Amber Sutherland-Namako

Writer at Chowhound

Restaurant Critic, Food and Drink Editor at Time Out New York

Restaurant critic, food & drink editor @TimeOutNewYork

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Articles

11 Best Ice Cream Shops in NYC

4 days ago | timeout.com | Morgan Carter |Christina Izzo |Amber Sutherland-Namako

Photograph: Liz Clayman | | CaffĂ© Panna in Fort GreenePhotograph: Liz ClaymanNYC's ice cream scene is packed with acclaimed modern parlors and long-time frozen favoritesMonday June 23 2025FacebookTwitterPinterestEmailWhatsAppContributors: Christina Izzo & Amber Sutherland-NamakoAdvertisingWe love ice cream in any formâ€”and every season.
The Easy Addition That Completely Wakes Up A Boring Store-Bought Salad

1 week ago | yahoo.com | Amber Sutherland-Namako

Salad making is always a little more time-consuming than expected. Super fresh produce has to be washed and, just as importantly, dried completely to get a salad anywhere near restaurant quality. (This is why a salad spinner is one of the few single-purpose kitchen tools we'll make room for.) There can be quite a bit of peeling, chopping, and dicing. And something like the iconic Cobb salad involves actual darn cooking. It all adds up to just enough work to justify shortcuts.
The Kind Of Beer You Should Never Order If You're At A Seedy Bar

1 week ago | yahoo.com | Amber Sutherland-Namako

Everybody loves a seedy dive bar, but it's helpful to know how to navigate them to have the best, low-fi time. You shouldn't expect to slide into a tattered, vinyl booth and order an over the top tipple, for example, and that required caution can often even sometimes extend to something as seemingly simple as a good old draft beer. That draft relies on lines, or tubes, to get from keg to tap to glass.
This Bar Cart Staple Is Bobby Flay's Hack For Perfectly Pickled Onions

1 week ago | yahoo.com | Amber Sutherland-Namako

Pickled onions have oodles of uses in the kitchen, and once you have a batch chilling in the refrigerator, you'll start inventing new ways to eat them almost every day. They're also so easy to make that it can feel a little goofy buying a jar at the supermarket. But that doesn't mean that there isn't room for a little entry-level innovation. And celebrity chef Bobby Flay's pickling trick whips up onions faster and literally more colorfully than most.
For An Easier Grilled Cheese, Skip The Spatula And Use This Kitchen Tool Instead

1 week ago | yahoo.com | Amber Sutherland-Namako

The odds are that you can probably already recite each of the tips for the crispiest grilled cheese you've ever had, argue in favor of both butter and mayo as a sizzling agent, and have a litany of your own glam grilled cheese glow-ups (we're partial to a Parmesan crust). There is simply no shortage of advice about the nation's favorite toasty nostalgia sandwich. But a lot of the hacks, swaps, and upgrades tend to gloss over one practical step: how to flip the darn thing.
Can You Substitute Different Kinds Of Crabs Across Recipes?

2 weeks ago | yahoo.com | Amber Sutherland-Namako

Crab is one of the sea's most delicious offerings, and making it in your own kitchen can be as easy as opening a can, or as challenging as cracking the whole crustacean open with an actual mallet. There are also abundant varieties, like the mightily sized (and appropriately named) king crab, the more petite Dungeness crab, and the ubiquitous snow crab. This is also to say nothing of the best uses for all of a crab's studiously harvested meat, or what the soft shell's whole deal is, again.
This Leftover Dessert Is The Perfect Base For Ice Cream Sandwiches

2 weeks ago | yahoo.com | Amber Sutherland-Namako

If leftover dessert sounds just about as unlikely as leftover wine (which you should store in a Mason jar), then you're likely unprepared for the event. Even the sweetest teeth can simply overbuy, or become the unwitting recipient of leftovers after a party. If those extras happen to be donuts, then ice cream sandwiches help use them up. Glazed, cake, and any kind of frosted ring donut work perfectly for this application. You can even use filled varieties, but it's a little messier.
Why An Island On Wheels Is Ideal For Your Next Gathering

2 weeks ago | yahoo.com | Amber Sutherland-Namako

We may receive a commission on purchases made from links. As much as we might wish entertaining is all about party dresses and practiced laughter, hosting people at home is also a lot of work. First there's the planning, then the shopping, some deep cleaning, and the inevitable day-of prep. But one slightly unexpected item can make both assembling and serving those expert charcuterie boards and batch-made cocktails a little easier: A wheeled kitchen island.
The Crunchy Topping That Gives Bobby Flay's Chicken Fried Steak A Special Twist

2 weeks ago | yahoo.com | Amber Sutherland-Namako

Texas icon chicken fried steak is already plenty crisp as it is. That satisfying texture is one of the primary reasons that one chooses this preparation method for a steak to begin with. But celebrity chef Bobby Flay incorporates an extra ingredient that gives it an even more dynamic crunch. Now, chicken fried steak is also plenty decadent at its most basic, as most fried foods are. And Flay's bold addition of bacon makes the plate even more indulgent.
Move Over Pickleback - This Beefy Steak-Flavored Shot Is The New Party Stunt

2 weeks ago | yahoo.com | Amber Sutherland-Namako

There is always room for innovation in the wide world of libations, even if it's fleeting. But for every flash in the pan, like the dirty pasta water martini, there's a one-time novelty that enters imbibing canon like the now more everyday pickleback. Whether steak shots, the supposedly beefy marriage of whiskey and Worcestershire sauce sizzling all over social media, are destined for the former or the latter designation is for the fates to decide.