Ever wonder what other foodies are thinking?  Me too!

1. What is the name of your blog? My personal blog is Great Food Houston, though I also contribute to CultureMap and the Fearless Critic.

2. Could you describe your blog in one sentence? Sadly, the best word right now would be defunct. But that’s changing! This year has been crazy for me between work and play, but I’m determined to post on my personal blog more.

3. How did you get into food blogging? I grew up in Houston, but lived in San Francisco for 7 years after college; that’s when I really got into trying new foods. When I moved back to Houston, blogging was a way to push myself to explore the food scene here.

4. What’s the toughest part of writing about food? Words are powerful, but using them to capture my precise reactions is difficult. I can’t stand clichés, so am always trying to push myself to come up with creative descriptions for dishes I’ve enjoyed.

5. What’s been your favorite food moment? The first time I tried pho was perfectly life changing. I was in college—it was probably sometime around 1998—and I never knew that a dish that seemed so simple could be so deliciously hearty and satisfying. It definitely pushed me to explore more Asians foods. Vietnamese food is my go-to cuisine now.

6. Do you have a top restaurant? If so, what’s the name and is there an item you generally order? Really, I don’t. Restaurants evolve, as do my own tastes and preferences, so my list of “favorites” changes often. Lately in Houston I’ve been crushing on Pondicheri, Xuco Xicana, Vic & Anthony’s, and Pho Binh. And when I go to San Francisco I like to eat as much Italian food as possible—they do it so beautifully there.

7. What’s one U.S. city you’d travel to just for the food? I’m lucky that my full-time job is with a tech company in San Francisco, so I return there regularly. And since we’re close to New Orleans, I get to check that one off about once a year. So I’d say the one U.S. city I’d travel to right now for the food scene alone is Charleston. I’m dying to hit Husk.

8. Is there a food you absolutely despise? Several. I’m not a picky eater, but will not touch eggplant, yellow squash, zucchini, or pears. It’s the texture.

9. What’s the craziest thing you’ve ever eaten? That’s a hard one. I lived in Argentina for a summer, and I remember feeling quite brave when I tried morcilla for the first time. Even crazier, probably, are the unknown goods from street vendors in Asia. Gotta do it, though.

10. Are you more likely to stick with what you know, or do you try something new each time? My favorite thing to do is to ask the server what his or her favorite dish is, and try that. They’ve typically tried just about everything on the menu, and you can tell by their reactions how good something truly is. But there’s definitely a part of me that likes to stick with something great once I find it.

*Images provided by Great Food Houston