James Beard Awards, Secret Queso, Food In Harlem: 10 Hot Topics On Food Republic

George Embiricos•

Clockwise from top left: Secret queso, mushroom varietals, chicken biryani, Philly craft beer.[/caption]

Another James Beard Awards week has come and gone, and Monday night's ceremonies in Chicago honored chefs and restaurants from around the United States. Here at Food Republic, we honored a few topics very near and dear to our hearts: the foods of Thailand (non-Thai in this case), a craft-beer bar explosion in Philly and, of course, a secret queso recipe we found at the hottest restaurant in New York City. With summer finally poking its head around the corner as temperatures reach 80 degrees at our HQ in NYC, we found it timely to take a look at five ice cream makers on the market. We also reported live from the Beards, covered next weekend's inaugural Harlem food festival in depth and debuted a new column aimed at highlighting the best food-focused hotels around the world. All that and more, on this week's hot topics on Food Republic.

  1. Do you know your mushroom varieties and how to cook with them? We do.
  2. NYC's Javelina makes a killer queso. But why is its chef so secretive about the recipe?
  3. The James Beard Awards were held in Chicago for the first time. We reported live.
  4. The Harlem EatUp! Festival is next weekend. Meet the people behind the food.
  5. Restaurant critic. Bourdain buddy. Hunter. Scotsman. Read our interview with AA Gill.
  6. We debut our Hungry Concierge series with some advice on where to stay in Budapest.
  7. Just in time for summer, here's a look at five ice cream makers for all price ranges.
  8. We're semi-obsessed with this chicken biryani recipe. Best of all, it's paleo-friendly.
  9. Philly is one of the country's best cities for craft beer. Here's where to drink.
  10. Here's a guide to seven non-Thai dishes to seek out in Thailand.

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