Bauer, Douglas

Death by Pad Thai: & other Unforgettable Meals

C. 2006

This anthology of some 20 short pieces focuses on each of the contributors' most memorable meals.

Bourdain, Anthony

Medium Raw: a Bloody Valentine to the World of Food and the People Who Cook

C. 2010

Tracking his own strange and unexpected voyage from journeyman cook to globe-traveling professional eater and drinker, and even to fatherhood, Bourdain takes no prisoners as he dissects what he's seen, pausing along the way for a series of confessions, rants, investigations, and interrogations of some of the most controversial figures in food.

Boulud, Daniel

Letters to a Young Chef

C. 2003

Talent and passion alone do not ensure success as a chef and restaurateur; also required are the complementary abilities to identify critical people and resources, organize and manage them, and ultimately deliver the best dining experience possible to one's customers. This is the straightforward message delivered by Boulud, author (Café Boulud Cookbook) and well-known restaurateur (New York's Daniel and Café Boulud), in this short, informative book.

Bruni, Frank

Born Round

C. 2009

Bruni, restaurant critic for "The New York Times," tells his heartbreaking and hilarious account of his lifelong, often painful struggle with food.

Child, Julia

My Life in France

C. 2006

The story of Julia Child's years in France, where she fell in love with French food and found "her true calling." From the moment she and her husband Paul, who worked for the USIS, arrived in the fall of 1948, Julia had an awakening that changed her life. Soon this tall, outspoken gal from Pasadena, California, who didn't speak a word of French and knew nothing about the country, was steeped in the language, chatting with purveyors in the local markets, and enrolled in the Cordon Bleu. 

Book on CD

Darling, Katherine

Under the Table: Saucy Tales from Culinary School

C. 2009

Readers dreaming of culinary school can indulge vicariously through this engaging memoir by food writer Darling. In her 20s, armed with a passion for cooking, the author left her job at a Manhattan literary agency to enroll at the French Culinary Institute.

DeLucie, John

The Hunger: a Story of Food, Desire, and Ambition

C. 2009

With a cooking class and a Dean & Deluca's prep gig under his belt, DeLucie left behind a comfortable finance career for the cutthroat culinary industry of 1990s New York City. Eventually, he'd become a celebrity chef with his own destination restaurant co-owned by Vanity Fair editor Graydon Carter.

Dickie, John

Delizia: the Epic History of the Italians and their Food

C. 2008

In this revelatory history of gourmet Italy from antiquity to today, Dickie (Cosa Nostra: A History of the Sicilian Mafia ), examines the centuries of religious, political and sociological events that effectively thrust Italian food into today's global limelight. T

Dregni, Eric

Never Trust a Thin Cook and other Lessons from Italy's Culinary Capital

C. 2009

The quest for the world's best food led Dregni and his girlfriend to Pavarotti's hometown of Modena in northern Italy. He describes their (mis) adventures with Italian cuisine, culture, and trying to teach English while constantly--it seems--eating. The engaging book includes a map and glossary of Italian terms.

Ferray, Jeannette

Out of the Kitchen: Adventures of a Food Writer

C. 2004

Though to read her recounting, you might just believe that Ferrary accidentally stumbled into food writing and acquaintance with such culinary greats as M.F.K. Fisher, Craig Claiborne, Julia Child, and Alice Waters, her deft touch proves that this was no mere coincidence. 

Friedman, Andrew

Knives at Dawn: America's Quest for Culinary Glory at the Legendary Bocuse d'Or Competition

C. 2009

"Knives at Dawn" follows the U.S. culinary team at The Bocuse d'Or, the world's most prestigious cooking competition.

Gates, Stefan

Gastronaut: Adventures in Food for the Romantic, the Foolhardy, and the Brave

C. 2006

First published in Britain, this "gastronautical questbook" is an irreverent and unexpected journey through several culinary oddities. With more than 50 black-and-white photographs and several charts, the book begins with a chapter on gilding Cheetos and sausage with gold leaf, then moves on to famous last meals, cannibalism, aphrodisiacs, and more. R

Hodgson, Moria

It Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time

C. 2008

Hodgson has earned a reputation as a discerning critic and entertaining writer. It Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time reflects Hodgson's talent for connecting her love of food with the people and places in her life--from Vietnam to Chiapas, Mexico, from Berlin to Lapland there was always a new dish to taste, a new people to share her travels with.

