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Comfort Me with Offal: Ruth Bourdain's Guide to Gastronomy
Twitter sensation and culinary mash-up Ruth Bourdain, winner of the 2011 James Beard Foundation Award for Humor, is your personal guide on this culinary adventure, sharing a wealth of knowledge acquired through years in restaurant kitchens, experimentation with food porn, smoking tangerine zest, and an unfortunate incident involving a durian. Along the way, Comfort Me with Offal features vivid and fascinating personal stories from Ruth Bourdain’s extraordinary life in food, including appearances from many of the world’s most renowned chefs.Not since Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin’s landmark The Physiology of Taste has there been a more comprehensive guide to the world of food and wine. From food history to dining etiquette to matters of taste, this practical handbook offers the basics for navigating every aspect of gastronomy, · • A food timeline, from the dawn of man to the modern era· • The importance of celebrity chef hairstyles· • Achieving the orgasmic potential of chocolate· • Culinary pick-up lines· • The twenty types of offal you need to eat before you die· • Becoming a “master baster” on Thanksgiving· • A field guide to the modern foodie, from carniwhores to gastrosexuals· • Essential exercises for bulking up your taste buds· • Tips for raising a baby gastronome· • How to prepare for a vegan apocalypse· • And so much more . . . Praise for Ruth Bourdain “It is kind of genius. I love it. I’m a total addict. I’m hooked already and, frankly, flattered and disturbed in equal measure.”—Anthony Bourdain, author and host, No Reservations “I normally read him religiously. And I find him hilarious.” —Ruth Reichl, author, former editor-in-chief, Gourmet “A shining star out there in [the] twitterverse.”—Tom Colicchio, chef and host, Top Chef “Truly a scary creation.”—Michael Ruhlman, author
208 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 4, 2012
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53 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
September 6, 2012
If you're a foodie (excuse me, a "culinary enthusiast"), if you have a couple of lobes of foie gras in your freezer stocked up before the California foie ban went into effect, if you own a microplane grater, if you consider Anthony Bourdain a CHILF, if the thought of artisanal salumi or Cowgirl Creamery cheese makes you salivate, read this book!
Or, if you have friends or loved ones affected by these afflictions, buy it foie them.. Sorry I meant *for* them. Even my autocorrect is a carniwhore...
Or, if you have friends or loved ones affected by these afflictions, buy it foie them.. Sorry I meant *for* them. Even my autocorrect is a carniwhore...
May 28, 2014
Some jokes are carried on too long like it was a popular SNL skit that they beat into the ground. Best if read in small doses to maintain the humor and cheekiness otherwise your quickly conditioned to it and find it just oddly silly. There was a reason why Ruth was popular on Twitter where it could be digested quickly and appreciated amongst the more mundane posts from friends and self promotional farce of celebrities and politicians.
November 26, 2016
A certain restaurant in California supplied this book in its lobby, so I figured I’d flip through it while we waited (if you have literature, it’s going to get read). The time it took for us to be summoned to our table was enough for me to glance through one of the vignettes and decide I had to get my grubby little paws on a copy of this romp.
Ultimately, man learned how to eat before he learned how to write, several hundreds of thousands of years in fact, so it’s no surprise that we write about food. To eat or not to eat, that is the question. As it happens, since we’ve been writing about food much longer than, say, technology, we’ve pretty much exhausted all there is to say about the matter. If you look at it this way, the overt Romanticism and hilariously overextended metaphors that abound in restaurant reviews, dining apps, and blogs (you caught me) suddenly make sense.
As such, the best of food writing amounts to self-indulgent navel-gazing, and everyone who does it knows this implicitly. What this little tome does is expose the knowledge of this knowledge, it’s the kid who takes the in-joke and shouts “HEY, THIS IS AN IN-JOKE!” By making explicit the implicit, Ruth Bourdain effectively forces a new dialectic between gastro-poseurs and true epicureans; the former, not realizing it’s all a joke, will be offended while the latter will smile, albeit somewhat wistfully, that what had been regarded as sacred is now acknowledged profanity, in every sense of the word.
Although a cutting irony pervades every page of the book, the astute reader will discern that its barbs contain nevertheless a sense of reverence; it is at once sarcastic and serious, and so is properly metamodern. I love it. Because, at the end of the day, food is a much better field to nerd out over than various other pastimes such as gardening or knitting, and it happens that a whole ecosystem of chefs, writers, suppliers, and restaurateurs agrees with me.
