Getting Known: How Food Critics Make a Name for Themselves

Abstract

How does one become a well-known food critic? From the study of the careers of food journalists who have achieved professional recognition at different times, this article demonstrates the existence of two main strategies for making a reputation. The first is to propose a new gastronomic aesthetic, in other words a new way of conceiving "good cooking" the second is to emphasise professional excellence as a journalist. In both cases, it is the individual's position as an intermediary between the gastronomic and journalistic worlds that makes these strategies possible. Nonetheless, success demands work to construct the critic's singularity and have it recognised. The forms of this process differ depending on the type of distinctiveness sought: naming, theorising and disseminating, in the case of a new aesthetic; highlighting and polishing the style, when the aim is to demonstrate journalistic excellence.