NYT Articles on Food, Drink, Cooking, and Culinary Culture (2005–2011)

[Rail Paul]

David Karp also wrote three pieces for the current issue of Gourmet. Based on these short pieces, he seems like a good observer and interviewer

Nice job on the summary, Soba...

[Fat Guy]

I think he's more than that: my understanding is he's a bona fide expert on produce.

[torakris]

Today I went to Natural Harmony-Coa (on page 2 of the article) with 4 friends. It was wonderful

They have 4 choices on their lunch menu

a salad (quite big I am assuming by the price)

a vegetarian course

a fish course

a chicken course

The menu changes daily and are accompanied by two side dishes, miso soup, and a choice of whole grain bread or brown rice.

I had the fish course, which were kamasu (sorry don't know the fish in English) sauteed, dressed with a balsamic sauce and topped with a daikon salad. The sides were a hiyayakko on a bed of finely minced okra with some ginger and topped with chopped tomatoes and a simple nimono of gobo, carrots and kombu. the miso soup contained satsumaimo, nameko. and daikon greens.

We ordered the extra set consisting of coffee and a dessert, the dessert menu had about 10 choices. I had a walnut tart and ordered a kiwi sorbet for my son.

The restaurant was excellent and we all plan to be back!

[torakris]

I forgot to mention that there was a container of freshly made goma shio on all of the tables!

[SobaAddict70]

The other women at her table were happy to be free of stove and sink. Not my mother. Even in her apartment, where cooking was prohibited, her television was usually turned to the food channel.

Memories of A Mother's Kitchen (Lou Ureneck)

Poached Maine lobster bends the boundaries, but the treatment pushes it down South. It comes with crayfish butter foam, braised collard greens and grits shaped into medallions and grilled.

Diner's Journal: Post-Modernist Southern Cuisine (William Grimes)

O'Connell serves a lot of ice creams, including, at times, roasted banana to go with a molten chocolate cake, and ginger, made with grated fresh and chopped candied ginger root.

Cold Comforts (Julia Reed)

Recipes:

1. Justine's Lotus Ice Cream

2. Peach Ice Cream

3, Caramel Ice Cream

Cheers,

Soba

[gus_tatory]

SobaAddict--thanks for links; i'm not a habitual NYT reader, so i appreciate when people "bookmark" stuff.

the Ida Mae (southern food, "postmodern") restaurant is one more just-added destination for my near-future NYC foodie trip...

gus

[SobaAddict70]

Cultivated blueberries do not have a great deal of acidity, so placing them between a heavy shortening crust will only weaken their character. I found that a butter crust, only lightly sweetened, worked best. This crust is not flaky but is delicate with a richness that comes through more in flavor than in heft.

All About American Pie (Amanda Hesser)

To protect the butts during the cooking, Mr. Schlesinger used a dry rub of spices that adhered to the pork and seized up in the heat, creating a flavorful crust. To make it, he mixed generous amounts of brown sugar, dry mustard, ground coriander, cumin, cayenne, paprika, chili pepper, freshly ground black pepper and sea salt in a bowl.

Someone Varmint Should Invite To His Pig-Pickin' (Sam Sifton)

Wine Talk (Frank J. Prial)

A Quintet of BBQ Refresher Courses (Mark Bittman)

Crispo on 14th Street adds lemons to what would otherwise be just another plate of fried calamari. Across the street from Washington Park, Otto tosses thick ribbons of zest into the hot oil with the whitebait. And at AZ the lemon slices are blanched first to remove some of the bitterness from the pith, then coated in tempura batter before frying.

The Food Dahling of the Moment: Lemons Bathed in Heat (Melissa Clark)

The wine never stops flowing. It is in the sherry vinegar sprinkled over slices of Austrian speck, the vogue substitute for prosciutto these days; in rabbit crepes with pinot noir syrup; in coq au riesling; and in Champagne fricassee of lobster.

One of the featured dishes is a "flight" of three ice creams made with Sauternes, muscat and passito. When the check arrives, so does a little plate with milk chocolates in the shape of Champagne corks, filled with Champagne-flavored chocolate cream.

William Grimes reviews Morrells in the Flatiron district

Vit tiem..., or marinated duck, is sautéed until barely crisp on the surface yet juicy within, retaining all its savory flavor. Ga nuong..., roasted chicken scented with lemon grass, achieves a similarly enticing blend of textures. The kitchen coaxes an almost fragile flavor from sea bass steamed in a banana leaf with ginger and soy sauce.

