As part of the New York Times' food section's initiative to become more national in its scope, we have a full rave review of the Michelin three-starred Atelier Crenn, and fresh accolades for Verjus and Oakland's Sun Moon Studio. Also, the Food & Wine Best New Chefs list has dropped, and it includes an Oakland chef. Call it part of the "boom loop" actually, please don't but San Francisco and the Bay Area are inching back into the national food conversation after several years in which we've been largely ignored.
In 2008, Anthony Bourdain filmed a sequence of his show "No Reservations" at Sukiyabashi Jiro, a 10-seat sushi restaurant in the basement of a Tokyo office building. After 15 courses of single-bite nigiri sushi from the restaurant's owner and much-celebrated chef Jiro Ono, Bourdain seemed to achieve nirvana. As Bourdain narrates, the fish and rice are served at room temperature, which Ono believes captures the purest essence and beauty of the fish.
Marco Pierre White reflects on his journey with a candid acknowledgment of his three Michelin stars and three marriages, emphasizing that passion for food and people's quirks have always driven him. He shares how experiences and relationships have shaped his culinary philosophies and personal life.
Tendrils of steam curl out of the bread basket, spreading a warm, yeasty scent as my server unfurls the linen cover to reveal a plump kind of sourdough with a golden-brown crust.