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☆ Secrets of a superyacht and private jet chef
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Francesca Street | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +19 min

She loves cooking, traveling and adventure, so she’s working her dream job. So captains or crew would recommend me, clients would recommend me to their friends.” Grace Dvornik, private chef“I was hired as a chef right away on a 64-foot sailing yacht,” says Dvornik. “In my personal experience, I haven’t had many celebrities.”As well as accommodating a range of clients, Dvornik has also acclimatized to a revolving door of colleagues-slash-roommates. While yacht crew are usually confined below deck, Dvornik says there are opportunities to enjoy the perks of living on a superyacht. But working in private aviation, Dvornik gets to spend a bit more time exploring.

Persons: Grace Dvornik, Dvornik didn’t, Dvornik, Dvornik’s, “, ”, “ It’s, Dvornik “, she’d, ” Grace Dvornik, ” Dvornik, She’s, she’s, “ I’ve, she’ll, there’s, ’, haven’t, I’m, deckhands, –, It’s, ” Dvornik’s, they’ve, ” “ I’ve, Grace Dvornik Dvornik, it’s, ” She’ll, ” She’s, “ I’m Organizations: CNN, Ashburton Chefs Academy, George Brown College Chef School, J, Bravo, ” Yacht Locations: Caribbean, Bahamas, superyachts, Clearwater , Florida, Toronto, Canada, Wyoming, “, ”, Italy

☆ James Beard Foundation, Whose Awards Honor Chefs, Is Now Investigating Them
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( Brett Anderson | Julia Moskin | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The chef Sam Fore received an ominous voice mail message this month from an unknown number. The caller identified himself as a private investigator working for the James Beard Foundation. Later that day, Ms. Fore found herself on a Zoom call, answering questions from him and another man. Ms. Fore is among the first subjects of an investigatory process created in 2021 as part of that overhaul. But in many ways she is the kind of chef the retooled awards are meant to recognize more fully.

Persons: Sam Fore, James Beard, Fore, “, ’ ”, Beard, Ms, Tuk Organizations: James, James Beard Foundation Locations: United States, Lexington, Ky, Sri Lankan

☆ You can now pay $40 to get an empty seat next to you on some Qantas flights, and people can't decide if it's a luxury — or the airline making easy money off people
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( Reena Koh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Qantas's new 'Neighbor Free' program lets passengers block the seat next to them for a fee. 48 hours prior to departure, those eligible will be invited via email to buy a 'Neighbor Free' seat. The "Neighbor Free" program allows passengers to reserve the seat next to them for some extra space or perhaps to avoid an overly chatty neighbor. "I think I would pay the extra dollars, a little extra room would be lovely," said a man to Today News reporter Izabella Staskowski. On other airlines— including Singapore Airlines — hot towels and amenity kits are handed out to long-haul passengers in coach.

Persons: Izabella Staskowski, James Macpherson, it's, Macpherson, Rita Panahi Organizations: Morning, Qantas Airways, Sky News, Qantas, Air New, Singapore Airlines Locations: Sydney, Adelaide, Brisbane, Air New Zealand

☆ Pride Month in New York Is Back. Here’s How to Celebrate.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( Erik Piepenburg | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

New York City’s official Pride theme this year is Strength in Solidarity, an apt reminder that Pride was born as a protest movement against bigotry wherever it manifests. Also that day, Christina Aguilera headlines Pride Island, the big annual dance party, at Brooklyn Army Terminal. New York’s official Pride calendar also features a Juneteenth brunch with Black L.G.B.T.Q. chefs on June 18 and, on June 24, events centered on people of color and a Youth Pride party. The annual Dyke March — “a protest march, not a parade,” according to organizers — is June 24.

Persons: Pride, Billy Porter, Randy Wicker, Christina Aguilera, Black L.G.B.T.Q, “, — Organizations: Solidarity, ABC, Pride, Brooklyn Army Locations: Hudson, Queens, Brooklyn, Bronx, Harlem

☆ On a culinary homecoming, influencer chefs look to perpetuate Palestinian dishes
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( Emily Rose | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] Palestinian chefs from North America taste local Palestinian products as they explore the quality and richness of Palestinian products and sustainable agriculture, in Gaza City May 8, 2023. REUTERS/Arafat BarbakhJERUSALEM, May 29 (Reuters) - For Canadian celebrity chef Suzanne Husseini, a first culinary tour of the Palestinian territories was a chance to preserve and promote the dishes and folk-remedies of her ancestry. The chefs, with Palestinian roots, focused on traditional techniques such as how to turn the poisonous dark purple Palestine lily, which blooms in the spring, into an ingredient for soups and a traditional medicine. Mirna Bamieh, a chef and founder of the Palestine Hosting Society, which curates and seeks to revive traditional Palestinian recipes, discovered a local variant of the "kubeh" meat dumpling frequently associated with Kurdish kitchens. "It was super fascinating because you know, we always think that we don't have a kubeh culture in Palestine,” Bamieh said.

