TGIF: Rounding up the week with fantastic sushi and fun grocery-related stories!
TGIF!
Last night, my gal Amber (you must subscribe to her Substack, she's a genius) and I were so excited to be guests at the opening night of Katsuya's new NYC location.
I've been waiting YEARS for Katsuya to open in NYC (it's always on my short list of where I want to go when I'm in LA), and it exceeded even my very high expectations.
Fantastic sushi (def get their famous spicy tuna with crispy rice, the salmon sashimi with caviar, and the baked crab rolls), and I totally fan-girled Chef Katsuya and asked for a selfie. Don't do this. It exhibits no chill. He was delightful though.
Was a great night and now I'm very much looking forward to vegging out with my furbabies this weekend.
But until then, lots of work on tap for today...
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Here's some stories that were newly published since yesterday:
Clean Plates: 20 Quick and Healthy Snacks You Can Make in Your Air Fryer
Clean Plates: We Found The Healthiest And Best-Tasting Organic Peanut Butters
Food Network: Samuel Adams Honors Tom Brady with ‘Greatest of Ale Time’ Beer
If you or your client are featured in any of these stories, please share on social and tag me (I'm @alywalansky basically everywhere, please follow me!), and also please remember to tag the outlet.
Here's what I'm working on:
Be sure to read the below list carefully. Many are stories I posted about yesterday, but some of yesterday's stories are no longer listed and a few new ones have been added since yesterday. This (below) is everything that is still a currently open opportunity as of today.
Clean Plates
I'm obsessed with all things Trader Joe's - in fact, after two-years of hibernation, it was the first outing I did. So, I'm very excited to be working on a SERIES of stories related to Trader Joe's for Clean Plates. All three I need nutritionists/RDs to comment, ideally unaffiliated with a brand.
See below:
1 - The Best Items To Buy From Trader Joe's For Really Fast, Low-Lift Lunches According to Nutritionists: I'm looking to include a mix of prepared foods (like some of the pre-made salads, sandwiches, and soups), some frozen options, and one or two super-fast (like under-5-minute) kits that you can saute together real quick or whatever. And some DIY options, like their smoked trout + one of their healthier lettuce mixes + their plantain croutons + their green goddess dressing = a fantastic lunch salad that comes together fast
2 - Nutritionists Weigh In On All of the Newest Products at Trader Joe's: So this list will include these options that are brand new this month
This includes new items like this:
Root Vegetable Fries
Incredisauce
Dark Chocolate Almond Butter Filled Pretzel Nuggets
Organic Date Syrup
Guajillo Salsa
As well as whatever else is new — TJ's website has a what's new section that always gives info on the latest new products, I'm obsessed with it! — I'm going to give each one a letter grade, and I am looking for nutritionists and RDs to weigh in to discuss these items.
So when nutritionists/RDs reach out for commentary about these new items at TJs, I’m looking for comments beyond ‘yum!’’ or ‘looks good!” but rather along the lines of: "Are dark chocolate almond butter pretzels going to be as nutritionally sound as sliced bell peppers dipped in hummus? No, but compared to other dessert items, they're actually pretty healthy because almond butter is a good protein source and dark chocolate has flavonoids so if you're going to eat a dessert, these are fine." (Or whatever your thoughts are, but that’s the kind of flow I’m looking for.)
3 - Vegan Items at Trader Joe's That Are Totally Nutritionist-Approved - This one will be mix of things from different sections here, from some of the snack mixes to the cool alternative dips to frozen meals to marinated tofu (theirs is SO good BTW) or whatever.
Today.com
I'm working on a big roundup of restaurants open on Easter. We’re looking for a big list of big and small chains across the country –high and low. It's the Easter version of this story we did for Christmas, if you want an idea of the format I'm looking for.
I'm also looking for restaurant chains nationwide doing special deals/discounts for tax day (i have a few weeks to play with this one...a rare feat!)
Forbes.com
The new season of Bridgerton is set to premiere on March 25. For Forbes, I'm working on a guide to Bridgerton-inspired (or Regency-style/inspired) cocktails that are on the menu at bars/restaurants. If you have any to pitch me, please send in THIS format:
Name of drink
where sold
description (not a recipe)
quote from owner/bartender about the drink
high res image of the drink
*please do not forget to tell me the full name and title of the person being quoted. This happens more than you'd imagine!
For Forbes.com I'm rounding up Kosher For Passover wines and spirits for an upcoming story. I'm also doing a story on fun finds in Kosher For Passover snacks/treats/new products. These items must exist online and they MUST be shippable. And please please make sure the item is kosher for passover certified (that's a different thing than kosher, so if something is kosher, it's not necessarily KFP) - I'll do a dedicated newsletter soon explaining the difference for anyone who doesn't quite understand. But meanwhile, you can always email me questions. And, please, pitch me!
To pitch me for ANY of these stories, please email me at alywalansky@gmail.com (and start a new thread, please!).
Are you confused about affiliate marketing?
If you are having trouble learning how to navigate issues of affiliate marketing (trust me, we've all been there!), you may want to try out my friend Sarah Karger, a publicist, and former editor Dana Baardsen (and all-around fab girl!)'s Ultimate Masterclass and Introduction to Affiliate Marketing for Publicists. It's a brilliant course and it'll answer all your questions (including some you didn't know you had!)
Have a great weekend! Paid subscribers will get their special weekend edition tomorrow AM!
<3
aly
I am definitely going to be so excited to read your TJ article! Yum!!!