According to Joan Nathan and Ruth Reichl, the door to the world of food has opened much wider over the past several decades thanks in part to a more global outlook.
The two chefs and food writers discussed their respective journeys and inspirations at a recent talk at the Chilmark Community Center, as part of the Martha’s Vineyard Author series.
The talk was moderated by Francis Lam, host of American Public Media’s The Splendid Table and graduate of the Culinary Institute of America. Mr. Lam is also the editor-in-chief of Clarkson Potter, a division of Penguin Random House that produces lifestyle and cook books.
The evening’s discussion centered on how food from around the world has influenced both writers and the American palate.
Ms. Nathan, an authority on Jewish cuisine and a seasonal Chilmark resident, recalled the difficulty of finding good food in the U.S. in the 1960s.
“I remember being at [the University of] Michigan and looking at these horrible farmers’ markets and the food seemed awful,” Ms. Nathan said.
She said the meager selection was a sharp contrast to her time studying abroad in France where good food was a priority in the culture.
Ms. Nathan said a desire to seek and create better food has fueled her career. She has written 12 cookbooks, the most recent of which is My Life in Recipes: Food, Family, and Memories.
Ms. Reichl credited the fact that she went to public school in New York City as to her early access to a wide variety of cuisines.
“We all went home for lunch and we went to each other’s homes for lunch,” she said. “I was really taken with how different the food ways were.”
Ms. Reichl has been a longtime food critic for the New York Times and The Los Angeles Times, and was editor-in-chief of Gourmet Magazine. She has published five memoirs in addition to her cook books, and has won six James Beard Foundation Awards.
Her most recent book is The Paris Novel.
Mr. Lam asked the authors if there was a specific moment that made them realize that food culture was changing. For both of them, it was a gradual change influenced by societal shifts.
“I moved to Berkeley from New York in 1973,” Ms. Reichl said. “The [Vietnam] War ended and we all had this sense of we helped to end this war. What’s our next cause? Food was the next cause. People like Alice Waters went from the free speech movement to let’s have a food movement.”
Ms. Nathan also recalled the relationship between the Vietnam War and an increased value placed on food. She said that during the war, people were so angry about the state of the world that they returned to nature for solace.
Ms. Nathan said that working in Jerusalem and meeting Jewish people from around the world was a profound influence on her career.
“For me, Jewish food was chicken soup with matzo balls and all those things. I came there and I had a cleaning woman who was Moroccan and she made stuffed vegetables and a wonderful tort,” Ms. Nathan said. “Then I learned about our food and I learned how important it was.”
Ms. Nathan began spending summers on the Vineyard nearly 50 years ago. Several chapters in her new memoir tell stories of cooking and hosting on the Island. During the talk, she reflected on how agriculture on the Island has changed.
“I came to the Vineyard in 1977 and it was kind of nascent....And now, it’s amazing just to be here on the Vineyard because you can get almost everything here,” Ms. Nathan said. “The caliber of food is so much better here than it was, and I think everybody wants that now.”
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