Taylor's Ham

where food and music and Taylor Swift collide

  • Coda Kitchen and Bar

    When we entered Coda Kitchen and Bar, my glasses immediately steamed up, and I couldn’t see. MDP and I had just escaped from the pouring rain, having walked a few blocks from the parking lot. High-tops near the front and the rectangular bar were all but full. The music may have been a little too Read more

  • 1989 (Taylor’s Version)

    When 1989 (hereafter called 1989 OG) came out in 2014, it was a smashing success. The album sold about a million copies in its first week, and went on to earn Taylor her second Album of the Year Award at the GRAMMYs. It was called a pop tour de force and the rumored relationship at Read more

  • Speak Now (Taylor’s Version)

    It was the summer of 2009. I had just bought a copy of Fearless (wow, a CD) after becoming enchanted by “Love Story” blaring through the speakers of Duane Reade and everywhere else I went in New York City. And I was falling in love – both with the person who would become my husband Read more

  • The Eras Tour

    We should have known the world was about to fundamentally change when Taylor Swift announced her Lover Fest tour in 2019. When news broke that she’d be touring to support her recent album Lover, she announced only five dates in the U.S.—an unusual circumstance given she toured globally for her previous albums, usually making a Read more

  • The Fox & Falcon by David Burke

    David Burke is no stranger to making something old new again. For 85 years, the Dixie Lee Bakery was a local institution in Keansburg, NJ. It was the kind of bakery that had a little bit of everything, ranging from black and white cookies and lobster tails to cupcakes, wedding cakes, and beyond. Although it Read more

  • Midnights by Taylor Swift

    I remember watching Taylor Swift’s New York University commencement address and thinking, “This is new.” Throughout the speech, she drew back the curtain and provided an unvarnished, somewhat self-loathing look at herself, in her most vulnerable form. She said, “I know I sound like a consummate optimist, but I’m really not. I lose perspective all Read more

  • Butter & Jam

    I always love a good restaurant recommendation. That’s why I joined the SOMA Eats Local Facebook group, where people from my community gather to discuss the latest and greatest food nearby. Get the lunch menu meatball sandwich, they might say of Arturo’s, the legendary wood-fired pizzeria in Maplewood village. The Maple Leaf Diner has great Read more

  • Valley Street Eatery

    Any New Jersey denizen will tell you that the taylor ham, egg, and cheese sandwich is a delicacy not to mess with. Most bagel shops, delis, and diners keep it simple: a few slices of taylor ham crisped on the flat top, over-hard egg, and American cheese on a kaiser roll. Salt, pepper, and ketchup Read more

  • Red (Taylor’s Version)

    That sounds familiar, I said to myself as I got out of my car on Saturday, November 13. I had just listened to the entirety of Red (Taylor’s Version) the day prior. The song on the radio was “Message in a Bottle,” a veritable bop from Taylor Swift’s latest album, released on Friday, November 12. Read more

  • The Dip

    They say that, in New York City, the only constant is change. While that may be true, my view is that the only constant is the better the restaurant, the smaller the space. This maxim bears out in the new kid to the East Village, The Dip. Nestled between residential properties, The Dip asks its Read more