The cookie to emerge from my auditions this year is a tri-color butter cookie: a layer of red, green and white dough rolled and sliced into a gorgeous swirl.

NPR: Pursuit of the Perfect Christmas Cookie

As McNally readies for opening night, he considers everything from the color of the grout to the best way to serve butter ensuring, each step of the way, that his near-perfect success rate will translate on his home turf.

WSJ: Keith McNally | Tracked