The Great Food Almanac: A Feast of Facts from A to Z

by Irena Chalmers

Fascinating writing and over 1,000 illustrations offer useful information on subjects from airline food to barbecue tips and maple syrup to table manners. Includes interesting lists of trivia and facts, consumer groups, information sources, mail order sources, and book recommendations.

360 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 1994

About the author

Irena Chalmers has worn many hats in the food industry. The publisher, producer, and packager of more than forty books, she has regularly contributed to such publications as The New York Times, Food & Wine, Gastronomica, Food Arts, and Nation’s Restaurant News. She was a founding member and past president of both the International Association of Culinary Professionals and Les Dames d’Escoffier International, as well as “Who’s Who” member of the James Beard Foundation.

Chalmers divided her time as a faculty member at The Culinary Institute of America, “The Last Word” columnist for Chef magazine, consultant, food blogger and commentator, and counselor to many about to embark on their own culinary adventure.

Reviews

[Chris Ellis · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is great for what it is - a compendium of food related stories and facts, laid out alphabetically.

As one can see by the dates I started and finished this tome, it took me over a year to get through it. Nevertheless, I consider it time well spent. The information is interesting (if somewhat dated, on occasion) and fed my "fact book" junkie habit quite well.

Only complaint is the physical size of the book - it's HUGE. Almost a foot wide and a good 14" tall!