Like the man said, we are what we eat. And, fortunately, what we eat is delicious. The cuisines of our state—Mexican food, barbecue, and comfort food by way of chicken-fried steak—have been the stuff of great meals for as long as there has been a Texas, and also of great magazine stories for as long as there has been a Texas Monthly. For 34 years now we've been telling our readers where to find and how to think about the best of everything, and nothing is more important to them, and to us, than the indigenous bests: the best burrito or margarita, the best brisket or beans, the best cream gravy or cornbread. Food has a constituency larger and more passionate than that of any other subject we cover; whoever you may be, wherever you live, it's also the thing that connects you to your neighbors down the block, across town, in the next county, and around the state. And food is fun to write about, though not always to report on: Ask our longtime restaurant critic and resident gourmand Patricia Sharpe to regale you with tales of eighty tacos in four days and you'll see why unlimited eating on someone else's dime may not be as enviable as it appears.

Pat has been, like a celebrated chef at a five-star restaurant, the one who's pulled the ingredients together masterfully, with grace and cheer, all these years. Many of the stories you're about to read originated with her, in conception or execution; others detoured through her office on their way to being served up to the more than two million readers who continue to hang on her every word. We and you owe her greatly for the impact she's had on all of our culinary lives. Thanks, Pat. You can keep the change.