Name: Garlic and Sapphires
ISBN: 9780143036616

Ruth Reichl

The editor-in-chief of "Gourmet" recounts her visits to some of the world's most acclaimed restaurants, both as herself and as an anonymous diner in disguise, to offer insight into the differences in her dining experiences.

The Secret Life of a Critic in Disguise

Garlic and Sapphires

Laura Mauler

I tried to stretch this book out as long as possible. I would only read it in the perfect context, which for me was the 4 o'clock sunshine of our living room with my feet propped on the coffee table and a mug of something tasty at my side. Cloudy day? No clean mugs? Wait for tomorrow, and maybe it would deserve a little bit of this book.

This arrangement couldn't be sustained. This morning I woke up depressed and unhappy, and instantly I knew that this book was what the day needed if it was to be salvaged. The talk of food, of change, the memories of New York - all of it felt like the author was a very close friend taking me out for lunch in order to lift my spirits. And it worked.

Patricia Nelson

Loved this book! I can see why she was such a successful food critic because her descriptions of the food she tried and loved had me looking up the restaurant or chef to see if they were still open in NYC. In addition to getting a wonderful insiders view of the life of a food critic in NYC, she also successfully described how it can be hard to slip into and out of disguises without it affecting you and learning, perhaps, more about yourself. I loved the way she explained the ties many of us have with food and our heritage or our history. I found myself hearing my dad talk about how to pick a good piece of meat at the store by looking at the 'marbling'. The trip through Brooklyn (of the 1990's) and the specialty shops had me wishing I could have tagged along. If the author set out to bring the reader into the life of a food critic and share all the pressures and craziness and wonderful food experienced, she succeeded!

Lindsey B

I've had this book on my to-read list for a while but just picked it up recently. I enjoyed Reichl's anecdotes and personal style of writing. It was a great insight into the life of a restaurant critic.

Sonja H

Magdalene Lim

I love this book! I rate books according to how willing I am to read them:

1 star: Read only when I have absolutely nothing else to read and my life depends on it
2 stars: Read it when I have pockets of time but the book takes forever to complete
3: Read it only when I am travelling on the bus/train and when I am waiting 
4: Read it in my free time
5: Willing to stay up late and lose track of time when reading ("What?!! It's 1.20am on a school night and I haven't gone to sleep yet?")

I am not a foodie and have not tried the amazing things Reichl speaks of. The closest meal I have had to those she reviews is at a sushi bar where fresh wasabi was grated and each sushi was masterfully made before me. "Ordinary sushi bars do not use fresh wasabi." I still rather vividly remember that meal, though with less detail than I would like. 

Quoting Reichl, "You shouldn't be writing reviews for the people who dine in fancy restaurants, but for all the ones who wish they could... What she's really saying is that we've been selling restaurants and that isn't our business. We should be selling newspapers." That sets the tone for the rest of the book. Even if you do not know foie gras from pate (they look the same to me), black truffle from white truffle or have not dined at a fine dining establishment, you would still enjoy this book. Or at least I did and hope you would. Reichl's descriptions send my mind into a lustful frenzy. On soba - "The noodles quivered as if they were alive, and leapt into my mouth where they vibrated as if playing inaudible music." Her descriptions are so poetic that reading them alone make me feel as though I were experiencing those foods and sensations myself. Operative words: "as though". Ahhh.

Bonus: in addition to reading about food from someone who loves it and knows much about it, readers get to see the different characters Reichl morphs into when she does not want restaurants to recognise her, and give her the "over the top" service reserved for famed restaurant critics. Before this, my only concept of a restaurant critic was Ratatouille's Anton Ego. That's how exposed I am to this world of food and reviews. 

And yet, I enjoyed the book so much. In fact, I am not sure whether I would enjoy the food as much as I did reading Reichl describe it. That, says a lot. :]

My only warning: do not read when hungry.

When Reichl took over from the formidable and aloof Bryan Miller as the New York Times' restaurant reviewer, she promised to shake things up. And so she did. Gone were the days when only posh restaurants with European chefs were reviewed. Reichl, with a highly developed knowledge and love of Asian cuisine from her years as a West Coast food critic, began to review the small simple establishments that abound in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens. Many loved it, the Establishment hated it, but her influence was significant. She brought a fresh writing style to her reviews and adopted a radical way of getting them. Amassing a wardrobe of wigs and costumes, she deliberately disguised herself so that she would not receive special treatment. As a result, she had a totally different dining experience as say, Miriam the Jewish mother than she did as Ruth Reichl the reviewer, and she wasn't afraid to write about it. The resulting reviews were hilarious and sobering, full of fascinating insights and delicious gossip. Garlic and Sapphires is a wildly entertaining chronicle of Reichl's New York Times years.

Garlic and Sapphires The Secret Life of a Critic in Disguise

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