Monthly Archives: September 2022

NYT Critic’s Pick Movie(s)

Dead for A Dollar
NYT Critic’s Pick | R | Thriller, Western | Directed by Walter Hill
Walter Hill’s lean, mean shoot-’em-up is a master class in B-movie craft.


From left, Rachel Brosnahan, Christoph Waltz and Warren Burke in Walter Hill’s new western, “Dead for a Dollar.”
By A.O. SCOTT


From left, Kathy Najimy, Bette Midler and Sarah Jessica Parker in “Hocus Pocus 2.”
By CLAIRE SHAFFER

What We Leave Behind
NYT Critic’s Pick | Documentary | Directed by Iliana Sosa
At 89, Julián Moreno began building a home in Mexico for his children who had immigrated to the U.S. His granddaughter made the poignant documentary “What We Leave Behind.”


Julián Moreno in the documentary “What We Leave Behind.”
By LISA KENNEDY

Smile
NYT Critic’s Pick | R | Horror | Directed by Parker Finn
A young psychiatrist believes she’s being pursued by a malevolent force in this impressive horror feature debut.


Sosie Bacon in “Smile.”
By JEANNETTE CATSOULIS

— Of Possible Interest —

Bros
R | Comedy, Romance | Directed by Nicholas Stoller
Billy Eichner plays a moody podcaster who has sworn off relationships, but just might find himself in one anyway, in this gay romantic comedy.
By AMY NICHOLSON

God’s Creatures
R | Drama | Directed by Saela Davis, Anna Rose Holmer
Emily Watson is terrific at telegraphing how a mother’s love grinds against her moral code in this atmospheric seaside drama.
By NATALIA WINKELMAN

Food! Glorious Food!

The Last, Painful Days of Anthony Bourdain
A new, unauthorized biography reveals intimate, often raw, details of the TV star’s life, including his tumultuous relationship with the Italian actor Asia Argento. And it’s drawing criticism from many of his friends and family.
By KIM SEVERSON

Federal Government’s $20 Billion Embrace of ‘Climate Smart’ Farming
The techniques are a cornerstone of the Agriculture Department’s approach to addressing a warming planet, but it is unclear whether more widespread deployment of such methods can truly reverse the effects of climate change.
By LINDA QIU

How About Them Apples? Research Orchards Chart a Fruit’s Future.
Scientists working in research groves, like one in Nova Scotia, are developing your favorite new apple variety.
By ELIZABETH LANDAU

Dragon Fruit Is Showing Up All Over. So Why Are Farmers Leaving the Business?
The flavor is a fixture on drink menus. But competition from abroad has South Florida growers rethinking their commitment to a once-lucrative crop that requires a lot of investment and care.


Ruben Sanchez and Elide Santos, one of his nieces, were among the first purveyors of dragon fruit in Homestead. This year, they tried selling their fruit from a roadside stand and to out-of-state distributors.
By Christina Morales

Claudia Roden: 20 of her best recipes from a 50-year career
Allan Jenkins, compiled by Molly Tait-Hyland, recipes by Claudia Roden

Crumbs for Dinner, in the Best Possible Way
Pasta with garlicky bread crumbs, eggplant and tomatoes is everything you want in a colorful weeknight dinner.


Inspired by pangrattato, a classic Italian garnish, this weeknight pasta is topped with umami-rich anchovy bread crumbs.
By MELISSA CLARK
Recipe: Eggplant Pasta With Anchovy Bread Crumbs and Capers

The Crew Can Have a Little Coconut Cake
These diminutive Filipino treats are fluffy, fragrant and perfect to share with friends.


By LIGAYA MISHAN
Recipe: Mini Bibingka

Want to Be a Better Cook? Trust Your Senses.
Paying attention to sight, smell, sound and feel will steer you in ways that simply following a recipe cannot, Yewande Komolafe writes.

