​Welcome to Open Tab, a weekly roundup of food and entertainment news. Last week we covered Hillary Duff’s Diet Coke conspiracy theories.. Running a restaurant can do some weird things to your head. To be clear, I’ve never run a restaurant, but I have to assume it messes up your entire brain. Why else would these chefs be doing such terrible things? What else could make Redzepi scream at, punch, and prod his employees with kitchen tools? How else do you explain David Chang’s over the top screaming and yelling? Or the decision to serve your customers jam with mold on it?. And that’s the only way I was able to make sense of the drama that exploded out of LA’s Horses in 2023 (don’t worry, we’ll get into it). Now, after three years of rumors and hearsay, we have an account from the accused, Will Aghajanian, as reported by Kelly Loudenberg at AirMail. Finally, an answer to the question that’s been percolating in the back of my head for years: Did he really murder the cats?. Also this week, we’re talking about the investigation into all the fruit and vegetable AI slop that’s been plaguing the timeline; we simply need to discuss Zohran Mamdani’s mukbang; and we’ve found perhaps the most unexpected place for great wine in Southern California. Read on to find out where.. For the uninitiated, Horses was one of those buzzy, impossible-to-get-into, celebrity-magnet restaurants in LA. Until the allegations went public. I remember the day in late May 2023 that the news of Horses broke. It started with a few mentions in group chats, then some chatter around the office…then some more intense chatter around the office. The tea was as follows: Johnson and Aghajanian, the formerly married co-owners, filed restraining orders against each other, each alleging that the other was emotionally and physically abusive, and that they’d killed several of their pet cats.. “It was like they’d get a kitten and then like two weeks later that kitten would die. And then they adopted another kitten two weeks after that. And then that one died. And then after the third cat. We were kind of like, why are all the cats dying?” [sic] reads a quote from someone who used to work with the pair, in Ezra Marcus’ bombshell report from 2023.. Now we’re witnessing the epilogue. In this week’s Airmail article, for which Johnson refused interview requests, Loudenberg says her reporting did not uncover any cat torture or killing. Johnson did, reportedly, resort to witchcraft—a protection spell over the restaurant, and a curse on Aghajanian. The piece chronicles allegations of years of terrible behavior (restaurants lead to broken brains, see above).. Perhaps I’m the rube for thinking that the man who ran a campaign based around posting (and, yes, policy, don’t yell at me!) would stop posting when he got into office. Obviously, I was wrong. Just this week he livestreamed the first-ever mukbang in New York City’s City Hall. The stream was the Mayor’s Office’s way of celebrating a settlement  

​Unlike their beloved personal knife sets, the pans a professional chef uses at work are much more likely to be of the nameless, faceless, “whatever’s around the kitchen” sort of equipment. That’s largely for utilitarian reasons. When churning out cover after cover at the saute station you can’t exactly be picky about what’s on the shelf above the stove.. But that doesn’t mean professional chefs don’t have opinions about the pans they use every day during service. And the good news for most home cooks, is that often, the equipment on the fire in restaurant kitchens is affordable and easy to get.. Different chefs and different restaurants have different needs and different specialties, leading to very different answers to the question of “what is the pan you use most?” Which means that if you follow the advice of these 10 chefs from some of our favorite restaurants and bakeries, your kitchen will be pretty complete.. Made In. 5 Quart Saucier. $200. Made In. It’s pretty rare for a DTC cookware brand to get namechecked by a professional kitchen, but Made In has made a lot of inroads to the restaurant scene over the years. Jackie Carnesi of Kellog’s Diner loves her sizable Made In Saucier, which she got in a breakup several years ago. “It’s great for items you might have to whisk like a caramel or anything you might need a rubber spatula for” she says. “It’s also great for tossing and, because it’s relatively lightweight, easy for flipping too”  

​Step 1. Finely grate 1 large garlic clove and the zest of 1 lemon into a large bowl. Slice lemon in half and squeeze the juice into the bowl. Add ¼ cup buttermilk and 6 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil. Season dressing with kosher salt and lots of freshly ground black pepper and whisk to combine. Taste dressing and add the juice of remaining lemon to taste (dressing should be bright and tangy).. Step 2. Gently smash 1 English hothouse cucumber, ends trimmed and halved lengthwise, with a rolling pin, meat mallet, or the flat side of a chef’s knife just to break open; tear or cut into bite-size pieces and add to bowl with dressing. Add 4 scallions, thinly sliced on a diagonal, and 6 oz. sugar snap peas, trimmed, thinly sliced on a diagonal; toss well to combine. Let sit while you fry the bread and asparagus.. Step 3. Pour remaining 2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil into a skillet large enough to fit two 1″-thick slices round country-style bread in a single layer. Add bread and set over medium heat. Cook, undisturbed, until golden brown and crisp underneath, about 5 minutes. Flip bread and cook to lightly fry on the other side, about 2 minutes. Season both sides of bread with kosher salt. Transfer to a plate.. Step 4. Arrange 1 bunch asparagus, trimmed, sliced on a diagonal into 2″ pieces in same skillet, season with kosher salt, and increase heat to medium-high. Cook, tossing occasionally, until bright green and blistered in some spots, but still crisp-tender, about 3 minutes. Add to salad.. Step 5. Tear fried bread into 1½” pieces and add to salad. Toss to evenly coat and help bread soak up some of the dressing. Taste and season with more salt, pepper, and lemon juice as needed. Add 1 cup (packed) tender herb leaves with tender stems to salad and toss once more. Divide salad among shallow bowls, reserving any dressing and juices that pool at the bottom of bowl. Break 4 oz. feta into large pieces and nestle into salad in each bowl. Drizzle reserved dressing and juices over.  

