Congratulations on a quality debut! Loved this theme set—tight, funny and a great revealer. The clue for PAPERCUT is absolutely first rate. I thought there were a lot of fresh entries, actually, for a Tuesday. Great job.
Would have been lovely if LAME DUCK or COLD TURKEY could have been thrown in, but there's only so much room and I have no SOUR GRAPES.
I thought it was fun! Maybe a bit way, I did beat my average for a Tuesday, but hey, if we can have extra hard days then it’s not a big deal to also have some slightly easier ones. I don’t think we need to demand like Goldilocks that our puzzle porridge be just right every single time. That’d get exhausting. I thought some of the clues were fresh and cute. I liked it, overall.
A lot of space could be saved here in the comments circus if the column began each day with a poll: Today’s puzzle felt like a Monday Tuesday Wednesday Friday Saturday Huge Mistake Dream It included (check all that apply) A Natick Arcane trivia A word from a foreign language that scared me A word that, when spelled backwards, is OERO Technologically speaking, the platform failed me in the following ways (list) Lastly, the editors have ruined the venerable NYT Crossword by bowing to pressure from: (limit response to one institution or demonic figure; avoid proper nouns)
@Don H Ever try herding cats, Don?
@Don H Ha! Nice one. I've had this thought several times. How about: - XYZ is wrong - XYZ is in the dictionary
@Don H You forgot to post a link to the median solve time of a narrow group of people who registered for that site.
I can't applaud the meal that missed the mark, but I can and do applaud the constructors on their debut. Congrats and thank you, Gus and Bharati! (Here's Mazzy Star with "FADE INTO You" - <a href="https://youtu.be/ImKY6TZEyrI?is=579bAKyOsJVdZdxb" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/ImKY6TZEyrI?is=579bAKyOsJVdZdxb</a>)
Amused to see a FRAPPE clued as [Chilled coffee drink]. Back when I was growing up in the Boston suburbs in the 1980s (and well before then), “frappe” was the New England term for an ice cream milkshake (a “milkshake” literally just being milk and flavored syrup, without the ice cream). In the early 1990s, the Boston-area coffee chain Coffee Connection introduced a blended iced coffee drink called a “Frappuccino” — a portmanteau of “frappe” and “cappuccino” — which became a big hit. When Starbucks started looking to expand into the Boston area, the company decided to simply buy Coffee Connection and take over its stores. A large part of the reason was to get rights to the (trademarked) Frappuccino. (In a recent episode of the “Acquired” podcast, you can hear Starbucks founder Howard Schultz purist’s disdain for the sweetened, milky, barely-any-coffee dessert-disguised-as-a-beverage concoction that of course went on to make Starbucks gobs of money). So cluing FRAPPE as [Chilled coffee drink] is a curious kind of backward proprietary eponym. Maybe I will have a tamale or some paninis with that frappe.
@Nat K I, too, thought it odd to include coffee in the description for a FRAPPE. I don't drink *$ Frappuccino, something in their flavoring syrups tastes bad to me. Sort of OFF COURSE.
@Nat K I believe that here in New York back then we called a drink a FRAPPE if it was a regular milkshake made in the blender with ice cream and then it had an additional scoop of ice cream added to it--which could be a second flavor. Yum
@Nat K I believe frappes were/are slushy coffee drinks from Europe. Maybe Greece?
@Nat K when I was a kid in the southwest in the 70s, my mom had an Oster blender with multiple speed buttons (at least 10). One of them was "frappe" and I remember being both enchanted and mystified by the word.
Fun and clever theme with a revealer that perfectly lands. Kudos to the brain that noticed that there are a handful of phrases combining a word meaning “bad” and a food, then crafted this theme. l, who love the quirks of our language, absolutely adored it. If anybody’s solve went quicker than usual, a contributing factor may have been that the box has one less row than usual, thus 15 fewer squares to fill in. All the theme answers had pop, and there was a lovely supporting cast, with SOME NERVE, PAPER CUT, FRAPPE, and TOP KNOTS. Your puzzle, Gus and Bharati, infused me with a quick boom of happy. You’re my top bananas, and congratulations to both of you on your NYT debut!
@Lewis Column. One fewer column.
Had a moment when I thought Curiosity & Perseverance must have been the names of 2 ancient Greek LOVERS 🤦♀️
@Kristin Those would be great names for teenagers caught up in the love and the hormones.
@Kristin To me they read as two daughters in a pioneer or Amish family.
