Food & drink

Food & drink

While traditionally this is a time of year to start a diet or clean up your eating habits, what's really needed is to lean into old favourites: the dishes we grew up on and that were there for us in the past. There's something quietly radical about indulging that nostalgia in January. About choosing familiarity over novelty, pleasure over punishment, comfort over guilt.

This might not seem surprising, but people have been pairing bacon with sweet flavors for years, and sometimes it works extremely well, like with maple-candied bacon. However, the smoky flavor of the bacon shake was way too overwhelming, and our tester really didn't enjoy having to chew her milkshake. The drink also wasn't sweet enough to satisfy that dessert craving that typically strikes after a salty burger and fries, so it really left her wanting more.

With items including a new variety pack from Liquid Death, plant-based Greek style yogurt from Forager Project, crispy edamame snacks, fan-favorite popsicles, and much more, there's no better time to do a little "treasure hunt" style shopping at Costco.

Protein, fibre, carbs, fat - we're told to eat all these things for a balanced, nutritious diet. But is there a definitive set of foods that could set us on the path to peak health?

I often don't finish a large bottle or can of beer, leaving a bit in the bottom that barely seems worth saving. When I remember, I'll pop it in the fridge and save it to add to a stew or batter, but today's rolls are my new favourite way of using it up. Beer bread with cheddar and chives You'll need just 150ml beer to make these fluffy, super-flavourful buns.

Last year was difficult for Los Angeles chefs and restaurateurs. Many entered 2025 hoping for reprieve from previous setbacks and pitfalls: years of inflation, diminished business due to local entertainment-industry strikes and fewer productions, COVID-era back rent coming due, increases in the cost of labor and rent. But 2025 proved to be even more disastrous, compounding existing issues. It started with wildfires across the region, which destroyed thousands of Southern California homes, restaurants, bars and other businesses.

When you want something light, refreshing, and packed with nutrients, you might be craving a visit to a salad bar. It gives you the chance to customize your plate, choosing from a variety of fresh fruit and vegetables. And a lot of salad bars offer more than just greens, often featuring pasta, rice, cold cuts, eggs, and more. In fact, at many restaurants, you could easily eat a whole satisfying and delicious meal straight from the salad bar.

You've probably heard it while scrolling: Yo chef, can I get a wagyu chopped cheese? The line has become a familiar hook in videos filmed inside Prospect Park Deli, a neighborhood staple that, over the past year, has turned into one of Brooklyn's most recognizable deli backdrops online. It's literally this month, makes it a year, Yazen says of when the deli first started creating content.

"Kyma is loud and celebratory, but there was a vacuum between the formality of Milos or Avra, and the joie de vivre of Kyma," maintained Christou, who actually began his career at the first Milos in Montreal, and was the general manager when it premiered in New York. "We also want to make sure that stylistically, Selene speaks to the art haven that's Soho."

A nice frozen pie, cake, or eclair can be quite the time and money saver. And while you do want a tasty finale for any occasion when you are hosting, the dinner itself is generally the main event and what you want to spend the majority of your time on. So, I was happy to see that Favorite Day had quite a large selection of frozen desserts available at my local store.

Cooking television show America's Test Kitchen has agreed to purchase recipe site Food52, which said it was forced to file bankruptcy after its lender unexpectedly swept cash from its bank accounts. The offer from America's Test Kitchen is worth $6.5 million and will gives Food52 a path out of Chapter 11 under new ownership. The stalking horse bid is subject to better offers should any materialize in the coming weeks.

After weeks of excess, it's not surprising that our palates begin to feel a little jaded. The thought of another roast dinner makes me yawn, so something with spice feels exciting. Biryani, with its layered complexity of flavour and texture, has always been the ultimate celebratory centrepiece for guests to congregate around, and it needs little accompaniment bar a bowl of cooling raita. This meat-free version made with tender paneer koftas is light and fresh, yet still warming and packed with flavour.

As a dietitian and devoted follower of the Mediterranean diet, my love for Costco runs deep. An eating pattern rooted in fresh, whole foods, and a warehouse store famous for its bulk buys may seem like an odd pairing, but hear me out. The Mediterranean diet is all about nutrient-dense staples like olive oil, nuts, whole grains, legumes, fresh produce, lean proteins, and other heart-healthy fats.

Farm Table, part of the Seven Lakes landscape restaurant and hotel complex in Kyiv suburb, is a waterside dining space built around a single-source kitchen and a commitment to local ingredients. The menu centered on fish from the property's own lakes and seasonal farm-grown produce reflects a philosophy of "honest taste" that is deeply rooted in Ukrainian culinary traditions.

New bags-matte-ified and designed to look like wood planks (like a potato crate)-will hold the chips with revamped ingredient lists. Lay's promises that the baked, kettle-cooked, and original chips won't taste different, they just won't have any synthetic colors or flavors: The redesign will also incorporate a new logo that looks like the sun, photos of potatoes on the bag, and the phrase "Made with real potatoes."

New Year's Eve itself is often referred to as Le réveillon de la Saint-Sylevstre - the eve of Saint Sylvester's Day (which is on January 1st) - or simply ' Le Saint-Sylvestre'. Don't worry, you won't need to know anything about the life of the obscure 4th century saint himself - although if you want to, here's a brief explanation.

So many features on Northern California hotels and inns topped our list this year, we decided to give them their own place to shine (8 Northern California Hotels + Inns We Loved in 2025). Many of our other most-loved stories celebrated the great outdoors, from the hip new pool club and upscale camping resort The River Electric in Guerneville to the newest California National Monument, Cotoni-Coast.

Since moving to Castelfranco Veneto this year, I've made the 45-minute train ride to Venice at least two or three times a month, sometimes just for a single bite: chef Daniele Zennaro's wafer of baccalà mantecato at Algiubagiò. I've been to the restaurant six times now and have never left without ordering it. Once, when a friend was running late for dinner, I snuck in a small plate of two wafers and an Americano before she arrived.

There's something magical about a really well-done buffet, and we're not even talking about the chance to pile all your favorites on a single plate. It's also a great way to try new dishes without making a commitment to ordering something off a regular menu that you might not love, and we're fans of anything that leads us to new foods.

Mazarine opened quietly at the start of December. Located on Hanover Square, in the same building as the new Mandarin Oriental (but unconnected to the hotel), the restaurant sits in the more understated end of the Mayfair design scale, with gentle curving walls and ceilings and a sleek neutral colour palette. It's cosy and quietly fancy without being overly flash.

The One Group Hospitality, which acquired international teppanyaki chain Benihana last year, has announced plans to open 10 new restaurants throughout the greater San Francisco Bay Area. The hospitality group secured development rights for the restaurants with "an experienced operator," according to a news release, with plans to open two Benihana locations in 2026. Three more future Benihana franchise locations and five Benihana Express (Benihana's new fast-casual concept) locations are slated to open over the next seven years.

Ten years of feeding people we love. Ten years of regulars who became family, neighbors who became friends, and first-timers who somehow always found their way back. Ten years of memories made over babka, hot chicken, wings, beer, trivia, late nights, early mornings, and everything in between.

Finger food needn't be fancy, so New Year is a good opportunity to clear the decks. The only real rule is to keep things to just one bite no one wants to be manoeuvring a fork, after all. People just want a big hug of comfort food with a decadent twist, says Max Bergius, founder of Secret Smokehouse in east London.