Are You Really Going to Eat That?

by Robb Walsh

A two-time James Beard award winner recounts his travels throughout America and to such parts of the world as Thailand, Nova Scotia, and Mexico, presenting a collection of essays and recipes that offer insight into the cultures behind various multicultural cuisines. 35,000 first printing.

Genres: Food, Nonfiction, Cooking, Travel, Foodie, Food Writing, Memoir

268 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2003

About the author

Robb Walsh is the author of four previous Texas cookbooks, including The Tex-Mex Cookbook. He is also the food critic for the Houston Press.

Reviews

[Karen Deyle · Rating 3 out of 5]

So many writers are just that, culinary thrill seekers. Like Andrew Zimmern, Anthony Bourdain, ...oh look - I ate Durian. Ick. Putrid fish in Russia.

Walsh starts with the same premise, but digs deeper, unearthing the meaning behind the food, and the context in community. I particularly liked a chapter about eating the food of a prison cook, a man who learned to cook in prison, who is a frequent writer to culinary magazines, but who will never own a restaurant on the outside.

The roots of food and what it means to us. How it becomes more than sustinance. Are You Really Going to Eat That?: Reflections of a Culinary Thrill Seeker

[Jessica Haider · Rating 4 out of 5]

I saw this book for sale at Building 19 (where they often have lots of good books cheap!) and couldn't resist picking it up. Afterall, it isn't often that I meet a food-related book that I don't enjoy. This collection of columns were mostly previously published in newspapers and journals. The essays focus on food experiences Walsh had while travelling. At each of the places he went he tried to ingest something that was unique to that locale...from the hottest of hot peppers, to the durian fruit, to Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee. Many of the essays made my mouth water and I was thinking of hopping on a plane to the different locales and trying out some of the same food.

[Crzy D · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book should have been called are you really going to eat 'there' than 'that'. Because all the food he described with a few expect ions sound lip smacking yum but the places he goes to in his quest for auntencity eaves a little to be desired. But keep that aside it s a fun read and his passion for all things food is quite contagious coz he leaves me craving for stuff I have not even heard of before leave alone tasted

[Cheryl Madigan · Rating 3 out of 5]

The title of this book is slightly misleading. There isn't too much crazy stuff eaten in this book as much as crazy amounts of food eaten after some serious effort to get it.

Not a bad read, but not quite as thrilling as the title may have you believe.

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Old skool adventurous-white-guy food writing. Made me want to go to Texas - scary.

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not my favorite food writing ever ... although part of that might be because I somehow ended up reading an advance uncorrected proof, and little editing mistakes kept leaping out at me. What can I say? I really hate books with typos.
Other than that, Walsh's collection of articles were from the mid-90's through 2000-ish, and lot of it just seemed dated. If I had read this in 2003, I probably would have liked it a whole lot more. Now, culinary discoveries and trends have moved way beyond what most of these articles talk about, and Walsh's style is a little too bro-y for my taste. I did really enjoy the article from 1999 about durian and smelly cheese and why some people love stinky food. I have never had durian, but now I feel like it is a food challenge I may need to investigate further!

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book - a collection of the author's previously published articles from various magazine and newspaper sources - was one that was recommended to me based on my reading selections from an online book database. Although I, myself, am not an adventurous eater or cook, I love learning about food and its origins, or about other people's ventures into the culinary world.

It took me awhile to read this entire book, mostly, I think, because it's set up that way. It's not a novel or a complete story; it's a series of independent short articles that the author has selected and arranged very well based on the theme of his book and the types of food he's reviewing.

To be honest, I felt a little misled by the title; I was expecting more tales about how he'd eaten bugs or other creepy crawlies in his quest to try the truly outrageous. The stories within this book's pages are much more tame (to read... perhaps not to eat). He begins the book with his quest to find the world's hottest pepper sauce, and works his way through chile peppers, cactus fruits, Spam, raw oysters and rare hamburgers, Gouda cheese, Creole gumbo, and East Texas barbecue. Nothing too outlandish, and certainly nothing that would turn my stomach to read about (though very little of it would be appetizing for me to eat).

In all, this was a very interesting collection of articles to read. I'm glad I picked the book up; I learned more about the backgrounds of some foods than I ever thought I'd learn, as well as some regional history of the countries he visited on his various quests.

If you've got any interest in learning about some odd foods and the history behind them, I'd recommend picking up this book. It's a great book to read in fits and starts; nothing that will keep you glued to its pages cover to cover, but one I'd suggest for a trip that gives you fifteen minutes' of reading time here and there.

[R · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mr. Walsh presents an interesting collection of his articles. He writes in a style of Bill Bryson meets Jeffrey Steingarten (whom he mentions in a chapter lin BBQ, and whose book I read last year in a bit of a painful endeavor) and Bill Buford. A sense of open curiosity and humor mixed with research and some science. And not in a way that makes one think his life of privilege is such a burden (like I felt reading Mr. Steingarten's book). I very much appreciated that Mr. Walsh was able to acknowledge that he realized his childhood palate, while comforting to him, might not be to everyone else's liking, as his two favorite flavors are sour (lots of interest in sauerkraut) and "picante" (many chapters on hot sauces and peppers). And as an audience member who doesn't like these two tastes, I could still appreciate his views in a way that I struggled to appreciate Mr. Steingarten's (with whom Mr. Walsh shared a rib meal in the back of a run down sounding house, cooking by Ms. Thelma). In the day and age of "Man v Food" and "Parts Unknown" (may Mr. Bourdain rest in peace), I had to remind myself that Mr. Walsh was writing his articles 20 years ago and sharing his adventures in the best format of that time. So maybe I can say, without research?, that Mr. Walsh led to our current obsession with finding the best of the best (in the holes in the walls) with an open mind that maybe his definition "Creole" or a specific food is not actually what it is. He's willing to peel back the layers and figure out why Sweden and France fight over the word "Gruyere" and that he was wrong in what he thought. 3.5 rounded up to 4. I learned a lot. Thanks for the open approach, Mr. Walsh.

