The Book of Eating: Adventures in Professional Gluttony

by Adam Platt

A wildly hilarious and irreverent memoir of a globe-trotting life lived meal-to-meal by one of our most influential and respected food critics As the son of a diplomat growing up in places like Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Japan, Adam Platt didn’t have the chance to become a picky eater. Living, traveling, and eating in some of the most far-flung locations around the world, he developed an eclectic palate and a nuanced understanding of cultures and cuisines that led to some revelations which would prove important in his future career as a food critic. In Tokyo, for instance—“a kind of paradise for nose-to-tail cooking”—he learned that “if you’re interested in telling a story, a hair-raisingly bad meal is much better than a good one." From dim sum in Hong Kong to giant platters of Peking duck in Beijing, fresh-baked croissants in Paris and pierogi on the snowy streets of Moscow, Platt takes us around the world, re-tracing the steps of a unique, and lifelong, culinary education. Providing a glimpse into a life that has intertwined food and travel in exciting and unexpected ways, The Book of Eating is a delightful and sumptuous trip that is also the culinary coming-of-age of a voracious eater and his eventual ascension to become, as he puts it, “a professional glutton.”

Genres: Food, Nonfiction, Memoir, Foodie, Food and Drink, Travel, Biography

320 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2019

About the author

Adam Platt has been a contributing editor and restaurant critic for New York magazine since 2000. He won the James Beard Foundation Journalism Award for Restaurant Reviews in 2010. During the course of nearly twenty-five years in the magazine business, Platt has written for a variety of publications, including The New Yorker, The New York Observer, Esquire, and Condé Nast Traveler. He lives in Greenwich Village with his wife and two pizza-loving daughters.

(source: Amazon)

Reviews

[Carole · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Book of Eating: Adventures in Professional Gluttony by Adam Platt is a combination of world travel and culinary exploration and who does not like food and travel. Being the son of a diplomat, the author grew up in many places, thereby giving him experiences in Asia, Russia, France, etc. Each essay is a small gem describing his life in many places, always using food as the common denominator. The stories are joyful, funny and always interesting. Platt’s love of the culinary arts shines through in each one. I listened to the audiobook, read by the author, making this book a relaxing and fun experience and proving that many important times in our lives are remembered through food. Highly recommended.

[Gail · Rating 1 out of 5]

I never heard of Adam Platt before, but since I have read numerous other books in the same genre I thought this one would be equally good. Nope. I gave up on it last night after only reading about sixty-five pages. He's no Ruth Reichl (I have read EVERY one of her books) and she reigns supreme. Platt's writing began to grate on me and after a while I was no longer interested. It's certainly NOT hilarious (I'm sure the publisher wrote this) as I barely cracked a smile. Fortunately, it's a library book and it's going back today.

[Leslie · Rating 1 out of 5]

I thought I would like this book. I did not. It was really about the author’s life and his relatives’ lives relating to food. Stopped reading after two chapters

[Russell · Rating 4 out of 5]

"The Book of Eating" records Adam Platt's life from a boyhood that seemed designed to prepare him for the role of professional glutton, restaurant critic for "New York" magazine. His father served as US ambassador to several nations in Asia and Africa, so his childhood exposed him to exotic street food in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and other places, along with his brothers, one of whom is actor Oliver Platt. Roughly the second half of the book recounts his career as a restaurant critic, a job that people continually told him must be the best job in the world. Platt exposes the pitfalls of this dream job, as he watches a few colleagues literally eat themselves to death, and himself often lives on a diet of rich restaurant food chased with antacid tablets, seldom enjoying dinners with his own family. Along the way, he records the great upheaval caused by Internet blogs and web sites, eventually eliminating many restaurant reviewer positions at newspapers and magazines, and, due to the siphoning away of advertising revenue, eliminating many of the newspapers and magazines themselves. A fast, enjoyable read if you like writing about food, which I do.

[Bookworm · Rating 1 out of 5]

Thought this sounded like a read. I am a fan of Ruth Reichl's trilogy of memoirs that chronicle her time and life as a food critic. This seemed like a good read.I had never heard of Platt but it sounded like he has had an interesting life.

Honestly? It was quite boring. The author's style wasn't particularly engaging or interesting for me. A lot of people seemed to think this was hilarious or engaging but it wasn't something that could keep me interested.

In some ways it felt very formulaic: his family moved to this country because his dad was an ambassador, they pick up a bit of the country, enjoy their food, learn about their culture, etc. I guess I went into this thinking I'd read something like Reichl's work but found something else instead.

