100 Best Restaurant Books of All Time (Updated for 2026)

1

Setting the Table: The Transforming Power of Hospitality in Business

Danny Meyer

5.0

The bestselling business book from award-winning restauranteur Danny Meyer, of Union Square Cafe, Gramercy Tavern, and Shake Shack

Seventy-five percent of all new restaurant ventures fail, and of those that do stick around, only a few become icons. Danny Meyer started Union Square Cafe when he was 27, with a good idea and hopeful investors. He is now the co-owner of a restaurant empire. How did he

Recommended by Chip Conley, Noah Kagan, and Julie Rice.

Chip Conley

One of the best books on hospitality ever written. [source]

Noah Kagan

Founder/Sumo

A few months ago, I was drinking a Noah’s Mill whiskey (cute) with my good buddy Brian Balfour and talking about life... During the conversation, we got on the topic of books that changed our lives. I want to share them with you. I judge a book's success if a year later I'm still using at least 1 thing from the book. [source]

Julie Rice

We did a lot of reading this book at SoulCycle. [source]

2

Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal

Eric Schlosser

4.9

Preview Summary

Fast food has hastened the malling of our landscape, widened the chasm between rich and poor, fueled an epidemic of obesity, and propelled American cultural imperialism abroad. That's a lengthy list of charges, but here Eric Schlosser makes them stick with an artful mix of first-rate reportage, wry wit, and careful reasoning.

Schlosser's myth-shattering survey stretches from California's subdivisio

Recommended by Richard Branson, Antonio Eram, Barry Estabrook, and 1 others.

Richard Branson

Founder/Virgin Group

Today is World Book Day, a wonderful opportunity to address this #ChallengeRichard sent in by Mike Gonzalez of New Jersey: Make a list of your top 65 books to read in a lifetime. [source]

Antonio Eram

This book was recommended by Antonio when asked for titles he would recommend to young people interested in his career path. [source]

Barry Estabrook

Eric Schlosser takes apart a single fast-food meal and shows not only how it affects our health but also how the people who serve it to you are treated. He also looks at how the people in the slaughterhouses working with the cattle are treated, and so it shows you the true picture of the all-American meal – burgers and fries. [source]

3

Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly

Anthony Bourdain

4.8

A deliciously funny, delectably shocking banquet of wild-but-true tales of life in the culinary trade from Chef Anthony Bourdain, laying out his more than a quarter-century of drugs, sex, and haute cuisine—now with all-new, never-before-published material.

New York Chef Tony Bourdain gives away secrets of the trade in his wickedly funny, inspiring memoir/expose. Kitchen Confidential reveals what Bo

Recommended by Eric Ripert, Jon Favreau, Catalina Penciu, and 2 others.

Eric Ripert

I love that Tony’s world in the kitchen was filled with pirate-like renegades when mine was peopled with regimented professionals. How eye-opening and entertaining to read about the other side! [source]

Jon Favreau

Great book. [source]

Catalina Penciu

I'm a huge fan of personal stories and biographies with a touch of gastronomy like this one. [source]

4

Restaurant Success by the Numbers, Second Edition: A Money-Guy's Guide to Opening the Next New Hot Spot

Roger Fields

4.7

This one-stop guide to opening a restaurant from an accountant-turned-restaurateur shows aspiring proprietors how to succeed in the crucial first year and beyond.

Ninety percent of all restaurants fail, and those that succeed happened upon that mysterious X factor, right? Wrong! A man of many hats—money-guy, restaurant owner, and restaurant consultant—Roger Fields shows how a restaurant can survive

Recommended by Gregoire Jacquet.

Gregoire Jacquet

After being in the business for many years, I thought I knew everything, but working with Roger showed me how much more there is to know. Restaurant Success by the Numbers contains the know-how you’ll need to open and run a thriving restaurant. If you want to succeed in the restaurant business, read it! [source]

5

Barbarians at the Gate: The Fall of RJR Nabisco

Bryan Burrough

4.6

Preview Summary

“One of the finest, most compelling accounts of what happened to corporate America and Wall Street in the 1980’s.”
—New York Times Book Review

A #1 New York Times bestseller and arguably the best business narrative ever written, Barbarians at the Gate is the classic account of the fall of RJR Nabisco. An enduring masterpiece of investigative journalism by Bryan Burrough and John Helyar, it includes

Recommended by Bill Liao, Bogdan Iordache, David Rothschild, and 2 others.

Bill Liao

The human world occurs in language so best get good at it! [source]

Bogdan Iordache

There are quite a few good business books on technology, and I'll list below some I find to be a good starting point. Personally, I like biographies a lot and I mostly read biographies of dead people, because those are the most honest ones. So because the computer age is still very young, there won't be a lot of biographies in my list. [source]

Scott Kupor

@JPHampstead @TimParksauthor Barbarians is a great book. Hope you enjoy mine! [source]

6

Eating Animals

Jonathan Safran Foer

4.5

Jonathan Safran Foer spent much of his life oscillating between enthusiastic carnivore and occasional vegetarian. Once he started a family, the moral dimensions of food became increasingly important.
Faced with the prospect of being unable to explain why we eat some animals and not others, Foer set out to explore the origins of many eating traditions and the fictions involved with creating them. Tr

Recommended by Louise Gray.

Louise Gray

It’s a really powerful book and I know many people who it has made vegetarian. [source]

7

See You at Harry's

Jo Knowles

4.5

Starting middle school brings all the usual challenges — until the unthinkable happens, and Fern and her family must find a way to heal.

Twelve-year-old Fern feels invisible. It seems as though everyone in her family has better things to do than pay attention to her: Mom (when she’s not meditating) helps Dad run the family restaurant; Sarah is taking a gap year after high school; and Holden pretend

8

Ottolenghi: The Cookbook

Yotam Ottolenghi, Sami Tamimi

4.5

Ottolenghi is one of the most iconic and dynamic restaurants in the country. Its unique blend of exquisite, fresh food, abundantly presented in a cutting-edge, elegant environment, has imaginatively redefined people's dining expectations. For the first time, Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi are publishing here their superb sweet and savoury recipes.

