5 Questions with a Foodie: Dana Craig

"5 Questions with a Foodie" is our new column in which we chat with a local foodie. This time: Dana Craig, restaurant critic for the Richmond Times-Dispatch.

About Dana Craig …

I’ve been reviewing restaurants for the Richmond Times-Dispatch for six years … my "anniversary" was last week. That is utterly insane to me because, growing up, I was the chicken-fingers-and-pasta-only kind of child. I never wanted to try anything new, and now all I want to do is try new cuisines, new ingredients, new restaurants, etc. I always want my palate to be intrigued by some new combination of something unexpected.

In 2007, I attended the The Symposium for Professional Foodwriters held each year at the Greenbrier in West Virginia. That was one of the best, food-related weeks of my life. I got to wine and dine with some of the most respected food writers — The Washington Post’s restaurant critic Tom Sietsema, Kim Severson of The New York Times’ food section, and David Leite of the website Leite’s Culinaria, for example.

I recently purchased the hardback edition of "The New Food Lover's Companion" by Sharon Tyler Herbst and Ron Herbst at San Francisco’s Ferry Building farmer’s market, and it has become my Bible. I read it in bed like a novel.

And I really, really love peanut butter.

How do you define the term foodie and do you consider yourself one?

I just read an article in New York magazine called "What Was the Hipster?" which explores the evolution of the term "hipster" and the accompanying culture that has grown up around it. I feel the same way about the term "foodie."

Sure, it’s a good, short-and-sweet way of describing someone who is into food, but it’s grown to have a negative connotation. I feel like it means food snobbery, being obsessed with the most obscure culinary practices or ingredients, being unable to look past the minutia and enjoy a good meal just because it tastes good (however subjective that may be)…basically, all the things I don’t like about the "food scene" this writing gig puts me in.

So no, I don’t consider myself a "foodie." I consider myself a "lover of all things that go into producing good food," — although, from a writing perspective, "foodie" has a better ring to it.

If you could pick the best components of a few Richmond restaurants to create one super fabulous restaurant, what would they be?

I’d pick the laid-back sense of humor chef Andy Howell of Café Rustica infuses into the atmosphere of any restaurant of which he’s at the helm, because I like being relaxed when I’m enjoying a good meal. I don’t like pomp and circumstance. Getting fancy every now and then is fine, but I don’t need a parade.

I’d hire Chris Tsui of Osaka Sushi/Sushi O/Wild Ginger fame for his front-of-the-house finesse. Go into any of his restaurants, and you’ll get proper service/customer respect every time.

The menu would consist of my favorite dishes from Dale Reitzer (Acacia Midtown), Todd Manley (Pescados), Frits Huntjens (the dearly departed 1 North Belmont) and anything from Ed Vasaio (Mamma ‘Zu, Edo’s Squid).

Price and portion would come from The Black Sheep. There’s no other restaurant in town where you can get that much creative, well-prepared food for such a bargain.

And finally, the wine list would come from Julia Battaglini, the queen bee of Secco and River City Cellars. Oh, and Sara Adduci, of the same two establishments, would make the cheese list. No dining experience is complete without cheese. Nacho or bufula… I don’t care. Cheese is a must.

How did you get into food?

I started out freelancing a few times for Richmond.com back in the summer of 2004 when my friend, who was an assistant editor at the time, said, "Hey Dana, you’re a Journalism major, you’ve worked in restaurants and you love to go out to eat. Want to write a restaurant review?"

I’m a Type-A kind of person, so after writing about three or four reviews, I contacted Karen Owen, the restaurant critic at the Times-Dispatch at that time, to ask for advice on how to make more out of writing about restaurants. A few days later, I received a phone call from the Features editor to come in for an interview. "Bring a resume," he said.

I was — and still am — a full-time art director at a local advertising agency, so my writing resume consisted of those three or four articles for Richmond.com and the fact that I loved reading, watching and consuming anything related to the culinary arts.

When I started out, I felt woefully unprepared, but looking back, I now know there is no college degree for restaurant criticism. You have to have a passion for all things restaurants, a sense of ethics, the ability to put your thoughts clearly into words, and most important, a thick skin.

So much of it is simply based on the experience you gain by being a sponge around chefs, other food writers, vinophiles, etc. — Kendra Bailey Morris, author of "White Trash Gatherings," former Accidental Chef columnist at the RTD and former critic at Style Weekly; Jason Tesauro, wine and spirits guru who works at Barboursville and writes the series of Modern Gentleman books; Julia and Sara at River City Cellars for their wine and cheese knowledge; Brandon Fox, former Style Weekly columnist and author of the epic blog, Brandon Eats; even readers who constantly email me tales of their dining adventures. 

If I were to ask your significant other or best friend what your worst "foodie" trait is, what would they say?

When I take people on a review with me, at some point in the meal, I will zone out and start analyzing the scene around me — how other servers are taking care of their tables, what’s happening in the open kitchen, how is the lady at the next table reacting to her steak — and completely ignore whatever it is my dining companion is talking about.

I always try to look for at least one small positive in any terrible restaurant experience. I’m not into throwing around negative criticism simply for the sake of stirring up faux controversy. Commentary is always good, but purposely looking to start an issue in a public forum is juvenile to me. So some friends think I’m too nice sometimes.

I realize my words affect business, and even though I try to balance my criticism carefully, other friends think I’m being too nit-picky. Food is so subjective.

Describe your perfect meals for one full day.

Good lord, I’d need three stomachs to consume the perfect meals for one day.

Breakfast: The perfect, most classic execution of eggs Benedict. Every time I go out to brunch, this is usually what I order. I’m probably going to have a heart attack before I’m 35, but a health issue caused by hollandaise is totally worth it. I’d also have to fit some sort of a black bean-egg breakfast burrito in there. And a tank of Illy coffee. Or a Bloody Mary. Most definitely a Bloody Mary from Sidewalk Café.

Lunch: Hmmm, I never eat a big lunch, but I love sandwiches with good, crusty bread. Good bread is essential to creating a good sandwich. I love most of what’s on Coppola’s menu in Carytown, especially "The Classic" with ham, cheese and Dijion mustard served hot on a crusty sub roll.

Dinner: Scallops. Lots and lots of seared Diver scallops. Acacia’s version with homemade gnocchi is one of my favorite meals in Richmond. I’d probably have to start with a cheese plate too. I could make an entire dinner of cheese (and I often do).

Dessert: Joe’s Inn peanut butter pie. I have no idea why this is so addictive to me, but I can’t get enough. When I lived in the Fan, I used to call in to-go orders of just slices of pie.