Vietnamese Simplicity at Anh (Eric Asimov)

Bits and Pieces: Fancy Finds, Marshmallow Birthday Suits, Guastavino's "Beer Hall", and Cucumber Martinis (Florence Fabricant)

Food Chain (Denise Landis)

Since she was a child, she has picked weeds, roots and flowers from the fields, meadows and creek banks of a hamlet called the Meadows of Dan, not far from the North Carolina line. And for almost as long, she has cooked pokeweed, wild mustard and goosefoot, and ground the seeds of wild amaranth for porridge.

Foraging For Dinner (Elizabeth Olson)

Off The Menu: Chef Departures, Son of Jewel Bako and Other Openings... (Florence Fabricant)

Recipes:

1. Pulled Pork

2. Barbecue Sauce

3. Radish Salad

4. Tomato and Tapenade Salad

5. Bitter Greens with Sour Cream Dressing

6. Cold Eggplant Salad with Sesame Dressing

7. Blueberry Pie with Lattice Top

8. Blueberry Tart With Crème Fraîche and Honey Creme

9. Blueberry Chiffon Pie

10. Leek Salad

Cheerio,

Soba

[guajolote]

Someone Varmint Should Invite To His Pig-Pickin' (Sam Sifton)

About 6 p.m., he poured a pile of hardwood charcoal about the size of a large box of cereal into the front of the grill's firebox and added to it a generous, unapologetic spray of lighter fluid. "I don't have a problem with this stuff," he said. "I want to get my fire going."

Heretic

[MatthewB]

Someone Varmint Should Invite To His Pig-Pickin' (Sam Sifton)

About 6 p.m., he poured a pile of hardwood charcoal about the size of a large box of cereal into the front of the grill's firebox and added to it a generous, unapologetic spray of lighter fluid. "I don't have a problem with this stuff," he said. "I want to get my fire going."

Heretic

Interesting that he doesn't talk about that in his books.

[alacarte]

Butterfield 8 is becoming a Barbeque spot? that's heresy!

[Varmint]

Pork shoulders are for sissies.

As far as using charcoal is concerned, a purist would never use anything but hardwood. However, after the first 8 hours, the meat ain't going to take on much more smoke.

Mr. Schlesinger is certainly welcome at the pig pickin'. He can pull the 2 AM to 4 AM shift.

I also wonder whether he usually drinks PBR or if he brought it out for the Times reporter. My crew will get whatever damn beer they want (and that I can find!).

[SobaAddict70]

Mr. Forgione has been tinkering with an audacious new sandwich, a slab of pistachio ice cream between slices of fennel and raisin semolina bread. Very, very chewy. It's still in the prototype stage.

Diner's Journal: Larry Forgione's Signature Cafe (William Grimes)

Proudly we stood at the Queen Charlotte weigh-in station while our fish hung on the scales. We had caught our legal limit and sent to the smokehouse 215 pounds of fish. Some will be canned and some will arrive home in the familiar form of lox.

Lox at the Source (Anne Roiphe)

When her daughter Kate turned 18, Lee hand-wrote out a cookbook for her with special instructions, which included: ''1. Always read entire recipe from start to finish. . . . Nothing makes you crazier than getting halfway through and finding out there's something missing. 2. When in any doubt, it's better to cook on a lower flame than a higher one -- because burning things is boring. . . . 7. THE MOST IMPORTANT SINGLE THING TO REMEMBER IS TO CLEAN UP AS YOU GO ALONG.''

Sunday Magazine: Lee Remick (Jonathan Reynolds)

Recipes:

1. Lee Remick's Barbecued Chinese Duck

2. Sichuan Hacked Chicken

Cheers,

Soba

[Jinmyo]

SobaAddict70's had a hard day's night so couldn't do his usual post. Let the darling sleep. I'll give it a go.

The Dining & Wine section is here.

Here are some specific links:

Ed Levine eats ice cream.

In Maine, A Broadway Act With Lobsters

La Hesser on Wine Spectator's award for hootch.

Bittman's borscht.

Nigella something something Rialto.

Grimes is ambivalent.

Okay, so it's not so nice as Soba's posts. He'll be back next week.

