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The Best American Food Writing
The Best American Food Writing 2020: A Literary Collection of Essays Celebrating Food, Culture, and the Stories Shaping Our Culinary World
The year’s top food writing from writers who celebrate the many innovative, comforting, mouthwatering, and culturally rich culinary offerings of our country.“These are stories about culture,” writes J. Kenji López-Alt in his introduction. “About how food shapes people, neighborhoods, and history.” This year’s Best American Food Writing captures the food industry at a critical moment in history — from the confrontation of abusive kitchen culture, to the disappearance of the supermarkets, to the rise and fall of celebrity chefs, to the revolution of baby food. Spanning from New York’s premier restaurants to the chile factories of New Mexico, this collection lifts a curtain on how food arrives on our plates, revealing extraordinary stories behind what we eat and how we live.
THE BEST AMERICAN FOOD WRITING 2020 INCLUDES
BURKHARD BILGER, KAT KINSMAN, LAURA HAYES, TAMAR HASPEL, SHO SPAETH, TIM MURPHY and others
THE BEST AMERICAN FOOD WRITING 2020 INCLUDES
BURKHARD BILGER, KAT KINSMAN, LAURA HAYES, TAMAR HASPEL, SHO SPAETH, TIM MURPHY and others
272 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2020
199 people are currently reading
751 people want to read
About the author
J. Kenji López-Alt
14 books427 followersJ. Kenji López-Alt is the managing culinary director of SeriousEats.com, author of the James Beard Award–nominated column The Food Lab, and a columnist for Cooking Light. He lives in San Francisco with his wife Adriana.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 66 reviews
December 31, 2020
[3.5 stars] A curated collection of food-related writing from 2019. I suppose putting out an anthology of previously-published food writing was never going to age well in 2020, no matter the content. J. Kenji López-Alt also wasn’t doing himself any favors. I enjoyed the pieces by Cynthia Greenlee (A Real Hot Mess: How Grits Got Weaponized Against Cheating Men), Korsha Wilson (A Critic for All Seasons), and José Ralat (The Demand for “Authenticity” is Threatening Kansas City’s Homegrown Tacos) and had previously read the opening essay on Per Se’s abusive culture by Kwame Onuwachi and Joshua David Stein. But, with the exception of Katy Kelleher’s Wet ‘n Wild, could’ve done without most of the second two-thirds of the book.
After reading last year’s excellent Samin Nosrat-edited volume with its intentional #OwnVoices approach, I think I expected more oomph. They were all fine, but left me skeptically wondering - were these really the collective best? Did Michael Twitty or Soleil Ho or literally trans and/or queer and/or person of color writing about race and gender and class and migration and climate *at the intersections* rather than mutually exclusive areas of power and oppression not publish anything better than what’s offered in full-form here? Pieces by regularly engaging writers Tina Vasquez, Bryan Washington, and John Paul Brammer (among many others) are listed in the appendix, making me wonder what the criteria actually was. If you haven’t read last year’s collection, I’d suggest going with that one instead, and hopefully the 2021 edition will be more reflective of the questions we should be asking about food’s production, profit, in/equity, and culture.
Goodreads Challenge: 94/90
After reading last year’s excellent Samin Nosrat-edited volume with its intentional #OwnVoices approach, I think I expected more oomph. They were all fine, but left me skeptically wondering - were these really the collective best? Did Michael Twitty or Soleil Ho or literally trans and/or queer and/or person of color writing about race and gender and class and migration and climate *at the intersections* rather than mutually exclusive areas of power and oppression not publish anything better than what’s offered in full-form here? Pieces by regularly engaging writers Tina Vasquez, Bryan Washington, and John Paul Brammer (among many others) are listed in the appendix, making me wonder what the criteria actually was. If you haven’t read last year’s collection, I’d suggest going with that one instead, and hopefully the 2021 edition will be more reflective of the questions we should be asking about food’s production, profit, in/equity, and culture.
Goodreads Challenge: 94/90
July 18, 2022
The Best American Food Writing 2020 had a great range of essays that covered everything from chef profiles to how the concept of "authentic" food in reviews upholds white supremacy. I really enjoyed this collection. The mix of shorter and longer essays was great as was the large variety of topics. Some favorites from this collection were Brett Martin's "The Provocations of Tunde Wey," Charlotte Druckman's "We All Scream," and Dan Nosowitz' "What the Heck is a Crab Rangoon Anyway?"
January 13, 2021
Quite a meh collection this year. Some interesting articles, but nothing amazing.
February 9, 2021
“Good food writing, just like good cooking, need not be too serious.”
Every year, I delight in reading the latest installment in the Best American anthology series. While I always make sure to read the short story and essay collections, this was my first time reading a volume dedicated exclusively to food writing (RIP the Best Music Writing series, 2000-2011).
I thought this was a really engaging selection of pieces, many of which focused on the intersection of food, race, authenticity, and cultural appropriation. My favourite pieces were Joe Fassler’s piece on grocery store design, Brett Martin’s profile of chef Tunde Wey, Sho Spaeth’s piece on Benihana, Tim Murphy’s examination of the New Coke “failure,” and Paige Williams’ profile of Prince’s Hot Chicken Shack, the Nashville restaurant that invented hot chicken.
My only complaint with the collection is that I wished it had more long-form pieces, although that has more to do with the death of print journalism than anything. This was an engaging, thoughtful, and relatively quick read that I would recommend if you are interested in the more political and historical aspects of food. I recommend the Best American series overall if you are looking to discover new writers.
Every year, I delight in reading the latest installment in the Best American anthology series. While I always make sure to read the short story and essay collections, this was my first time reading a volume dedicated exclusively to food writing (RIP the Best Music Writing series, 2000-2011).
I thought this was a really engaging selection of pieces, many of which focused on the intersection of food, race, authenticity, and cultural appropriation. My favourite pieces were Joe Fassler’s piece on grocery store design, Brett Martin’s profile of chef Tunde Wey, Sho Spaeth’s piece on Benihana, Tim Murphy’s examination of the New Coke “failure,” and Paige Williams’ profile of Prince’s Hot Chicken Shack, the Nashville restaurant that invented hot chicken.
My only complaint with the collection is that I wished it had more long-form pieces, although that has more to do with the death of print journalism than anything. This was an engaging, thoughtful, and relatively quick read that I would recommend if you are interested in the more political and historical aspects of food. I recommend the Best American series overall if you are looking to discover new writers.
April 23, 2021
J. Kenji Lopez-Alt did a great job editing this volume. He selected articles by a diverse set of authors, and for that reason, this volume shines.
I've read a number of these "Best American" books now- primarily in the categories of food, travel, sports, and science & nature. In my opinion, what makes (or breaks) these books is the diversity (or lack thereof) of the contributors. The volumes I read where (almost) all the authors looked the same (ie white men) were substantially weaker than those with a diverse set of authors.
