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THE LAST DAYS OF HAUTE CUISINE

Name: THE LAST DAYS OF HAUTE CUISINE
Author: Patric Kuh
ISBN: 0-670-89178-9

AMERICA’S CULINARY REVOLUTION

by Patric Kuh ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 19, 2001

Despite an early arc to the narrative, this renders an engaging portrayal through its author’s detailed, sensitive writing...

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This moving foray into the world of restaurateuring in modern America proves that cuisine is as crucial to 20th-century history as technology, rock music, and television.

Chef and food-writer Kuh (An Available Man, 1990) describes the post-WWII evolution of American cuisine from its domestic European roots to its cosmopolitan, mass-marketed present. The story of the decline of luxury dining and the emergence of California cuisine is not a new one, of course, but the author brings a unique depth to it, offering insights into how cuisine reflected the changing times—describing, for example, how the advent of the credit card influenced restaurant culture: “the increased availability of credit would bring the gastronomic experience within reach for a social class of Americans for whom it had never been available before: the middle class.” In addition, Kuh’s appreciation for the chefs, personalities, writers, and businessmen of the restaurant world infuses his account with a compelling emotional element. The main course of the story, however, may be found in the juxtaposed arcs of the careers of Henri Soule (the elitist owner of Le Pavillon) and Restaurant Associates (the trend-setting firm behind the Four Seasons). This takes up more than half of the story. The effect is an early climax, with the second half (a portrait of such latter-day food icons as Chez Panisse’s Alice Waters, Le Cirque’s Sirio Maccioni, and Julia Child) appearing almost in the guise of a footnote. The author is also prone to dicing private memories into this history stew and, while these help to bring home the point that cuisine is personal as well as historical, they come and go abruptly, leading the reader on a somewhat erratic course.

Despite an early arc to the narrative, this renders an engaging portrayal through its author’s detailed, sensitive writing and apparent affection for his subject.

Pub Date: March 19, 2001

ISBN: 0-670-89178-9

Page Count: 256

Publisher: Viking

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2001

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

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NUTCRACKER

by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996

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This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)

Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996

ISBN: 0-15-100227-4

Page Count: 136

Publisher: Harcourt

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER AND THE MOUSE KING
by E.T.A. Hoffmann ; adapted by Natalie Andrewson ; illustrated by Natalie Andrewson

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER
by E.T.A. Hoffmann & illustrated by Julie Paschkis

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TO THE ONE I LOVE THE BEST

EPISODES FROM THE LIFE OF LADY MENDL (ELSIE DE WOLFE)

by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955

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An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.