Dining Out: Secrets from America's Leading Critics, Chefs, and Restaurateurs - Softcover

Andrew Dornenburg; Karen Page

Softcover

ISBN 10: 047129277X ISBN 13: 9780471292777

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 1998

Synopsis

This book is the first of its kind to examine what defines fine food in America and it introduces us to many individuals who shape our views about food. Using other successful Dornenburg/Page books as a model, the authors once again base their analysis on interviews with chefs, restaurateurs and critics. This insider's guide to the process of restaurant reviewing will excite anyone with a serious interest in food. It also features top sites on the Internet that provide restaurant reviews. 'If I were a restaurateur, I would expect all my staff to read this book. As a restaurant critic, I found it a fascinating insight into the minds of other critics and more especially the minds of some of the people who are serious about running a restaurant.'

About this title

About the Authors

KAREN PAGE is the coauthor of a groundbreaking series of books chronicling America's vibrant restaurant culture, including the James Beard Award-winning Becoming a Chef. She is the recipient of the 1997 Melitta Bentz Award for Women's Achievement, and a graduate of the Harvard Business School (whose alumnae network she heads) and Northwestern University, which named her to The Council of 100 leading alumnae.

ANDREW DORNENBURG is the coauthor of a groundbreaking series of books chronicling America's vibrant restaurant culture, including the James Beard Award-winning Becoming a Chef. Dornenburg has cooked professionally in some of the best restaurants on the East Coast, including Arcadia, JUdson Grill, and March in New York City, and Biba and the East Coast Grill in Boston. He attended the School for American Chefs, where he studied with Madeleine Kamman.

MICHAEL DONNELLY is a New York-based photographer whose work has appeared in Elle, House & Garden, Travel & Leisure, and the World of Interiors.

FIONA DONNELLY is a feature writer, fashion stylist, and contributing editor at Bride's.

From the Back Cover

"This book will enrich and enlighten anyone with an interest in dining out." —Patrick O'Connell, chef-owner, The Inn at Little Washington

"The King of Spain is waiting in the bar, but your table is ready." —Sirio Maccioni of Le Cirque to New York Times restaurant critic Ruth Reichl

"If you've invested $1.5 million in a project and certain people can crush you like a bug if they have a bad time, you're a fool if you're not trying to find out who these people are, what they look like, and when they're in." —Bob Kinkead, chef-owner, Kinkead's

Just as food has become our national obsession, so has dining out virtually become its own sport. Dining enthusiasts, eager to get the take on new restaurants and the status of old favorites, look to restaurant critics and their discerning palates for guidance. So, who are these secretive personalities who often dine incognito and whose public judgments can make or break a restaurant or chef? Be a guest at their private table in DINING OUT: Secrets from America's Leading Critics, Chefs, and Restaurateurs, the first book to demystify the critical process and to unlock the secrets of a great restaurant experience.

Drawing on extensive interviews and research, co-authors Andrew Dornenburg and Karen Page expose the wide-ranging experiences and insights of dozens of the most powerful palates in America, among them Gael Greene of New York, John Mariani of Esquire, Ruth Reichl of The New York Times, Phyllis Richman of The Washington Post, David Rosengarten and Caroline Bates of Gourmet, Patricia Unterman of The San Francisco Examiner, S. Irene Virbila of The Los Angeles Times, and Dennis Ray Wheaton of Chicago. They reveal their occasionally outlandish schemes for remaining anonymous—and what happens when their covers are blown! The critics also divulge how they review restaurants, what they think about the star system, and how they temper their personal biases when judging food, service, and ambiance.

Then Dornenburg and Page turn the tables, sharing the sentiments of well-known chefs and restaurateurs from across the country as they review the restaurant critics, from their credentials and rating systems to the forceful impact of their reviews. The chefs and owners of dozens of celebrated restaurants including Al Forno, Campanile, Chez Panisse, East Coast Grill, Fleur de Lys, Frontera Grill, Le Cirque 2000, Red Sage, and Stars offer their own definitions of excellence in food, service, and setting, and reflect on the role that the customer plays in the total dining experience.