The last two years of the "Food" edition of the "Best American" series (edited by Samin Nosrat and then Kenji Lopez-Alt) are a great illustration of the importance of thinking about who is telling the story. When the authors all look the same, the stories all start to sound the same. This year, like last year, the reader benefited from hearing from a diverse set of authors.
I've read a number of these "Best American" books now- primarily in the categories of food, travel, sports, and science & nature. In my opinion, what makes (or breaks) these books is the diversity (or lack thereof) of the contributors. The volumes I read where (almost) all the authors looked the same (ie white men) were substantially weaker than those with a diverse set of authors.
The last two years of the "Food" edition of the "Best American" series (edited by Samin Nosrat and then Kenji Lopez-Alt) are a great illustration of the importance of thinking about who is telling the story. When the authors all look the same, the stories all start to sound the same. This year, like last year, the reader benefited from hearing from a diverse set of authors.
January 19, 2022
I'm a sucker for food writing, and this collection of essays was no exception. I found myself laughing or saying "What?!" almost every essay. My poor wife is probably annoyed at how often I made her listen to me read a paragraph.
Did you know New Coke failed, but when they switched back to Coke Classic they kept the same recipe?
Do you want to read one of the most savage restaurant reviews ever written for the NYT?
There is an expose about activists working to help restaurants in DC become more accessible and to follow the ADA.
Why do we say "I just want to eat her up," when talking about cute kids? It's weird, right?
Several essays deal with "authenticity", colonialism, and eurocentrism in the food world.
These are what constitutes food writing, and it's fascinating.
Did you know New Coke failed, but when they switched back to Coke Classic they kept the same recipe?
Do you want to read one of the most savage restaurant reviews ever written for the NYT?
There is an expose about activists working to help restaurants in DC become more accessible and to follow the ADA.
Why do we say "I just want to eat her up," when talking about cute kids? It's weird, right?
Several essays deal with "authenticity", colonialism, and eurocentrism in the food world.
These are what constitutes food writing, and it's fascinating.
April 22, 2025
This was sooooo up my alley I can’t believe I haven’t read any of the other books in this series. Journalism on niche food history??? Diversity in perspective and analysis and new insights on food culture? Say lesssss.
While some of these essays fell flat (honestly largely ones where I happened by chance to know a bit on the topic already and disagreed on the shortfalls of the journalism - the one on Jamie Oliver comes to mind after him already being covered on the Maintenance Phase podcast) I was largely very intrigued and tickled by the work here.
Just a fun, interesting, diverse book!
While some of these essays fell flat (honestly largely ones where I happened by chance to know a bit on the topic already and disagreed on the shortfalls of the journalism - the one on Jamie Oliver comes to mind after him already being covered on the Maintenance Phase podcast) I was largely very intrigued and tickled by the work here.
Just a fun, interesting, diverse book!
March 21, 2021
I've been reading these collections of food essays for years upon years - such a fun way to watch food trends change. This one had all kinds of interesting essays, from hot grits to hot chicken to more than one about the dangers of "authenticity" to my favorite about the origins of the crab rangoon. Occasionally you'll hit a boring essay, but keep plugging, there's usually another goodie coming along. (Come to think of it, I think I missed 2019...)
December 10, 2022
This is a set of essays on food! As with any collection, I liked some stories more than others. The one about Prince's Hot Chicken Shack has really stuck with me, as have the ones about disappearing tacos in Kansas and a profile of Jamie Oliver. I feel like you'll probably already know if you want to read this or not just by reading the title.
May 20, 2021
Wide ranging and interesting collection of essays. The essays on Kansas City tacos, New Coke, and artisan ice cream especially fascinated and stuck with me.
June 8, 2023
Not all essays are created equal but enough here to think about, a fun read from lots of favorite food writers.
June 23, 2024
3.5*, nifty collection of essays, fun quick read
March 11, 2021
Pretty good collection of food op-ed
Read
November 28, 2022I've read a quite a few of these annuals and this is a really strong collection, with all the pieces pre-pandemic though the intro and foreward during the first throes and so, interesting juxtaposition. Nice important piece on accessible restaurants.
November 21, 2020
I *really* enjoyed the writing and cultural commentary. From restaurants to design to food manufacturing to substance abuse to folktales, the collection covered some serious ground. The essays on hot grits, grocery store design, and ice cream particularly stood out to me. I found the writing styles to be lacking in range and tone (compared to other anthologies of essays like Great American Essays) - they were almost all great content wise but I was looking for more originality in form and voice. So 4 stars instead of 5, but still a great read!
February 23, 2021
Title: The Best American Food Writing of 2020
Editors: J. Kenji Lopez-Alt and Silvia Killingsworth
Age Group: Adult
Genre: Nonfiction, essays
Series: The Best American Food Writing
Star Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars
I borrowed this book from my local library and reviewed it.
If you know anything about me at all, you know that I’m totally obsessed with food, mainly eating and cooking. (I’m not much of a baker yet!) So, with that in mind, I reserved a copy of these essays. Normally, I’m not a huge nonfiction reader; as a whole, I tend to find the genre rather dry. But these curious little bundle of essays takes the new of 2020, the year of the global pandemic, and attempts to put it in perspective using a medium that connects us all, across the globe and the oceans: food. This meaty (ha, I couldn’t resist at least one food pun) collection of 26 essays explores how food affects culture, history, and humanity in general. I won’t review the entire collection; rather, I will give the collection an overall rating and highlight my favorites! Okay, without further ado, here we go!
The Kitchen at Per Se Was a Clean Place but Hard and Heartless, Too by Kwame Onwauchi and Joshua David Stein: I admit that this essay was difficult for me to read. I’ve followed Onwauchi’s career ever since his Top Chef days, and it was especially hard to read about the abuse and the racism that the young chef suffered early in his career. This essay was especially eye-opening, every word searing itself into my brain. Stunning, eye-opening, and powerful!
A Real Hot Mess: How Grits Got Weaponized Against Cheating Men by Cynthia R. Greenlee: I knew vaguely of the origins of Nashville, Tennessee’s hot chicken, a devilish dish whipped up as a nasty surprise for unfaithful lovers, particularly husbands. But I had no idea that sometimes, a woman in that area will wait in a dark kitchen, patiently stirring a hot pot of grits, all the better to fling upon an unfaithful partner. Famously, a philandering singer back in the 20s was known to be a playboy. When he returned that night to see his paramour, she waited until he was naked in the bathtub before promptly dumping a pot of hot grits all over his back. A lot of people don’t really associate food with culture, as if the two don’t go hand in hand. I really liked this essay; it gave me the impression that the South hides more than its share of dark secrets, and it was really interesting!
Open Wide by Burkhard Bilger: Have you ever wondered about a baby’s sense of taste, their journey from the womb to their first taste of breastmilk, their transition to solid foods? This essay took me to the beginning of an explosive food movement: the baby food industry! It sounds strange, doesn’t it? Bilger goes deep into the origin of the fairly new industry, and the puzzle he tries to solve is: How do we figure out what we like, don’t like? Why do we hate some foods, but love others? This essay was extremely thought-provoking, and I find myself, days later, returning to it. This was such a weird, surprising essay; it was definitely unexpected. One of my favorites!
