The CulinaryWoman Newsletter, 8/1/21

Events are beginning to return

I opened my email this week to a nice surprise from the Southern Food and Beverage Museum in New Orleans. It was an invitation to its members to attend a live event this Thursday with Chef Dee Lavigne, the museum’s director of culinary programming.

Chef Dee, the invite said, plans to discuss the New Orleans Cook Book, published in 1940 by legendary food figure Lena Richard. Hers was the first Creole cookbook written by a Black author in a time when racial stereotypes permeated the food industry.

“In addition to the live performance, there will be a bar and free samples of Shrimp Creole," the email read. “And everyone will receive a copy of the Shrimp Creole recipe to take home with them!”

(The event also is taking place virtually through the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, and tickets are available if you want to watch.)

I already have plans for this Thursday, which coincidentally is my birthday. I’ll be celebrating at Comerica Park, where the Boston Red Sox will face the Detroit Tigers.

But if I was in New Orleans, I would definitely plan to go, assuming it was safe to attend given concerns about Covid.

The Return Of Food Events

The invitation reminded me of how much I’ve always enjoyed food events, which have been starting to creep back onto the scene, and how integral they have been to educating and entertaining audiences about cuisine.

In the before times, in every part of the country, food events were on the calendar many nights of the week.

Authors used them to promote cookbooks — events in Ann Arbor allowed me to meet Molly Stevens and numerous other writers.

Visiting chefs gained new audiences for their food, often hundreds or even thousands of miles from their home bases.

Restaurants hosted theme dinners and special celebrations, like the grand 300th birthday dinner for New Orleans that took place at Antoine’s in 2018.

That dinner was put together by Todd Price, who was then a dining critic at the New Orleans Times-Picayune, and is now a correspondent with USA Today, covering the South.

His Todd Price Taste Club set up dinners at some of New Orleans’ best-known restaurants with some of its best-known chefs, allowing participants to eat and dine with people they had read about.

A memorable night in New Orleans

The 300th birthday dinner was pretty spectacular, with cocktails served in various rooms of the restaurant, and individual courses prepared by different chefs. Todd says it was easily the biggest of any of the dinners he put on, with about 190 guests.

Tickets sold out in the blink of an eye, as you might expect for the relatively reasonable price ($175 for cocktails, appetizers and a five-course meal with wines, including tip) and the culinary lineup.

The chefs who participated included well-known New Orleans names like Nina Compton, Frank Brigtsen and Susan Spicer. Also participating was the late Carl Schaubhut, much missed for his imaginative restaurant DTB, and television chef Kevin Belton, who you might know from his PBS show New Orleans Kitchen.

I enjoyed the conversation as much as the meal, meeting people of all ages and walks of life whose unifying factor was that they loved food. You can read my memories of that dinner in this story.

Tomatoes take center stage

Here in Ann Arbor, Zingerman’s Roadhouse has held more than 200 special dinners since it opened in 2007 (you’ll read more about them in my upcoming book).

One of my favorites each year has been the annual Tomato Dinner. As you can see from the photo, the dinner was always an opportunity to eat tomatoes — LOTS of varieties of tomatoes.

It was an education in varieties of tomatoes, of which there are dozens, and also see how tomatoes can be incorporated into different types of dishes.

This year, Zingerman’s Deli is taking over the dinner, which will be held virtually on Aug. 27, and they are pairing tomatoes with cheese.

For $15, participants can Zoom in and watch five courses with different tomato varieties plus the cheeses with which they match. Or, if you’re here in Ann Arbor, you can order a tasting kit for $40 with five sets of ingredients and recipes.

Ari Weinzweig, the co-founder of the Deli, assures me that in-person special dinners will eventually be back. I am looking forward to the time when we can sit at communal tables once more, chat with our neighbors, and hear from the authors and chefs.

In the meantime, if you live in a place where Covid cases are under control, and you feel safe attending an event, I’m sure the hosts would love to have you. I hope the coast will be clear in time for my book!

Women Powerhouses In The Barbecue World

Speaking of Todd’s work, I wanted to point out an article he wrote last week. It focused on female pitmasters, who are making their mark in the Southern barbecue world.

They included Helen Turner, who has owned Helen’s Bar-B-Q in Brownsville, Tenn., for the past 25 years.

“Her husband lights the fire in the mornings and helps a bit more since retiring last year,” Todd writes. '“But Turner still pretty much does it all by herself: tend the meat, fix the sandwiches, prepare the made-from-scratch sides and work the register while chatting with regulars.”

Cozy Corner, in Memphis, was founded by Desiree Robinson’s husband Raymond. But when he died in 2001, she stepped up to takeover. Now 84, Desiree was inducted last year into the Barbecue Hall of Fame, the first Black woman to receive that honor.

Definitely check out Todd’s story and make note of these places for your future travels.

Wegmans Is Coming To Manhattan

Anyone who’s ever shopped at a Wegmans knows what a special grocery store it is. A few years ago, I wrote about its wonders for Epicurious.

Now, Wegmans (plural, not possessive) plans to open a store in Manhattan. It is taking over the Astor Place location that was occupied by one of the last KMarts in America

Wegmans, which started out in Rochester, N.Y., has stores from Boston down to the Carolinas, and across Pennsylvania and New York State.

It isn’t exactly new to New York City, given that there is a Wegmans store in Brooklyn. But, even 20 minutes across a bridge is too far for some Manhattanites to tote their groceries.

I joked on Twitter that it will be as if Wegmans never existed, once it arrives in the city. We do not have a Wegmans here in Ann Arbor, and probably don’t need one, given the quality of our local grocery stores.

But yes, I will be checking out the Manhattan Wegmans on a future trip.

If You Read Books On Kindle, You’ll Like This News

The most recent time I moved houses, I took along 33 cartons of books. I have trouble parting with any of them, and of course, I’ve told you about my love of cookbooks.

But, I do read a lot of books on the Kindle app, and if you’re like me, you’ll be happy to hear that Satisfaction Guaranteed will be available as a Kindle e-book. The listing was just posted on the Amazon page.

Everyone who purchases the book in advance will get an extra bonus from me, whether you buy a hardcover or the Kindle version. Be sure to save your receipt and zap it over to me at culinarywoman at gmail dot com before the publication date.

Meanwhile, I’m about to launch some monthly Tik Toks to whet your appetite for the book, so check out my Tik Tok account @culinarywoman.

Keeping Up With CulinaryWoman

I’m always happy to hear from you, so free to email me if you have any comments about the newsletter, a thought for a future story, or want to set up a future book-related event.

You can follow me on Instagram @michelinemaynard and on Twitter @culinarywoman. I also am on LinkedIn under Micheline Maynard and I have Facebook pages for both CulinaryWoman and Micheline Maynard, Journalist.

(I’ve been rethinking my use of Facebook, and if you have strong opinions about it, feel free to weigh in. I want to make sure that you can find me, but I’m increasingly reluctant to use that platform.)

Stay safe, wear a mask if one is needed, get vaccinated if you haven’t, and see you next week.