As anthropologist Anna Tsing says, grains domesticated us. The development of sedimentary agriculture roughly 10000 years ago ushered in the establishment of new social hierarchies, reinforcing what we now refer to as classism and “othering”. Cultivation has allowed the exercising of power over others, more commonly known as “feudalism”. This system enabled the creation of a food surplus, increasing the size of society manyfold. Conventional evolutionary theory has explained

I read an article that estimated it would take about 23 years to eat at every restaurant in New York City. The discovery of this instantly led me to feel pure pity for anyone who hasn't started planning their birthday. Unlike these common idiots I’ve had my birthday, coming up next July, planned since last August.   Thankfully for my forward thinking and superior planning skills, I decided as a profound act of service for all the Scorpios of New York City it only made sense t

Artwork by Vasu Arora A few years have passed since my grandmother died, but her house in Whitestone, Queens, still feels alive with her routines. The faint smell of espresso lingers in the kitchen, and her large wooden rosary beads hang from the portico, just where she left them. On my last visit, while opening the junk drawer to find Werther's Originals, I came across a stack of old restaurant menus. They were soft at the edges, creased from years of use, and marked with he

There’s a saying that goes something like, “I’m eating sleep for dinner.” I must admit I’ve tried my hand at this cuisine. It’s not my first choice, it’s not a punishment, and it’s not abnegation. I am merely easily distracted in the evening. By nine or ten, I lack the energy to cook, an appetite for cereal, and interest in take-out. Stomach grumbles disturb my rest, and in the morning, I’m emotional. I wouldn’t recommend it. I’d rather recommend a more literal approach. You

Over a phone propped up on the crowded counter of a kitchen dorm, a daughter interviews her restaurateur Mom (who also doubled as an elementary school lunch lady). Growing up in the restaurant business, she cooks up boiling stories and tasty opinions to share. Daughter:  “For many people–myself included–our parents are our first chefs. From cooking three-course holiday dinners to plating pop-tarts, mothers have their own cooking style and skill. My mom, who I have on call wit

Art by Jasmine Nguyen Agatha Pennington wiped a layer of sugared violet frosting from her pink trimmed apron in a secluded corner of the kitchen. The cake shop must be in tip-top shape for the arrival of the Volunteer.  Constance Pennington, the frontman of the sisters’ business, poked her head of frizzy grey and black hair into the kitchen. She donned the same frilly apron, this one trimmed with blue. There was a speck of a red stain on her shoulder, but there was no time to

Between hefty New York price points and the, I’ll say, less than ideal conditions of the dining hall food, on campus, it's tough to find good food at a good price point. So I asked a number of students what their tried and true dorm kitchen meals are. After all, the best food is that which is shared. Teriyaki Salmon Rice Bowl “A staple of my Film student diet this past semester.  It’s cozy, filling, and very cost effective. Easy, and great for the dorm, everything listed belo

In January of 1917, a group of young artists; actors, poets, and painters climbed the Washington Square Arch in the dead of night, to declare secession from the nation, and to proclaim the neighborhood as the “Free and Independent Republic of Greenwich Village”. The artists, or Arch Conspirators , as they would become known as, released balloons and shot cap guns off the top of the monument, a moment considered to be foundational for Greenwich’s status as the artist capital o

Art by Chassidy Stephenson A few days into moving to New York, I found myself walking around lower Manhattan in search of something I could tack, or tape, on the naked walls in my apartment. I was shopping for posters. I ended up going to a place called 'Bungee Space’ near Chinatown that I – yes – found online. This was the kind of store that, although attempting to defy categorization, ironically fit very neatly into that particular type of space so coveted by those working