ONE OF grilling’s greatest virtues: the way the smoke does most of the work for you, infusing every bite of the food it touches with intense flavor. But even pitmaster-level proteins can use a saucy soul mate—just a quick swab of something sweet, sour, rich or spicy to translate a grill-hatched slab of beef or salmon or maitake mushroom into a meal.

☆ Japan's G7 summit menu: World leaders have plenty on their plates, including beef, oysters and sea urchins
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-20 | by ( Chris Lau | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Hong Kong CNN —World leaders attending the Group of Seven summit in Hiroshima have been treated to a belt-expanding tour of local gastronomical delights with a host of menus showcasing the best of Japanese fine dining. Leaders were also served sea bream with Japanese matsutake mushrooms, simmered stonefish and slipper lobster. Next came famously marbled beef sourced from Hiroshima – known as hiba beef – served alongside red sea urchin and eggplants, complemented by a selection of sparkling sake and red wine. For the main, they will be served with homegrown chicken and locally sourced mussels, according to the menu seen by CNN. And for those still hungry, Sunak and other world leaders will have plenty more opportunities to sample Japanese cuisine before they begin to depart from Sunday.

☆ Married Couple Behind the Los Angeles Restaurant Horses Trade Charges of Violence
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Julia Moskin | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Ms. Johnson has accused Mr. Aghajanian of assaulting her, visiting prostitutes and torturing a number of pet kittens to death. He has accused her of threatening to kill him and deliberately burning him with kitchen implements. In January, Mr. Aghajanian responded with a similar request as part of a divorce filing, saying that Ms. Johnson had verbally and physically abused him for years, both at home and in their restaurants. In that filing, he stated that the couple no longer lived together and asked for sole custody of the dogs. A judge denied his request for a restraining order “for lack of sufficient showing of good cause.”

☆ Kraft Heinz unveils customizable sauce dispenser with more than 200 condiment combos for restaurants
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( Amelia Lucas | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Now, Kraft Heinz wants to offer customers more than three times that number of condiment options through a new customizable sauce dispenser, created for food-service clients. The machine, called the Heinz Remix, is the latest example of Kraft Heinz leaning into its away-from-home segment to grow sales. In the first quarter, Kraft Heinz's North American food service division reported sales growth of more than 25%. In its latest quarter, Kraft Heinz reported North American sales grew by 6.2% as higher prices offset shrinking demand from inflation-weary shoppers. Shares of Kraft Heinz have fallen 3% this year, giving it a market value of $48.5 billion.

☆ A Florida sushi restaurant has repaid staff $262,000 after it made servers share their tips with owners and managers, the Labor Department says
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Grace Dean | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

A Fort Myers restaurant made its 75 servers share their tips with its chefs, owners, and managers, the DOL said. The sushi restaurant repaid staff $262,000 after the DOL uncovered a number of labor-law violations. The restaurant's manager told The Fort Myers News-Press that it was "all cleared up now." Ginza Japanese Restaurant in Fort Myers made its 75 servers share their tips with its chefs, owners, and managers, the US Department of Labor said in a press release. Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, employers are not allowed to require their staff to share their tips with supervisors, managers, and business owners.

☆ No, you can’t ride a lion on safari — why more companies are telling travelers ‘no’ these days
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Monica Pitrelli | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

It's one of the dirtiest words in hospitality — and travelers may be hearing it more these days. The travel agency Discover Africa had to say it when potential clients asked if their young son could ride a lion while on safari. "When we said no to riding a lion, the guest asked what other wild animals he could ride," said Susan Swanepoel, a senior travel consultant at Discover Africa. There was the Japanese company that wanted Japanese food, prepared with Japanese ingredients by Japanese chefs, for some 6,000 guests for six weeks surrounding the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. They wanted me to get hold of the camp manager to go to their tent to change the pillows around for them."

