I know I'm late to the ballgame, but Amanda Hesser seems to be writing restaurant reviews for the Times now. WTF? She had a fine, innocuous, interesting food column in the Sunday magazine, but something's changed. Back in the day, her engaging style made her attempts to hook Mr. Latte through his stomach into should-reads. (Nope, not quite must-reads. But certainly worth your while.) She conveyed determination, savviness, and an unwillingness to take herself too seriously -- all traits that I often find and admire in New Yorkers. (e.g. Julie, of the Julie/Julia Project. Read her archives.) I dunno if it's marriage to Mr. Latte (aka Tad Friend of the New Yorker...so the change certainly isn't his influence on her writing), but she's gotten pretentious, smug, and breezy without a hint of self-awareness -- this collection of traits is also a very New York quality, and it's one that happens to annoy the living bejesus out of me.) And what's with all the passive voice? Can we get an editor over here?

(All this is really just an excuse to link to Eurotrash's gleeful skewering of one of Hesser's reviews. It's a roundly deserved evisceration. (Felix Salmon also has some interesting comments worth reading.))

Can we get critics who really know how to write? Roger Ebert and Anthony Lane can't be the only ones. Heck, at this point I'd settle for good clear writing in the Times' food section, like Grimes', Asimov's, David Edelstein's, et cetera. Can't they put Johnny Apple on the case? Or am I forced to rely (the horror!) on my Zagat, turning to M.F.K. Fisher for literary sustenance?

Comments

[Chico]

They're still looking for someone to fill the role permanently, because it doesn't look like a good fit. Her discomfort really is showing, ain't it.

[Vidiot]

Apparently, no one wants the gig. (Oh, Mr. Sulzberger? Over here!) I can think of some people at the Times that at least have the kind of writing style I'd like to see there...R.W. Apple, as previously mentioned, but also Jacques Steinberg, Randy Cohen, etc. John Kessler of the AJC turns in solid if not flashy reviews. I'm sure critics at big papers around the country are equally good.

Heck, why not give Tizzie the job?

[tizzie]

I thought I heard my name!

Guess I better drop 'em a line, poor buggers.