Alice Waters (1) (1944–)

I think every Chez Panisse cookbook has the same flaw, and the same magic: the recipes seem simple, trivial almost, in their lack of sophistication, and yet sweet god do they work! If you've been eating modern American cuisine at all over the last 30-odd years, this food will all seem familiar to you, not because it's derivative, but because this weird little restaurant in Berkeley CA is the birthplace of contemporary ideas about how to cook, and how to eat.

Which is to say, you probably show more won't find anything earth-shatteringly novel here. There are some techniques that differ from what I'm used to, and recipes for vegetables not frequently treated elsewhere. But then, the restaurant and the cookbook both take advantage of the bounty available to northern California, and in some cases just about nowhere else. Still, it's a great read as a historical look at modern American cooking, and a fine reference book to have on the shelf. show less

I am a little appalled to see that there are no reviews on LibraryThing of this book as of yet. Daunting if I am the first. May I begin by saying that it is one of the most beautiful books in my cookbook collection? The color linocut illustrations by Patricia Curtan are lush and evocative of cool mornings and warm afternoons in the garden amongst the plants. The cover and endplates of the book have a simple and classic feel. The pages are thick and feel good in one's hand. The wide margins show more make not only for easy reading, but plenty of room to write notes as you cook. This is a book meant to be lived with and used. A practical book, beautifully designed.

Waters and the "Cooks of Chez Panisse" have written terrific introductions to each vegetable listed. It gives a bit of botanical information, growing information, how to choose the freshest and best at the market, and some very simple ways of preparing them. Then several more involved (although not necessarily difficult) recipes follow. There are a few unicorn ingredients in these recipes, and there are many variations on soups and gratins and salads, yet each has the focus of the highlighted vegetable and gives it a star role. Sometimes exact ingredient quantities are not listed and it is left up to the cook's taste, but advice is given. I prefer this style of recipe as it encourages one to explore and experiment. I have tried five recipes so far with great success. Not only did I find them uncomplicated, but they gave me a fresh and new way to serve vegetables which I have cooked with frequently for years. show less

I first heard of Alice Waters through the series Salt Fat Acid Heat where Samin Nosrat talked about Chez Panisse and then visited her to make pasta. So it is fascinating to read this book, to go from the people's (often admiring) perspectives of Waters' ambition and skills, to her own retelling of her almost lackadaisical and languorous path to the Waters and Chez Panisse so revered now.

Notable things to me:
1. Waters is hilariously boy-crazy! Falling in love left, right, and centre wherever show more she goes. I would almost argue that she's similarly girl-crazy the way she introduces her female friends, very focused on their physical attributes!
2. Waters surrounded herself with a good group of like-minded people who inspired her to learn. She managed to incorporate so many aspects of her friendships (or friends' skills) into her passion restaurant, by being so involved in the culture, or counterculture. That even if she hadn't opened an restaurant, her life would have just been as full and so fulfilling in its own right, without this universal public stamp of approval for Chez Panisse.
3. How absolutely lucky Waters was, but also her absolute openness to these opportunities. I can imagine simultaneously how fun yet also frustrating it would be for me to have a friend or close relative like Waters. However, as a reader, fabulous to read of such a charmed life.

As Waters' mother told her, she has lived a life so many have dreamed of. It's such a product of a specific time and place, I truly cannot foresee a similar life trajectory for anyone who can make such a cultural impact. show less

Whether you're interested in the 1960s counterculture aspect of Alice Waters' memoir, or her role as founder of Chez Panisse (the famous Berkeley, CA restaurant) and its impact on the modern food movement, this book is worth your while. Waters tells her life story, growing up in the suburbs of New Jersey, attending college in California, her transformative period in France--and connects all of her life experiences to the founding of Chez Panisse in August 1971.

We would be happier and show more healthier if we cooked and ate more like the French; if we knew how to use natural ingredients straight from the garden; if we took the time to appreciate good food--rather than settle for fast, easy and cheap. This book doesn't hector the reader, but by suggestion, it tells us a lot about where we've gone wrong as a culture, and the potential for a counter-culture founded on different values to provide a healthy corrective. show less