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mogreig's review
4.0
A fascinating read of how class is so intertwined onto everything the English do. Including what they eat, how they eat it and what they call it.
wunkymatts's review against another edition
4.0
Depending on my frame of mind this book eithee gave me more stuff to worry about (apparently there are more faux pas for me to commit than previously realised) or reassured me that humans have had weird relationships with food for centuries.
A lot of the food discussed sounded so good and, I'm aware this is a loaded term but there you go, wholesome. Sometimes I worry I don't respect food or understand it because I'm too far removed from it.
But, personal crises aside, this book is full of fascinating historical tidbits and Vogler has a wonderful light touch with her writing that makes even this weighty tome easy to digest. *chef's kiss*
A lot of the food discussed sounded so good and, I'm aware this is a loaded term but there you go, wholesome. Sometimes I worry I don't respect food or understand it because I'm too far removed from it.
But, personal crises aside, this book is full of fascinating historical tidbits and Vogler has a wonderful light touch with her writing that makes even this weighty tome easy to digest. *chef's kiss*
livyoung87's review against another edition
4.0
This was excellent! So much food history crammed into one read. Beautifully read (apart from her mispronunciation of Guiseley but I grew up there so would say that
purplemuskogee's review
informative
medium-paced
5.0
Did you know that tomatoes, introduced to Europe from the New World, took longer to become popular than potatoes? Or that when forks were introduced, from Italy, they did not immediately become popular as they were seen to be too "effeminate"? Do you want to see the first (and not very good) curry recipes adopted by middle-class housekeepers?
This is a great book to learn all these fun facts - and more - covering the history of food and food practices in Britain, from the Middle Ages to nowadays. The chapter on trends was fascinating - it covered almond milk, and details how Dame Alice, living in 1392, would order 18kg of almonds yearly to make the drink, which was drunk during Lent; the chapter on vegetarians explains how the Church rules on Lent and fast days allowed for food and calves to grow; the chapter on foraging was really interesting too. It was engaging, well-researched and accessible.
This is a great book to learn all these fun facts - and more - covering the history of food and food practices in Britain, from the Middle Ages to nowadays. The chapter on trends was fascinating - it covered almond milk, and details how Dame Alice, living in 1392, would order 18kg of almonds yearly to make the drink, which was drunk during Lent; the chapter on vegetarians explains how the Church rules on Lent and fast days allowed for food and calves to grow; the chapter on foraging was really interesting too. It was engaging, well-researched and accessible.