In retrospect, the July 2002 news release announcing the opening of “ Bon Appetit! Julia Child’s Kitchen at the Smithsonian ” wasn’t overly optimistic. The National Museum of American History scheduled the exhibit to run only through February 2004, a mere 18 months. Nearly a decade later, the Smithsonian will begin to dismantle Child’s kitchen after the last visitor leaves the museum on Sunday, Jan. 8. Not to worry, though: The kitchen — and its 1,200-plus objects — will return this summer as part of a larger exhibit that will put Child’s favorite room in its proper context. Read full article > >

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‘Julia Child’s Kitchen’ to close temporarily on Sunday

Last week, we showed you our most popular posts by the numbers – which is dandy, to be sure – but sometimes the stats don't tell the whole story. 2011 was a massive year for us; we won an EPPY award for Best Food Website with 1 million unique monthly visitors and over , traversed this wide, wild and wonderful country hosting Secret Suppers with some of the most passionate and intriguing people in food, the arts, politics and social justice. We also popped up on TV a whole bunch and pretty much spent every single day pursuing food stories that made us think, laugh, feel, scream, discuss, debate and, perhaps most importantly, get ourselves into the kitchen, where on occasion, we cooked squirrel . Here are a few of our favorites. Sarah's picks: Missing home cooking? Borrow a grandma The only thing better than one grandma is five Italian nonne. We visit Enoteca Maria, a Staten Island restaurant owned by Joe Scaravella that employs an arsenal of local, authentic Italian grandmothers to cook up the specialties of their respective native regions. Scaravella opened the restaurant because he lost his own nonna before he was able to document her delicious (and love-fueled) traditions, and didn’t want to same fate to befall anyone else. The resident grandmas keep the home fires burning and prove food can provide not only physical nourishment, but emotional nourishment too. Serving up gratitude in troubled times The old adage goes, “when life gives you lemons, make lemonade.” What’s even better is when somebody makes it for you. Drew Robinson reflects on how sometimes even the smallest offering – like a bowl of potato salad – in trying times can provide a world of comfort, and that nudge of support to move forward knowing someone is there to stand you back up. Stall confessions: Life lessons from my lunch box It’s not easy being a kid. It’s especially not easy being a kid that’s a little bit different from everybody else. As much as food can bring us together, when you’re young and still trying to find your own identity, it can also set you apart. Devna Shukla shares an honest tale of eating in her elementary school’s bathroom after her Indian mom forewent the usual brown bag PB&J for traditional Indian fare. While shameful at the time, the experience ultimately helped her embrace her Indian heritage. Wines you should be drinking Let’s face it, wine can be intimidating (yeah, we’re looking at you Mr. Tastevin-wearing sommelier). BUT – it doesn’t have to be. In any uncomfortable situation, it’s human nature to go to – where else – your comfort zone. In the world of wine lists, that usually means a varietal you recognize and/or can pronounce. The very talented Mike Madrigale explains how this might be doing your taste buds a disservice. Pinot Grigio gets a lot of lovin’ – share the wealth. The psychology of food aversions There are foods that we can’t even look at – let alone eat – without turning the color of Kermit. (Hey, it ain’t easy being green.) The good news is it’s not your fault! Blame a million-year-old survival mechanism. David Kinch: Why culinary Japan matters – and even more so now If you ask any chef out there what country they admire most in terms of culinary culture, more often than not, the answer is Japan. And what a challenging year it’s been for the Pacific country. One can only hope food will help them cope – and survive. If this piece teaches us anything, it’s simplicity and respect for the ingredients. Whereas we live in a country often lambasted for our consumption of processed foods (we’re working on it!), it’s nice to highlight a culture where as Kinch said “it’s only the good stuff with no place to hide.” Pouring whiskey in the wound Some of the best food writing isn’t about food at all – but rather adds it as an relatable element. A poignant piece about the ability of finding comfort in food during one of the nation’s most trying times. A life in waiting It’s not just the chefs making it happen. Waiters often get a bad reputation as struggling actors or