Now I know how DeNiro feels. Or Barack. Or these ten folks (pay particular attention to 80’s screen idol(?) Corey Haim’s defining moment). Yes, it’s fun and oh-so-self-indulgent to wax narcissistically about one’s past, present and future. But Vegas Wineaux’s Irene King (one of our newest and fun-est Friends In Food) asked, so The Food Gal and I met her for an hour of chit chat and friendly interrogation.
A little culinary history, and some hope
Tell me what you eat and I shall tell you what you are. — Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin – French gastronome, author and lawyer(?!)
Every famous food town is identified with certain raw materials or recipes. San Francisco has its Dungeness crab; Seattle its oysters and salmon. Chicago-style deep-dish pizza (something we loathe), and Baltimore crab cakes (something we love – especially from Faidley’s) are part of everyone’s vocabulary. And who hasn’t heard of the Cajun/Creole delights of New Orleans? Even that bastion of culinary excellence(?) known as Denver has its Rocky Mountain oysters, for gosh sakes. Unfortunately, all we have ever been known for in Vegas is The Buffet, which is, no matter how fancy they make them, more of a culinary joke than something to be proud of. With a heritage like that, it is ironic that now we’ve achieved worldwide gastronomic fame for something exactly the opposite of cheap eats, and lots of it. For if there’s one thing Vegas is now known for, it’s the $300 dinner for two.
Will we ever have decent, locally-owned eateries in the neighborhoods that don’t cost an arm and a leg? Well, here’s some history, and some hope.
Even more burger love
THE BA FOODIST (taking its lead from ELV no doubt) features Celebrity Chef Burgers in today’s post. Inexplicably, the food-writer-as-rock-star/languidly-locked Andrew Knowlton omitted the Bradley Ogden Bar Burger. ELV posted a comment to his site (and this one), so that all would remain right in the perfect burger universe. Just thought you’d like to know.