The New Status Fridge Is a Hidden from View

The kitchens of the wealthy in the United States today are capable of providing a humbling experience to the uninitiated. Attempts to procure ice cubes can transform the most dignified guest into a hapless burglar rummaging through drawers for loose gems. “I don’t think I’ve had a client that’s wanted to reveal their fridge for…

The Lighter Side of Octopus

Justin Smillie, the executive chef for the Il Buco restaurants in Manhattan and in Amagansett, N.Y., wanted to devise a lighter take on octopus. “I was looking for something other than the big steaky chunks you always see,” he said. So instead of cutting meaty cross-sections of the tentacles, he shaved them into ribbons the…

A Streusel Cake to Write Home About

The new streusel cakes from the Vienna Cookie Company in Baldwin, N.Y., are defined by their fillings of fruit, chocolate or nuts, sandwiched in between a tender cookielike base and a rich crumb topping. The cakes are the owner Heidi Riegler’s refinement of the typical New York coffee shop crumb cake and can go from…