Fare Access: DC Restaurants Could Do More to Welcome Diners with Disabilities, by Laura Hayes: This particular essay really struck a chord with me. I’ve been disabled my entire life with spastic cerebral palsy, and this essay, admittedly, really hurt. Most people don’t seem to notice my disability, despite the fact that I walk with a cane and have multiple surgeries done on my legs. Thinking about how hard it can be for disabled people, especially in DC, to go about their lives normally, especially when there is a great percentage of restaurants don’t even bother to try accommodating disabled individuals, was extremely painful. This essay hit really hard, and it reminded me that as much progress as we’ve made as Americans, we have a long, long way to go nonetheless.
Lean Cuisine Doesn’t Want to be Part of Diet Culture Anymore: Does It Have a Choice? By Kaitlyn Tiffany: Ah, Lean Cuisine! Honestly, this was one of the essays that caught my eye and intrigued me to the entire collection! It’s strange to think that the popular diet food brand wasn’t always around, owned by the corporate giant, Nestle (who, interestingly enough, comes up twice in the collection). It debuted back in the 70s and early 80s, as an alternative to busy, working women, who also just so happened to be longing to be thin. Lean Cuisine was brought forward at the peak of the diet-culture explosion, and has since tried to shake off the mantle, despite the trademark orange lettering and white box. Lean Cuisine will quite possibly be forever linked to dieting, to women fooling themselves that they only need to eat a certain number of calories, and despite it all, all the revamping and rebranding, it remains one of the biggest diet/weight loss brands in America. Very interesting reading! Stunning!
The Man Who’s Going to Save Your Neighborhood Grocery Store, by Joe Fassler: I’ll start this off by being honest: Marketing, business, and other such things normally bore me to tears. (There are only so many numbers and figures you can read before your brain breaks.) But this essay was very interesting and thought-provoking: What hidden forces behind the scenes propel and engineer our favorite stores, locally and on the national stage? This essay took me behind the scenes of America’s most beloved grocery store chains: Aldi, Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods (now owned by Amazon, interestingly enough).
The Provocations of Chef Tunde Wey by Brett Martin: This essay is definitely one of my very favorites; it really brought the insidious nature of racism in America in the spotlight. Chef Tunde Way holds high-cost, thought-provoking pop-up events at various venues, upcharging white guests and selling them at a steal to black ones, to highlight the grave, inexcusable wealth disparity in our nation. This piece was particularly eye-opening and illuminating, and I loved it so much!
When Jacques Pepin Made All the World an Omelet by Joshua David Stein: This essay might be my favorite of the entire collection; I distinctly remember the first time I ever watched his show, on CBS’s Julie and Jacques, and being captivated by the cozy set, and the comforting, almost purring accents of the two people, one an American expat, the other a French native. I loved this essay so much; both Jacques and Julia are beloved figures in the food world, and this essay perfectly illustrated that! Bravo!
Easy, Peasy, Japanese-y: Benihana and the Question of Cultural Appropriation by Sho Spaeth: This essay brought into question one of food’s (and by extension, our culture’s) biggest questions: When is it okay for one culture to cherrypick another, all for the sake of profit? Is it moral, ethical, perhaps even defensible? Spaeth brings Benihana’s and Trader Joe’s in particular as the biggest offenders of this cultural taboo, an increasingly red-button issue. Very thought-provoking and interesting reading!
New Coke Didn’t Die, It was Murdered by Tim Murphy: Who knew the American soft drink market was so cutthroat and secretive?! I certainly didn’t! Murphy pulls back the curtain to the American soda industry, and reveals how Coke tried once to change its signature formula, and how half of the population was on board. But there was a small group of purists who demanded that the soft drink company keep to its original recipe. As a result, the brand canceled the ‘New’ Coke and stuck to its original formula. To be honest I’m a little sad because I’m more than a bit curious about Coke’s new flavor...
Pete Luger Used to Sizzle, Now It Sputters by Pete Wells: I was waiting for this essay with bated breath! Finally, an essay that discusses the seismic cultural shift that resulted in the #MeToo movement. Specifically, this essay focuses on one restaurant, reborn after their chefs and staff were decimated by the devastation of the dark underbelly of the American industries, exposing years of secretive misogyny and the antiquated boys’ club that permeates our culture. This essay was not easy reading by any means; there were several times when I had to put the book down, due to being emotional or falling down internet rabbit holes. Easily one of the best in the whole collection!
The Spice Trade by Paige Williams: Spices in general have always intrigued me; they give food magical flavor and depth, and I use them often in my own home cooking! To think about how valuable and precious spices were (and still are) was a really cool thing to read about! Absolutely stunning and one of my favorites of the collection!
We All Scream by Charlotte Druckman: Ah, what kind of food essay collection would this be without one about one of Americans’ favorite treats: ice cream?! I and many others, I’m sure, have fond childhood memories of this frozen dairy treat. Such a culinary treasure, cool and refreshing and decadent. I really loved this origin story of one of our most precious food resources!
This collection of food essays was everything I loved in an anthology: essays about a wide range of food topics, from the well-rounded individuals who work in the food industry! I’m normally not a big nonfiction writer, but I really enjoyed this volume! The bottom line: Diverse, well-researched, and surprising, I loved The Best American Food Writing of 2020! Next on deck: Aurora Rising by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff!
https://literatureobsessed.blogspot.c...
Editors: J. Kenji Lopez-Alt and Silvia Killingsworth
Age Group: Adult
Genre: Nonfiction, essays
Series: The Best American Food Writing
Star Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars
I borrowed this book from my local library and reviewed it.
If you know anything about me at all, you know that I’m totally obsessed with food, mainly eating and cooking. (I’m not much of a baker yet!) So, with that in mind, I reserved a copy of these essays. Normally, I’m not a huge nonfiction reader; as a whole, I tend to find the genre rather dry. But these curious little bundle of essays takes the new of 2020, the year of the global pandemic, and attempts to put it in perspective using a medium that connects us all, across the globe and the oceans: food. This meaty (ha, I couldn’t resist at least one food pun) collection of 26 essays explores how food affects culture, history, and humanity in general. I won’t review the entire collection; rather, I will give the collection an overall rating and highlight my favorites! Okay, without further ado, here we go!
The Kitchen at Per Se Was a Clean Place but Hard and Heartless, Too by Kwame Onwauchi and Joshua David Stein: I admit that this essay was difficult for me to read. I’ve followed Onwauchi’s career ever since his Top Chef days, and it was especially hard to read about the abuse and the racism that the young chef suffered early in his career. This essay was especially eye-opening, every word searing itself into my brain. Stunning, eye-opening, and powerful!