An overhead image shows a large brown platter and a smaller white bowl on a colorful mosaic surface. A round crème caramel rests on the brown platter, and a serving is scooped into the white bowl with some of the amber-colored sauce. A spoon rests in the bowl.
This crème caramel features a gently set custard with the right amount of warmth from toasted spices and sharpness from caramelized sugar.
By Yewande Komolafe
Recipe: Spiced Crème Caramel

THE POUR
Two-Buck Chuck: Wine of the People or a Cultural Wedge?
Fred Franzia built a cult following with his Trader Joe’s wine, but it comes at a cost to the wine business.
By ERIC ASIMOV

In Vienna, Taking to the Hills for Wine
In the fall, the wine taverns set among the city’s vineyards known as heurigen and buschenschanken offer the perfect combination of outdoor activity, food and drink.
By VALERIYA SAFRONOVA

NYT Critic’s Pick Movie(s)

Petrov’s Flu
NYT Critic’s Pick | Unrated | Comedy, Crime, Drama | Directed by Kirill Serebrennikov
In this fever dream of a movie by Kirill Serebrennikov, a Russian man wanders a wild urban landscape that he regularly hallucinates his way out of.


Semyon Serzin in “Petrov’s Flu,” by Kirill Serebrennikov, who has been best known abroad for his difficulties with the Russian government.
By MANOHLA DARGIS

My Imaginary Country
NYT Critic’s Pick | Documentary | Directed by Patricio Guzmán
Patricio Guzmán, Chile’s cinematic conscience, chronicles the uprising that shook the country starting in 2019.


A scene from “My Imaginary Country,” a documentary by Patricio Guzmán about protests in Chile.
By A.O. SCOTT

Carmen
NYT Critic’s Pick | Drama | Directed by Valerie Buhagiar
After her priest brother dies, a woman masquerades as a village’s irreverent new spiritual leader in this delightful drama.


Natascha McElhone, right, with Steven Love in “Carmen.”
By TEO BUGBEE

Catherine Called Birdy
NYT Critic’s Pick | PG-13 | Adventure | Directed by Lena Dunham
Bella Ramsey plays a 13th century adolescent in Lena Dunham’s winning film.


Bella Ramsey in “Catherine Called Birdy.”
By AMY NICHOLSON

— Of Possible Interest —

Nothing Compares
Documentary, Music | Directed by Kathryn Ferguson
This new documentary shows many faces of Sinead O’Connor and highlights her genuinely incomparable voice.
By GLENN KENNY

The Greatest Beer Run Ever
R | Adventure, Comedy, Drama, War | Directed by Peter Farrelly
Zac Efron plays a man trying to deliver brewskis to his Vietnam War buddies in Peter Farrelly’s film.
By AMY NICHOLSON

Sidney
PG-13 | Documentary, Biography | Directed by Reginald Hudlin
Sidney Poitier is memorialized in this thorough, and thoroughly conventional, documentary.
By JEANNETTE CATSOULIS

A Jazzman’s Blues
R | Drama | Directed by Tyler Perry
The writer-director returns to his first screenplay — a dark melodrama with soulful musical numbers — after two decades.
By LISA KENNEDY

Food! Glorious Food!

When in Chicago, don’t swallow:
Revealed: the ‘shocking’ levels of toxic lead in Chicago tap water
By Erin McCormick, Aliya Uteuova and Taylor Moore with photographs by Jamie Kelter Davis

Our 50 Favorite Restaurants of 2022
The places in America we love most right now.

Petite León Minneapolis The chef Jorge Guzmán was born and raised in the Yucatán, and that region’s cuisine animates a number of his arresting dishes, including al pastor pork collar, charred broccolini with mole verde and ancho chile-black garlic marinated bavette steak with a bright piquillo pepper sauce. The aesthetic here is inventive and comfortingly familiar (yes, there is a Caesar salad and a fancy cheeseburger), and it extends to the cocktails of Travis Serbus, a local bar veteran and Mr. Guzmán’s business partner. They opened Petite León in the fall of 2020, unsure what the future held. What emerged is a sophisticated restaurant as inviting as a corner saloon. BRETT ANDERSON

Buldak, the Fiery Korean Chicken Dish, Gets the Pizza Treatment
J. Kenji López-Alt pushes the limits of Korean fire chicken as a topping for a New York style pizza. It’s like barbecue chicken pizza, but hotter.


