🥛 Food for thought on school lunch | Morning Newsletter

Saturday is here. We’re expected to see more showers, and there’s a potential for flooding into the night.

A reader is feeling conflicted about micromanaging their child’s school lunch options. Inquirer staffers offer their advice.

Plus, we have news on the Philly Naked Bike Ride route, high-rise plans from the city’s largest apartment developer, and our report card for this week in Philadelphia stories.

— Paola Pérez (morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)

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A reader asked: My child is about to start kindergarten and is excited about the school-provided lunch (he knows there is regular pizza). The menu looks mostly fine and I won’t stop him from enjoying it if everyone else is, but I noticed that he can choose to have chocolate milk every single day, which seems like a lot to me. Am I overthinking it or should I tell him he can only choose it once a week? I won’t even be there to see if he’s telling the truth. Do I ask the school to restrict it?

To tackle this case, we brought in Inquirer reporters Jason Nark and Zoe Greenberg. They discussed how they’d approach the situation, and the potential for hard-line enforcement to backfire.

“I would talk to the school, first, and if this was their policy, I would talk to my daughter and set some limits,” Nark said. His child is also starting kindergarten this year.

Read their full conversation here. Need advice, or want to share your thoughts? We want to hear it. Email us here.

In this week’s Shackamaxon, Inquirer columnist Daniel Pearson unpacks SEPTA’s new bus route changes, which feel like cuts to many riders.

“Although I sympathize with anyone who is losing their preferred bus route, these choices were not made without justification,” Pearson writes.

Get his take on what he dubbed a “quiet revolution,” as well as an upset victory in Western Pennsylvania, and the civic hero who squared up to Center City’s masked clown creeper.

Small businesses selling ice cream, little cakes, and loaded baked potatoes are transforming this neighborhood:

A) Germantown

B) Graduate Hospital

C) University City

D) Roxborough

Think you know? Check your answer.

Hint: Shopping complex in Montgomery County

GLOW PREVAIL WORK

Email us if you know the answer. We’ll select a reader at random to shout out here.

Cheers to Anita Osmian, who correctly guessed Friday’s answer: Nicole Cashman. Cashman takes the helm of Welcome America Inc., the nonprofit behind Philly’s Wawa Welcome America festival, after the former CEO departed earlier this year.

Fortescue in Cumberland County was once known as the “weakfish capital of the world.” That’s no longer the case, and it’s unclear why they disappeared.

Jason Nark, who reports on rural communities far from city life, took a trip to the sleepy Delaware Bay town to find out what locals and experts alike believe may have happened to the “tide runner” fish.

😬 You’ve probably seen the viral Jason Kelce ad where he’s asking for your ... pee. To cool data centers, apparently. Here’s the actual story behind it.

🍽️ Reddit has thoughts on Dîner en Blanc after the 14th annual event was canceled due to severe weather. Would-be partygoers took the celebration elsewhere on Thursday.

⚽ The Union’s brawl with Inter Miami is a big talker this week. (I’m jealous of everyone who got to witness the chaos in person.) An update from The Inquirer’s Jonathan Tannenwald: Inter Miami’s Lionel Messi was fined for his part, and the Union’s Cavan Sullivan is eligible to play vs. Austin FC tonight.

👋🏽 Thanks for stopping by. Have a good one!

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