16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
THE WARM, WITTY BOOK DU JOUR, April 19, 2005
This review is from: Dishing: Great Dish -- and Dishes -- from America's Most Beloved Gossip Columnist (Hardcover)
What's better than gossip with your gnocchi, tell-alls with your tea, or rumors with your rib roast? Everyone loves to eat and, whether we'll admit it or not, we all enjoy hearing the lascivious latest. Liz Smith, who well knows her way around a table and a tantalizing tale, has combined dish with recipes in her latest book. The title is "Dishing," and it's all gravy.
You gotta' love a gal who schmoozes with the rich and fabulous admitting that she once took a children's course in table manners after being flummoxed by a finger bowl during lunch with Mrs. Vincent Astor. It was during this class at the Plaza that she learned the appropriate way to leave a table: "......"we must never explain why we are leaving the table if we do. Simply get up and say `Excuse me," and fold the napkin across the back of the chair so the waiter will know you plan to return."
This came as news to the former resident of Fort Worth, Texas, whose constant childhood dish was milk toast, and where her mother insisted that she and her siblings eat watermelon in the bathtub because it was easier to hose them off afterwards. However, Texas is, as we know, where the stars are big and bright - there must have also been a lucky one for Miz Liz to be born under because one of the first to become her friend in New York City was Sirio, a waiter. Later, Sirio Maccioni would own a famous restaurant, Le Cirque.
Another famous restauranteur, Henri Soule, taught her the proper way to eat caviar, and she hilariously recalls the time he gifted her with an expensive case of wine. Having no idea of the value of this rare Chateau Petrus, she served it to her friends along with chili.
There's very little, whether it's food or the famous, that this author has missed. There's a memorable dinner in Paris with Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, and she sat with Nicole Kidman as the svelte star polished off every roll and bread in the table basket.
Amongst all the glitterati with whom has she shared the most unusual meals? Malcolm Forbes. "My first meeting with Malcolm, she writes, "was at a private dinner given by Barbara Walters where Malcolm roared up on a motorcycle and came in wearing black tie, carrying his helmet. He offered me a ride home but I dislike flying through thin air at sixty miles an hours."
Theirs was a mutually beneficial friendship, as he enjoyed the publicity she offered his magazine while she enjoyed being a guest on his yacht and visiting the Forbes chateau in Normandy. (Who wouldn't?) Nonetheless, according to Miz Liz the most outstanding meal they shared was a breakfast at his office building which housed his museum quality collectibles. On this occasion Forbes had the table decorated with his Faberge eggs, scattered about among the napkins and silver.
"Dishing" is subtitled "Great Dish - and Dishes - from America's Most Beloved Gossip Columnist." And, dishes there are - recipes for everything from Elvis's favorite potato sandwich to "Chipped Beef a la Krupp Diamond" courtesy of Liz Taylor.
With her column now syndicated in more than 70 newspapers, Miz Liz knows how to write, and even though she's been thinking about "turning her apartment kitchen into a closet," she knows what to eat and where to eat it. "Dishing" is a fun feast - pull up a chair and enjoy it.
- Gail Cooke
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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great book from a great lady!, March 31, 2005
This review is from: Dishing: Great Dish -- and Dishes -- from America's Most Beloved Gossip Columnist (Hardcover)
This book is wonderful! Warm and witty, with awesome recipes describing why they're so special - and it is great fun to read about the celebs who loved them, served them, etc. A fun read and awesome resource. (There is more text than recipes, but more than enough recipes to make it well worthwhile for cooks.) My one and only quibble is that there isn't an index, so when you find a recipe you're dying to try (I found several while just flipping through the book when it arrived), affix a post-it note if you want to be able to find it again. But the book is wonderful!
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5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Loved the Book, March 30, 2005
This review is from: Dishing: Great Dish -- and Dishes -- from America's Most Beloved Gossip Columnist (Hardcover)
I loved this book. Its a page turner. Liz writes with such down to earth humor that it feels like my favorite aunt passed down her favorite recipes. I also like the fact that Liz seems so warm, funny and kind. Filled with my two favorite subjects: food and celebrities. I read this book on a Saturday, finished it by Saturday night and was cooking her recipes Sunday. And regarding the past review, I did not find the part about Rao's offensive at all. I just bought an additional copy for a Mother's Day gift...It's is a great read.
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