Friday, August 7, 2026, Jesse Cohn

Let's start with the great clue at 2D: Cuisine with the #1 dish in a CNN "World's 50 Best Foods" poll (THAI). Not that I would complain - I just had Thai food last night, and it was great. But what is this poll, and how does it have the authority to show up in a Friday NYT Xword? 

Poll might be a strong word here. It seems it was the travel staff of the CNN website who came up with this list. It's an odd one: buttered popcorn is #50, and poutine is higher ranked than potato chips. Donuts are ranked higher than croissants (very questionable). Anyway, Massaman curry takes the top spot. Hmmm. It was fun reading, anyway!

Meanwhile, the puzzle has a lot of fun colloquial phrases, like CATSOUTOFTHEBAG, AREWEATHING, IHADNOIDEA, and ABITETOEAT. 

TOONS

1A: What suggests relief is at hand? (STRESSBALL) is a great way to start the puzzle. I love the literalism of the "at hand" here. 42A: Opportunity on Mars, say (ROVER) is a good example of a hidden capital. 

It's a smooth themeless puzzle, and I always enjoy that. 

- Colum