Special features of the book include:

• A guide to leading food critics' favorite restaurants across America
• Restaurant review resources available on the Internet
• Advice from renowned sommeliers Larry Stone of Rubicon and Jean-Luc Le D? of Daniel, and ma?tre fromager Max McCalman of Picholine
• Musings by Pulitzer Prize-winning critics of architecture, media, and music on how they might approach restaurant criticism
• Special interviews with Danny Meyer on Providing Hospitality and Mark Miller on The Progress of American Gastronomy

"Finally, the best insider's view of our business for the discerning restaurant goer. Andrew Dornenburg and Karen Page do a wonderful job of exploring the 'behind-the-scenes' side of professional cooking. As [New York Times restaurant critic] Ruth Reichl would say, 'HHHH'!" —Daniel Boulud, chef-owner, Restaurant Daniel and Cafe Boulud

"DINING OUT is a fascinating story, one that absolutely needed to be written. I found this book to be a compelling, revealing, and utterly entertaining look at what the critics, and those they criticize, had to say." —Michael Romano, chef-partner, Union Square Cafe

"This is no fair—it took me a lifetime to learn all these insights into the restaurant business! Well done!" —Ella Brennan, owner, Commander's Palace

"DINING OUT is both entertaining and educational, and can make your restaurant experience the same. The sommeliers' comments add to the pleasure." —Robert Mondavi, owner, Robert Mondavi Winery

"Not unlike theater, restaurants have been made or destroyed by the words of a critic. DINING OUT goes beyond the words to explore the underlying logic of the restaurant critic. It is an invaluable addition to the library of those who like to dine out." —Leonard A. Schlesinger, professor, Harvard Business School

"Don't start this book if you're hungry—the guide to leading critics' favorite restaurants across the country is a challenge to start one's own food odyssey and eat at least one meal in them all!" —Jeanette S. Wagner, vice chairman, The Estée Lauder Companies Inc.

"Michael Donnelly's photographs of restaurant life shimmer with élan, bursting on the page in glints and daubs of light and shade. If you are a connoisseur of fine cuisine and artful photography, you will delight in these pictures." —William Wegman, artist and photographer

"DINING OUT is an intriguing foray into the secret and powerful world of restaurant criticism. Michael Donnelly's photographs confer an element of high style and high drama to this intelligent and absorbing book." —Nancy Novogrod, editor-in-chief, Travel & Leisure

From the Inside Flap

Dining Out Andrew Dornenburg and Karen Page "This book will enrich and enlighten anyone with an interest in dining out." —Patrick O’Connell, chef-owner, The Inn at Little Washington "The King of Spain is waiting in the bar, but your table is ready." —Sirio Maccioni of Le Cirque to New York Times restaurant critic Ruth Reichl "If you’ve invested $1.5 million in a project and certain people can crush you like a bug if they have a bad time, you’re a fool if you’re not trying to find out who these people are, what they look like, and when they’re in." —Bob Kinkead, chef-owner, Kinkead’s Just as food has become our national obsession, so has dining out virtually become its own sport. Dining enthusiasts, eager to get the take on new restaurants and the status of old favorites, look to restaurant critics and their discerning palates for guidance. So, who are these secretive personalities who often dine incognito and whose public judgments can make or break a restaurant or chef? Be a guest at their private table in Dining Out: Secrets from America’s Leading Critics, Chefs, and Restaurateurs, the first book to demystify the critical process and to unlock the secrets of a great restaurant experience. Drawing on extensive interviews and research, co-authors Andrew Dornenburg and Karen Page expose the wide-ranging experiences and insights of dozens of the most powerful palates in America, among them Gael Greene of New York, John Mariani of Esquire, Ruth Reichl of The New York Times, Phyllis Richman of The Washington Post, David Rosengarten and Caroline Bates of Gourmet, Patricia Unterman of The San Francisco Examiner, S. Irene Virbila of The Los Angeles Times, and Dennis Ray Wheaton of Chicago. They reveal their occasionally outlandish schemes for remaining anonymous—and what happens when their covers are blown! The critics also divulge how they review restaurants, what they think about the star system, and how they temper their personal biases when judging food, service, and ambiance. Then Dornenburg arid Page turn the tables, sharing the sentiments of well-known chefs and restaurateurs from across the country as they review the restaurant critics, from their credentials and rating systems to the forceful impact of their reviews. The chefs and owners of dozens of celebrated restaurants including Al Forno, Campanile, Chez Panisse, East Coast Grill, Fleur de Lys, Frontera Grill, Le Cirque 2000, Red Sage, and Stars offer their own definitions of excellence in food, service, and setting, and reflect on the role that the customer plays in the total dining experience. Special features of the book include:

