Food news antipasto

Jamie Oliver is set to return to the London restaurant scene with his first new location since the 2019 collapse of his UK restaurant group. The chef will launch a site at London’s Theatre Royal Drury Lane, and the restaurant will feature a seasonal menu highlighting British produce. Oliver said: “I was devastated when I lost my UK restaurants. Without doubt, it was one of the hardest times of my life. But being part of the restaurant industry is very important to me and I’m very excited to open this restaurant and once again, serve the public.”

Nom Wah Tea Parlor, an historic dim sum restaurant in NYC’s Chinatown, returned to popularity after being on the brink of closing a few years ago, thanks to the family team of Wilson Tang, his uncle Frank, and his cousin Vincent. Now a family feud threatens to take the restaurant down with it, as Grub Street’s Chris Crowley explains.

If you are like Alton Brown and despise a uni-tasking appliance, head over to America’s Test Kitchen. There they explain the many things you can vacuum seal that go beyond sous vide cooking or prepping veggies for the freezer.

If you love all things chocolate, prepare to find a new obsession: namelaka, a chocolate cream that falls between pastry cream, ganache, and mousse. Namelaka, which translates from Japanese as “smooth” or “creamy”, can be used as a cake filling or icing, to fill eclairs or doughnuts, or even as a standalone dessert. There is currently only one recipe in the EYB Library for namelaka, but there will probably be more to come from the sounds of it.

The Great American Baking Show (GABS) made its debut last week, and from most accounts it seems to be a success. Eater’s Amy McCarthy views the show as a winner, noting that “It succeeds because its combination of beautiful baked goods and relatable personalities sucks you in organically, without resorting to gimmicks or tricks,” much like its parent, the Great British Bake Off. McCarthy says GABS hearkens back to the first few seasons of GBBO – perhaps a portend that the next season of that show will be better than the last. I haven’t had an opportunity to watch it yet, but will have a report as soon as I can view it.