Jeremy Salamon's Grandmothers Inspire A Restaurant And A Cookbook
A banner year for crediting generational roots
Welcome to the CulinaryWoman Newsletter! I’m happy to greet new subscribers and I’m grateful to all of you who are back here again. Fall is a busy time in many parts of the culinary world, from new restaurant openings, decisions to close venerable ones, and most of cookbooks.
A New Cookbook With Roots In Central Europe
As I told you earlier this year, 2024 has been a year when many cookbook authors are reaching back to their roots. Joining that group is Jeremy Salamon, the owner of Agi’s Counter in Brooklyn. At his highly regarded cafe, he’s updated the recipes he learned from his two Hungarian-Jewish grandmothers, Agi and Arlene.
Now, those recipes are collected in his first cookbook, Second Generation: Hungarian and Jewish Classics Reimagined For The Modern Table. It comes out on Tuesday and you’re likely to see and hear Jeremy talking about it throughout the fall.
Reading through the book, I spotted recipes similar to those my mother cooked for us, even though we are not Jewish and my grandmother came to America from Latvia. Jeremy says he hears that a lot. We spoke recently about his cookbook.
It predates his restaurant
“I started working on the cookbook seven years ago. I went to different publishers and they unanimously said I did not have enough Instagram followers and I was not a celebrity chef. But I had a manuscript, and I had the photos taken for it. I put it on the back burner, and pursued the restaurant. There was no young voice in the New York dining scene that was representing a different, model approach to eastern European Hungarian Jewish food. So, I went all in on the restaurant.”
Similar recipes, geographic differences
“I liken it to Italy, with all these different regions. Everyone has their own thing, but a dish varies by a single ingredient. It applies to Eastern Europe as well. (People have told him), ‘I recognize that, my mom used to make that.’ It’s a nostalgia people are experiencing, and they are picking out things that transcend boundaries.”
A standout soup: vegetarian borscht with buttermilk
“When I moved to NYC, at 18 and 19. I’d go to a Jewish diner in upstate New York and have chilled borscht. It was so refreshing on a very hot day. I wanted it to be a recipe that was different, but accessible. When you make it, it’s so enticing visually. It’s a one pot wonder: beets, shallots, spices, water and vegetarian friendly. (He used buttermilk because) I wanted to give it some body. You could swap it out for full fat yogurt. But it has a really lovely body and acidity.”
A menu for an ideal dinner guest: Ina Garten
“I would definitely start off with chicken liver mousse and do a board of pickles, and then I would probably have a salad, like my Caraway Caesar. I am so proud of that Caesar. For the entre, I’d serve a short rib goulash, with cucumbers and buttermilk ranch, and probably radishes and jammy eggs. Even though there are a bunch of sweets in the book, I’m secretly not a big sweets person. I would probably end the meal with espresso and the cookies, the mandlebred, and a little tower of cookies.”
Be sure to order Jeremy’s book and dine at his restaurant if you get the opportunity.
The Great British Bake Off Sets Its New Season
That favorite import from across the Atlantic is set to return next week. The Great British Bake Off (or Baking Show, as it’s known in the U.S.) will be back on the air in England on Tuesday, Sept. 24.
Although Netflix hasn’t said anything yet, that most likely means the new season will arrive on the straming service on Friday, Sept. 27. This is Season 15 for GBBO in England. Americans did not get to see the first two seasons, so for us, it is Season 13.
Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith are back as the judges. Noel Fielding and Alison Hammond will be back as the co-hosts.
As I previously told you, the Great Canadian Baking Show will return on Sunday,. Oct. 6. The show released a video showing all of its new bakers. It airs on the CBC in Canada and you should be able to watch the episodes on YouTube. They usually post sometime overnight after each one airs on Sundays. It’s Season 8 for the Canadian version, which is made by Love Productions, same as the original.
Will Starbucks Move Back Inside?
Over the past few years, Starbucks has shifted away from its traditional cafes and placed more emphasis on drive-through outlets. But changing workplace patterns meant that the motorists who previously pulled up for drinks were working from home and not heading out as much.
Now, Starbucks’ new chief executive is signaling a change in that strategy. On Tuesday, his second day on the job, Brian Niccol said he wants Starbucks to return to its roots as a “community coffeehouse” with comfortable seats, design and a clear distinction between “to-go” and “for-here” service.
The disclosure came in a letter to shareholders and customers, reported by CNN.
“There’s a shared sense that we have drifted from our core,” he said. “We’re committed to elevating the in-store experience — ensuring our spaces reflect the sights, smells and sounds that define Starbucks.”
Niccol is Starbucks’ fourth CEO in two years. He took over amid a slump in Starbucks’ business, widespread unionization drives among baristas, and a push by investors for higher returns.
A Chicago holiday tradition is returning, but book early
Generations of Chicagoans, including my family, have observed a holiday tradition: a meal in the Walnut Room under Marshall Field’s Christmas tree. (Yes, I know it’s now Macy’s, but it will always be Field’s to many of us.)
Reservations always book up quickly, and a secondary market has developed of people selling their slots.
Mark your calendars: this year, reservations will open on Sept. 27, by going to the restaurant’s website. The menu is $50 for adults and $20 for children.
According to Macy’s, you can reserve a table for one to five people without a credit card. Tables of six to 12 require a credit card and bigger groups will be referred to private dining.
The Great Tree will be lit on Nov. 2, and stay lit until Jan, 12, so you will have more than two months to see it.
Farewell To A New York City Classic
It’s goodbye to La Grenouille, aka the frog in French, one of the city’s longest-running and classic restaurants. It announced its departure in an Instagram post last week.
There has been a French restaurant in La Grenouille’s location on West 52nd Street dating back to the 1940s. It was a quintessential ladies-who-lunch restaurant, along with places such as Le Cirque and La Cote Basque.
I went there years back during a Restaurant Week, the only time that I could have afforded its menu. Our waiter was French, and when I spoke French to him, he snapped to attention and lavished us with wonderful service.
The set menu limited the dessert choices, but our waiter rolled over the complete dessert cart and told us we could have anything we wanted. I picked a raspberry tart and I’ve never eaten a better one.
If there’s an old, classic restaurant that you enjoy, whether in New York or elsewhere, book a table sooner rather than later. There’s no guarantee these places will be around forever.
Keeping Up With CulinaryWoman
You’ve probably read about cities around the world, like London, Paris and Copenhagen, that have expanded bike lanes and put limits on automobiles. But are they having any effect on emissions?
In a word: yes. I reported for Time Magazine on these efforts including the latest move in Dublin, which rolled off traffic constraints last month. Many places are reporting cleaner air and less congestion, and they are aiming for even greater improvements over the next few years.
However, small business owners are concerned that the curbs could hurt deliveries of ingredients and other goods, and that consumers could be inconenienced.
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I’ll be back tomorrow with Red Beans & Advice. Given that we are beginning the Mid-Autumn Festival, I’m going to look at Mooncakes. Have a good week!
Buy Satisfaction Guaranteed here, and let me know if you’d like a signed bookplate.
A fabled New York City restaurant is closing.
Jeremy Salamon's new cookbook and his restaurant sound intriguing.