Ruth Reichl is one of the top names in the foodie community — and for good reason. The former editor-in-chief of the now-defunct Gourmet magazine, Reichl has since signed a three-book deal with Random House, worked at Gilt Taste, and become a producer for her book-turned-movie "Garlic and Sapphires."
Recently, Reichl had lunch at NYC's Barbuto with Alexandra Ilyashov of Fashion Week Daily to discuss her current projects, favorite restaurants, and what life was like at Condé Nast. The critic, writer, and editor was unsurprisingly opinionated about the food and publishing worlds in the interview.
Here are a few of her craziest quotes.
On Yelp:
"Anybody who believes Yelp is an idiot. Most people on Yelp have no idea what they’re talking about."
On Zagat:
"I’ve always hated Zagat. If I’m going to listen to someone else’s opinions on restaurants, I don’t care if I agree or not. I just want to know who they are. If you follow critics, you know whether they’re Francophiles, or if they like a lot of spice. I know what [Times critic] Pete Wells’s biases are. We mostly agree. He’s not a snob, which is rare among critics. He loves food and has been brave with his reviews."
On what her life was like at Condé Nast:
"A car, hair, and makeup every morning at your house if you wanted it…It’s not real life, in some important way. People gave each other lavish gifts. If somebody retired at Condé Nast in those days, your secretary would go buy a $500 gift. Some editors at Condé Nast have never been on the subway—they’d take a car to go two blocks!"
Check out the entire interview at Fashion Week Daily.
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