From Publishers Weekly
For urban hipsters determined to enjoy their Apple Polenta Flan al fresco, Burns and Caton have devised a winning tribute to the many sybaritic joys of dining outdoors. The giddy authors begin this lighthearted book with a history of such parties, noting that the earliest recorded use of the word "pic-nic" in English comes from England's Lord Chesterfield, who mentioned it in a letter in the 1740s. The authors have separated the menus into 21 categories for all manner of picnicking scenarios: Kids, Beach, Backpack, Spectator Sports, Winter, Afternoon Tea, On the Water, Hotel and the venerable "Hipnic" among them. What's more, they take care to include enticing vegetarian options. While some of the more than 200 offerings (many contributed by well-known chefs like Nigella Lawson, James McNair and Bob Blumer) might seem a bit optimistic for picnic fare-Jumbo Shrimp (Prawns) Sautéed in Lemon Butter or the rather labor-intensive Old Fashioned Cornish Pasties-Burns and Caton include far more take-along dishes that are effortless, like the divine Golden Yam Salad and a knockout Egg Salad sandwich spread. One of the most enticing role-playing picnic parties devised by the authors is a Shakespearian banquet, for which they suggest such hoary recipes as Pease Porrage sic and Grand Mixed Sallet with Roast Capon, with a special proviso: "Vegetarians: Run for the hills!" Many recipes here are enlivened by clean line-drawings, and the book does not suffer from its lack of color photographs. While readers may not choose to follow these comprehensive instructions to the letter, what lies between this book's merry covers will certainly offer ample inspiration for those eager to explore the delights of dining en plein air.
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Review
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The Urban Picnic is just the cookbook for the serious picnicker. It's just the thing to turn you into a natural, like Burns, for whom "to picnic" is a verb to live by.
—Vancouver Sun (
Vancouver Sun )
Don't wait for that rare occasion when you might actually plan a picnic to use this generous and approachable cookbook/picnic guide... Whatever the provenance of the recipes, they all sound delicious.
—Quill and Quire (
Quill and Quire )
The Urban Picnic is a tasty piece of work, not least for its erudite and amusing prose style. All the recipes are not only transportable, they're also interesting enough to add to your daily house-bound repertoire.
—The Georgia Straight (
The Georgia Straight )
...a new book from Arsenal Pulp Press designed to change the way urbanites treat a sunny afternoon, yes, even in the season of slush.
—Ottawa Citizen (
Ottawa Citizen )
The Urban Picnic, by John Burns and Elisabeth Caton, recogonizes the problem of the fast-living urbanite's dissatisfied soul, and presents, in essay and recipe, a picnic philosophy as remedy...Here, the picnic is presented as a near-meditative process...
—Pop Matters (Andrea Belcham
Pop Matters.com )
A quirky omnibus of outdoor eating...
—National Post (
The National Post )
John Burns and Elisabeth Caton have created a powerful incentive to just get out there and live.
—Toronto Star (
The Toronto Star )
John Burns with the help of recipe gatherer Elizabeth Caton have written a book that challenges the notion of the five-day work week and exposes the irony that with all our technological advancements we are bound to our offices, factories and shops more than ever before.
—sceneandheard.ca (Antoine Tedesco
sceneandheard.ca )
There's a definite Left Coast vibe, with an ode to the Slow Food movement and suggestions for CBC-friendly musical accompaniment.
—Saturday Night (
Saturday Night )