Library borrow was best.

[Cari · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a nostalgic and wistful experience listening to this tour of NYC restaurant criticism over the past few decades. Pure candy for anyone who obsessed over restaurant reviews and religiously followed gossip blogs like Grub Street and Eater in the aughts. Made me miss restaurants even more than I already do.

[Dipra Lahiri · Rating 4 out of 5]

The formative years in Asia, a food loving family, and a gargantuan appetite were some of the reasons why Platt became such a brilliant restaurant / food critic. Terrific sense of humour too.

[Mme Forte · Rating 4 out of 5]

Probably more like 3.5 stars.

This book includes stories about the foodways of Adam Platt's forebears and of his formative years in Asia, as his father pursued a diplomat's career. It also includes stories about his years as a food critic for New York Magazine and as a free-lancer.

The best parts of the book are those of Platt's childhood food adventures. It's always endearing and humanizing to hear people's origin stories, and these both show and tell how Platt developed the palate that allowed him to become a critic who, seemingly, would try anything once. Like all the best books about childhood, this one also portrays the author's love for his family and his enjoyment of the early travels that made him who he is.

Surprisingly, I had trouble getting into the portions of the book that discuss Platt's career. This might be because this part of the book isn't arranged chronologically. I would have liked to hear about just how he fell (or stepped) into the food critic job, and about how he worked out the kinds as he began this new career, and about some of the memorable experiences he had in various eras (they come and go so quickly there!) of New York City dining. Instead, you get what's more like a set of essays but that isn't really essays because the chapters don't stick to one topic or period of time but jump from acquaintance to dinner to junket to boss and I enjoyed the subject matter but it was hard to build up any reading momentum.

Plus...I'm a French teacher and it's really jarring for me when the language is written incorrectly. LE Grenouille? Really? And "cuisine" is not masculine, either. Twice in a book ABOUT FOOD the expression "le haute cuisine" appears and somehow I find it hard to forgive an error of this nature repeated.

Good book, always enjoyed Platt's NYM columns, still miss them.

[Aja · Rating 3 out of 5]

Platt's an entertaining, self-deprecating writer with wonderful stories. I loved reading about his childhood as the son of diplomat (read: lots of travel, lots of interesting food) and the cast of characters in his family (all opinionated, all eccentric, much like Platt himself).

But this book really calls out for a more heavy-handed editor. I read it in one setting on the plane, which made Platt's over-reliance on certain turns of phrase incredibly obvious and grating.

- Overfed: appears 10 times (first appearance chapter 6, last appearance chapter 21)
- Flowery: appears 6 times (first appearance chapter 1, last appearance chapter 21)
- Dyspeptic: appears 4 times (first appearance chapter 1, last appearance chapter 9)
- Oversized: appears 4 times (first appearance chapter 6, last appearance chapter 21)
- Rabelaisian: appears 2 times (first appearance chapter 3, last appearance chapter 7)

He also hits on the same points over and over again. By the end of the book, I was so tired of hearing about Tom Colicchio's "chef-centric," "radically subversive," "hit" restaurant Craft. Okay, I get it—it was influential! Now let's move on.

Same thing with the DB Burger, which Platt iterates not once but twice is responsible for the "Great Gourmet Chef Burger Craze of 2002," and David Chang's noodle bar, which I'm now well-aware helped spawn the movement of intentional, selective sourcing.

If an editor was on hand to spot this repetition and draw more unique material out of Platt, this could have been a five-star review.

[Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

Adam Platt and I have the same job (well, the same has *one* of my jobs), but he's much more famous and a better writer than me. Still though! We're both food critics and food writers in NYC, which is a really amazing job to have in this, the greatest city in the world. He affects/feels a weariness/grumpiness about this situation which I do not share, but I've been a fan for many years. So, no surprise, I totally enjoyed reading The Book of Eating, especially the being-a-food-critic-in-NYC parts, but also the whole long parts about his growing up as a diplomat's kid, in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Tokyo. He also comes from a wealthy, white, WASP-y family, and conveys a nostalgia over certain rituals--the sacredness of the Cocktail Hour, for one--that sparked memories of my own, far-less-colorful (and monied) childhood. There's also a bunch about his struggles with weight/health, which I have not had too much trouble with, even 15 years in (not drinking really helps with this), but could certainly sympathize. Really, it's just a great, entertaining read if you love to eat food. I've only seen once in the wild, at Crown Shy this summer, but if I run into him again I can honestly say "Platty my dude! I really loved your book!"   

[Sevelyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

After reading this, it suddenly occurred to me that maybe we no longer need restaurant critics. Would a magazine be a lesser news vehicle without their Mount Olympus-level judgments? Why pick on poor Ed Sheeran, using his indisputable global success to mock restaurants? Why pick on Keith McNally for paying attention to lighting? Diners stare across from someone for an hour or more, what do you expect owners and designers to do? Bathe diners in floodlights? Bare bulbs? Some of the writing here is interesting, much of it is not. The star system, for example, should go the way of quill pens and ear trumpets. But I enjoyed learning about Anita Loo and Annisa, Marc Veyrat, and even Neil’s diner. Platt’s travel writing is very strong, especially his description of the Repulse Bay Hotel (the old one) and the Orchid Bar. I was interested in the author’s approach to roasting chickens (400 degrees). I did go out and buy both Pickapeppa and Bulldog sauces. I look at Mrs. Paul’s longingly now. I’m interested in chicken cooked with 7 Up. But I think he should hang up his hat as a food critic, buy an Airstream, and hit the road, this time as a travel writer in the vein of Charles Kuralt. Leave the restaurants in NYC alone—they have enough problems.

[Thomas Kelley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have read a few Chef/Cooking biographies since reading Kitchen Confidential and this is the first one from a food critics point of view. When you read the first chapter were the Author meets up with food critic Gael Greene you thinks this book will take off right away with the comings and goings of a food critic. But the first 1/3 of this book reverts back to his childhood and family life and there exposure to many types of food from around the world that they get the privilege to eat. There Father is a US Ambassador so they get stationed in China, Hong Kong, Pakistan, Canada, and Tokyo along with a few other stops.
His Parents were adventurous which was on the kids so they enjoyed many foods from around the world which layed the groundwork for the author to be a food critic.

All in all this was a good read that had a pretty good pace and was informative.

[Cynthia Livingston · Rating 4 out of 5]

I used to think that being a restaurant reviewer with a generous budget would be a dream job. NOT. This oldest of the three Platt "boys" has led a most interesting life living in many places, many in Asia, and eating anything and everything without reservation his whole life. What an interesting greater family and what an engaging writer. Eating for a living is difficult and leads to weight gain and attempts at weight loss. If a person is hungry and eats tasty food in a restaurant, it is a wonderful thing. Eating big meals out 3-4 times a week, or being on a whirlwind tour and eating 3 times a day - too much of a good thing. About the only thing he wasn't wild about in Tokyo was fugu: 315 cases of poisoning in Japan between 1996 and 2005, 31 of which were fatal may be why. Anyway, he is funny, self deprecating, and is very, very interesting.

[Martha · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found the author's memoir portion of the book the most interesting. His family's sojourns to China, Japan and Taiwan as part of his father's US Ambassadorships were interesting and enjoyable. What freedom was had in these escapades in the 1960's! Platt and his brother's (the middle brother is the actor, Oliver ) gorged themselves on any and all imaginable regional foods as well as having superb regional cooks in their home residences. The remainder of the book follows his profession as restaurant critic for the New York Magazine. He speaks of the chefs, restaurant owners, other critics and the food provided. I also found the end of his story similar to many careers that ended due to the explosion of technology, the Internet and reality cooking shows, as well as the millions of individual critics who use their phones for instant reviews.

[William Koon · Rating 2 out of 5]

Adam Platt’s The Book of Eating is about that, eating rather than food. He was the restaurant critic of New York Magazine. (He also worked for some other prestigious magazines which he catalogs.) Along the way he lived a very pampered life. He writes about his gout. His brother. He name drops all of the culinary characters from the 90’s. His comments upon Mario Batali are particularly harsh –and judgmental. I personally did not care for his depiction of the late Jonathan Gold. He whines about eating salmon in too many bland settings. Repeatedly. One wants to quote Livia Soprano, “Poor you!” One of the saving graces of the book is his perceptive recognition of the changing times when an effete Georgetown grad with a wide palate was replaced by Yelp reviews. You can place it in the same category of Ruth Reichel’s account of how she guided Gourmet magazine to its demise.

[Kathleen Gray · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! Admittedly, and up front, I've been reading and enjoying Platt's work for years but I especially enjoyed the opportunity to read about the origins of his foodie-dom. He's got an excellent sense of humor about himself and the food world- and he doesn't spare punches. It's a hoot in spot but also incredibly informative. I'm not sure how this is categorized but it's a great memoir. Thanks to edelweiss for the ARC. If you haven't read Platt, you've been missing out and should pick this up immediately.

