I find that people in the food world are amazingly willing to talk about what they are doing, even when those things are quasi-legal or taboo.

I will eat disgusting things, but only those with long established culinary traditions.

I think for diners, it is about crafting an identity around food which we have not really had in a mainstream way in this country. So there is a mass movement of people who identify themselves through their food preferences or even just that they prioritize food - that's where we get this idea of being a foodie.

Food is a lens for culture.

My relationship to food is that of an acrophobe to a bridge. Unease masks a desire to jump.

The food being presented at the most expensive restaurants, by the most sophisticated chefs, was not always recognizable as food to the diner - it required a leap of faith, and I felt curious about that phenomenon.