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katethekitcat 's review for:
Sous Chef: 24 Hours on the Line
by Michael Gibney
*I won this book through the Goodreads First Reads giveaway*
I frequently consume food books and memoirs, but this wasn't quite like anything I'd read before. Using second person, Michael Gibney takes the reader through 24 hours in the life of a sous chef - down to the the names and appearances of knives used for the fish to the process of checking inventory. He creates an imaginary kitchen and cast of characters, combined from all his experiences in various roles and restaurants, and merges them into a simulation to give the reader an idea of what exactly it means to be a sous chef.
It's an incredibly nuanced, detailed description of life in the back of a kitchen. You might be tempted to read zSous Chef if you liked Julie and Julia, but if you don't also like learning how things work, this book won't be for you. If you do like understanding the ins-and-out of restaurants, you'll gobble this down in a day.
This book couldn't have worked in the hands of just any author. Even if his language does occasionally become too flowery, in general, Gibney shines at creating something that feels like a story, complete with characters, personalities, and plot, while still achieving the main goal of describing the work flow in upscale kitchen. A floorplan of the kitchen and a chart illustrating the chain of command is included at the front of the book and helps the reader visualize the action; including menus and inserting challenges for the main character (a cook gets sick in the middle of a shift; the restaurant gets behind right when the Times shows up) brings up situations that never occurred to me, someone who's only ever eaten out, not worked in the back.
Gibney excels at communicating the atmosphere of the kitchen at different times of day and showing the reader why, despite the crazy shifts, long-hours, and high-stress situations, the goal of making chef is still worth it. I could have used a little less about the girlfriend, and it would have been helpful to realize there was an extensive glossary in the back of the book (not realizing this, I wasted a lot of time looking things up), but overall, if you're interested in food, restaurants, logistics, assembly lines, or just a story told from an interesting viewpoint, this book is for you.
I frequently consume food books and memoirs, but this wasn't quite like anything I'd read before. Using second person, Michael Gibney takes the reader through 24 hours in the life of a sous chef - down to the the names and appearances of knives used for the fish to the process of checking inventory. He creates an imaginary kitchen and cast of characters, combined from all his experiences in various roles and restaurants, and merges them into a simulation to give the reader an idea of what exactly it means to be a sous chef.
It's an incredibly nuanced, detailed description of life in the back of a kitchen. You might be tempted to read zSous Chef if you liked Julie and Julia, but if you don't also like learning how things work, this book won't be for you. If you do like understanding the ins-and-out of restaurants, you'll gobble this down in a day.
This book couldn't have worked in the hands of just any author. Even if his language does occasionally become too flowery, in general, Gibney shines at creating something that feels like a story, complete with characters, personalities, and plot, while still achieving the main goal of describing the work flow in upscale kitchen. A floorplan of the kitchen and a chart illustrating the chain of command is included at the front of the book and helps the reader visualize the action; including menus and inserting challenges for the main character (a cook gets sick in the middle of a shift; the restaurant gets behind right when the Times shows up) brings up situations that never occurred to me, someone who's only ever eaten out, not worked in the back.
Gibney excels at communicating the atmosphere of the kitchen at different times of day and showing the reader why, despite the crazy shifts, long-hours, and high-stress situations, the goal of making chef is still worth it. I could have used a little less about the girlfriend, and it would have been helpful to realize there was an extensive glossary in the back of the book (not realizing this, I wasted a lot of time looking things up), but overall, if you're interested in food, restaurants, logistics, assembly lines, or just a story told from an interesting viewpoint, this book is for you.