I know back in February I insinuated there was only one issue left of the Chicago FoodCultura Clarion, the collaborative zine-Reader insert, launched by Barcelona born multidisciplinary food artist Antoni Miralda, University of Chicago anthropologist Stephan Palmié, and their posse of students, scholars, foodlums, and freaks. I’m glad to say I was wrong. The penultimate issue of the Clarion has been inserted in 2,700 copies of this week’s Reader print issue. There will be a fourth issue in the months ahead.
Not everybody has Charlie Bucket’s luck, or Veruca Salt’s daddy, so if you can’t score your own print copy, you at least have access to the PDF, full of fascinating food writing by the likes of Phillip Foss, on how yours truly nearly hijacked his career with Asian carp; Eric May, with a Q&A with “busiest freak in town” Ed Marszewski; and pizza researcher Peter Regas with a huge scoop which definitively proves that deep dish was not invented by Ike Sewell or Rudy Malnati Sr., but by the lesser-known, original founder of Pizzeria Uno, Richard Riccardo Sr., well before Sewell joined in partnership and rewrote history after Riccardo died. A handful of people have made that assertion over the years, most recently our pal Steve Dolinsky in 2018’s Pizza City U.S.A., but Regas has the goods.
The Chicago Pizza Police will be shook. v