My Place at the Table: A Recipe for a Delicious Life in Paris
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- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-05-16 03:31:34
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Alexander Lobrano
- ISBN：1328588831
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
Reviews
Janilyn Kocher
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Lobrano writes an amusing memoir about his love of food， travel， and writing。 He discusses living in Paris and working as a writer。 The many faces and places of Paris are revealed。 I am not a fan of French cuisine。 I read the book more for the cultural part and his observations of the people he encounters。 My personal favorite is his cantankerous concierge whom he had to bribe to be nice to him， which failed。 I think readers will enjoy his discussion of food， his own personal history， and the ma Lobrano writes an amusing memoir about his love of food， travel， and writing。 He discusses living in Paris and working as a writer。 The many faces and places of Paris are revealed。 I am not a fan of French cuisine。 I read the book more for the cultural part and his observations of the people he encounters。 My personal favorite is his cantankerous concierge whom he had to bribe to be nice to him， which failed。 I think readers will enjoy his discussion of food， his own personal history， and the many flavors from the City of Lights。 Thanks To Houghton Mifflin Harcourt and NetGalley for the early read。 。。。more
Michelle W。 - Sweaters & Stilettos
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Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for this memoir。 I specifically requested this book because of COVID; that is， I hoped it would be a lovely escape that would， if not mimic， at least give me a bit of the pleasure of travel back。 It did and I would recommend it for that reason alone in these continually gloomy times。COVID aside， this was a lovely little look into the life of someone who has successfully forged their own path。 The novel is an easy read。 Each chapter is a bite-sized look Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for this memoir。 I specifically requested this book because of COVID; that is， I hoped it would be a lovely escape that would， if not mimic， at least give me a bit of the pleasure of travel back。 It did and I would recommend it for that reason alone in these continually gloomy times。COVID aside， this was a lovely little look into the life of someone who has successfully forged their own path。 The novel is an easy read。 Each chapter is a bite-sized look at a particular memory。 The writing is fluid and descriptive while resting at the border of flowery。 I enjoyed the easy pace， but it didn't provoke or demand。 The impression is that the author wrote this as much for himself as for the reader。 A position that commands respect from this particular reader for not coming across as arrogant or self-congratulatory。 The addition of years would have helped greatly， though。 It was difficult trying to figure out when things were occurring; I assumed the chapters followed a forward progression。 The last few chapters deviate from this and include vague references to the year。 A strange， but welcome departure。Unlike most people， I am not in love with Paris。 Paris is a place I neither like nor dislike; I've only been once many years ago。 It's always been like the Popular Kids to me。 Full of fashionable， but aloof people， who if they don't consciously consider themselves above you， their sub-conscious projects this through their mannerisms etc。 The author does not agree。 He falls in love with Paris early on in his life and moves there at the first opportunity。 Seeing it through his eyes is a new look at a place。 I don't think I'd go straight to "welcoming"， but Mr。 Lobrano gives the impression of an easy transition where he can finally become himself。 This is always a good story for me。 I love a happy ending and I may be a bit more enamored of Paris （and France as a whole） than I was before。The narrative is also peppered with interesting people， who he describes so well I almost feel like I've met them。 （It does not hurt that I can also google many of these famous names。） Yet， it's not the celebrities that I most enjoyed， but the chefs。 He describes the chefs and their restaurants in detail。 And then， of course， he describes the food。 Don't read while you're hungry。 Some of the meals sound so good my mouth was watering。 The recipes are delightful and described in full-length glory。 It’s easy to imagine yourself sitting in these cafes with a glass of wine enjoying the simple company of a good meal。 It’s escapism; pure and simple。 I thoroughly enjoyed it。 Now， if only I could visit Paris sometime soon; it’s definitely worth a new trip based on this memoir alone。 。。。more
Mister Moose
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A worldly elegant and very well written book that recounts a fascinating life with honesty， wit and style。
Prathap
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Paris-based food writer Alexander Lobrano's memoir is a delightful romp through the annals of food journalism as it was conducted in the 80s and 90s。 Admittedly， food journalism has undergone drastic transformation in the past decade since the advent of internet that completely transformed the landscape once populated by expert restaurant critics with anyone with access to internet。 Which is perhaps what makes the book so special because Lobrano trains a whimsical lens into his eventful career t Paris-based food writer Alexander Lobrano's memoir is a delightful romp through the annals of food journalism as it was conducted in the 80s and 90s。 Admittedly， food journalism has undergone drastic transformation in the past decade since the advent of internet that completely transformed the landscape once populated by expert restaurant critics with anyone with access to internet。 Which is perhaps what makes the book so special because Lobrano trains a whimsical lens into his eventful career that enabled him to rub shoulders with legends of French gastronomy while living in Paris and present it to his American readers through numerous feature stories and profiles。 （something unthinkable for a freelance food journalist to achieve in present day Paris） Lobrano landed a fashion magazine editor job in Paris in the mid 80s but his heart was always in food journalism。 Years later， he quit his job and became a freelance writer based in Paris and continued an eventful career by reporting on France's cuisine， writing several guidebooks， holding the position of the Paris editor of the prestigious Gourmet magazine and winning （including James Beard） awards。 A truly eventful career， filled with delectable details。 True to what one would expect from a food journalist's memoir， the book's pages are filled with meal after meal of deliciousness Lobrano got to enjoy as he navigated his career in Paris。 Excellent read。ps: received an arc with thanks from Netgalley and the publishers in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
Ruth
