The Year in Eating

Travel Blog  •  David Farley  •  12.23.08 | 4:44 PM ET

alinea, chicagoPhoto of food at Alinea by xmatt, via Flickr (Creative Commons)

Food experts are rolling out their predictions for 2009 and they’re really going out on a limb forecasting, for example, that recession specials are going to be huge. Here’s what we think about eating in 2009: there will be no food because there will be no restaurants because no one will have much money to eat anything. Which will then make things that were previously unappetizing, very edible. (Yes, we’re looking at you dog!) Really, though, rather than look forward—after all, the future of eating doesn’t look so pink in the middle right now—let’s take a breather from all this fortunetelling and glance backwards to better times. This was the year of both Greek yogurt and mixologists. It was the year that Korean cuisine pissed all over Chinese food (Chinese will make a huge comeback in 2010, we think). And it was another great year for David Chang. But here are a few things we’d like to dwell on:

Spain

Foodies seriously turned their attention to Spain this year. Tony Bourdain showed up and proclaimed it “The best place in the Western world to eat.” Later Batali ate his way around Iberia, devouring anything with four legs that vaguely emitted “oink” sounds.  He was accompanied by Gwyneth Paltrow, Mark “Bitty” Bittman, and Spanish actress Claudia Bassols. Oh yeah, Spain is also the home of a guy named Ferran Adria, who happens to be the most celebrated chef on the planet.

The Politics of Water Drinking

Sparkling or still? Before 2008, asking for none of the above in favor of tap water at a fancy restaurant would set off a loud needle scratch followed by stares of bewilderment from fellow diners. But thanks to heightened awareness of the soon-to-be fiery ball we call Earth, buying bottled water in a restaurant has become about as politically correct as shooting a wolf from a helicopter. For obvious reasons (hello? Drunken oblivion), no one is whining about wine yet. 

Grant Achatz

The acclaimed chef at Alinea has become the poster boy for the Chicago restaurant scene, which restaurant critics have deemed the dining darling of American cities. Why Achatz? Maybe it was new cookbook. Maybe it was that he overcame tongue cancer while still churning out avant garde dishes. Maybe it was the New Yorker profile. Not that Chicago isn’t worthy of world-class dining status. It about time the Second City overcame its artery-stiffening reputation. It didn’t hurt that Barack Obama took the occasional break from the campaign trail to eat at some of his favorite non-sausage-serving Chicago eateries, namely Spiaggia and Topolobampo.

Italian is Not the New French

For the last few centuries, Italian cuisine has been about the salt-of-the-earth eatery. The mom and pop outfit. The mustached chef who speaksa lika thissa: “I make-a-fer-you-da-spicy meatballa.” Starting a couple years ago and culminating in 2008, non-mustached chefs have successfully elevated a simple “cucina povera” without accidentally turning it into French cuisine. Well done! Who needs Batali when, in New York alone, 2008 newcomers include such stands outs as Convivio, Scarpetta, and the soon-to-be-more-casual Bar Milano.

If I have to make one serious prediction it’s something that won’t happen in 2009: despite having a charismatic half-Kenyan in the most powerful office in the world, the nearly one billion people starving on the planet right now are unfortunately going to be just as hungry in a year’s time. That doesn’t exactly wash down your foie gras terrine as well as a robust glass of Barolo, but it’s important to put our food culture into perspective with the rest of the world. I say, bring on the recession specials.



4 Comments for The Year in Eating

Jamal Nassar 12.24.08 | 1:11 AM ET

Great Article… visit my website for my 20 years in 20 countries life story.
Just started.. will be adding about one country every week or so….


Thanks,


JN

Ben 12.24.08 | 12:21 PM ET

Thanks for putting things in perspective Farley. Also, your powers of prediction continue to amaze and intimidate…

Lola Akinmade 12.29.08 | 8:54 PM ET

Loving your food blog!

Darrin DuFord 12.31.08 | 12:52 PM ET

Great piece!  Glad to hear tap-water-drinking heathens like me are no longer heathens.

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