Happy Hour Specials No. 2 || Halloween Tricks & Treats
I may have covered all things PSL last issue but what about some tidbits that are oh so Halloween coded? Also, Elissa | MoviePudding shares some highlights on horrifying if not iconic foods in film!
Dear Readers & Cake Eaters,
I lied about my next issue being paid because this is a “Halloween Happy Hour” special and since it’s shorter than my normal NL, I’ll throw in one more free one for good measure in the spirit of Halloween. :) There are endless Halloween x Food facts, cultures, myths, superstitions, traditions what have you that I could explore but here are just a few quick things off the top of my head. Perhaps I’ll go deeper next year but lucky for you, my buddy aka MOVIEPUDDING was generous enough to contribute to our Happy Hour so be sure to check out her special “(Not Just) Desserts” feature below where she highlights a couple of horrifying and iconic foods from movies.
I’m currently writing this from NYC and I don’t know a single place I would prefer to be soaking in Halloween vibes more than in this city. The fall leaves are gorgeous, the pumpkin posses lining up the brownstone stoops fill me with so much joy, menus everywhere are rife with pumpkin (spice), and simply put, I always feel so at home and in my element in this city. I missed it.
I have a lot of exciting announcements regarding The Cakewalk universe coming in the next couple of weeks so stay tuned but for now, Happy Halloween and let’s dig in! xx
P.S. No audio this time! Your girl’s gotta run!
Happy Hour Menu
Wednesday, October 30th 2024
Gravestone Recipes - Have you heard of this phenomena? “In cemeteries from Alaska to Israel, families have memorialized their loved ones with the deceased’s most cherished recipes carved in stone. These dishes — mostly desserts — give relatives a way to remember the sweet times and, they hope, bring some joy to visitors who discover them among the more traditional monuments.” In a NY Times article on the subject, Jane Menster was quoted saying “A cemetery doesn’t have to be a place of sadness” in regards to the German Christmas cookie recipe on her great grandmother’s headstone. “It can be a place of great memories. It might spur people to talk about the good memories instead of the last memory.” I can honestly say I’ve never thought of the cemetery as being anything other than a sort of sad or somber even if peaceful place but looking at it with this lens and context certainly changes my perspective.
And just in case you thought that no one’s made this subject their business just yet, meet Rosie Grant who’s behind Ghostly Archive, a TikTok account “documenting the tradition of gravestone recipes, (and) taps into food’s power to evoke memory, all while exploring our relationships to death.” This might certainly give you new inspiration for your next visit to the cemetery . . . happy grave [recipe] robbing!?
Vampire Cafe in Tokyo anybody? Chances are if you’re headed to Japan, you’ve already got a pretty hefty list of places you want to visit whether it be for the gourmet or kitsch experience. Well, I’d certainly consider this one more kitsch than gourmet but if you happen to be there during spooky season, why not and ‘tis the season, right? And I mean, nothing ventured, nothing gained?!
Legend has it that Au Vieux Paris d’Arcole in Paris just might be linked to the OG Sweeney Todd. And by OG Sweeney Todd, I mean that apparently Paris is where it all started and not London as the musical implies. Funny enough, in the Spring, this restaurant is a hot spot for IG photos for about a week or two with its iconic wisteria framed entrance but don’t let the charming and heavily saturated photo fool you, it’s as sinister of a story as they get. Let me give you the quickest recap ever: basically in the 1300’s, a barber teamed up with a butcher killing off foreign students (cuz no one would miss ‘em), of which the butcher would make special pâté’s out of. . . now if you want a better explanation, check out Messy Nessy’s article on it. But back to the restaurant - I’ve heard a couple things here and there about it being haunted and according to Amanda Rollins aka American Fille on TikTok, it VERY much is. Where it gets a little confusing is the location of where the murders and the butchering took place in regards to the restaurant. Apparently, French Sweeney Todd’s place is now a Paris Police Motorcycle Garage and in this garage there is still some original stone foundation from that dark moment in history. In regards to the restaurant, supposedly the restaurant’s basement was perhaps where the butcher was and where the “goods” were passed back and forth. SO ON THAT NOTE, if I haven’t wildly confused you with my expert explaining skills and you are keen on checking this place out, go, and know that I wanna hear about your experience. And in case you’re NOT convinced but like to geek out over historic places, according to this blog, the restaurant is “registered on the French Inventory of Historic Monuments as one of the oldest documented restaurants in Paris.” So go wild, just maybe don’t order the pâté? Lolllz.
