What do you think?
Rate this book
The Devil in the Kitchen: Sex, Pain, Madness and the Making of a Great Chef
What do Mario Batali and Gordon Ramsay have in common? They survived tours of duty in the kitchen of Marco Pierre White. In the UK, White's brilliant cooking and high-wattage antics have made him a the first British chef (and the youngest chef anywhere) to win three Michelin stars, a chain-smoking, pot-throwing, multiply married culinary genius whose fierce devotion to food and restaurants has been the only constant in a life of tabloid-ready turmoil. In The Devil in the Kitchen , he tells the story of his life in food, spanning his apprenticeship with Albert and Michel Roux, his wild years in the bacchanal of 1980s Chelsea, his ferocious pursuit of the highest Michelin rating, and his "retirement career" as a hugely successful restaurateur. With cameos from the likes of Michael Caine, Madonna, and Damien Hirst, The Devil in the Kitchen leaves no dish unserved, relating the backroom antics, the blood feuds, and the passion for great food that have driven London's greatest restaurants for decades.
256 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2006
566 people are currently reading
9028 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 472 reviews
September 20, 2019
”And so I took my first step along the long, bully-laden, work obsessed, sleep-deprived, nicotine- and caffeine-fueled, passionate, hot and winding road that would end with three Michelin stars.”
I don’t cook, but oddly enough I enjoy reading about chefs and the skillet laden road they travel to create food that makes their customers close their eyes and raise their hands to the food gods in supplication.
It is really all Anthony Bourdain’s fault. I read Kitchen Confidential after catching his show on the Travel Channel. I enjoyed his humor on the show and hoped that his amusing commentary would show up in the book. Reading the book was just like how I would expect a conversation to go with Bourdain. He was hilariously irreverent about everything. He certainly convinced me that cutting edge chefs had a lot in common with the dissenting, maverick attitudes of the gunslingers of the Old West. Only pistols at noon are exchanged for frying pans.
”From the moment my chef pals and I got a look at Marco Pierre White’s first cookbook--and at photos of the Man Himself, in all his haggard, debauched-looking, obsessively driven glory---we dreamed of nothing more than to be just like him. He made history.”
-- Anthony Bourdain
To say that White is driven is an understatement. His desire to be the best chef in not only Britain but in the world completely dominated his life from the time he became conscious in the morning until the time he passed out at night. He wanted three Michelin stars more than he wanted to be rich or famous. He blew up his marriages. He threw condiments at his staff. He called them demeaning names. He tortured them. It was impossible for anyone to match his expectations for himself. ”In the kitchen, the first three weeks was the toughest period for the new boys. By the end of it they were usually fucked, having lost a stone in weight, gained a dazed expression and cried themselves dry. That was when the shaking started---and when many of them left. One day they were there, the next they were gone. If they could make it into the fourth week, they were doing well.”
You might recognize Gordon Ramsay, who worked for the temperamental White for almost three years before having enough of the tirades.
THE Mario Batali or as he was known in White’s kitchen Rusty Bollocks is one of those guys who worked for him. He was an especially favorite target for White because he was fat and nice. So you would think, now that Batali is one of the most famous chefs in the world, that he might want to skewer White for some of that rough treatment. Let’s check in and see what Batali says about him: “Marco is a gift to humanity, with more passion per pound than anyone else I have ever met. His story is genius, his voice his own….Marco is still my hero.”
WTH? Batali must be suffering from Stockholm Syndrome. I would love to eat White’s food, but after reading about how he treats his workers, I’d rather scoop horse crap off the sidewalks of London than work for this guy. I’d rather be the chief bedding washer at a Moroccan whorehouse than work for this guy. I’d rather jack off a bull for semen collection than work for this guy. Whoa! Wait! I think I found the line in the sand...okay I’d rather work for him than do that.
He does become the youngest chef to ever win three Michelin stars, but each star is stained with the sweat, blood, and tears of anyone who ever labored for him. White worked for every great chef in Britain to learn as much as he could from them and then apply his own particular twist to their own greatness. He too was tortured by the system the same way he tortured his own staff, and like with the food, he put his own particular twist on that as well. He was on top of the world, untouchable. He had women slipping up to his private office for a quickie while their husbands waited patiently in the dining room for them to return from the “bathroom.” He threw diners out of his restaurant if they complained. If someone could not understand what he was all about, he did not have time for them.
Women were waiting in line to see The Devil in the Kitchen.
He even went into business with the toughest man in London, My-Cool Caine. Of course, they had a falling out as well, not surprising. You don’t mess around with Caine, and you don’t mess around with White. It was like putting two rocks in a blender.
White does mix in some tips on cooking that are more about seeing food differently. Seeing an egg for more than just an egg: ”Cook’s brain. It’s the ability to visualize the food on the plate, as a picture in the mind, and then work backward.”
”For instance, let’s just think for a moment about a fried egg. It’s not the most inspired dish, but then again, if you can’t cook an egg, what can you cook? And actually, a perfectly cooked fried egg is quite beautiful.”
I’m an eggoholic, so I was visualizing the clouds parting, and a ray of sunshine beaming down to turn the yolk to a yellow flame.
It really comes down to the fact that Marco Pierre White may not have been the easiest man to like, but many of the people who worked for him loved him. The tree of successful Chefs who learned from him and passed his knowledge onto another generation of chefs is wide and deep with numerous branches that can be found in just about any high-end restaurant in the world. He is still to this day the youngest chef to EVER win three Michelin stars. He was the grandson of a chef, the son of a chef, and his brothers were chefs, so the stove was his cradle. Sauces were his milk. He made music with skillets and ladles. He became the Mick Jagger of the kitchen.
If you wish to see more of my most recent book and movie reviews, visit http://www.jeffreykeeten.com
I also have a Facebook blogger page at:https://www.facebook.com/JeffreyKeeten
You can also find terrific reviews at:http://www.shelfinflicted.com/
I don’t cook, but oddly enough I enjoy reading about chefs and the skillet laden road they travel to create food that makes their customers close their eyes and raise their hands to the food gods in supplication.
