One for the Road: A Tale of 12 Kitchens

by Kelly Amabile on

This cookbook gem came out last year but, I stumbled across some rave reviews recently, and thought it deserved a mention, especially as the holiday cooking season heats up! A Tale of 12 Kitchens: Family Cooking in Four Countries follows Jake Tilson on food adventures around the world, including stops in New York, Tuscany and Scotland.

Tilson used his artistic eye (he’s a photographer and painter) to create a one-of-a-kind “cookbook-cum-scrapbook” that doubles as a travel journal. Readers are invited into Tilson’s inner circle — his foodie family is a collection of colorful characters obsessed with cooking. In unique fashion, the book celebrates the possibilities of food, and the deeply personal aspects of communal meal preparation. The eighty recipes included in the book are gathered from all corners of the globe, but the real treasure of these kitchen tales is the original and refreshing way in which they are presented.

Tilson will appear in New York on December 5 as part of The James Beard Foundation’s Beard on Books series.

One for the Road: Hungry City Guides

by Kelly Amabile on

These thin Glove Box Guides, known as Hungry City, are a must have for foodie travelers. My parents took the Hungry? Chicago guide with them to the Windy City this summer, and discovered a few good places to chow down around town. Their favorite recommendation from the book: Monk’s Pub on Lake Street. It was definitely a place were “real people eat” — an editorial angle the guides pride themselves on. The review of Monk’s as “downtown’s coziest burger and brew” checked out, and my parent’s left happy and hungry no more.

These compact guides are written by a team of local contributors who eat and drink their way through cities across the US. Restaurant listings are grouped by neighborhood, and in addition to alpha and cuisine indexes, there is a glossary of food terms that describes popular ethnic dishes — a nice extra touch. It’s good to know your mandoo (Korean dumplings) from your har gow (Chinese shrimp dumplings) before deciding where to dine.

Recent releases in this series include a Hungry? Thirsty? Miami,Hungry? Seattle Family edition and Hungry? New York City. Are you still hungry?? There’s more: Hungry? Boston will be out in November and Thirsty? Boston in the spring. Other titles in the works include guides for New Orleans, Las Vegas and the first international destination, Paris.