I truly wish they were throwing food. It would be more dignified. My post, a month or so ago, regarding the infighting between certain food critics, I assumed would be my last in that vein. I am not fond of repetition. Once addressed, should suffice. But they won't stop. It has now reached embarrassing and ironic proportions that bear dissecting, or, at the very least, discussing. I guess some people just like to stir the pot. Either because they have a propensity to do so or because they are convinced that this is the shortest and easiest route to a large following. There seem to be a few (or a very specific) critics who are showing their tell. I would gladly play a hand of cards against these people because they lack a literary poker face. I have struggled with my inner peacemaker who wants to ignore this fire that is being doused with accelerant, but I have such problems with turning a blind eye to manipulation and negative influences. So, here I am, for what it is worth, diving into the deep pool of shark infested waters. One restaurant, one well known chef, receives a rave review from a well established critic. Neither the chef or the critic happen to have been born in that city. Suddenly, both critic and chef are somehow at fault, or, at least, not worthy of the accolades or credibility. Right away, I am confused. As I have said before, critics are merely (hopefully) seasoned professionals in some aspect of the subject they write about, they write an opinion. They gather followings based on their reputation for being learned or having first commented on what usually becomes the shared experience. They are not always right, I am sure that some are unethical and some may be too soft. The list of possible faults could go on, they are, after all, human beings. However, one holds with the assumption that major publications or groups of discerning citizens choose to listen to certain restaurant critics because they value their opinion and have found them holding with their own. Now, newspapers and magazines, even books, have taken a hit. Cyberspace has dinged the chariot of the printed word and there isn't a body shop around that seems capable of restoring it to its former glory. So, therefore, in turn, have the critics who wrote for these publications. If papers and magazines aren't selling, if bloggers and sites like Yelp have become a second gospel for diners in lieu of anyone who isn't a 'well known critic', perhaps a few of these critics are lashing out at each other in a desperate attempt to gain more audience. When a critic who has made no attempt to conceal their disdain for another city becomes that same city's hero for attacking an 'outsider', something is amiss. Apparently the short attention span that is the internet and social media, manage to help some people, in that their audience has no long term memory. The latest criticism stems from the fact that a foreigner received the accreditation of 'best' in a city to which he is neither sprung from, nor resides in. The 'observation' is that this does harm to the wealth of talent that reside here and hints at their insignificance. The idea that a chef/restaurant owner who is not a local garnering such praise and status, does damage to our landscape, does not ring true for me - on principal. I do not believe that we rise to lofty heights by weakening the great stature of others. To denigrate another is, to my mind, to do more permanent damage to yourself. It may be hokey and trite to some, but you truly do reap what you sow. I happen to believe in the quilt of our culinary fabric. I always have. Hasn't stopped me from eating around the globe. When I lived or traveled elsewhere, I ate elsewhere. I appreciated it and learned a great deal too. I just happen to love where I come from and even though I believe that we Canadians are harder on ourselves than anyone else ever could be, I think we are a force to be reckoned with, on many levels. We may be young, but we have more talent in our kitchens and more determination as an industry than most. If the new guard is any indication, we have also learned a self confidence lately that will add to our game, this is imperative. We have a lot to be proud of, and a lot to show off. Do we really want to whine that the spotlight was turned on us because of some other player? Why not just take the opportunity to shine? Show them what you've got, instead of complaining. La Belle Provence of Québec is a neighbour that we could learn a lot from. A distinct society that has held on to more than just their language or culture. Settled by the French, yet distinct from the motherland. Québec could stand it's ground opposite nations twice their size. Why? Because they hold each other up. Canada may be divided on some issues, but we cannot dismiss or argue the strength inherent in a province that believes in itself. That belief has and will continue to weather many a storm. A restaurant rich community, Québec may lead the way on many fronts. I just wonder why it needs to become a partisan conversation. Michael Stadtlander, Jamie Kennedy, Susur Lee, Michael Bonacini, Marc Thuet... the list is endless - Toronto has an impressive family tree when it comes to cooking. I site these names as they are the ones bandied