Molly’s Honeymoon Down Under Molly returns from her honeymoon with travel tips and tricks for visiting Austrailia and New Zealand. Andrew adds in his favorite places down under. Plus, Andrew shares his opinion of a controversial restaurant review. Read: 12 Things You Should Probably Know Before Going to New Zealand (Hey Eleanor!) Read: Review: Spoon & Stable… Read More →
Embrace the Cold A lot of people think I’m nuts when I tell them I live in Minnesota. Yeah, it’s cold here. However, the difference between Minnesotans and most other folks is that we embrace the cold. We ski, ice fish, skate and sled. We even still cook outdoors. We pack our weekends with loads… Read More →
Cookbook Gurus Brothers Matt and Ted Lee grew up in Charleston, South Carolina but attended colleges in Massachusetts. They so missed the foods from back home that they founded The Lee Bros. Boiled Peanuts Catalogue, a mail-order Southern food company. When an editor of Travel + Leisure magazine asked them to write a story about road-tripping their home state… Read More →
Where to Eat in Mexico City When I first started traveling, Mexico City’s fine dining scene was peppered with Mexican chefs cooking other countries’ food, like Italian or French cuisine. That’s no longer the case. These days the best Mexican food is once again being cooked for Mexicans, by Mexicans. Here are five restaurants you… Read More →
Where to Eat at the Great Minnesota Get-Together I love the Minnesota State Fair so much that I try to go all 12 days. Every year there’s a list of new food booths, serving every type of novelty deep-fried and on-a-stick creations, but when it comes down to it, half of the food sales comes… Read More →
Get Inspired by Summertime Produce Here in Minnesota, we need to take advantage of the short growing season and salads are the perfect way to savor summer’s bountiful harvest. Who doesn’t love fresh leafy greens and flavorful vegetables tossed in a zesty dressing on a warm summer evening? From meal-in-a-bowl bistro salads to my favorite… Read More →
Our Picks for Pre- & Post-Game Dining Lucky for hungry baseball fans, Target Field sits next to some of Minneapolis’ best restaurants and bars. Just in time for the 2014 All-Star Game, here’s a round-up our favorite Downtown and North Loop establishments, from raucous pubs and local breweries to after hours fine dining. Pre-Game… Read More →
Pollo e Patate della Mamma By Lidia Bastianich Chicken and potatoes cooked together in a big cast iron skillet until it’s crisp and moist at the same time is my mother’s specialty. Growing up, my brother and I demanded it every week; a generation later, our kids, Tanya and Joe and Eric, Paul and Estelle,… Read More →
#JBFA Every year a new crop of Bizarre Foods alums win Journalism and Media awards. This year Tim Byres led the charge for his book Smoke. Buy it. It’s a great one. Amy Thielen is loved by all, she cleaned up this year and her son Hank and husband Aaron were by her side all weekend.… Read More →
Congratulations JBF Award Winners! I had a fantastic weekend at the James Beard Foundation Awards in NYC, the nation’s most prestigious awards ceremony honoring professionals in the food and beverage biz. Winners of the Foundation’s annual Book, Broadcast, and Journalism Awards were presented on May 2, at Gotham Hall in New York City, during a… Read More →
Another Austin Food & Wine has come and gone, and I for one can’t wait for 2015. One of the most fun, intimate festivals in the country. Without further ado, some of the best moments (and one sort of ugly one) from this year’s party: 1. Paul Qui has confirmed for me that the Next Big Food Trend… Read More →
#OnlyinMN I’m constantly traveling around the world, but there is no place I would rather be than my home state, Minnesota. What makes the land of 10,000 lakes so great? Check out just some of my favorites things to do only in Minnesota. MINNESOTA STATE FAIR I love the Minnesota State Fair so much that I try… Read More →
Nose-to-Tail Icon Chef Jamie Bissonnette gained notoriety for his soulful food, innovative style and pork proficiency at his Boston restaurants, Coppa and Toro. Last fall, Bissonnette brought his incredible tapas menu to Manhattan when he opened a second Toro with business partner and fellow empire builder Ken Oringer. As we predicted, New Yorkers are just as infatuated as Bostonians with… Read More →
Our Favorite American in Paris A veteran pastry chef who spent more than a decade working at Chez Panisse before moving to Paris and launching a wildly successful blog, David Lebovitz is our go-to guru for Parisian food and cooking. He’s written several cookbooks, including The Perfect Scoop, his best-selling guide to homemade ice cream,… Read More →
I Love Austin. And I’m looking forward to heading down there later this April for the Austin Food and Wine Festival (You can get tickets here). Here’s an interview I did with my friend Paula Disbrowe at TRIBEZA Magazine about one of my favorite food towns, complete with an Andrew Zimmern style guide.