Yotam and Sami's inventive yet simple dishes are

Recommended by Jila Dana-Haeri and Shahrzad Ghorashian.

Jila Dana-Haeri and Shahrzad Ghorashian

A recipe book full of inspired flavours and colours – layers of tastes and plenty of exciting salads. [source]

9

The Market Gardener: A Handbook for Successful Small-Scale Organic Farming

Jean-Martin Fortier

4.5

Les Jardins de la Grelinette is a micro-farm located in eastern Quebec, just north of the American border. Growing on just 1.5 acres, owners Jean-Martin and Maude-Helène feed more than two hundred families through their thriving CSA and seasonal market stands and supply their signature mesclun salad mix to dozens of local establishments. The secret of their success is the low-tech, high-yield prod

10

The Blue Bistro

Elin Hilderbrand

4.5

Elin Hilderbrand, author of the enchanting Summer People and The Beach Club, invites you to experience the perfect getaway with her sparkling new novel.

Adrienne Dealey has spent the past six years working for hotels in exotic resort towns. This summer she has decided to make Nantucket home. Left flat broke by her ex-boyfriend, she is desperate to earn some fast money. When the desirable Thatcher S

Recommended by Audrey Mcclelland.

Audrey Mcclelland

Just started my first @elinhilderbrand book - The Blue Bistro! LOVE IT! [source]

11

Salt Sugar Fat: How the Food Giants Hooked Us

Michael Moss

4.5

Every year, the average American eats 33 pounds of cheese and 70 pounds of sugar. They ingest 8,500 milligrams of salt a day, double the recommended amount, almost none of which comes from salt shakers. It comes from processed food, an industry that hauls in $1 trillion in annual sales.

In Salt Sugar Fat, Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter Michael Moss shows how this happened. Featuring

Recommended by Sharon Hayes.

Sharon Hayes

@novenator @andrewmarsh6 @williamorr2110 @EmmaKinery Fat alone doesn't cause obesity. Excess calories do. This is science. There's a fantastic book called "Salt Sugar Fat" that looks at what the food industry does to get consumers hooked. [source]

12

The Third Plate: Field Notes on the Future of Food

Dan Barber

4.4

Barber explores the evolution of American food from the 'first plate,' or industrially-produced, meat-heavy dishes, to the 'second plate' of grass-fed meat and organic greens, and says that both of these approaches are ultimately neither sustainable nor healthy. Instead, Barber proposes Americans should move to the 'third plate,' a cuisine rooted in seasonal productivity, natural livestock rhythms

Recommended by Chef Tzac.

Chef Tzac

What an incredibly insightful and important book by @DanBarber —a must for aspiring chefs and food entrepreneurs—talking about a much needed food system that’s both sustainable AND delicious! Major inspiration for my #IndianFoodMovement. #thirdplate https://t.co/Orruzmcruh [source]

13

The Fish That Ate the Whale: The Life and Times of America's Banana King

Rich Cohen

4.4

A legendary tale, both true and astonishing, from the author of Israel is Real and Sweet and Low

When Samuel Zemurray arrived in America in 1891, he was tall, gangly, and penniless. When he died in the grandest house in New Orleans sixty-nine years later, he was among the richest, most powerful men in the world. In between, he worked as a fruit peddler, a banana hauler, a dockside hustler, and

Recommended by Ryan Holiday, Andrew Wilkinson, Benjamin Spall, and 1 others.

Ryan Holiday

Author

The book sucked me in completely. The subject, Samuel Zemurray, is fascinating and compelling. The writer has a voice that is utterly unique. Since reading this book, I have explored all of this further: I studied Zemurray (whose house was not far from mine in New Orleans and still stands) and am using his story in my next book. I interviewed the author, Rich Cohen. And I read his other books, am particularly found of Tough Jews: Fathers, Sons and Gangster Dreams. The book has all sorts of things going for it: it’s the American Dream, it’s history via microcosm, it’s drama/violence/intrique, and it’s a course in business strategy and leadership. Everyone I have recommended it to was blown away. I won’t say it’s as good as The Tiger, which was my favorite book of 2011, but in terms of an author I’d never heard of taking a subject I don’t care about and making it AWESOME? This book deserves to be talked about in the same breath. [source]

Andrew Wilkinson

@BrentBeshore Love that book. [source]

Benjamin Spall

I loved The Fish That Ate the Whale by Rich Cohen. Not only is it a fascinating story, Cohen's writing is a reminder of just how great non-fiction writing can be if you truly care about it. [source]

14

Onward: How Starbucks Fought for Its Life without Losing Its Soul

Howard Schultz, Joanne Gordon

4.4

Preview Summary

In 2008, Howard Schultz, the president and chairman of Starbucks, made the unprecedented decision to return as the CEO eight years after he stepped down from daily oversight of the company and became chairman. Concerned that Starbucks had lost its way, Schultz was determined to help it return to its core values and restore not only its financial health, but also its soul. In Onward, he shares the

Recommended by Ron Conway.

Ron Conway

Story of his return to Starbucks, and the success of the company in a tumlutuous economic time in history. [source]

15

The Restaurant at the End of the Universe (Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, #2)

Douglas Adams, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy By Douglas Adams, et al.

4.4

alternate edition for ISBN 0345418921/9780345418920

Facing annihilation at the hands of the warlike Vogons is a curious time to have a cosmically displaced Arthur Dent and his curious comrades in arms as they hurtle through space powered by pure improbability - and desperately in search of a place to eat. Among Arthur's motley shipmates are Ford Prefect, a long-time friend and contributor to the Th

16

Keto Restaurant Favorites: More Than 175 Tasty Classic Recipes Made Fast, Fresh, and Healthy

Maria Emmerich

4.4

The ketogenic diet has taken the world by storm, and deservedly so: its results in helping people lose weight, manage chronic health conditions, and simply feel great are unmatched. Bestselling cookbook author Maria Emmerich sits at the forefront of the keto movement and has become the go-to source for high-fat, low-carb recipes that both please the palate and nourish the body. With Keto Restauran

17

Goodnight Brew: A Parody for Beer People

Karla Oceanak

4.4

It’s closing time at the brewery. While the moon rises, the brewery crew—including three little otters (in charge of the water), a wort hog, and a hops wildebeest—introduce us to the brewing equipment, ingredients, and styles of beer. Join this fanciful crew as they close down for the evening and say goodnight to the brew kettle, barley and yeast, hops and mash, saison, porter, IPA, and much more.

