Table Boss: How to Build a Restaurant When Your Life Falls Apart (A Love Story) - Hardcover

Agg, Jen

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0771020511 ISBN 13: 9780771020513

Publisher: McClelland & Stewart, 2026

Synopsis

From the beloved restaurateur behind The Black Hoof, Grey Gardens, and General Public, as well as the bestselling author of I Hear She's a Real Bitch, comes a hilarious, heartbreaking look at love, success, and, most importantly, good lighting.

 Jen Agg had a thriving restaurant group, a beautiful marriage to a handsome artist husband, and extremely good skin. If anyone could give advice on living well in your forties, it was her. Then, disaster struck. As a global pandemic threw the restaurant business into chaos, Jen’s husband, Roland, suffered a catastrophic stroke.  

In her new memoir, Jen captures what it felt like to rethink everything just when she thought it was all working out as she’d planned. Table Boss makes you understand what Anthony Bourdain loved about her—her singular combination of wry humour, unflinching honesty, and real depth. Readers will love the book for its painful rendering of what it’s like to care for a loved one through a health nightmare, its witty analysis of restaurant culture, and its insights into building a business on your own terms.

About this title

About the Author

JEN AGG is a restaurateur in Toronto, owner of Bar Vendetta, Grey Gardens, Rhum Corner, Le Swan, General Public and Cocktail Bar. She’s the author of I Hear She’s a Real Bitch. Her writing has appeared in the New Yorker, the New York Times, and more.

Edition details

• Publisher: McClelland & Stewart
• Publication date: 2026
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0771020511
• ISBN 13: 9780771020513
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 328