And the winners are… Hosted by yours truly and an expert panel of 40 in-the-know culinary experts, the 2014 Munchies: People’s Choice Food Awards recognize the best-of-the-best in the food biz, from terrific tastemakers to top food destinations. It’s been exciting to ignite a passionate food debate and encourage people to support their favorite restaurants, media, and chefs… Read More →
Madtown Recommendations By Molly Mogren Wisconsin’s capital city is also its biggest college town. While Badgers are known to party hard, this hippy-dippy town also offers up amazing ethnic restaurants, classic German bars and locally-driven fine dining. Without further ado… The Classics Tornado Steak House An old-school steak house serving up classic cuts (T-bones, ribeyes… Read More →
Congrats to the Nominees! Yesterday, the James Beard Foundation announced the finalists for the 2014 JBF awards. Congratulations to all of the nominees, what a talented pool of culinary greatness. If you didn’t catch the nominee announcement, the full list is below. The winners for the Book, Broadcast and Journalism Awards will be announced at… Read More →
The Publican’s Signature Dish By Paul Kahan and Brian Huston The James Beard Foundation Award nominees are announced today, so we asked last year’s recipient of the Outstanding Chef award, Paul Kahan, to share one of his favorite recipes. From modernist fine dining to a beer-focused gastropub, chef Paul Kahan’s multifaceted restaurant empire is a… Read More →
Giving Back Earlier this week, I visited St. Paul’s Payne Avenue Salvation Army to serve roasted chicken and mashed potatoes with head chef Jeff Ansorge and chat with the kids in the after-school program. The Salvation Army provides everything from basic needs and housing to rehabilitation and counseling to those in need. I was humbled… Read More →
Another South Beach Wine & Food Fest has come and gone. And yes, it was hot, humid and awesome. HUGE thanks to Lee Schrager & his team for putting on what I like to think of as spring break for the culinary world…. except in this case, what happened on spring break is not staying… Read More →
Indulge in Montréal Montréal is not only one of the most beautiful and captivating cities in North America, it’s also one of the most exciting places to eat and indulge. Our neighbor to the north celebrates foods like poutine (French fries and cheese curds smothered in gravy), maple syrup and decadent foie gras, so a… Read More →
Meet Elizabeth Elizabeth Gonda of The Flan Connection invites AndrewZimmern.com into her kitchen in St. Paul, Minn., and shows us how to make her perfected flan recipe. The authentic Mexican dessert is a sweet custard-like cake covered in caramelized sugar. It’s a very versatile dish and can be flavored in a variety of different ways.… Read More →
Indulge in the City of Light The French take their food very seriously. This is the country that created the tasting menu, doesn’t believe in low fat, and treats pastries as a kind of religion. Here are my favorite restaurants and hotels in Paris, from old school French bistros and Michelin-starred dining to casual spots… Read More →
Divulging the Food Network Allen Salkin’s new book From Scratch: Inside the Food Network is a fascinating chronicle of the evolution of a television network, from a scrappy start-up to an influential powerhouse that turned food into a cash cow and chefs into celebrities. The former New York Times reporter paints a behind-the-scenes picture, including… Read More →
Redefining Haute Cuisine in Paris Chicago-born chef Daniel Rose has made a big impression on Paris’ dining scene with his insanely popular restaurant Spring. Considered part of the bistronomy movement in Paris – where chefs have ditched the Michelin institution, ornate decor and 5-dollar-sign prices for bistros with high-quality food that won’t break the bank… Read More →
My Hometown I’ve lived in the Twin Cities for over a couple of decades now, and I couldn’t be more proud to call it my adopted hometown. Not only is it a beautiful city, but it has an incredible food scene, a passion for the arts, and it is filled with wonderful people. Since I… Read More →
Tips The Tipping Point What’s an appropriate tip? 15 percent? 20 percent? None at all? Andrew and Molly discuss the custom of tipping on this week’s podcast. Plus, they talk music and Andrew’s Mr. Mom weekend. Discussed on this podcast: Leaving a Tip: A Custom in Need of Changing? (New York Times) Should Tipping Be… Read More →
On Location: Turf Club Surf & Turf Andrew & Molly belly up to the bar at Turf Club in St. Paul, Minn., to record the podcast this week. They discuss the upcoming season of Appetite for Life, the ramen burger, Bon Appetit’s Best New Restaurants, and we get a lesson on fish anatomy. Links discussed on this… Read More →
Meet Nok & Chuck Several years ago Chuck traveled to Thailand where he met Nok, a Thai-English translator. They fell in love, got married, and moved to St. Paul, Minn., where they currently reside. In Thailand, Nok grew up learning how to cook traditional Thai dishes from her father. She’s been cooking ever since. Nok… Read More →