A Real Hot Mess: How Grits Got Weaponized Against Cheating Men by Cynthia R. Greenlee: I knew vaguely of the origins of Nashville, Tennessee’s hot chicken, a devilish dish whipped up as a nasty surprise for unfaithful lovers, particularly husbands. But I had no idea that sometimes, a woman in that area will wait in a dark kitchen, patiently stirring a hot pot of grits, all the better to fling upon an unfaithful partner. Famously, a philandering singer back in the 20s was known to be a playboy. When he returned that night to see his paramour, she waited until he was naked in the bathtub before promptly dumping a pot of hot grits all over his back. A lot of people don’t really associate food with culture, as if the two don’t go hand in hand. I really liked this essay; it gave me the impression that the South hides more than its share of dark secrets, and it was really interesting!
Open Wide by Burkhard Bilger: Have you ever wondered about a baby’s sense of taste, their journey from the womb to their first taste of breastmilk, their transition to solid foods? This essay took me to the beginning of an explosive food movement: the baby food industry! It sounds strange, doesn’t it? Bilger goes deep into the origin of the fairly new industry, and the puzzle he tries to solve is: How do we figure out what we like, don’t like? Why do we hate some foods, but love others? This essay was extremely thought-provoking, and I find myself, days later, returning to it. This was such a weird, surprising essay; it was definitely unexpected. One of my favorites!
Fare Access: DC Restaurants Could Do More to Welcome Diners with Disabilities, by Laura Hayes: This particular essay really struck a chord with me. I’ve been disabled my entire life with spastic cerebral palsy, and this essay, admittedly, really hurt. Most people don’t seem to notice my disability, despite the fact that I walk with a cane and have multiple surgeries done on my legs. Thinking about how hard it can be for disabled people, especially in DC, to go about their lives normally, especially when there is a great percentage of restaurants don’t even bother to try accommodating disabled individuals, was extremely painful. This essay hit really hard, and it reminded me that as much progress as we’ve made as Americans, we have a long, long way to go nonetheless.
Lean Cuisine Doesn’t Want to be Part of Diet Culture Anymore: Does It Have a Choice? By Kaitlyn Tiffany: Ah, Lean Cuisine! Honestly, this was one of the essays that caught my eye and intrigued me to the entire collection! It’s strange to think that the popular diet food brand wasn’t always around, owned by the corporate giant, Nestle (who, interestingly enough, comes up twice in the collection). It debuted back in the 70s and early 80s, as an alternative to busy, working women, who also just so happened to be longing to be thin. Lean Cuisine was brought forward at the peak of the diet-culture explosion, and has since tried to shake off the mantle, despite the trademark orange lettering and white box. Lean Cuisine will quite possibly be forever linked to dieting, to women fooling themselves that they only need to eat a certain number of calories, and despite it all, all the revamping and rebranding, it remains one of the biggest diet/weight loss brands in America. Very interesting reading! Stunning!
The Man Who’s Going to Save Your Neighborhood Grocery Store, by Joe Fassler: I’ll start this off by being honest: Marketing, business, and other such things normally bore me to tears. (There are only so many numbers and figures you can read before your brain breaks.) But this essay was very interesting and thought-provoking: What hidden forces behind the scenes propel and engineer our favorite stores, locally and on the national stage? This essay took me behind the scenes of America’s most beloved grocery store chains: Aldi, Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods (now owned by Amazon, interestingly enough).
The Provocations of Chef Tunde Wey by Brett Martin: This essay is definitely one of my very favorites; it really brought the insidious nature of racism in America in the spotlight. Chef Tunde Way holds high-cost, thought-provoking pop-up events at various venues, upcharging white guests and selling them at a steal to black ones, to highlight the grave, inexcusable wealth disparity in our nation. This piece was particularly eye-opening and illuminating, and I loved it so much!
When Jacques Pepin Made All the World an Omelet by Joshua David Stein: This essay might be my favorite of the entire collection; I distinctly remember the first time I ever watched his show, on CBS’s Julie and Jacques, and being captivated by the cozy set, and the comforting, almost purring accents of the two people, one an American expat, the other a French native. I loved this essay so much; both Jacques and Julia are beloved figures in the food world, and this essay perfectly illustrated that! Bravo!
Easy, Peasy, Japanese-y: Benihana and the Question of Cultural Appropriation by Sho Spaeth: This essay brought into question one of food’s (and by extension, our culture’s) biggest questions: When is it okay for one culture to cherrypick another, all for the sake of profit? Is it moral, ethical, perhaps even defensible? Spaeth brings Benihana’s and Trader Joe’s in particular as the biggest offenders of this cultural taboo, an increasingly red-button issue. Very thought-provoking and interesting reading!
New Coke Didn’t Die, It was Murdered by Tim Murphy: Who knew the American soft drink market was so cutthroat and secretive?! I certainly didn’t! Murphy pulls back the curtain to the American soda industry, and reveals how Coke tried once to change its signature formula, and how half of the population was on board. But there was a small group of purists who demanded that the soft drink company keep to its original recipe. As a result, the brand canceled the ‘New’ Coke and stuck to its original formula. To be honest I’m a little sad because I’m more than a bit curious about Coke’s new flavor...
Pete Luger Used to Sizzle, Now It Sputters by Pete Wells: I was waiting for this essay with bated breath! Finally, an essay that discusses the seismic cultural shift that resulted in the #MeToo movement. Specifically, this essay focuses on one restaurant, reborn after their chefs and staff were decimated by the devastation of the dark underbelly of the American industries, exposing years of secretive misogyny and the antiquated boys’ club that permeates our culture. This essay was not easy reading by any means; there were several times when I had to put the book down, due to being emotional or falling down internet rabbit holes. Easily one of the best in the whole collection!
The Spice Trade by Paige Williams: Spices in general have always intrigued me; they give food magical flavor and depth, and I use them often in my own home cooking! To think about how valuable and precious spices were (and still are) was a really cool thing to read about! Absolutely stunning and one of my favorites of the collection!
We All Scream by Charlotte Druckman: Ah, what kind of food essay collection would this be without one about one of Americans’ favorite treats: ice cream?! I and many others, I’m sure, have fond childhood memories of this frozen dairy treat. Such a culinary treasure, cool and refreshing and decadent. I really loved this origin story of one of our most precious food resources!
This collection of food essays was everything I loved in an anthology: essays about a wide range of food topics, from the well-rounded individuals who work in the food industry! I’m normally not a big nonfiction writer, but I really enjoyed this volume! The bottom line: Diverse, well-researched, and surprising, I loved The Best American Food Writing of 2020! Next on deck: Aurora Rising by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff!
https://literatureobsessed.blogspot.c...
February 16, 2022
As with all essay collections, the writing (style, topic, my interest) is a mixed bag. However, the overall quality was above average. Everything was worth reading.
Foreward by Silvia Killingsworth: This acknowledges the 2020 pandemic, given the essays were selected before March 2020.
Introduction by editor J. Kenji Lopez-Alt: This also acknowledges to pandemic but then shifts to provide an overview of the following essays.
