Customer Reviews

Venice and Food

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This wonderful history of Venetian cooking records the traditional recipes and how they came about. Emphasizing fresh ingredients and authentic taste, it is a beautifully-illustrated journey through the neighborhoods of Venice, capturing the fresh abundance of a neighborhood vegetable market, an ancient well-head or a graceful little bridge over a quiet canal. Every letter is drawn by hand - a true labor of love perfect for food-lovers, Venice-lovers and history-lovers.

This is one teriffic book related to the history and culture of the "cucina veneziana." It's as much an illustrated history of the architectural glories of Venice as a guide to the why and how of food in Venice. I adore Spector's drawings that show the close relationship between food and architecture all around the city. For example, the Sotoportego e Corte dei Forni is a gorgeous pointed arch opening to a side street, a location imposed on bakeries in historic times.There are profuse and gorgeous depictions of mosaic chickens, live fish, fresh vegetables, and marble fruit baskets. Sample the numerous recipes for simple and authentic Venetian dishes, and you'll discover the real soul of Venice. Venice comes alive in this book!

Just another rave review for this beautiful book. If you love Venice, you will love this book. If you know anyone who loves Venice, get them this book as a gift. Sally Spector knows Venice and obviously loves the city. Her drawings and history of details behind the food and recipes is a joy to read and to look at. If you have been to Venice, this book will take you back and get you looking forward to your next trip. In the meantime, you can savor the delicious recipes and the warmth of Venice and Food....

"Tell me what you eat and I will tell you what you are" Brillat-Savarin declared. Judging by its cuisine, Venice must surely qualify as the ancient and modern day city of princes and artists. Sally Spector vividly brings to life the importance of Venice as the crucial stepping-stone for cuisine in Italy and Europe in "Venice and Food".

Little did I know that world famous dishes such as risotto, polenta, tiramisu and many other delights originate from Veneto and fair Venice - until I read Sally's superb description of their origins. She elegantly evokes the typical dishes of Venice with such accuracy that I could almost smell the aromas while reading her book - especially her enticing descriptions of the "Cuttlefish stewed in its ink" and "Bacala a la Vicentina". Such descriptions of typical Venetian dishes are beautifully interwoven with their historical origins. Even their essential ingredients are traced back to their roots. Who knew that eggplant, the basis for Melanzane al Funghetto, emanates from China?

An additional bonus and particularly attractive aspect of "Venice and Food" are the illustrations throughout the book. They are done by Sally herself who is a talented artist. Moreover, the whole book is written in her own elegant handwriting - a unique and superbly pleasing feature.

In sum, from the minute I picked up this book, I could not put it down until the next day - the first two days of my visit to Venice. It served as a magnificent introduction to Venice - not only the city of romance but also certainly of history and cuisine.

"Venice and Food" is a must read for any food enthusiast!

I purchased this book soon after it came out. I found it at the wonderful Kepler's bookstore in Menlo Park, California in among the cookbooks. Which makes sense, because, in part Venice & Food is a cookbook. But Venice & Food is two other thing as well: a book about Venice and its history and an art book of Ms. Spector's remarkable drawings of Venice. What is also remarkable about this book is that it is not typeset. The book is entirely written in Ms. Spector's hand printed text and the illustrations are annotated with her script.

Ms. Spector is a wonderful artist and her drawings of Venice are beautiful. The drawings illustrate essays on topics ranging from where Venice gets its fresh water to the history of corn in Europe and Venice. Since this is a cookbook, Ms. Spector also writes about the history of food and cooking in Venice, including a few accounts of modern food. In writing about food and cooking through history, Ms. Spector comments that for the vast majority of people through most of human history, the concern was not about the sensuality of food, but simply having a full stomach.

The beautiful artwork, the observations about Venice, its history and its food are what make this book a treasure. I am sad to say that I read the book cover to cover and did not find a recipe that I wanted to make. Although I will not be using this as a cookbook, I will always treasure the book for its beauty.

The book is full of amazing illustrations by the author, great stories, and authentic recipes. A lot of work went into the book, and it's worth it. I highly reccommend it!

This book is a treasure because all the text is handwritten and the illustrations are fabulous.....there are recipes and a great deal of history & information about Venice. This kind of book will soon be a relic.

If you have ever experienced cichetti in Venice, this book will bring it all back. In addition to the recipes, the illustrations are charming, representative of the real Venice that the average tourist never sees but that those who take the time to learn and love the Serenissima truly cherish.

I think this is a most beautiful cookbook. The illustrations are so beautiful and capture the essence of Venice. It is a precious book to own and as a gift would be teasured.

a very beautiful book. I lived in Venice, Italy for four months, so I enjoyed this book very much.