Best Food Writing 2016

by Holly Hughes (Editor)

Overview

Like your favorite local grocery store, with its sushi bar, fresh baked goods, and maybe a very obliging butcher, Best Food Writing offers a bounty of everything in one place. For seventeen years, Holly Hughes has delved into piles of magazines and newspapers, scanned endless websites and blogs, and foraged through bookstores to provide a robust mix of what's up in the world of food writing. From the year's hottest trends (this year: meal kits and extreme dining) to the realities of everyday meals and home cooks (with kids, without; special occasions and every day) to highlighting those chefs whose magic is best spun in their own kitchens, these essays once again skillfully, deliciously evoke what's on our minds-and our plates. Pull up a chair.

Contributors include:

Betsy Andrews
Jessica Battilana
John Birdsall
Matt Buchanan
Jennifer Cockrall-King
Tove Danovich
Laura Donohue
Daniel Duane
Victoria Pesce Elliott
Edward Frame
Phyllis Grant
Andrew Sean Greer
Kathy Gunst
L. Kasimu Harris
Steve Hoffman
Dianne Jacob
Rowan Jacobsen
Pableaux Johnson
Howie Kahn
Mikki Kendall
Brian Kevin
Kat Kinsman
Todd Kliman
Julia Kramer
Corby Kummer
Francis Lam
Rachel Levin
Brett Martin
Tim Neville
Chris Newens
James Nolan
Keith Pandolfi
Carol Penn-Romine
Michael Procopio
Kathleen Purvis
Alice Randall
Besha Rodell
Helen Rosner
Michael Ruhlman
Oliver Sacks
Andrea Strong
Jason Tesauro
Toni Tipton-Martin
Wells Tower
Luke Tsai
Max Ufberg
Debbie Weingarten
Pete Wells

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780738219448
Publisher:	Hachette Books
Publication date:	11/08/2016
Series:	Best Food Writing
Edition description:	2016 ed.
Pages:	384
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 7.50(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Holly Hughes, former executive editor of Fodor's travel publications, is the author of Frommer's 500 Places for Food and Wine Lovers. She lives with her family in New York City.

Table of Contents

Introduction xiii

The Way We Eat Now

Brooklyn Is Everywhere, From Bon Appétit John Birdsall 2

On Chicken Tenders, From Guernica Helen Rosner 8

In Praise of Ugly Food, From SeriousEats.com Kat Kinsman 13

How to Dupe a Moderately Ok Food Critic, From East Bay Express Luke Tsai 18

Three-Ring Meal: The Grasping Novelty of Modern Dining, From Eighteen Bridges Jennifer Cockrall-King 21

Sorry, Blue Apron, the Joys of Cooking Can't Fit in a Box, From The New Republic By Corby Kummer 26

Quitting Season, From Edible Baja Arizona Debbie Weingarten 31

Down the Hatch

The True Story of Good Coffee, From TheAwl.com Matt Buchanan 40

Getting Drunk on Tea Infusions with Montreal's Underground Connoisseurs, From Vice Magazine Rowan Jacobsen 44

The Great Bourbon Taste Test, From Garden & Gun Wells Tower 48

The Case for Bad Coffee, From SeriousEats.com Keith Pandolfi 55

Blending In, From Food & Wine Steve Hoffman 60

Cooking the Books

The Servant Problem, From The Jemima Code Toni Tipton-Martin 66

Chained to the Stove: What It's Really Like to Write a Cookbook, From SeriousEats.com Jessica Battilana 71

The Epiphany That Turned Me into a Good Baker, From the Washington Post Kathy Gunst 76

Zahav vs. The Food Lab, From Food52.com Phyllis Grant 82

What It's Like to Cook With Dominque Crenn, From Food & Wine Daniel Duane 86

Pile of Goop, From the Charlotte Observer Kathleen Purvis 90

The Family Table

Moving Kitchen, From CrumbsontheTable.co.uk Laura Donohue 96

The Meaning of Mangoes, From Lucky Peach Dianne Jacob 99

The Millionaire's Turkey: A Father-Daughter Story, From SeriousEats.com Betsy Andrews 103

