Flavors Unknown

How to explore a region through the lens of food, with Craig Laban

Craig Laban Food Critic

In today’s episode, I talk to Craig Laban, a restaurant critic and columnist for the Philadelphia Inquirer. Since falling into his satiating career reviewing restaurants, he’s made a name for himself (albeit undercover) exploring the unique flavors of the city.
You’ll hear how Craig’s career first began, and the perks and pitfalls of life as a restaurant critic. He shares the stories behind the down-to-earth food trends taking place in Philadelphia, and exactly how a food critic goes about creating a “best of” restaurant list.

What you'll learn with Craig Laban

The day to day life of a restaurant critic (2:35)
Food Critic Craig Laban explains difference between a food columnist and a food writer (3:36)
The birth of the Liberty Bell rating system (4:56)
How Craig Laban's job changed during the pandemic (8:52)
Why he tries to remain anonymous (11:34)
How Craig Laban got into food writing (14:53)
The effect of social media on the food world (20:30)
How the internet is inspiring a more global perspective among chefs (21:06)
Choosing restaurants to review (22:49)
How the Dining Guide differs from the year-round reviews (24:10)
How you narrow down the Top 10 best restaurants (25:20)
Finding the spark of magic in a restaurant experience (27:03)
Why investing in a food critic as a publication is worth it (29:05)
What makes restaurants in Philadelphia unique (30:18)
The biggest food trends influencing the city right now (31:41)
Philly’s top 6 must-try restaurants (35:36)
Food Critic Craig Laban's most inspiring cookbooks (40:31)
The best and worst aspects of being a food critic (41:28)
Blowback after negative reviews (43:12)
Series of rapid-fire questions.
Link to the podcast episode on Apple Podcast

Links to other episodes in Philadelphia

Conversation with Celebrity Chef Jose Garces

Conversation with Chef Richard Landau

Interview with Chef Brian Duffy

Links to most downloaded episodes (click on any picture to listen to the episode)

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My mission is to essentially size up Philadelphia's food scene. All corners of the food scene, from fine dining to food trucks to neighborhood places, and tell people what's out there and where they should be spending their dining money.

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The best thing about being a food critic is just this privilege of being able to explore the magic talents of the food in how people express themselves through food and restaurants.

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I don't think I've changed my central mission, which is to really explore a region through the lens of food and restaurants and tell the stories of where we live and how we live.

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I think the minute you remove that veil and you put your picture out there on top of your column, you're saying ‘I am a celebrity, and I want you to to engage with me on that level’. I'm just uncomfortable with it.

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We're not exactly a trendsetting city. We don't invent a lot of things. But we have a lot of talent that has been able to find its way here, and the quality and the diversity that we have is really exceptional.

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