18

Meehan's Bartender Manual

Jim Meehan

4.4

A stunningly packaged, definitive guide to bar-building from one of the world's most acclaimed bartenders.

Meehan's Bartender Manual is acclaimed mixologist Jim Meehan's magnum opus--and the first book to explain the ins and outs of the modern bar industry. This groundbreaking work chronicles Meehan's storied career in the bar business through practical, enlightening chapters that mix history wit

Cover unavailable

19

Holistic Goat Care: A Comprehensive Guide to Raising Healthy Animals, Preventing Common Ailments, and Troubleshooting Problems

Gianaclis Caldwell

4.4

Goats have provided humankind with essential products for centuries; indeed, they bear the noble distinction of being the first domesticated farm animal. From providing milk and meat for sustenance and fiber and hides for clothing and shelter to carrying packs and clearing brush, there isn't much that goats cannot do. Managing goats successfully requires an understanding of how nature designed the

20

Queen of Klutz (Sibby Series)

Samantha Garman

4.4

Choose the best phrase to describe Sibby Goldstein's life:

1) Sucky.
2) Really sucky.
3) Major suck-fest.
D) All of the above.

I started my day with a boyfriend and a job. I ended my day with a bottle of tequila. I'll let you connect the dots.

Somehow, I wound up working as a waitress at an Italian restaurant. I have no idea what I'm doing. And I'm not just talkin' about life.

This should be interesting.

21

Bitter Brew: The Rise and Fall of Anheuser-Busch and America's Kings of Beer

William Knoedelseder

4.3

“Bitter Brew deftly chronicles the contentious succession of kings in a uniquely American dynasty. You’ll never crack open a six again without thinking of this book.”
—John Sayles, Director of Eight Men Out and author of A Moment in the Sun

The creators of Budweiser and Michelob beers, the Anheuser-Busch company is one of the wealthiest, most colorful and enduring family dynasties in the history of

22

Fat Chance: Beating the Odds Against Sugar, Processed Food, Obesity, and Disease

Robert H. Lustig

4.3

Robert Lustig’s 90-minute YouTube video Sugar: The Bitter Truth, has been viewed more than two million times. Now, in this much anticipated book, he documents the science and the politics that has led to the pandemic of chronic disease over the last 30 years.

In the late 1970s when the government mandated we get the fat out of our food, the food industry responded by pouring more sugar in. The resu

23

Your First Restaurant - An Essential Guide: How to Plan, Research, Analyze, Finance, Open, and Operate Your Own Wildly-Succesful Eatery.

Daniel Holmes Boardman

4.3

If you are thinking about, or anywhere in the process of, opening a restaurant, this guide will be invaluable to you. The author embarked on a career as a restaurateur in middle age, with no prior restaurant experience and not much capital. Within four years he opened three original and quirky restaurants, each of which has become a thriving success. In this book he draws upon his experiences as a

24

Grinding It Out: The Making of McDonald's

Ray Kroc

4.3

Grinding It Out is the personal ragtime-to-riches story of Ray Kroc, who at age 52 founded the McDonald's hamburger chain and built it from a single restaurant in Des Plaines, Illinois, to an international operation with more than $3 billion in annual sales.
Kroc weaves a fast and fascinating tale of the American dream come true. Of days as a piano player and paper cup salesman—of success and failu

Recommended by Aj Joshi.

Aj Joshi

@brianadgey Great book 👍🏼 very inspiring [source]

25

Restaurant & Bar Marketing: The no bulls#it guide to improving guest counts

Erik Shellenberger

4.3

26

The Opposite of You (Opposites Attract, #1)

Rachel Higginso

4.3

I’ve sworn off men.

All men.

Famous last words, right? You’re expecting some epic tale of reluctant love and my dramatic change of heart? Well, you’re not going to get it.

I’m stubborn. And headstrong. And I’ve just survived the worst three years of my life. After escaping an abusive boyfriend to live in hostels and cheap hotels while I worked my way across Europe, I’ve come to two conclusions.

Th

Cover unavailable

27

Quentins

Maeve Binchy

4.3

28

The Bar Shift: 41 Short Management Lessons You Don't Have to Learn the Hard Way!

Dave Nitzel

4.3

The Bar Shift is 41 best practices for managing your bar and restaurant specifically targeting concepts and processes that will improve results and work-life. It's designed to be specific and to the point; which is what our industry requires. The book also allows the reader to jump right to a topic that may be a burning need in the business at the moment without compromising any previous content.

29

Cooking Up a Business: Lessons from Food Lovers Who Turned Their Passion Into a Career -- And How You C An, Too

Rachel Hofstetter

4.3

Stories and advice for creating a business out of the food you love.

Do you have a passion for delicious food and want to create your own business out of it, but have no idea where to start? Cooking Up a Business is essential reading for aspiring entrepreneurs and gives you a real-world, up-close-and-personal preview of the exciting journey. Through profiles and interviews with nationally known fo

Cover unavailable

30

Listen to Me (Fusion, #1)

Kristen Prob

4.3

In New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Kristen Proby's brand new series, five best friends open a hot new restaurant, but one of them gets much more than she bargained for when a sexy former rock star walks through the doors--and into her heart.

Seduction is quickly becoming the hottest new restaurant in Portland, and Addison Wade is proud to claim 1/5 of the credit. She's determined to

31

Franchise: The Golden Arches in Black America

Marcia Chatelain

4.3

Often blamed for the rising rates of obesity and diabetes among black Americans, fast food restaurants like McDonald’s have long symbolized capitalism’s villainous effects on our nation’s most vulnerable communities. But how did fast food restaurants so thoroughly saturate black neighborhoods in the first place? In Franchise, acclaimed historian Marcia Chatelain uncovers a surprising history of co

Recommended by Ida Bae Wells and Matt Garcia.

