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Friday, June 15, 2007
Food Pulitzer-Winning Food Critic Likes Blogs
Posted by on Fri, Jun 15 at 9:40 AM
The world’s only Pulitzer-winning food critic, Jonathan Gold, likes blogs.
JONATHAN GOLD: Spot the critic who eats professionally 12 times a week…
Gold, who was in town last night for a panel discussion at the Hilton, says when he writes a bad review in the LA Weekly, even widely lauded restaurants have been known to close down within two weeks. That’s some power, and he’s learned to take his responsibility seriously.
“When I first started doing this, I had the blood lust, I couldn’t wait to close a place down. But the difference between criticizing a film and a restaurant is that when you criticize a restaurant you are impacting a small business. And I wrote a bad review of this mom and pop place, and it closed down, and two years later, I found myself missing that place more than any other.”It was a little jarring to see Gold share the stage with people from alternative papers around the country, since obviously, not every alt-weekly can afford the kind of criticism he’s doing. For example, the editor of a paper in North Carolina admitted her paper had stopped doing restaurant reviews after “we lost a lot of advertisers” for doing bad ones. Gold, on the other hand, will visit a restaurant obsessively until he feels he’s an authority on its food. He said he went to one place 17 times before feeling he could do it justice. He also drew a distinction between food criticism and food reporting:
“It’s like the guy who reviews the film or the plays, you go out and find something that rocks your world, and you write about it and hope that everybody gets as excited as you do.”Obviously, that’s going to require a pretty massive expense account. Gold, who describes himself as “in the entertainment business,” recently ate at every restaurant in LA county that cooks using fire, and wrote a piece on the aesthetics of fire and the way it works its way into food. I mean, Good Lord. He also spoke about reviewing restaurants by “world standards.”
“If there’s a French place, and that’s the best French place in Hollywood, but you really wouldn’t walk to the corner for it in New York, then you’ve got to be honest about that.”Er…right. I’m always saying the exact same thing, that to REALLY review a sushi place, you’ve got to be honest about how it compares to your favorite dozen sushi venues in Tokyo. Gold did have some encouragement for the rest of us mere mortals, however. He said he likes bloggers, because they build anticipation about a restaurant and there’s a kind of e-feeding frenzy that happens on food blogs every time a new restaurant opens. But the role of the critic, he said, is to reassure bloggers they’re right or wrong about a restaurant, when turning in their review:
“Bloggers are counting on us for standards and consistency of voice, and consistency of taste,” he said. “We’re professionals, and the learning curve is pretty steep. It’s not easy to do this. Some of it is experience, I eat 10-12 times a week, and have reviewed probably 2,000 restaurants in my career. I’ve read thousands of cookbooks, and when I’m writing about something I’ve probably read everything that it’s possible to read about it. It’s just qualitative.”What an inspiration.
Comments
I assume his face is already well known around LA or he wouldn't be doing public panel discussions that could lead to photographs of him on the Internet, right?
Possibly. Although New York Times restaurant critic Frank Bruni's photograph is plastered all over kitchens in New York, and I'd be surprised if likewise, Gold's appearance isn't etched into the consciousness of every maître d' in California.
Nah: Gold doesn't review the types of places that would want to ID him. His writing is far more about fringe places and mom-and-pop ethnic joints than elite temples of foodyism.
Well, that, and he looks just like every other fat douchebag in the country--could anyone seriously pick him out of a lineup?