It is really all Anthony Bourdain’s fault. I read Kitchen Confidential after catching his show on the Travel Channel. I enjoyed his humor on the show and hoped that his amusing commentary would show up in the book. Reading the book was just like how I would expect a conversation to go with Bourdain. He was hilariously irreverent about everything. He certainly convinced me that cutting edge chefs had a lot in common with the dissenting, maverick attitudes of the gunslingers of the Old West. Only pistols at noon are exchanged for frying pans.
”From the moment my chef pals and I got a look at Marco Pierre White’s first cookbook--and at photos of the Man Himself, in all his haggard, debauched-looking, obsessively driven glory---we dreamed of nothing more than to be just like him. He made history.”
-- Anthony Bourdain
To say that White is driven is an understatement. His desire to be the best chef in not only Britain but in the world completely dominated his life from the time he became conscious in the morning until the time he passed out at night. He wanted three Michelin stars more than he wanted to be rich or famous. He blew up his marriages. He threw condiments at his staff. He called them demeaning names. He tortured them. It was impossible for anyone to match his expectations for himself. ”In the kitchen, the first three weeks was the toughest period for the new boys. By the end of it they were usually fucked, having lost a stone in weight, gained a dazed expression and cried themselves dry. That was when the shaking started---and when many of them left. One day they were there, the next they were gone. If they could make it into the fourth week, they were doing well.”
You might recognize Gordon Ramsay, who worked for the temperamental White for almost three years before having enough of the tirades.
THE Mario Batali or as he was known in White’s kitchen Rusty Bollocks is one of those guys who worked for him. He was an especially favorite target for White because he was fat and nice. So you would think, now that Batali is one of the most famous chefs in the world, that he might want to skewer White for some of that rough treatment. Let’s check in and see what Batali says about him: “Marco is a gift to humanity, with more passion per pound than anyone else I have ever met. His story is genius, his voice his own….Marco is still my hero.”
WTH? Batali must be suffering from Stockholm Syndrome. I would love to eat White’s food, but after reading about how he treats his workers, I’d rather scoop horse crap off the sidewalks of London than work for this guy. I’d rather be the chief bedding washer at a Moroccan whorehouse than work for this guy. I’d rather jack off a bull for semen collection than work for this guy. Whoa! Wait! I think I found the line in the sand...okay I’d rather work for him than do that.
He does become the youngest chef to ever win three Michelin stars, but each star is stained with the sweat, blood, and tears of anyone who ever labored for him. White worked for every great chef in Britain to learn as much as he could from them and then apply his own particular twist to their own greatness. He too was tortured by the system the same way he tortured his own staff, and like with the food, he put his own particular twist on that as well. He was on top of the world, untouchable. He had women slipping up to his private office for a quickie while their husbands waited patiently in the dining room for them to return from the “bathroom.” He threw diners out of his restaurant if they complained. If someone could not understand what he was all about, he did not have time for them.
Women were waiting in line to see The Devil in the Kitchen.
He even went into business with the toughest man in London, My-Cool Caine. Of course, they had a falling out as well, not surprising. You don’t mess around with Caine, and you don’t mess around with White. It was like putting two rocks in a blender.
White does mix in some tips on cooking that are more about seeing food differently. Seeing an egg for more than just an egg: ”Cook’s brain. It’s the ability to visualize the food on the plate, as a picture in the mind, and then work backward.”
”For instance, let’s just think for a moment about a fried egg. It’s not the most inspired dish, but then again, if you can’t cook an egg, what can you cook? And actually, a perfectly cooked fried egg is quite beautiful.”
I’m an eggoholic, so I was visualizing the clouds parting, and a ray of sunshine beaming down to turn the yolk to a yellow flame.
It really comes down to the fact that Marco Pierre White may not have been the easiest man to like, but many of the people who worked for him loved him. The tree of successful Chefs who learned from him and passed his knowledge onto another generation of chefs is wide and deep with numerous branches that can be found in just about any high-end restaurant in the world. He is still to this day the youngest chef to EVER win three Michelin stars. He was the grandson of a chef, the son of a chef, and his brothers were chefs, so the stove was his cradle. Sauces were his milk. He made music with skillets and ladles. He became the Mick Jagger of the kitchen.
If you wish to see more of my most recent book and movie reviews, visit http://www.jeffreykeeten.com
I also have a Facebook blogger page at:https://www.facebook.com/JeffreyKeeten
You can also find terrific reviews at:http://www.shelfinflicted.com/
May 22, 2019
The Devil in the Kitchen is a truly entertaining book and one I read over the course of two days, because I found it hard to put down. White's anecdotes paint him to be something wavering between a mad genius and a miserable narcissist, but they make for a great read. Though he didn't come across as the sort of person I'd want to be friends with exactly (to be fair, he wouldn't want to be friends with a vegetarian like me either, I suspect), it was enjoyable to read about someone who is so truly passionate about what he does.
Find more reviews and bookish fun at http://www.princessandpen.com
Find more reviews and bookish fun at http://www.princessandpen.com
July 25, 2008
OOooh, he's such a nasty boy. I think I might like to have him cook for me, but I wouldn't want to know him in any other context. I wouldn't want to be his wife and I sure as hell wouldn't want to work for him.
I understand that to some degree a mercurial, self-confident demeanor is a job requirement for being a Michelin-3-star-caliber chef but White comes off as a 5-star jerk. He's very quick to quote positive reviews and people who bolster his image as a sex-god Mick-Jagger-of-the-kitchen. I daresay there are probably four times as many ex-wives, ex-girlfriends, ex-employers and ex-employees who would not be so willing to burnish his self-image. Funny, we don't seem to hear from *any* of them in this self-love-fest.
He's had an interesting life and a remarkable career, and he has a compelling story to tell. You just get the sense that there's a lot he's left out -- like anything that would cast him in the unflattering light he likely deserves.
I understand that to some degree a mercurial, self-confident demeanor is a job requirement for being a Michelin-3-star-caliber chef but White comes off as a 5-star jerk. He's very quick to quote positive reviews and people who bolster his image as a sex-god Mick-Jagger-of-the-kitchen. I daresay there are probably four times as many ex-wives, ex-girlfriends, ex-employers and ex-employees who would not be so willing to burnish his self-image. Funny, we don't seem to hear from *any* of them in this self-love-fest.
He's had an interesting life and a remarkable career, and he has a compelling story to tell. You just get the sense that there's a lot he's left out -- like anything that would cast him in the unflattering light he likely deserves.