Ida Bae Wells

I remember sitting in absolute awe the 1st time @DrMChatelain talked abt this book she was writing on McDonalds, race & black capitalism. It was uncovering the story of something you see everyday but think little about, revealing hidden history in the best possible way. Excited! https://t.co/5uXRRpgd5Y [source]

Matt Garcia

The story of how black entrepreneurs used the predominance of fast food in their communities as an economic development opportunity is brought to light by this book. Chatelain looks at entrepreneurs who take fast food franchises and retrofit them as employment sources and gathering spots for their communities. She talks about how McDonald’s becomes a place, not just of wealth for some black entrepreneurs but also for black Americans to form communal bounds and create political movements. [source]

32

Advanced Bread and Pastry

Michel Suas

4.3

Advanced Bread and Pastry, A Professional Approach is a comprehensive guide to bread, viennoiserie, and pastry that is designed for students, professionals, and enthusiasts. Balancing a respect for tradition with modern approaches to method and technique, Advanced Bread and Pastry unites appealing presentation and indispensable instruction. It is written to help today's baker respond to the recent

33

Tender at the Bone: Growing Up at the Table

Ruth Reichl

4.3

At an early age, Ruth Reichl discovered that "food could be a way of making sense of the world. . . . If you watched people as they ate, you could find out who they were." Her deliciously crafted memoir, Tender at the Bone, is the story of a life determined, enhanced, and defined in equal measure by a passion for food, unforgettable people, and the love of tales well told. Beginning with Reichl's

Cover unavailable

34

The Food Truck Handbook: Start, Grow, and Succeed in the Mobile Food Business

David Weber

4.3

Food trucks have become a wildly popular and important part of the hospitality industry. Consumers are flocking to these mobile food businesses in droves, inspiring national food truck competitions and even a show dedicated to the topic on The Food Network. The relatively low cost of entry as compared to starting a restaurant, combined with free and low-cost ways to market them to the masses via p

Cover unavailable

35

The Art of Natural Cheesemaking: Using Traditional, Non-Industrial Methods and Raw Ingredients to Make the World's Best Cheeses

David Asher and Sandor Ellix Katz

4.3

Including more than 35 step-by-step recipes from the Black Sheep School of Cheesemaking

Most DIY cheesemaking books are hard to follow, complicated, and confusing, and call for the use of packaged freeze-dried cultures, chemical additives, and expensive cheesemaking equipment. For though bread baking has its sourdough, brewing its lambic ales, and pickling its wild fermentation, standard Western ch

36

The Restaurant

Pamela M. Kelley

4.3

From the USA Today and Wall St. Journal bestselling author of Nantucket Neighbors and Nantucket White Christmas.

Three sisters. An inherited Nantucket restaurant. One year before they can sell.

Mandy, Emma and Jill are as close as three sisters who live hundreds of miles apart can be. They grew up together on Nantucket, but Mandy is the only one that stayed.

Jill lives a glamorous life in Manhattan

Cover unavailable

37

Feeding You Lies: How to Unravel the Food Industry's Playbook and Reclaim Your Health

Vani Hari

4.3

Instant Wall Street Journal bestseller exposes the lies we've been told about our food--and takes readers on a journey to find healthy options.

NOW IN PAPERBACK: There's so much confusion about what to eat. Are you jumping from diet to diet and nothing seems to work? Are you sick of seeing contradictory health advice from experts? Just like the tobacco industry lied to us about the dangers of cigar

38

Your Restaurant Sucks!: Embrace The Suck. Unleash Your Restaurant. Become Outstanding.

Donald Burns

4.3

39

Waiter Rant: Thanks for the Tip-Confessions of a Cynical Waiter

The Waiter, Dan John Miller, et al

4.3

According to The Waiter, eighty percent of customers are nice people just looking for something to eat. The remaining twenty percent, however, are socially maladjusted psychopaths. WAITER RANT offers the server's unique point of view, replete with tales of customer stupidity, arrogant misbehavior, and unseen bits of human grace transpiring in the most unlikely places. Through outrageous stories, T

40

Pour Your Heart Into It

Highbridge

4.2

The success of Starbucks Coffee Company is one of the most remarkable business stories in decades. Since 1987, it has grown from a single retail store on Seattle's waterfront to a company with more than 1,000 stores nationwide and a new one opening somewhere every business day. According to Fortune magazine, Starbucks "has changed everything . . . from our tastes to our language to the face of Mai

Recommended by Jilliene Helman and Yaro Starak.

Jilliene Helman

I really, really like company biographies. They're just kind of the style of book that I've gotten really into. … I've read the Starbucks CEO book. [source]

Yaro Starak

There were also more traditional books or businesses I read about, like the biography of Starbucks. It’s really more the biography of the CEO, Howard Schultz, a lot about him growing the Starbucks brand. Since I spent a lot of time writing in Starbucks cafés, that was an important company to me. [source]

41

Restaurant OSHA Safety and Security: The Book of Restaurant Industry Standards & Best Practices

Howard Cannon and Shirley Ann Walters

4.2

No one heads to work at the restaurant down the street expecting to get maimed by a piece of kitchen equipment. No one takes family and friends out for dinner planning to spend the night in the emergency room waiting to hear whether the surgeon can reattach their child's fingers. And, no one goes to any restaurant expecting to Eat Lunch and Die!

Unfortunately, these things happen every day-many tim

42

Happy Pigs Taste Better: A Complete Guide to Organic and Humane Pasture-Based Pork Production

Alice Percy

4.2

What does it take to raise a happy pig? Armed with experience from running the largest organic hog operation in Maine, author Alice Percy is well equipped to answer this question.

