food of friendship

“I don’t know where you’re from, but I know your middle name and how you fell in love,” reflected Daniel, a guest at the first monthly Chez Heureuse dinner party. Upon moving into our apartment, my roommates and I began hosting monthly, themed dinners in order to bring together each other’s friends and expand our own communities in the city. After our first meal – a New Year’s-themed affair centered on tales of resolutions we kept and resolutions we failed – the group lauded the success of the meal, forging friendships among men and women who otherwise would never have met.

cultureKendall VandersliceMay 19, 2015gastronomy, commensality, ethnographyComment

waste not, want a lot

Last week at work, the bakery team began discussing the possibilities of brew mash: the hydrated, spent grain leftover after the first step in the process of brewing beer. After the starches and sugars are extracted for fermentation, the remaining grain gets tossed aside. Kate, one of our newest bakers, told of her grandfather in Utah who feeds the mash to his cows. Curious about other potential uses for the waste, she began researching brew mash bread.

cultureKendall VandersliceApril 28, 2015breadComment

superbowl throwback

In honor of tonight's big game, here is a throwback to Super Bowl 2012, or the time I hiked through the African bush solely for the sake of the story.

cultureKendall VandersliceFebruary 1, 2015Football, Super Bowl, Tanzania, ThrowbackComment

milk and memories

There is something about New York that lures the unsuspecting heart into believing its shimmering skyscrapers and busy streets could serve as a home. Though the transit system proves confusing (I received a $100 fine for failing to realize the Metrocard must be swiped at a stall on the sidewalk before entering the bus) and most everyone is absorbed in their own minds (dear snarky sir who served me coffee, it would not hurt you to at least feign gratitude for a cheerful, inquisitive customer), the bustle of people and the concentration of talent invigorate the extrovert in me. Every time I visit, I leave in a state of confusion and discontent, simultaneously anxious for my own bed but already prepared to return again soon.

cultureKendall VandersliceJanuary 20, 2015stage, culinary education Comments

the memorable meal

A few days ago, I went out to dinner with two friends that were in town for the weekend. As we sat enjoying a meal of assorted small plates amidst the colorful décor of Sarma, a Middle Eastern restaurant in Somerville, we discussed the ability of a food space to encourage a certain type of conversation within its walls. My roommates and I often discuss the use of space within our own home as we seek to bring others in, but it was interesting to broaden the conversation to the restaurant space as well.

cultureKendall VandersliceJanuary 6, 2015food culture, food space, commensality Comment

critical thinking and the future of food

This past semester I took a course titled Food and Literature: The Invention of Modern-Day Food Writing. As we worked our way through 19th century French authors – Brillet-Savarin, Fourier – up to M.F.K. Fisher, A.J. Leibling, and Ruth Reichl, I continually found myself asking, “What’s the point?”

cultureKendall VandersliceJanuary 3, 2015food writing, food culture, gastronomyComment

flavors of home

Every Monday night of the fall semester, Harvard University offers a series of weekly lectures on Science and Cooking, inviting in some of the industry's greatest contributors to offer demonstrations on the science behind the food they create.

cultureKendall VandersliceNovember 4, 2014food science, gastronomyComment

a chinese feast

This semester, I am taking a class called the History of Food. By reading recipes and records of feasts from various historical periods, we are cooking our way through the centuries to examine the evolution of taste.

cultureKendall VandersliceSeptember 30, 2014history, food studies, gastronomyComment