@Kristin i had the same with RIVERS 😸
@Kristin I briefly considered the two lions at the NY Public Library.
I got as far as BAD APPLES and immediately thought of my own puzzle of 3/10/21. Would the revealer be the same? When I got to 21A, I realized that the revealer would not be the same. So what would the revealer be? One by one, the possibility of having a revealer with BAD, SPOILED or ROTTEN in it was eliminated. So was FUNKY -- though that one never crossed my mind. Had all the synonyms been eliminated? What about turning everything the other way around? I thought of possibilities like PAST ITS PRIME; NO DARN GOOD; TRASHY FARE. OFF COURSE is a cute revealer that I never thought of -- made much more interesting by turning BRATS into hot dog food. Also, there was a Friday-worthy clue for PAPER CUT. I liked this amusing Tuesday puzzle a lot.
@Nancy Sounds like fun to solve a puzzle with a mind that has created a puzzle.
Alternative clues: FUNKY CHICKEN = foul fowl ROTTEN TOMATOES = gross grocery SPOILED BRATS = uncouth youth
@Petrol, Yes! “Short and sweet” clues rather than explanations, though I enjoyed “Nightmares for nannies”. To complete the list, Corked Yorks, or Faulty Fujis maybe? (Though not sure how prevalent our apple varietals are internationally.)
Very fun Tuesday, my favorite was Funky Chicken. And congrats on the debut!
The clue for PAPERCUT was worth the price of admission!
@Times Rita Yes, I was stumped by that one. The NE was the last to fill as a result.
I thought I was a sci-fi time traveler to the PAST yesterday when a national fruit basket company's website told me to fax them my company's tax exempt form... Fax!? 🤯🤯🤯🤯 Granted, I've been struggling to track days and months lately, but I thought I knew the year! Fax!?!? So I did what any reasonable person would do and built a time machine... I managed to successfully fax my form and moved on with life—which I decided would be best respent in 1987. It really was a good year! Got my can of Aqua Net, will time travel!! Har! Okay, I know some will say that faxing is not obsolete, especially in medical and legal fields, but I literally haven't had to fax since 2013—not in my work or personal life. Well, the real tripper was today I checked in with them to confirm the fax arrived. They said they don't know what that fax number is and that I should email it to them... 🤯🤯🤯🤯🤣 All you can do is laugh. I spent valuable time figuring out where and how to fax something in the year 2026 and they just say, oh, you should have emailed. To which I say, hey, you should update your website before my grapes get more sour... Ah well, not the fault of those I was talking to, so I didn't become a SPOILEDBRAT, but hopefully they'll suggest an update to the site. Thank you, NYT, so much, for bringing up such a painful subject. While you're at it, why don't you give me a nice PAPERCUT and pour lemon juice on it?! Har!! 😏 Enjoyed the puzzle though! Fun one!! Mmmm, brats!!
@HeathieJ My students are typically 19 years old. 90% of them have no idea what a fax machine is (it comes up in one of the topics). I last used a fax... 20 years ago?
@HeathieJ Just the fax, ma'am. .....
@HeathieJ Dr's offices, labs, and other businesses routinely still use fax machines. Ipso faxo.
Seriously good Tuesday puzzle. Lots of amusing clues. Well done!
I was firmly committed to MArs instead of PAST at 8 Across, which threw me OFF COURSE. But I'm always up for a food theme, so congrats to the constructors on their debut. Today's song is suggested by 47 Across. Here's David Johansson with FUNKY But CHIC live on Conan. (Bonus points for a leaping Conan.) <a href="https://youtu.be/EcqckTknXoo?si=oIzCtcJ7s9c-3xSw" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/EcqckTknXoo?si=oIzCtcJ7s9c-3xSw</a>
@Vaer oh, that was a great performance!
Congratulations to both of you on a fantastic debut!! I thought the theme was very clever. After living in Wisconsin for four years and eating plenty of BRATS in that time, that answer really got a laugh out of me once I got to the revealer! 🤣 I’m looking forward to the collab coming out near Halloween and hope to see more from both of you!!
Eww, send this puzzle to the compost pile! (Referring to the theme, that is!) Now wondering if there is a way to compost human BAD APPLES. Mix them together with other scraps, maybe some manure, let them heat up, and rest…end up with a nourishing useful final product?
@Cat Lady Margaret “Soylent Green is people!”
Despite the theme, this puzzle felt fresh and new. And fun. Thanks, Gus and Bharati! More, please.
