catch of the day: the family meal

In the publicity video for Ferran Adrià's The Family Meal (his soon-to-be release cookbook based on the communal staff meals preceding dinner service at El Bulli) he says, "For me this isn't a book, it's almost a way of understanding life".  As a writer aiming to link the culture and values of food markets with a larger life philosophy, I was immediately intrigued. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSpBzXQorWg

This book also sparked my interest because it is published by Phaidon, a publisher whose food and travel texts I find so gorgeous, so tantalizing as objects (let alone the content inside) that I even once applied for a position in their intense one-year "graduate scheme".

The timing for the book's release really couldn't be better, as the concept of the "family meal" is right in line with numerous trends in contemporary food culture.  Given the influx of communal tables at restaurants (from chains like le Pain Quotidien to smaller, trendier ventures), the increased acknowledgment in the food world of restaurants serving "low-brow" cooking, and the fact that we're all a little (or a lot) more strapped for cash - cheap, efficient and delicious dining is the quintessential embodiment of this moment in food history.

Surprisingly, I've found only a few pre-reviews of the cookbook, which officially goes on sale October 1st.  But the preview photos on Phaidon's website reveal everything I needed to know.  It is clear that the soul of this cookbook is best revealed in the photos of the kitchen staff, slurping down Adrià's delicious makeshift grub before the dinner rush.  Chins nearly on the table, nearly double-fisting their meal, they are the essence of conviviality, comradery, and "pre-game" excitement.

And if that isn't enough to intrigue you, perhaps Grub Street put it best, "If you didn’t score reservations for ElBulli’s final season, you can finally taste the dishes that wouldn’t have been served to you even if you had gotten in".

catch of the day: the trail of crumbs

Once upon a time, when I was living in Paris, a friend came to visit who told me that "food was not important" to her.  This, dear reader, caused something of a conundrum (see: panic attack).  For I was (a) in Paris to study food culture, (b) Paris is one of the most important food cities in the world, (c) a good number of the things I like to do in Paris involve observing/smelling/tasting food and (d) even when not directly interacting with food, I literally cannot walk down the street in Paris without thinking about the best food-related activities in the neighborhood. In fact, when someone asks me for things to do in any city, my suggestions (if not directly food related) will always be followed by - "and if you should happen to be hungry, there is this great [ fill-in-the-foodie-blank ] right around the corner...".

It was soothing to me, at that time, to have all my fellow ex-pat and native French friends react to this story with "Quoi? She does not care about food?" - just as it is rather delightful for me to have discovered the like-minded Trail of Crumbs, a self-pronounced "gastro-travelogue".

As California ex-pats living in Paris, Adrian and Danielle's passion for travel is only matched by their passion for food.  After years of helping friends plan exciting food-friendly vacations, they launched this website as a way to chronicle their favorite bites along the way, and they will even go so far as to provide you with individualized gastro-travel plans.  I'm looking forward to checking out their Paris Guide myself.

To date, I'm most impressed with their window-box gardening, and I'm excited to see what comes next!

catch of the day: kinfolk

Kinfolk Magazine calls itself a "guide for small gatherings". Otherwise known as a guide to all your [Little House on the Prairie meets Martha Stewart clad in Anthropologie] fantasies.  The first printing of the first issue sold out faster than a batch of fresh biscuits, but you can read it online.

And since the "market mentality" is pro-technology these days, the very trendy-without-trying folks at Kinfolk have come up with some gorgeous videos that will make you swoon and want to quit your job immediately, just so you can film yourself peeling apples in slow motion.

http://vimeo.com/25385248

If the water dripping off that asparagus isn't the most

a) beautiful b) sensual c) tantalizing

thing you've seen in food in a good long while...

...well then, you must be living in sepia tone and slow motion every day - and I'm jealous.