November 15, 2024
When part of our lives, our work, needs ‘fame’, needs the media than our lives take a different turn. It becomes a story of hide, show, tell a bit, hide some more. The result might not be a deep picture but it’s a picture, a picture created not only by the person itself but also by the media and the to and fro. Because yes ‘fame’ too has its price.
We follow Marco Pierre White from Leeds to London, yes, the road has potholes and lacunae, but we do get a bit of his story, his thoughts and we have lots and lots of names. OK the names I had to look up because they were not part of my narrative but hey it’s his story and if names are important to him or his advisors pushed for their inclusion who am I to cavil.
A special point of interest for me was his journey towards excellence and burnout. I have the same need for excellence and burnout is so real. Can we excel and last the journey, maybe we should tweak our vision of excellence, make it a journey rather than an endpoint.
We follow Marco Pierre White from Leeds to London, yes, the road has potholes and lacunae, but we do get a bit of his story, his thoughts and we have lots and lots of names. OK the names I had to look up because they were not part of my narrative but hey it’s his story and if names are important to him or his advisors pushed for their inclusion who am I to cavil.
A special point of interest for me was his journey towards excellence and burnout. I have the same need for excellence and burnout is so real. Can we excel and last the journey, maybe we should tweak our vision of excellence, make it a journey rather than an endpoint.
May 12, 2013
Silly as it sounds, I started reading this book after watching Marco Pierre White in action on Masterchef Professionals. I know precious little about fine dining, but I liked the man from what I saw, and thought that a book about his life would be interesting.
I was half-right.
The book begins beautifully. In fact, the first half was one of the best autobiographies I’d read - about how a young boy from very humble beginnings started a life and built a career in the culinary scene in England. It was honest without being sappy, insightful without being too detail-laden. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Unfortunately, it went off the rail for me thereafter. I felt like Mr White had a list of incidents (mostly reported in the press) that he felt the need to explain or address. Fair enough, but I’m not sure this was the place to do it. The book’s flow vanished completely, and became a series of reactions and recounting of specific scenes or words exchanged. I wasn’t interested and eventually, got quite bored.
I come out of this read still greatly respecting the man - he’s obviously a legend in the world of chefs. But I think his editor did him a disservice in the second half. The first half is good enough that I’d recommend you read it anyway - but be ready for a disappointing change some way in.
I was half-right.
The book begins beautifully. In fact, the first half was one of the best autobiographies I’d read - about how a young boy from very humble beginnings started a life and built a career in the culinary scene in England. It was honest without being sappy, insightful without being too detail-laden. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Unfortunately, it went off the rail for me thereafter. I felt like Mr White had a list of incidents (mostly reported in the press) that he felt the need to explain or address. Fair enough, but I’m not sure this was the place to do it. The book’s flow vanished completely, and became a series of reactions and recounting of specific scenes or words exchanged. I wasn’t interested and eventually, got quite bored.
I come out of this read still greatly respecting the man - he’s obviously a legend in the world of chefs. But I think his editor did him a disservice in the second half. The first half is good enough that I’d recommend you read it anyway - but be ready for a disappointing change some way in.
December 27, 2010
I liked this book. . .it was unpretentious, well-crafted and interesting. If this sounds like I'm damning it with faint praise I kinda am. . .
Marco White is the self-described "first celebrity chef" aka "rock star chef" - he made great sacrifices to gain three Michelin Guide stars for one of his restaurants and is clearly passionate about high cuisine. It comes across and is compelling. At the end of the day this did not transcend the genre. . .i.e. a memoir by someone at the top of their field. Nothing really remains at the end. . .he got his stars, he was kind of an asshole at times (kicking bores out of his dining hall is a recurring theme) and then he retired. He also had sex a few times. I think what hinders the greatness of this book is a lack of self-doubt - which is truly incredible to witness but trends the overall affect of this book to the average. You can admire his amazing achievement (try to make sense of the recipes in the back) but are left with a portrait of a damaged man. . .unappealing for his absence of love and humanity.
Still this was a good read. . .fun for people into the kitchen. I think though - for punters like us - Heat by Bill Buford is the top of the heap.
Marco White is the self-described "first celebrity chef" aka "rock star chef" - he made great sacrifices to gain three Michelin Guide stars for one of his restaurants and is clearly passionate about high cuisine. It comes across and is compelling. At the end of the day this did not transcend the genre. . .i.e. a memoir by someone at the top of their field. Nothing really remains at the end. . .he got his stars, he was kind of an asshole at times (kicking bores out of his dining hall is a recurring theme) and then he retired. He also had sex a few times. I think what hinders the greatness of this book is a lack of self-doubt - which is truly incredible to witness but trends the overall affect of this book to the average. You can admire his amazing achievement (try to make sense of the recipes in the back) but are left with a portrait of a damaged man. . .unappealing for his absence of love and humanity.
Still this was a good read. . .fun for people into the kitchen. I think though - for punters like us - Heat by Bill Buford is the top of the heap.
January 11, 2022
This guy is a favorite of mine, and he tells his story so well! Working in a kitchen the last 15 years, it’s funny to hear stories from one of the best to ever do it…. Very inspiring!
August 24, 2013
You've achieved your life's dream at age 33. Now what? It's a problem few of us even think about, let alone encounter. It's the problem Chef Marco White faced in 1995. The choices he made at that point were, like his life, unusual and courageous.
DEVIL IN THE KITCHEN is Marco White's memoir. It's the story of a boy from a financially strapped working class home in Leeds. It chronicles the distress of a boy who lost his mother at age 6, who feared the loss of his father from terminal cancer four years later, who was estranged from his father in late adolescence and who floundered through two unsuccessful marriages and nearly a dozen irretrievably damaged relationships in pursuit of his dream.
Much of his story follows an established template -- long hours, grueling work, physical discomfort, verbal abuse, sleep deprivation and unremitting pressure. Both physically and mentally, White focuses on his career as if waging a battle campaign. It is no accident that he gets his culinary training on the job, moving from one Michelin starred restaurant to the next. At his two star restaurant, Harvey's, he recounts cringe-worthy anecdotes which reflect a manic obsession for perfectionism that make Hell's Kitchen's Gordon Ramsay seem like he is on tranquilizers by comparison.
