Food! Glorious Food! | Larry's Blatherings

CRITIC’S NOTEBOOK

8 Ways Restaurants Have Changed in the Past Decade

Our chief restaurant critic tries to make sense of the past 10 years in American dining, with a little help from Twitter.
1. We ate with our cameras.
2. All our plates became small plates.
3. The vegans got their revenge.
4. Developers caught food-hall fever.
5. Many people of color who cook had a breakout decade.
6. Ethical treatment wasn’t just for farm animals.
7. The future looked grim.
8. And yet, everybody agreed that there are good restaurants almost everywhere.
By PETE WELLS

TRILOBITES

What a 5,700-Year-Old Wad of Chewed Gum Reveals About Ancient People and Their Bacteria

Scientists dig into the diet, health and history of Danish hunter-gatherers in a new study.
By KNVUL SHEIKH

TALK

She Changed the Way We Eat. She Wants to Fix Our Democracy, Too.

Frances Moore Lappé popularized the idea that plant-based diets were good for the planet. But her focus has been on politics all along.
By DAVID MARCHESE

BANGKOK DISPATCH

In Bangkok’s Fragrant Street Food, City Planners See a Mess to Clean

City planners prefer a more manicured Bangkok, with air-conditioning, malls and Instagrammable dessert cafes — and without the mess and noise of street vendors.
By HANNAH BEECH

Senate Confirms Stephen Hahn to Head F.D.A.

The Food and Drug Administration has been without a permanent commissioner since April, when Dr. Scott Gottlieb resigned.
By SHEILA KAPLAN

THE T LIST

The T List: What to Try, Read and Know About This Week

Glittery eyes, a classic Nan Goldin book and more ideas from the editors of T Magazine.

Hard Times for a Hot Commodity, the Prized New Mexico Chile

Years of drought, erratic weather and other stresses are taking their toll on the peppers that are central to the state’s economy and identity.

In fields around Hatch, N.M., workers pick chile by hand, careful not to bruise the state’s prized crop. But the peppers are in trouble.
By Amelia Nierenberg

RESTAURANTS

What Happens When a Fitness Chain Opens a Restaurant?

Slideshow

Electric Lemon, in the Equinox Hotel at Hudson Yards, answers the question with vibrant flavors and a “feel the burn” playlist.
By PETE WELLS

The Most-Read Food Stories of 2019

From articles on climate change to a review of a Brooklyn institution, the most popular stories this year were ones that prompted reader discussion.

12. How Do the New Plant-Based Burgers Stack Up? We Taste-Tested Them

11. Alison Roman Cooks Thanksgiving in a (Very) Small Kitchen

10. Your Questions About Food and Climate Change, Answered

9. You Don’t Need a Recipe

8. The Vegetarians Who Turned Into Butchers

7. Weeknight Dinner Around the World

6. How to Boil the Perfect Egg

5. The Aperol Spritz Is Not a Good Drink

4. The Secret Ingredient That Improves Meat Every Time

3. Mario Batali Exits His Restaurants

2. Popeyes Sandwich Strikes a Chord for African-Americans

1. Peter Luger Used to Sizzle. Now It Sputters.

The Best Biscuits? There Are a Few Tricks

J. Kenji López-Alt swaps ingredients, and grates and rolls his way to biscuits that are simultaneously crisp, flaky, soft and light.
By J. KENJI LÓPEZ-ALT

EAT

How to Cook a Pig

There is no other dish on the traditional holiday table that you can cook so beautifully this easily.
By GABRIELLE HAMILTON

FRONT BURNER

Hummus, the Book

This coffee-table tome on hummus follows the dish throughout the Middle East.
By FLORENCE FABRICANT

FRONT BURNER

Gift a Brick of Caviar

Pressed into a block, this new caviar product can be grated to add rich flavor to eggs, warm toast and pasta.
By FLORENCE FABRICANT

ONE GOOD MEAL

How to Cook Brisket Like a ‘Jewish Grandma Fashion Designer’

At Batsheva Hay’s Upper West Side apartment, Fridays are dedicated to serving this simple stovetop supper.
By NICK MARINO

Easy Upgrades

These recipes — for salmon, chicken, noodles and pork chops — all have a genius little twist.

1. Salmon With Anchovy-Garlic Butter

2. Crispy Pork Chops With Buttered Radishes

3. Umami Garlic Noodles With Mustard Greens

4. Chicken Caprese

5. Savory Dutch Baby

By EMILY WEINSTEIN

A Seafood Pie for the Feast

Cooked under buttery puff pastry, seafood mingles in a velvety sauce for a fish pie that doubles as a stunning holiday centerpiece for Christmas Eve.
By Melissa Clark