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rembrandt1881's review against another edition
2.0
There was a lot of potential for this book to really discuss the food system and how we eat in this country. In fact a lot of the beginning of the book was either a good primer or a nice introduction into the aspects of the grocery store, and food production. However, too much of this book focuses on one certain type of customer, an upper middle class one and not the entire system. The Market that the author embedded himself in is not necessarily the same kind most americans get their groceries from and thus it isn't representative of how we actually eat. I would have liked more about how the working class and working poor differ in the food quality and services they get vs the subject of his book. At the end it left me wanting something that was maybe more technical and encompassing.
littlewitchreading's review against another edition
4.0
This felt a little long in places but I really enjoyed it. Also who would think you’d tear up a little reading a book about the grocery store? Not me, and yet.
meghamonkey's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
alexisrt's review against another edition
2.0
This isn't a history of the grocery store, but a kind of survey about our grocery stores and where the food comes from. There's a lot of interesting information (mostly gleaned through the inner workings of a local Cleveland chain). Unfortunately, some sections are weak because Ruhlman uses them as his personal soapbox and makes poorly sourced claims about health and science. For example, a doctor's belief that glyphosate is the cause of poor gut flora, some waffling on GMOs, and health claims for food. The book also suffers from handwringing over lazy Americans who don't cook, which would be the solution to all our problems.
I really loved the stories about his father and the grocery store, though.
I really loved the stories about his father and the grocery store, though.
duparker's review against another edition
3.0
This is three books. The first is a look at the authors relationship with his father, his father's relationship with a grocery store, and memories in general. The second is a look at American nutrition and our obesity. Finally, there is a look at the way food is sold, and how grocery stores have evolved. This was the book I wanted to read. I wish it was denser on this topic and less on the memoir and definitely less on the nutrition. The chapters didn't always make sense and while the people portrayed have character and are individuals when they appear, they all blend into one another in the continued reading.
stevenyenzer's review against another edition
3.0
Ruhlman provides a solid history of grocery stores in the United States, peppered with some nice personal anecdotes that I think fit in quite well. From a personal perspective, I found the chapters about "food as medicine" and meat-eating extremely irritating.
Firstly, Ruhlman moves drastically away from his otherwise science-based approached in the "food as medicine" section, which includes a fawning profile of a hippie doctor who works for the grocery chain Ruhlman is following. I thought it was irresponsible for him as a layperson to dive so deeply into nutrition with only Dr. Hippie as his guide.
Secondly, the meat-eating section of course bothered me as a vegan -- but I think it would offend anyone with a healthy sense of logic. Ruhlman spends too long trying to justify his own meat consumption, using tired old arguments like "we have incisors for a reason" (I believe this one came from his editor) and "if we didn't raise them, they wouldn't exist/would die horrible deaths in the wild." He acknowledges that Peter Singer would tear his arguments apart, but doesn't seem to actually think about why that might be. Ruhlman also continually brings up the "using every part of the animal" argument for eating meat, as though a cow would care that you ate its tongue after you killed it. Finally, in a book so often concerned with the environmental impact of our modern food system, Ruhlman doesn't even acknowledge that industrialized animal agriculture is one of the most significant drivers of climate change.
Overall I did enjoy the book, and my problems with it were more personal than objective. I would recommend it to anyone interested in how modern (and historic) grocery stores do business, and maybe not so much for Ruhlman's second-hand fervor about the problems of modern American food.
Firstly, Ruhlman moves drastically away from his otherwise science-based approached in the "food as medicine" section, which includes a fawning profile of a hippie doctor who works for the grocery chain Ruhlman is following. I thought it was irresponsible for him as a layperson to dive so deeply into nutrition with only Dr. Hippie as his guide.
Secondly, the meat-eating section of course bothered me as a vegan -- but I think it would offend anyone with a healthy sense of logic. Ruhlman spends too long trying to justify his own meat consumption, using tired old arguments like "we have incisors for a reason" (I believe this one came from his editor) and "if we didn't raise them, they wouldn't exist/would die horrible deaths in the wild." He acknowledges that Peter Singer would tear his arguments apart, but doesn't seem to actually think about why that might be. Ruhlman also continually brings up the "using every part of the animal" argument for eating meat, as though a cow would care that you ate its tongue after you killed it. Finally, in a book so often concerned with the environmental impact of our modern food system, Ruhlman doesn't even acknowledge that industrialized animal agriculture is one of the most significant drivers of climate change.
Overall I did enjoy the book, and my problems with it were more personal than objective. I would recommend it to anyone interested in how modern (and historic) grocery stores do business, and maybe not so much for Ruhlman's second-hand fervor about the problems of modern American food.
mbenshirreffs's review against another edition
3.0
4 stars for breaking down the complexities of the grocery business in a detailed, yet engaging, way. Be warned this is also a 200+ page love letter to Heinen's Grocery chain in/around Cleveland. Heinen's is not the kind of grocery store where most people shop.
2 stars for repeating weak science to support his own biases (trendy ones) on specific macronutrients.
2 stars for repeating weak science to support his own biases (trendy ones) on specific macronutrients.