Onwuachi & Stein: About the cut-throat nature of some kitchens.
Van Buren: A sociological view of the idea of eating children because they are so cute.
Wilson: A call for greater diversity among restaurant critics
Greenlee: In this case, the subtitle does convey the thesis: "How Grits Got Weaponized Against Cheating Men"
Bilger: The science behind developing baby food (spoiler alert: add sugar)
Hayes: A call to increase access for diners with disabilities
Goldfield: The culture of drinking and problem of alcoholism among restaurant staff
Tiffany: The evolution of Lean Cuisine
Ralat: The creation of a KC fried Mexican taco topped with parmesean, and how the quest for "authentic" Mexican cuisine is trying to pushing this local creation from the mid 20th C. (As if only dishes direct from Mexico are authentic and Mexican-heritage people can't be authentic.)
Fassler: The author goes behind the scenes to reveal the strategies grocery store managers use to attract and keep customers.
Martin: Chef Tunde Wey creates a Nigerian version of hot chicken and negotiates his identity as an undocumented immigrant from Africa.
McCarron: A review of trends in Portland over the last couple of decades, including Burritogate--where two-nonmexican women created a menu inspired by a trip to Puerto Nuevo, Mexico.
Stein: A detailed description of Jacques Pe'pin's video demonstrating how to make two French omelets: country and classic.
Kinsman: A musing over Rocco DiSpirito's rollercoaster career.
Spaeth: A parsing of Benihana and how it's not really Japanese, but why it has appeal.
Severson: An overview of Jamie Oliver's career.
Murphy: The backstory and broader context of the New Coke debacle.
Kelleher: A closer look at the bottled water industry and the definition of "spring."
Wells: An description of the formula Peter Luger steak house uses to make their Brooklyn restaurant an experience centered on the steak itself.
Nierenberg: Climate change threatens the chili crop in New Mexico.
Haspel: Government dietary guidelines and the "mushiness" of nutrition research.
Williams: A deep dive into Nashville's spicy chicken.
Druckman: A description of all the ingredients in ice cream, their chemical properties, and the proliferation of premium ice creams.
Nosowitz: The dialectic between Asian and American food cultures that made crab rangoon possible.
Kay: An analysis of Yelp restaurant reviews and the white centering / supremacy / snobbery of the use of "authentic."
Foreward by Silvia Killingsworth: This acknowledges the 2020 pandemic, given the essays were selected before March 2020.
Introduction by editor J. Kenji Lopez-Alt: This also acknowledges to pandemic but then shifts to provide an overview of the following essays.
Onwuachi & Stein: About the cut-throat nature of some kitchens.
Van Buren: A sociological view of the idea of eating children because they are so cute.
Wilson: A call for greater diversity among restaurant critics
Greenlee: In this case, the subtitle does convey the thesis: "How Grits Got Weaponized Against Cheating Men"
Bilger: The science behind developing baby food (spoiler alert: add sugar)
Hayes: A call to increase access for diners with disabilities
Goldfield: The culture of drinking and problem of alcoholism among restaurant staff
Tiffany: The evolution of Lean Cuisine
Ralat: The creation of a KC fried Mexican taco topped with parmesean, and how the quest for "authentic" Mexican cuisine is trying to pushing this local creation from the mid 20th C. (As if only dishes direct from Mexico are authentic and Mexican-heritage people can't be authentic.)
Fassler: The author goes behind the scenes to reveal the strategies grocery store managers use to attract and keep customers.
Martin: Chef Tunde Wey creates a Nigerian version of hot chicken and negotiates his identity as an undocumented immigrant from Africa.
McCarron: A review of trends in Portland over the last couple of decades, including Burritogate--where two-nonmexican women created a menu inspired by a trip to Puerto Nuevo, Mexico.
Stein: A detailed description of Jacques Pe'pin's video demonstrating how to make two French omelets: country and classic.
Kinsman: A musing over Rocco DiSpirito's rollercoaster career.
Spaeth: A parsing of Benihana and how it's not really Japanese, but why it has appeal.
Severson: An overview of Jamie Oliver's career.
Murphy: The backstory and broader context of the New Coke debacle.
Kelleher: A closer look at the bottled water industry and the definition of "spring."
Wells: An description of the formula Peter Luger steak house uses to make their Brooklyn restaurant an experience centered on the steak itself.
Nierenberg: Climate change threatens the chili crop in New Mexico.
Haspel: Government dietary guidelines and the "mushiness" of nutrition research.
Williams: A deep dive into Nashville's spicy chicken.
Druckman: A description of all the ingredients in ice cream, their chemical properties, and the proliferation of premium ice creams.
Nosowitz: The dialectic between Asian and American food cultures that made crab rangoon possible.
Kay: An analysis of Yelp restaurant reviews and the white centering / supremacy / snobbery of the use of "authentic."
November 25, 2021
What a delightful collection! Especially around Thanksgiving I like to double down on reading food writing. The collection used food as a lens to interrogate debates about “authenticity” (which often doesn’t benefit who you think it does), identity, recovery from illness, and what to make of a high-priced steakhouse coasting on reputation and no longer serving quality steak. It’s great to dip in and out of or read cover-to-cover (I only skipped one essay).
September 6, 2023
I absolutely loved this important and riveting collection of voices. Each essay is a glittering facet of a massive, elemental rock of a topic that truly affects every human - food. The immediate simile that comes to mind is that food is like the vast, interconnected underground network of fungi around the world. What lands on our tables is affected by politics and government, the patriarchy and white supremacy, environmental constraints and threats, food and nutritional science, human migration around the globe, and intersections between cultures.
The pieces here sprung from just before a time in our recent history that was shrouded in the unknown: the COVID-19 pandemic. The panini (as I like to call it), exposed weaknesses in the system and showed how vastly essential restaurants are to fostering community. These are pieces from the brink of the panini, right before it all crashed and changed. But food always evolves, because change is the only inevitable constant. Now I must read the collection in this series from 2021, with essays from deep panini times, to see how the tone and vibe surely pivoted instantly.
These are essential topics that must have a light shone on them, ranging from representation of a wide array of voices in restaurant reviews to the problematic nature of referring to foods as "authentic." Using the term "authentic" when referring to food always made me feel, well, icky. Who's to say what's authentic? And who cares as long as it's tasty? Really, Ashley from Yelp, you think you know what's authentic from that one time you went to Playa del Carmen?
From the foreword by Silvia Killingsworth, on cooking in the early days of the pandemic: "Between the limitations of our pantries and the repetitive nature of endless days without leaving the house, it begins to feel a bit like Iron Chef: Groundhog Day edition." p. x
From the introduction by J. Kenji López-Alt: "These stories are not just stories about cooking and eating. These are stories about culture. About how food shapes people, neighborhoods, and history." p. xviii
The Kitchen at Per Se
"The rhetoric of a restaurant is vastly different than what actually happens in a kitchen." p. 2
A Critic for All Seasons
"As a student of food criticism and restaurant goer, I've often thought about how being a Black woman impacts my dining experience, and wished that more critics understood that experience.
