LETTER from the EDITOR
-PATRICIA VACCARINO-
Dear Friends and Colleagues: Greetings! November is a time of going inward and taking comfort in the small, good things in life that sustain us. What would life be without fresh baked bread, mulled cider and 17 varieties of winter squash, and the scent of cinnamon, nutmeg and apples permeating bakery shelves, coffee shops and our own kitchens? The artful preparation of food is dynamic and always changing, a blend of the old and the new and the fusion of ethnic cuisine from all over the world. In a large way, comfort food is as diverse as the many types of people who live in America.
We look at food from many different perspectives, from exploring the food that was truly on the first Thanksgiving menu to learning the inner design process that creates a warm and engaging restaurant environment and dining experience. The celebrated designer Tim Girvin shares his process for the creation of a restaurant that is much more than a place to dine but is also a place to experience. Superb photographers Ilya Moshenskiy and Bill Lulow share some of their scrumptious pics of food, and Don Mazzella shares a Thanksgiving story about his Uncle Salavatore Mazzella Uncle Doad, who had a heart as big as his stomach. We pay tribute to an extraordinary woman, Chef Mary Beth Lawton Johnson, who works on the land and on the sea.
As always, we are here to share your stories with the world and we offer great thanks to live in a democratic nation that is truly a breadbasket of ideas. Happy Thanksgiving!