For a chef's memoir, the book touches on food in a cursory way. Chef White does, however, reflect on the grandeur of the Escoffier tradition. White got his start at the Hotel St. George, and his appreciation of the “Grand Hotel” era echos the admiration for Chef Paul Bocuse evident in KNIVES AT DAWN. White has a keen appreciation of history. He contrasts early on the differences between the era of his youth and the present. Diners then were much less sophisticated, and the experimentation we have come to take for granted grew out of a few gradual experiments by chefs considered radical in their day. This was especially true in Britain, where comfort food like Toad in the Hole was both expected and ubiquitous.
Chef White is not an introspective man. Behind all of his stories, we sense the pervasive influence of British class distinctions. When Prince Charles mistakenly believes he is French (his full name is Marco Pierre White) it is a social miscue that triggers red-faced embarrassment on the prince's part. It's hard for an American to think of such a situation as anything other than merely funny. While denying that he envied the rich and famous in his youth, one can't help but wonder if young Marco didn't envy their sense of belonging. The contrast between his ambitions and his upbringing constantly seemed to make him an outsider in any group. At Harvey's, Chef White's almost sadistic treatment of offending restaurant patrons seems not unlike summary evictions from the perfect-fit world he is attempting to create for himself.
As the book ends, Chef White has decided to give up his Michelin stars and leave the kitchen. The new chapter in his life anticipates business ventures and publicity stints – a less stressful route than his demanding kitchen routine. Hopefully, he declares: “The process of writing this book helped me to leave behind the baggage that was weighing me down and allowed me to move forward with my life. I like to think that I've developed, for the best.”
Despite recent setbacks, the reader hopes as much for him as well. Look at the portraits of him by Bob Carlos Clarke on the web and you will see a charismatic intensity that commands at least interest, if not admiration.
DEVIL IN THE KITCHEN is Marco White's memoir. It's the story of a boy from a financially strapped working class home in Leeds. It chronicles the distress of a boy who lost his mother at age 6, who feared the loss of his father from terminal cancer four years later, who was estranged from his father in late adolescence and who floundered through two unsuccessful marriages and nearly a dozen irretrievably damaged relationships in pursuit of his dream.
Much of his story follows an established template -- long hours, grueling work, physical discomfort, verbal abuse, sleep deprivation and unremitting pressure. Both physically and mentally, White focuses on his career as if waging a battle campaign. It is no accident that he gets his culinary training on the job, moving from one Michelin starred restaurant to the next. At his two star restaurant, Harvey's, he recounts cringe-worthy anecdotes which reflect a manic obsession for perfectionism that make Hell's Kitchen's Gordon Ramsay seem like he is on tranquilizers by comparison.
For a chef's memoir, the book touches on food in a cursory way. Chef White does, however, reflect on the grandeur of the Escoffier tradition. White got his start at the Hotel St. George, and his appreciation of the “Grand Hotel” era echos the admiration for Chef Paul Bocuse evident in KNIVES AT DAWN. White has a keen appreciation of history. He contrasts early on the differences between the era of his youth and the present. Diners then were much less sophisticated, and the experimentation we have come to take for granted grew out of a few gradual experiments by chefs considered radical in their day. This was especially true in Britain, where comfort food like Toad in the Hole was both expected and ubiquitous.
Chef White is not an introspective man. Behind all of his stories, we sense the pervasive influence of British class distinctions. When Prince Charles mistakenly believes he is French (his full name is Marco Pierre White) it is a social miscue that triggers red-faced embarrassment on the prince's part. It's hard for an American to think of such a situation as anything other than merely funny. While denying that he envied the rich and famous in his youth, one can't help but wonder if young Marco didn't envy their sense of belonging. The contrast between his ambitions and his upbringing constantly seemed to make him an outsider in any group. At Harvey's, Chef White's almost sadistic treatment of offending restaurant patrons seems not unlike summary evictions from the perfect-fit world he is attempting to create for himself.
As the book ends, Chef White has decided to give up his Michelin stars and leave the kitchen. The new chapter in his life anticipates business ventures and publicity stints – a less stressful route than his demanding kitchen routine. Hopefully, he declares: “The process of writing this book helped me to leave behind the baggage that was weighing me down and allowed me to move forward with my life. I like to think that I've developed, for the best.”
Despite recent setbacks, the reader hopes as much for him as well. Look at the portraits of him by Bob Carlos Clarke on the web and you will see a charismatic intensity that commands at least interest, if not admiration.
December 5, 2010
By the end of this book, Marco is neither a devil nor in the kitchen, but you do understand why he once was both. Undeniably a difficult character, the autobiography goes some way to explaining the drive and motivations behind the man and I did wonder if a couple of therapy sessions had added to some of the more reflective and self-analytical passages. On the other hand, selective amnesia is often also in evidence especially when concerning business or personal relationships, although he does resist having a malicious swipe at those involved, perhaps an acknowledgment of his part in the downfalls. There is no doubt he inspired and changed a generation of chefs and drove himself to the edge of physical and mental breakdown in trying to achieve a perfection that would bring some sense of inner satisfaction, but you are left in no doubt that the person he wanted to please most of all died when he was too young to impress her. The ghost of Marco's mother is a constant presence in his life, and as he recounts the ups and downs of his career you feel that inner peace is something that he's always struggled and is still struggling to find. As an autobiography, this is quite a revealing and straightforward book but also entertaining and especially evocative of Eighties London. Recommended.
October 8, 2011
3.5 Wow, this is a tough one to rate. On the one hand, it's an autobiography (ghostwritten) of a charismatic, narcissistic, volatile, wildly-talented chef. On the other hand, it's an autobiography of a charismatic, narcissistic, volatile, wildly-talented chef. The story is entertaining, mostly compelling, and there's a good deal of culinary and kitchen life. But the further you read, the more you notice how much has been left out and how just about every anecdote comes padded in justification, righteousness or plea for understanding. How often the word "friend" appears when name-dropping, yet in the end seems a concept perhaps utterly foreign to him. Conveniently avoided are detail (or even mention) of issues pertaining to his frequent moves in kitchens and partnerships, and there's essentially nothing at all about his post-kitchen career as restaurateur. If an ultimately too-short MPW-sanitized MPW on MPW appeals, this is a terrific read (and I'd give high recommendations to do so to anybody in the biz).