Buldak chicken and pizza are both fantastic party foods. This recipe combines the two
By J. KENJI LÓPEZ-ALT
Recipe: Buldak Pizza (Korean Fire Chicken Pizza)

Vegetarian Recipes for Cozy Days
Soups, stews and comforting, feel-good foods for after a storm.
By TEJAL RAO

Dinner in Seven Ingredients (or Even Fewer!)
These 24 recipes show you how to make the very most of very little.
By KRYSTEN CHAMBROT

16 Soups Our Food Staff Cooks on Repeat
Cozy season is almost here. Greet it with a bowl of French onion, vegetable, chicken noodle or potato soup.
By Nikita Richardson

A GOOD APPETITE
For More Delicious Beans, Just Add Mussels
Garlic, olive oil and rosemary make the best broth for this fast one-pot meal.


Red pepper flakes add a little heat to white beans and mussels simmered in a garlicky broth.
By MELISSA CLARK
Recipe: Mussels With White Beans, Garlic and Rosemary

In the Department of We Can All Breathe Easier Now:
FRONT BURNER
The New York City Ban on Foie Gras Is Delayed
A lawsuit halts the city’s prohibition of the delicacy for now, David Joachim releases a new version of his “Food Substitutions Bible,” Steelport Knife Co. has a new bread knife with heft, and more.
By FLORENCE FABRICANT

The Second Coming of the Appletini
As nostalgia grips drinkers, bartenders are giving vilified ’90s concoctions like the lychee martini and the lemon drop an upgrade — and ushering in a new martini era.


Cocktail bars across the country, including Sweet Liberty in Miami, are offering reimagined versions of 1990s martini staples, like the lychee martini and lemon drop.
By ROBERT SIMONSON

Fred Franzia, 79, Dies; Upended Wine Industry With Two-Buck Chuck
An unorthodox businessman, he took on the wine industry and its high markups, selling wine at prices many families could afford every day.

Fred Franzia in 2007 with a bottle of his inexpensive Charles Shaw wine. When asked how he could sell wine for less than a bottle of water, he replied, “They’re overcharging for the water — don’t you get it?”
Fred Franzia in 2007 with a bottle of his inexpensive Charles Shaw wine. When asked how he could sell wine for less than a bottle of water, he replied, “They’re overcharging for the water — don’t you get it?”
By Priya Krishna

NYT Critic’s Pick Movie(s)

The Woman King
NYT Critic’s Pick | PG-13 | Action, Drama, History | Directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood
Viola Davis leads a strong cast into battle in an epic from Gina Prince-Bythewood, inspired by real women warriors.


In “The Woman King,” Viola Davis leads the women warriors of Dahomey, a real regiment in 19th-century Africa whose exact origins remain obscured by tribal myths and oral traditions.
By MANOHLA DARGIS

Riotsville, U.S.A.
NYT Critic’s Pick | Documentary | Directed by Sierra Pettengill
A documentary delves into the responses to the 1960s protests, revealing uncomfortable truths about that time and ours.


A scene from “Riotsville, USA,” a documentary directed by Sierra Pettengill.
By GLENN KENNY

The African Desperate
NYT Critic’s Pick | Drama | Directed by Martine Syms
Martine Syms’s whip-smart satire brings the invisible, everyday negotiations of a Black artist to startlingly visual life.


Diamond Stingily in “The African Desperate.”
By DEVIKA GIRISH

Terra Femme
NYT Critic’s Pick | Documentary | Directed by Courtney Stephens
An assemblage of travelogues shot by women from the 1920s through the 1950s, this experimental essay film can be seen with either live or prerecorded narration.


A scene from “Terra Femme,” a travelogue film directed by Courtney Stephens that includes footage going back to the 1920s.
By BEN KENIGSBERG

— Of Possible Interest —

Gameboys: The Movie
Romance | Directed by Ivan Andrew Payawal
This spinoff film from a web series deals with how a young couple handles the highs and lows of a relationship during the pandemic.
By KYLE TURNER

Drifting Home
PG | Animation, Adventure, Drama, Family, Fantasy | Directed by Hiroyasu Ishida
Two friends visit their old apartment building and make haunting discoveries in this animated film from Hiroyasu Ishida.
By MAYA PHILLIPS

God’s Country
R | Thriller | Directed by Julian Higgins
In this simmering thriller, Thandiwe Newton plays a professor in rural Montana who confronts two hunters who say they’re just passing through.
By MANOHLA DARGIS

Food! Glorious Food!

