When the Road was Dirt

I’m afraid you’re dying Yes. I know. I’m too old, too heavy to lie here like this. I wish there was something I could do. I don’t want to lose you. My time has come. There’s nothing to be done. I’ve had a good life and seen many wonderful things. Tell me. What kind of […]

The Road to Jericho

The leaves of Western North Carolina had just started to turn. My Ford hummed along Interstate 26 and its tires sang their steady note. Outside the leaves shimmered in every shade of green, yellow, and orange and in a few more days they would be at their peak. Half a mile further the mountainside bore […]

Elephants, Robots, and Engineers

If I asked you to name the techiest country on earth, the one that’s invented the best gadgets and created a variety of cool appliances, you’d probably say Japan, or maybe Germany. Rightly so. In the last 25 years or more, many of us have looked to Japan’s relentless creativity for phones, laptops, cameras, TVs, […]

Three Meals and One Babka in Boston

I love babka, a proper handmade babka, and believe it is one of the most lovely bites of food on planet earth. Imagine something as buttery and rich as croissant dough, rolled out until it’s as thin as a bedsheet, brushed with warm chocolate ganache (cream and chocolate melted together), rolled into a thick cylinder, […]

The Ghost of Court Street

We were expecting another guest and although the weather was springtime rowdy with wind, a few cracks of lightning, and hard rain, I distinctly heard footsteps coming up the stairs. Me being the gracious host that I am, I set down my knife and walked to the top of the stairs to welcome our late […]

My Farewell to the Woodlands Staff

For almost 30 years, Hiro Sone captivated enthusiastic diners at his Napa Valley restaurant, Terra. There was a time between the early 1990s and late 2010s when one could often find Chef Sone on the cover of Gourmet, Bon Appetit, Food and Wine, or any restaurant journal. I was a fan of his cooking, his […]

The General Would be Proud

In mid-July, the corn fields of Newberry, SC stand tall. The stalks are but a couple of weeks from harvest and when a slight breeze traveled through, their leaves rustled with a paper on paper sound. In the 95 degree/105 heat index heat somehow the fastest cyclists found a way to average 23 mph. They […]

Hail King Shatner

It’s Mardi Gras season in my hometown of New Orleans.Mardi Gras is not one single day, rather an entire season beginning on Twelfth Night, the 12th day after Christmas and continuing up until Fat Tuesday, the day before Ash Wednesday. As the town draws closer to that Tuesday, the celebrations, parties, balls, and parades get […]

Merry Christmas

Many Christmases ago I spent 18 months at the Executive Sous Chef at Charleston’s glorious Mills House Hotel. I adored working there as I had a fabulous culinary team, there were occasional ghost sightings, our customers were global, and the hotel’s management was smart, clever, and also loved being a part of the Mills House. […]