Photo by Caitlin Abrams
Thanksgiving dinner
Thanksgiving is my jam. There’s no better way to show my love than to gather people in my life around a big table and just cook the day away. But it’s more than Parker house rolls chasing gravy on a plate. Thanksgiving is a reminder to acknowledge gratitude and grace in our lives. Since you guys can’t join me at my house on that special Thursday (I don’t have enough forks), I thought I’d start a food-themed thank-you note right here.
I’m grateful for the candlelit moments I experienced at the world-class La Belle Vie, which closed about a year ago. I am perhaps more grateful that its legacy lives on through its sparkling alums such as chefs Adam Eaton at Saint Dinette, Mike DeCamp at Monello, Diane Yang at Spoon and Stable, and Adam Gorski at Young Joni. Restaurants will always open and close, but only a special few leave a mark.
Since you can’t join me at my house on Thanksgiving, I thought I’d start a thank-you note here.
I am both proud and thankful that when the chips are down, the restaurant industry comes together. It shows up daily to cook and donate food/time/gift cards to charity, and to man booths at functions when there’s barely enough staff to go around. Restaurant pros take care of their own in a way I have never seen in any other industry, organizing money and food to aid their staff when cancer strikes, or their chef gets hit by a car, or their wine purveyor’s house burns down. This comes from a very special place where your co-workers are family. Restaurants are made of people, after all.
Finally, I’m thankful for the connection you and I share through this magazine. That I’m able to eat across the Twin Cities and bring my finds to you, opening the door and ushering you into your best anniversaries, birthday dinners, girls nights, and daily meals is a privilege I will never take for granted. In the next year, I promise you more laughter, more crumpled napkins, more explorations of gas station barbecue, more burgers, and more delicious discoveries that we will make together.
Oh, and one more thing! Bread—I’m super thankful for bread.