From being asked for a drink by white patrons to being told a different wait time for a table (or told there are none at all), restaurant dining rooms too often act in accordance with the same racial hierarchy as the rest of the world." p. 13
"Restaurant criticism is fundamentally cultural criticism and just as our society isn't a monoculture, our restaurant critics shouldn't reflect one." p. 17
The Demand for "Authenticity"
"Tacos reflect and represent their time and place." p. 76
"Regional expressions of the taco - be they modern interpretations or the Kansas City taco - don't need to be relegated to the realm of nostalgia as contemporary Mexican trends rise." p. 80
Who's Going to Save Your Neighborhood Grocery
"Forget branding. Forget sales. [Kevin] Kelley's main challenge is redirecting the attention of older male executives, scared of the future and yet stuck in their ways, to the things that really matter." p. 84
This piece directly relates to what Michael Pollan refers to as Supermarket Pastoral in his excellent bookThe Omnivore's Dilemma: "If you've ever shopped at Whole Foods, you probably recognize the way that the store's particular brand of feel-good, hippie sanctimony seems to permeate your consciousness at every turn. Kelley helped invent that." p. 91
The Provocations of Chef Tunde Way
"Wey found himself increasingly repelled by American food culture, which he found simultaneously abstract and intellectual, and seemingly about nothing that really mattered: 'When you examined it, there was no morality there. I don't mean morality in terms of good or evil, I mean a relevant message - or a message, period - outside of food on a plate.'" p. 113
New Coke Didn't Fail. It Was Murdered.
"It's not hard to see in retrospect why people began to pile on. It's fun to be cranky about stupid things. It's almost the entire point of Twitter. But there was something else going on here. The critiques often weren't really about soda at all." p. 162
THIS THIS THIS! It applies to SO many issues: "This is how people talk when they're channeling their resentment at something big into anger at something small. They invoke tradition when someone proposes a new taste, or when the tastes of some different audience or some new generation are appealed to. The dynamic is at the heart of basically every American culture-war battle. The language can't help but reveal its origins: a sense of dispossession on the part of people who possess plenty. Unhappy that the modern world no longer fully indexes itself to their preferences, they express their frustration in a way that only a largely unthreatened group would have the time for." p. 167
The Spice Trade
"As [Devita] Davison observed, when 'African American entrepreneurs don't grow rich' from an invention like hot chicken, it's not necessarily because rivals make superior food; it's because Black entrepreneurs still struggle for such resources as bank loans and industry networks." p 201
What the Heck is Crab Rangoon, Anyway?
"There's a fundamental problem with the concept of authenticity in food, because cuisine is constantly mutating and adapting to new ingredients, new people, new techniques, and new ideas. Mexican food would be completely different without the influence of the Spanish and Arab immigrants and colonists; the tomato is not native to Italy; the chili pepper is not native to Thailand. There are old dishes and there are newer dishes, and that can be an interesting distinction. And there is tasty food and lousy food, but using some concept of authenticity along as a criteria is a flawed approach." p. 225
Yelp Reviewers' Authenticity Fetish Is White Supremacy
"I can tell you a lot about what I concluded about the depths of the internet, but I'll start with this one: the word 'authentic' in food reviews supports white supremacism, and Yelp reviews prove it." p. 230
"Reviews tend to reflect the racism already existing in the world; people's biases come into play." p. 231
"While it might seem good to label restaurants as authentic, the usage of the term builds an authenticity trap where reviews reinforce harmful stereotypes that then become nearly impossible for restaurateurs to shake off." p. 232
"And when reviewers use 'authentic,' they put unfair expectations on restaurateurs to maintain a low set of standards for their establishment - much lower than any restaurant serving Western cuisines. The language directly supports a hierarchy where white, Western cuisine is allowed more creative latitude to expand, explore, and generate profits than its non-Western counterparts." p. 233
The pieces here sprung from just before a time in our recent history that was shrouded in the unknown: the COVID-19 pandemic. The panini (as I like to call it), exposed weaknesses in the system and showed how vastly essential restaurants are to fostering community. These are pieces from the brink of the panini, right before it all crashed and changed. But food always evolves, because change is the only inevitable constant. Now I must read the collection in this series from 2021, with essays from deep panini times, to see how the tone and vibe surely pivoted instantly.
These are essential topics that must have a light shone on them, ranging from representation of a wide array of voices in restaurant reviews to the problematic nature of referring to foods as "authentic." Using the term "authentic" when referring to food always made me feel, well, icky. Who's to say what's authentic? And who cares as long as it's tasty? Really, Ashley from Yelp, you think you know what's authentic from that one time you went to Playa del Carmen?
From the foreword by Silvia Killingsworth, on cooking in the early days of the pandemic: "Between the limitations of our pantries and the repetitive nature of endless days without leaving the house, it begins to feel a bit like Iron Chef: Groundhog Day edition." p. x
From the introduction by J. Kenji López-Alt: "These stories are not just stories about cooking and eating. These are stories about culture. About how food shapes people, neighborhoods, and history." p. xviii
The Kitchen at Per Se
"The rhetoric of a restaurant is vastly different than what actually happens in a kitchen." p. 2
A Critic for All Seasons
"As a student of food criticism and restaurant goer, I've often thought about how being a Black woman impacts my dining experience, and wished that more critics understood that experience.
From being asked for a drink by white patrons to being told a different wait time for a table (or told there are none at all), restaurant dining rooms too often act in accordance with the same racial hierarchy as the rest of the world." p. 13
"Restaurant criticism is fundamentally cultural criticism and just as our society isn't a monoculture, our restaurant critics shouldn't reflect one." p. 17
The Demand for "Authenticity"
"Tacos reflect and represent their time and place." p. 76
"Regional expressions of the taco - be they modern interpretations or the Kansas City taco - don't need to be relegated to the realm of nostalgia as contemporary Mexican trends rise." p. 80
Who's Going to Save Your Neighborhood Grocery
"Forget branding. Forget sales. [Kevin] Kelley's main challenge is redirecting the attention of older male executives, scared of the future and yet stuck in their ways, to the things that really matter." p. 84
This piece directly relates to what Michael Pollan refers to as Supermarket Pastoral in his excellent bookThe Omnivore's Dilemma: "If you've ever shopped at Whole Foods, you probably recognize the way that the store's particular brand of feel-good, hippie sanctimony seems to permeate your consciousness at every turn. Kelley helped invent that." p. 91
The Provocations of Chef Tunde Way
"Wey found himself increasingly repelled by American food culture, which he found simultaneously abstract and intellectual, and seemingly about nothing that really mattered: 'When you examined it, there was no morality there. I don't mean morality in terms of good or evil, I mean a relevant message - or a message, period - outside of food on a plate.'" p. 113
New Coke Didn't Fail. It Was Murdered.