☆ Why Mother’s Day is the most hated day in the restaurant industry
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-12 | by ( Alexandra Peers | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

New York CNN —Mother’s Day is one of the busiest days for the American restaurant industry, presenting a massive operational challenge to restaurants. In fact, if I die and go to hell, I completely expect it to be Mother’s Day. Mother’s Day presents “an operational challenge,” said Shawn Walchef, owner of five Cali BBQ eateries in the San Diego area. “Your Mother’s Day meal can’t be obnoxiously expensive,” said Derek Axelrod, co-owner of Manhattan’s Upper East Side T bar restaurant. Their Mother’s Day menu will likely be upwards of $100 person, but won’t turn much of a profit, he said.

☆ A New Hope for Manhattan’s Chino Latino Restaurants: TikTok
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-12 | by ( Christina Morales | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

All of the cooks at La Dinastia’s kitchen are Chinese and have learned to make Cuban dishes over time. Many original cooks and waiters retired during the pandemic. Michael Lan, an owner at La Dinastia who has worked there for decades and is knowledge about the kitchen, is planning his own exit. “I’ll be there for him,” Mr. Lan, 64, said about the younger Mr. Lam. “But they’re getting old,” said Marvin Chu, 40, an owner who operates the restaurant’s three locations with his brother and great-uncle.

☆ Friends Once ‘Escaped’ Her Cooking. Now, She’s One of the World’s Best Chefs.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-11 | by ( Valeriya Safronova | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

In her first days on the job, Ms. Ros dreamed of transforming Hisa Franko into a travel destination. The prime minister of Slovenia, Robert Golob, who has known Ms. Ros since 2012, considers himself a fan. “Hisa Franko is an ambassador of our country as a culinary destination,” he wrote in an email. But in her career, Ms. Ros described facing added scrutiny because of her gender. Growing up in the 1980s in Tolmin, a short drive from Hisa Franko, she was a competitive skier on the Yugoslavian national youth team from about age 10 to 17.

☆ MSG: The world's most misunderstood ingredient
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( Maggie Hiufu Wong | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +12 min

Case in point – he has the letters “MSG” tattooed on his arm, and his restaurant’s menu includes a signature drink called the MSG Martini. “Things just taste better with MSG, whether it’s Western food or Cantonese food,” the chef tells CNN. You’ve probably been playing with glutamate, inosinate and guanylate in your own cooking without even realizing it. We season our food with MSG a little bit – it’s different from heating water and adding MSG and serving it with noodles,” he says. “Our mission from the very beginning was to show people what Cantonese food is and what Cantonese food can be – it’s always going to be playful, fun and approachable,” says Eng.

☆ ‘Compost Happens’ and Other Common-Sense Advice From Experts
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( Margaret Roach | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

When it comes to composting, where things break down — or don’t — is often where we get in our own way. We make the whole process too hard by fixating on details instead of the big picture. Commercial composting operations rely on those rules, and the science behind them, to produce material that is consistent and meets regulatory guidelines. We backyard composters can go a little easier on ourselves and still have great results, producing soil-improving bounty from our organic waste. Ms. Novak, who is also the founder and director of Growing Chefs, a field-to-fork food-education program, lives in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, where she composts in her backyard, too.

☆ Tesla? Caviar? Boots? At These Resorts, Everything’s Included
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( Danielle Braff | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

The all-inclusive resorts are happy to oblige. “Primarily, the difference is in the location, the higher level of accommodations and more personalized guest services — not to mention bragging rights,” said Mr. Fareed, the hospitality consultant. Big-name hotel brands including Marriott and Hyatt are entering the scene with their own ultraluxe all-inclusives. W Hotel (part of Marriott) is planning its all-inclusive Dominican Republic debut in 2025, while Hyatt is opening its new Inclusive Collection portfolio of resorts in Portugal, Mexico and Bulgaria. It follows in the footsteps of the Château de Villiers-le-Mahieu, an upscale all-inclusive estate that opened its doors in 2019 in a wooded park 45 minutes outside Paris.

☆ Oyakodon Is Bliss in a Bowl
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-07 | by ( Sam Sifton | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Oyakodon Is Bliss in a BowlGood morning. Bryan Washington has a lovely column in The New York Times Magazine this week about the joys of oyakodon (above), the Japanese rice bowl with chicken and egg. The name translates to “parent-and-child bowl.”Bryan’s eaten oyakodon all over Japan, and he’s perfected it in his home kitchen. …MondayI love this Ali Slagle recipe for crisp gnocchi with sausage and peas, draped in mustard and melted Parmesan cheese. It’s a hearty meal that feels like spring, but if you want to plush it up a little against a cold snap, add a splash of heavy cream.

