Brigid Washington

Very recently, I had the incredible good fortune to appear as a guest @newshour talking about #saltsweatsteam. The insightful @geoffrbennett asked meaningful questions that brought both depth and levity to our conversation. The interview aired last week and it was surreal watching it at home, with the kids and Joseph. (Unintended bonus was chatting and snacking on popcorn with the incomparable @iamsophianelson in the green room)

@nytimes @nytcooking @emweinstein @margaux_laskey I truly don't deserve any of you! #saltsweatsteam

📖 In her new memoir ‘Salt, Sweat and Steam’, Trinidadian food writer Brigid Washington recounts her time at one of the world’s top culinary schools, and spills secrets about what it really takes to become a top-tier chef. At #bocas2026, Brigid was One on One with Franka Philip. More photos on our Facebook page (link in bio). Photography by Shaun Rambaran and Sataish Rampersad of Forge Business Imagery, official 2026 Bocas Lit Fest photographers. The 16th edition of the Bocas Lit Fest concluded on Sunday 3 May after four days of discussions and readings, workshops, performances, open mics, and music, featuring close to 150 writers, speakers, and performers. 🙏The JB Fernandes Memorial Trust, @onecaribbeanmedia , and the Ministry of Culture and Community Development @mccdtt are main sponsors of the 2026 Bocas Lit Fest; the festival is also sponsored by @MassyGroup , the @britishcouncil , @ansamcalgroup , and @UWI_staugustine . @ampliatt is the festival’s official livestream partner and AVIT Support Ltd is the official technology partner. #bocas2026 #alltogethernow #caribbeanwriters #readcaribbean @withbrigid @stmartinspress @real_trinifood

Fresh ink in the @nytimes this morning! Deeply appreciative that @emweinstein @genevieve_ko and @kchambrot selected one of the most meaningful passages of my book to excerpt...passion fruit juice and all!✨✨✨#saltsweatsteam

The quickest and most joyous little book tour in Trinidad for @bocaslitfest this weekend, where I was in conversation with the insightful veteran journalist @real_trinifood and also where my sister-friend of THIRTY FOUR YEARS, Anupama sat front row cheering the loudest 💛 #saltsweatsteam

This post is powered by fabricated beef, the porosity of our passions, and non-descript potatoes... I mean you had to be there #bocaslitfest2026 #saltsweatandsteam #iwillbuythebook #youshouldtoo

Nothing like a sold-out, standing-room-only book release at @quailridgebooks last night. @aweigl thank you for the thoughtful questions and easy conversation...I'm absolutely floored by the all of the love and support💛✨#saltsweatsteam

IT’S OUT! Salt Sweat Steam by my insanely talented friend is finally here. Go show some love @withbrigid ❤️ . . . . . #book #books #cooking #culinary

Thank you @foodandwine and @karemizu for this massive excerpt of chapter one. Salt. Sweat & Steam is officially out into the world today! #saltsweatsteam

TWO Someone asked me recently to describe my process, inquiring about where and how I did most of my book writing. I stood there for a minute, trying to answer the unanswerable. I didn't write alone. I wrote with the kids - Noelle especially -- buzzing around me, with Luke running through the house, looking for adventures. I wrote in bed, on the sofa, the kitchen counter and never at a "real desk" (this infuriated Joseph). I wrote while on other deadlines and while doing laundry. I wrote at home in Trinidad and Jamaica and I treasured the times I wrote in Texas (with my eagle-eyed former journalism professor). I wrote in the children's museum and I always wrote with San Pel and coconut water. I wrote a whole chapter on a Sunday morning before church and another time I spent a week on a single paragraph. I wrote with my past and allowed it to interrogate my present. And even though several friends offered their gorgeous beach houses to me, "for uninterrupted work time without distraction from the fam" I declined every single well-intentioned offer. Writing may seem like a solidarity act, but it's more of a communal one, where the end result knits us closer, connecting people in easy and unexpected ways, through the secure seams of a thoughtful text. I'm not sure how exactly to quantify my "process" but what I do know is when I write, it's not just for me.#saltsweatsteam

THREE "The only time I’d seen any variant of the word “velvet” used in a culinary capacity was in relation to the ubiquitous red cake. And I knew that chef was not referencing fabric samples or children’s books about rabbits. I looked down at my shoes and then, betrayed by fatigue, let out a wonderfully satisfying yawn, that was wide enough to swallow up whatever shreds of my dignity remained. “Well that’s clearly not an answer!” chef said. “Could anyone here tell Brigid What. Is. Velveting?” For a moment, I felt the cool breeze of relief blow across the class because no one had raised their hand to answer the chef. And then, a familiar voice popped in..."#saltsweatsteam

FIVE & FOUR The best description of the night was written by the Eater reporter, Amanda Klundt, for a May 4th 2010 article titled “Hangover Obsessions” : “Eleven Madison Park was out of control from about 11 PM until the wee hours. There's something disconcerting about walking into a four star restaurant and witnessing a dining room full of grinding restaurant industry pros, beer cups in hand, chowing on hot dogs, while Daniel Boulud and Daniel Humm spray the crowd with champagne to LL Cool J's Around the Way Girl. Unlike two years ago, when EMP threw a solid but tame party, they came prepared this time with a hired DJ and beer stations. By the end of the night Johnny Iuzzini and TONY critic Jay Cheshes were both dancing on the tables, and certain revelers made beer runs when the main EMP bar ran out. Also in the 2:45 AM roll call: Grant Achatz, Ed Levine, George Mendes, Daniel Humm, a lot of writers, and a lot of randos dancing on the tables. Said one Union Square Hospitality Group flack, "those people definitely do not work here." Luckily, Danny wasn't around to witness.” A hundred percent, our group of seven were “those randos dancing on the tables” and we definitely did not work there." #saltsweatsteam 📷 stock because clearly we didn't have a camera