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Nobody cut the cheese

Amazing. Our new government really is working for my specific needs. That absurd Bush-administration-imposed, 300% Roquefort tariff has finally been knocked down. Now, instead of taxing arbitrary EU food items to compensate for losses from the EU ban on hormone-fed U.S. beef, the USTR has negotiated to triple the amount of non-hormone U.S. beef exports over yonder. Logic - don't you love how it makes sense? And in fact, we should be seeing Roquefort prices dropping in about four years, when they remove all existing sanctions. If you're not quite a cheese fanatic, other items, like Pellegrino and ligonberry sauce, were also saved from the tax. This reminds me of the time Bloomberg banned smoking in restaurants, and almost makes up for the lack of universal healthcare. Well, not quite.

Rock on, Roquefort

My USTR contact just informed me the 300% Roquefort tariff has been delayed once again, pushing back to May 9 from April 23. This should allow more time to negotiate with the EU, and hopefully rescind the tax. Bated breath, my friends.

French Country Living

While waddling through France looking for food-related stories earlier this year, I simultaneously worked on a Country Living magazine feature, on chefs and their favorite recipes from their mothers. I know I sound like a luddite for being so impressed with technology, but I gotta say it was fairly awesome when I got a call from Sara Foster, who's based in North Carolina, while I was making faces with French cows in the Norman countryside. (Possibly as surreal as interviewing Frank Stitt over my cell phone from the floor of my friend's 6e Parisian flat at 2 a.m. GMT.) "Just Like Mom Used to Make" is out now, in the May issue, and also includes treasured recipes from PBS' Lidia Bastianich, Chicago-chef Rick Bayless, Lucques and AOC's Suzanne Goin, cookbook author Deborah Madison, Nancy Silverton (Mozza Osteria and La Brea Bakery),and Alabama's Frank Stitt.

(Pictures, above: Nancy Silverton's mom's Egg Salad Sandwich; below: Mrs. Foster's Chicken Pot Pie)





(More, left: Mrs. Goin's Priest's Pancakes and, right, Deborah Madison's mom's Cherry-Almond Babka)

Microlecule

Took the 51 down to Shattuck last night and went to Halsey Chait's first solo show at the Firehouse North Gallery (1790 Shattuck Ave./Delaware). I've been waiting for this one for a while and glad to have been in the right place at the right time.



It takes him about 48 hours to finish each piece (please fact-check, I was only eavesdropping) and yes, he needs to take breaks. Fingers cramp,etc.



(Above) This is a close-up of my favorite, "Night City." Limited-edition archival pigment prints (of all show pieces) are affordable, for now. www.firehousecollective.com.







And (below, left) the artist himself. Not bad, eh?

Consolidating

Unfortunately, my Giant Robot blog has been mysteriously corrupted and I can no longer post there. So it's as good a time as any to consolidate here.

Took the morning to head over to the water and catch a few waves. Before we mustered up the courage to paddle out at what we now refer to as "Ice Cubes," we stopped by a deli, where I ordered a bagel sandwich and started staring at the cover of this large-format magazine in the discard pile.



I immediately thought, "This guy is copping Dave Choe." And then I thought twice and sure enough...



It's the 2007 premiere issue of "boarding lifestyle" BL!SSS magazine -- and the best single-issue mag find since a friend got me the 1995 Drew Barrymore Playboy issue.





It's a nice, long interview, and ends with classic Dave: "I don't care about being right or wrong. I just want to live." I think he's still in China somewhere causing trouble...

Beef over Cheese

For the last two weeks, I've been reporting a story for the Los Angeles Times about the death of U.S.-sold Roquefort cheese, an innocent casualty in the EU/US dispute over hormone-fed American beef. Althought L'Aigle Noir, aka the Black Eagle, featured prominently in my article, I have to say my favorite Roquefort is the Papillon Black Label. It's richly flavored with a crystalline-like mold texture and is best savored in a dimly-lit room with some epic Chopin. Last week, I bought the last chunk of it at my neighborhood market for an astounding $10.99/lb -- the last time I saw it was at $44/lb in Silver Lake's Say Cheese shop, and in a few months, it may be closer to $100/lb. The cheesemonger told me it wasn't moving and he needed to get rid of it. While I was busy freaking out over my grocery coup, he explained to my friends who were with me that it was like getting vintage Jimmy Choos, still in the box, at clearance. But trust me, I'm going to town in these high heels.