Opening our Kitchen Cabinet

Obama may not have a Secretary of the Tasty yet, but we do. A bunch of them

Published November 23, 2009 6:01PM (EST)

Introducing the Salon Kitchen Cabinet: an esteemed group of brilliant chefs, cooks, wine and beer experts, explorers, historians, and at least one dude who cuts up cows and pigs for a living.

They are some of the most thoughtful, creative, smart and skilled people I know, and they’re here to help us answer your questions, whether you want to know how to fix your shoe-tough pie crust or you want to know about the philosophical implications of butter versus Crisco. (Send us your questions here!)

But, in the spirit of Salon, I also envision this group as more than that. I see it as a gathering of minds giving critical perspectives on larger questions of how food and drink work in the creative, social, political and environmental realms. We’ll be chatting with them frequently, and I hope you’ll join in.

So put your hands together and please welcome:

Amanda Cohen, chef-owner, Dirt Candy

Anna Lappe, co-founder, Small Planet Institute

Ann Cashion, chef-owner, Johnny’s Half Shell

Brooks Hamaker, founding brewmaster, Abita Brewing Co.

Bryant Terry, chef and Food Justice activist

Clark Wolf, food and restaurant consultant

Grant Achatz, chef-owner, Alinea

Greg Higgins, chef-owner, Higgins

Jessica Harris, professor, Queens College

John T. Edge, director, Southern Foodways Alliance

Michael Laiskonis, executive pastry chef, Le Bernardin

Peter Jacobsen, grower-owner, Jacobsen Orchards

Shelby Kibler, principal, Bake! Zingerman’s Teaching Bakery

Steven Kolpan, chairman of wine studies, Culinary Institute of America

Tara Thomas, senior editor, Wine & Spirits magazine

Tom Mylan, butcher-owner, the Meat Hook

Wylie Dufresne, chef-owner, wd-50


By Francis Lam

Francis Lam is Features Editor at Gilt Taste, provides color commentary for the Cooking Channel show Food(ography), and tweets at @francis_lam.

MORE FROM Francis Lam


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