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From Publishers Weekly
Vogue magazine food writer Steingarten picks up where The Man Who Ate Everything left off, offering foodies a mouthwatering collection of nearly 40 obsessive essays. "Sometimes, I feel like a giant bluefin, my powerful musculature propelling me around the world in search of food," he explains in an essay about toro, the tender tuna belly used in Japanese cuisine. Equal parts travelogue and investigative reporting, Steingarten's writing is funny, fast-paced and clever. Whether re-creating a perfect plate of coq au vin using rooster procured from a live poultry market, braising ribs for his dog or taste-testing espresso in his Manhattan loft cum laboratory ("Right now there are 14 brand new, state-of-the-art, home espresso makers in my house...."), Steingarten proves himself a true gastronome. Of course, his interest in food goes beyond haute cuisine-freeze-dried foods, hot dog buns, even his beloved Milky Way bars do not escape scrutiny. A few essays aren't even about food. One follows the author's south-of-the-border search for phen-fen; another contemplates New York City's "reservation rat race." Recipes-and only Steingarten could add humor to the form-appear throughout. Devoted readers will savor this collection (many of the essays have won awards from the James Beard Foundation and the International Association of Culinary Professionals); those unfamiliar with the author will be clamoring for more.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
From Booklist
Fast becoming a star among contemporary food writers, Steingarten returns with another compilation of his columns from Vogue. Steingarten's breakneck tour through the world of unlimited consumption takes him aboard a tuna boat to find the source of his favorite sushi selection, raw fatty bluefin. The reader benefits from Steingarten's thorough research into the murky history and spreading popularity of sushi. In another personal encounter, Steingarten takes issue with a government ban on a popular diet drug that had helped him maintain his gluttonous intake volume and still lose weight. He debunks current outrageous claims for the superiority of tony, expensive sea salts over the everyday blue-box variety. Steingarten watches a pig butchered in France and explores the origins of the outrageously complex Cajun dish, turducken. Ever on the lookout to skewer others' pretentious food allergy claims, he calls into doubt claims of MSG sensitivities. Despite his silly New York disdain for the Midwestern heartland, Steingarten casts useful illumination on many hitherto dim areas of our fascination with food. Mark Knoblauch
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
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Most helpful customer reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
Witty, humourous - delicious!,
By Megami (Darwin, Australia) - See all my reviews
This review is from: It Must've Been Something I Ate: The Return of the Man Who Ate Everything (Paperback)
In an age where everyone who has ever had a meal anywhere seems to think they can write about food (just as anyone who travels to the south of Europe thinks that the public wants to read a book about it) Steingarten's writing stands out. He may be obsessive beyond what is considered normal - the measures he takes to fulfill notions about what he wants can take him to different continents or result in him cooking way too many batches of dog food - but you can't help but cheer him on as he writes about it in such a wry, acerbic style. His chapter on people who claim they have food allergies should be required reading for everyone for a start. Yes, he can be snobbish, demeaning, and plain rude, but the fact is he knows what he is writing about, and in the comfort of our own home, over a well prepared snack or a good drink, we can laugh along, partly due to the humour, and partly glad we are not the intended target.In neat little self-contained chapters, each story in this book is witty and entertaining, and educational. This is a book that no food lover should deny themselves.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Written by the love child of Bill Bryson and Alton Brown,
By
This review is from: It Must've Been Something I Ate: The Return of the Man Who Ate Everything (Paperback)
This is a wonderful book, as was the first. Encompassing, more or less at random: travel and food, history and food, science and food, technology and food and a healthy helping of the sociology of eating, it was a fast and funny read. There are books devoted to each of these topics which does a more rigorous job at it, but no one else rolls them all into so fun and informative a package. And, as opposed to a book which deals strictly with, say, the science of food and cooking, you can use this one to learn the names of the best French cooks and the names of their and countless other worthy restaurants.I haven't previously found anyone willing to discuss the merits of caviar AND cricket tacos within the same volume. I'd recommend the purchase of this at the same time as "The Man who ate Everything" - you won't be able to read only one.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Just as good as "The Man Who Ate Everything",
By
This review is from: It Must've Been Something I Ate: The Return of the Man Who Ate Everything (Hardcover)
These two books should be considered as a pair - they are both of the same structure (small articles), same style (witty yet informative), same approach to knowledge (always trying to instill some) and goal (entertaining to the extreme). The only problem is that they tend to overlap in my mind....For example, which one had the hilarious French Eatathon, which one had the article on ripening fruit, where was the essay about cheese? Regarless, both of these are just excellent works for quick reads. Unlike MFK Fisher, whose ouevre reads like novels, Steingarten seems to have found his gait as the food reviewer in Vogue. The articles seem somehow "Magazinish" and this is not necessarily a bad thing. He takes a fresh approach to food and eating in general - not reverent but certainly serious.
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