T WANDERLUST
Inside Trondheim, One of Europe’s Northernmost Creative Hubs
From Michelin chefs to fashion plates, the Nordic city comes into its own.


The climate-adapted harbor promenade at Brattøra Open Space in Trondheim was created by the nature-based design studio SLA and the Pir II architecture firm. The pier overlooks Trondheim fjord, with views of Munkholmen, or Monk’s islet, in the distance.
By ALEXANDER LOBRANO

FOOD MATTERS
Why Are We Obsessed With Jiggling Foods?
For more than a thousand years, dishes that wiggle and wobble have bounced to the fore during precarious eras.
By LIGAYA MISHAN, KYOKO HAMADA and MARTIN BOURNE

To Save Whales, Don’t Eat Lobster, Watchdog Group Says
The group says that the shellfish, long considered a more responsible choice, cannot be considered a guilt-free meal anymore.
By ANNIE ROTH

The Only Challah Recipe You’ll Ever Need (and It Gets You a Babka, Too)
This classic hugely versatile dough recipe from Claire Saffitz is rich, lightly sweet and ready to be shared.


If you’re curious about making bread and don’t know where to start, try a challah or babka.
By CLAIRE SAFFITZ
Recipes: Challah Bread | Cinnamon Babka

A Honey Cake With a Long History and Many Layers
Adapted from a Hungarian Jewish family’s recipe, this honey cake tastes like an icebox cake with a gingerbread crust.


Although called honey cake, this Hungarian layer cake is deeply flavored with ginger, cardamom, cloves and cinnamon.
By JOAN NATHAN
Recipe: Hungarian Honey Cake

Recipes to Make on Autopilot
On your busiest days, savory miso soup and ginger-dill salmon will feed with minimum fuss.
By MELISSA CLARK

How to Make the Best Miso Soup of Your Life
Secrets from a chef who has a lifetime of experience with the dish.


By ERIC KIM
Recipe: Miso Soup

A Book of Recipes and Testimony From Auschwitz-Birkenau Survivors
This affecting new cookbook includes mostly Eastern European dishes as well as first-person accounts of suffering and survival.


“Honey Cake & Latkes: Recipes from the Old World by the Auschwitz-Birkenau Survivors” (Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial Foundation, Melcher Media, $45).
By FLORENCE FABRICANT

A GOOD APPETITE
Hate Doing the Dishes? Try These 3 One-Pot, One-Pan Recipes.
Melissa Clark is obsessed with maximum flavor and minimal cleanup, and these sheet-pan brussels sprouts, full English breakfast and lemony chickpea stew show just that.


Paneer turns this brussels sprouts side dish into a light meal.
By MELISSA CLARK
Recipes: Brussels Sprouts With Paneer and Lime Dressing | Crispy Chickpea Stew With Greens and Lemon | Full English Breakfast

16 Easy Recipes for Hungry, Busy People
Or just hungry people who like easy recipes.
By Margaux Laskey

NEWSLETTER
Five Weeknight Dishes
This Fish Has a Smart Shortcut
Kay Chun uses peanut butter to create a simple, savory glaze.
By EMILY WEINSTEIN

A Dozen Reasons to Drink Beaujolais
A number of terrific wines from the region are available now. They range from the simple thirst-quenchers of old to the surprisingly complex.


By Eric Asimov

NYT Critic’s Pick Movie(s)

Dos estaciones
NYT Critic’s Pick | Drama | Directed by Juan Pablo González
A woman tries to keep her family business running in this film that employs dreamlike rhythms and documentary-style realism.


