Customer Reviews

The Route 66 Cookbook: Comfort Food from the Mother Road; 1926-2001

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I began this book reading it as though it were a novel--devouring every word. I have driven Route 66 some, have several books about it, and enjoy the lore and history. And I love reading about food of all kinds, as well as cooking. Marian Clark has certainly done a lot of research and included many interesting anecdotes, but I sometimes had the impression that some could have been fleshed out a little more, to advantage. A number of interesting-sounding people and places got only a sentence or two. By the half-way mark in the book, I was convinced that travelers had better be prepared to subsist on chili, pie, salad dressings, and barbecue sauces, if this is a representative cross section of what's available along the Mother Road. Recipes for these seem to make up close to half of the offerings. And by then I was merely scanning the pages.

Michael Wallis's introduction is touching and lyrically written, and a sheer pleasure to read. I'd like to have seen recipes for more of the gustatory delights that he recalls so vividly, but alas, nary an omelette, nor a single biscuit and gravy. 'WAY more than enough gooey desserts for the overweight, glucose-intolerant traveler, though.

The color photos that fill sixteen pages of this Deluxe 75th Anniversary Edition seem to be only of snapshot quality, pretty amateurish, and in my opinion the book deserves better. Some are obviously reproductions of old photos, and can't be helped. The others, though...

So, am I sorry I bought this book? Am I glad to have it in my library? No, and yes. But I'm still disappointed. There are better books on Route 66 out there, and better books on comfort food, though perhaps none that present the two together as this one does. But I have a feeling I'll be referring to those other works more often in the future than I do this one.

I originally bought the first edition of this fantastic book and had to buy the deluxe update as well. This book is truly fantastic. I spent a good part of last summer driving from Los Angeles to Missouri on old route 66 and this book was a welcome friend along the way (how many people plan trips with cookbooks in hand, I have no idea).

From the standpoint of the trip it was great to be able to find some of the same restaurants that my parents ate at 30+ years ago. The book is also full of menus, pictures and stories - and it's the stories that set the book apart. The stories about the restaurants and people along the way made the entire trip seem like visiting old friends.

The recipes are also second to none. I've tried over two dozen of the recipes and none have disapointed me so far. All of them are simple, tasty and relatively simple to make. You can't go wrong by using these recipes.

Finally, I love the changes from Chicago to Los Angeles in terms of the regional recipes offered. I've long been a fan of American regional cooking and this book, while not a "regional cookbook", shows a flair for the subtle changes in restaurant fare as you travel the mother road.

Great cookbook. Since ordering I've tried 5 recipes- all have turned out great! This is def home cooking style and not for those dieting.

This is really a great book. I've read seven books about Route 66 for an upcoming trip of the full length of the route. I almost passed this one up - a cookbook? But in this book, you'll find stories, pictures and information not found in any of the other books. Pictures of places, old penny postcards (front and back), menus, placemats, road signs, advertizing, coasters, hand fans, drawings, roadmaps, and even a business card. See tables with Formica tops, oilcloth tablecloths, chromed legged chairs, and linoleum floors. Stories about restaurants, roadhouses, cafés, hotels, drive-ins, and diners, including really great stories about their owners and customers, both local characters and the famous including Elvis (who left without ordering when he didn't find any of his records in the Juke box), Tom Mix, Bonnie and Clyde, Belle Star, Pretty Boy Floyd, Mickey Mantle, John Dillinger, and even some vagrants who stole clothes off of owner's clotheslines. And a great nostalgic Forward by Michael Wallis is almost worth the price of the book alone.

As for recipes, there are lots of them from Route 66 eateries, both open and long closed (but the owners still around), but the recipes only make up maybe less than one third of the book. They include everything you can think of, including Oatmeal Cake, Cherry Cream Pie, Pickled Okra, Route 66 Rolls, Oklahoma Pecan Pie and Texas Caviar. And just about all of them with simple ingredients. If you're into books about Route 66, include this one.

Great cookbook from the diners, restaurants, and motels located along historic Route 66. Full of nostalgic stories and photos. A must for anyone traveling out west or along Route 66.

Where else can you learn how they made those cinnamon rolls, chicken-fried steak, greasy hamburgers, chili and chocolate pie? This book is history! And there real jewels, too -- roast duck, chicken and shrimp curry -- that are delicious and easy. This is a useful, real cookbook full of wonderful road stories. A wonderful book!

The book has a great new introduction with additional stories and recipes. Makes for memorable reading about cafes, diners and other eateries that were once on the road and others that are on 66 today. Recipes work!

Every Route 66 traveler has memories - this book delighted me with stories of places I have stopped, dishes from the 50s, and great memories from waitresses, owners, customers, and home-town folks who talked about Route 66 eateries that are gone as well as food stops still open today. The recipes are reminiscent of the 50s although some come from the whole 66 era. Every time I drive the road there are changes. The author points this out and some of the people she interviewed are now deceased - but I'm glad their memories were saved - bet they were glad to reminisce. I found the book a delight! Glad Clark is a fellow Oklahoman.