Tilia Chef Steven Brown is one of Minneapolis’ greatest assets. At Tilia, he’s taken the concept of a comfortable neighborhood restaurant and perfected it—from the cozy atmosphere and kitchen counter seating, to the affordable, yet insanely delicious menu. It’s a place I can take my kid for breakfast, my wife for lunch and my lawyer… Read More →
Modern Food, Age-Old Technique Defined more than a decade ago by chefs Claus Meyer and Rene Redzepi, the New Nordic food movement is reimagining what Scandinavian cuisine is, with a focus on seasonality, sustainability, animal welfare and traditional Nordic ingredients. And while this ground breaking philosophy has famously fueled avant-garde creativity, exploring old traditions is… Read More →
Minnesota Restaurants Supporting Local Farms I love all four seasons, but there are few greater things in life than the first days of a Minnesota spring. We love celebrating another winter survived, and if you’re anything like me, food plays a huge role. I can’t wait until restaurants unveil their spring menus, teeming with fresh… Read More →
Spring Break Recommendations By Molly Mogren This spring breaker’s paradise is known for its foam parties, American chain restaurants and all-inclusive hotels. However, this city is finally growing up, with fantastic dining options to match. If you’re looking to dine on something other than a bloomin’ onion at Outback, hit up any of these excellent… Read More →
Paris’ Most Sought After Reservation Scoring a reservation at chef Daniel Rose’s Spring is the stuff serious food lovers build a trip around (hundreds of reservation requests pour in daily, and the restaurant has a mere 28 seats – if you didn’t plan months in advance, call in the afternoon for the night’s cancellations). Located… Read More →
Paris’ Most Sought After Reservation Scoring a reservation at chef Daniel Rose’s Spring is the stuff serious food lovers build a trip around (hundreds of reservation requests pour in daily, and the restaurant has a mere 28 seats – if you didn’t plan months in advance, call in the afternoon for the night’s cancellations). Located… Read More →
Justin Yu on Where to Eat & Drink in Houston With an astounding blend of cultures and cuisine, Houston has long been one of America’s great food cities. But it’s only been until recently—with chefs like Chris Shepherd, Hugo Ortega and Justin Yu leading the pack—that anyone’s paid attention to the robust dining scene. Well… Read More →
Tune in for The Zimmern List in Las Vegas, May 15 9/8c on Travel Channel! I love Las Vegas. Don’t hate me. For decades, Vegas was essentially food negligent. There were some decent steakhouses and lousy casino buffets. Folks went to Vegas to gamble, see a show and lower themselves slowly into the hot tub… Read More →
On’s Thai Kitchen Located in Midway on University Avenue, On’s Thai Kitchen always makes it onto my list of top 10 favorite restaurants in the Twin Cities. There are many excellent choices for Thai cuisine in my hometown, but none transport me to Thailand quite like On’s. The 105-item menu has many recognizable standbys like fresh herby… Read More →
El Taco Riendo There are a handful of spots in the Twin Cities that I can rely on for excellent Mexican food, and El Taco Riendo is one of them. Located on Central Avenue in Northeast Minneapolis, the fast casual restaurant has a Chipotle-style ordering system where your meal is made fresh in front of… Read More →
Pho 79 As the cold weather settles in, all I’m craving is a steaming bowl of pho with rich, flavorful beef broth. Lucky for me, the Twin Cities are a pho-lover’s paradise. And in a town chock-full of great Vietnamese restaurants, it’s difficult to name the best, so I won’t go there. What I can… Read More →
Bellecour My friend Gavin Kaysen’s latest project, Bellecour, is an absolute stunner. The award-winning chef’s return to the Twin Cities in 2014 to open Spoon and Stable came with unprecedented buzz—a few years later and it’s still near impossible to score prime time reservations—but the announcement of Bellecour sent diners into a frenzy, with more… Read More →
Spoon and Stable After rising to chef stardom working for Daniel Boulud in NYC, Gavin Kaysen returned home in 2014 to open his first restaurant Spoon and Stable. Located in a beautifully renovated stable in the North Loop, it was the local restaurant opening of the decade. The hometown hero is one of the best… Read More →
The Best Thing I Ate Last Week Lucky for me, last week’s press junket for the season premiere of Bizarre Foods included lunch at Balthazar in New York City. Did I spring for the Plateau de Mer for one??? Yes, yes I did. This restaurant is one of my favorites in New York, serving French… Read More →
The Twin Cities’ Best Vietnamese Restaurants Home to a vibrant Vietnamese community, the Twin Cities are a pho-lover’s paradise. And in a town chock-full of great Vietnamese restaurants, it’s difficult to name the best. From fantastic noodle soups to Banh mi sandwiches, bao to broken rice platters here are our favorite Vietnamese spots. Quang If… Read More →
