Yes, Chef: A Memoir

The professional kitchen world is a brutal environment in which to make a living. Those that survive and thrive in that world are a very special breed - a subculture to themselves with their own set of rules all seem to understand without being talked about. This chef’s memoir is unlike any other I have read. It is more than just a peek behind the swinging kitchen door of a 3 or 4 star restaurant. It’s a look at the racial divide that exists in that world. A divide that exists even at a world-wide level, which I would not have expected somehow. A divide that Chef Marcus Samuelsson is determined to erase. Aside from that very strong message that was emphasized throughout the book, I was most impressed with Chef Samuelsson’s drive show more and determination that was apparent even from an early age. This along with immense creativity and a well developed palate are essential to success as a professional chef. It is a truly remarkable journey Marcus Samuelsson has been on from being an orphan in Ethiopia to cooking the Obama administration’s first State Dinner. One that I was completely swept up in while devouring the pages of this book as if I were at The Red Rooster enjoying a meal especially created just for me. show less

I was first introduced to Marcus Samuelsson when watching the cooking reality show, “Top Chef Masters.” It was easy to be drawn to this low-keyed gentle man participating with a natural elegance in the midst of the "drama" that can surround the personalities of such reality shows. While they never delved deeply into his history, it was clear that he had an interesting story that had brought him to this place in his life…owner and celebrity chef of “Red Rooster” restaurant in Harlem NY where he lives with his wife.

So I jumped at the chance to request the Advanced Reader’s Copy of his forthcoming book, "Yes Chef," when it was offered on the Librarything.com Early Reviewers Book List.

I thoroughly enjoyed this memoir. I have show more heard it described as “elegant” and it truly is…elegant and simply told in a manner that so engaging and rings so true. Thoughout the story of his life’s journey, from a very poor farm in Ethiopia to a loving family in Sweden, to pursuing his goal of becoming an executive chef, arriving in NY at 24 years of age to open a Swedish restaurant, Aquavit. It is too fantastical to be a fictional script! Who would have ever dreamed up such a journey!

The story is told with simplicity that imbues it with a sense of reverence! He continually pays homage to those in his life, from the respect of his birth mother who, while sick herself, carried him on the long 75 mile walk to a hospital in Addis Ababa and then once there managed to actually obtain treatment for him and his older sister in the midst of huge crowds of people seeking aid.

He pays homage to his adoptive parents and his Swedish grandmother who welcomed him and his sister into their home and gave him a life unimagined by an Ethiopian child.
His book is dedicated to his two mothers.

While I enjoyed the first part of the book more than the later part, the entire story engaged me. I was left with a tremendous admiration for his persistence and willingness to steadily work hard to move toward his goal. It is a story of hard work. He shows up and he does the next directed thing.

I highly recommend the book to those interested in an immigrant story, in the inner workings of the restaurant industry and a glimpse into the heart and mind of an admirable young man. show less

“It begins with a simple ritual: Every Saturday afternoon, a boy who loves to cook walks to his grandmother’s house and helps her prepare a roast chicken for dinner. The grandmother is Swedish, a retired domestic. The boy is Ethiopian and adopted, and he will grow up to become the world-renowned chef Marcus Samuelsson. This book is his love letter to food and family in all its manifestations”

This is an incredible story of how Samuelsson merged his Ethiopian background with his Swedish upbringing and emerged as one of the noted chefs in the world. I like foodie memoirs and this one was a treat. Detailing his memories of his biological family (so sad he didn’t know what his mother looked like), being adopted into a loving and show more supportive Swedish family, the travel stories (loved those!) and culinary training. A great success story and a memoir that moved from phase to phase of his life without being boring. A show less

An impoverished Ethiopian boy contracts tuberculosis and his mother walks him and his sister 75 miles to the nearest hospital to save their lives while losing her own. The orphaned siblings are then adopted by a working class white couple in Sweden, where he grows up happily and develops a deep love for cooking under the tutelage of his maternal grandmother. Starting at the absolute bottom of the restaurant world, the young man develops his craft through hard work and a single-minded focus that carries him to kitchens across three continents. He becomes the youngest three-star chef in New York City history and rises to a celebrity status that allows him to cook for presidents at the same time he is winning cooking contests against show more world-class competition. At some point in this journey, he reconnects with an out-of-wedlock Austrian daughter and his long-lost family in Ethiopia while finding a new home for himself, the African-born model he recently married, and his new restaurant in the heart of Harlem.

