In September, Michael Bauerretiredas the San FranciscoChronicle’s restaurant critic after 32 years at the paper. Both because of Bauer’s very lengthy tenure and thecriticismshe faced, the subject of his replacement was a subject of scrutiny. Now, the paper has announced that his successor will be Soleil Ho, the journalist and chef who has made a name for herself by tackling issues of immigration, race, gender, and class in the food world.
It’s an exciting choice, not only because Ho brings a new perspective to a staid position but because she’s written movingly and incisively about topics like thefoodof first-generation immigrants, hownostalgiahas shaped Vietnamese restaurants in America, and a Chicago poke chain thatclaimeda trademark on the phrases “aloha” and “aloha poke.” HerRacist Sandwichpodcast with Zahir Janmohamed has a real following all its own, and she co-authoredMeal, a graphic novel about eating bugs. In addition to her writing, Ho has also worked in South Minneapolis, New Orleans, and Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.
TheChroniclesays that Ho, who is currently based in Minneapolis, will “confront questions of ethics and social justice” — something Bauer was criticized for, well, not doing. In a statement to the paper, she says that she’s “so honored … to be tasked with doing this diverse, complicated region’s foodways justice through my writing” and calls the gig “a total dream.” Congratulations are in order to Ho.