Masterful work by the editorial team, hanging onto this puzzle so it could appear in conjunction with the nasty outbreak of cyclosporiasis that's now affecting much of the USA. OK, I'm feeling queasy---not sure this puzzle passes the breakfast test. (Congrats on the debut!)
@Xword Junkie Which makes 59D all the more ironic
Bears aren't just a Rockies thing--even east of the Mississippi, the Eastern Black bear, while less dangerous, can be a problem. But I've found raccoons to be a more persistent nuisance. I don't think of crêpes folded, so much as rolled. But you can also stack them, layer them with a filling--savory or sweet (just make sure your butter isn't rancid)--then slice them like a gâteau; save a slice for the bear. Happy Bastille Day, everyone!
@Bill We pulled into Grand Marais a couple of years ago in October, I think. Coming in the door, the we heard a rustle in the apple tree just off our front deck, and we saw a dark figure. Turned out it was a black bear, a smallish one, enjoying one gigantic bite out of each apple, the rest being discarded. People visiting Grand Marais gathered in the street taking pictures. Sadly, though, the theory was that a drought at a critical time in the summer had reduced the berries available, and the bears were putting up with humans to try to get ready for winter. I'll always wonder if the little guy made it.
Cute puzzle and a nice double debut, but we already had a Monday puzzle this week. The constructors are definitely not BAD APPLES or SPOILED BRATS, and I'm not throwing ROTTEN TOMATOES, but the editors seem to be OFF COURSE. (Is an emu really a FUNKY CHICKEN?)
@Barry Ancona You realize knocking the editors is as bad as knocking the constructor, don't you? They're all human beings.
N.B. See the median solve times: <a href="https://xwstats.com/puzzles/2026-07-14" target="_blank">https://xwstats.com/puzzles/2026-07-14</a> <a href="https://xwstats.com/puzzles/2026-07-13" target="_blank">https://xwstats.com/puzzles/2026-07-13</a>
@Barry Ancona Lewis pointed out that the grid is 15 boxes smaller today.
@Barry Ancona Perhaps a FUNKY But CHIC Chicken, and some chickens do have pretty funky plumage. (See the link to David Johansson in my post above or below depending on which way you scroll.)
The first two themers I happened to solve were BADAPPLES and ROTTENTOMATOES, so naturally I thought the revealer was going to be something like FRUITOFTHELOOM. FUNKYCHICKEN dissuaded me from that theory, and SPOILEDBRATS got me even further off course. (Great puzzle, Gus and Bharati!)
I've lived in MN for all 43 years of my life. Not once did I ever consider a loon call to sound like a laugh. Google tells me it is. Huh. TIL I guess...
@Jacqueline I've never really thought it sounded like a laugh either, but on the other hand I'd be hard pressed to say what it *does* sound like. It's such a strange, eerie, lonely call. I like to set up my telescope by an inland lake on the North Shore which has about as dark skies as are available east of the Mississippi. One night I was set up and doing some observing and a loon on the nearby lake gave a call. I was just transformed by the perfection of the moment, seeing a globular cluster, hearing a loon. I don't know that life on earth gets much better than that.
There are four different calls. The eerie one Francis mentions is different from the crazy laugh one. I’d give you my demo of the laugh call - well, you’ll just have to imagine it.
The (New Hampshire) Loon Preservation Committee has samples of the four types of loon calls on their website: <a href="https://loon.org/the-call-of-the-loon" target="_blank">https://loon.org/the-call-of-the-loon</a>/ The fourth, which they call the tremolo, is the "laugh". I've vacationed on Squam Lake in NH for 30 years or so and recognized [Lake bird with a laughing call] immediately - and which call it was referencing.
@Jacqueline I too thought it odd, but I went down the rabbit hole and listened to several recordings. Loon calls are much more varied than I'd realized, and one of them does indeed sound like laughing.
I'm not getting the "Monday puzzle" complaints. I've only been doing the NYT crosswords for a few decades but can barely discern the difference between the Monday and Tuesday levels of difficulty. Wednesdays are a definite and perceptible step up.
@VN I can almost always finish Monday in less than 10 minutes but Tuesday takes me longer.
@VN I know it's a Monday when puzzle when I can almost finish it using just one set of clues (across or down). No way today fit that description. I think the Too Easy Crowd is getting a little carried away.
Gosh, if these puzzles seem too easy, and you want more of a challenge… maybe use solely the down clues, or solely the across clues, or solely the even, or odd numbered clues.
