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Four years of This Needs Hot Sauce and a very special weekend in Philly!
On October 29, 2017, I sent out the first edition of This Needs Hot Sauce to about 40 people on tinyletter. At the time, I was working in a cubicle at a non profit, still fresh off a breakup, and very unsure of what I was doing with my life. I first had the idea for TNHS in the back of a cab, took a few more months to come up with the name and work up the courage to press send (I get asked for newsletter advice often and my number one tip to just do it, and do it consistently).
Four years later, I send this to thousands of wonderful readers and This Needs Hot Sauce is a full fledged business. I’ve had opportunities I could hardly dream of, from being on podcasts, teaching cooking classes, and next year, contributing to an anthology alongside people I’ve long admired. Whether you found me last week or have been here since the beginning, I want to say a heartfelt THANK YOU for reading, sharing, and cooking along with me. Your responses make my week and I absolutely love the community we’ve built. I’ll say it again, thank you for making space for me in your inboxes each week.
Now, a little call to action for this momentous occasion: If you love this newsletter, please share it, with a friend or on social media and support it, either by sharing or with a paid subscription if that tickles your fancy. It helps immensely. If you’re an editor, brand, or investor looking to collaborate, please get in touch. I have lots of ideas to grow This Needs Hot Sauce and would love to work with you.
Now, let’s dive in.
Something to cook:
We moved today (hence the late send) and spent most of last week cooking with a mostly bare fridge. When I realized our last jar of marinara sauce had mold, I pivoted to a kale aglio e olio for lunch, which was delicious and has minimal ingredients. I didn’t boil the kale and it cooked fine in the main skillet.
Brins jam is so flavorful and I had toast with butter and blueberry sumac jam for most of the week. Simple and satisfying.
Julia made me a crispy tofu bowl with Omsom’s sisig starter, bell pepper, cucumber, rice, and cashews.
Another premoving meal was frozen ravioli from Wegman’s. The sweeter butternut squash filling was great with a drizzle of olive oil, black pepper and parmesan.
Something to order:
I was invited to try Simo near Union Square and brought Julianne since we both love pizza and it’s right by her school. We were very impressed by the well priced Neapolitan pies (get the tre gusti to try three toppings on your first visit) and the arugula salad with pecorino and olive oil. It’s a really pretty space and they also serve beer and wine so keep it in your back pocket for a meal in the area.
Frida and I grabbed a last minute dinner at Mesa Coyoacan (the heat lamps were on, winter is coming). We split the rajas and mushroom quesadillas (we both liked the mushroom better).
Dale and I had some pizza from Williamsburg Pizza that really hit the spot (also I’m excited to eat lots of pizza in Queens, from childhood favorites Dani’s and Nicks to Austin Street Pizza, which recently opened).
I spent the weekend in Philly to celebrate Sandra and Jake’s wedding and it doubled as a mini Street reunion (as Isa put it, we all met working on this weird magazine). I always know I’m going to have a good time in Philly—it’s one of my favorite cities in the world and this was no exception (see other Philly newsletters 1, 2, 3). Sandra and Jake and their families hosted such a thoughtful and joyful weekend.
We leaned on the nostalgia, starting with coffee and pastries at the La Colombe on 19th. They still have sparkling water on tap, charming ceramics, and delicious coffee. For dinner, we headed to La Viola, a byob Italian spot, where Zacchiaus, Andrew, Isa, Noah, Frida, and Tyler and I kicked things off with Italian reds and pastas (no boxed wine because we are grownups now). There are two locations that are basically the same and on the same block. It’s cash only at one of them, so be prepared and get the gnocchi.
We continued to welcome drinks at Abe Fisher and then kept the party going at Stir, a gay bar that reopened within the last week (so it was quite empty) that wound up being the perfect spot for the wedding afterparty the following night. It has a big dance floor and a juke box so you can create the Carly Rae Jepsen playlist of your dreams.
On Saturday, we hit up some campus favorites like Green Line Cafe and the taco shop formerly known as Honest Tom’s (not as good as we remembered sadly and they no longer have Valentina) with Zeke and Anthony and then I got tahini shakes for me and Frida at Goldie, the perfect getting ready snack. The original flavor is the way to go and it’s vegan, so no lactaid required. I get one every time I come to Philly.
The wedding was at Bok Bar, which is a converted Art Deco style high school. It was such a cool setting, with views of the city for their hilarious ceremony. The reception was in the former gymnasium, which still has basketball hoops and ropes to climb. It was such a fun night and I came back to New York feeling so lucky to be have been part of it.
After the wedding, I was really craving french fries so back in New York yesterday, Dale and I got a late lunch at Old Town Bar, where I got a veggie burger with fries. Sitting in a booth in that historic restaurant (it opened in 1892) is a real happy place.
Something to read:
20 years of living in New York City (I love this style of retrospective)
Rava’s Succession apartment is for sale and it features a morning kitchen, which is a thing I didn’t know existed
How Andrea Nguyen wrote her first cookbook
How old Jewish men became a viral sensation in 2021
Behind the extremely popular and problematically named Prisoner wine brand
These engagement photos in the produce aisle are adorable
Pop Up Grocer is opening a permanent location soon! Very excited.
The history of Boyle Heights, an LA suburb that defies suburban expectations
Patti Labelle and the McBride Sisters (this sounds like such a fun dinner)
A Tuscon baker makes bread with indigenous grains, honoring Latin American traditions.
Mayukh Sen shines a light on food’s hidden figures
New Yorkers, don’t forget to vote tomorrow if you haven’t already. Here’s a guide of what to expect.
Now, let’s talk about your favorite Halloween candy. I sort of skipped Halloween this year because of the move/wedding travel so hopefully I’ll get some candy this week.
Julianne was in the same boat: LITERALLY forgot Halloween = candy, because I rarely eat candy! Wow! Thank you for this reminder. Reeses and Kit Kats bring me nostalgic joy and I think I need to find some this week...
This week’s question is a bit nostalgic: tell me about your favorite college food. It could be a regional specialty or the late night dish that fueled study sessions and nights out. I’ll always associate my time at Penn with vegetarian food from Magic Carpet food truck, lots of coffee and low quality wine. I know this varies so much school to school and am excited to hear your answers! I’ll share them next week.
Thank you again for being part of this!! I’m beyond grateful.
Have a great week.
xo, Abigail