March 17, 2019
Anthony Bourdain's books ruined me for anyone else's chef memoirs. :(
July 10, 2021
As I've always said, cooking is a philosophy, it's not a recipe - unless it's a pastry and then it's chemistry - so therefore it's not just teaching them how to cook, it's sharing your philosophy and your vision with them. It's as simple as that. A good chef is a pied piper, they follow him.
September 17, 2023
I had this book on my "to-read" list but earlier this month in the middle of a fiction fatigue and feeling particularly keen on another culinary book I finally decided to read it on a whim.
Marco Pierre White's journey is definitely interesting, one fueled by determination, leading to White becoming the first British chef and the youngest chef ever to earn 3 Michelin stars. A fascinating account of what happens behind kitchen doors and what it takes to produce a restaurant of that caliber that competes in the highest echelon of gastronomy.
However, the personality on display is braggadocios (perhaps deservedly) and some antics that ranged from mere childish behavior all the way up to rage in the kitchen makes it hard to fully connect with White. Where you spend chapters seeing him forge relationships only to discover over the course of 1 page how a lot of the influential ties he once had all got severed. At one point White claims he believes everyone's palate is different and thus customer opinion matters, then prides himself on his reputation for kicking out customers he doesn't like. He worships discipline but enforces it through brutality. Reading this book forced me through a mix of emotions and opinions regarding White, in which I still haven't been able to decide how I feel.
Bonus points though to showing me more of Gordon Ramsay's early years.
Marco Pierre White's journey is definitely interesting, one fueled by determination, leading to White becoming the first British chef and the youngest chef ever to earn 3 Michelin stars. A fascinating account of what happens behind kitchen doors and what it takes to produce a restaurant of that caliber that competes in the highest echelon of gastronomy.
However, the personality on display is braggadocios (perhaps deservedly) and some antics that ranged from mere childish behavior all the way up to rage in the kitchen makes it hard to fully connect with White. Where you spend chapters seeing him forge relationships only to discover over the course of 1 page how a lot of the influential ties he once had all got severed. At one point White claims he believes everyone's palate is different and thus customer opinion matters, then prides himself on his reputation for kicking out customers he doesn't like. He worships discipline but enforces it through brutality. Reading this book forced me through a mix of emotions and opinions regarding White, in which I still haven't been able to decide how I feel.
Bonus points though to showing me more of Gordon Ramsay's early years.
June 19, 2008
Marco Pierre White has had an illustrious career for sure, but he's no Anthony Bourdain. At least Tony has respect for the cultures of the world and sees what an as* he has been.
I wish Marco well but thought this was just another retrospective of a self-absorbed, workaholic madman who achieved high culinary honors by manipulating, terrifying, insulting, abusing, and ignoring anyone who should have mattered to him (except his wife Mati, who must be a saint or the ultimate masochist).
I'm glad to see he's stepped out of the kitchen to rake in royalties from his 30+ restaurants and enjoy a bit of introspection.
I wish Marco well but thought this was just another retrospective of a self-absorbed, workaholic madman who achieved high culinary honors by manipulating, terrifying, insulting, abusing, and ignoring anyone who should have mattered to him (except his wife Mati, who must be a saint or the ultimate masochist).
I'm glad to see he's stepped out of the kitchen to rake in royalties from his 30+ restaurants and enjoy a bit of introspection.
October 27, 2011
Marco is undoubtedly a brilliant chef, his accolades and accomplishments proceed him in the culinary world of fine food. As a person; he is arrogant, pompous, self centered, and extremely easy to become disgusted with. It seems as though he left a bigger wake in life as a personality who famously belittled and badgered every friend, lover, family member, peer, acquaintance, customer, and business associate he ever dealt with. If there is such a thing as karma, he is in for a rude awakening. I would rather have a hot dog or grilled cheese sandwich than patronize one of his restaurants! It is always about the Guest Marco!
January 18, 2025
3.5/5
este ano vou tentar escrever alguma coisinha aqui sobre cada livro que leio
sobre este, é uma leitura muito leve e corresponde ao título, quem gosta de hell's kitchen e kitchen nightmares e deseja perceber *quem* criou o "monstro" gordon ramsay está aqui uma boa autobiografia
dentro deste tema, tenho que dizer que gostei mais do kitchen confidential do anthony bourdain, simplesmente por incidir mais na paixão por detrás da arte de cozinhar e nas personalidades desse submundo. este livro, por sua vez, cativa-me por retratar o que acontece quando a obsessão e a ambição são levadas até à sua conclusão lógica: depois de plantar a bandeira na montanha, é descer e subir a outra ao lado. mas o que acontece quando não há mais montanhas?
se pegam neste livro à espera de histórias de batalhas campais nas cozinhas de restaurantes e clientes irritantes a ser expulsos de forma dramática, o prato corresponde ao menu (had to be done), contudo dei por mim a entrar em modo leitura diagonal mais que uma vez (tantos nomes, tantos nomes...)
este ano vou tentar escrever alguma coisinha aqui sobre cada livro que leio
sobre este, é uma leitura muito leve e corresponde ao título, quem gosta de hell's kitchen e kitchen nightmares e deseja perceber *quem* criou o "monstro" gordon ramsay está aqui uma boa autobiografia
dentro deste tema, tenho que dizer que gostei mais do kitchen confidential do anthony bourdain, simplesmente por incidir mais na paixão por detrás da arte de cozinhar e nas personalidades desse submundo. este livro, por sua vez, cativa-me por retratar o que acontece quando a obsessão e a ambição são levadas até à sua conclusão lógica: depois de plantar a bandeira na montanha, é descer e subir a outra ao lado. mas o que acontece quando não há mais montanhas?
se pegam neste livro à espera de histórias de batalhas campais nas cozinhas de restaurantes e clientes irritantes a ser expulsos de forma dramática, o prato corresponde ao menu (had to be done), contudo dei por mim a entrar em modo leitura diagonal mais que uma vez (tantos nomes, tantos nomes...)
October 26, 2025
Anyway, Martin remembers me showing him my testicles as we got changed, and that is what first springs to his mind when the name Marco Pierre White is mentioned.
