What It Means to be a Regular

On the House is going PAID. Here’s what you need to know.

As most of you now know, in June we renamed and relaunched this newsletter as On the House. The reason for doing this was simple: I wanted a place to tell stories about things closely related to food and dining — things I’m drawn to and curious about, and that ultimately make everyday life more interesting, distinctive, and satisfying.

In figuring out what that would look like, I kept coming back to this idea of good taste and the ways we cultivate it. Through what we read, what we buy, what we do, and the people we surround ourselves with, who inspire us to better discover what our own taste really looks and feels like.

Since then, our team has released a handful of pieces I’m really proud of — an interview with New York City’s most talked-about proprietor, George McNally; an insider’s guide to the art of the walk-in (yes, it is an art, and yes, we need to keep it going); a spotlight on summer’s buzziest branzino pop-up; and a personal piece on what it was like growing up inside one of the city’s most iconic French bistros. As a longtime restaurant owner and storyteller, I’m curious about how and why things leave an impression on us. And those are the types of stories we’re always going to tell here.

Just the beginning.

To grow what we’re doing and invest only in the best, most of our content will be behind a paywall starting next week. Free subscribers will still have access to 1 post a month; paid subscriptions ($125/year or $15/month) will include:

• 4-5 stories a month, including exclusive interviews, curated guides from food’s all-time greats, + expert recommendations for cooking, shopping, and more

• Our full story archive (which includes legacy content like Jean-Georges’ personal recipes and convos with OTH friends Nobu Matsuhisa + Graydon Carter)

• Invites to subscriber-only events such as tastings, talks, and dinner previews

• Exclusive discounts (that you can’t find anywhere else) and giveaways

• Commenting + chat privileges — for good convo AND crowdsourcing

For $750/year, our OTH Regulars tier will include ALL paid perks, plus:

• Guaranteed spots at 1-2 OTH subscriber-only events (your +1 is welcome, too)

• One gifted piece of limited-run merch

• Exclusive in-restaurant perks (think: a round of drinks, early res access, + more)

• Private 1:1 recommendations (email or DM us + we’ll help 🫡)
  

Lastly: With over 900K(!) of you here, we’d be grateful if you took our brief reader survey ⬇️ to let us know what you’re loving (and what you’d like to see more/less of on OTH). Your insight and thoughts are crucial in making this publication one you really value and enjoy. As a token of our appreciation, we’ll be randomly selecting two survey participants to receive a free annual subscription for the first year.

Thank you for supporting OTH and our small-but-mighty team on this journey. —John

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PLUS: Newsy Things This Week:

• Justice for Cabernet Sauvignon.

• New York’s newest, most talked-about bread is a $60 loaf of rye.

• Did you know there’s a Dinnerware Museum Upstate?

• After a recent trip to Paris, Ruth Reichl wonders if fine dining is a dying art.

• The Astor, the new restaurant inside the Public Theater, opens today.

What We’re Buying This Week:

1. Ghia Le Fizz is finally back in stock after SIX sold-out months. It’s big (750ml) and bubbly (AKA made for celebrating).

2. Rachel Comey and Unreal collaborated on the Coco bag, a limited-run crinkly silver clutch inspired by a chocolate wrapper.

3. The coffee grinder to end all coffee grinders (seriously, it’s sold out in nearly every colorway).

4. Colours of Arley café curtains, for bringing an extra analog touch to your home kitchen or dining room.

5. We’re not ones to speak in absolutes, but this black pepper is best of the best. (We enjoyed this interview with the founders, too.)