​Ethan Frisch and Ori Zohar are the cofounders and co-CEOs of Burlap & Barrel, the lead plaintiff in Burlap and Barrel, Inc. v. Trump.. When we started Burlap & Barrel almost 10 years ago, we never imagined we’d be suing the government. As a social enterprise our mission is to provide unique and incredibly flavorful ingredients by connecting global spice farmers with American cooks, both at home and in professional kitchens.. But as a direct importer, we’ve been struggling since “Liberation Day” last April, which set off a wave of sweeping, arbitrary tariffs. These policies punish both small businesses and home cooks for seeking ingredients imported from overseas—which, in the case of spices, are often ingredients with no commercially produced domestic alternatives, like black pepper, vanilla, and cinnamon.. We’ve had enough, and that’s why we’re suing the president of the United States.. There’s been so much back and forth with the tariffs that it’s hard to keep track of where things stand. Here’s the current situation: The Supreme Court recently struck last April’s tariffs down, but the administration immediately retaliated with new tariffs that begin at a shocking 10%. This policy existentially threatens our business and so many others who depend on relationships with trusted suppliers around the world. It will also inevitably force price increases for American consumers.. Burlap & Barrel’s best-selling spices are grown only by smallholder farmers in other countries, under specific climate conditions unique to that place and using traditional agricultural methods not widely employed stateside. Our spices are also often made with heirloom varietals, like our royal cinnamon, aka the rare Vietnamese species Cinnamomum loureiroi, and genuine Herbes de Provence from Provence, France, which the European Union has granted “Designation of Protected Origin” status. Because of all these things, there are no comparable American-grown alternatives.. The Administration has cited Section 122, a little-known provision of federal trade law that allows temporary tariffs during a balance-of-payments crisis. Congress designed the law for emergencies affecting the nation’s financial system, not as a general-purpose tool to impose sweeping tariffs. But that’s how the law is being applied today. Our lawsuit argues that the President doesn’t have the power to impose these tariffs, which create an unnecessary and possibly unbearable financial burden for independent companies like ours to bear.. The lawsuit has fallen to us because the big conglomerates are afraid to upset the administration by putting their names on a legal complaint. We’re proud to stand up for small businesses across the country, and farmers around the world, and that’s why we’re pursuing this case with the nonprofit Liberty Justice Center.. The Boston Tea Party, as you may remember from history class, involved tossing crates of tea into Boston Harbor to pro  

​It’s no secret that Bon Appétit editors cook a lot for work. So it should come as no surprise that we cook a lot during our off hours too. Here are the recipes we’re whipping up this month to get dinner on the table, entertain our friends, satisfy a sweet tooth, use up leftovers, and everything in between. For even more staff favorites, click here.. Low-and-slow caramelized onions. I found myself without evening plans late last week, which meant it was a ripe opportunity to stay in and caramelize an onion. I used former BA staffer Claire Saffitz’s very detailed instructions to make sure my half-moons were indeed caramelizing and not burning, which meant keeping the heat preposterously low so they’d simmer to a lustrous russet brown. Instead of the suggested broth or water, I deglazed my pan with herbal cocchi americano, which nudged up the sweetness just enough, and added an intriguing depth of flavor. Since that night, I’ve been adding these onions to everything from grilled cheeses to soft scrambled eggs in the morning. —Sam Stone, staff writer. Caramelized Onions. Master this basic technique and use these jammy, sweet onions in absolutely everything.. View Recipe. Lazy salmon dinner. The moment my colleague Shilpa Uskokovic made her Hot Honey–Glazed Salmon in the Test Kitchen, I knew I needed to give it a go at home. You’ll simply smear a sticky-sweet glaze of soy sauce, honey, garlic, chili sauce, and vinegar onto a hunk of salmon, pop it under the broiler, and watch as it perfectly chars. I like to flake off big chunks and serve it over rice with sliced cucumber for a lazy dinner that’s impossible to dislike. —Jesse Szewczyk, senior Test Kitchen editor. Hot Honey–Glazed Salmon. This broiled hot honey salmon recipe results in sweet, spicy, glossy fish coated in a homemade hot honey glaze for an easy weeknight dinner or make-ahead lunch.. View Recipe. A forgiving salad dressing. You don’t need a recipe to make a vinaigrette, however, you absolutely do need a ratio. I usually look to this Classic French Vinaigrette for inspiration. I’ve learned that I like a bracing dressing, so I opt for two to one parts oil to vinegar. While this version includes Dijon mustard to help emulsify and shallot for bite, you can swap to your heart’s content. Add thyme for an earthy element, or swap mustard for miso if that’s your jam. It’s exceptionally forgiving. —Carly Westerfield, associate manager, audience strategy. Grown-up buttered noodles. I try very hard not to write that a dish “tastes like more than the sum of its parts.” But how else do I tell you that this pasta made with only butter, garlic, smoked paprika, and almonds is somehow complexly savory, nutty, and peppery after a 30-minute cook time (most of which is spent boiling your pasta)? Senior Test Kitchen editor Jesse Szewczyk calls his Smoky Brown-Butter Pasta “grown-up buttered noodles,” and I cannot disagree. Just please do not skip, or skimp on, the “op