This is not a memoir or an autobiography, it's just a collection of anecdotes in a trench coat.
White is either completely unwilling to open up and be vulnerable about his past mistakes, or he really does believe he was barely ever in the wrong.
The often crass stories shared here are each worth a chuckle or two, but all together they become quite grating, especially when told under the weight of White's ego (To be fair I haven't eaten the guy's food, so maybe it really is as transcendent as he often mentions).
Some of White's behavior is notably gross, and I am shocked he has not been hit with mountains of lawsuits.
Throughout the book you get the sense that White can't bring himself to feel bad about pushing away friends, I almost feel sad for him that the book ends with him in what seems like (if you read between the lines) a pretty sad place that he can't admit he is at fault for.
This is not a memoir or an autobiography, it's just a collection of anecdotes in a trench coat.
White is either completely unwilling to open up and be vulnerable about his past mistakes, or he really does believe he was barely ever in the wrong.
The often crass stories shared here are each worth a chuckle or two, but all together they become quite grating, especially when told under the weight of White's ego (To be fair I haven't eaten the guy's food, so maybe it really is as transcendent as he often mentions).
Some of White's behavior is notably gross, and I am shocked he has not been hit with mountains of lawsuits.
Throughout the book you get the sense that White can't bring himself to feel bad about pushing away friends, I almost feel sad for him that the book ends with him in what seems like (if you read between the lines) a pretty sad place that he can't admit he is at fault for.
December 8, 2017
Perfect !
September 21, 2014
From what I've read, classic French cooking—the kind Marco Pierre White excels in—seems filled with confections. Hillocks of puff pastry or shivering gelees sheltering stronger stuff inside: fish, eggs, puddings of blood or brain.
In a way, The Devil in the Kitchen is like those dishes: under the puff pastry of celebrity memoir lurks the tale of a brutally ambitious chef, wanting nothing in life but his own three Michelin star restaurant. Hands down the best parts of this book are when White talks about his strategies for achieving first employment and then advancement at each of the two star restaurants in London, what he learns from each, and how he contrives to top them. If the chef life interests you, it's meaty and intoxicating stuff.
But just as with a meal, you have to consider the book as a whole...and it is that bland, underbaked puff pastry that fails the reader in the end. White had a colorful childhood and years of celebrity so he doesn't lack for stories, but he very actively eschews introspection.
This works when he and ghost writer James Steen—and I have to say I found entirely charming the amount of praise White heaps on Steen in the Acknowledgments (or perhaps Steen heaps on himself, maybe?—are making a case for White as a fiend driven only to become the best chef in England, but fails badly when White hits that goal and decides to retire from the kitchen at the age of 35. There are a few paragraphs talking about the decision and they all but shrug on the page at you.
Worse, the book continues from there, so one gets to hear more about White's devotion to opening restaurants and earning money, to children he rarely bothers to name and a wife he never bothers to describe. A long semi-amusing anecdote about business partner Michael Caine suggests any number of things about White (an obsession with the rich and successful, his own fiscal conservatism, a near-constant opportunism) that cast all the previous pages in lights other than how White would want them perceived.
I don't care much if that's the case, frankly: I'm more than happy to read about people I wouldn't want to share a meal with, but a memoir should at least be entertainingly fraudulent.
But yeah, I'm giving it three stars because the stuff I enjoyed, I enjoyed a lot. There are probably better books out there that give more insight into the mind of a successful chef, but this was one of my first. Until a better one comes along and really shows me what I've been missing, I can't help but have some fondness for The Devil in the Kitchen.
In a way, The Devil in the Kitchen is like those dishes: under the puff pastry of celebrity memoir lurks the tale of a brutally ambitious chef, wanting nothing in life but his own three Michelin star restaurant. Hands down the best parts of this book are when White talks about his strategies for achieving first employment and then advancement at each of the two star restaurants in London, what he learns from each, and how he contrives to top them. If the chef life interests you, it's meaty and intoxicating stuff.
But just as with a meal, you have to consider the book as a whole...and it is that bland, underbaked puff pastry that fails the reader in the end. White had a colorful childhood and years of celebrity so he doesn't lack for stories, but he very actively eschews introspection.
This works when he and ghost writer James Steen—and I have to say I found entirely charming the amount of praise White heaps on Steen in the Acknowledgments (or perhaps Steen heaps on himself, maybe?—are making a case for White as a fiend driven only to become the best chef in England, but fails badly when White hits that goal and decides to retire from the kitchen at the age of 35. There are a few paragraphs talking about the decision and they all but shrug on the page at you.
Worse, the book continues from there, so one gets to hear more about White's devotion to opening restaurants and earning money, to children he rarely bothers to name and a wife he never bothers to describe. A long semi-amusing anecdote about business partner Michael Caine suggests any number of things about White (an obsession with the rich and successful, his own fiscal conservatism, a near-constant opportunism) that cast all the previous pages in lights other than how White would want them perceived.
I don't care much if that's the case, frankly: I'm more than happy to read about people I wouldn't want to share a meal with, but a memoir should at least be entertainingly fraudulent.
But yeah, I'm giving it three stars because the stuff I enjoyed, I enjoyed a lot. There are probably better books out there that give more insight into the mind of a successful chef, but this was one of my first. Until a better one comes along and really shows me what I've been missing, I can't help but have some fondness for The Devil in the Kitchen.
January 27, 2015
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book; in one part a fascinatingly rewarding reminiscence of 1980s London; and in another a raw insight into what it took to succeed, both financially and socially, in the restaurant trade. James Steen (the ghost-writer) has done such a superb job here that found myself wishing that I could now read his book of how he wrote this book. I can’t believe that he could have had an easy time of it.
Good 1980s restaurant food WAS memorable, though mainly because of the exuberant decorative extremes it hit before a modicum of sense reasserted itself. MPW had (still has?) that subtle sense ‘in spades’; as glimpsed throughout this book. His astute ‘blink and you miss it’ observation as to how Albert Roux “touched the dishes with his eyes” (pg.55) before they were sent to table, speaks absolute volumes about quality. Today, I am intensely saddened, dislike, and indeed actively avoid restaurants where the chef whose name advertises and prices the restaurant is not to be routinely found in that kitchen.
