' (so named because it contains 96 ounces of meat). And that's not all. There's a 15-pounder that one (un)lucky corpulent porpoise wolfed in 4 and a half hours and is still alive to tell the tale.

Don't stop now! They make a burger of 25 pounds, and for special events one weighing in at 100 pounds. That's right, a hamburger that weighs as much as 125 twelve ounce bottles of Pepto-Bismol!

Putting nutrition and taste aside, along comes Jack in the Box, the California-based fast food chain offering a 'treat' on their menu for a time "as limited as limited can be."

They have taken two tastes – bacon, which is one of the favorite smells coming out of any kitchen, and vanilla ice cream, the all-American treat, and COMBINED THE TWO!!! They call this carnage a 'Bacon Milkshake.' There are things that should never go together, like black knee sox and shorts in public, but this tops the list.

The shake is made with real vanilla ice cream, bacon-flavored syrup, whipped topping and a maraschino cherry and contains 773 calories – nearly half from fat. A 24-ounce large adds 1,081 calories and 54 grams of fat. Roll me home!

The offering is part of a 'marry bacon' promotional ad campaign from Jack in the Box and will probably not be a very happy marriage. A spokesperson for Jack said, "Each restaurant is getting a very limited quantity, so we don't know how long they will last." Probably as long as it takes the first sip to reach your stomach. (See previous Pepto-Bismol reference.)

Somebody call Travel Channel's 'Bizarre Foods' host Andrew Zimmern and report this delicacy. He might think it's on par with chocolate covered dung beetle.

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