[SobaAddict70]

We liked the monkfish wittily disguised as tripe, Roman style: in tomato sauce with fresh mint and pecorino cheese. Bean purée with thin-sliced pork rinds, an antipasto, was a dainty allusion to another hearty Roman favorite, fagioli con le cotiche.

When in Rome.... (Maureen B. Fant)

The Tuscan sandwich, with grilled mushrooms, vegetables, goat cheese and pesto on chewy foccaccia, is first rate.

When Restaurant Critics Go Look At Art (William Grimes)

Howard Johnson's was nothing like the foul dives that George Orwell described in ''Down and Out in Paris and London,'' his bitter memoir of dishwashing days amid the restaurant proletariat in the 1920's. My recollection is of a sunny, spotless restaurant where every night we scrubbed the duckboards, scoured the stockpots and scraped the grills with pumice stone. The waitresses, as they were then called, wore little caps and dresses imprinted with the Howard Johnson pieman logo. Except for the ice cream, hot dogs, bread and so on, nearly everything we served was prepared on the premises.

Clam Nostalgia (Jason Epstein)

Recipes:

1. Fried Soft-Shell Clams

2. Tartar Sauce

3. Pierre Franey's Pasta With Clams

Cheers,

Soba

[alacarte]

La Hesser on Wine Spectator's award for hootch.

It took me a while to get to it, but I just read Amanda Hesser's piece on the Wine Spectator award. Much as we "love to hate" her, I'll step up & admit that it's an excellent piece. I won't even say "grudgingly." I do like it. Here's why:

First, the award would never have entered my radar, so this brought something new to the table (pun intended) and broadened my horizons.

Second, I never would have thought to question the award. Brownie points awarded for skepticism. Too often, food journalism is unabashedly congratulatory and celebratory, without that much-needed element of skepticism.

Third, it was a well-researched piece.

Fourth, it was a well-written piece. (I think we all agree that Hesser's pieces are usually well-written. It's the well-researched criterion that tends to be debated on eGullet.)

[Jinmyo]

Good for Amanda.

[SobaAddict70]

To most mainlanders, the expression "Hawaiian food" calls to mind tiki lounges and tourist luaus — starchy, pork-centric buffets that always seemed an afterthought to the flashy hula show. In recent trips to Oahu, we have found restaurants that serve exquisite luau food daily to the people who live and work in Hawaii: cool, briny salads of raw fish and seaweed, earthy taro leaves creamed with coconut milk and studded with octopus, and the smokiest, most delicious pulled pork west of Memphis.

Modern Day Luaus (Matt Lee and Ted Lee)

It is a rugged drink, always tasting of peat and often of heather or seaweed, made by rugged individualists amid rugged landscapes.

A Drink Sean Connery Would Be Proud Of (R.W. Apple, Jr.)

And while scientists emphasize the importance of polyphenols and other antioxidants, particularly because they might help fight cancer, Mr. Avery said: "No one has a clue how much phenolics anyone needs to consume. Anyone who claims nutritional benefits from higher or lower phenolics doesn't understand."

Is Organic Food Better For You? (Marian Burros)

He retrieved a couple of large rib-eye steaks, two inches thick and marbled with fat, from the refrigerator. Onto these he planned to rub a thick fiery paste of canned chipotle peppers, cilantro, garlic, cumin, mustard, coriander, salt, pepper and the juice of a couple limes. Using a mortar and pestle, he mashed these together. "You could use a food processor," he said. He mashed the mixture a few more times. The cilantro stems were proving resistant. "You ought to, actually."

The Chef: Chris Schlesinger (Sam Sifton)

The Minimalist: Yucatán Flavoring Agents (Mark Bittman)

Chiles de árbol apply mild heat to an understated salsa that blends effortlessly with black-bean purée and buttery slices of avocado in what may be Pampano's signature dish, an appetizer of three miniature lobster tacos on soft tortillas.

The Mexican theme continues at Pampano (William Grimes)

Thin fillets of neatly sautéed rouget...are so seductive, especially with a chunky olive gremolata, that I wondered why so few restaurants in this country serve this Mediterranean gem.

Chelsea's Newest Jewel Is A Diamond In The Rough (Eric Asimov)

Wine Talk (Frank J. Prial)

One recent Wednesday, he mingled with his customers at the farm stand (which is not really a club at all), then disappeared into the storefront, reappearing with a giant pot filled with salad made from four kinds of lettuce: black seeded Simpson, bibb, deer's tongue and red oak leaf.