MPW is clearly a terrifically complex but deeply talented man. I might not commission him to lead a corporate training course on leadership skills; but I bet that even today he has the gritty pugnacious ability to inspire those who have no hope within themselves to believe that they too can take control and change their lives for the better.
I so very much hope that MPW has now found his own inner peace and happiness, is still fishing on the River Test, and that he thoroughly enjoys cooking what he catches.
Good 1980s restaurant food WAS memorable, though mainly because of the exuberant decorative extremes it hit before a modicum of sense reasserted itself. MPW had (still has?) that subtle sense ‘in spades’; as glimpsed throughout this book. His astute ‘blink and you miss it’ observation as to how Albert Roux “touched the dishes with his eyes” (pg.55) before they were sent to table, speaks absolute volumes about quality. Today, I am intensely saddened, dislike, and indeed actively avoid restaurants where the chef whose name advertises and prices the restaurant is not to be routinely found in that kitchen.
MPW is clearly a terrifically complex but deeply talented man. I might not commission him to lead a corporate training course on leadership skills; but I bet that even today he has the gritty pugnacious ability to inspire those who have no hope within themselves to believe that they too can take control and change their lives for the better.
I so very much hope that MPW has now found his own inner peace and happiness, is still fishing on the River Test, and that he thoroughly enjoys cooking what he catches.
November 29, 2012
What a surprise this was. I figured it'd be good for a few stories about getting high, banging chicks in walk-in coolers, living paycheck to paycheck well into middle age... you know, that sort of thing. I was a big fan of Kitchen Confidential, so for $3 or whatever this cost, it was a no-brainer. Come to find out it isn't anything like that. For a book with the word sex in the title, this is the least sexual book of all time, of ALL TIME. If I added sex to my own book's title, it would be tied for first. Marco Pierre White is perhaps the most decorated chef in the history of being a chef (certainly the top British chef), the way he got there is by being ridonkulously single-minded in his approach, to the point where he doesn't bother talking to his own relatives for decades at a time. He discusses a few different marriages he's had, and you get the sense that there might be more that he just plain forgot. The Devil in the Kitchen is like if Michael Jordan could articulate what it's been like to live with his intense to the point where its kinda creepy competitiveness. It's madd interesting in a Malcolm Gladwell sort of way. Not just for foodies.
March 13, 2008
Ok, second book in a row that I was just glad to get to then end! The subtitle of The Devil in the Kitchen is Sex, Pain, Madness, and the Making of Great Chef… I think the more accurate title would have been “Being a great chef is an excuse for sex, pain, and madness”. The autobiography covers Marco White’s (big name chef in Britain) life starting as a child with the early loss of his mother, through to retiring young after receiving the highest Michelin accolades possible. You kind of get a “this happened, that happened” mode of story telling, no drama (and it seems there had to be plenty of drama). And it seems every awful behavior is justified… it was ok to manage through fear, didn’t I produce some other great chef’s? I’m not sure why I pissed off so many business partners, didn’t I have great restaurants? I abused many people, but it was all in my effort to be the greatest chef ever in Britain. It was much too neat, I suspect that Mr. White has done a great job of whitewashing his memories, but not writing a great book.
July 20, 2020
I really like the first 2/3rds of this book covering his early years and moving steadily up in the world of chefing. However the last 1/3rd just seems to be mostly about score settling and trying to justify why he never talks to any of his ex-colleagues and business partners and why most of it ended up in court cases. A bit petty.
And another really distracting element throughout the whole book was that the first person style and sentence structure which was almost identical to that used in the Alan Partridge books. Plus alot of the anecdote that Marco tells feel like they could end '...and needless to say, I had the last laugh'.
And another really distracting element throughout the whole book was that the first person style and sentence structure which was almost identical to that used in the Alan Partridge books. Plus alot of the anecdote that Marco tells feel like they could end '...and needless to say, I had the last laugh'.
August 15, 2017
An interesting insight into the culinary world before it became "popularised" by reality TV/cooking based shows.
I enjoyed the way that Marco told the story of his life. From humble working class beginnings, to the adrenaline fuelled food junkie, who realised at the end of it all, what did it really matter what anyone thought of his food anyway, if it no longer fed his obsessional interest in it.
I enjoyed the way that Marco told the story of his life. From humble working class beginnings, to the adrenaline fuelled food junkie, who realised at the end of it all, what did it really matter what anyone thought of his food anyway, if it no longer fed his obsessional interest in it.
November 4, 2023
I’m a sucker for autobiographies of chefs. So there is that. But I also just could not pass up the chance to read about the life of “the man who made Gordon Ramsay cry.”
At times incendiary, at others heartfelt and tender, “Devil In The Kitchen” is a meaningful reflective piece by one of the most famous chefs of our time. A man who, knowingly or otherwise, inspired so many more to follow in his footsteps. Marco Pierre White is a classic chef in every sense of the phrase. He makes incredible food, of course, but also has the passion, drive, and explosiveness that we have been conditioned to expect from a master of the kitchen. We often see this intensity in his appearances in the media. What we do not see, however, is his tenderness and desire to uphold common decency and respect between people. He firmly believes there is a right and a wrong way to treat our fellow humans and he sticks to it. Sometimes that was handled verbally, others were much more physical. But he was always driven by a desire to do the right thing and show respect.
For many reasons, I have tremendous respect for Mr. White. Not just his cooking abilities and business acumen, but his willingness to do right by people is something to be admired. I would highly recommend this book to anyone with even a passing interest in the lives of chefs.
At times incendiary, at others heartfelt and tender, “Devil In The Kitchen” is a meaningful reflective piece by one of the most famous chefs of our time. A man who, knowingly or otherwise, inspired so many more to follow in his footsteps. Marco Pierre White is a classic chef in every sense of the phrase. He makes incredible food, of course, but also has the passion, drive, and explosiveness that we have been conditioned to expect from a master of the kitchen. We often see this intensity in his appearances in the media. What we do not see, however, is his tenderness and desire to uphold common decency and respect between people. He firmly believes there is a right and a wrong way to treat our fellow humans and he sticks to it. Sometimes that was handled verbally, others were much more physical. But he was always driven by a desire to do the right thing and show respect.
For many reasons, I have tremendous respect for Mr. White. Not just his cooking abilities and business acumen, but his willingness to do right by people is something to be admired. I would highly recommend this book to anyone with even a passing interest in the lives of chefs.