☆ This is a 3D printed 'fish fillet.' Would you eat it?
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Jordan Hart | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Israel's Steakholder Foods and Singapore's Umami Meats teamed up to create grouper fish fillets in a lab. The process involves adding fish and plant cells to "bio-ink" for a unique 3D printer to create the fillets, Reuters reports. As the food technology industry makes strides in developing alternative nutrition sources, it's unveiling its latest invention — 3D printed fish fillets. "With our patent-protected printing capabilities, we know to 3D print exactly the same texture and flakiness of a real fish." Amir CohenBut don't expect to find the fish fillets at your local grocery store anytime soon.

☆ Why Monumental Cream Puff Towers Are on the Rise
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-04 | by ( Ella Riley-Adams | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

THE CHEF MOST often credited with inventing the croquembouche, the French-born confection that towers haughtily over any table it graces, was, unsurprisingly, an architecture enthusiast. He’d spend his afternoons in the national library across the street, mesmerized by images of architectural marvels. But it was the croquembouche in particular — a conical tower typically rising several feet high and constructed out of cream puffs (a.k.a. choux à la crème) bound together with caramel — that became a staple of French wedding banquets and, eventually, his legacy. Its name translated as “crunch in the mouth,” the pastry, when made properly, should deliver a gratifying crackle with every bite.

☆ Jenny Craig tells employees it will shut its doors
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Sara Ruberg | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Jenny Craig corporate and salaried field employees' last day will be Friday, and hourly center employees' last day working was Tuesday. Capital when it acquired Jenny Craig for an undisclosed amount in April 2019. For the past two weeks, Jenny Craig had been running out of money as it searched for a buyer. Two current Jenny Craig corporate employees say they fear the company will file for bankruptcy by the end of the week. Jenny Craig employees say there was no indication preceding the past two weeks that the company was spiraling.

☆ Michael Bennet demonstrates his go-to piquant tuna sandwich recipe after chatting with cookbook author Mark Bittman
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Warren Rojas | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Sen. Michael Bennet discussed food politics with cookbook author Mark Bittman in a new podcast. Bennet shared how he devoured Bittman's recipes during the pandemic and now cooks them regularly. Bennet told Insider he whips up a briny tuna sandwich creation every chance he gets. "I'm going to show you how to make the most sublime thing that is in Mark Bittman's cookbook," the Colorado Democrat says as he walks social media fans through a savory offering punched up by anchovy-spiked olive tapenade. "And I rattled off Mark Bittman's recipe for stir-fried tofu."

☆ Michael Bennet demonstrates his go-to piquant tuna sandwich recipe in chat with cookbook author Mark Bittman
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Warren Rojas | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

☆ The Particular Magic of Chicken, Egg and Rice
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Bryan Washington | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

Even just watching the glistening bowls of animated katsudon — fried pork loins, simmered in eggs — in animated episodes of “Yuri!!! But while every iteration of donburi is three kinds of magical, oyakodon is what I’ll always return to. Tiny epiphanies: the chicken’s suppleness, the egg’s slickness, the reassuring tug of rice on your teeth. Or my calibration of liquid to filling wasn’t quite hitting, overtaking the bowl of rice rather than collaborating with it. With every attempt, your preferences may change, and with every alteration you make, oyakodon becomes squarely, and decidedly, yours.

☆ The South Korean Chefs Redefining the Art of Pastry
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-01 | by ( Elyse Inamine | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

At the Park Hyatt hotel in Paris, Narae Kim combines the Nashi pear she grew up eating in Dangjin, South Korea, and the Williams pear often used in eau de vie into an eye-catching dessert: a fan of Williams wedges, some marinated in jasmine tea and others cooked in bergamot oil, alongside quenelles of pear-and-cassava sorbet, all topped with tiny orbs of Nashi pear liqueur. Ms. Kim had wanted to study pastry in France since she was young, taking pastry and baking classes in middle school and participating in grueling pastry competitions in college in South Korea. When Ms. Kim brainstorms desserts, she always begins with fruits like apricots, melons and cherries, which she would pluck from her family’s yard as a child, and builds on her ideas using the French pastry skills she has developed throughout her career.

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