Destination: New York

review: cab ride to crazy town…

~ It’s not every day that one gets kidnapped on the way to dinner, as I was on my way to Jungsik. Afterwards, I read Pete Wells’s review of that restaurant in the New York Times and realized that my strange, “cab ride to crazy town” was foretold (fourth graph, last sentence). Thankfully, with some quick […]

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review: cab ride to crazy town…

~ It’s not every day that one gets kidnapped on the way to dinner, as I was on my way to Jungsik. Afterwards, I read Pete Wells’s review of that restaurant in the New York Times and realized that my strange, “cab ride to crazy town” was foretold (fourth graph, last sentence). Thankfully, with some quick […]

Continue

travel: chasing authenticity…

~ I was midway through my latest trip, a multi-city, multi-country episode involving both business and pleasure, when this conversation between Francis Lam (editor at Gilt Taste) and Eddie Huang (chef and all-around funnyman) lit up my Twitter feed.  Their exchange was spurred by an article Lam had written for The New York Times, which […]

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travel: chasing authenticity…

~ I was midway through my latest trip, a multi-city, multi-country episode involving both business and pleasure, when this conversation between Francis Lam (editor at Gilt Taste) and Eddie Huang (chef and all-around funnyman) lit up my Twitter feed.  Their exchange was spurred by an article Lam had written for The New York Times, which […]

Continue

travel: more dots to connect…

~ New York in May.  It’s always a feast. I’ve attended the James Beard Awards, which is held annually the first Monday of the month, for the past six years. For the past two, I’ve had the privilege of photographing the event for All-Clad Metalcrafters (a sponsor), which was the primary purpose of my latest […]

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travel: more dots to connect…

~ New York in May.  It’s always a feast. I’ve attended the James Beard Awards, which is held annually the first Monday of the month, for the past six years. For the past two, I’ve had the privilege of photographing the event for All-Clad Metalcrafters (a sponsor), which was the primary purpose of my latest […]

Continue

review: the new colossus… (torrisi italian specialties)

– Nothing dulls my appetite more than hype. It makes me suspicious, for example, when members of the press tweet weekly (nightly?) from a restaurant’s table, raptured to the point of incoherence. I suppose the enthusiasm is endearing. But what could be that good? I take no issue with the media doting on its darlings. […]

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review: the new colossus… (torrisi italian specialties)

– Nothing dulls my appetite more than hype. It makes me suspicious, for example, when members of the press tweet weekly (nightly?) from a restaurant’s table, raptured to the point of incoherence. I suppose the enthusiasm is endearing. But what could be that good? I take no issue with the media doting on its darlings. […]

Continue

travel: hipster safari…

– Hyde Park, New York really is as beautiful as they say it is. Even with the trees stripped bare against those bald, russet hills in winter, the Hudson River Valley is breathtaking. To Greystone I’ve been twice, but never to The Culinary Institute of America (CIA). So, when I was asked to photograph the […]

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travel: hipster safari…

– Hyde Park, New York really is as beautiful as they say it is. Even with the trees stripped bare against those bald, russet hills in winter, the Hudson River Valley is breathtaking. To Greystone I’ve been twice, but never to The Culinary Institute of America (CIA). So, when I was asked to photograph the […]

Continue

best of 2011: the restaurant edition…

Mood and mind, place and time: once recorded, they cannot be erased. Neither can company nor cast, nor the events that happened at table. To do so would be a pity anyway, for dining is theatre; every part a prop, everyone a role.  And, as with life, in its unscripted scenes are often its finest […]

Continue

best of 2011: the restaurant edition…

Mood and mind, place and time: once recorded, they cannot be erased. Neither can company nor cast, nor the events that happened at table. To do so would be a pity anyway, for dining is theatre; every part a prop, everyone a role.  And, as with life, in its unscripted scenes are often its finest […]

Continue

best desserts of 2011…

(Frozen Sake; elBulli) Is pastry having a “moment?” Judging by the desserts I’ve had this year, I’d say it is. In the past, I’ve tacked on a dozen or so desserts to my annual “best dishes” post in a section at the bottom called “just desserts.”  While their inclusion was far from an afterthought, even […]

Continue

best desserts of 2011…

(Frozen Sake; elBulli) Is pastry having a “moment?” Judging by the desserts I’ve had this year, I’d say it is. In the past, I’ve tacked on a dozen or so desserts to my annual “best dishes” post in a section at the bottom called “just desserts.”  While their inclusion was far from an afterthought, even […]

Continue

best dishes of 2011…

(Crispy Pig Ears; Husk) * * * Another December, another set of listicles. Every year for the the past six, I’ve rounded up the best edibles of each and posted them here for posterity. They’ve included a list of my twenty-five favorite dishes, the best dozen desserts, and the top ten restaurant meals of each […]

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best dishes of 2011…

(Crispy Pig Ears; Husk) * * * Another December, another set of listicles. Every year for the the past six, I’ve rounded up the best edibles of each and posted them here for posterity. They’ve included a list of my twenty-five favorite dishes, the best dozen desserts, and the top ten restaurant meals of each […]

Continue

suitcase party…

Eleven months ago, I took a tremendous leap of faith. I quit my job. Life will catch you, my friends reassured. I wasn’t so convinced. I went to Europe soon thereafter, to think, to eat, to explore, and to spectate. Certain that it was my last hurrah for a while, I was thankful for the […]

Continue

suitcase party…

Eleven months ago, I took a tremendous leap of faith. I quit my job. Life will catch you, my friends reassured. I wasn’t so convinced. I went to Europe soon thereafter, to think, to eat, to explore, and to spectate. Certain that it was my last hurrah for a while, I was thankful for the […]

Continue

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 […]

Continue

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 […]

Continue