Gael Greene – Just in Time
Editor’s Note: Please leave your comments and best wishes for Gael Greene below in the comments box so we can share them with her.
Dear Friends and Family,
I was meeting fellow adventurers for dinner at Oceans on Second Avenue February first. I’m not sure exactly what happened except that the taxi stopped at the Southwest corner of 19th Street. And moments later I was lying in the gutter asking a bystander to call an ambulance.
I woke up in a busy quartet of rooms at Bellevue some days later after surgery for a crack in my pelvis. Many zip codes away from Fairway and Citarella. I slept a lot.
Did you notice that I’d disappeared?
After three months of physical therapy at Amsterdam House, I moved into a pretty little room at Atria West 86th Street senior residence with two windows on a grey courtyard, a Pullman kitchen, a sweeping tv screen and an alternating duo of aides in uniform treating me like a wounded bird.
Friends sent flowers and books, dinner from Jean-Georges and home-baked bread. Three people sent peanut butter. I’ve been reading a book almost every day and hoping to walk soon without a walker.
I dream a lot…vivid dreams…mostly fun and adventurous. I’m young and glamorous. But the fact is I will be 87 in a few days…At some point our country will recover. I wish dinners together again and deliciousness for us all.
Love and happy times, Gael
In her role as restaurant critic of New York Magazine (1968 to January 2002) Detroit-born Gael Greene helped change the way New Yorkers (and many Americans) think about food. A scholarly anthropologist could trace the evolution of New York restaurants on a timeline that would reflect her passions and taste over 30 years from Le Pavillon to nouvelle cuisine to couturier pizzas, pastas and hot fudge sundaes, to more healthful eating. But not to foams and herb sorbet; she loathes them.
As co-founder with James Beard and a continuing force behind Citymeals-on-Wheels as board chair, Ms. Greene has made a significant impact on the city of New York. For her work with Citymeals, Greene has received numerous awards and was honored as the Humanitarian of the Year (l992) by the James Beard Foundation. She is the winner of the International Association of Cooking Professionals magazine writing award, 2000, and a Silver Spoon from Food Arts magazine.
Ms. Greene's memoir, "Insatiable, Tales from a Life of Delicious Excess"(www.insatiable-critic.com/Insatiable_Book.aspx )was published April 2006. Earlier non-fiction books include "Delicious Sex, A Gourmet Guide for Women and the Men Who Want to Love Them Better" and "BITE: A New York Restaurant Strategy." Her two novels, "Blue skies, No Candy" and "Doctor Love" were New York Times best sellers.
Visit her website at: www.insatiable-critic.com
Wishing you delicious dishes and a speedy recovery!
Happy New Year!
I hope your recovery continues to go well & 2021 brings you much joy and happiness.
What a joy and privilege to wish you the best for your recovery and to keep us informed about where to dine safely when that option returns. Merry Christmas!
To an icon who has shared many an adventure with us , your readers and fans, wishing you a full recovery to delicious days ahead. Ellen Easton
Gael, I have followed you and your wonderful writing for a very long time and have enjoyed every minute in your company. Best wishes for a speedy recovery. Age is a state of mind, and you have always been young :).