deadbeats, but for many, serving food is a conscious, calculated career choice. This piece shows the depth in which passion is so vital and important to work and thrive in this industry. Honorable mention: Stuffpuppies. Stuffpuppies! STUFFPUPPIES! Because, dude, they’re mashed-potato-filled, deep-fried balls of stuffing. The best sandwich in the universe – at least for the month of August Because, dude, it’s a tomato-mayonnaise sandwich. Kat's picks New Orleans: The food that got them through In the wake of unspeakable tragedy, sometimes a hot meal – or any meal at all – can be what gives you the strength to go on. Part of our week-long love letter to New Orleans, including the dinner of a lifetime with John Besh, Leah Chase, Mary Matalin and James Carville. Five sustainable lessons from a family farm Sometimes, it takes a shepherd to lead you to a better way. Craig Rogers explains what “sustainability” means for a small family far, and how you can help at home. The kid with the stinky lunch , Sundays are for Dim Sum , My first Thanksgiving with white people and Stall confessions: Life lessons from my lunch box Food says so much about where you’ve come from, where you’ve decided to go, and the lessons you’ve learned. It’s geography, politics, tradition, belief and so much more – but that's not the easiest lesson to digest when all the rest of the kids in the lunchroom are munching PB&J and you've got a plastic tub of kimchi from home. What makes you weird as a kid makes you one heck of an adult. Why barbecue matters In the words of Drew Robinson, “When we sit down together now, barbecue can help remind us that we need to be thankful for what we have. Hogs are one part of a food chain that have helped sustain a people and create a meaningful culture. Barbecue manifested itself as a piece of that cultural tapestry so powerfully that it even has its own subcultures. Tracing those lines back from a rack of ribs or a barbecue sandwich enjoyed with friends and family reminds us that we have a lot to be thankful for. In fact, in some households, particularly in the South, grace doesn’t end with 'Amen,' it ends with 'Amen, let’s eat.'” How the modern day tomato came to be Why does that ripe, red, juicy-looking tomato taste so…grim? “Tomatoland” author Barry Estabrook spoke with us about the farming conditions that led to the nearly taste-free tomato of today – and the allegedly inhumane conditions in which the pickers live. Naturally, the industry had something to say in response. Give squirrel a whirl I was delighted when Dave Barry picked up my “chicken of the trees” monicker for squirrel meat and a blogger wrote that I “give internet food bloggers a bad name” for suggesting that good, decent people make a meal of the fluffy-tailed terrorists. It delighted me even more to have to the opportunity to serve it to some of the country's best chefs and food writers at a party at my home. I warned 'em, but not a single person turned it down. $30 a week – the food stamp challenge Producer Sheila Steffen, inspired by the women she met while filming a story on hunger for American Morning, put her money where her mouth was, and gave herself a $30 budget for food for the week – the amount allotted to food stamp recipients – and found the results to be both stomach-rumbling and eye-opening. She wrote a follow-up at the end of the week – and raised a whole lot of discussion among our readers. Step-by-step My colleague Sarah LeTrent tore it the heck up with her stunning series of tutorials on making the perfect biscuit , burger , gingerbread , grilled corn , lobster rolls , creme brulee , gnocchi and pie crust . I hold her solely responsible for any and all bite marks on my laptop screen. Honorable mention: Taking a ribbing – testing out McDonald's cult sandwich I ate a McRib so you didn't have to. You still totally owe me. Customers who are better off if I decide their orders: Douglas Quint of Big Gay Ice Cream This may be my favorite 5@5 of all time, but then again, there are many, many things wrong with me. An open letter to my neighbors who are very bad at grilling Because frankly, it stinks. So does eating in the bathroom . After Irene, a community bands together to feed its own My county almost washed away in the flood waters of Tropical Storm Irene. My resilient, brave, industrious, generous neighbors didn't sit around and wait for help. I also stopped drinking Diet Coke and got in a fight with a well-known television personality , ended up in the emergency room , lost my beloved uncle , talked with former governor Eliot Spitzer about his love of jam making and got super-Goth with Sanjay Gupta . I need a nap. Previously – One year of Eatocracy and Second helpings of 2011's most popular posts

