Serious Eats - seriouseats.com

What strikes me as funny is this: magazine publishers sell ads. Doesn't it behoove them to get you to look at as many ads as possible?

So then doesn't it make sense to remove detailed indices or tables of contents? They should make you flip through every page, devouring every word, picture, recipe (and ad).

I haven't seen the latest Gourmet, but one argument for clustering recipes at the back of the book is to run an ad on each recipe page. Then, when someone copies it (PHOTOcopies it, people), they have the ad preserved in perpetuity in their kitchen. Seems like I could sell that ad for a lot more $, no? ;)

But again, not sure they're smart enough to do this -- particularly when it took a protest to get them to remove unnecessary gerunds.

And why women always seem to be wearing riding beeches in these things.
annien at 6:57PM on 07/25/08

Ha ha ha ha ha

Yeah.

Seems to me that Gourmet is headed towards a focus on food culture rather than food-and-recipes. It's an intellectual shift - just looking through the prism with a different eye.

Hard to do in riding breeches. Usually it's done in granny dresses.

bisbee, I hope you'll love Saveur. It is the next evolutionary step after gourmet; the writing and photography take food (and high-status foodies) off the pedestal, and they're just as much in love with a regional candy bar and with a new type of caviar.

In fact, I always find that I know/have used at least 30% of the foods, merchants, etc. which they pick for Saveur's 100 every year. Granted, I'm a foodie and I live in New York, but I'm no millionaire. Yet they chose my favorite butcher (Fleischer's Organic of Kingston and Rhinebeck, NY), my favorite fruit, my favorite old cookbook, etc. etc. etc...they are very much in touch with "good living", whether it costs one dollar or a thousand.

That being said, I'm sorry so many people resent Gourmet's high-end tone. It's an aspirational magazine, that's all. I love looking at the fold-out spreads of GE Monogram kitchens, meanwhile wondering how I and my favorite handyman might be able to rig up a deep-freeze or a rotisserie like the one in the picture, for half the price. And why women always seem to be wearing riding beeches in these things.

I like the new Gourmet more this past year than I have in recent past years.

But more than the magazine, I love the website Gourmet.com - it allows amazing access to not only the current issues but also issues going way back.

WHy do cooking mag's always end up burning? Food and Wine used to be more about food and wine as a compliment. I let my reecent sub run out bc I was tired of more wine ads than food pages plus the wine pages. ugh. They should change the title to WINE w. a tiny bit of food.

^Yeah, I love--nay, worship--Ruth Reichl, have read all of her books, so I was surprised to see this thread, and also have been surprised when I have flicked through Gourmet and found it (and even the Epicurious recipes) pretty uninspiring.

Believe or not I stopped subscribing to Gourmet because of renewal tactics. I used to work in magazine circulation many lifetimes ago. When I realized how aggresively Conde Nast went after renewals, it really turned me off. The only way to subscribe these days is "automatic" renewal. I know that it is business and that they need to make money (ad $) in order to produce a good magazine. What happend to producing a good magazine, that people will really want to buy.

@AliceBlue: blue rules! Thanks for the tip about Epicurious.

I stopped purchasing Gourmet when I discovered that all their recipes are available on Epicurious...or should I not admit to that (especially in light of the Cook's Illustrated/ATK commentroversy going on in another thread)? I was only buying it for the recipes, and agree with Blue Iris that the mag often feels a bit exclusive and elitist. I like to cook "gourmet" foods, but don't want to feel like an interloper or a pretender for trying to do so.

The specks annoy me, however I do like green mint ice cream (which bothers my mom...).

If I have to have vanilla, I prefer the French Vanilla from Vic's in Sacramento. (they have two vanillas)

Cadbury Eggs

Easter candies!