My Project

My project is centered around the process of becoming a food critic as well as "how to become" a food critic/reviewer. I was inspired by many food reviews I saw online as well as my love for food. I interviewed my downstairs neighbor who was a Grace parent and also a food critic for New York Magazine! I reviewed food around the Grace Church School area and explored the cities diverse culinary scene. For my final project I complied many pictures of my favorite dishes from the restaurants that I visited and wrote some honest reviews about what places you should go to!

I began my process in my IP-10 class with Mr. Kadajski, where we did many exercises targeted at asking questions and finding things we were interested in. I always knew I wanted to do something regarding New York City since I've lived here all my life and haven't gotten to explore and learn about it fully. Before I decided to pursue something in the culinary realm, I wanted to interview New Yorkers and see what their favorite parts of New York were, through this I realized that many people would probably name restaurants/places to eat since food is such an influential part of New York's culture. Through the food in New York, one can see the city's rich history and how it has been influenced by people of many different cultures over the past century and shaped into what it is today. 

Through my project, I was able to gain a deeper appreciation for the delicious food our city has to offer. Before I began to dive deeper into the culinary depths of New York City, I took for granted how lucky we are to have excellent food no matter where we are in the city.  This project allowed me to explore various cuisines and flavors that reflect the deep culinary history our city has. It also helped me strengthen my opinions and writing skills while helping others find tasty places to eat.  I also had an fantastic time exploring my neighborhood and discovering new places that I hadn't eaten at before!

To do research for my projects, I looked up a lot of strategies of how to judge food, as well as other areas in the restaurant business that need to be critiqued as well, such as service and ambiance. I also researched some writing styles of other critics, which helped me realize that I wanted to write more casual and bite-sized reviews that were not void of pictures. I also spent a lot of time on social media, scrolling through and seeing what places were popular and what those creators online judged their meals with. 

Some materials and resources I used for my project were websites like the New York Magazine and the New York Times, which regularly publish food reviews and different social media apps where you can find shorter videos reviewing trendy restaurants.  I used my phone to take all of the pictures, and I also used it to write down notes on how I felt about specific restaurants.