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Our favorite posts of 2011

A female Frostburg State University student intervenes in an altercation at an off-campus party and gets slashed by a woman hosting the celebration, authorities say. Two Bowie State University suitemates spar over music, and one woman cuts the other’s throat. Female roommates at Howard University argue in the kitchen, and one throws a pot of boiling rice at the other. Read full article > >

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Violent incidents involving female students surge on campuses, in schools, authorities say

BEIJING — It took the hands of a Chinese grandmother working 7,500 miles from his kitchen for Scott Drewno to correct the way he has been making xiao long bao. The dumplings, a Shanghainese specialty, are served for breakfast daily in every major city in China. They seem to defy the laws of physics; filled with aromatic soup, the wrappers must be constructed with just enough elasticity to contain the hot liquid without breaking. Getting the soup inside them is another matter entirely. Read full article > >

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The chef who cooked Chinese, then went to China

After watching her big brother and sister ride off to school every morning for five years, Christina Trimble was ready for her turn on Tuesday. She was wearing her ruffled jean skirt, a glittery butterfly T-shirt and slightly crimped hair from an overnight experiment with curlers. With her pink lunch bag and rolling purple backpack stocked, she knelt in the front hall of her home in Arlington County, petting her dog Sam while the kitchen clock ticked off the minutes. A little before 8:30, her family huddled on their front porch to snap pictures. Then her sister, Audrey, announced with a third-grader’s confidence, “That’s the squeak of our bus.” Read full article > >

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First day of school starts with a sometimes bumpy ride

Click to watch video Nathan Mhyrvold is a polymath inventor and avid chef. But his kitchen isn't your normal operation. It has “centrifuges and freeze driers and spray driers and rotary evaporators” that he uses to cook and analyze what he cooks. Mhyrvold studies the science behind cooking, and has written a 2,438 page, $600 book called Modernist Cuisine that is the touchtone for what is known as molecular gastronomy, which melds science and cooking to create incredible concoctions. In the video above, Mhyrvold describes how to create the perfect French fry. And in the interview transcript in the link below, he also discusses the motivations behind the book and what his kitchen looks like. Read the rest of “How to make the perfect French fry” on CNN's Global Public Square.

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Want the perfect French fry? Give it an ultrasonic bath

The manager zipping around Galileo III is multi-tasking like mad on a Tuesday night in mid-August. She not only seats guests in the half-empty dining room but also mixes them cocktails, because the bartender is apparently AWOL. As if that weren’t enough, she also takes orders and even runs food from the kitchen, where her boss, chef Roberto Donna, looks to be straining with a limited staff himself. The current menu at Galileo III mirrors the downsizing in the kitchen and dining room. What was once a robust, sometimes adventurous 24-dish dinner menu when the place opened in early October has been whittled to 18 simpler plates, not one of which is Donna’s signature (and time-consuming) risotto. Other plates are missing in action as well, notably an intricate savory pudding with fresh burrata and porcini cream that the critics loved as well as an organ-meat tasting menu. Read full article > >

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The reduction of Roberto Donna

An early Wednesday morning fire caused moderate damage at the Tune Inn, a popular Capitol Hill pub that has been in operation for more than 60 years, according to D.C. fire officials and the owner. Crews were called to the scene in the 300 block of Pennsylvania Avenue SE about 7:15 a.m., said Pete Piringer, a department spokesman. The blaze started in the kitchen and spread to duct work above before firefighters could contain it, Piringer said. Employees were working in the restaurant when the blaze started, but all were able to evacuate safely, according to Piringer. Read full article > >

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Fire damages Tune Inn, a popular Capitol Hill bar

An early Wednesday morning fire caused moderate damage at the Tune Inn, a popular Capitol Hill pub that has been in operation for more than 60 years, according to D.C. fire officials and the owner. Crews were called to the scene in the 300 block of Pennsylvania Avenue SE about 7:15 a.m., said Pete Piringer, a department spokesman. The blaze started in the kitchen and spread to duct work above before firefighters could contain it, Piringer said. Employees were working in the restaurant when the blaze started, but all were able to evacuate safely, according to Piringer. Read full article > >

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Fire damages Tune Inn, a popular Capitol Hill bar

Jimmy McElroy, one of Hell’s Kitchen’s infamous Westies, was laid to rest in a very different place.