At this point it is necessary to mention two things. One, that for whatever reason, I read this from back to front or, as it were, ate it from tail to nose; if this is alarming to you, then I safely conclude that you don’t get it. Two, that I’m glad I did so, because the book’s addendum is an SAT-esque quiz titled “What’s Your GQ?” where GQ stands for gastronomical quotient. This section should be the preface, not the addendum, as any GQ test is only valid taken sans prior preparation (reading the book). For this poor editorial decision I must dock half a star.
I ended up getting 43 out of 50 questions right, which is 86%, which in grade school terms amounts to a B+, which would have meant the axe for my overachieving past self. Nevertheless I’ll insist it be graded on a curve, so I need my foodie friends to take it to reassure myself that I’m still #1. And I will be #1. You can bet on that.
Another half-star is lost by Bourdain’s failure to include my particular species of foodie (god, that word) in her taxonomy (page 36, to be precise). I’m more than happy to suggest a definition, of course.
Pastafarians: Pseudo-religious worshippers of a flying monstrosity made out of spaghetti and meatballs. The religion is composed of hundreds of sects, ranging from the stylish FARFALLIANS to the cloistered ZITIRATI; all require sacrificial bronze dies for initiation.
Favorite quotes
1729
In ‘A Modest Proposal’, Jonathan Swift advocates eating children to solve the Irish population crisis. Not a bad idea.
Noodlers: Soup and noodle cultists, NOODLERS are broken down into two major camps: RAMENIACS (lovers of authentic Japanese ramen) and PHOCKERS (devotees of Vietnamese pho soup).
On raising a toddler: Family meals are a soul-destroying ritual that should be abandoned by parents. Kids who take part in regular family meals endure horrendous arguments, painfully bland conversations, and incredibly mediocre food. Instead, encourage toddlers to dine out on their own. Epicurean parenting means setting up your toddler with her own credit card and teaching her how to make a reservation at trendy restaurants. While she’s at it, shell also learn some important life skills like how to use the phone and maintain her own calendar.
Restaurant Critic Term – How It’s Used – Meaning
---
Bustling – The restaurant is known for its bustling bar scene. – Make sure to bring earplugs.
Save room for – Make sure to save room for dessert. – Stop pigging out, you fat slob.
Deconstructed – Many of the dishes on the menu are deconstructed versions of classic French dishes. – Jacques Derrida would love this joint.
“It goes without saying that I owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to two phenomenal ‘characters’ in the world of food: Ruth Reichl and Anthony Bourdain. Never before have two fictional people felt so real, and they have both been so inspirational to me and to the writing of this important book. Whoever the secret masterminds are who are pulling their strings, I am deeply grateful.”
Also, pp. 66-68 is the best food writing I’ve ever seen.
Ultimately, man learned how to eat before he learned how to write, several hundreds of thousands of years in fact, so it’s no surprise that we write about food. To eat or not to eat, that is the question. As it happens, since we’ve been writing about food much longer than, say, technology, we’ve pretty much exhausted all there is to say about the matter. If you look at it this way, the overt Romanticism and hilariously overextended metaphors that abound in restaurant reviews, dining apps, and blogs (you caught me) suddenly make sense.
As such, the best of food writing amounts to self-indulgent navel-gazing, and everyone who does it knows this implicitly. What this little tome does is expose the knowledge of this knowledge, it’s the kid who takes the in-joke and shouts “HEY, THIS IS AN IN-JOKE!” By making explicit the implicit, Ruth Bourdain effectively forces a new dialectic between gastro-poseurs and true epicureans; the former, not realizing it’s all a joke, will be offended while the latter will smile, albeit somewhat wistfully, that what had been regarded as sacred is now acknowledged profanity, in every sense of the word.
Although a cutting irony pervades every page of the book, the astute reader will discern that its barbs contain nevertheless a sense of reverence; it is at once sarcastic and serious, and so is properly metamodern. I love it. Because, at the end of the day, food is a much better field to nerd out over than various other pastimes such as gardening or knitting, and it happens that a whole ecosystem of chefs, writers, suppliers, and restaurateurs agrees with me.
