About the Author

I'm Andrew. I'm a software engineer by day and ambitious home cook at night. I am completely obsessed with crafting high-end dining experiences at home.

I use this site to document my trials, successes, and misfortunes. You will not find many fast, easy weeknight specials on this site. There are more than enough blogs and cookbooks on that subject. However, I don't think there are enough resources for that special occasion where you want to go the extra mile. Maybe sometimes you want to spend a day or two really sinking your teeth into a project, and enjoying the fruits of your labor by that much more. Or maybe you're like me and you just plain enjoy the whole process start to finish, grind and all. That's what fivetwentysix is about, and that's who these recipes are for.

Many of the recipes on this site require specialized equipment, an assortment of hydrocolloids and other "modernist" ingredients, and regular ingredients that may be hard to acquire for some. Substitutes and alternatives are given where applicable, but to me modern cuisine is all about chasing down diminishing returns in pursuit of perfection, and you'll get the best results with the best tools at your disposal. That said, I do not have a 'dream kitchen' - I live in an apartment with a pretty run-of-the-mill kitchen, as far as built-in features go. If I can do it, you can too.

You may also consider reading Guidelines & Assumptions, aka "how to use this site".

If you have any questions or comments, feel free to leave a comment on any recipe or email me directly at andrew.berls [at] gmail.com. I would love to chat.

What are you waiting for? Dive right in to the recipes.