Beautiful Vegetables (Andrea Strong)

Egg Creams (Ed Levine)

Food Q&A (Denise Landis)

It is a superfood, for one thing: a fat-free, high-fiber, low-sodium, gluten-free source of vitamin B, calcium and phosphorus.

Poi: Breakfast of Champions

Off the Menu (Florence Fabricant)

Bits and Pieces: Online Pastries, Jelli Bowls, Pickle Boutiques and Madras prawns (not Diwan)

Corrections

Recipes:

1. Giant Chipotle-Rubbed Steaks With Cilantro-Lime Butter

2. Ahi Poke

3. Kalua Pig

4. Yucatán Fish With Crisp Garlic

Cheers,

Soba

[SobaAddict70]

"The Restaurant," despite its manipulations, opens a window that even professional food writers rarely get to look through. It makes clear, whether consciously or unconsciously, the unholy alliance of creativity, money and public relations that dominates New York's restaurant economy.

William Grimes reviews The Restaurant. Pity there isn't a rating. (William Grimes)

The big production numbers on the very simple, straightforward menu are the paella for two, a faithful rendition made from Calasparra rice and Spanish saffron, and a slow-cooked leg of suckling pig with Bosc pear and braised endive.

A cozy Spanish bistro in the West Village (William Grimes)

She and the garde-manger cook (garde manger is the French term for the cool pantry area in hotels and restaurants where cold buffet items are prepared) will have their hands full when Kearney is the guest chef for a dinner at the James Beard House on Aug. 5. All the passed hors d'oeuvres will be from Kearney's charcuterie inventory.

Profile: Anne Kearney of Peristyle in New Orleans (Julia Reed)

Recipes:

1. Anne Kearney's Double-Salmon Rillettes

2. Jambon Persille

3. Celery-Root Remoulade

A Selection of Restaurants

Have a good weekend, folks.

Soba

[SobaAddict70]

The quality of Mexican food in New York has improved markedly in the last few years, with restaurants as elaborate as Pampano, Rocking Horse and Salon Mexico showcasing the complexity and diversity of high-end Mexican cuisine. Yet the heart of immigrant Mexican culture beats within these rude and humble taquerias, where two soft corn tortillas, doubled and folded around carnitas or barbacoa — braised pork chunks or stewed goat — can for a moment soothe an ache for home.

Las Taquerias de Nuevo York (Eric Asimov)

The most storied of these elixirs-turned-sodas is Moxie, which was marketed in Maine in 1876 as a patent medicine called Moxie Nerve Food. But even after sweetening and carbonation were added in 1884, Moxie's flavor — derived from the gentian root, once considered a cure-all — was an acquired taste, to put it kindly.

Fizzy Pop Culture (Paul Lukas)

Hot pepper jelly and cream cheese on crackers, which my wife, Betsey, remembers doting upon during her Richmond childhood, was promoted to white-tablecloth status as "hot pepper jelly with local goat's cheese." Southern fried chicken, that most universally beloved of Southern staples, was dressed in crinolines as chicken-fried quail and served on Hoppin' John salad, a Carolina Low Country concoction featuring black-eyed peas. Soaked in buttermilk before frying, the quail was moist and spicy, with crunchy skin.

The Return of Bill Neal (R. W. Apple, Jr.)

Rabbit, the Thursday special, comes in a thick coating of creamy mustard sauce with a sharp bite. Why doesn't this dish turn up more often in New York? Monday brings a hearty fish stew from the seacoast north of Bordeaux. It is the Atlantic's bouillabaisse, a catch-all dish of skate, sole and halibut simmered in muscadet flavored with herbs. Score another one for Mr. Dumonet, whose daily specials, like his seasonal dishes, stay rooted in French tradition but still manage to surprise.

When Bistro Cuisine Meets With Bobby Short (William Grimes)

Assenzio's suckling pig..., a dish I remember from Osteria del Sole, is gently flavored with myrtle, an aromatic reminiscent of rosemary, and includes tender ribs, both light and dark meat and plenty of crisp skin.

