Earlier this week, the New York Times published a sweeping, epic revision of its list of the best 100 restaurants in the city, curated by the paper’s chief NYC-based critic, Ligaya Mishan. (Tejal Rao is the Times’ chief critic based in California.) Spoiler alert: There’s been a major shake-up at the top. And I’m willing to bet that you’ve never heard of restaurant #10, even if you live in NYC.
Now is probably a good time to disclose that I started working for the Times as a contributing restaurant critic late last year, which has given me some insight into the effort that goes into pulling off such a Herculean feat. I even contributed a couple mini guides to help with navigating the selection.
So, in my totally biased opinion, it’s a great list. It might even be the, er, best restaurant guide this city has seen in years, not because it’s defensibly flawless—beauty is in the eye of the beholder anyway—but because it puts the very idea of “best” to the test.
Like the cookbook author Ella Quittner would say, we’ve all become a bit obsessed with the notion of “best” lately. I suspect that’s because the word is the kind of hyperbole that does well on the internet, as seen in the thundering waterfall of superlatives in my social media feed. But what was supposed to cut through the slop is now just drowning us all in more of it.
This week, the NYT list puts the word back under a microscope, scaling its meandering contours. When it comes to restaurants, what does “best” really mean? Is it technical perfection? Is it heart and soul? Is it clarity and conviction at all costs? Is it inclusive or exclusive?
Ligaya’s criteria become clear when you scroll through the list, which I highly recommend you do, and not just because I am, however peripherally, a part of this team. Even if you don’t have plans to be in New York anytime soon, taken as a whole, the list is a piece of cultural criticism that feels extremely relevant right now. Dig in!
READ:
In baking, simple isn’t always easy, and as Thérèse Nelson rightly argues in TASTE, saying it is undermines the legacy of American history’s Black culinary icons.
In this age of climate change, what does an unseasonable climate event really look like for farms? In the case of fruit farmers in the Hudson Valley, disaster.
Matt wrote about Eric Kim’s legendary (at least to Matt) black sesame butter mochi. Recipe included!
In Vittles, Sharanya Deepak has some provocative thoughts on the utterly delightful world of Indian-Italian fusion.
For TASTE, Stephen Bradley reveals a fascinating loophole that may change the worker pay structure of restaurants for good—and it’s kinky.
Also, you should read Stephen’s latest in VinePair covering how struggling bars have resorted to putting out SOS messages via social media in an attempt to save their businesses.
In addition to his smart commentary on restaurant economics, the chef Eric Huang has nailed the trick to finding your writer’s voice: “What you read is exactly what it sounds like inside my brain.”
Ravenous gets into the admirable pay-what-you-can model at HAGS restaurant in New York, which raises the question: Does that mean pay what you can, should, or want to?
Not so long ago, I wrote about the deliciously original dessert-only tasting menu at HAGS for my own newsletter.
COOK:
Strawberries are especially good where I am right now, so I need more excuses to consume as many of them as possible. Cue this juicy strawberry cream soda.
Curry paste may be the star of this fragrant roast chicken, but mayonnaise is the backstage crew that pulls it all off.
Meet the moment with creamy lemon pasta tossed with peak season asparagus.
This easy bean-y salad awaits whatever spring vegetables are in reach. Just chop and toss.
Add a batch of this peppery fish sauce vinaigrette to your weekly meal prep, and you’ll have a versatile dressing or marinade at the ready for all your impromptu cooking needs.
Asha Loupy from Diaspora Spice Co. has a recipe that’ll help you get more vitamin-C-rich peppers into your meal plan—roast, marinate, and top with jazzy pops of flavor.
If you aren’t subscribing to the TASTE podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Amazon, click that button now. It’s the best way to ensure you won’t miss an episode, and we have so many good ones in the works.
I first heard about Brian Rudolph when he was a fellow at Venture for America, a nonprofit program run by some of my friends that aspired to funnel talent away from the big hiring industries (tech, finance, consulting) and toward entrepreneurship, in the hopes that they would contribute bigger, better ideas to the culture and economy. Today Brian is known for founding Banza, the massively successful better-for-you pasta brand. I think it worked, guys! What’s Brian cooking up next? You’ll have to listen to find out. 🎙️LISTEN
Did you, like me, grow up thinking that those caramel-hued, milky-sweet Starbucks Frappuccinos were the height of sophistication? What a treat, then, to hear George Howell, the man who popularized the drink, talk about going big (by selling his company to Starbucks) and then going back to specialty coffee. Then catch Matt and Aliza on another Three Things, featuring an excellent vegetarian sandwich from a new café that I reviewed in the Times! 🎙️LISTEN
Gabrielle Davenport is the founder of BEM bookstore in Brooklyn, a community space designed to celebrate Black voices in food and literature. In this episode, Davenport shares what it’s like to run an indie bookstore and host events like the recent Edna Lewis Festival, celebrating the 50th anniversary of Lewis’s seminal cookbook, The Taste of Country Cooking. 🎙️LISTEN
Vitamin C’s got nothing on Vitamina T, a delightful new cookbook named for all the perfect Mexican street foods beginning with the letter T, from tacos to tortas. The authors, Austin-based chef Fermín Núñez and Jorge Gaviria of masa company Masienda, stop by to rightfully hype up one of the world’s greatest cuisines. 🎙️LISTEN
Rachel Khong may have left the world of food writing for the greener pastures of novel writing years ago, but her legacy as executive editor at Lucky Peach (RIP) will never be forgotten. Khong recently turned her pen to short-form storytelling with her latest book, My Dear You, a collection of ten short stories that she discusses with Matt in this crafty episode. 🎙️LISTEN
Fresh off a book tour for her just-released memoir, On Eating: The Making and Unmaking of My Appetites, the cultural critic Alicia Kennedy sits down with Aliza to talk about launching a new food magazine, running a successful newsletter, and writing her most personal work yet. Then Matt chats with New York magazine journalist Elizabeth Dunn about the latest teen status symbol. And yes, it’s exactly what you think it is: a viral beverage. 🎙️LISTEN
Follow along with our cooking (and let us know about your cooking) on Instagram. You can follow us at @taste and see what the editors are up to at @mattrodbard, @mintshake, and @alizarae.
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