Vic: As I'm starting to discover. I've just read his "Koreatown Top 40." Although he did mention last night that he'd gotten jaded writing for a big magazine with a $10,000 monthly expense account, and his 99 essential restaurants for 2006 include Urasawa on Rodeo Drive, which isn't exactly slumming it:
UrasawaI agree though, that he's a very democratic critic, and less likely to be impressed by glitz than he is by quality. He mentioned last night for example that at restaurants owned by celebrity chefs, the best time to visit is in the first two weeks, "about as good as it's going to get."This tiny, luxurious sushi bar is famously the most expensive restaurant in California, and most nights, it is also the best, with fish unseen anywhere else in the country. Other sushi restaurants display fish triple-wrapped behind glass in a refrigerated case; at Urasawa, the fish is out in the open, lighted as carefully as the tomatoes in a Carl’s Jr. ad, all glistening pinks and glowing translucence. If a particular leaf or species of clam is in its Japanese two-week season, it will certainly be on your plate. Waitresses refill your glass with sake, replace hot towels and remove plates so efficiently that you are barely aware of them at all. And Urasawa’s artistry with a fillet is surpassed in the United States only by that of his mentor, Masa Takayama — there is, one senses, an enormous effort to keep the customers in a bubble of serenity, an uninterrupted flow of bliss. 218 N. Rodeo Drive, Beverly Hills, (310) 247-8939. Mon.–Sun. 6–8:30 p.m. Full bar. Valet. AE, MC, V. Japanese. $$$
I mean, how many people can authoritatively write this sentence?!:
Even by the standards of Korean chicken-specialty restaurants, Keumsan is a peculiar place.
Cripes. I promise to stop posting this guy's prose in a minute:
A pre-appetizer of crunchy, golden cubes, the size of craps-game dice, breaded and deep-fried, is served with a jigger of watermelon gazpacho that emphasizes the similarities between the flavors of watermelon and cucumber. When you bite down on one of the cubes, it spurts hot corn soup into your mouth, not quite scalding but more than warm, and you follow it with the shot of iced gazpacho, cold chasing hot, tart chasing creamy, spicy chasing bland. Taken individually, each of the components is uncompelling, almost annoyingly so. Combined, the dish takes on a lively complexity, a dancing, satisfying whole.A dancing, satisfying, "pre-appetizer?" Holy fuckballs. I don't think I've even EATEN a pre-appetizer in my life. Amuses Bouches, sure. But a pre-appetizer? That has such an L.A ring to it. As in, "I'm going for pre-appetizers with Brangelina on Friday."
You guys are totally missing the point of what J-Gold is all about. He reviews hole in the wall ethnic food in LA, stuff like sea cucumber at Korean sushi places and intestine platters at Argentinean restaurants in the valley. In other words, he reviews interesting hard to find food that is not known outside of certain ethnic communities. He only reviews trendy, expensive restaurants unless they have something unique to offer. I have also only seen a picture of him twice, once after he won the Pulitzer, and on this website. Yes he is fat and kind of disgusting, but isn’t that what a real food critic should look like?
Matt, I've lost all repsect for you for using the word "Brangelina." I will however forgive you if you promise to never use that word again. Please, for the love of god, think of the children!
Pizzaface wins the prize for first "I know more about food than you" type on this post. Let's just revel in the beauty of this man's writing, guys! He should unify! Not divide us! Brangelina Brangelina Brangelina Brangelina.
Let's just revel in the beauty of this man's writing, guys!
I still remember a sentence from a review of his I read only once, about eight years ago: an ode to a burrito that was "shot through with a thick vein of yellow cheese."
I can't even follow what you guys are saying…who's that hottie to his left?
To "his" left, or to "his" right, GC? Confusing, I know. But he's facing us.
Back in the day, Gold was also a great champion of the LA punk scene: I remember seeing him at shows around town with his red curly hair and a black silk tophat.
A real character in addition to being a genuine talent.
er...my left. His right. Though, don't get me wrong — I'd imagine Jonathan would be happy with a Gold sandwich right there.
I've said too much.
I went to that panel, although I got there late.
And while I really like Jonathan Gold's food writing, and the idea that in celebrity obsessed Los Angeles he understands that just like most places in the world, the good food is often found in hidden alleys, available for under ten dollars, and made and eaten by some amazing people.
That said, this panel was bizarre. No wonder many alternative weeklies are struggling overall. Clueless or arrogant - that's how most of the weeklies (outside Willamette Week who moderated and asked some very good questions) came accross.
Blogs? What's this I hear about this crazy rock and roll you kids are listening to these days? Bah, it won't last (sarcasm).
Read CBF's account here:
http://www.portlandfoodanddrink.com/?p=975
My favorite line: "The lesson I learned from this panel: adapt and change with the world or die."
Darwin would be proud!
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One great thing about Gold's writing is the absence of elitism. He takes taco wagons (roach coaches, they call 'em in LA) as seriously as fine-dining places. He inspired me to have some interesting culinary adventures when I lived down there.