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About New York: Saying Farewell to a Gangster of a Bygone Era

On a cul-de-sac in Greenbelt, in a typical suburban home, seven employees of a decades-old Maryland company are gathered in the kitchen. Paychecks are handed out, and forms distributed for signatures — in duplicate — ratifying the recent election for officers of the corporation. After everyone has signed and the small-talk dwindles, the group repairs to the basement, where they will pick up guitars, drumsticks and saxophones and practice some Chuck Berry songs.

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Rock-and-rolling along with Greenbelt band the Fabulous Hubcaps

Hand-pull a great shot with the elegant design of this eco-friendly espresso maker With arachnid looks and elegant design, the Presso makes a morning espresso in less time that it takes most electric machines to warm up. Reflecting a growing demand, Presso joins the crop of machine-free methods of coffee brewing that—like other popular coffee tools Chemex and AeroPress—is smaller, easier to clean, gentler on the environment and generally less fussy then automated coffeemakers. The device requires just two steps to pull a great shot of espresso with the requisite crema. Tighten the chrome filter containing grinds into the bottom of the Presso, add boiling water and press down on the levers for a single or double. Strength varies according to how firmly you apply pressure to the levers—a more forceful push yields a stronger cup. Artfully-crafted from polished recyclable aluminum, the energy-saving Presso will please coffee purists as much for its spare and stylish design as it will for its no-frills mechanics. Each Presso comes with a milk frother and a two-cup adapter, and sells online from Holstee or Presso for $150.

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Presso

I would be sitting in the kitchen enjoying a nice fried oyster po’ boy and an order of french fries and I would hear my mother scream, “Richard, Jack LaLanne is on! Come in here and exercise with me.”

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Richard Simmons: My fitness hero

Singaporean bags in Amsterdam, architectural shoes in NYC, food as news in Pittsburgh and more in our 2010 retail review Our round-up presents brick-and-mortar stores that took advantage of space and place to give customer experiences that went beyond just shopping and eating. Melrose Market Seattle’s Melrose Market opened in Capitol Hill boasting 21,000-square-feet of space as home to almost a dozen retailers including Sitka & Spruce, Rain Shadow Meats, Calf and Kid and Still Liquor. With a focus on locally sourced, independent and organic goods, the beautiful building that once produced auto parts now attracts a clientele looking for a more updated version of Pike’s Place. Property Of The owners of Singaporean bag label Property Of championed their coffee shop roots when conceiving the plans for their flagship store on one of the busiest streets in Amsterdam. Rather than launch a traditional boutique, they instead opened a cafe serving up Seattle’s Stumptown Coffee with a shop stocking their goods alongside an array of specialty magazines and books. Dark Shop United Nude’s Manhattan store Dark Shop is reminiscent of a nightclub, with its dark interior and striking LED wall lighting up the shoes on display. The future-tech interior was designed by creative director Rem D. Koolhaas, and is perfectly aligned with the brand’s vision of architecturally-inspired footwear. Conflict Kitchen An art installation with a retail side, Conflict Kitchen is a project in Pittsburgh that aims to educate the public through food. Calling attention to countries the United States is currently in conflict with, its current incarnation is Bolani Pazi, which serves Afghani turnovers. All food is wrapped in paper printed with information and facts about that country, such as its traditional customs and the U.S.’ involvement. Converse SoHo Converse adapted its extensive history as a brand into its second store, located in NYC’s SoHo neighborhood. With the world’s biggest selection of Converse shoes, there’s a pick-up window that’s particularly useful for those who already know what they want and a wall featuring an American flag installation made from its iconic Chuck Taylors. Things here are as straightforward as the m.o. that its legions of fans have helped shaped—be unique and yourself. To that end, the decoration is subtle enough without the need to drum up false hype.

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Best of CH 2010: Top Five Retail Visions

In a room the size of a storage unit, where the closets have no doors and the kitchen and bathroom sinks share a counter, life’s victories might seem limited.

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At Laurel Park, a way of life limps toward the sunset