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Some of us realize at a young age that we are different from other kids。 If we were lucky， our families embraced this difference instead of punishing us for not being the same。 The author of this book knew he was different but wasn't given any support， only ridicule and derision， but he managed to "escape" and follow his dream of living in Paris。 Oh， what discoveries he made。 We are the lucky ones to get to read about the delicious meals he tasted and the people he met while building a career as Some of us realize at a young age that we are different from other kids。 If we were lucky， our families embraced this difference instead of punishing us for not being the same。 The author of this book knew he was different but wasn't given any support， only ridicule and derision， but he managed to "escape" and follow his dream of living in Paris。 Oh， what discoveries he made。 We are the lucky ones to get to read about the delicious meals he tasted and the people he met while building a career as a food writer。 If you are a fan of this genre， pick up this book。 If you have funds for traveling， there's a solid list of recommendations at the end of it on where to spend your money。 I think this book might be a sleeper hit--at least it should be to those that love good food and well done food reviews。 。。。more
（a）lyss（a）
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I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review。This is a hard book to rate and came to around 3。5 stars for me。This is a memoir about Lobrano's life， not just his time in Paris。 We hear about his childhood and a couple trips home as well as his struggle to become a culinary writer。 There's a bit of jumping around so it's not a totally linear memoir。 There's also references to sexual assault that are brought up， reflected on for maybe a page， then never discussed a I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review。This is a hard book to rate and came to around 3。5 stars for me。This is a memoir about Lobrano's life， not just his time in Paris。 We hear about his childhood and a couple trips home as well as his struggle to become a culinary writer。 There's a bit of jumping around so it's not a totally linear memoir。 There's also references to sexual assault that are brought up， reflected on for maybe a page， then never discussed again。 This is true of a few anecdotes and I guess I was expecting more reflection or reactions to some of the stories included in this book。 That being said it was an interesting read that I think captures a point of time in Paris。 Eating delicious Parisian food is something some of us dream of and living vicariously through this book is nice。 I was surprised that the last chapter of this book is a list of recommended restaurants， which I'm sure are impacted by COVID-19 and may not remain very relevant。 。。。more
Sharon Starr
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Absolutely loved it！！ The cover and description caught my eye by chance， and while I'm no gourmand， it sounded like it could be a interesting read。 Quite the understatement， as I savored my favorite book of the year！ Though I love good food and wine， I don't have a particularly educated palate。 And sadly， I've never been to Paris， though I hope to remedy that one day。 The reading of this book felt like a little intimate trip to Paris， with a very experienced guide， and I adored absolutely every Absolutely loved it！！ The cover and description caught my eye by chance， and while I'm no gourmand， it sounded like it could be a interesting read。 Quite the understatement， as I savored my favorite book of the year！ Though I love good food and wine， I don't have a particularly educated palate。 And sadly， I've never been to Paris， though I hope to remedy that one day。 The reading of this book felt like a little intimate trip to Paris， with a very experienced guide， and I adored absolutely every page。I confess to a certain envious fascination with people that are born doing exactly what they love doing as adults。 In his early years， Alexander Lobrano was intrigued by interesting foods， and avidly kept a very descriptive diary。 This was despite both practices being strongly discouraged by the adults in his life。 His perseverance prepared him for his place as a critic in a wide range of dining establishments。 His charm and passion for his work flow right onto these pages， and I highly recommend that you take advantage of sharing these experiences with him。 Alec is even generous enough to share his favorite restaurants with you as the perfect close to the story。 Well done！ 。。。more
Erin Loranger
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Thank you to Houghton Mifflin Harcourt and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advance copy of this book so that I may provide an honest review。The description of this book intrigued me immediately and was a welcome escape after many months of cancelled trips and none on the horizon。 Further delighting me was the fact that the author， Alexander Lobrano， grew up in the town in which I currently live and his descriptions of our Connecticut shore town were vivid and filled me with nostalgia。 I Thank you to Houghton Mifflin Harcourt and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advance copy of this book so that I may provide an honest review。The description of this book intrigued me immediately and was a welcome escape after many months of cancelled trips and none on the horizon。 Further delighting me was the fact that the author， Alexander Lobrano， grew up in the town in which I currently live and his descriptions of our Connecticut shore town were vivid and filled me with nostalgia。 I love reading food and travel writing and this was the very best of both genres。 Lobrano also interspersed poignant， introspective and sometimes rather raw personal insights and stories which added a deeper level to his story telling。 I turned each page of this book with anticipation of what was on the next and was very sad when it came to an end。 This is a fantastic read and I am looking forward to recommending it far and wide when it is published。 。。。more
Randal White
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A thoroughly enjoyable book。 I found myself transported to Paris （and other parts of France）， sitting next to the author as we enjoyed meal after meal of great French cooking。 His descriptions are detailed， effusive， and luscious。 Of the food， the service， and of the surroundings。 A world that I will never have the chance to experience first-hand， I am so thankful to have had the opportunity to live vicariously through him！In addition， I really enjoyed the way that Lobrano laid bare his soul。 Fr A thoroughly enjoyable book。 I found myself transported to Paris （and other parts of France）， sitting next to the author as we enjoyed meal after meal of great French cooking。 His descriptions are detailed， effusive， and luscious。 Of the food， the service， and of the surroundings。 A world that I will never have the chance to experience first-hand， I am so thankful to have had the opportunity to live vicariously through him！In addition， I really enjoyed the way that Lobrano laid bare his soul。 From his childhood through the current day。 It took an unbelievable amount of courage to share all that he did。 I don't want to give any spoilers， but suffice it to say that it's amazing， given the childhood experiences he had， that he became such a well adjusted person。 And the people he met！ From a poor dairy farmer to Princess Caroline， to immigrant cooks to fashion and food moguls。 And he dishes a little on all of them！ How fun！If I had a chance to converse with the author， I would tell him that some of us find our way in life through family， some through our work， and he through food。 What a great path to take！ Bravo！ Highly recommend！ 。。。more
Donna Boyd
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