Shrink in the Kitchen

A wonderful, intriguing piece in The NY Times today on salt.
The city wants to require chains to lower amounts of salt used in franchise or chain restaurants.
But a reporter went around town, collected favorite dishes from independent restaurants, and sent them to a lab.
The big loser was Katz’s, where, the corned beef sandwich had 4,490 [...]

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When we exchange our house in Cambridge, Massachusetts, or when friends ask me about my favorite restaurants here and in Boston, I come up with a list.
Here’s that list:
For Chinese, you can’t do better than Sichuan Garden in Brookline or C.K.’s Shanghai in Wellesley.  Sichuan Garden is the real thing: Varying heat and textures, so [...]

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It’s a mere 19 days until Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent.
Back when I was growing up, lots of kids and grown-up’s had little black ash crosses smeared on their foreheads as a sign of repentance.
Nowadays, fewer foreheads evince remorse.  I think Patti Smith has had an impact through singing: “Jesus died for somebody’s [...]

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Unemployment in Massachusetts is at 9.4%.  That tenth person you see on the street is out of work.
You’d never know we’re in an economic crisis from looking at Boston restaurant pricing for Valentine’s Day.
These are temple of gastronomy prices, well-deserved at iconic American restaurants like The French Laundry, Daniel, Le Bernadin, and Jean Georges.  But [...]

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