Jackman, Ian

Eat This! 1001 Things to Eat Before You Diet

C. 2007

Jackman's compendium of American foods and foodstuffs is an informational tour-de-force, a guidebook suitable for everyone from the couch potato to the frequent flyer. In the interest of finding out where to get the best, whether it's organic produce or fast food, delivery or fine dining, the author has eaten widely if not always well.

Jaffrey, Madhur

Climbing the Mango Trees

C. 2006

Actress and consummate authority on the foods of India, Jaffrey reflects on her earliest memories in this autobiography. Some of her most touching and distressing scenes come with the advent of India's independence and its partition.

Lee, Sandra

Made from Scratch

C. 2007

The true story of how celebrity chef Sandra Lee went from being raised on food stamps to starring in her own TV show, Semi-homemade cooking, on the Food Network. This powerful, emotional, and astonishing story will inspire anyone who has faced adversity to overcome challenges and persevere.

Lerach, Steve

Fried: Surviving Two Centuries in Restaurants

C. 2008

Majumdar, Simon

Eat my Globe: One Year to go Everywhere and Eat Everything

C. 2009

Having exhausted the culinary possibilities of his native London, blogger and omnivore Majumdar takes off work for a year and travels the world in search of food. He's not into the most bizarre tastes that he can find; he's more attracted to the most typical foods of a place, the sorts of things one might find elsewhere but are never as good as they are in their native habitats.

Parker Bowles, Tom

Year of Eating Dangerously

C. 2007

One gastronome's worldwide pursuit of perfect and perfectly awful cuisine. A veritable culinary Odysseus, food critic Bowles (E is for Eating: An Alphabet of Greed, 2004) set out from and returned to his native London to regale foodies and common omnivores alike with tales of exotic specimens from all ranges of the food spectrum.

Powell, Julie

Cleaving: a Story of Marriage, Meat, and Obsession

C. 2009

Her marriage challenged by an insane, irresistible love affair, Julie decides to leave town and immerse herself in a new obsession: butchery.

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Book on CD

Reichl, Ruth

Garlic and Sapphires

C. 2005

"Ruth Reichl knows that to be a good restaurant critic you have to be anonymous, but when she signs up to be the most important restaurant critic in the country, her picture is posted in every four-star, low-star, and no-star kitchen in town. What's a critic in search of the truth to do?"

Ruhlman, Michael

The Reach of a Chef

C. 2006

Author of The Making of a Chef, The Soul of a Chef, and much more, Ruhlman takes readers on another fascinating journey behind the scenes of great kitchens. His latest seeks to put a personal twist on the role of chefs in the age of the Food Network and pop celebrity.

Schaudel, Thomas G. 

Playing with Fire: Whining & Dining on the Gold Coast

C. 2008

Sheehan, Jason

Cooking Dirty: a Story of Life, Sex, Love and Death in the Kitchen

C. 2009

Beside the requisite cursing, violence, drinking, insane working conditions, and occasional bloodshed, there is an intense loyalty that binds a kitchen staff of societal misfits together and keeps them working until the last plate is served.

Smith, Liz

Dishing: Great Dish and Dishes from America's Most Beloved Gossip Columnist

C. 2005

Smith breaks bread with the famous-and then tells the tale.

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Spitz, Bob

Saucier's Apprentice: One Long Strange Trip through the Great Cooking Schools of Europe

C. 2008

Spitz has actually pursued what is only a dream for most foodies, wandering France and Italy from one great cooking school to another. He embarks on this quest in response to some  life-altering crises, and the change of scene and immersion in food culture assuage some of his pain. In Nice he conquers a technically complex chilled zucchini soup.

Witherspoon, Kimberly

Don't Try this at Home: Culinary Catastrophes from the World's Greatest Chefs

C. 2005

These short, anecdotal stories offer the reader a sometimes comical and always unique glimpse behind the scenes of restaurant kitchens. The result is a fantastic collection of personal stories that depict these great chefs as real people.