“The draw of a virtual restaurant is that of online shopping: The same products no matter where you are, or sometimes products exclusive to the virtual world. It’s fast food on an even grander scale.”
Food
Posted inEditor's Pick
The (Other) French Chef
“Julia Child’s collaborator Simone Beck has lingered as an object of pity in public memory. But maybe Beck didn’t want stardom at all.”
Posted inStory
Los Desaparecidos
Women in Sinaloa, Mexico, are searching for the remains of “disappeared” loved ones — and cooking to keep their memories of the dead alive.
Posted inEditor's Pick
The Ancient Potato of the Future
“The Four Corners potato has sustained Indigenous people in the American Southwest for 11,000 years; USDA is now studying its 8-year shelf life, and its resistance to disease, heat, and drought. The future of this remarkable little potato remains unwritten.”
Posted inEditor's Pick
The Gradual Extinction of Softness
“The memory of hunger is a curse that never leaves you.”
Posted inEditor's Pick
Inside the Secretive, Semi-Illicit, High Stakes World of WhatsApp Mango Importing
“Customs restrictions, high transport costs, and a short shelf life have made the world’s greatest mangoes — grown in Pakistan — difficult to come by in the U.S.”
Posted inEditor's Pick
How a McDonald’s Knockoff Became the Immigrant Dream
“Chances are you’ve never heard of Burger Baron unless you grew up in Alberta, Canada, in which case it’s a cultural icon.”
Posted inEditor's Pick
The Vegan Food Wars of DC
“A crew of innovator chefs and entrepreneurs have turned Washington into a hub of plant-forward dining. But they have all kinds of competing ideas about what meat-free fare should be.”
Posted inEditor's Pick
A Seat at the Table
In this interview, food writer Bettina Makalintal reflects on finding her voice, the trendification of ube, and why she’d rather not refer to Filipino cuisine — or any cuisine — as “the next big thing.”
Posted inEditor's Pick
‘We’re at the Crossroads’
“Chefs Russell Jackson and Ian Boden struggled to reconcile their visions of fine dining with their communities’ desires. Now, as they forge a sustainable path beyond the pandemic, one of them is ready to double down, and the other is ready to walk away.”