Author of the bestselling A Year in Provence, Mayle's gastronomic baptism occurs when, as a 19-year-old, he dines for the first time in France. "At the first mouthful of French bread and French butter," he writes, "my taste buds, dormant until then, went into spasm." The paroxysm leads to serious food-and-wine perambulations--and, finally, to chapters including "The Thigh-Taster of Vitel" (a frog-eating fete); "Slow Food" (snail love in Martigny les Bains) and "The Guided Stomach" (an investigation of the Michelin Guide restaurant inspection), among others. Readers are also present for a debate on the secret of the perfect omelette; a search for the best possible chicken in Bourg-en-Bresse; and a visit to a St. Tropez restaurant notable for its scantily clad habitues. Those familiar with Mayle's work, and those yet to discover it, are in for a treat. --Arthur Boehm

Probably one of the more enlightening chapters is towards the end of the book, as the author does a behind-the-scenes report on the inspectors employed by the Michelin Guide, and the evolution of its star rating system. (This last bit was most instructive, though it still doesn't explain why Guido's Big Apple Pizza Palace down at the corner has no Michelin stars at all.)

Peter Mayle is one of those chaps, a bon vivant to the core, with whom it would be a true privilege to share a bottle of wine, a baguette, some stinky cheese, and (even) garlic-drenched snails at an outdoor cafe in some remote French village. His books continue to provide considerable pleasure and entertainment, and I shall continue to buy them without hesitation.


Not to be read on an empty stomach!   October 22, 2001
 10 out of 10 found this review helpful

For devotees of Peter Mayle's French frolics, his antics with a knife, fork and a corkscrew are a must. He takes you on a gastronomic tour de France, which made me instantly reach for my passport and head across the Channel. Not only does Peter Mayle extol the virtues of the traditional French culinary phenomena (snails, frogs' legs), but he also delves into other less well known delights (boudin, poulet de Bresse). What's more he even provides a list of contacts so you can discover all these delicacies for yourselves! For anyone new to Peter Mayle, I would personally recommend starting with his Provence books and then move onto this when you have developed a flavour for his writing.