[Thomas Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

2019 has been a fine year for ‘eat&tell’ books, like Ruth Reichl’s “Save Me the Plums” and Ed Levine’s “Serious Eater” but Adam Platt’s new memoir “The Book of Eating” is by far the best. What’s the right recipe for producing a food critic? How about coming of age in Asia, then J School in NY and then a time as a travel writer seeing the world and trying to capture the essence of a place by its food and drink. Add in twenty years hard labor at New York magazine eating anything that moved and the result is this fine book.

[Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like many, people who read the book had different expectations. I certainly did, but the book exceeded my expectations when I realized the author had spent many happy eating years in places I've frequented from my childhood. I was able to relate to his food experiences and I read through it dreaming of my own memories of these deliciously-described dishes. I also learned a lot about the dying trade of restaurant critiquing in contrast to modern-day influencers. For a full review and my biggest takeaway from the book check out my blog: www.reviews.the-mama-travels.com

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to love this, and I do love Platt's writing and the affection he demonstrates for both food and New York. But the audiobook version was monotonous. He demonstrated far more personality in the now-defunct Grub Street podcast, the kind of energy I assumed he'd bring to the narration of this book. I understand that narrating your own book is never the same (or even as easy, putting it lightly) as writing your book, but the experience was a tad disappointing, nonetheless.

[Stella Zawistowski · Rating 3 out of 5]

Platt acknowledges in the book that it's hard as a food critic to write essentially the same thing over and over again, but make it feel new each time. I kind of wish his editor had made him try harder to do it in his book, though. I loved reading his food reviews back in the day, but when he's writing long form and collecting all his memories into a book, it becomes much more apparent that he repeats the same words and phrases over. and over. and OVER.

[Mairzi · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting read for anyone who likes dining out, cooking or gossip. But I could only read it in short burst because of the too florid prose. Sort of like the overly rich, calorie laden dinners to which Platt often refers. The first few chapters about his family and childhood in Asia are the most interesting and enjoyable.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A funny and oddly written book. It was kind of like a stream-of-consciousness memoir, bouncing between childhood days and meals in Asia to reviewing restaurants today for New York magazine. It's pretty humorous and I'd like to read more about his personal life, especially his daughters and wife!

[Leslie · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you love traveling and food, and happen to be familiar with the NYC dining scene, Adam Platt tells a compelling story of his childhood living abroad and how it led him to become one of New York's renown restaurant critics. His stories will make you hungry and make you want to travel and eat!

[David Brinkman · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well lived chronicle of cuisine and dining. I noticed some rather negative reviews prior to reading this. I’m not understanding said furry.

One in particular slammed the first two chapters. I thought the first two chapters were quite interesting. If you’ve lived in NYC or have any sort of knowledge of the restaurant/food scene in the past 30 years how could you not enjoy the nostalgic description and rehash. It just adds another facet for me and I enjoyed it.

I also appreciated the passion and regard written about experiencing new cuisines as a child, burning memories of flavors and aroma. Celebrating the cuisine and not bashing the unknown. Great book!

[Alistair · Rating 1 out of 5]

Audiobook. This guy shoulda quit half way through his career. Instead he got fat and spends his time bemoaning the death of fine dining and print media. Simultaneously, he celebrates (briefly) the quality of modern food: not just to be found in New York anymore. Well. Guess that's his loss and our gain.

This biography just didn't come off as interesting, unique, or otherwise engaging. Save your brain space for more interesting fare.

[Lori · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was a mixed bag for me. At times it seemed like the narrative consisted of the author listing foods he’d eaten at various times and places - tedious. I did like his honesty about the realities of being a food critic, like health and weight issues, which I’ve wondered about when reading books by other foodies like Ruth Reichl and Anthony Bourdain.

[Emma Santucci · Rating 4 out of 5]

i don’t remember who recommended this to me but i enjoyed it, even if i had to skip over some of the less interesting chapters. i loved the vintage nyc restaurant scene gossip and the way this man writes about food. it’s a good passive kindle read and a welcome palate cleanser after the books i’ve been reading recently.

[Linda Smatzny · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a memoir of a food critic. The author writes about growing up in Asia and his eating there. The book contains a few pictures. He also writes about his adventures as a writer. The book was an easy read.

[Mary Nee · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good read and informative!

[Brendan C. · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great, quick ride along the life with the longtime NY Mag food critic. Do not read unless you're prepared to crave Peking Duck for the rest of your life.