12 days: on the eighth day of christmas: achatz… (2014)
~ Of this year’s twelve dinners, I was most anxious about the eighth one: the night that Grant Achatz cooked. Early in alinea’s life, I was one of the very few, if not alone, in my criticism of that restaurant – or, more accurately, that style of dining. Now, eight years and four meals at alinea later, the […]
~ Of this year’s twelve dinners, I was most anxious about the eighth one: the night that Grant Achatz cooked. Early in alinea’s life, I was one of the very few, if not alone, in my criticism of that restaurant – or, more accurately, that style of dining. Now, eight years and four meals at alinea later, the […]
travel: second city…
~ When I left my twenties, I went to Chicago to mark the passing of that decade, and to welcome the next. In the five years since, I’ve kept the tradition, choosing a different city with each new birthday. In 2009, I celebrated in New York; in 2010, in Washington D.C.; and in 2011, Charleston. […]
~ When I left my twenties, I went to Chicago to mark the passing of that decade, and to welcome the next. In the five years since, I’ve kept the tradition, choosing a different city with each new birthday. In 2009, I celebrated in New York; in 2010, in Washington D.C.; and in 2011, Charleston. […]
travel: caricatures and meatsnacks…
~ Hurricane Sandy spurred an inspiring rally rise of support among chefs and restaurant industry folk in New York City. Overnight, Pete Wells, the reigning restaurant reporter at The New York Times turned his Twitter feed into command central for industry news and exchange (his coverage continues). Uptown, chefs, like Daniel Boulud, David Chang, and Gavin […]
~ Hurricane Sandy spurred an inspiring rally rise of support among chefs and restaurant industry folk in New York City. Overnight, Pete Wells, the reigning restaurant reporter at The New York Times turned his Twitter feed into command central for industry news and exchange (his coverage continues). Uptown, chefs, like Daniel Boulud, David Chang, and Gavin […]
travel: peripatetic…
~ I apologize for my silence. I’ve been on the road. In the last month and a half, I’ve crossed this continent four times, bouncing between New York and San Francisco, San Diego and Burlington, Vermont, with trips to White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia and Lake Tahoe on the side. I crossed the border to […]
~ I apologize for my silence. I’ve been on the road. In the last month and a half, I’ve crossed this continent four times, bouncing between New York and San Francisco, San Diego and Burlington, Vermont, with trips to White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia and Lake Tahoe on the side. I crossed the border to […]
travel: hot booter an awl…
– My latest trip to Chicago almost didn’t happen. Originally, I was supposed to go in late February, on business. But that trip got canceled. Thankfully, my prepaid hotel and airline reservations were moveable. So, I emailed a few of my friends to see if they could meet me in Chicago in March for an […]
– My latest trip to Chicago almost didn’t happen. Originally, I was supposed to go in late February, on business. But that trip got canceled. Thankfully, my prepaid hotel and airline reservations were moveable. So, I emailed a few of my friends to see if they could meet me in Chicago in March for an […]
best of 2010: the restaurant edition…
A blizzard of gastronomic white paper from tastemakers here and there gave this lame-duck week of 2010 a needed dose of excitement, angst, and confusion. Who doesn’t love rummaging through another’s list of dirtied linens at the end of the year? While I’m a taster, not a tastemaker, I happily add to the storm my […]
A blizzard of gastronomic white paper from tastemakers here and there gave this lame-duck week of 2010 a needed dose of excitement, angst, and confusion. Who doesn’t love rummaging through another’s list of dirtied linens at the end of the year? While I’m a taster, not a tastemaker, I happily add to the storm my […]
best dishes of 2010…
It’s that time of year again when I shock myself into making new year resolutions by taking a look back at all of the food I ate in the last twelve months. Over the past few weeks, I’ve revisited hundreds of dishes and, through some mysterious and highly subjective process that involves memory and mood, […]
It’s that time of year again when I shock myself into making new year resolutions by taking a look back at all of the food I ate in the last twelve months. Over the past few weeks, I’ve revisited hundreds of dishes and, through some mysterious and highly subjective process that involves memory and mood, […]
review: retrospective… (alinea)
Nashville, Tennessee, 2004. A ruddy-cheeked cherub came out of the kitchen after dinner to say hello. He was just a kid. I was just a kid. We both loved food. He cooked. I ate. We started talking. Though our conversation drifted from here to there, it moored mostly around a new restaurant that was opening […]
Nashville, Tennessee, 2004. A ruddy-cheeked cherub came out of the kitchen after dinner to say hello. He was just a kid. I was just a kid. We both loved food. He cooked. I ate. We started talking. Though our conversation drifted from here to there, it moored mostly around a new restaurant that was opening […]
james beard awards (2008)…
2008 James Beard Awards For the second year in a row, I had the honor of attending the James Beard Awards Gala and Reception in New York City. As last year, the ceremony was held at the Avery Fisher Hall at the Lincoln Center. It was hot. It was a zoo. At times, the event was somewhat […]
2008 James Beard Awards For the second year in a row, I had the honor of attending the James Beard Awards Gala and Reception in New York City. As last year, the ceremony was held at the Avery Fisher Hall at the Lincoln Center. It was hot. It was a zoo. At times, the event was somewhat […]
best dishes of 2006…
#10: Hot Potato at alinea Originally uploaded by ulteriorepicure. From a second visit to the newly named number one restaurant in the U.S., Alinea (according to Gourmet Magazine), to snacking from street vendors in China, I’ve had a pretty amazing year of eating. I visited Jean Georges on two continents, Thomas Keller on both coasts, […]
#10: Hot Potato at alinea Originally uploaded by ulteriorepicure. From a second visit to the newly named number one restaurant in the U.S., Alinea (according to Gourmet Magazine), to snacking from street vendors in China, I’ve had a pretty amazing year of eating. I visited Jean Georges on two continents, Thomas Keller on both coasts, […]