Midterm mania | The Spectator

Loser’s: the campy and ironic bakery making made-to-order cakes

Going downtown in New York used to be cool. Before Soho became a glorified shopping mall, it was a haven for starving artists. Before Chelsea became family-friendly, Michael Alig was throwing Blood Feast parties at the Limelight. The rebel heart of downtown, which attracted generations of avant-garde creatives, is much harder to find today. All of Manhattan has seemingly “gone uptown.” But Loser’s Eating House, a made-to-order bakery operating out of a tiny Soho ghost kitchen, is still serving up a little slice of downtown realness. Loser’s style is campy and ironic. The cakes rely on exaggeratedly large piping, done in a purposefully messy style Loser’s was launched in 2021 by baker Lizzy Koury, who was, until very recently, her company’s sole employee.

Loyd Grossman

Dining out in Mysore

Long before “decolonization” was a glint in the eyes of left-leaning political scientists, Hyder Ali, an upstart mercenary soldier turned sultan of Mysore, and his nepo baby son, Tipu Sultan, fought four bloody wars to keep the British from controlling the south of India. If wars were like soccer league tables, the Hyder/Tipu team would have come out on top with an enviable record of three wins to one loss. That loss was the final match otherwise known as the Fourth Anglo Mysore War, in which Tipu was defeated by the inspired generalship of the future Duke of Wellington. Tipu died in battle and the general was soon comfortably billeted in his late adversary’s summer palace.

Jane Stannus

Criminal gangs have developed a taste for snails and seafood

It was a dark night in November that the criminals stole softly upon the sleeping snails. They snipped away the fencing, pried open the door with a crowbar and knocked out the security lights. Then, they advanced upon their victims, who were lying, defenseless, in cold storage. No use for the snails to flee; heliciculturists breed them for flavor, not speed. The hapless gastropods could only pull in their horns, make themselves as small as possible inside their shells, and wait. The crooks worked with merciless efficiency. Some 450 kilos of snails soon found themselves shivering in the getaway vehicle as it sped off down a route départementale in northeastern France (where else?

Roger Kimball

My new discoveries from South Africa

When I heard that Minnesota Representative Ilhan Omar had gotten into the wine biz, I thought “Hot dog! If she is as good at wine as she is at investing, this should be spectacular.” I mean, talk about creatio ex nihilo. Just a few years ago, Omar had a net worth of about $1,000. Now she is said to be worth some $30 million. Perhaps only Nancy Pelosi, the world’s most successful investor, is better at conjuring something out of nothing. In 2022, eStCru, the winery Omar’s husband had invested in, was touted as a “hot brand” by Wine Business Monthly. There was chardonnay from the Willamette Valley, cabernet from Mendocino and more.

Food & Drink