@sonnel Seconded! I just did it using only the across clues in 18:34. Excellent puzzle, not at all SPOILED by a FUNKY theme!
Lots of great entries here! I especially liked DOX and the cluing for PAPER CUT. Thanks for a fun, fresh feeling frolic.
Nice debut Gus and Bharati! The revealer was perfect. SPOILED BRATS was my favorite because the BRATS are not immediately recognized as food, but I can't imagine that there are many (any?) other entries that would work that way.
@Nancy J. On the mean streets of NYC where I spent most of my childhood fighting for survival. in and out of gangs and juvie, we immediately recognized SPOILEDBRATS as food, chewing them up and spitting them out as it pleased us.
Fantastic Tuesday. Solid de-beaut! Felt the cryptic vibe running through the clues!
Posted a related comment as a reply but it needs more. I am surprised to be the first to complain about the inaccuracy of 59D under current management.
Felt like a Tuesday...but I was also off balance the whole time. Which is a good thing! Shake off smugness and expectations! Awesome.
Congrats on the debut. It was a really fun Tuesday.
Dazzling double debut dudes! To see some TOPKNOTS in action the July Grand Sumo Tournament ISON. <a href="https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/shows/sumo" target="_blank">https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/shows/sumo</a>/
I miss Life magazine. I was a subscriber to the print edition and loved the photography. On the plus side, it's impossible to get a 8D from a digital publication.
I'm having a rash of "Not Quite" messages appear of late. I think for every puzzle in the last five days other than Monday I was utterly stumped by a cross. I had no alternative to running the alphabet on the BOBA/BUSTA cross.
@Francis Always so interesting to see where my mileage is different from others—those were two of my gimmes. Boba tea is a favorite of my daughter’s. Usually my downfall is anything involving TV or movies, although I’m slowly learning from doing these puzzles. Today’s solve was relatively smooth except for falling for the scam/sham misdirect that Sam called out. If I hadn’t looked back over my crosses, I would have been stuck with a “not quite” cALAL meal.
@Francis Strangely enough, those two were gimmes, for me 😲
@Francis I'm gonna be in Grand Marais today. I'll cruise through town blaring Busta Rhymes for you. Lyrics very NSFW: <a href="https://youtu.be/un3NkWnHl9Q?si=N5fc4bIi_dSpa-g0" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/un3NkWnHl9Q?si=N5fc4bIi_dSpa-g0</a>
There is an issue with your clues for STAT and ASAP. It is a really simple distinction that drives me crazy. As Soon As Possible means just that. Do this thing as soon as you possibly can. Finish what you are doing and then do this thing, put this thing next on your list, etc. STAT means stop what you are doing NOW and do this instead. When the clue is I need this immediately, the answer is STAT.
@Eubanks --- the logician in me wants to say that nothing could be sooner than "as soon as possible", but I agree it's not always meant to be taken so literally.
@Eubanks It seems to me that most people use the two interchangeably.
@Eubanks This is the first I've heard of distinct meanings, and I bet lots of others haven't, either. Language evolves and this may be an example. I understand your frustration, though. I myself will never give up on less and fewer.
@Eubanks Not so sure ASAP also means "Finish what you're doing and then do this thing." If you were halfway through a crossword puzzle and asked to help put out a grease fire in the kitchen ASAP, would you take that to mean that the grease fire could wait until you finished the puzzle?
@Eubanks surface dive suggests that "stat" is derived from the Latin "statim" meaning "at once". My guess is that in medical environments it has that specific meaning, but as it spread into the general language it acquired a more general meaning.
Nice Tuesday puzzle. Typical slow start for me, but then just had a good time working things out from the crosses. Looking forward to more from our new constructors, and... ...suspect that we may never see 'Bloxham', 'Bharati' or 'Hemmady' as answers in a puzzle. :) And I'll put my puzzle find in a reply. ....
@Rich in Atlanta As threatened: A Wednesday from September 30, 2020 by Erik Agard and Randy Kravis. Theme answers, straightforwardly clued: RANKAMATEURS STINKINGRICH RIPEOLDAGE FUNKYCHICKEN And then... "Profanity... or what 17-, 24-. 36- and 52-across all start with" FOULLANGUAGE Here's that link; <a href="https://www.xwordinfo.com/Crossword?date=9/30/2020&h=52a" target="_blank">https://www.xwordinfo.com/Crossword?date=9/30/2020&h=52a</a> ....
