Nick Muncy, on creating a pastry menu, a magazine, and the perfect interview

Issue 10 of Toothache magazine is out now.

Nick Muncy didn’t quite know what he was getting into when he decided to create an indie magazine for chefs—but then again, he didn’t know what he was getting into when he became a pastry chef, either.

Years later, his impressive resume includes a long stint at Daniel Patterson’s now-shuttered but beloved Coi and a James Beard nomination. And for that indie mag: out now is Issue 10 of Toothache Magazine.

Nick wanted to be a painter as a kid, but it didn’t really seem like something he could make a career of. “It kind of seemed like something where you’re poor your whole life, and maybe it becomes something when you’re dead,” he said matter-of-factly. Doesn’t sound too good to me, either.

Luckily, Nick had always loved watching cooking shows, too, and he wasn’t going to let an inhospitable art world squash his plans to create. Around the time Nick was graduating high school, “Iron Chef” was airing. For the first time, he saw chefs cooking innovative dishes and remembers thinking how beautiful the food was. And so, he enrolled in culinary school.