2017

12 days

12 days: on the twelfth day of christmas: kostow… (2017)

– It always seems to end before it begins. For five years now, I’ve had the pleasure of recording and reporting from one of the most magical corners of the culinary world during one of the most magical seasons of the year.  It is an annual gathering of extraordinary talent and goodwill that has also […]

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12 days: on the twelfth day of christmas: kostow… (2017)

– It always seems to end before it begins. For five years now, I’ve had the pleasure of recording and reporting from one of the most magical corners of the culinary world during one of the most magical seasons of the year.  It is an annual gathering of extraordinary talent and goodwill that has also […]

Continue

12 days: on the eleventh day of christmas: couillon… (2017)

– Alexandre Couillon lives on a small island off the west coast of France called Noirmoutier.  For decades, there was only one road on and off the island called the Passage du Gois.  But it’s only passable at low tide, when the seawater recedes enough to expose the two-lane road to traffic.  I know this, […]

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12 days: on the eleventh day of christmas: couillon… (2017)

– Alexandre Couillon lives on a small island off the west coast of France called Noirmoutier.  For decades, there was only one road on and off the island called the Passage du Gois.  But it’s only passable at low tide, when the seawater recedes enough to expose the two-lane road to traffic.  I know this, […]

Continue

12 days: on the tenth day of christmas: zonfrillo… (2017)

 – “Give back more than you take.”  Those are the words that Jock Zonfrillo inscribed on the dry-erase board in the kitchen, which every guest chef at the Twelve Days of Christmas is invited to sign at the end of their dinner. Every year, there is usually one chef who pleasantly surprises me.  This year, it was […]

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12 days: on the tenth day of christmas: zonfrillo… (2017)

 – “Give back more than you take.”  Those are the words that Jock Zonfrillo inscribed on the dry-erase board in the kitchen, which every guest chef at the Twelve Days of Christmas is invited to sign at the end of their dinner. Every year, there is usually one chef who pleasantly surprises me.  This year, it was […]

Continue

12 days: on the ninth day of christmas: werner… (2017)

– Conveying a sense of place has become a motif among restaurants and chefs.  And what makes so many destination restaurants unique is actually being there. Local ingredients, landscapes, weather, traditions, history, politics, religion, and language all converge to form culture, culinary and otherwise. So how do you bring all of that to another place? […]

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12 days: on the ninth day of christmas: werner… (2017)

– Conveying a sense of place has become a motif among restaurants and chefs.  And what makes so many destination restaurants unique is actually being there. Local ingredients, landscapes, weather, traditions, history, politics, religion, and language all converge to form culture, culinary and otherwise. So how do you bring all of that to another place? […]

Continue

12 days: on the eighth day of christmas: keller… (2017)

– On the eighth night of the Twelve Days of Christmas, the hills above Los Angeles were on fire. Not two months earlier, it had been the hills of Sonoma and Napa, where fires had spread quickly and destroyed indiscriminately.  Monumental efforts and vast resources were poured into saving lives, property, and priceless vineyards.  Meadowood […]

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12 days: on the eighth day of christmas: keller… (2017)

– On the eighth night of the Twelve Days of Christmas, the hills above Los Angeles were on fire. Not two months earlier, it had been the hills of Sonoma and Napa, where fires had spread quickly and destroyed indiscriminately.  Monumental efforts and vast resources were poured into saving lives, property, and priceless vineyards.  Meadowood […]

Continue

12 days: on the seventh day: takazawa… (2017)

  – Yoshiaki Takazawa is one of the four chefs cooking at this year’s Twelve Days of Christmas whose restaurant I have not visited.  And, admittedly, I still knew very little about this Japanese chef and his cooking when he arrived at The Restaurant at Meadowood. The anticipation and excitement surrounding Takazawa’s dinner was noticeably […]

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12 days: on the seventh day: takazawa… (2017)

  – Yoshiaki Takazawa is one of the four chefs cooking at this year’s Twelve Days of Christmas whose restaurant I have not visited.  And, admittedly, I still knew very little about this Japanese chef and his cooking when he arrived at The Restaurant at Meadowood. The anticipation and excitement surrounding Takazawa’s dinner was noticeably […]

Continue

12 days: on the sixth day of christmas: brock… (2017)

– By now, Sean Brock’s great contributions to the current wave of revivalism rippling through our American South is widely known. While organizations like the Southern Foodways Alliance have been crucial to the documentation and preservation of that region’s rich, culinary heritage, Brock’s ability to communicate and apply his obsession with Southern history and culture in his […]

Continue

12 days: on the sixth day of christmas: brock… (2017)

– By now, Sean Brock’s great contributions to the current wave of revivalism rippling through our American South is widely known. While organizations like the Southern Foodways Alliance have been crucial to the documentation and preservation of that region’s rich, culinary heritage, Brock’s ability to communicate and apply his obsession with Southern history and culture in his […]

Continue

12 days: on the fifth day of christmas: sukle… (2017)

– In 2015, I was photographing a road trip through New England when I stopped in Providence, Rhode Island for a couple of days to visit Ben Sukle at his small, counter-seat restaurant birch.  Sukle’s (pronounced soo-kohl) cooking focuses on the products of his region, which he is quick to point out, is surprisingly diverse. […]

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12 days: on the fifth day of christmas: sukle… (2017)

– In 2015, I was photographing a road trip through New England when I stopped in Providence, Rhode Island for a couple of days to visit Ben Sukle at his small, counter-seat restaurant birch.  Sukle’s (pronounced soo-kohl) cooking focuses on the products of his region, which he is quick to point out, is surprisingly diverse. […]

Continue

12 days: on the fourth day of christmas: fox… (2017)

– Anyone who ate at ubuntu in the late aughts will know that Christopher Kostow wasn’t exaggerating when he recently introduced Jeremy Fox as one of the most talented and creative chefs of our time.  Fox is celebrated for his intuitive understanding of vegetables, and his dynamic vision for them in the kitchen, which he […]

Continue

12 days: on the fourth day of christmas: fox… (2017)

– Anyone who ate at ubuntu in the late aughts will know that Christopher Kostow wasn’t exaggerating when he recently introduced Jeremy Fox as one of the most talented and creative chefs of our time.  Fox is celebrated for his intuitive understanding of vegetables, and his dynamic vision for them in the kitchen, which he […]

Continue

12 days: on the third day of christmas: stone and von hauske… (2017)

– The Twelve Days of Christmas are especially festive when good friends are in the kitchen.  Familiarity and conviviality go a long way in making the experience a fun one for everyone.  And if there are two chefs this year who could bring a party atmosphere to the kitchen of The Restaurant at Meadowood, it would […]

Continue

12 days: on the third day of christmas: stone and von hauske… (2017)

– The Twelve Days of Christmas are especially festive when good friends are in the kitchen.  Familiarity and conviviality go a long way in making the experience a fun one for everyone.  And if there are two chefs this year who could bring a party atmosphere to the kitchen of The Restaurant at Meadowood, it would […]

Continue

12 Days of Christmas Archive