Tag: Restaurants

Auguste Escoffier and the Invention of the Restaurant Kitchen Brigade System

March 20, 2024

Not long ago, I read a book written by Julia Child’s great-nephew, Luke Barr. His Ritz and Escoffier: The Hotelier, the Chef, and the Rise of the Leisure Class revealed what happens when two geniuses meet. These two men probably did more to change the way high-class hotels and restaurants operated, and the impact is … More Auguste Escoffier and the Invention of the Restaurant Kitchen Brigade System

The South is Rising Again: The 2013 James Beard Nominees

February 20, 2013

In the culinary world, the equivalent of the Pulitzer Prize or the Oscars comes down to the James Beard Awards. This year, the list of nominees includes a large number of Southern chefs, restaurants, and other food-related entities. What’s so fascinating about this list lies in the evidence of increasing diversity – it’s not all … More The South is Rising Again: The 2013 James Beard Nominees

And to Think it all Started with a French Cookbook: Forty Years of Chez Panisse

August 23, 2011

Alice Waters often said that Elizabeth David’s  French Provincial Cooking started the whole thing, meaning Chez Panisse the restaurant. And of course, the ensuing local foods movement. The following excerpt comes from a review I wrote, published today on the Web site of The New York Journal of Books: The many talented cooks and chefs she … More And to Think it all Started with a French Cookbook: Forty Years of Chez Panisse

The Weird, Different, and Just Plain Interesting Restaurants of Paris: A Photo Gallery

July 18, 2011

Like many of you, I dream about being in France. A lot. And, of course, I daydream about eating in Paris, in spite of naysayers who point their compasses at other, more culinarily au courant corners of the globe. I’m already making lists of culinary adventures in preparation for my grant-sponsoredjourney this fall, doing research … More The Weird, Different, and Just Plain Interesting Restaurants of Paris: A Photo Gallery