Goodnight, Mrs. Calabash, From Gravy Besha Rodell 107

Mom's Meatballs, From the Miami Herald Victoria Pesce Elliott 114

Kummerspecks, From FoodForTheThoughtless.com Michael Procopio 119

Foodways

Butchering London, From Roads & Kingdoms Chris Newens 126

Charred and Feathered, From Audubon Brian Kevin 132

Ya-Ka-Mein: Old Sober, From Edible New Orleans L. Kasimu Harris 141

Hot Sauce in Her Bag, From Eater.com Mikki Kendall 146

Glori-fried and Glori-fied, From Gravy Alice Randall 152

Everyday Sacred: A Personal Path to Gumbo, From SeriousEats.com Pableaux Johnson 158

Dining around

The American Diner at Age 143, From Pacific Standard Max Ufberg 166

Penn Station's Underground Raw Bar, From Edible Manhattan Tove Danovich 170

Table for One, From Gastronomica James Nolan 175

Dinner and Deception, From the New York Times Edward Frame 181

The Hunger Games, From Travel & Leisure Howie Kahn 187

Eating and Drinking in Mexico City: A Diary, From the Washingtonian Todd Kliman 193

Someone's in the Kitchen

Bo Bech Discovers the Bounty of Virginia, From Travel & Leisure Jason Tesauro 210

Smoke Signals, From Bon Appétit Julia Kramer 219

Why Serious Bakers Have Mother Issues, From SeriousEats.com Andrea Strong 227

Cooks Are Different, From Tin House Michael Ruhlman 233

Rites of the Caquelon, From Ski Magazine Tim Neville 240

The ChefWho Saved My Life, From GQ Brett Martin 249

Life, On a Plate

Sonoko Dreams of Soba, From Saveur Francis Lam 264

So Long, Menus; Hello, Pots and Pans, From the New York Times Pete Wells 271

Dinner Party Diaries, From Saveur Andrew Sean Greer 276

Churnin', From HungryPassport.com Carol Penn-Romine 280

The Breakfast Club, From Lucky Peach Rachel Levin 286

Filter Fish, From The New Yorker Oliver Sacks 290

Recipe Index 293

Permissions Acknowledgments 295

About the Editor 299

Editorial Reviews

Praise for the Best Food Writing Series

“With this typically delectable and eclectic collection of culinary prose, editor Holly Hughes proves her point made in the intro that the death of 68-year-old Gourmet magazine a year ago didn't lead to the demise of quality food journalism…There's a mess of vital, provocative, funny and tender stuff…in these pages.”—USA Today

“Some of these stories can make you burn with a need to taste what they're writing about.”—Los Angeles Times

“The essays are thought-provoking and moving…This is an absolutely terrific and engaging book...There is enough variety, like a box of chocolates, that one can poke around the book looking for the one with caramel and find it.”—New York Journal of Books

“What is so great about this annual series is that editor Holly Hughes curates articles that likely never crossed your desk, even if you're an avid reader of food content. Nearly every piece selected is worth your time.”—The Huffington Post

“Stories for connoisseurs, celebrations of the specialized, the odd, or simply the excellent.”—Entertainment Weekly

“This book is a menu of delicious food, colorful characters, and tales of strange and wonderful food adventures that make for memorable meals and stories.”—Booklist


“This collection has something for connoisseurs, short story fans, and anyone hungry for a good read.”—Library Journal

“Browse, read a bit, browse some more and then head for the kitchen.”—Hudson Valley News

“The finest in culinary prose is offered in this new anthology…these pages delight and inform readers with entertaining and provocative essays…This book ultimately opens readers' eyes to honest, real food and the personal stories of the people behind it.”—Taste for Life

“Longtime editor Hughes once again compiles a tasty collection of culinary essays for those who love to eat, cook and read about food…A literary trek across the culinary landscape pairing bountiful delights with plenty of substantive tidbits.”—Kirkus Reviews

“A top-notch collection, Hughes brings together a wonderful mix that is sure to please the foodie in all of us.”—San Francisco Book Review

“An exceptional collection worth revisiting, this will be a surefire hit with epicureans and cooks.”—Publishers Weekly, starred review

“If you're looking to find new authors and voices about food, there's an abundance to chew on here.”—Tampa Tribune

"There's something for everyone in the compilation, and because the stories are blog or magazine length, there's not much of a time commitment. If you only have 15 minutes to sit outdoors and read, you can finish at least one piece from beginning to end."
—Mother Nature Network

From the Publisher