Pigs are much closer to their cousin, the wild boar, than other domesticated animals. Ethically managing pigs requires an understanding of their natural mannerisms, including factors such as social grouping, mating, terri

43

Bourbon Empire: The Past and Future of America's Whiskey

Reid Mitenbuler

4.2

“Pulls aside the curtain of puffery to show . . . the business of liquor to be every bit as fascinating as the fictions in which the distillers love to swaddle themselves.” —Wayne Curtis, The Wall Street Journal

Walk into a well-stocked liquor store and you’ll see countless whiskey brands, each boasting an inspiring story of independence and heritage. And yet, more than 95% of the nation’s whiskey

44

The Zuni Cafe Cookbook: A Compendium of Recipes and Cooking Lessons from San Francisco's Beloved Restaurant

Judy Rodgers, Gerald Asher

4.2

In The Zuni Café Cookbook, a book customers have been anticipating for years, chef and owner Judy Rodgers provides recipes for Zuni's most well-known dishes, ranging from the Zuni Roast Chicken to the Espresso Granita. But Zuni's appeal goes beyond recipes. Harold McGee concludes, "What makes The Zuni Café Cookbook a real treasure is the voice of Zuni's Judy Rodgers," whose book "repeatedly sheds

45

Chocolate Wars: From Cadbury to Kraft - 200 Years of Sweet Success and Bitter Rivalry

Deborah Cadbury

4.2

The true story of the early chocolate pioneers by the award-winning writer, and direct descendant of the famous chocolate dynasty, Deborah Cadbury.

Recommended by Robert Jones.

Robert Jones

The Cadburys were Quakers and the original Cadbury—John—wanted to sell cocoa as an alternative to alcoholic drinks. [source]

46

Uncommon Grounds: The History of Coffee and How It Transformed Our World

Mark Pendergrast

4.2

Uncommon Grounds tells the story of coffee from its discovery on a hill in Abyssinia to its role in intrigue in the American colonies to its rise as a national consumer product in the twentieth century and its rediscovery with the advent of Starbucks at the end of the century. A panoramic epic, Uncommon Grounds uses coffee production, trade, and consumption as a window through which to view broad

Recommended by Tim Kaine.

Tim Kaine

My two favorite birthday gifts—Chiefs Super Bowl t-shirt from my parents and book about the history of coffee from Anne! https://t.co/Ub3D6ck1Vk [source]

47

The Case Against Sugar

Gary Taubes

4.2

From the best-selling author of Why We Get Fat, a groundbreaking, eye-opening expose that makes the convincing case that sugar is the tobacco of the new millennium: backed by powerful lobbies, entrenched in our lives, and making us very sick.

Among Americans, diabetes is more prevalent today than ever; obesity is at epidemic proportions; nearly 10% of children are thought to have nonalcoholic fatty

Recommended by Vinod Khosla.

Vinod Khosla

Co-Founder/Sun Microsystem

Not surprising but explicit description of the American psych on sugar and fat by the sugar industry. I would not have believed this much influence is possible. [source]

48

The Difference Between Us (Opposites Attract, #2)

Rachel Higginso

4.2

I'm cursed.

At least when it comes to finding Mr. Right.

I'm tired of men that only want one night stands or blind dates that are nothing but awkward and uncomfortable. I'm tired of avoiding inappropriate text messages and the constant disappointment of always meeting Mr. Wrong.

After all these years of dates that lead nowhere, I can admit that it's me. I'm the problem. I'm shy and picky and cursed.

49

Idiot's Guides: Starting and Running a Restaurant

Jody Pennette and Elizabeth Keyser

4.2

Around 90% of all new restaurants fail in the first year of operation. Many owners think they have the perfect idea, but they have terrible business plans, location, or other issues. Idiot's Guides: Starting and Running a Restaurant shows budding restauranteurs the basics of honing in on a concept to gathering start-up capital to building a solid business plan. You will also learn how to choose a

50

Straight Up: Real World Secrets to Running a Killer Bar

Ramona Pettygrave Shah

4.2

51

Froggy Eats Out

Jonathan London, Frank Remkiewicz

4.2

It's a special occasion, so Froggy and his parents are going to eat dinner in a fancy restaurant. When they arrive at the restaurant, Froggy's mom has a few rules for him: "Be neat, be quiet, and don't put your feet on the table." But it's so hard for Froggy to sit still. He fidgets, he squirms, and he sssllluuuurrrrpppps his spaghetti. Then he spots Frogilina across the restaurant-now it's imposs

52

Covert Cows and Chick-fil-A: How Faith, Cows, and Chicken Built an Iconic Brand

Steve Robinson

4.2

The longtime chief marketing officer for Chick-fil-A tells the inside story of how the company turned prevailing theories of fast-food marketing upside down and built one of the most successful and beloved brands in America.

During his thirty-four-year tenure at Chick-fil-A, Steve Robinson was integrally involved in the company’s steady then explosive growth from 184 stores and $100 million in annu

53

The Problem With Him (Opposites Attract, #3)

Rachel Higginso

4.2

I’m over men. I’m done with them.

Or at least the ones that work in my kitchen. Fine, one man in particular. Wyatt Shaw is cocky and condescending and so far out of his element that he doesn’t know which way is up. Or how to run his brand new kitchen all by himself.

That’s where I come in. Sous chef extraordinaire. Second in command. Bane of his existence. I am the reason Wyatt’s doing so well as

54

Every Twelve Seconds: Industrialized Slaughter and the Politics of Sight

Timothy Pachirat

4.2

A political scientist goes undercover in a modern industrial slaughterhouse for this twenty-first-century update of Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle

This is an account of industrialized killing from a participant’s point of view. The author, political scientist Timothy Pachirat, was employed undercover for five months in a Great Plains slaughterhouse where 2,500 cattle were killed per day—one every t

55

The Coincidence of Coconut Cake

Amy E. Reichert

4.2

You’ve Got Mail meets How to Eat a Cupcake in this delightful novel about a talented chef and the food critic who brings down her restaurant—whose chance meeting turns into a delectable romance of mistaken identities.

In downtown Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Lou works tirelessly to build her beloved yet struggling French restaurant, Luella’s, into a success. She cheerfully balances her demanding business

56

The Way We Eat: Why Our Food Choices Matter

Peter Singer, Jim Mason

4.2

A thought-provoking look at how what we eat profoundly affects all living things--and how we can make more ethical food choices

Five Principles for Making Conscientious Food Choices
1. Transparency: We have the right to know how our food is produced.
2. Fairness: Producing food should not impose costs on others.
3. Humanity: Inflicting unnecessary suffering on animals is wrong.
4. Social Responsibility

57

The Search for God and Guinness: A Biography of the Beer that Changed the World

Stephen Mansfield

4.2

The history of Guinness, one of the world s most famous brands, reveals the noble heights and generosity of a great family and an innovative business.

It began in Ireland in the mid 1700s. The water in Ireland, indeed throughout Europe, was famously undrinkable, and the gin and whiskey that took its place devastated civil society. It was a disease ridden, starvation-plagued, alcoholic age, and Chri

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58

Foodopoly: The Battle Over the Future of Food and Farming in America

Wenonah Hauter

4.2

Wenonah Hauter owns an organic family farm that provides healthy vegetables to hundreds of families as part of the growing nationwide Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) movement. Yet, as one of the nation's leading healthy–food advocates, Hauter believes that the local food movement is not enough to solve America's food crisis and the public health debacle it has created. In Foodopoly, she take

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59

Servsafe Managerbook with Online Exam Voucher

National Restaurant Association

4.2

THE definitive book for food safety training and certification. The new ServSafe (R) Manager Book with Online Exam Voucher, 7/e continues to be ideal for courses that cover the basics, condensed courses, continuing education, and even 1-2 day seminars. The updated book will help readers prepare for the most current ServSafe Food Protection Manager Certification Exam, and more importantly, it

60

Blood, Bones, and Butter: The Inadvertent Education of a Reluctant Chef

Gabrielle Hamilton

4.2

Before Gabrielle Hamilton opened her acclaimed New York restaurant Prune, she spent twenty hard-living years trying to find purpose and meaning in her life. Blood, Bones & Butter follows an unconventional journey through the many kitchens Hamilton has inhabited through the years: the rural kitchen of her childhood, where her adored mother stood over the six-burner with an oily wooden spoon in hand

61

Start Your Own Restaurant and More: Pizzeria, Cofeehouse, Deli, Bakery, Catering Business

Entrepreneur Press and Jacquelyn Lynn

4.2

Americans spend more than $600 billion a year eating out. Busy consumers don't have the time or inclination to cook - they want tasty, nutritious meals without dishes to wash. More and more singles, working parents and seniors are demanding greater convenience and are turning to restaurants to fill that need. There's plenty of room for more food businesses, but for a successful startup you need mo

62

Dine with Me

Layla Reyn

4.2

Life never tasted so good.

Miller Sykes’s meteoric rise to award-winning chef is the stuff of culinary dreams, but it’s all crashing down around him. He’s been given a diagnosis that could cost him something even more precious than his life: his sense of taste. Rather than risk the very thing that defines him, Miller embarks on a last tour of his favorite meals while he still can.

But there’s a ca

63

The New Livestock Farmer: The Business of Raising and Selling Ethical Meat

Rebecca Thistlethwaite

4.2

Including information on cattle, pigs, poultry, sheep, and goats, and exotics like bison, rabbits, elk, and deer

How can anyone from a backyard hobbyist to a large-scale rancher go about raising and selling ethically produced meats directly to consumers, restaurants, and butcher shops? With the rising consumer interest in grass-fed, pasture-raised, and antibiotic-free meats, how can farmers most ef

64

The Second-Worst Restaurant in France: A Paul Stuart Novel (2)

Alexander McCall Smith

4.2

In this delightful sequel to the best-selling comedic novel My Italian Bulldozer, Paul Stuart's travels take him to a French village, where the local restaurant's haute cuisine leaves a lot to be desired.

Renowned Scottish cookbook writer Paul Stuart is hard at work on his new book, The Philosophy of Food, but complicated domestic circumstances, and two clingy cats, are making that difficult.

So w

65

The Way We Eat Now: How the Food Revolution Has Transformed Our Lives, Our Bodies, and Our World

Bee Wilson

4.2

An award-winning food writer takes us on a global tour of what the world eats--and shows us how we can change it for the better

Food is one of life's great joys. So why has eating become such a source of anxiety and confusion?

Bee Wilson shows that in two generations the world has undergone a massive shift from traditional, limited diets to more globalized ways of eating, from bubble tea to quinoa,

66

Infused: Adventures In Tea

Henrietta Lovell

4.2

A NEW YORK TIMES BOOK OF THE YEAR

Henrietta Lovell is best known as 'The Rare Tea Lady'. She is on a mission to revolutionise the way we drink tea by replacing industrially produced teabags with the highest quality tea leaves. Her quest has seen her travel to the Shire Highlands of Malawi, across the foothills of the Himalayas, and to hidden gardens in the Wuyi-Shan to source the world's most extra

67

Pandora's Lunchbox: How Processed Food Took Over the American Meal

Melanie Warner

4.2

If a piece of individually wrapped cheese can retain its shape, color, and texture for years, what does it say about the food we eat and feed to our children?

Former New York Times business reporter and mother Melanie Warner decided to explore that question when she observed the phenomenon of the indestructible cheese. She began an investigative journey that took her to research labs, university fo

68

The Beginner's Guide to Cheese Making: Easy Recipes and Lessons to Make Your Own Handcrafted Cheeses

Elena R. Santogade

4.2

69

Good Food, Great Business: How to Take Your Artisan Food Idea from Concept to Marketplace

Susie Wyshak

4.1

For those ready to follow their foodie dreams (or at least start thinking about it), this book provides the tools to decide if creating a specialty food business is right for you. Whether the goal is selling a single product online or developing a range of gourmet foods for grocery chains, this handbook helps hopeful food entrepreneurs become experts in everything from concept and production to sa

70

Opening a Restaurant: From Inception to Reception

Geordy Murphy and Christina Boyes

4.1

This easy-to-read volume includes everything you need to open and run a successful restaurant:

Checklists to help you through every step of the project and keep you on track Sample manuals, business plans, contracts, and more Tips on defining your public and designing your space Shopping lists Job descriptions and hiring recommendations Advice from the industry's top experts Input from chefs and re

71

Real Food/Fake Food: Why You Don’t Know What You’re Eating and What You Can Do About It

Larry Olmsted

4.1

You’ve seen the headlines: Parmesan cheese made from wood pulp. Lobster rolls containing no lobster at all. Extra-virgin olive oil that isn’t. Fake foods are in our supermarkets, our restaurants, and our kitchen cabinets. Award-winning food journalist and travel writer Larry Olmsted exposes this pervasive and dangerous fraud perpetrated on unsuspecting Americans.

Real Food/Fake Food brings readers

72

QuickBooks for Restaurants a Bookkeeping and Accounting Guide: A Must-Have QuickBooks Guide for Restaurant Owners and Operators

Zachary Weiner

4.1

The Back Office Restaurant Accounting Guide You’ve Been Searching for!

Restaurants are notorious for their low margins and even lower success rates. It’s no surprise that restaurant owners and operators are usually stressed out. Many wonder if they can ever truly break the cycle of a runaway payroll or ever-increasing food and beverage costs. It’s no surprise that it’s sometimes easier to quit than

73

Service Included: Four-Star Secrets of an Eavesdropping Waiter

Phoebe Damrosch

4.1

While Phoebe Damrosch was figuring out what to do with her life, she supported herself by working as a waiter. Before long she was a captain at the New York City four-star restaurant Per Se, the culinary creation of master chef Thomas Keller.

Service Included is the story of her experiences there: her obsession with food, her love affair with a sommelier, and her observations of the highly competit

74

Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant

Anne Tyler

4.1

Through every family run memories which bind it together - despite everything. The Tulls of Baltimore are no exception. Abandoned by her salesman husband, Pearl is left to bring up her three children alone - Cody, a flawed devil, Ezra, a flawed saint, and Jenny, errant and passionate. Now as Pearl lies dying, stiffly encased in her pride and solitude, the past is unlocked and with it, secrets.

75

Taste of Home Copycat Restaurant Favorites: Restaurant Faves Made Easy at Home

Taste of Home

4.1

Amp up your dinner routine with more than 100 restaurant copycat dishes made at home! Skip the delivery, avoid the drive thru and keep that tip money in your wallet, because Taste of Home Copycat Restaurant Favorites brings America’s most popular menu items to your kitchen.

Inside Taste of Home Copycat Restaurant Favorites you’ll find more than 100 no-fuss recipes inspired by Olive Garden, Panera

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76

Servsafe and CPFM Study Guide 2019: Food Manager Certification

Miller Test Prep

4.1

Cover unavailable

77

Secret Formula: The Inside Story of How Coca-Cola Became the Best-Known Brand in the World

Frederick Allen

4.1

78

Get Jiro!

Anthony Bourdain

4.1

In a not-too-distant future L.A. where master chefs rule the town like crime lords and people literally kill for a seat at the best restaurants, a bloody culinary war is raging.

On one side, the Internationalists, who blend foods from all over the world into exotic delights. On the other, the "Vertical Farm," who prepare nothing but organic, vegetarian, macrobiotic dishes. Into this maelstrom steps

79

Restaurant Financial Management Basics

Raymond S. Schmidgall, David K. Hayes, et al.

4.1

A complete, practical guide to managing restaurant business finances
One of the keys to a successful restaurant business is strong financial management. This book equips readers with the tools needed to manage the finances of foodservice establishments effectively. Written by expert authors with extensive experience in the field, this accessible resource is filled with valuable information that ca

80

Worth the Risk (Pine Valley, #1)

Heather B. Moore

4.1

USA Today bestselling author Heather B. Moore welcomes you to Pine Valley:

WORTH THE RISK is Alicia and Jeff's Story

When Alicia moves back to Pine Valley to help her mom through a serious addiction, the last person she wants to see is her teenage crush, Jeff Finch, who destroyed their friendship in one single disastrous night. But Alicia is determined to not let anything about Jeff affect her, espe

81

So You Want to Start a Brewery?: The Lagunitas Story

Tony Magee

4.1

In 1993, Tony Magee, who had foundered at every job he’d ever had, decided to become the founder of a brewery. So You Want to Start a Brewery? is the thrilling first-person account of his gut-wrenching challenges and unexpected successes.

Based in Petaluma, California, the Lagunitas Brewing Company makes craft beer that is simple and flavorful and defies categorization. The same could be said for t

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82

How to Start, Run & Grow a Successful Restaurant Business: A Lean Startup Guide

Tim Hoffman

4.1

83

Starting Your Own Coffee Shop: Opening & Running a Successful Coffee Business

Jessica Simms

4.1

Coffee is one of the most popular beverages in the world, and especially in the United States, where over 80% of adults are regular java drinkers.

A coffee shop can be more than just a place to grab a quick cup. Many of them double as social hubs or performing spaces, making them important fixtures in their community.

Coffee shop ownership is demanding, but they can also give you both financial and

84

Sous Chef: 24 Hours on the Line

Michael Gibney

4.1

The back must slave to feed the belly. . . . In this urgent and unique book, chef Michael Gibney uses twenty-four hours to animate the intricate camaraderie and culinary choreography in an upscale New York restaurant kitchen. Here readers will find all the details, in rapid-fire succession, of what it takes to deliver an exceptional plate of food—the journey to excellence by way of exhaustion.

Told

85

Memoir of the Sunday Brunch

Julia Pandl

4.1

For Julia Pandl, the rite of passage into young-adulthood included mandatory service at her family's restaurant, where she watched as her father - who was also the chef - ruled with the strictness of a drill sergeant. At age twelve, Julie was initiated into the rite of the Sunday brunch, a weekly madhouse at her father's Milwaukee-based restaurant, where she and her eight older siblings before her

86

The Everything Restaurant Recipes Cookbook: Copycat recipes for Outback Steakhouse Bloomin' Onion, Long John Silver's Fish Tacos, TGI Friday's Dragonfly Chicken, Applebee's Baby Back Ribs, Chili's Grill Bar Molten Chocolate Cake...and hundreds more!

Becky Bopp

4.1

Everyone enjoys eating out at a favorite restaurant. But who likes waiting for a table or paying inflated prices for a meal? With more than 300 fast and easy recipes, now you can re-create your favorite restaurant dishes and "dine out" in the comfort of your own home! This cookbook includes family-sized portions of favorites like:

Chili's Grill & Bar Boneless Buffalo Wings
Applebee's Bourbon Street

87

Running a Food Truck for Dummies

Richard Myrick

4.1

Create a business plan to set yourself up for success Stay profitable by avoiding the most common operating mistakes Harness public relations and social media to build your following Grow from one truck to multiple trucks, restaurants, or a food truck franchise

88

Bulleit Proof: How I Took a 150-Year-Old Family Recipe and a Revolver, and Disrupted the Entire Liquor Industry One Bottle, One Sip, One Handshake at a Time

Tom Bulleit

4.1

The compelling story of how one man took a 150-year-old family recipe and disrupted the entire liquor industry one sip, one bottle, one handshake at a time

Tom Bulleit stood on a stage before a thousand people inside a tent the size of a big-top. It was both his thirtieth wedding anniversary and his birthday. But there was another thing to celebrate: the dedication of the new Bulleit Distillery in

89

Russ & Daughters: The House That Herring Built

Mark Russ Federman

4.1

The former owner/proprietor of the beloved appetizing store on Manhattan’s Lower East Side tells the delightful, mouthwatering story of an immigrant family’s journey from a pushcart in 1907 to “New York’s most hallowed shrine to the miracle of caviar, smoked salmon, ethereal herring, and silken chopped liver” (The New York Times Magazine).

When Joel Russ started peddling herring from a barrel short

90

Bakery Business Startup: How to Start, Run & Grow a Trendy Bakery Business

Jennifer Holmes

4.0

91

Lost Restaurants of Baltimore

Suzanne Loudermilk and Kit Waskom Pollard

4.0

Baltimore's unforgettable dining scene of the past is re-visited here in thirty-five now shuttered restaurants that made their mark on this city.

Haussner's artwork. Coffey salad at the Pimlico Hotel. Finger bowls at Hutzler's Colonial Tea Room. The bell outside the door at Martick's Restaurant Francais. Details like these made Baltimore's dining scene so unforgettable. Explore the stories behind t

92

Waiting: The True Confessions of a Waitress

Debra Ginsberg

4.0

A veteran waitress dishes up a spicy and robust account of life as it really exists behind kitchen doors.

Part memoir, part social commentary, part guide to how to behave when dining out, Debra Ginsberg's book takes readers on her twentyyear journey as a waitress at a soap-operatic Italian restaurant, an exclusive five-star dining club, the dingiest of diners, and more. While chronicling her evolut

93

Walt Disney World Dining Guide 2020

Andrea McGann Keech and Bob McLain

4.0

94

Hotbox: Inside Catering, the Food World's Riskiest Business

Matt Lee

4.0

Matt Lee and Ted Lee take on the competitive, wild world of high-end catering, exposing the secrets of a food business few home cooks or restaurant chefs ever experience.

Hotbox reveals the real-life drama behind cavernous event spaces and soaring white tents, where cooking conditions have more in common with a mobile army hospital than a restaurant. Known for their modern take on Southern cooking,

95

Our Harlem: Seven Days of Cooking, Music and Soul at the Red Rooster

Marcus Samuelsson

4.0

Make an audio pilgrimage to Harlem with Ethiopian and Swedish chef, TV personality. and restaurateur Marcus Samuelsson, and get to know the food, history, music, and. . .most importantly . . .the people of an iconic neighborhood that Marcus knows as his home and the home of his Red Rooster restaurant.

Special guests join Marcus each day of the week to cook, sip cocktails and make their Harlem our H

96

Antique Bakery, Vol. 1

Fumi Yoshinaga

4.0

Ono has come a long way since the agonizing day in high school when he confessed his love to handsome Tachibana. Now, some 14 years later Ono, a world-class pastry chef and outed playboy has it all. No man can resist Ono's charms (or his co

97

Umami: Unlocking the Secrets of the Fifth Taste

Ole Mouritsen

4.0

In the West, we have identified only four basic tastes--sour, sweet, salty, and bitter--that, through skillful combination and technique, create delicious foods. Yet in many parts of East Asia over the past century, an additional flavor has entered the culinary lexicon: umami, a fifth taste impression that is savory, complex, and wholly distinct.

Combining culinary history with recent research into

98

Coffeeland: One Man's Dark Empire and the Making of Our Favorite Drug

Augustine Sedgewick

4.0

The epic story of the rise of coffee in the Americas, and how it connected and divided the modern world

Coffee is an indispensable part of daily life for billions of people around the world--one of the most valuable commodities in the history of the global economy, the leading source of the world's most popular drug, and perhaps the most widespread word on the planet. Augustine Sedgewick's Coffeela

99

The Truffle Underground: A Tale of Mystery, Mayhem, and Manipulation in the Shadowy Market of the World's Most Expensive Fungus

Ryan Jacobs

4.0

Beneath the gloss of star chefs and crystal-laden tables, the truffle supply chain is touched by theft, secrecy, sabotage, and fraud. Farmers patrol their fields with rifles and fear losing trade secrets to spies. Hunters plant poisoned meatballs to eliminate rival truffle-hunting dogs. Naive buyers and even knowledgeable experts are duped by liars and counterfeits.

This exposé documents the dark,

100

Coffee: A Comprehensive Guide to the Bean, the Beverage, and the Industry

Robert W. Thurston, Jonathan Morris, et al

4.0

Coffee: A Comprehensive Guide to the Bean, the Beverage, and the Industry offers a definitive guide to the many rich dimensions of the bean and the beverage around the world. Leading experts from business and academia consider coffee's history, global spread, cultivation, preparation, marketing, and the environmental and social issues surrounding it today. They discuss, for example, the impact of