Gourmet Magazine

Mondo Times editors    Boulder, Colorado USA

Posted at 2:49pm on Sunday, October 11th, 2009

A Boston Globe editorial on October 7, 2009 was an unkind kind of obit for Gourmet magazine, titled "A recipe for obsolescence":

"Whisk together first three ingredients in a glossy vessel, until Gourmet, “the magazine of good living,’’ begins to form. Pour in money liberally. Add cooks one by one as needed, but please note: some domestic help will be necessary for readers to achieve desired results.

Freeze magazine in mid-20th-century high-end lifestyle, even as center of American food scene shifts away from the globe-trotting gentry and toward home cooks with adventurous palates but limited means."

The full story:
http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/editorial_opinion/editorials/articles/2009/10/07/gourmet_magazine_1941_2009_a_recipe_for_obsolescence/

Mondo Times editors    Boulder, Colorado USA

Posted at 4:11pm on Monday, October 5th, 2009

Condé Nast announced on October 5, 2009 that it will close Gourmet magazine and three others -- Cookie, Elegant Bride and Modern Bride.

The closure of Gourmet magazine, which has been published since 1941, is the biggest surprise. Cookie magazine was a relatively recent addition, launched in 2005.

Gourmet had a circulation of 978,000. Bon Appetit, another Conde Nast food magazine, is bigger at 1.352 million. The company will continue to publish Bon Appetit.

Conde Nast CEO Charles H. Townsend said the company made the decision because the magazines were losing money. He also said that none of the 180 employees of the magazines, including the Gourmet editor-in-chief, Ruth Reichl, are expected to stay with the company.

Mondo Times editors    Boulder, Colorado USA

Posted at 5:52pm on Tuesday, September 1st, 2009

In creating the content for Gourmet's May 2008 "cooking vacations" issue, the staff discovered that the best way to experience another culture, is to "stand at a stove with a wonderful cook." Inspired by this revelation, Gourmet magazine and WGBH Boston bring the world of cooking vacations to public television this fall with the brand new series Gourmet's Adventures with Ruth, premiering October 17, 2009.

The show invites viewers to travel the globe alongside host and Gourmet editor-in-chief Ruth Reichl as well as celebrity guests and Gourmet companions, as they visit exotic cooking schools and experience the local foods and traditions that surround them.

"This partnership is perfect for us in that we are able to do what we do best," Nancy Berger Cardone, vice president and publisher of Gourmet magazine said. "We are able to execute a multi-channel integrated marketing program in order to reach our audience, support innovative content, and ensure success for our corporate sponsor."

In its first season on public television Gourmet's Adventures with Ruth will visit cooking schools abroad in Mexico, Italy, England, Morroco, Brazil, Laos, and China; and in the United States in Washington and New York, with the series premiere episode set in Tennessee. There, Ruth and actress Frances McDormand visit Blackberry Farm, a culinary resort that exults farm-to-fork eating by producing its own organic vegetables, honey, eggs, preserves, and artisan cheeses. Gourmet editors Doc Willoughby and Ian Knauer, along with numerous celebrities who share Ruth's passion for food and travel are featured over the course of ten half-hour episodes.

In addition to McDormand, celebrities making appearances this season include Dianne Wiest, Lorraine Bracco, Tom Skerritt, and Jeffrey Wright.