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3.56 AVERAGE
3.56 AVERAGE
Gibney is a good writer, but his second person narrative of a day in the life wotking the line in a busy Manahattan restaurant felt cold and disconnected. This slim book feels like an elongated New York Times article, but what was lacking for me was a true point of view. He lays out in methodical detail the prep before service, and the hectic frenetic hours of trying to stay ahead of the relentless seating, and yet it's all writtten with an almost journalistic remove, so coworkers are blandly one dimensional and discernable just by name, and beyond exhaustion even his emotions are kept to a minimum leaving the whole thing a been clinical and cold.
I keep reading books about chefs. I guess because it's food adjacent, and I like food. This one was nicely organized and took the time to add a whole glossary of terms that might not be familiar to a read who hadn't worked in a kitchen (or read a bunch of books about chefs).
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I won a copy of this book during a Goodreads giveaway a few years back. Sadly, Sous Chef: 24 Hours on the Line just wasn't my cup of tea. I did not finish the book, despite the writing and general intrigue one might get from the description. Perhaps it was because I am simply not a foodie (sniffle) that I didn't connect with it, perhaps I just wasn't in the mood--regardless of the reasons, it wasn't for me.
Taste is subjective and this is all you should consider when picking it up or poking at my review (or anyone else's) so don't let me scare you away. If you are a foodie or a chef or are just looking for something new to experience, this is definitely going to be your next check-out. From what I understand, it's very informative and fun for a lot of others, so it's definitely worth a second look.
I won a copy of this book during a Goodreads giveaway a few years back. Sadly, Sous Chef: 24 Hours on the Line just wasn't my cup of tea. I did not finish the book, despite the writing and general intrigue one might get from the description. Perhaps it was because I am simply not a foodie (sniffle) that I didn't connect with it, perhaps I just wasn't in the mood--regardless of the reasons, it wasn't for me.
Taste is subjective and this is all you should consider when picking it up or poking at my review (or anyone else's) so don't let me scare you away. If you are a foodie or a chef or are just looking for something new to experience, this is definitely going to be your next check-out. From what I understand, it's very informative and fun for a lot of others, so it's definitely worth a second look.
informative
slow-paced
While it was cool to see the inner workings of a kitchen it just wasn’t interesting enough to me. I found myself skimming a lot of portions of it bc I just didn’t care enough to read certain conversations or when it drew on forever to talk about certain prep work. However, I am not a chef nor have I ever worked in a restaurant. I could see this being very interesting to people in the industry.
There were certain sections I really enjoyed reading so that’s why I gave it a solid 3 stars
There were certain sections I really enjoyed reading so that’s why I gave it a solid 3 stars
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing
Moderate: Sexual content
The cooking books I've liked tend to be less about the minutia of cooking.
this book is what it says, which is 24 hours in the life of a sous chef - it described enough to share with me that i'm not cut out for it!
recently, i've seen an article do the rounds about how when someone shares what they do for a living, you should respond with, "wow, that sounds hard," to show empathy and learn more. well, after reading this book, you'll possess a greater understanding for what those in restaurant food service go through on a day-to-day basis. it's a tough job in terms of hours, stress and more, and has its rewards as well.
gibney has a very readable style and some of his food descriptions feel authentic and truly evoke the senses. if you ever wanted to know how the back end of a kitchen operates, pick it up!
recently, i've seen an article do the rounds about how when someone shares what they do for a living, you should respond with, "wow, that sounds hard," to show empathy and learn more. well, after reading this book, you'll possess a greater understanding for what those in restaurant food service go through on a day-to-day basis. it's a tough job in terms of hours, stress and more, and has its rewards as well.
gibney has a very readable style and some of his food descriptions feel authentic and truly evoke the senses. if you ever wanted to know how the back end of a kitchen operates, pick it up!
I confess I didn't have high hopes for this book, simply because I wasn't sure how anyone could make an interesting read (book length, no less) out of describing one service in a restaurant. But I was very pleasantly surprised. The author's descriptions of every detail- kitchen setup, the hierarchy, composition of daily specials, etc was fascinating. You think you've seen enough about the real work of a restaurant kitchen on TV but you haven't. Gibney manages to capture all the nuances that make you feel as though you're a fly on the wall during service, and I found myself rushing through this book just to see if they made it through without a major disaster. There's even a very extensive glossary of high-end cooking terminology at the back and diagrams of the kitchen and staff at the front which really helps you visualize all the chaos of service while you're reading. It's very well written too without feeling overblown in its descriptions- it just feels honest. Highly recommend.
*Received this copy as part of a Goodreads giveaway.*
*Received this copy as part of a Goodreads giveaway.*
This was tedious for me. I really couldn't get past the second person narration and the pedantic jargon that the author was using. Half the time I couldn't decipher what was being described, and I would consider myself to have a decent knowledge of the culinary world. Definitely not what I was expecting
informative
tense
fast-paced
I like reading about food & the way restaurants work (Kitchen Confidential and Blood, Bones and Butter are 2 faves). This one's not as good as those but was still very good & entertaining--author good about revealing truth & weakness--voice was very strong & believable. Worth reading if you like food & the world of food.