Feed

Joshua David Stein

By Joshua David Stein 4/02 3:44pm

NPR

Neal conan

Team Coco: NPR Throws Talk of the Nation’s Neal Conan Under the Bus

NPR recently announced they would cease broadcasting Talk of the Nation in June, thus pulling off one of the most bald-faced betrayals since Judas in the Upper Room or Dylan in Royal Albert Hall. The betrayal cut along many lines and was felt, by this reporter, acutely.

The reason given for the cancellation was the clamor of member stations for “a magazine-style news show at the middle of the day, something along the lines of Morning Edition and All Things Considered.” But it seems to me Talk of the Nation was meant to give voice not to the Torey Malatias of the world but to the grain farmers of Nebraska, the taxi drivers of Detroit, the P.E. teachers in Denver. It was, that is, Radio for the National Public. No matter what reason given, that NPR is cancelling one of the only shows that did this directly cannot be seen as anything but treachery. Read More

By Joshua David Stein 3/26 4:40pm

the feed

Brioche Oxtail.

With Manzanilla, Dani Garcia Tries to Sell New Yorkers on High-End Spanish

To those who wish to listen, New York City is a cacophony of echoes. On street corners, near subways, now-divorced couples repeat their first kisses in endless memory loops. Crime scenes leave unseen scars long after the blood’s been scrubbed clean. Every threshold is a goodbye, every stairway a stumble. Everything to do has been done; everything new isn’t new at all. Stick around long enough and all you’ll hear are the echoes.  Read More

By Joshua David Stein 2/12 7:08pm

the feed

Le Philosophe.

Le Philosophe of Love: Noho Bistro Serves Supreme Cuisine with Side of Existentialism

It will soon be Valentine’s Day and, while I deny bitterness her dram and cynicism her laurels, I dread it. What is the holiday but a high striker in a cheap carnival of sentiment? No matter how bearded the artisanal chocolatier, what is he to Cupid or Cupid to him? Diamonds, teddy bears and roses are not tokens of affection but of carbon, polyester and cold Latinos standing in front of delis. There is, however, at least one way to celebrate Valentine’s Day of which I heartily approve. That’s eating at Le Philosophe, a new bistro on Bond Street.

There are many romantic places at which to dine on Valentine’s Day. Like bad Jews on Yom Kippur, every restaurant, from the white-tableclothed to the greasy spoon, is duty-bound to dress up once a year. The tropes of romance are dusted off and trotted out. There are enough hearts in New York this week to make Milton Glaser moan, enough candles for a mass exorcism and enough prix fixe to outrage the Sherman Act.   Read More

By Joshua David Stein 1/29 7:39pm

the feed

Antica Pesa.

Home Sweet Rome: At Antica Pesa, a Feast Fit for an Oligarch

The particular stretch of Williamsburg real estate on which Antica Pesa, a tremendously impressive Roman restaurant, opened in October is no stranger to cucina rustica. Restaurants where Italian food is served in charmingly ramshackle conditions are manifold. Between Fiore, Aurora, Osteria Il Paiolo and other vowel-heavy trattorie too legion to mention, wandering around the neighborhood Read More