SIMON SAYS: RULES OF THE GAME
RULE #1: No Free Lunch. Or dinner. We pay our own way or we don’t write about it.
RULE #2: We never present ourselves as writers for Simon Says. If we’re recognized during the course of the meal, we say so in our critique.
RULE #3: We don’t write about any place where we have a personal or financial connection.
RULE #4: We will not write about press trips or meals, unless we’re talking about a larger trend and not critiquing a restaurant.
RULE #5: We even buy our own wine.
Founders
Francois Simon - Food critic, Francois Simon is a frequent contributor to the newspaper Le Figaro and numerous magazines (GQ, Cassa Brutus-Japan, le Figaroscope, etc.) He also has his own television show on the French station Paris Première.He is the author of a number of works on gastronomy and the hospitality industry, the most recent of which, Pique Assiette, analyzes the conservative tendencies of certain French chefs. He has also published a novel entitled Toscane. Simon’s hallmark is never showing his face on television or in other media, so as to avoid being recognized in restaurants and to be able to maintain his independence. He is a devotee of rock and roll, and he can cook a chicken 200 different ways.
Christophe Doré- Former editor of the « Art de Vivre » section of Le Figaro in Lyon – a city long considered the capital of French cuisine – he is currently a reporter for Le Figaro Magazine, where he writes about travel and has a music column. He is favorite guitar is the Fender Stratocaster, and he adores the singer PJ Harvey, truffle omelets, and Côtes-du-Rhône wines.
Editors
Joe Ray - Food writer & photographer - a former cook in restaurants across the United States, Joe has been based in Paris and writing about food and wine from France and around the world for more than seven years. He writes and shoots photos for the Travel section of The Boston Globe, Agence France Presse Lifestyle, Paris Match, American Express Centurion Magazine and many others. He listens to Radiohead, Neko Case and Andrew Bird too much and should expand his horizons. To the dismay of many Champagne producers, he will be inducted as a young knight in Catalonia's Brotherhood of Cava in October. His published work can be found on his Web site, www.joe-ray.com and his blog, Eating The Motherland.
Translators
Reiko Mori - was born in Japon near Kobe. Because of her passion for French cooking and French culture, she left for Paris in 2001. After learning french cooking at the chamber of commerce in Paris, she started to work as a cook in a french restaurant. One year later, she decided not to stay inside the kitchen but to use her knowledge of French cooking and her passion for the communication. Now, she is working in Paris as a Press officer in the section of gastronomie, wine and lifestyle.
Robert Anselmi works in Paris as a translator, editor and English teacher. He is currently pursuing a master’s degree in philosophy at l’Université Paris 8. Although as a child he insisted on picking the “green things” (i.e., basil) off of his pizza, his tastes have since broadened, and translating Simon~Says ! has turned out to be a delightful and educational experience. His favorite music is 70s and 80s pop/easy listening ballads.
Contributors Mara Grimm - She is the editor of Holland’s most widely read restaurant guide: Lekker. She also writes for the culinary glossy delicious. and she has a monthly column on kids and food that appears on Keukenkikker. In her spare time she travels the world in search of the perfect restaurant. So far El Cellar de Can Roca (**Gerona, Spain) and Oud Sluis (***Sluis, The Netherlands) have come extremely close. Francois Simon, , Joe Ray, Christophe Doré Special Guest : Naomi Katsura - Clinical psychologist and writer (Naomi Katsura is her pen name) - Franco-Japanese, born in Osaka and living in Paris for twenty years. Naomi has a consultation office in Paris and also provides psychological support to people abroad, especially Japan. But, Naomi has also a passion for Japanese Culture (especially food) that she tracks in her wanderings in Japan, France, anywhere she can go with her camera at hand and a laptop to write down her [ Doki Doki ] (sound of her heart pounding when she gets excited by some dish, item, exhibition, movie, place, people, anything interesting that she bumps into and that reminds her Japan). Naomi's Doki Doki are available on Simon~Says! and she's also starting soon a new column about Japanese food in Planète Japon magazine. Her work can be found on her websites, http://naomi.katsura.free.fr (Naomi's Doki Doki) and http://naomiseguy.free.fr (as a clinical psychologist).
