Great round table of women chefs on NYMag.com. If female chefs are so rare, I think it's statistically interesting that so many of my favorite eateries in New York are helmed by women. Anna Klinger of al di la, Ilene Rosen of City Bakery, Rebecca Charles of Pearl Oyster Bar, Chika Tillman of Chikalicious, Gabrielle Hamilton of Prune, etc. At the Julia Child panel, Dan Barber revealed that he prefers to hire women in his kitchens because they're in it for the food, not the glory, which makes them better cooks.
As I've said before, I think David Chang cooks "male" food, and that's what's so appealing about it -- it's brash and unapologetic. So is there such a thing as a feminine palate/palette? In the article, Rebecca Charles says, "Women’s food is, for the most part, more accessible, it’s easier to understand, it’s friendlier, it’s more comforting, and it doesn’t get bogged down in all these nutty freaking trends." I would say that's true of the chefs I love. Chikalicious is a perfect example of the gender divide -- several of my male friends really don't understand why I love it so much, and most of my girlfriends worship at Chika's altar. On the flip side, I don't really get why Will Goldfarb has gotten so much more ink for his powders, gels and foams.
What about the idea of assigning gender to a dining experience? I ran into my friend Miho at Rai Rai Ken the other night. I had slipped in solo with the idea of slurping up a quick bowl of chahan and soup. Miho said that ramen joints in Tokyo were generally testosterone havens, and that a woman would have to have pretty big cojones to walk into one by herself. But New York women think nothing of it. (Because we have balls or because we don't give a shit if people think we have balls?)
The feminine food associations I can think of aren't exactly flattering to the sex. A deli by my work has a sandwich board which displays their AM offerings, including two kinds of omelettes -- a "hungry man" and a "skinny woman" -- how much you want to bet that the skinny woman means some wan egg white and spinach monstrosity on a cold wheat tortilla? Or "girly drinks", by nature fruity, sweet, and headache inducing. "Mom" and "grandma" associations are generally positive, but they're usually "comfort" foods -- heavy, sleepy dishes designed to knock you out.
Anyway, how about a quick assessment of your favorite restaurants -- are they led by women or men? I'm curious.
My sis makes very comforting friendly food, both at home and at work, and I often wonder if she'd get ahead in the restaurant biz faster if she was more into making those tricky foams and powders. Not to make it a big male-domination issue -- which it totally is -- but I wonder if top female chefs have to worry about "masculinizing" their food in the same way as women in other professions, and whether the comfort factor of said food is detectably sacrificed.
You've seen "Tampopo," right? I can't imagine you haven't.
My husband and I don't dine out often, but our favorite place is helmed by a woman - Caroline Fidanza at Marlow and Sons (and Diner) in Williamsburg. I've picked up more ideas about combining ingredients from her than anywhere else I've eaten in the city - meals there always leave me feeling inspired.
We're big fans of Prune as well, though we don't get there as often as we'd like.
Marlow and Sons is also helmed by a woman? I've only been there once, but I loved it. To be more specific, I immediately recognized that it was a place I would frequent often if I lived nearby.
I've given it some thought and I think women's menus tend to be diverse, with an emphasis on ephemeral tastes -- fresh herbs, seasonal vegetables, light sauces.
LOVE Tampopo, of course. Where's your sis cooking, Dom?
She is assistant pastry at Oliveto in Oakland.
Brian Lehrer has Anita Lo and other female chefs on WNYC right now!
The Good Fork in Red Hook is fantastic and has a female chef....
The Good Fork in Red Hook is fantastic and has a female chef....