Blogger Bios

Nancy Nichols | is a senior editor at D Magazine. Born in Dallas and somewhat educated at UT Austin, she has a degree in political economics. She did PR for the Dallas Blackhawks, was the GM of the Dallas Diamonds, and has worked for more than 20 years in and around the food business. She has written for D about restaurateur Tristan Simon, hockey great Mike Modano, and the Rockfish oyster deaths. Nancy has in her cubicle a bunch of menus and a folding chair from the Ottawa Senators.

Todd Johnson | is the creative director at D. He grew up on Spaghetti-O’s. His palate has since become more sophisticate, but just barely. Todd prefers simple, basic flavors, but he still likes foam. His favorite meal of the day is caffeine.

Carol Shih | is the online assistant dining editor at D. She received her degree in Public Policy at Duke University, where she quickly decided her degree was useless if she wanted to write for magazines. Now Carol is often hungry from reading restaurant menus (thanks, PR people) and keeps a stash of Meiji chocolates inside her desk.

Andrew Chalk| was the first member of his family to win a scholarship to special ed. He attended the College of Jeckel and Hyde where he studied continuation. He isn’t allowed to cover opera for D because his Italian is so bad that he once thought Verdi’s Requiem was written by Joe Green. There is common agreement that his posthumous work is his best.

Hayley Hamilton| covers two of her favorite topics for D Magazine/Sidedish – wine and spirits. 22 years ago, she embraced Texas, arriving by way of California and Arkansas, to attend TCU. In 2004, she united her love of Dallas with her passion for wine, founding Dallas Uncorked, a not-for-profit organization that donates the proceeds to various local and international charities. A world-wine-traveler, Hayley has concentrated on small-production, family-owned wineries in North and South America, Europe and South Africa, with Mendoza, Argentina being one of the most magical places of them all.

Daniel Walker | hails from Salt Lake City, UT and moved to Dallas in 2008 to attend medical school at UT Southwestern. He currently writes for his blog, “Deep in the Gut of Texas,” as he pursues a career in dermatology. Eight years ago, Daniel married his high school sweetheart and now they have a happy little boy, who loves food almost as much as his father. This avid music fan loves discovering new sounds and attending local concerts in whatever spare time he has.