Fun one today. Had to guess a couple of spots but they came through correct and got the gold star. Happy Tuesday
This one took longer than the usual Tuesday for me because I had SNOUT instead of SNOOT for a long time. TUPKNOTS didn’t sound right but what do I know about sumo hairstyles?
Childish. Yes, even for a Tuesday. The theme was pretty cute though. I'm going back into seclusion again until there are some signs of challenge 'round these parts. Editors, I know the dollars are the driver, but there is little fun here anymore. :( To those who like TV Guide level stuff and despise us whiners, well have at it, and enjoy yourselves.
@B I had a fast solve today too but I’m all for broadening the pie. There are plenty of Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday puzzles in the archive if you find the difficulty aggravatingly low. You are also getting better with time. Consider that your complaints that the puzzles are getting easier may simply be a sign you are getting better. It may be you that’s moving as much, or more than, the perceived difficulty of the puzzle. Also give people a chance to learn how to play. This was enjoyable and yes, a bit breezy. But we don’t need more crusaders for demonically hard puzzles that only a small, and shrinking, cohort can ever solve.
@B I solved this very quickly, in Monday rather than Tuesday time. That being said, I was only able to do that because of several years of solving experience - there was quite a bit of misdirection in the clues, and much of the fill required of me to get it from crosses. Thus, it really did feel like I was solving a proper Tuesday, with a bit of a Wednesday vibe, even. It's just that it went quickly. I mean, last weekend I was half a move away from sending a 6b climbing route (no idea how that translates to an American rating; some tables I found online say it's 5.10d) - and it took a shorter time than I usually spend a 6a (5.10a/b) one: time just wasn't representative of the difficulty.
@B Gosh, because it's all about you. Perhaps there are MANY newcomers to the Times Crossword who appreciate being able to learn as they go and appreciate the gradual ramping of difficulty. There's a hundred years of Friday's and Saturday's in the Archive if you are so 'brilliant'.
TIL: Halal. Got the theme entries early on, choked at the revealer. Some very clever misdirects! Great Tuesday puzzle!
@Call Me Al welcome to HALAL Al! I learned about it in college. The Jewish and Muslim student societies, recognizing the similarities, teamed up to get meals which satisfied both sets of requirements.
@Call Me Al, I thought sALAd was the special request for a flight meal.
This was a really good puzzle – great start to a very hot and humid Tuesday. Thanks Gus and Bharati.
I was caught by BRATS too. A nice crossword - HEFTY is fairly unusual, and theme clues were good fun. Is there really an International Speak Like a Pirate Day? There seem to be quite a few celebration days in the US (Teacher's Day, Secretaries Day I know of) which must be a welcome diversion. The UK has a few national 'Bank Holidays' - such a dull way to celebrate, with no parades or fiestas.
@Jane Wheelaghan Yes! September 19th! Don't ask me why that little piece of trivia is so deeply embedded in my brain.
@Jane Wheelaghan International Speak Like a Pirate Day is not an official U.S. holiday, its a parody holiday, like National Wrong Trousers Day in the U.K. and I believe like many "mo." clues, meant to be solved more by figuring out the remaining letters than knowing the actual month, although once you know, you may want to start celebrating...arrrrhhhh!
What a COaRSE puzzle! I held my SNOOT the whole way through. (Just kidding.) Congratulations on a fine debut. Kudos, for some TOPKNOTch cluing! Thought I ws going to BUSTA gut laughing when I finally got 8D.
poem made from words in today’s puzzle a/ we little we we dance in the woods chirp and look we word-speakers we we listen dear companion listen to the d/ dead the he’s and the she’s whisper in pearls need everything gradually immediately beloved everything when all of this life a/ fades into ohio
@Peter Valentine Man, that last word lands like a Tyson punch. I don't think I've ever been more surprised by poetry.
Fun puzzle!
Note for Bharati, if you're reading this. Cryptic fan here. (I used to sneak off to the University library to photocopy the /real/ Times crossword.) Where might we find your cryptics? Under your own name or did you use a nom de croisée?
That was pretty tricky. I was OFFCOURSE for quite a while, having INREVERSE instead. Also, not really sure what SNOOT is, I was pretty certain I had it right as SNOUT and TOPKNOTS was not familiar enough to me to help
Today, I knew the rapper's name without a single cross. I didn't see many of the down clues, actually, so I missed "Lachrymal unit" until afterwards.