September 24, 2024
An interesting reading experience.
For me Marco Pierre White has achieved a sort of mythic status. The Devil in the Kitchen really seems to lean into that. All of the stories, while entertaining, have MPW centered, celebrated, and rarely questioned or second guessed.
Even as he recounts his numerous and famous kitchen outbursts they are framed as necessary means justified by his lofty goals. Did he occasionally go a bit too far? Perhaps, but he got his 3rd Michelin star at age 33, so how wrong could he be? His assistant, on whose phone he took lewd images of himself (among other “pranks”), has stuck with him for over a decade, so he must be an okay boss?
As mythology, this is excellent. In it we see a man on a heroes journey. A gastronomic Achilles. A deeply flawed and problematic figure who nonetheless counts it all as worth it as he reaches goal after goal until he takes his place among the gods of gastronomy on Mt. Escoffier.
As a work of serious reflection on his role in reshaping the world of food it is deeply lacking in self-awareness, frustratingly uncritical, and ultimately disappointing.
For me Marco Pierre White has achieved a sort of mythic status. The Devil in the Kitchen really seems to lean into that. All of the stories, while entertaining, have MPW centered, celebrated, and rarely questioned or second guessed.
Even as he recounts his numerous and famous kitchen outbursts they are framed as necessary means justified by his lofty goals. Did he occasionally go a bit too far? Perhaps, but he got his 3rd Michelin star at age 33, so how wrong could he be? His assistant, on whose phone he took lewd images of himself (among other “pranks”), has stuck with him for over a decade, so he must be an okay boss?
As mythology, this is excellent. In it we see a man on a heroes journey. A gastronomic Achilles. A deeply flawed and problematic figure who nonetheless counts it all as worth it as he reaches goal after goal until he takes his place among the gods of gastronomy on Mt. Escoffier.
As a work of serious reflection on his role in reshaping the world of food it is deeply lacking in self-awareness, frustratingly uncritical, and ultimately disappointing.
Read
March 7, 2024A really interesting book about being obsessed with excellence and the emptiness that accompanies achieving it. Fun anecdotes of a potential sociopathic chef, and a solid history of the London haute cuisine scene. No doubt, Marco Pierre White is extremely influential and successful.
He’s also a fucking arrogant, closed minded dickhead. The book hasn’t aged well at all. He rips on fusion food as if that’s not what is propelling the industry forward at the moment. Mentions MULTIPLE times that he’s buddies with loathsome Piers Morgan, Mario Batali, and that he shook Harvey Weinstein’s hand. What is to be expected of someone who spends his time voting conservative on the basis that he can open a restaurant because of it.
People are complicated, and I think his success is warranted and very admirable. Lots of the food I enjoy probably is derived from his influence. But Jesus Christ if he’s not a real miserable bastard.
He’s also a fucking arrogant, closed minded dickhead. The book hasn’t aged well at all. He rips on fusion food as if that’s not what is propelling the industry forward at the moment. Mentions MULTIPLE times that he’s buddies with loathsome Piers Morgan, Mario Batali, and that he shook Harvey Weinstein’s hand. What is to be expected of someone who spends his time voting conservative on the basis that he can open a restaurant because of it.
People are complicated, and I think his success is warranted and very admirable. Lots of the food I enjoy probably is derived from his influence. But Jesus Christ if he’s not a real miserable bastard.
November 27, 2017
Like most chef memoirs, it is more a collection of essays than a coherent narrative of life. I can see how he gained a reputation - cooking was his obsession and it seemed like he had very little balance at all in his life. Combined with losing his mother early and a disciplinary dad, it also makes sense how he'd have an explosive temper and issues with treating people unwell.
I did like how frank he was about not being good with girls, lol. I liked the frankness of his social awkwardness - sometimes all the memoirs lean to them being sex gods somehow.
Found his take on food very interesting too - want to try a few of the recipes he included.
I did like how frank he was about not being good with girls, lol. I liked the frankness of his social awkwardness - sometimes all the memoirs lean to them being sex gods somehow.
Found his take on food very interesting too - want to try a few of the recipes he included.
October 2, 2018
Such a stark contrast from Bourdain's book. Marco was focused, driven, and on a mission. Anthony Bourdain was on a mission to make as much money as he could while scoring as much booze and drugs as he could. Both equally great in their own respect.
Marco showed the amount of work that has to go into earning 3 Michelin stars while still pushing back against critics. The shining moments are when he stands up for the front staff and tells customers to literally, "Fuck off." It takes a certain type of bravery and ignorance to say that to a patron in front of the entire dining room.
Overall, a very deep look into his kitchen with a great voice.
Marco showed the amount of work that has to go into earning 3 Michelin stars while still pushing back against critics. The shining moments are when he stands up for the front staff and tells customers to literally, "Fuck off." It takes a certain type of bravery and ignorance to say that to a patron in front of the entire dining room.
Overall, a very deep look into his kitchen with a great voice.
January 4, 2022
Picking up The Devil in the Kitchen is like walking into a study with a crackling fireplace where Marco Pierre White happens to be retelling tales to a keen listener, and you've been invited to sit and listen, too.
White chronologically captures important anecdotes of his time as a boy and chef with honesty. Likewise, he does not hesitate to speak about relationships he's endured, business and romantic, in such a way that it reads like you're speaking to a close friend. You become Marco's confidant.
Upon first glance, I thought White was simply a chef, and not able to write as fluently as his contemporaries (i.e. Bourdain). However, with the aid of James Steen, I was pleasantly mistaken.
And thank you, Marco, for including the recipes at the end. I do not take pleasure in them being salt-and-peppered into my leisurely reading, thank you very much.
White chronologically captures important anecdotes of his time as a boy and chef with honesty. Likewise, he does not hesitate to speak about relationships he's endured, business and romantic, in such a way that it reads like you're speaking to a close friend. You become Marco's confidant.
Upon first glance, I thought White was simply a chef, and not able to write as fluently as his contemporaries (i.e. Bourdain). However, with the aid of James Steen, I was pleasantly mistaken.
And thank you, Marco, for including the recipes at the end. I do not take pleasure in them being salt-and-peppered into my leisurely reading, thank you very much.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 472 reviews