around as being our heritage and having been forgotten. Even though only one of these chefs was born here, they most certainly are our heritage in the restaurant industry. Does it matter that even the ones not 'of this soil' have been our staunchest proponents of Canadiana? These masters of food managed to unearth for us some of our greatest natural resources, train some of our greatest talent. If they have not been rewarded with the greatest of recognition and praise, then that is nobody's fault but our own. It is too late to go back. It is not, however, time to hem and haw about why our little neck of the woods is being noticed. We would not be here without the work of those that came before, the pioneers of our little town of eating establishments. They would all, no doubt, appreciate the recognition, but I scarcely believe that any of them would allow it to come at the price of one of their fellow chefs being stripped of any - no matter where he brought his knife roll in from. Anyone who has worked in the industry, or even those who haven't (but have read 'Kitchen Confidential') realize that this social media, sharing amongst chefs, is new. Instead of coveting (or physically hiding) concepts, menus ideas or ingredient choices, as they used to, chefs now send (in real time) photos of menus and dishes out over the web. One of their biggest audiences? Other chefs. Culinary masters and students have taken the leap forward that the music industry and the publishing industry never managed to have the legs for. Maybe because they are more creative, possibly because they learn to always be one step ahead or even if it is because some chose to believe they live on the fringe of society, they are not bound by the same rules. Grabbing social media by the horns, cooks have taken to their wireless devices and managed to congregate and burn so brightly, that they are attracting every moth, worldwide. Showcasing their talent, unearthing and reinventing classics, mining their territories for all their treasures - they are growing. I hear tell that Martin Juneau is launching an initiative that will further the cause. Gathering Canadian chefs, from all provinces, to cook in Quebec for 'Canadian Mondays'. Another chef, reaching across the aisle, making the restaurant world a better place. Growing and learning, at lightning speeds. Like that computer in War Games. So, cooks are banding together - as they do. Instead of a single kitchen though, it has become one, big, glowing furnace that never shuts down. On the other hand, some food critics are turning on one another. Ironic. Food bloggers get chided by, well, everyone. Some chefs don't see them as their 'BandAids' (Almost Famous!) and instead choose to lump them all together. Are all cooks the same? Do they hire everyone that walks into their kitchen? Groupies can't all like the same band and if someone's opinion holds no water, then it won't be long before it is evident. Those words, like the food chefs put up at the pass, speak for themselves. Some journalists see these 'freelance' food writers as, well, a threat, perhaps. Suddenly the multitudes have access to a platform and let's face it, everyone has an opinion. There is good and there is bad, in everything. Perhaps though, with the current trend towards Googling a restaurant instead of walking to the corner to pick up a paper and choose your food by what was reviewed, the old guard is feeling the pinch. Couple that with the feast of sites and internet mags devoted to food, designed by open minded and invigorated eaters, well, it is a brave new world. Perhaps learning to play nice in the new playground is the way to go. This new domain is not without pitfalls however. I have only been 'sharing with the web' for a couple of months but it only took half that time for me to receive an email from a major 'restaurant review' site offering to pay me for my "good reviews". I gave them the benefit of the doubt and answered that I would be more than happy to write well for them (even though I thought their site was built on purely 'citizen reviews') but that a good review, in my opinion, was an honest one and the only one of any benefit. I wrote, that if they were asking me to write positive reviews for restaurants for cash, that they were barking up the wrong tree. Never heard back.... Many notorious food critics have taught countless diners and travellers so much. A well forked bunch have also taught a chef or owner a thing or two, about a thing or two. Perhaps the rest will take a leaf out of these professionals play books, put down their swords and pick up their pens to continue in that positive tradition of touting the best, encouraging the brave and schooling the less skilled. The wave is rolling back upon itself and it is now the kitchen forging the way forward. The message seems to be one of a positive, inclusive nature. For there is no reward in winning by cutting someone else off at the knees. I happen to love the written word and am sometimes happiest flipping through the pages of an inky newsprint. Sometimes, it is even The New York Times and I don't think that makes me a traitor to my homeland. You can learn a lot when you step outside and sometimes even more when you invite someone else to your table.
