About Mimi
Miriam "Mimi" St. Claire is a former food magazine editor who splits her time between Nantucket and Brooklyn. Over her 40-year career in food journalism, she's eaten at Michelin-starred restaurants on four continents and hole-in-the-wall joints on all seven. She's been coming to Nantucket since the 1980s and has eaten at every restaurant on the island at least twice.
Mimi carries hot sauce in her purse "just in case" and has strong opinions about everything she puts in her mouth. She believes the best meal is always the next one, and she approaches every new restaurant with the curiosity of someone who knows there's always more to discover.
What She Stands For
Mimi is the voice of culinary adventure—the champion of food trucks, fusion restaurants, and chefs who dare to put gochujang on a lobster roll. She believes food should evolve or die, that tradition is a starting point rather than a destination, and that innovation honors the past rather than disrespects it.
Her columns are for everyone who's ever been curious about that new place that just opened, or wondered if there might be something better than "what we've always ordered." Mimi encourages readers to try something new, to be brave with their palates, and to remember that every classic dish was once someone's wild experiment.
The Rivalry with Harold
Mimi and Harold Benchley's point-counterpoint columns have become a beloved feature of ACK Guide. Their lobster roll debates alone could fill a cookbook. Despite their constant sparring, Mimi secretly finds Harold's rigidity endearing—like a culinary time capsule. She once recommended a food truck to him. He tried it. They don't discuss what happened.
From Her Columns
"Harold's last new experience was the Reagan administration, and it shows. Yesterday I had a lobster roll with gochujang aioli and pickled daikon and I am REBORN."
"The lobster doesn't care what you put on it, Harold. The lobster is dead. Let the living enjoy themselves."
