The daily digest of Twin Cities culture | Secrets of the City

Look, I think I've been honest right from the get-go.

I've never been a foodie. In fact, I've always been a little squeamish about diehard foodies. And I stumbled into food writing because I was an out-of-work English professor who needed a job, not because I stayed up nights dreaming of the perfect creme brulee.

There’s something about talking over a meal that makes people loosen up. It’s the proximity of your knees under the table, the intimacy of sharing food, the lubrication of a little wine. This is not a set-up for drunken confessions. It is a method for coaxing the truth out of public figures used to communicating mostly in talking points. Ultimately, I want On The Table to show my guests the way they really are.