Welcome to the latest edition of Food52 Founder Amanda Hesser’s weekly newsletter, Hey there, it’s Amanda, packed with food, travel, and shopping tips, Food52 doings, and other matters that catch her eye. Get inspired—sign up here for her emails.

I’m writing to you from a high-speed train zipping from Paris to Antwerp. Why can’t we get trains right in America? I would love nothing more than to take a high-speed train across the country.

I’m with Jojo, Food52’s GM, and we’re on a sourcing trip, which, in the world of home, may sound like a shopping trip where you stock up on products. In reality, it has meant walking eight miles at a trade show in the very unglamorous outskirts of Paris, checking out shops around Paris to find new products and to study their visual merchandising, and trekking to a ceramics factory near Marrakech. Throughout, we’re taking photos, video, and notes on everything we’re seeing so that we can turn them into new product ideas, find new color inspiration, source smart new makers, understand how the products we offer are made—and make Food52’s Shop the best in the world.

Over the next few newsletters, I’ll share glimpses, trends, and commentary from the trip!

Chestnut brown is showing up across table products from plates to placemats to pitchers.

We saw a sprinkling of ceramics with traditional hand-painted motifs at both the trade show and in shops. We especially like those that came from Eastern Europe (like the ones against the blue plaid wall and the bowls).

Events are happening!

• September 18: We’re hosting the third installment of our work-smarter Nobody Cares Speaker Series, with hospitality expert Carlos Quirarte and Feed Me newsletter author Emily Sundberg. RSVP here.
• September 27: Baker, cookbook author, and past MasterChef contestant Hetal Vasavada will be demo-ing three sweet and savory recipes at our brunch and learn for moms. Plus: We’ve got Food52 goodies for all our guests! Get tickets.

Tomatoes are (still) happening!

Shortcuts are happening!

• Dhamaka’s Chef de Cuisine, Neel Kajale, visited César in the Test Kitchen and showed him a shortcut to tender, spiced chicken and fragrant rice: Pressure Cooker Chicken Pulao:.

Products are happening!

• Oil lamps are back. We saw this one earlier this year in Germany, on another sourcing trip. And now it’s here for you!
• We also saw this perforated bakeware in Germany and liked how the perforations help your baked goods brown and crisp evenly on the bottoms and sides.

Have a splendid week!

Amanda

Before starting Food52 with Merrill, I was a food writer and editor at the New York Times. I’ve written several books, including “Cooking for Mr. Latte” and “The Essential New York Times Cookbook.” I played myself in “Julie & Julia” — hope you didn’t blink, or you may have missed the scene! I live in Brooklyn with my husband, Tad, and twins, Walker and Addison.