Name: Filipa Carvalho's review of Chef's Kiss by Jarrett Melendez
Item: Chef's Kiss
Rating: 3.5
Author: Filipa Carvalho

Jarrett Melendez

Watch things start to really heat up in the kitchen in this sweet, queer, new adult graphic novel! Now that college is over, English graduate Ben Cook is on the job hunt looking for something…anything…related to his passion for reading and writing. But interview after interview, hiring committee after hiring committee, Ben soon learns getting the dream job won’t be as easy as he thought. Proofreading? Journalism? Copywriting? Not enough experience. It turns out he doesn’t even have enough experience to be a garbage collector! But when Ben stumbles upon a “Now Hiring—No Experience Necessary” sign outside a restaurant, he jumps at the chance to land his first job. Plus, he can keep looking for a writing job in the meantime. He’s actually not so bad in the kitchen, but he will have to pass a series of cooking tests to prove he’s got the culinary skills to stay on full-time. But it’s only temporary…right? When Ben begins developing a crush on Liam, one of the other super dreamy chefs at the restaurant, and when he starts ditching his old college friends and his old writing job plans, his career path starts to become much less clear.

Chef's Kiss

Cloudface

Filipa Carvalho

It's cute. Don't think I have much more to say about it. I'm glad I read it, because it has been on my TBR for way to long. The art style is fun, the characters are lovable. It's all a bit exaggerated, but relatable. A cute, fun, quick read.

Krystyna 

This was a cute graphic novel. I’d recommend it for fans of Heartstopper and Bloom.

Marsha Evelyn

This graphic novel is cute yet entertaining. What I love about this book is... this book can give motivation to someone who just finished college to don't give up if you have a dream to know what's worth to begin with yourself; looking for job that suitable to your own passion to make you happy.

Sofia Arcângelo 

As someone that loves to cook I just loved this book, and the story is so cute.

Marloes

7.71 on CAWPILE

This graphic novel was everything I could hope for. A queer story about what it's like to navigate the world right after college. Not being sure what you want to do with your life and ending up on a path that you didn't see coming. I adored everything about this book.

riven

One of the CUTEST graphic novels i’ve read in a very long time. Fast paced, real, humorous. Everything in my personal opinion was perfect. Thank you so much for giving me the opportunity to read this before it’s release day. I cannot wait to get my hands on a physical copy and reread and cherish it!

Latitude Tamarind

Chef’s Kiss is a little graphic novel about roommates in a very classic comic book style. There are speech bubbles and clean lines throughout the book. Now, I don’t know much about comic books, but this looks like a superhero book from my dad’s collection. It’s not a style for me! It’s also very old-style comic book in the fact that it censors all swears? And this book is meant to be adult or at least new adult, so it doesn’t make sense why swears would be censored. The main character also only reads books that are available in the public domain, or so old that they aren’t copyrightable, which sure is weird! (His favorite books are 1984, Brave New World, and another that I forget. Come on, dude! Haven’t you heard of the Hunger Games? There are people using laptops and tablets in this book so I know it’s not set in the 90s!) Despite this, there is a vibrant cast of characters and the portrayal of working in a kitchen is both incredibly idealized and exactly right. Honestly? This is like a comic-book adaption of a gay romance light novel, and it’s kind of exactly right. Five stars. You didn’t see that one coming, did you? Neither did I.

Nikki

i super love the art style. it was definitely the selling point. another thing i loved is the raw depiction of how it's like to be a degree holder but not able to use it, especially for newly graduates.

the next best thing is the two friend groups - ben's college friends and his colleagues from the restaurant. the romance, on the other hand, i felt was underdeveloped. which was why i didn't enjoy the ending.

i would recommend this graphic novel to people who enjoy food and making food.

ARC provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I was so invested in the whole story. Not only the characters are extremely relatable, but the whole story line was really interesting as well. 
This is the perfect example that even though you major in something it doesn't mean you have to pursue it for the rest of your life. What's important is to do what makes you happy and if you're an English major who wants to be a chef and feel the happiest when working in the kitchen, then do it!
Ben's friends were also so nice. The whole group's energy was incredible. And the diversity in the book was really appreciated.
The pig was weird for a moment but somehow it just seemed to fit the energy of the novel the more I read it. The Chef could've been a better person but as someone who worked in a restaurant before, I know how some things go and therefore I can't really judge him for such attitudes.