What Not to Miss in Austin The co-owner of Salt & Time, Ben Runkle is Austin’s leading meat purveyor. What was born from Runkle’s passion for Old World charcuterie, turned into the city’s first whole carcass butcher shop and salumeria when a partnership with Bryan Butler developed in 2010. The pair are committed to sourcing animals… Read More →
Devour Johannesburg A lively and diverse city, Johannesburg—known by locals as Jozi, Jo’Burg or Joeys—is the largest city in South Africa. With a history chock full of crime and decay, the city’s future is heading in a different direction. An influx of creative energy has tourists eager to visit and the city is coming back… Read More →
Nashville Chefs Create a Vegetarian Hot Chicken By Timothy Charles Davis After being made aware of my interest in Nashville-style Hot Chicken, I’ve had countless friends tell me that they want nothing more but to try a piece of the fiery foul but that doing so would effectively put the kibosh on their vegetarian/vegan lifestyle. I’m sympathetic… Read More →
Starting with episode one, Bizarre Foods has been all about increasing our capacity for patience, tolerance and understanding by studying food in other cultures. That’s why we put a family meal in every single show we make because all of us can relate to sitting down to a meal with our family members. We can relate, even if… Read More →
Feeding the Fire When Joe Carroll opened Brooklyn’s Fette Sau in 2007, he was among the very first pioneers to bring legit barbecue to New York City. A couple years ago, the New Jersey-native expanded his operation to Philadelphia, adding a second Fette Sau to his roster of restaurants (which also includes the neighborhood steakhouse… Read More →
Edward Kim on Where to Eat & Drink in Chicago After graduating from culinary school, chef Edward Kim worked in kitchens in Los Angeles, Seoul and New York City—most notably under Thomas Keller at Per Se—before returning to his native Chicago to open Ruxbin in Wicker Park. After the wild success of his globally-influenced 32-seat neighborhood BYOB,… Read More →
Renee Erickson on Where to Eat & Play in Seattle Renee Erickson bought her first restaurant when she was just 25 years old. Seventeen years later, she owns four successful, beloved Seattle restaurants–Boat Street Café (closing at the end of May!), The Walrus and the Carpenter, The Whale Wins and Barnacle–as well as the oyster trucks Boat Street… Read More →
Congratulations JBF Award Winners! As always, I had a fantastic time at the annual James Beard Foundation Awards, the nation’s most prestigious awards ceremony honoring professionals in the food and beverage biz. I’m so proud to be a part of this amazing organization that works hard on education, agriculture issues, food insecurity and hunger relief. You… Read More →
Garganelli with Prosciutto & Peas By Thomas McNaughton Especially if you swap out store-bought penne for the garganelli, this recipe can come together in a matter of minutes. In the restaurant, I like to add in arugula at the end of cooking so that it wilts in the pan, and then garnish the finished plate… Read More →
Recommendations for the Far Flung Faroe Islands Halfway between Iceland and Norway in the heart of the North Atlantic, the Faroe Islands have famously been described as ‘the windy edge of nowhere.’ The 50,000 Faroese who live among the 18 islands are proud descendants of a Viking culture that landed here 1,200 years ago. Centuries… 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 →
Defining New Nordic Cuisine Chef Gunnar Gislason celebrates Iceland’s unique culinary heritage, embracing once-forgotten ingredients and techniques at his much-loved Reykjavik restaurant Dill. In his new cookbook North, written in collaboration with food writer Jody Eddy (author of 2012’s Come In, We’re Closed), Gislason and Eddy profile various artisan producers who are reviving Iceland’s culinary heritage–a… Read More →
The Food-Obsessed World of Edward Lee A native New Yorker turned Louisville culinary ambassador, chef Edward Lee stars in the brand new third season of Mind of a Chef—the Emmy-winning PBS series, narrated by executive producer Anthony Bourdain, that delves deep into the inspirations and philosophies of renowned chefs. Lee’s brilliant cooking at his acclaimed… Read More →
From the culinary adventures of Bob & Sue… By Bob & Sue In addition to the many interesting Chinese restaurants found throughout the city, two other Asian restaurants have become important destinations for serious foodies: Burma Superstar This modest looking Burmese restaurant turns out street food inspired fare which brings high praise from its many… Read More →
Where to Eat & Drink on the North Shore By Molly Mogren Perched next to the great Gitche Gumee (that would be Lake Superior), Duluth, Minnesota and the North Shore offer up some of the most beautiful vistas in the northern United States. It’s also home to some pretty amazing food. That combo made this… Read More →
