Everything You Need to Know About This Week in Food

Want to seem like you know what you're talking about while discussing current events at the dinner table this week? Read through our essential guide to the week's earth-shattering food news. Find out which rapper got turned away from Houston's, what cultishly-followed magazine released its latest issue, and which celebrity is auctioning off the royalties to his songs to fund his burgeoning culinary career.

What happened: Paula Deen is off the hook, sort of. On Monday, a federal judge dismissed claims of racial discrimination from a lawsuit filed by Lisa Jackson, a former employee of Deen's. The judge ruled that the plaintiff can't sue for treatment that she herself didn't allegedly endure (Jackson is white). Although these claims were dismissed, allegations of sexual harassment still stand. Who cares: Paula Deen just got a load taken off her shoulders, and everyone on the We Support Paula Deen Facebook page is definitely celebrating. Further reading: Watch Glenn Beck's full report on the dismissal.

What happened: Rapper The Game says that when he tried to eat lunch at Houston’s in Pasadena, a manager turned him away. The rapper tweeted: “Its 90 degrees outside so I have a tank top on & the manager on duty says the tattoos on my arms are threatening 2 lunch customers … Racism still exists.” Now #DontEatAtHoustonsPasadena is trending, and The Game is responsible. Who cares: People who have tattoos and those who think the Houston manager turned The Game away because of the color of his skin. Further reading: Check out our full coverage of the event on First We Feast.

What happened: First, Lupe Fiasco subtweeted Kendrick Lamar while bragging about his fake Cronuts. He dropped some music as a response to Kendrick’s controversial “Control” verse, which was a good move. But then he turned around and started tweeting about his fake Cronuts again and called them "Ex-Dunkin Donuts who didn't get drafted." Ouch. Who cares: Those fake Cronut's are probably so embarassed, and we're still unsure if Kendrick Lamar actually cares. Further reading:Our in-depth look at the Lupe-Cronut situation is a must read.

What happened: It wasn’t enough for Mr. Eddie Huang to simply host a new food-reality TV series on MTV. Now, the Baohaus chefs’ memoir, Fresh Off The Boat, is being made into a put pilot for ABC by Don’t Trust The B—- in Apartment 23 creator Nahnatchka Khan. Khan is writing/executive producing the pilot and Huang will serve as producer. Who cares: Fans of Mr. Huang and anyone who likes to think of themselves as "fresh off the boat." Plus, Eddie seemed pretty stoked when he 'grammed this picture. Further reading: Deadline Hollywood was the first to break the news.

What happened: Coolio decided to auction off the performance royalties to his song portfolio to fund his career as chef and author. This epic decision follows his Food Network stint on Celebrity Chefs and 2009 bestselling cookbook Cookin' With Coolio. The rapper's average yearly royalties for his catalog are $23,227, according to  The Royalty Exchange's website, but the bidding for the catalog will start at $140,000. Makes sense. Who cares: We'd like Coolio to realize his dream, and we'd also like to cop those rights for Gangster's Paradise. That song brings back so many sweet, sweet memories of watching Dangerous Minds. Further reading: NBC News has the full story here.

What happened: On Thursday, Eater reported that David Chang and McSweeney's dropped the eight issue of Lucky Peach. It's a dual-cover issue, and the theme is gender, as you can see by those oh-so-phallic gourds and peppers and that yonic papaya. The issue includes stories from Alice Waters, Anthony Bourdain, Ben Shewry, and hermaphrodite fish. Who cares: Any avid reader of this gorgeous, cultishly-followed journal. And feminists? Further reading: Eater has the full story here.

What happened: Brian Hoffman of EatThisNY dropped an awesome parody of Jay Z's Empire State of Mind. His version, titled Empire Plates of Mine is an ode to NYC food and restaurants, and it's pretty damn great. "In the video, Hoffman raps in front of many NYC culinary landmarks — Roberta's, Russ and Daughters, Katz's Deli — while laying down lyrics like, 'Catch me in the Bronx eating Parm at a Yankee game / Yeah, they made Italian food more famous than the Frankies can," Eater reports. Who cares: People who love NYC and its culinary offerings. Further reading: Here's the video and Hoffman's awesome blog, EatThisNY.