Sardinian Specialties at Assenzio (Eric Asimov)

Bits and Pieces: Bolshevik Zakuska, Kitchen Gadgets, Macadamia Nut Oil, American Cheese and Jalapeno Sushi Rolls, and Ginger-Wasabi Chocolates (Florence Fabricant)

And so the relish became green-tea noodle and cucumber salad: cool, salty, aromatically astringent and crying out for the simple accompaniment of hot fried fish. The cod is coated in a batter that echoes a tempura, but with none of the terrifying amounts of hot oil or sleight of hand — tempura without tears. It is both substantial and light. You need a certain heft to match the strongly flavored soused noodle salad, but the taste has to remain in the delicate register. Besides, if the cod is fresh enough, its sweet, juicy white flesh needs only to be highlighted.

British-Japanese Fusion (Nigella Lawson)

What We Need Is Weather In Moderation (Florence Fabricant)

The patties sat not on a bun but on plain rice noodles and were seasoned with flavors as typical in Vietnam as soy sauce is in Japan or ketchup in the United States.

The Minimalist: Larb Burgers (Mark Bittman)

Off The Menu (Florence Fabricant)

Pairings (Amanda Hesser)

Recipe: Butterflied Chicken with Tarragon

Correction

Recipes:

1. Golden Cod

2. Green-Tea Noodle and Cucumber Salad

3. Roast Chicken with Hidalgo Sauce

4. Lemon Grass Patties

Tommy wins another convert!

Cheerio,

Soba

Edited July 23, 2003 by SobaAddict70 (log)

[slkinsey]

Am I the only one who finds it extremely interesting the way certain things -- say, larb burgers -- are discussed on eGullet and then coincidentally appear in the NY Times food section a few weeks later?

[Fat Guy]

Whose slogan was "on top of the news and ahead of the times"? We need that.

[Pan]

Has anyone eaten in those Mexican stores Azimov reviewed? I live in the East Village and don't know where the Zaragoza grocery is. That isn't the place on Allen St., is it? (That wouldn't be the "East Village" to me, nor probably to Azimov.) I sometimes go to a taqueria on 1st Av. near 2nd St., though. It's not bad for a hearty meal to go or stay, and I like the people who work behind the counter, but it doesn't exactly make me think of taquerias in San Francisco - let alone La Super-Rica in Santa Barbara - by comparison.

[Bux]

I live in the East Village and don't know where the Zaragoza grocery is. That isn't the place on Allen St., is it? (That wouldn't be the "East Village" to me, nor probably to Azimov.)

ZARAGOZA MEXICAN DELI AND GROCERY 215 Avenue A, near 14th Street, East Village, 212-780-9204

Full list.

[Pan]

Thanks, Bux.

[SobaAddict70]

By habit, I'd asked for cha siu tong mihn, to avoid confusion. The waiter stood there. I waited and smiled, for I knew what was up. I knew that the waiter really wanted to know if I could say anything else besides ``roast pork noodle soup'' in his language, and if so, could I please say it now in front of his buddies so they'd believe his story about the blond foreigner with a Hong Kong accent? Mischievously, I obliged. And then, as it always does whether I'm in Chinatown or Hong Kong, came The Question: ``But - but why do you speak Cantonese?''

Lessons in Cantonese (Daisann McLane)

Desserts are a highlight, from the baked phyllo stuffed with melting ganache to the lemony shortbread with apricot preserves and a vertical cylinder of Alsatian cheesecake, which is fluffed up by whipping sabayon, cooked sweetened egg yolks, into the mixture.

Baltimore Bliss (Bryan Miller)

Main courses are simple. The fish are grilled, then outfitted with a roasted tomato. The meats run to straight-ahead, time-tested dishes like rabbit cacciatore and grilled, marinated baby lamb scottaditto. Side dishes like braised fennel, soft polenta and asparagus in béchamel sauce fill out the plate.

Diner's Journal: The Restaurant (William Grimes)

I've never subscribed to the marketers' description of monkfish as the ''poor man's lobster'' -- it's like the Chicken Liver Council claiming its product is Gonzo's rib-eye for those who can't afford it. I usually find it combative in texture and only mildly toothsome. If you see a whole monkfish at the market, you'll find its massive mouth scarier than a shark's. Apparently it sits on the bottom of the ocean, opens its Godzilla jaws and waits for poor unsuspecting fishies to swim right into it, not unlike the latest recipients of W's capital-gains cuts. So it has in common with lobster only reprehensibility of character.

A Norwegian's Hand With Fish and Seafood (Jonathan Reynolds)

Recipes:

1. Kubbervik Scallops

2. Fish Soup for a Rainy Day

3. Fish Stock

Cheers,

Soba