The 5pm Dining blog is well known for its erudite approach to food news.

From deep thinking about national food security to the moral philosophy of munching pro-biotic yoghurt, we like to think that we tackle serious subjects intelligently and sensitively.

However, every now and then we stumble across some juicy news nuggets which are just too darn fruit loop to ignore.

Kim-Jong-Un coming in from the cold?

First up, today’s Evening News is reporting that North Korea’s Kim Jong-Un is planning on opening a restaurant in Scotland.

Crazeee? At first glance, yes, but the North Korean state already operates a branch of its Pyongyang restaurant chain in Amsterdam so it’s not completely out of the question.

Michael Madden, editor of the North Korea Leadership Watch, is quoted as saying: ‘It would not surprise me at all if they opted to open a restaurant in Scotland.

‘The Scottish independence referendum catapulted Scotland into the North Korean elite’s thoughts.

‘Despite voting No, they’d consider left-leaning Scotland to be more suitable to deal with than England. Plus, North Koreans love whisky.’

After what the cheese-loving dictator did to Sony Pictures, any new Scottish branch of the Pyongyang restaurant chain can presumably look forward to glowing reviews.

Full marks to the Daily Record which has covered the story with a spoof menu.

Sample item:

Dessert – don’t or you will be shot.

Man the lunch lines!

Meanwhile, lots of newspapers are carrying a survey by the cheese maker Leerdammer. The work suggests that Brits who don’t take their full lunch hour are spending an extra nineteen days per year at work.

Apparently, the average lunch hour lasts 26 minutes and 28 seconds which adds up to us working an extra 133 hours or nineteen unpaid days each year.

The 5pm Dining blog is not much of a one for manning the barricades but in this case we feel it is our duty to urge workers to throw off their shackles and go to lunch.

With two or even three courses for £12 or £13, the 5pm Dining Sale seems a sensible place to start the lunchtime revolution.

Sausage a la mash aux romarin?

Finally, we feel obliged to reprint a pic which was tweeted by @mickmcavoy

It came with the following text:

‘Out for something to eat in Finnieston. Ordered sausage and mash. This has arrived. We have lost our way as a nation.’

He may be on to something. It was tweeted on Saturday and has 4600 retweets so far.