"It's not hard to see in retrospect why people began to pile on. It's fun to be cranky about stupid things. It's almost the entire point of Twitter. But there was something else going on here. The critiques often weren't really about soda at all." p. 162
THIS THIS THIS! It applies to SO many issues: "This is how people talk when they're channeling their resentment at something big into anger at something small. They invoke tradition when someone proposes a new taste, or when the tastes of some different audience or some new generation are appealed to. The dynamic is at the heart of basically every American culture-war battle. The language can't help but reveal its origins: a sense of dispossession on the part of people who possess plenty. Unhappy that the modern world no longer fully indexes itself to their preferences, they express their frustration in a way that only a largely unthreatened group would have the time for." p. 167
The Spice Trade
"As [Devita] Davison observed, when 'African American entrepreneurs don't grow rich' from an invention like hot chicken, it's not necessarily because rivals make superior food; it's because Black entrepreneurs still struggle for such resources as bank loans and industry networks." p 201
What the Heck is Crab Rangoon, Anyway?
"There's a fundamental problem with the concept of authenticity in food, because cuisine is constantly mutating and adapting to new ingredients, new people, new techniques, and new ideas. Mexican food would be completely different without the influence of the Spanish and Arab immigrants and colonists; the tomato is not native to Italy; the chili pepper is not native to Thailand. There are old dishes and there are newer dishes, and that can be an interesting distinction. And there is tasty food and lousy food, but using some concept of authenticity along as a criteria is a flawed approach." p. 225
Yelp Reviewers' Authenticity Fetish Is White Supremacy
"I can tell you a lot about what I concluded about the depths of the internet, but I'll start with this one: the word 'authentic' in food reviews supports white supremacism, and Yelp reviews prove it." p. 230
"Reviews tend to reflect the racism already existing in the world; people's biases come into play." p. 231
"While it might seem good to label restaurants as authentic, the usage of the term builds an authenticity trap where reviews reinforce harmful stereotypes that then become nearly impossible for restaurateurs to shake off." p. 232
"And when reviewers use 'authentic,' they put unfair expectations on restaurateurs to maintain a low set of standards for their establishment - much lower than any restaurant serving Western cuisines. The language directly supports a hierarchy where white, Western cuisine is allowed more creative latitude to expand, explore, and generate profits than its non-Western counterparts." p. 233
November 17, 2021
A wonderful collection of food writing. Each essay is a surprise and delight to read. I recommend this book to anyone who wants to look at the world through the lens of food.
April 11, 2023
Truly one of my favorite installments, of a book series I've completely fallen in love with over the past few years. This particular edition occupies a strange place in time: all of the articles included in it were published in 2019, but the book itself was compiled and selected within the context of what was happening during the first few months of Covid. As a result, the context of various pieces feels somewhat suspended in time: post-Me-Too, but pre-George-Floyd-riots, pre-Door-Dash-dependency, but also at a time when its writers were completely unknowing of what trials the foot production, retail, and restaurant spaces would look like in less than a year.
Personal favorite essays from this particular grouping:
- an exploration of the weaponization of grits in pop culture and relationships
- a breakdown of the difficulties of simply eating at a restaurant as someone with a disability, and the ways restaurants could make their eateries more accessible to everyone
- a pointed look at Lean Cuisine's marketing reliance on dieting culture, and their adaptation in the face of self-love movements
- separate spotlights on the career dives of media-darling chefs Jamie Oliver and Rocco DiSpirito
- a timeline of the targeted media destruction of New Coke
- a structured and highly-scientific exploration of various supermarket ice cream brands, and where dollar prices make the most sense per consumer experience
- a historical understanding of Prince's Hot Chicken in Nashville
- truly the best and most realistic love letter to the cultural anomaly that is crab rangoon that I've ever read
Food lovers should already be reading this series, but if there was every any doubt on your end, start with this one.
Personal favorite essays from this particular grouping:
- an exploration of the weaponization of grits in pop culture and relationships
- a breakdown of the difficulties of simply eating at a restaurant as someone with a disability, and the ways restaurants could make their eateries more accessible to everyone
- a pointed look at Lean Cuisine's marketing reliance on dieting culture, and their adaptation in the face of self-love movements
- separate spotlights on the career dives of media-darling chefs Jamie Oliver and Rocco DiSpirito
- a timeline of the targeted media destruction of New Coke
- a structured and highly-scientific exploration of various supermarket ice cream brands, and where dollar prices make the most sense per consumer experience
- a historical understanding of Prince's Hot Chicken in Nashville
- truly the best and most realistic love letter to the cultural anomaly that is crab rangoon that I've ever read
Food lovers should already be reading this series, but if there was every any doubt on your end, start with this one.
Read
May 22, 2022A thoughtful gift for an aspiring food blogger! There are several kinds of pieces here: memoir, restaurant criticism, restaurant criticism criticism, chef and restaurant profiles, deep dives into trends (e.g., "Whatever Happened to Portland?") and foods ("We All Scream" for ice cream) and history (e.g., that of crab rangoon). The big omission is recipe/cookbook writing.
Some of my favorite pieces are:
* Kwame Onwuachi and Joshua David Stein's essay about just how dehumanizing working in a three-Michelin-star restaurant kitchen can be. It's personal, haunting, and well-paced, with wry observation like
* Laura Hayes's essay, "Fare Access," on how restaurants and their reviewers can better serve disabled diners. It gave me another thing to look for that I hadn't considered.
* "We All Scream," which taught me about butterfat, overrun, the different market segments from economy to superpremium, and how for ice cream--unlike many other foods--bigger is better. There's a glimpse of pre-collapse Ample Hills. It has specific, evocative description, like the "greasy, creamed-soup texture" of ice cream with butterfat content over 20%.
Some of my favorite pieces are:
* Kwame Onwuachi and Joshua David Stein's essay about just how dehumanizing working in a three-Michelin-star restaurant kitchen can be. It's personal, haunting, and well-paced, with wry observation like
... I told him I didn't think we should use the oranges.
He grabbed a mandarin and looked at it. "We can still appreciate its beauty," he said, which was a very Per Se way to say STFU.
* Laura Hayes's essay, "Fare Access," on how restaurants and their reviewers can better serve disabled diners. It gave me another thing to look for that I hadn't considered.
* "We All Scream," which taught me about butterfat, overrun, the different market segments from economy to superpremium, and how for ice cream--unlike many other foods--bigger is better. There's a glimpse of pre-collapse Ample Hills. It has specific, evocative description, like the "greasy, creamed-soup texture" of ice cream with butterfat content over 20%.
