FOOD text by FRANÇOIS SIMON a regular purple contributor, françois simon is a renowned french food critic and novelist. he has appeared in the netflix series chef’s table and was the model for the food critic in the 2007 animated movie ratatouille No doubt because food has become an obsession, taking up too much space in our lives and bodies, we’re thinking about it more and are creating meals that are a little more mentally engaging, fully conscious, where the brain gets working again. Food often speaks to the lower belly. That’s why it delights us, as if, just for once, the lofty brain has piped down, stopped scolding and controlling. The table becomes a permissive place where, at last, order takes a backseat, pleasure is in charge, and time is the slave. And so it was that a torrent of foodstuffs invaded the century. Television absorbed the impact and then…