The Reach of a Chef: Beyond the Kitchen
by Michael Ruhlman
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Book Summary Information
Author: Michael RuhlmanEdition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Published)
Format: Bargain Price
Published: 2006-05-18
ISBN: N/A
Number of pages: 352
Publisher: Viking Adult
Book Reviews of The Reach of a Chef: Beyond the Kitchen
Book Review: "I'm not a chef anymore and it breaks my heart."
Summary: 4 Stars
The author's obituary, when eventually written, will start "Michael Ruhlman, whose signature work The Making of a Chef: Mastering Heat at the Culinary Institute chronicled his time at the Culinary Institute of America..."
That was a breakthrough book that essentially invented the genre of the 'meticulous examination' (as the 'Booklist' review calls it) of the chef as a profession. 'Reach' is Ruhlman's third in that series. He's really a great writer - as meticulous in his detail-gathering and writing as his chefs are in their cooking. You get to see that guys like Thomas Keller succeed not because of some fluke, but because of years of hard work, talent honed by that work and an obsession about details. Ruhlman's talent, in turn, is that he's able to convey that to his readers. The Newsday blurb on the book gets it right: "I'm sure [Ruhlman is] a pretty good cook himself, but I would urge him not to give up his day job, because he's a terrific writer."
Exactly.
You also get the feeling that chefs trust and open up to this author because he has their respect - he went through the Culinary Institute with the express purpose of writing the book that would become 'The Making of Chef.' Now that's a commitment. The results are some fine moments of introspection - Ruhlman notes that with enterprises the size of Keller's, "(t)he chef had moved out of the kitchen permanently. Or could, if he or she wanted to, and ultimately would have to, even if he or she didn't want to, simply from the physical limitations in a physically grueling job."
Asked to comment on that, Keller wistfully notes "I miss the people. I'm sad. I miss being in the kitchen with them...I'm not a chef anymore and it breaks my heart."
It's revelations like that one - superbly transcribed and framed by the author - that make 'Reach' such a compelling read.
Summary of The Reach of a Chef: Beyond the Kitchen
The author of The Soul of a Chef looks at the new role of the chef in contemporary cultureFor his previous explorations into the restaurant kitchen and the men and women who call it home, Michael Ruhlman has been described by Anthony Bourdain as "the greatest living writer on the subject of chefs-and on the business of preparing food." In The Reach of a Chef, Ruhlman examines the profound shift in American culture that has raised restaurant cooking to the level of performance art and the status of the chef to celebrity CEO. Bibliophiles and foodies alike will savor this intimate meeting with some of the most famous chefs in the kitchens of the hottest restaurants in the world.
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