Hi there. I'm Kenzi, and I write this blog.
I grew up in rural Connecticut, in a small town called Ashford, with a mild obsession with PB&J. I was the pickiest eater there ever was, so I suppose that this little space, and me, are proof that even a picky eater with a bleak outlook and peanut butter and jelly on her face can change. It’s a food success story, if you will.
In my dark age as a discerning (read: picky) eater, my parents would serve what they called no thank you servings: terrible, seemingly heaping portions of every food I declared a particular opposition to. It was awful, but as it turns out, I came out the other side just fine. You might even say they cured me.
This blog is proof of that; I’m no longer one to refuse anything edible.
As these things go, this blog was started on a whim, as a half-dare from a friend. (I’ve always been hopelessly prone to reverse psychology.)
In college, lost like the majority of everyone else, I was sure of only a few things. One, I liked writing. Two, I liked food. I made the intelligent leap of combining the two, and took my own, amateur whack at food writing. Nearly two years later and still without a clear career path, this little space has served as one of my only constants.
It’s always been here, waiting for me to write something new, share something different. It’s quite reliable in that way, like a good book or that foolproof family recipe for chocolate chip cookies. I’ve liked having Rue le Sel, and I hope you’ve enjoyed reading it so far. Here’s to more posts to come.
**FAQS**
Can I contact you?
Sure thing. You can reach me at ruelesel [at] gmail [dot] com
Why is it called Rue le Sel?
That’s a good question. Your guess could potentially be better than my explanation. See this post, it’s the one I wrote at the beginning of time answering just that.
Isn’t the name, if it is supposed to be French, grammatically incorrect?
Looks like someone took French in school. Touche. (Is that spelled right?) Take a look at the above link for more, but at the end of the day, I really needed to just start something, and unfortunately, against all of my English lit training, I was too hasty and neglected to edit. Please forgive me.
Do you have degrees in writing?
I don’t, technically. I graduated with a BA in English and a Concentration in Creative Writing. I also worked on my college lit mag for a few years. But no, no MFA or any of that jazz.
Can I do a guest post? / Would you consider being a guest blogger?
Yes! Absolutely. Shoot me an email and we’ll talk blogging. And food.
Why don’t you do giveaways like other, cooler, better blogs I like more?
That phrasing was a little harsh. Here’s the thing: no one asks. But seriously, I’m not sure if I even would consider doing product reviews and/or sponsored giveaways even if they were an option: I want this space to stay recipe and story oriented, and endorsements might change that dynamic in a way I’d regret.
You’re from Connecticut. Where are your favorite places to eat?
Oh. Tough one. I’m diehard and spend what little money I have on driving into New York when I can. But (but!) that ends up being no more than twice a year (if I’m lucky), so here are a few places that I like around here.
Still River Café. I’m biased as hell but really, this place is darn good. Feng in Hartford for sushi, this little hole-in-the-wall down the street from me called Monte Alban for fish tacos, Tapas for gyros. If you’re near New Haven, you have to try 116 Crown for drinks, Caseus for cheese, or Ibiza for slightly more upscale Spanish food.
Will you make me cookies?
I could do that. I read this article about people in San Fransisco lowering cookies from their windows as a business model. Anyway, I'm not nearly cool enough to do that, but I could still send you some. I make a mean cookie. I’ll send you some of mine if you return the favor. We’ll call it the Great Cookie Exchange. It’ll be fun.
Why are dogs painted on your bathroom wall great?
They just are. Come back when you have a teal silhouette of a dog on your bathroom wall and we’ll talk.