At this point it is necessary to mention two things. One, that for whatever reason, I read this from back to front or, as it were, ate it from tail to nose; if this is alarming to you, then I safely conclude that you don’t get it. Two, that I’m glad I did so, because the book’s addendum is an SAT-esque quiz titled “What’s Your GQ?” where GQ stands for gastronomical quotient. This section should be the preface, not the addendum, as any GQ test is only valid taken sans prior preparation (reading the book). For this poor editorial decision I must dock half a star.
I ended up getting 43 out of 50 questions right, which is 86%, which in grade school terms amounts to a B+, which would have meant the axe for my overachieving past self. Nevertheless I’ll insist it be graded on a curve, so I need my foodie friends to take it to reassure myself that I’m still #1. And I will be #1. You can bet on that.
Another half-star is lost by Bourdain’s failure to include my particular species of foodie (god, that word) in her taxonomy (page 36, to be precise). I’m more than happy to suggest a definition, of course.
Pastafarians: Pseudo-religious worshippers of a flying monstrosity made out of spaghetti and meatballs. The religion is composed of hundreds of sects, ranging from the stylish FARFALLIANS to the cloistered ZITIRATI; all require sacrificial bronze dies for initiation.
Favorite quotes
1729
In ‘A Modest Proposal’, Jonathan Swift advocates eating children to solve the Irish population crisis. Not a bad idea.
Noodlers: Soup and noodle cultists, NOODLERS are broken down into two major camps: RAMENIACS (lovers of authentic Japanese ramen) and PHOCKERS (devotees of Vietnamese pho soup).
On raising a toddler: Family meals are a soul-destroying ritual that should be abandoned by parents. Kids who take part in regular family meals endure horrendous arguments, painfully bland conversations, and incredibly mediocre food. Instead, encourage toddlers to dine out on their own. Epicurean parenting means setting up your toddler with her own credit card and teaching her how to make a reservation at trendy restaurants. While she’s at it, shell also learn some important life skills like how to use the phone and maintain her own calendar.
Restaurant Critic Term – How It’s Used – Meaning
---
Bustling – The restaurant is known for its bustling bar scene. – Make sure to bring earplugs.
Save room for – Make sure to save room for dessert. – Stop pigging out, you fat slob.
Deconstructed – Many of the dishes on the menu are deconstructed versions of classic French dishes. – Jacques Derrida would love this joint.
“It goes without saying that I owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to two phenomenal ‘characters’ in the world of food: Ruth Reichl and Anthony Bourdain. Never before have two fictional people felt so real, and they have both been so inspirational to me and to the writing of this important book. Whoever the secret masterminds are who are pulling their strings, I am deeply grateful.”
Also, pp. 66-68 is the best food writing I’ve ever seen.
June 17, 2013
"1.8 million years ago -- A skilled hunter, Homo erectus evolves. With his emergence, the Age of Prehistoric Sushi comes to a close as early man discovers how to use fire for cooking. Archaeologists name him Homo bobbyflayus"
buwahahahahaha!
I enjoyed reading this as it's funny and there are some fart jokes which I usually find hysterical. I am not sure I like that Ruth enjoys Mario Batali but I do just love the fact that she rips Guy, Rachel and Paula...why is Sandra Lee off limits?
buwahahahahaha!
I enjoyed reading this as it's funny and there are some fart jokes which I usually find hysterical. I am not sure I like that Ruth enjoys Mario Batali but I do just love the fact that she rips Guy, Rachel and Paula...why is Sandra Lee off limits?
maybe-read-sometime
May 28, 2013Playing on Anthony Bourdain and Ruth Reichl, and the latter's Comfort Me with Apples. I was trying to remember if a certain quotation was from one of Bourdain's books (yes), and stumbled across this in a Google Books search.
April 4, 2013
A somewhat over-the-top parody of food writing, contemporary "foodie" culture and the excesses of the privileged class's food obsessions. Often amusing, sometimes silly and well worth a look, if for nothing else the put-downs of Food TV "celebrities".
given-up
May 11, 2013I like RuBo's humor, but it's better in tweet-sized chunks.
October 27, 2012
What a delightful book. Easy to read, great illustrations and laugh out loud at times. I'm not telling if I identified with any of the characters, such as foodies.
December 17, 2012
Moments of brilliance, moments of blah.
September 15, 2013
Cute satire on foodie writing.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews