Beginning at page 144 of The Chicago Way, Michael Harvey’s debut mystery (he also of “Cold Case Files” fame) are an extensive set of sociology fieldwork notes and a review of the legendary Da Beef sandwich “dipped or not, with hot, sweet, or both.”
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Christopher Reich’s latest, The Palace, drops the names of storied beaneries L’Arpege and La Tour d’Argent in Paris, and closes with a scene outside Bibendum in London.
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Black, White, and The Grey: The Story of an Unexpected Friendship and a Beloved Restaurant
https://www.amazon.com/Black-White-Grey-Unexpected-Friendship-ebook/dp/B07R8QWV8J
Really enjoyed it.
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The next book in Michael Harvey’s Chicago-centered series, The Fifth Floor, gets off to a fast start at page 9 with nearly four pages devoted to lunch at the venerable Billy Goat Tavern, the real life setting for the Dan Aykroyd/John Belushi cheeborger skit.
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Sounds like an interesting book, thanks.
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While surfing we came across recent high praise for Michelle Gallen’s Big Girl Small Town. The protagonist works in a Northern Ireland chip shop, and much of the story so far is told through her work shifts at A Salt and Battered Traditional Fast Food Establishment.
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"I walked up two flights alone and surfaced in a dining room as large as it empty. A burst of sizzle and flame flared to my left. Two small Greek men danced around a table clapping their hands and crying ‘Oopah’ while a third worked on containing the small inferno he’d created. In the midst of it all, Mayor John J. Wilson sat and scowled. The dish was called saganaki, essentially a piece of cheese doused in booze and set on fire. Wilson had a forkful halfway to his mouth as I approached. The mayor waved me to an empty chair.
"‘You like this shit, Kelly?’
“I shrugged. ‘It’s fried cheese. What’s not to like?’”
Michael Harvey, The Third Rail, page 41.
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Thanks so much for recommending this series. I’ve read them all and have really enjoyed them.
This one is nonfiction, but I thought I’d post about it here anyway (bad Librarian!). It’s:
American Advertising Cookbooks: How Corporations Taught Us to Love Bananas, Spam, and Jello.
Since I grew up in the 50s, it brought back lots of memories. I hadn’t realized how the American diet was influenced so much by corporations - fun read.
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Glad you found it worth the time. We noted that after the Greektown scene, the author later dropped a reference to the Irish pub he owns – Hidden Shamrock sort of near Wrigley Field.
We know that James Ellroy is not everyone’s cup of tea. We just picked up his newest, Widespread Panic, that starts in Beverly Hills at Nate & Al’s Deli where a reuben doesn’t sit well with the protagonist’s system, one apparently distorted from a life as rogue cop, sleazoid private eye, etc. Well, that got our attention, and skimming forward, we found another chapter set at Ollie Hammond’s All-Nite Steakhouse that apparently was another real life LA fixture.
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I’m surprised no one has mentioned the Nero Wolfe mystery series. I’ve seen the shows but haven’t read the books, yet. Excellent stories – the shows take place in Rome, but the original venue of the books is NYC.
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This is nonfiction / biography, but I just finished most of Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner. I stopped reading it because it’s very sad, but there are lots of descriptions of wonderful-sounding Korean food.
I’m actually going to my first H Mart (San Francisco) on Friday - pretty excited!
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You’re going to have fun!
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Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel.
It’s described as magical realism. There’s a Mexican recipe at the start of every chapter. The protagonist, Tita, transfers her feelings to her cooking, causing diners to experience and express the mood or emotion she had when cooking the dish.
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Love me some Harry Bosch. He’s definitely into cool L.A. restaurants but would grimace if you called him a foodie.
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The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake - a strange book, yet oddly compelling and memorable.
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We just whizzed through the 7th (and last) season of Bosch on Netflix. Sorry that it’s over.
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