Several of the stories are similar or tend to drift but some of the stories in here are hysterical. Some contained more reflections than horror stories, but it still lent a very human aspect to some of the more well known chefs. It also help drive in the point of how hard a job it is and how much is done for love of food.

I wish I had kept better track of some of the folks where I liked the writing. I probably will hunt down a few books just from reading them in here.

Most of the anecdotes were funny. However, while all the stories are in the food world, very few stories are about preparing the food itself. ( )

Don't try *what* at home? Acting like a pompous chef who knows it all? The book is a series of anecdotes where the occasional one sets fire to the entree and brilliantly converts into a dish he gets praised for. The other anecdotes are tedious. I only finished the book, months after starting it, because I was in a long bank queue and I'd read all the mortgage-loan-credit card literature and it was all I had. Yep, that boring. ( )

Worth a look for those budding into the culinary profession, merely intrigued, and a veteran on the hot plate. One or two of the stories probably shouldn't have been included--just didn't have much to say, but others are quite hilarious, educational, or both. My favorite was The Curious Tale of Tommy Flynn, although that may not have to do much with cooking, and more with medicine. ( )