• A guide to leading food critics’ favorite restaurants across America
• Restaurant review resources available on the Internet
• Advice from renowned sommeliers Larry Stone of Rubicon and Jean-Luc Le Dû of Daniel, and maître fromager Max McCalman of Picholine
• Musings by Pulitzer Prize-winning critics of architecture, media, and music on how they might approach restaurant criticism
• Special interviews with Danny Meyer on Providing Hospitality and Mark Miller on The Progress of American Gastronomy

Reviews

Anybody who has ever dreamed of joining a restaurant critic's inner circle will thoroughly enjoy this gossipy, insider's view by the 1996 winners of the James Beard Award for Best Writing on Food (Becoming a Chef). Interviews with leading critics and restaurateurs are a major part of the author's investigation into the methods employed by critics and the effect they have on restaurateurs' culinary ideals. It's a (relatively) serious topic, but one Dornenburg and Page address in a vibrant, conversational tone. Thanks to the unexpectedly dramatic lives of the characters involved, the pages buzz with often surprising tension, humor and emotion. Readers hear from restaurateurs who have staked fortunes on a creative vision, only to find that success often rests in the hands of a single, highly opinionated, sometimes unpredictable writer. The critics, meanwhile (most notably the New York Times's Ruth Reichl, teasingly shown on the cover wearing a face-obscuring hat), don wigs to maintain anonymity, fend off attacks from knife-wielding chefs and eat such dubious delicacies as braised goat penis and worms fried in lard. After being regaled with so many tart and entertaining observations, the final 100 service-oriented pages (Internet review sites, critics' favorite restaurants in selected cities) are somewhat anticlimactic. But just treat them like the after-dinner mint and the rest of the meal will get high marks for its appealing presentation, spice and color. 50 photos.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Dornenburg and Page undertook extensive research--including interviews with more than 62 chefs, critics, and restaurateurs--to produce a labor of love. Through the authors' discriminating senses, readers and foodies alike learn the whos, whats, whys, and hows of criticism and how to be a discerning diner. Trivia buffs, too, will find this compilation alluring, with sidebars on such subjects as food on film, famous food lovers, and even the "weirdest things critics have ever eaten." Recommended for all libraries located within a seven-digit dialing area for one-star (or more) dining reservations. Appended are listings of some of America's leading critics' favorite restaurants and why, a guide to Internet reviews of restaurants in major markets around the world, and biographies of interviewees. Barbara Jacobs

Dornenburg and Page, coauthors of the award-winning Becoming a Chef (LJ 8/95) and Culinary Artistry (Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1996), move out of the kitchen and into the dining room, focusing on the restaurant critics whose opinions often determine where we dine on Friday night. While the authors demonstrate the same incisive culinary qualities as in their previous works, chapters and numerous sidebars on such topics such as "Cooking for Ruth Reichl" and spending a week in the restaurant lives of both Reichl and Gael Greene will hold little appeal for readers who aren't hard-core foodies. Mostly, the book presents food critics' comments about the review process as well as opinions from chefs and restaurateurs about the people who review them; like the Zagat guides, everyone gets to be a critic here. The book ends with a list of the top critics' favorite restaurants, a guide to restaurant review sources on the Internet, and biographies of interviewees, all fairly sugarcoated. Recommended only for specialized culinary collections due to some in-depth reporting and interviews with a few restaurant notables. Otherwise, "Where's the beef?"ADrew Ackers, New York
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

From Chapter 1: Phyllis Richman, The Washington Post's restaurant critic for more than 20 years, has been cited as one of the 100 most influential people in the United States' capital city. Newsweek magazine dubbed her "the most feared woman in Washington." Richman certainly has reason to be among the most fearful as well. Over the years, she and her restaurant critic colleagues across the country have commonly been harassed and subjected to everything from disturbing phone calls to hate mail, rocks thrown through the windows of their homes, brandished knives, even death threats -- 'perquisites' not regularly endured by other professional critics of the arts, even after a particularly harsh pan. What makes it all worth their while? "I have the most wonderful job in the world," Richman enthuses. And there probably isn't a single restaurant lover alive who would doubt her.

