This article is adapted from the December 14, 2024, edition of Gastro Obscura’s Favorite Things newsletter. You can sign up here. When I was in college, I went to a party that I’ll never forget. The theme was Alice in Wonderland, and the crowd outside of the house was made up of people dressed as Mad Hatters, Red Queens, and more. But the real spectacle was inside. There was not a piece of furniture to be seen. The walls of all the empty rooms were covered in newspapers, and all…