Teresa Sánchez in “Dos Estaciones.” She plays María, the owner of a failing tequila factory in Jalisco, Mexico.
By MANOHLA DARGIS

Barbarian
NYT Critic’s Pick | R | Horror, Thriller | Directed by Zach Cregger
Two strangers explore the basement of their Detroit rental home in this gleefully twisty horror movie by Zach Cregger.


Georgina Campbell in “Barbarian.”
By BEATRICE LOAYZA

True Things
NYT Critic’s Pick | Drama | Directed by Harry Wootliff
This character study from Harry Wootliff bottles the lightning of a torrid fling.


Ruth Wilson with Tom Burke in “True Things.”
By NICOLAS RAPOLD

Speak No Evil
NYT Critic’s Pick | Not Rated | Horror, Thriller | Directed by Christian Tafdrup
A weekend visit turns nightmarish for an innocent Danish couple in this coldblooded satirical thriller.


Fedja van Huet, left, with Morten Burian in “Speak No Evil.”
By JEANNETTE CATSOULIS

Food! Glorious Food!

Michelin Reveals 2022 New York Area Additions
The star ratings will not be revealed until October, but the Michelin Guide offers a glimpse of the new restaurants making the list.
“Michelin no longer publishes printed guides in North America; it’s all digital on guide.michelin.com and a free app.”
By FLORENCE FABRICANT

The Dreamiest Shrimp Pasta Anchors This Summery Menu
Overindulge at the market? Turn sweet peppers into a starter, toss the corn into a pasta main and finish the meal with a berry-topped lemony Prosecco slush.

Recipes: Bell Pepper Salad With Capers and Olives | Shrimp Pasta With Corn and Basil | Prosecco Lemon Slush
By David Tanis

Spicy Shrimp-and-Greens From an Ottolenghi Head Chef
This dish was inspired by a childhood in the Philippines and created in a London test kitchen.


By YOTAM OTTOLENGHI

Our Place Introduces a Tagine Lid for Its Pans
The domed lid is meant to fit the company’s pans, but it can top most 11-inch skillets.


Moroccan tagine, $80, fromourplace.com.
By FLORENCE FABRICANT

Tune In to a Talk on a Black Caterer of Early America
Henry Orr, who was born into slavery in 1792, catered for government figures and bought his and his family’s freedom.
“Henry Orr, a Black Caterer in Early Federal Washington, D.C.,” Sept. 21 from 6:30 to 8 p.m., Culinary Historians of New York, free for members, $10 for nonmembers and guests, eventbrite.com.
By FLORENCE FABRICANT

A GOOD APPETITE
This Salad Silences the Okra Critics
Filled with crisp broiled okra and served with a garlicky yogurt dressing, this summery recipe is deeply lovable.


Seasoning charred okra with cumin brings out the spice’s earthy flavor.
By Melissa Clark
Recipe: Charred Okra Salad With Garlicky Yogurt

10 happy hours to hit up in the Twin Cities
Beverages and bites that won’t break the bank.
LYDIA CHRISTIANSON

WINE SCHOOL
What’s the Deal With Riesling?
The dry white wine can’t seem to win fans. Are wine lovers generalizing from bad wines, or is riesling’s appeal profound but too narrow?
By ERIC ASIMOV

WINE SCHOOL
Your Final Wine School Assignment
This last class will examine Alpine white wines, but after 100 classes, the most important messages should carry through to a long and pleasing relationship with wine.


By ERIC ASIMOV

NYT Critic’s Pick Movie(s)

Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul.
NYT Critic’s Pick | R | Comedy | Directed by Adamma Ebo
Regina Hall and Sterling K. Brown star in this satire about a fallen megachurch pastor and his first lady praying and angling for a comeback.


Regina Hall and Sterling K. Brown play a couple desperate to revive their megachurch after a scandal.
By LISA KENNEDY

The Cathedral
NYT Critic’s Pick | Drama | Directed by Ricky D’Ambrose
In this striking, formally rigorous drama, the director Ricky D’Ambrose revisits his Long Island childhood with restraint and tenderness.


In “The Cathedral,” Brian d’Arcy James, center, and Monica Barbaro, far right, play the protagonist’s parents, here at their wedding on Long Island in the 1980s.
By MANOHLA DARGIS