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This unanswerable question's answer is Calvin Trillin. A man who lures his daughter back from California with bagels, who enlists his wife's Chinese students to decipher the Chinatown menus, who refuses to ever dine at "le maison de la casa house", who taught us how to pack a proper airplane meal, is a man who deserves his place in the Pantheon. He discovered American cuisine while it was learning to crawl. Nothing has been the same since.

In a time when food writing is bursting with more talent than the '27 Yankees, we must honor the Ur-men: Ruth. Escoffier. Trillin.

Last year, I moved to New York shortly before my birthday. It proved to be a truly awful birthday - I had to wake up at 5 am to dress up as the Pillsbury Doughboy (no joke!) for a temp job. Coming to New York seemed like the biggest mistake of my life: what city could be worth the humiliation I'd just suffered through? Then my roommate gave me a birthday present - a copy of Robert Sietsema's Food Lovers Guide to the Best Ethnic Eating in New York City. I started flipping through the chapters, and I think I just about read the whole thing cover to cover that night. Sietsema introduced me to the city as a collection of edible jewels, to be sought out and prized, there for the brave diner to seek out and enjoy. I found several listings for eateries in my own neightborhood of Crown Heights, and a few days later I made my way to AA Bake & Doubles to try the cheap Trinidadian chickpea sandwiches known as doubles. Thanks to Sietsema, I knew I that "doubles" applies even if one is only buying a single sandwich ("I'll have a doubles, please"), and I felt at ease in the tiny storefront even as I stood out like a sore thumb. But on a larger scale, I knew that I was in the right place, that the sacrifices I would make to survive in New York would be well worth it. A year later, whenever I feel frustrated or dispirited by a crowded train or the sight of another Starbucks, I pull out that slim yellow book and set off, in person or in my mind, to try the best dish I've never heard of.

My favorite food critic is you Mr. Levine! and of course Mr. Steingarten!

Really!!

I just sat down to read my email and ended up here within five minutes as a result of going to the food section website and saw your website listed and had to click in. Then I read about this dinner you are offering - registered and wha - la - sending you this posting. Had no idea what I was doing and posted 3 photos of this foodie cutie - apologize for the "x" as I said I did not know what I was doing.

I absolutely know what I am doing now.

So you and Jeffrey used to be on one of the PBS stations years ago and I watched the show religiously. I even ventured up and down Sullivan Street to look for the best baguette per you and you were right!! Then I bought your book - New York Eats (More) - carried it with me each weekend driving all over the city with my boyfriend in search of all your picks.

Then sadly to say, you and Jeffrey were missing.

Then success (for me and you)see you are writing for the New York Times - stilll have no idea where Jeffrey is - Is he still with Vogue or am I confused?

I finally got to meet my food idol. A couple of years ago ironically after cleaning my house and prepraring for passover I had the idea to to to have pizza in Totonnos (you know no leavin things for 10 days) I walk in and saw you Mr. Levine (not to be confused with leavin) and I totally flipped out saying to my boyfriend and father - THERE'S ED LEVINE - THERE'S ED LEVINE ! (It was also the day SLICE was there - photos of you and the crew on the SLICE website). I felt embarrassed to go up to you - but had to - cause you were my FAVORITE FOOD CRITIC- IT WAS GREAT - WE ENDED UP SHARING A CANNOLI WITH MR. TOTONNO (stated he bought them from Fortunatos - the best - he must be right cause my lifelong Italian friend who was raised in Greenpoint only bought her cakes there).

Dinner with you and Jeff would totally flip me out - we already had dessert together - and you know what they say - why not have dessert first?

Estelle

Is there a difference between a food writer and restaurant critic?

I think there is a real difference. One is a subset of the other. As in:

1) Writer

.........i) Food Writer

.................(a) Restaurant Critic

Just because a person writes about a restaurant in grand detail, doesn’t make that person a critic. And usually restaurant critics, who are constrained by a word limit, do not have the luxury to wax philosophical unless they are really good--in a Confucian sort of way.

Though the characteristics of a great food writer and a great restaurant critic bleed into each other, I think a critic must possess some rather unique traits.

A great restaurant critic has:

*an eidetic taste memory

*a biologically great palette

*a sense of humor (anyone who disagrees with this, show me one great restaurant critic without one)

*a bottomless pit instead of a stomach, or at least the ability to supress the satiation response

A great restaurant critic is:

*a great writer

*obsessed with food

*a good home cook

Unfortunately my favorite food writers - MFK Fisher and James Beard - are no longer with us. Although they were vastly different they shared three things - an essential sense of wonder at the discovery of food, a voluptuous pleasure in the partaking and finally an integration in their writing of their lives in the food. For me they are captured best in Beard's "Delights and Prejudices" and MFK Fisher's "I was really very hungry" - those works conveyed their essences and the essences of the food they wrote about.

So in terms of my favorite living food writers, I'd have to go with one of the food bloggers since they approach food in much the same manner. I think that Robyn of The Girl Who Ate Everything channels these writers the best. In her travels around the city and now the world I get to experience her discovery and wonder and love of food.

My favorite food writer is Jeffrey Steingarten. I first encountered his wit on Iron Chef America and was immediately intrigued. Here was a man who had a seemingly highbrow way grounded by the use of very simple and straightforward expressions that directly and efficiently conveyed his erudition, opinion, and confidence. I could not but believe his observations and critiques of the contestants' presentations. After reading all his books I still have the same opinion of him, but now, thanks to his personable and quite approachable writing style, feel like I actually know him. Dinner would be awfully fun.

Hey Ed,

I wanted to recommend to you and your readers a couple outstanding sandwiches on the other side of the Hudson, accessed fairly easily via PATH.

In Hoboken, Fiore's House of Quality serves up an outstanding roast beef & mozz with gravy on Saturday's. The roasts are cooked overnight, the mozz pulled fresh all day, Italian bread from a local bakery and the gravy from pan drippings (not sure exactly how they prepare this). You can walk to the location or take a $3 cab from the PATH station then stroll back to the waterfront parks for lunch. Get there early though (or call in an order on your way) because there is usually a line out the door starting around 12:30 and lasting until the bread runs out.

Jersey City has a couple of great Italian deli/bakeries as well. My local fall-back roast beef & mozz is at Gabagoolz on Jersey Ave, not far from the Grove Street PATH. They have, imo, the best fresh Mozz in the area and quality Italian meats to accompany. 2nd Street Bakery is another JC local legend for it's fantastic parms, rolls and sausage bread (outrageous). The eggplant parm is probably the best I have had, and if you are feeling bold try the Italian combo (prosciutto, cappacola etc, mozz and roasted read peppers) which is served on half a loaf of sausage bread. deadly stuff.

Finally, Marco & Pepe, located three blocks from the Grove Street PATH serves up an interesting take on the classic BLT (which I know you appreciate). The "L" is a nice frisse, the "T" are braised cherry tomatoes, and the "B" is applewood smoked bacon which has been braised for 3 or 4 hours and broken off on chunks for the sandwich (texture more like pulled pork then traditional bacon). Totally unique, absolutely delicious.

-AFSKoC

Nice to hear from you, Adam. Thanks for the kind words. I think your site is really cool as well.

I have never had that Shopsin's sandwich. I did go see the Shopsin's movie last night. If you love Shopsin's and Kenny, you'll love the movie. Typical of Kenny that he closes the place for vacation the same time the movie is released.