They won’t leave me to lick my “No-More-Gourmet-Magazine-Wounds” in peace.

The following arrived in my mailbox the other day. It’s their consolation prize in the shadow of their axed, 68 year-old brand. “We regret any inconvenience..Subscribers can look forward to receiving BON APPÉTIT MAGAZINE for the remainder of their subscription.”

“Look forward?” Kill me.

I hate BAM. I do. Bookended next to Gourmet, it’s an inferior publication, crystalizing a dumbing-down of the American home kitchen. A pinnacle of our Food Network culture. Some of these themes and frustrations I have were explored in Michael Pollan’s excellent New York Times Magazine piece this summer, “Out of the Kitchen, Onto the Couch.”

One of Pollan’s main themes in this piece is that we as a culture would rather watch people cook rather than do it ourselves. In defense of this thesis, if BAM gets people cooking, I back away from some of my harsher statements above. That is a worthy triumph. People should cook at home. Sites such as NoTakeOut and crusaders like Jaime Oliver preach this gospel. And they do it well.  For me, comparing BAM to Gourmet is akin to Andrew Llyod Weber versus Rodgers and Hammerstein. There are audiences for both of their music and they’ve been instrumental in driving people to theater over the years. BAM and Gourmet have their audiences and both drive people to cook. But ask yourself, which one has more quality?

And, yeah. I’m still in mourning. My wounds remain raw.

One Response to “Conde Nast Waterboards Joe”