And while we’re on the subject of haunted restaurants (a passion of mine), here are a couple iconic ones around the world for you to check out. In the interest of time I’ll have you check out the lists for yourself but I def want to hear from you if you’ve been to any of them. I will say, I HAVE been to The Formosa in LA pictured above and while the ambiance and vibes are super lively and aesthetic, something does feel a little spooky there. Anywhere else I should have included?
If creepy and just downright disturbing/grotesque looking sweet treats is your calling, then check out Nikk Alcarez and his very first cookbook Peculiar Baking: The Practical Guide to Strange Confections which you can order HERE - and you’re in luck because today is its’ actual release date! I came across Alcarez’s IG account only a few months ago but let me tell you, it never disappoints in being extravagantly strange and peculiar and while I admittedly don’t care too much about cookbooks, this one seems like it’ll be worth my while even if only for the visuals alone. And if you’re in NY, Alcarez is doing a book signing tonight in BK.
We’ve probably all heard about the dangers and threats of potentially poisoned Halloween candy when trick or treating (those of us residing in Halloween celebrating countries anyway). I still remember the sadness I experienced when my mom said I couldn’t go trick or treating anymore because of what might be in the candy. (Granted, she was sweet and said she would get me whatever candy I wanted instead but obviously that’s SO not the point!) But did you know, “Of all the reports of a child being killed by poisoned Halloween candy, not a single one has held up under inspection.” According to this article on poisoned Halloween candy by Gastro Obscura, the threat has always just been that, a threat and any of the reportings and claims that were filed, were always found to be hoaxes or pranks by the actual children themselves, or even on one occasion, actual murder by a father in the hopes of claiming his child’s life insurance. It’s a crazy world out there and there are enough things that are trying to kill us as it is but hey, it’s a silver lining nevertheless that the sanctity of trick or treating for candy on Halloween be preserved. Like with anything in life, always proceed with caution but I like to think that there is still some innocence in the act of trick or treating after all.
(Not Just) Desserts ft. aka MOVIEPUDDING
Did you know that food can be scary too? When Khuyen told me about doing a Halloween issue, I immediately thought of a few potentially horrifying and iconic foods from the movies, not all of which fall directly into that genre. -
The Love Witch - (a Cakewalk favorite that I highlighted in the very first issue!) In this gorgeous homage to Technicolor a modern-day witch casts spells on men to make them fall in love with her, of course to disastrous effects. The cakes, like the clothes, accessories, and furniture, are ultra girly—and part and parcel to the film’s commentary on the femme fatale and feminine power.
Django Unchained - The plantation owner played by Leonardo DiCaprio’s favorite dessert is white cake. Very on brand for the deplorably racist villain.
Soft & Lovely - The scariest pie scene you’ll ever see on screen comes with a dramatic reveal that shows you really what these ladies are about and what kind of movie you’re about to watch.
Trap - You’ve probably heard by now that Josh Hartnett plays a serial killer who takes his daughter to a huge pop concert, which is a set up to try and catch him. The scary — and fun — of the film, the latest from M. Night Shyamalan (Signs, The Sixth Sense, etc!) is how calm, cool, and collected he is. Case in point, when he takes the time to have some pie [might have been cobbler, need to check] his wife made even when the cops are closing in.
House of the Devil - Before the X trilogy, director Ti West made another movie that pays homage to 70s and 80s horror, specifically of the satanic panic and haunted house variety. A college student takes a sketchy babysitting job on the night of the lunar eclipse. This pizza eaten by her friend is a bit of foreshadowing of what’s to come.
FIN!
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Now I want ‘Gravestone recipe’ in my will😂