"I Hate Food" ... actually I hated working in restaurants
Rekindling my passion for learning about food.
My famous, overused phrase in 2022: “I hate food”
but “maybe, I just hated my job” - Pamela, 2023.
“Let’s start a food newsletter and TikTok page” - Pamela, 2024
Spoiler Alert — I just hated my job. wasn’t used to being a newly working woman in the restaurant industry.
Recently, I have been reading, watching, and writing, about food as a desperate attempt to bring back my passion for it.
From Top Chef to Chef’s Table and dissecting an entire cookbook for stories rather than recipes, I’ve come to find that I’m excited to step back into the kitchen again.
Sidenote: I used to host dinner parties for my friends while my family members were out of town. There would be spreads of burgers, tacos, desserts and snacks, and of course tequila. Once every month and it’s still one of my fondest mems~
My first run-in with learning about cultures through food started in middle school when I moved to Northern VA from good ol’ Columbia, MO.
I became fully aware of Vietnamese cuisine during this time through the friends I made. Going to their houses to have ban xeo, pho, and other dishes. We would also drive 30-40ish minutes to Annandale or Centreville for Korean food and pastries. In hindsight, those days felt like we flew to Seoul, that’s how authentic some Korean restaurants were in those areas. (Lived in Korea for two years).
Sidenote: Another one of my fondest mems growing up~
Reminiscing aside, I feel like because of my previous job, I lost the spark I had for a lot of my passions. One of those being playing around in the kitchen of course. So Feb and March have been about re-learning my way around the Kithchen and discovering new cuisines which I get into later in the newsletter.
Alright let’s get into some fav’s before I run out of character space *facepalm*
What I’m Chequing Out
Watching instead of eating. This month’s shows:
I’ve been diving into the Chef’s Table rabbit hole again. Discovering chefs, and the stories behind their food. I think this is my favorite thing: educating myself on different cultures through food (and language). The world is SO huge for me, and being able to travel by plate…chef’s kiss!
Reading more than chewing. This month’s read:
Before the Cofee Get’s Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi
For the Culture: Phenomenal Black Women and Femmes in Food by Klancy Miller
I just finished the section featuring Julia Coney, a trailblazer for Black women in the Wine industry. I’m Obsessed! I plan to dive deeper into her blog to learn more about her style and educate myself on good GOOOODDD wine.
Overall, I’ve been trying to read more cookbooks and columns to learn more about the food world outside of just eating LOL. Honestly, it’s been super cool! I've become obsessed with the lives of these writers and chefs. They have this — je ne sais quoi — that gives off such a cool girl/guy/them vibe.
What’s Been On the Menu
February (and March) was all about slow cooking and connecting with ingredients. I have been studying The Mediterranean Dish’s recipes like I’m being tested in school.
This is from a girl who literally “cannot cook” by the way. But alas, my kitchen has been full of various popular Mediterranean recipes such as Middle Eastern Kofta, exploring new spices like Sumac that I’ve NEVER cooked with, and making yummy Greek salads to keep things simple.
Let’s get into some of my favorite restaurants this month:
Billing List
What I’m begging the universe to simply drop into my lap without me having to pull out my wallet.
Pleasseeeee bury me in these! THEY’RE SO CUTE!!!
Cookbooks - like I mentioned earlier. I’m starting my little collection of favorite cookbooks that I hope to read in this lifetime.
Thanks for sharing space with me at my table. Until next time….Waiter? Can I have the check…I mean…Cheque Please! <3
Loved this blog/newsletter for the food magnets you should check out polymer clay that’s of you’re crafty , if not they’re many polymer clay artists who make and sell the magnets at reasonable prices, can’t wait to check out your next substack <3