[Peter · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book has really compelled me to eat and try new foods. Reading this book makes me want to eat cabrito,some of that shellfish soup and some of those juicy rare burgers. The book is really easy to read and doesn't have to many challenging words so you don't have to re-read a certain chapter to understand what the author is trying to say. He has very impressive orgainizational skills, but the thing I didn't like about this book is that halfway into it, the articles after that follow the same pattern as earlier in the book and it gets a little boring. But besides that the book may exceed as one of my favorites. I would also recommend this book to anyone who is interested in food or interested in learning about new foods and a man's personal experience eating these certain types of foods.

[Chris Crowley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Probably a misleading title, especially if you have already read Bourdain or Steingarten. Basically a collection of well written food articles that the author has published over the years. It's the first time I've read any of Robb Walsh's work, and I thought he got the balance between being witty and informative pretty much spot-on. Not really a great deal of unusual food is eaten, although he does spend some time throughout the book looking into the roots of various culinary styles from Southern USA and Mexico, which I found very interesting.

[Toni]

Very fun and interesting book for foodies. Learn about the popularity of Spam in Hawaii, the best way to cook okra is Don't Cut It, the history of Gruyere cheese, hunting for the best sauerkraut in Alsace, France, and more eclectic stories. He even goes to a Texas prison to have an inmate who is a legend in Black Southern Cooking cook for him. The author is a food critic from Houston and there are also a few stories about BBQ & Vietnamese joints in Houston.

[Alyce · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although this collection of previously published articles didn't fully convince me that Walsh is a "culinary thrill seeker", the interesting tidbits kept me reading unabated (and allowed me to overlook his frequent patronization). For example, a 1996 Natural History magazine article quotes a prescient produce distributor who suggests that prickly pears be renamed cactus pears to increase U.S. market appeal.

[Matt · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this paperback up at the used bookstore for $5, so i'm not expecting great things. The guy is not a flashy writer, and only sprinkles his stories with a dash of research, but some of his stories are interesting. The first two chapters are about chilis and coffee, so that was good enough for me.

[Ellen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Okay, not great. He travels the world (mostly North & Central America) and eats food. A predictable amount of exoticism and authenticity-fetishism. Many of the essays end with related recipes, which is cute. Some amount of the "look at the unfamiliar ingredients this food uses," but not as much as you might expect from the cover.

[Wellington · Rating 2 out of 5]

Unlike many of the foods described, this book just seemed to be missing something. Perhaps, some pictures since these were pulled from magazines? Writing-wise, I felt I was being written down to. But hey, at least the book gave me some new cooking dies.

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed some of the more general-interest articles (the one about prickly pear fruits, for example). I wasn't nearly as interested in reading about restaurants I'll never go to - a lot of the articles seemed more like reviews.

[grundoon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Competent and pleasant enough collection of articles from a (mostly Houston-based) food writer, from a span of about a decade. Frankly, I'd rather this had been a focused compendium than a tiny handful from each gig.

[angi · Rating 1 out of 5]

meh. eating crazy foods is usually fascinating but his writing is not. there's at least one bizarre-foods blog that's written ten times better, where the guy eats stuff ten times weirder.

[Seth · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a good read. It is a compilation of his food reviews from around the world. It has some humor to it, but if you like to read food writing, it is a must.

[do · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book made me want to go to Jamaica to experience the peppers and coffee that never get exported. It also gave my vacations a new direction: letting my stomach decide where where to go!

[Marybeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

So much fun! Especially the bit about the meal of a med-rare burger & raw oysters- also called the double dumbass combo!

[Sandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really interesting.It even has recipes although the ingredient maybe somewhat hard to find

[Theresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Each chapter is about a different food from different area's. Very informative and well written.

[Cara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Walsh's theory is that what makes food interesting is the people who eat it and why. He explores exactly that in this book, with stories from his food travels all over the globe.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good spicy recipes, interesting chapter on wild rice and durian (stinkfruit)

[Lynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some good essays on eating at local joints.

[John Howard-fusco · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun little read.

[Andee · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love compilations of short stories to begin with, and I love reading about amazing food. This had no shortage of either of those, but the pleasant surprise were bits of cultural/ethnic/food history that tied everything together. It had a lot more depth to the writing than I expected, and I enjoyed his writing style and humor.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

The title is a little misleading. I expected more stories about repulsive sounding food. Bugs, etc. But most of his meals sounded pretty yummy to me. I did enjoy the book though. Nice little quick reading articles that dig deeper than the food itself-how our food traditions relate to family and society itself.

[Luc · Rating 4 out of 5]

Without diving into the recipes in this book, I'd say it's a fun, fast read that delivered some very interesting facts - if not always super in-depth insights - into some signature ethical foods and culture.