America's Obsession with Food and Restaurants: As long as restaurants have been in existence, Americans have been debating their merits with increasing passion. While food was once simply one of the necessities of life, like shelter, clothing or oxygen, it has moved from the realm of sustenance into a more complex component. Food has become our national obsession. In this era of limited attention spans, food commands our senses and holds us rapt. We've become more fascinated than ever by how food is prepared, how it is presented, and the names of the chefs and restaurants behind its creation. Our increase in restaurant dining has led our palates to seek new stimulation through unusual ethnic cuisines, as well as innovative flavor combinations, techniques, and presentations. America's leading chefs strive to entice our patronage through ceaseless innovation. Our increasing fascination with food, coupled with the advent of chefs as owners and therefore promoters of their own restaurants, have given rise to the "celebrity chef" phenomenon. Chefs have taken to publishing glossy, expensive books promoting their restaurants and cuisines, and come into our living rooms to show us how they prepare their signature dishes. Celebrity chefs have been the driving force behind the Television Food Network, which began in 1993 and has become the third fastest-growing cable network in the country. With semi-regular cooking segments, such mainstream talk shows as "The Today Show," "Good Morning America," "Regis and Kathie Lee," and "The Rosie O'Donnell Show" have also contributed to the phenomenon. Even the high-brown "Charlie Rose" has hosted chef-restaurateurs Mark Miller and Anne Rosenzweig, and edgier late-night hosts Jay Leno, David Letterman, Conan O'Brien, and Tom Snyder have occasionally featured top chefs like Daniel Boulud, Emeril Lagasse, and Jean-Louis Palladin on their shows. The era of the chef as celebrity has produced an interest in chefs that borders on cultish. In a characteristic sign of the times, chef-restaurateurs Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger, the Television Food Network's "Too Hot Tamales," were featured in People magazine's 1996 "Best & Worst Dressed" issue, and Entertainment Weekly now considers it its purview to publish a list of "The Ten Most Important Names in American Dining." Under continuous pressure to be innovative, to accomodate the changing tastes of the public, and to put forward their own personal, aesthetic statements of what food can be, chefs are increasingly finding themselves walking a fine line between art and profit, taste and health. Who is to judge the success of their efforts? Restaurant Dining and Reviewing in America: With the proliferation of new restaurants, Americans have grown increasingly dependent on restaurant criticism to help them make more informed choices. Many restaurant lovers, especially in urban areas, follow restaurant critics almost as sport, turning first to the restaurant reviews when they open a newspaper or magazine. Reviews become the topic of the day, with "How 'bout those Bulls?" being replaced by "Did you read Ruth's review of Le Cirque?" as a common conversation starter. In cities with the luxury of multiple opinions, diners find "their" critics, whose opinions they come to rely on. Some restaurant critics are revered or reviled so passionately that reading their critiques transcends utility. The pleasure of reading their columns is an end to itself for readers who may have no intention of visiting the restaurants serving as the critic's muses that week. Looking at some of the restaurants, chefs, media and critics that have influenced the American dining scene over the past two centuries helps to provide a sense of where America has been and where it's heading. Whereas, in earlier days, many American chef-restaurateurs simply adopted the French model as the gold standard, these points in history trace a country struggling to define, for itself, what great food is and what constitutes a great restaurant in terms that are distinctly American. Various voices have challenged popular thinking on these questions -- from writers Calvin Trillin and Jane and Michael Stern, who made Amercians look anew at the pleasures of down-home regional cooking; to the "flower culture" who promoted freshness and purity in food through the health-food movement; to America's melting-pot population, which has embraced an ever-widening variety of ethnic restaurants. It has become clear that certain restaurant critics, too, have played some of the most vital roles in shaping America's sensibility about food--from Craig Claiborne, who established restaurants as a subject worthy of serious critique; to Gael Greene, who awakened diners to their sensual possibilities; to Ruth Reichl, whose writing from the perspective of both gastronomy and sociology encourages people to look more deeply into the restaurant experience.

Edition details

• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
• Publication date: 1998
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 047129277X
• ISBN 13: 9780471292777
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 368