Thanks to NetGalley, Oni Press, and Jarret Melendez for the opportunity to read this graphic novel. I was given the opportunity to receive an advance copy for this book in exchange of sharing my honest opinion about it.

A fine, fluffy graphic novel. For a story that ticked off so many of my boxes (queer, coming-of-age, food and cooking, cute animals, a slightly unbelievable plot device) it ended up being awfully lukewarm. 

Ben's post-college woes should be relatable, but end up being so generic that it's hard to care. His internal crush is more of a factor than the actual romance between them. The friendships feel very shallow, and their conflicts even more so. The grounded art style feels at odds with the goofy plot contrivances.

Most of my problems with it come down to things not feeling fleshed out enough. Which to be fair, is a hard problem to solve when full-color GCs are heckin' expensive to produce.

It really is an okay read, just not what I was hoping for.

ash (smokedshelves)

thank you to oni press and netgalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

this was such a quick and cute read. i loved the art style for this graphic novel so much! i genuinely just wish it was a little bit longer so that we could see more of ben and liam’s relationship develop and just get to see more of the day to day of the restaurant. i also wish we had a bit more resolution between ben and his parents. but overall, i really enjoyed this little wacky, slice of life graphic novel, with an adorable friend-group and fun concept.

side note, still not totally sure why there’s a resides pig in a commercial kitchen but… i’ll let this one slide since he was cute.

Aadi Rao

This was a quick read for me, one that would love to read to get out of the slump. I loved the graphics in the novel and the plot was interesting. 
However, I could not connect with the characters and felt like they could use more descriptions and have meaningful interactions. 
The main character does pine after the love interest but their interactions were too limited to end up the way they did.
Overall, the plot could use a little more brushing up but I would definitely recommend this if you're looking for a light, fluff read.

Casper

Disclaimer: I received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. 

Full discussion at Casper in the Rye

Welp, this one's going to be a crowdpleaser! Let's see, we have:
• An adorable MC who gets all uwu shy boi around his crush
• Artistic renderings of food that will have you starving
• A diverse cast of wonderful, supportive friends
• Realistic plot of a new adult struggling to find writing work with his degree
• A taste-testing pig who determines our MC's fate

Go into this one with the mentality that you're reading a lighthearted lgbt romance about a young twenty-something struggling to find his footing in life and you're sure to enjoy it. The artwork and font is crisp and legible throughout. There's enough humor infused into the story to keep reader engaged.

The only thing I was hoping for was a little more conflict. Being a new graduate and not being able to find work that agrees with your major is beyond stressful and difficult. It felt like Ben had a lot of things falling into his lap, and while there was minor conflict with his parents and friend group, his parents were always willing to financially support him and even use their connections to find him great opportunities. That's something that so many young adults don't have at their fingertips and I think it takes away a bit of the relatability. I'm also not sure if the ending is what's best for our MC, but HFN will hit just right for romance fans.

Other than that, highly recommended to readers who are looking for lgbt characters, food themes, and a lighthearted read that is ultimately romance lite.

Lucía RG

I was kindly sent this in exchange for an honest review via Netgalley
Thank you so much to the publisher for sending me a copy of this! I was super excited to read this because it looked amazing (both the artwork and the synopsis). I enjoy reading this type of graphic novel so much! That said, and regarding the content of the story, this book was super fun to read! I saw myself reflected in the main character so much; an english degree and barely any experience in the real world. I am glad it ended up working for him!!
The characters were super likable and the pig was the best! The illustrations looked amazing and the food looked so delicious.

Gabriel Noel 

ARC given by NetGalley for Honest Review
[3.5 stars rounded up]

"Chef's Kiss" was lots of fun to read! Ben finds his calling at a restaurant while looking for writing jobs, thus leading him on a whimsical journey of pleasing the head chef's pet pig with his culinary creations! The friendships in this were sweet and relatable, and the budding romance (while a little abrupt and cliche) was cute and sweet.

(Side note: Vlad the Inhaler bong joke made me snort soda through my nose, so kudos on that.)

The art is clean and vibrant, very modern graphic novel in it's style. Overall a fun read!

Kirsty

Thank you so much to NetGalley for allowing me to read the ARC of this. 

This was a cute little LGBT romance story. The description of the food made me hungry, the art style was beautiful and they reminded me a little bit Nick + Charlie from the Heartstopper graphic novels. 

There were parts of this story that were a bit silly but other than that it was good!

Cloudface &
Chef's Kiss by Jarrett Melendez

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