December 26, 2020
A nice, broad collection of contemporary food writing. There are restaurant reviews, industry reports, subcultural deep dives, and sharp political criticism throughout. As is always the case with anthologized works, some key themes emerge from the collection, including the questions about race and capital raised by the fetishization of authenticity in foodie culture, the relationship between taste and gentrification, and the tension of food as pleasure and food as necessity. Some highlights here include Brett Martin's profile, The Provocations of Chef Tunde Wey, Joe Fassler's examination of design and grocery shopping, The Man Who's Going to Save Your Neighborhood Grocery Store, Kwame Onwuachi and Joshua David Stein's reflection on haute cuisine workplace abuses, The Kitchen at Per Se Was a Clean Place but Hard and Heartless Too and Charlotte Druckman's piece about the burgeoning "super premium" tier of ice cream, We All Scream.
All of the writers included herein are worth following. The collection is a good reminder that thoughtful food criticism is more prevalent and more important than ever.
All of the writers included herein are worth following. The collection is a good reminder that thoughtful food criticism is more prevalent and more important than ever.
July 16, 2023
The "Best of" food writing series is usually pretty good, and this book, curated by J. Kenji López-Altt is no exception. A series of articles, taken from different publications, all having to do with food or the food industry, are collected for the year and published in these editions. This was for 2020, which marked the advent of covid, which gave its own twist to some of these articles.
I especially liked those that delve into sociological topics (i.e. the hot chicken article). I've always been privileged enough to access the most common foods, when I want it, without worry (the slim years of ramen during college don't count, I had backup had I asked for it). That's not so with other people, even within America. Because interplays of class, race, and other factors determine the step-ups and help for opening businesses or locating resources, the disparity between people can be wildly different, as can the food they eat or the customers they serve.
There were a few lighter articles as well, but really, these collections allow me to be able to see all the other topics previously mentioned, for which I'm grateful. Another informative edition!
Review by M. Reynard 2023
I especially liked those that delve into sociological topics (i.e. the hot chicken article). I've always been privileged enough to access the most common foods, when I want it, without worry (the slim years of ramen during college don't count, I had backup had I asked for it). That's not so with other people, even within America. Because interplays of class, race, and other factors determine the step-ups and help for opening businesses or locating resources, the disparity between people can be wildly different, as can the food they eat or the customers they serve.
There were a few lighter articles as well, but really, these collections allow me to be able to see all the other topics previously mentioned, for which I'm grateful. Another informative edition!
Review by M. Reynard 2023
May 23, 2022
In search of……
I chose this book to prepare for a book club meeting discussion of Stanley Tucci’s “Taste”. Later issues weren’t easily available and I wanted to get familiar with food critics’ styles of both writing and dining.
This 2019 issue has a interesting spread of essays from feeding babies to growing chiles. I decided to pick the articles I was most interested in so ended up with info on recently visited Hatch, NM, how Jacques Pepin makes omelets, the challenges of Black food writers and restaurant goers, and, how to throw steaming grits on someone as a revenge tool. Ready for book club.
I chose this book to prepare for a book club meeting discussion of Stanley Tucci’s “Taste”. Later issues weren’t easily available and I wanted to get familiar with food critics’ styles of both writing and dining.
This 2019 issue has a interesting spread of essays from feeding babies to growing chiles. I decided to pick the articles I was most interested in so ended up with info on recently visited Hatch, NM, how Jacques Pepin makes omelets, the challenges of Black food writers and restaurant goers, and, how to throw steaming grits on someone as a revenge tool. Ready for book club.
January 19, 2021
I realize now that the publisher makes a bunch of "Best of..." anthologies, which I used to overlook.
But, reading this for a second year in a row I recognize not only the editor and curator, but a number of names and a number of the pieces.
It really is a well-curated collection of stories about food, and that some of the other anthologies may be equally well-curated by experts in their field.
This is a good way to catch up on the writing you've missed from the previous year. It's not all-encompassing but it'll give you enough context to really understand the previous year of food-writing.
But, reading this for a second year in a row I recognize not only the editor and curator, but a number of names and a number of the pieces.
It really is a well-curated collection of stories about food, and that some of the other anthologies may be equally well-curated by experts in their field.
This is a good way to catch up on the writing you've missed from the previous year. It's not all-encompassing but it'll give you enough context to really understand the previous year of food-writing.
July 22, 2021
I was unaware of this series of books, but I thoroughly enjoyed the concept and this volume. Given to me by my author friend Paul Kan, he described it as a great companion to take on trips. This one was a collection of the best essays about food and drink written mostly in 2019 and published in 2020. While some essays didn’t interest me so I skimmed or skipped them, many were both educational and fascinating. I enjoyed: Per Se, Fare Access, Benihana, New Coke, The Spice Trade, We All Scream, Crab Rangoon, and Authenticity on Yelp.
April 5, 2022
This was a huge disappointment compared to last year. Not 1 or 2 but 4 or 5 of these articles used the phrase "whole cloth" so cliche I don't know what to say.
One writer didn't know Nigella was a CHEF.....how can you call yourself a food writer and be that ignorant.......
not to mention the jewish writer whose topic of alcohol-abusing chefs has to just mention an israeli chef/restaurant in a different city! Isn't it bad enough every recipe has to say kosher salt when they really mean use whatever salt you already have!
#boycottisrael #freepalestine #savgaza
One writer didn't know Nigella was a CHEF.....how can you call yourself a food writer and be that ignorant.......
not to mention the jewish writer whose topic of alcohol-abusing chefs has to just mention an israeli chef/restaurant in a different city! Isn't it bad enough every recipe has to say kosher salt when they really mean use whatever salt you already have!
#boycottisrael #freepalestine #savgaza
January 16, 2024
the reviews that applaud the 'diversity' here - this was a celebration of monocultural ideation. which is to say, every author held the same political and views. i echo my review of the 2021 edition, which is: i couldn't give a shit about famous chef biographies OR elitist restaurants, of which over half of the essays here covered.
this is perhaps one of the biggest problems with choosing celebrity-status chefs as your editors. the people they admire, the scenes they run in, the experiences they have. they freaking love these essays, but i. do. not. care.
other essays contained interesting stories and tidbits, yet the authors were try-hard. perhaps a downfall of choosing essays first published elsewhere, but every single essay needed to follow a formula where they did the clinch, and a personal anecdote, and whatever research.
only one chapter was a personal essay, which was about working under a famous chef in a prestigious kitchen.
this is perhaps one of the biggest problems with choosing celebrity-status chefs as your editors. the people they admire, the scenes they run in, the experiences they have. they freaking love these essays, but i. do. not. care.
other essays contained interesting stories and tidbits, yet the authors were try-hard. perhaps a downfall of choosing essays first published elsewhere, but every single essay needed to follow a formula where they did the clinch, and a personal anecdote, and whatever research.
only one chapter was a personal essay, which was about working under a famous chef in a prestigious kitchen.
December 10, 2020
I love this new series so much! My favorites this year were about Lean Cuisine, New Coke, crab rangoon, and how to increase access for diners with disabilities. The three from the New Yorker about baby food, substance abuse in the restaurant industry, and Prince's Hot Chicken were also great. And the essays about neighborhood grocery stores and Portland were prescient (all of these essays were originally published in 2019).
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