Notes from Curtis...

Burn the Ice: The American Culinary Revolution and Its End

Kevin Alexander

Originally reviewed 2026-10-04

It follows various chefs/entrepreneurs from the mid aughts until just before COVID and how the restaurant scene in America transformed. It starts out with Gabriel Rucker in Portland and paints a very nostalgic picture of what it was like in Portland during that time. It was before I really got in to food as I was still in high school, but there are recognizable names and places. It makes me miss what Portland was and cherish any new places that capture that early scrappy spirit.

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