It is a sad day in the Food Universe. Many hearts have been broken with the news that the Granddaddy of all cooking magazines is no more. The horrid economy and digital media have claimed another victim. Gourmet magazine was the first U.S. magazine dedicated solely to food and wine. It brought fine dining, upscale cocktails, and wine appreciation into the homes of millions of Americans for almost 70 years. Now, it has gone the way of Merrill Lynch, Pontiac's Firebird, and 45s.
While it is true that Gourmet had difficulty keeping up with the times, its demise leaves a great void in the Food Universe. Gourmet magazine did as much for the home cook as Julia. It did as much for chefs as Emeril and as much for restaurants as Zagat's. Not only did this magazine shape food writing and photography as we know it, it also helped thousands of cookbooks get published. It also created career fields in food styling and recipe testing.
Gourmet taught, mentored, inspired, and entertained. It reminded Americans how far we've come in terms of eating, drinking, entertaining, and vacationing. But, alas, nevermore.
To read the full story on Gourmet's closing, please go to:
http://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/10/05/conde-nast-to-close-gourmet-magazine/
