Alton Brown talks with journalist Holly Firfer at the MJCCA Book Festival. (Photo by Cathy Cobbs)
Alton Brown’s resume is diverse and lengthy – American television personality, food show presenter, author, voice actor, and cinematographer, pilot, typewriter collector – but there’s one thing he will never add to that list – restaurateur.
Brown, according to his biography, is the creator and host of the Food Network television show “Good Eats” that ran for 16 seasons, host of the miniseries “Feasting on Asphalt” and “Feasting on Waves,” a host and main commentator on “Iron Chef America” and “Cutthroat Kitchen,” as well as a best-selling author.
However, during an appearance at the Book Festival of MJCCA on Nov. 10, when asked if he had plans to open his own restaurant, he said, “Yes, when I’ve lost my freaking mind.”
Brown was promoting his latest book, “Food for Thought,” a collection of personal essays exploring his culinary experiences and cultural observations associated with his long career in food, television, and cooking.
“I’d like to think that most of us get to a point where we pause and look in the rearview mirror versus the windshield, and that’s what this book is about,” he said.
He regaled his audience with tales about his desire to be Jewish (‘my stomach is Jewish, but I got zip”), his favorite guilty pleasures (Little Debbies and Nutty Buddies), his cookbook collection (17,000 and growing), and his favorite meal (anything at a “hard-core seder.”).
Brown also talked about his foray into artificial intelligence, once asking it to create a dish, which spit out the answer –spinach, anchovy, chocolate, and spinach s’mores.
Attendee Jill Stein said she thanked Brown for his dedication to and passion for food at a book signing after the event. (Photo by Cathy Cobbs)
“AI can’t eat food or taste food,” Brown said. “Food and cooking are going to become about the last human experience. We are already alienated enough, and we don’t want or need anything to do it further.”
Brown said he believes that spices and other aromatics “conjure up great memories,” but that the most important ingredient in any food experience is the kitchen table.
He also said he isn’t a natural cook, but his wife, Elizabeth Ingram, a restaurant, bar, and residential designer is.
“She is an absolute witch in the kitchen,” because of her ability to create beautiful and tasty dishes magically, Brown said. “If we had a restaurant, she would be the chef and I would seat people.”
And the name of the fictional restaurant? “Witch,” of course.
The Book Festival of the MJCCA runs through Nov. 16, ending with an evening with Dr. Sonjay Gupta, who will discuss his book, “It Doesn’t Have to Hurt.”
Dining and Cooking