Feeding Frenzy: Across Europe in Search of the Perfect Meal [Paperback]

Stuart Stevens (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 5, 1998

Friends and fellow New Yorkers Stuart Stevens and Rachel "Rat" Kelly share two passions: exercise and eating. Having exhausted nearly every posh Manhattan restaurant, former model Rat suggests they take their buffed bodies to new gastronomic heights via a tour of Europe's Michelin three-star restaurants. Rat's boyfriend will underwrite the trip--but only if they do the twenty-nine restaurants on their list in twenty-nine days.

What follows is nothing less than gustatory madness, a wacky dash in a cherry-red 1965 Mustang across England, Belgium, Germany, Italy, and France through Europe's greatest food temples. Filled with hilarious misadventures, priceless exchanges with star chefs, wild excess, breathtaking scenery, and sensual depictions of once-in-a-lifetime meals, Feeding Frenzy will delight travelers and epicures alike.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Imagine having a month-long trip to Europe bankrolled for you, the only stipulation being that you must sample meals in every three-star Michelin restaurant on the continent. For Stuart Stevens and his friend Rachel "Rat" Kelly, this could either be a dream come true or cause to be more careful what they wish for. Stuart and Rat love to eat; in fact, their relationship is almost entirely based on their enthusiasm for food and exercise. When Rat's boyfriend, a lawyer, agrees to underwrite the trip as a kind of challenge, the two galloping gourmands find themselves doing 29 restaurants in 29 days to fulfill their end of the bargain. Feeding Frenzy is an account of their travels--and their meals.

Driving across Europe in a 1965 Ford Mustang ordered sight unseen especially for their excursion, Stuart and Rat--accompanied by an adopted golden retriever named Henry and Rat's boyfriend, Carl--masticate their way from England to Italy via three-star restaurants in France, Germany, Belgium, and Monaco. By the end of Feeding Frenzy you won't know whether to order coq au vin or pop an Alka-Seltzer; have both, just to be on the safe side. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

The subtitle here is a bit misleading. Although Stevens and his female lawyer friend, "Rat," do indeed indulge their culinary dreams in England, Belgium, Germany, France, and Italy?at her generous boyfriend's expense?the wacky side of travel writing is the real point. Suitable reference is made to such gastronomical heroes as Waverly Root and Escoffier, and when the author provides translations (one wishes he did more), the menus will make your mouth water. Nevertheless, the book lacks the passionate elitism of Roy Andries de Groot's works, e.g., In Search of the Perfect Meal (St. Martin's, 1986), or the elegant enjoyment of M.F.K. Fisher. In the end, Stevens essentially recounts the pleasures of an odyssey with irrepressible Rat in some of Europe's great food capitals. Complete with a happy ending, this book is like an updated 1940s movie spoof. Recommended as entertaining travel reading.?Wendy Miller, Lexington P. L., Ky.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books (May 5, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345425545
• ISBN-13: 978-0345425546
• Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 0.5 x 8.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #280,017 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Feeding Frenzy.., May 2, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Feeding Frenzy: Across Europe in Search of the Perfect Meal (Paperback)

The mark of many great travel books is the identification of a quest and then the author's weaving of a great story to hang on that base structure. Here Stevens has dreamed up the quest and sets himself up for another Malaria Dreams-style home run, but somehow that isn't what he ended up with. I saw vestiges of the humor from his earlier books and situation set-ups, so I know he is still capable of it, but overall this one failed to deliver the success of his other adventures. He never says exactly why he hates Germans so much. He didn't develop the dog and the Mustang troubles into a great comic device. And he definitely got sick of writing at the end because the last chapters fall off without any memorable lines. After Malaria Dreams this was a bit disappointing, but at least it did occupy a cross-country plane ride.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Feeding Frenzy.., May 2, 2000

By 

Jay Boynton - See all my reviews

This review is from: Feeding Frenzy: Across Europe in Search of the Perfect Meal (Paperback)

The mark of many great travel books is the identification of a quest and then the author's weaving of a great story to hang on that base structure. Here Stevens has dreamed up the quest and sets himself up for another Malaria Dreams-style home run, but somehow that isn't what he ended up with. I saw vestiges of the humor from his earlier books and situation set-ups, so I know he is still capable of it, but overall this one failed to deliver the success of his other adventures. He never says exactly why he hates Germans so much. He didn't develop the dog and the Mustang troubles into a great comic device. And he definitely got sick of writing at the end because the last chapters fall off without any memorable lines. After Malaria Dreams this was a bit disappointing, but at least it did occupy a cross-country plane ride.

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Stu is a jerk, but the book is fun, May 22, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Feeding Frenzy: Across Europe in Search of the Perfect Meal (Paperback)

If you like travel and food writing, but aren't a stickler for accuracy, then you'll enjoy this book. It's a fun, mindless tale. I liked reading about the various menus, meals and restaurants (although some were defunct or stripped of their third star by the time the book came out). Some of the anecdotes were quite funny. Unfortunately, the author comes across as a jerk of the first order. Early on he attaches himself to a model. He then spends many, many pages telling us how great she looks, that she is a model, what sexy clothes she wears, that she is a model, how much attention she gets, that she is a model. He also spends many, many pages writing about his problems with his car, an old Mustang that everyone in Europe apparently covets. Beyond that, there are also the many, many pages devoted to the distractingly large dog he has in tow. While this book is somewhat about traveling around Europe eating in Michelin three-stars, it's REALLY about the kind of guy who would attach himself to a model, ship a vintage Ford Mustang all the way over to Europe, and adopt a large golden retriever, so he can create an attention-getting, wacky-but-chic presence while traveling around Europe eating in Michelin three-stars. If you are dying to read a food-and-travel book and are forgiving of irritating personalities, then this book is for you.