If, as a publisher or movie producer, a fledging writer brought you a manuscript of that tale, you would undoubtedly reject it out of hand as being totally implausible. And yet, it is the true—and altogether remarkable—story of Marcus Samuelsson. Told with refreshing candor and humility, Yes, Chef is one of the most engaging and inspiring memoirs that I have ever read. Throughout the book, I was struck by Samuelsson’s passion for food and his drive to succeed at the highest level of a profession in which few other people of color are even offered a chance. However, that resolute commitment to professional excellence came with significant personal costs and Samuelsson does not shy away from discussing his myriad failures of both omission and commission. Still, a lifetime of “chasing flavors” around the globe provides him with more good moments than bad and ultimately defines who he is as a chef.

This is not a perfect book—it could have been a little shorter, particularly in the last section—but it is an extremely well-written one. To his credit, Samuelsson readily acknowledges the significant collaboration of Veronica Chambers, who apparently crafted much of what appears on the page. And what is recorded on these pages is the story of a genuine, honest, and highly disciplined man who has risen to the top. Although immersed in the culinary world, it is also an account that can serve as a “how to” manual for anyone wondering what it takes to be successful in their chosen field. I came away from reading the book really liking and admiring Samuelsson. Indeed, perhaps the best compliment I can offer is to say that I will go out of my way to eat his food whenever I get the chance. show less

Following the tragic death of his biological mother, Marcus Samuelsson was adopted at a very young age from Ethiopia and raised in a loving family in Sweden. From as early as he can remember, food and flavors were at the forefront of their domestic lives, and he grew determined to study to become a chef — not just a chef, but one of the best.

Samuelsson's memoir is a quick, engaging, fluid read. His determination is incredible. I think I would have liked to see a bit more introspection about some of the more challenging experiences he's had, as his reflections tend to come off a bit too rosy without digging too deeply (e.g., something set me back, but I overcame it!). I do love reading about passion for food. It makes me long to travel show more more extensively in order to sample new things. show less

(Contains some slight spoilers if you don't already know about Marcus Samuelsson.) This is the story of a man born in Africa, raised in Sweden, educated all over the world, and living and running a successful restaurant in Harlem. I found his insights into African American culture interesting, and I wonder how various people in that culture feel about his commentary on the African American experience (he is, after all, an outsider to it). I love that his language for honoring the past and bringing diverse people together is food. It sounds as if he's using his success for good. It was fascinating to see how all of the influences in his life come together to make him who he is. I was bothered greatly by his abandonment of his daughter. show more Though he seems to regret that choice, it feels as if he still does not have much of a relationship with her. Perhaps he has just chosen not to write much about it. show less

I "met" Marcus Samuelsson a few years ago, by watching his "No Passport Required" food/travel show on PBS. Samuelsson was born in Ethiopia. When he was about 5 years old, his mother died, and he and his older sister were adopted by a Swedish couple. He was raised in Goteberg, Sweden. He credits his Swedish grandmother with instilling the love of food and cooking in him at a very young age. This book is a memoir of his life in the restaurant business, from training in Sweden, Italy, Switzerland and on cruise ships, to becoming the youngest executive chef to earn a 3-star review from The New York Times' food critic, to becoming an entrepreneur, an adventurous chef with endless curiosity about new flavor combinations and a philanthropic show more ambassador for the world's food culture. I found some of the early sections dealing with the grind of working in the high-pressure environment of commercial kitchens a bit of a slog, mostly because I have already read a fair amount about how exhausting, brutal, even abusive, that can be (Anthony Bourdain's [Kitchen Confidential] covered that in miserable detail). But the majority of this book held me spellbound, drooling, and rooting for Marcus to succeed at everything he set out to do (which, of course, he could not possibly have done). Despite a couple complete failures, such unforeseen setbacks as 9/11, and his long-time business partner's bid to "own" the Marcus Samuelsson name, it is gratifying to learn that his dream of opening a combination comfort food and fine dining establishment in Harlem, which was just coming to fruition when the book was published, has endured for over a dozen years, and that Grandmother Helga's meatballs are still on the menu, along with classics like fried chicken, shrimp & grits, and collard greens, all punched up with Marcus's special touches. Samuelsson currently has restaurants in Las Vegas, the Bahamas, Montreal, Atlanta, and several in the NYC metropolitan area. If you'd almost as soon read about food as eat it (I said "almost"), this memoir will treat you well. show less