Customer Reviews

If You Can Stand the Heat: Tales from Chefs and Restaurateurs

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

As a professional chef, I always love reading about restauranteurs and their experiences, both for inspiration when I'm feeling tapped out creatively, and for validation when I'm feeling burnt out in general. I was really looking forward to reading this, hoping it would be another in the vein of the wonderful "Becoming a Chef" by Dornenburg and Page.

It turns out this book is a pale imitation of that classic, a complete wannabee. It has nothing really new to offer to the genre. Though the chefs are as dedicated and passionate as I would expect, it is written as if the assumed audience is a person who doesn't even know how to turn on a stove. The writer never really "gets" the industry, writing with this truly annoying mix of wide-eyed awe and ignorance. Maybe an amateur cook would find it interesting, I just found it boring and repetitive.

Mostly, though, this book just needs an editor with a big huge red pen. If you are annoyed and distracted, as I am, by mediocre writing, passive voice, run-on sentences and general literary sloppiness, you will find yourself stopping after every sentence and re-writing it in your mind. I couldn't even finish the book.

Dawn Davis's book is a treasure trove of information for all kinds of foodies -- from the professional chef to hopeful beginners like myself who just love to read about all things food. The stories from the chefs are fascinating -- intimate enough so the reader feels like he or she is in that chef's shoes for the moment. The back of the book is filled with really useful stuff, like names and addresses of cooking schools (both stateside and abroad), lists of cookbooks by the chefs profiled, and information about trade publications. This book makes you feel like a real food insider, which in NYC (or any area for that matter) is a very cool thing to be these days. The recipes are unusual and surprisingly easy to make (not to mention yummy). Impress your friends! The photos are stylish as well. This is a book you will want to display.

I used the excuse of ordering some books for my Dad's Birthday to pick up a few for myself. "If You Can Stand the Heat", (Tales from Chefs & Restaurants) by Dawn Davis is the one I'm reading first.

Written a couple years ago, it's a pretty good overview of what's going on today in food and restaurants. It includes brief but well done interviews with chefs and food industry professionals, and manages to focus on many different aspects of the food business.

The interviews cover a wide range of topics like training, chefs as entreprenuers, restaurant location, mentors, regional cusines and such and are interesting to read as well as informative. The book also includes some recipes following each chapter, and has useful appendices with sources of information about the food business.

Among those interviewed are celebreties like Tony Bourdain, Rick Bayless, Bobby Flay and Thomas Keller but the roster consists mostly of people best known only to the inner circle of foodies.

This would be a very interesting and useful read for somebody new to food literature or thinking of entering the business.

I love restaurants, food, cooking, industry insider information, and I could not have been more pleased with this book! The recipes rock and the writing style is very inviting. I'm a lawyer by day, but after reading IF YOU CAN STAND THE HEAT, well, who knows what next year will bring? Maybe a new restaurant on the block...

Reading D. Davis' "If You Can Stand the Heat" is a multiply experience. Perusing the pages one can clearly smell, sense, sniff, feel, taste and admire the art of some of America's finest chefs. "If You Can Stand the Heat" is energized with exuberance and that, very New York (the author lives in NYC) and never ending quest for excellence. Besides her effortless style in "If You Can Stand the Heat" D. Davis seems to confirm the old adage: "It doesn't matter what you do but do it with all your heart." The author does not conceal the admiration for the people she's writing about and at the same time she keeps her detachment intact. Life inspiring stories (my favorite are Anne Kearney's and Marc Jolis') in "If You Can Stand the Heat" in a way represent that profoundly American spirit "I can do it too." Kudos to D. Davis for she proves without any reservation that she, indeed, can stand the heat. While the structure of the book follows the traditional path: a portrait of a master followed by her/his favorite recipes an invaluable source of practical information is the sub-chapter following each presentation and extensive appendix for those who seriously consider jumping into the fray. "If You Can Stand the Heat" could be enjoyable reading for almost anyone, but the book is indispensable to those on the crossroad, still undecided whether they should follow their passion and pursue an entirely new career. There are warnings however and as one of the portrayed chefs observes: "It's hard work, it's greasy, it's hot. Your legs get sore, your feet get sore, your back gets sore. It's not glamorous. When everyone is out partying, you're providing the party." Or, to quote Anne Kearney from the book: "Fame can't be your motivating factor, because you can work hard your whole life and fall through the cracks without anyone ever taking notice." D. Davis has accomplished a very fine piece of work. I'm eagerly waiting for her next.

Davis provides for those interested in the field as profession to the rest of us interested in the world of chefs and restaurants, an exciting mosaic of stories from those involved.

Here are the likes of Bayless and Keller and Flay along with some many readers are not likely to be familiar with: Price and Kearney, et al. They contribute to the culinary mosaic a piece about a topic such as catering, find the right city for a restaurant, etc.

From each contributer there are recipes that would be categorized in the intermediate class of skill for the home gourmet to attempt.

There are insights and sources for follow-up along with coordinated notes as one reads which serve as referrals to other places in the book where info on a topic may be found.

All in all a fascinating read! Unless one is truly passionate about cooking and wants to devote their life, this book might refer them to another career path. However, for the one who is passionate about cooking, this useful work provides ample gems of wisdom and advice from varying perspectives and experiences.

If You Can Stand the Heat is a collection of experiences of some of the best cooks in the country. It is intended primarily for those who might be considering going into the food service industry, but is also fun and informative reading for home cooks. It covers how to get into a kitchen, what education you may need or might find useful, the basics of running the business, and even how to open your own restaurant. It also shows other resources that can be turned to for additional support and research. Each chapter also ends with a sampling of the chapter's featured cook's recipes that you probably will not want to try at home.

I love to cook and I love to read--this book is extremely well written and gives a very accurate portrayal of life in the kitchen (professionally). A "regular" person could enjoy reading this too--it isn't just for chefs or chefs-to-be. There are some very hilarious sections in here--I just loved it!

My sister gave me this book as a graduation present because I've been considering cooking school for some time despite a degree in art history. This book has given me a lot of practical advice like where to get scholarhships and how to apply for apprenticeships. Anyone in a similar position should check it out.

There are any number of books on the market that purport to tell you how to start and run your own restaurant. They tend to make up in enthusiasm what they lack in rigor in depicting a slice of the business world that is, at best, quirkily unpredictable. But If You Can Stand the Heat: Tales from Chefs and Restaurateurs is an exception.

The book is organized around four ingredients, er, themes: "Breaking In and Moving Up," "A Taste of America's Regional Cuisines," "Border Crossing," and "Chef-Owners on the Business of the Business." Because the book is liberally sprinkled throughout with short profiles of chefs' and restaurateurs' experiences, the reader comes away with a good sense of the trials involved. We learn how Anne Kearney, the owner of Peristyle, in New Orleans, struggled to get a grip on monthly expenses. One of her most costly lessons came when she realized that her payroll budget had been based on the previous owner's records, which hadn't included payroll taxes. The result, she discovered, was that her own budget was way out of whack.

The book is full of such stories. And the author also has included resources, ranging from thoughts on projecting an annual budget, to an item on the top four reasons restaurants fail (lack of capital, insufficient experience, poor menu planning, and disagreement among partners).

For an added treat, interspersed among the hands-on advice and profiles of restaurateurs are recipes for the signature dishes of the featured chefs. Kearney offers a recipe for the perfect meatless starter: hand-rolled ravioli with roasted tomatoes, mushrooms, and goat cheese with artichoke brown butter. Mmm.