Author Archives: EMAY

Ox-Bow Cooks at Home

When I cooked for Ox-Bow, a pretty frequent customer request was “when are you putting out a cookbook?” We had casually kept recipes for years and started compiling a list of classic dishes for a cookbook sometime around 2011. My decision to leave Ox-Bow in 2014, after 15 years of cooking, really lit the fire under my […]
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The Value of Residencies (Eric’s Curry Night)

20 years ago this July/August I first set foot at Ox-Bow. A student at the time, I volunteered to cook dinner for the campus. It was my first time feeding a crowd like that, though I was a budding foodie and aspiring cook. I felt inspired to give back to a community that had give me so much– many […]
Posted in Projects 2018, Real talk | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Food 2017

Where we’re at If there was one thing I ingested a lot of this year, it was media. Unfortunately, not enough of it was about food. In the sea of political hysteria, a culinary 140 characters here and there was often enough to take my mind off of environmental crisis, nuclear threat, the dissolution of […]
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Easy Eats Catering

We would love to help you host your next party with inventive, festive, and delicious chow! We offer a wide range of stuff– from appetizer menus and party foods like tacos and Chicago dogs starting in the $10/per person range up to five course dinners and cocktails (in the $50/ per person range). We do weddings […]
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World Town: Global Eats in Chicago

World Town: Chicago is a carefully curated guide to eating (and shopping) the best of international cuisine in Chicago. With 64 profiles of restaurants spanning Korean to Peruvian, West Roger’s Park to Bridgeview, grocers categorized by culture, and more. This book was the natural evolution of a “secret” list of spots that Eric has kept […]
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Food 2016

In my Top 10 food list last year I warned that the 2016 edition might consist of nothing more than baby food recipes. The little guy just started eating in November, and I can sum up the past month of infant cookery for you real quick: I puree cooked vegetables, so far he likes sweet […]
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Greatness, Indianapolis 11/12/16

I was invited by my dear friends Michael Milano & Elisabeth Smith to participate in their Syntax Season project, hosting language-based art exhibitions at the PRINTtEXT periodical shop in Indianapolis. My show aligned with election week (though a few days after the big day) so I thought it would be appropriate to address issues of the […]
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A Tribute to Sonny’s (revisited)

This is an article I wrote for Proximity Magazine in 2013 for their Food & Art issue. Its never been published online and I feel like its an important moment to look back at Sonny’s. I learned this morning that Sonny just retired from working at SAIC. Sonny’s was a cafeteria owned and run by […]
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“Cure, a proposal for healing”

This summer, Roots & Culture hosted our first curatorial residency program, a three month stay for a jury- selected curator. We really lucked out with independent curator, Risa Puleo, who not only brought a thoughtful exhibition to Chicago, but also seemlessly embedded herself in our community, and happened to be quite an epicure. Risa’s show was […]
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Roots Legend

I was way overdue to throw down a reggae mix tape. The music of Jamaica has been on deck a lot this year with the 10 year celebration of my (not reggae-themed) gallery + the downbeat trot of the bass is perfect for bouncing my baby boy to rest + reggae’s themes of struggle and […]
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