Marching Swiftly Onward
Here we are at nearly March! How did that happen? Crazy.
February was a busy month, the highlight being the Roger Smith Cookbook Conference in Manhattan. Over three days, the who's who of the cookbook world gathered at the Roger Smith Hotel in midtown (where my father remembers eating a lunch of chicken a la king for the majority of 1957; surprisingly, there was no commemorative plaque). Authors, editors, publishers, photographers, and booksellers were there to meet and discuss cookbooks past and present. Amazingly, someone had the brilliant idea to videotape the panels (I chaired one and also sat on one), so if you weren't there but want to see them, here they are! A big thank you to the organizers; it was a lot of fun.
While in New York, Paula and I also hit a few museums, finally ate at Eleven Madison Park (fabulous!), and even met friends at the legendary Bemelmans Bar in the Carlyle Hotel. As you'll recall, Ludwig Bemelmans wrote and illustrated all the Madeleine books, as well as numerous books on food and travel, and in the 1930's, he received a commission to paint the bar at the Carlyle with wall-to-wall murals, and even all the lampshades on the table lamps. If you haven't been, you should make a point to go on your next trip; it is a wonder to behold, and is guaranteed to make you smile ear to ear.
I've lucked into a few great antiquarian cookbook libraries lately, so I'm laboring to get them up on shelves as well as onto my website; I also photograph some of them to post on Twitter as I pull them out of boxes, so if you don't follow me there, this is a good incentive! The vintage books make my heart pitter-patter; I love them, and am having a lot of fun digging through and researching them.
Spring is also the time that local schools hit me up for donations to their auctions. There are so many worthy ones, and many loyal customers among the parents at the schools, so I've come up with a solution to the quandary of saying yes to some and no to others (always frustrating). I am donating $100 a month to 826 Valencia, a wonderful after-school tutoring program for local students improving their writing skills. That's the equivalent of twenty-four $50 gift certificates a year, so everybody wins. Yay!
There are a few more events in February, not the least a twofer with legendary food author and editor Colman Andrews this coming Sunday. I know it's Oscar night, so some of you may opt to see him at my shop during the day, but the special Italian dinner he's collaborating on at Camino that night will be incredible, and is a steal at $85. So record the Oscars and come dine with us!
March events are coming fast and furious, and Jacques Pepin has rescheduled his Bay Area visit; he'll be at Omnivore on April 18 during the day, so drop by and meet him!
Warmly,
Celia Sack, Owner
Omnivore Books on Food
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Upcoming Events at Omnivore Books
Sun. Feb. 26 • Colman Andrews • The Country Cooking of Italy • 2 events!
3-4 p.m. talk at Omnivore Books - FREE
5:30 p.m. Dinner with Colman Andrews at Camino in Oakland!
Russ will create a special 3-course dinner inspired from the book. $85 per person including wine, gratuity and tax. Cocktails and cookbooks available for purchase. Call 510-547-5035 to reserve. Colman Andrews and Christopher Hirsheimer achieve the formidable feat of illuminating the world's most beloved cuisine in an entirely new light in this beautiful book. Drawing on more than 40 years of experience traveling and eating in Italy, Andrews explores every region, from Piedmont to Puglia, and provides the fascinating origins of dishes both familiar and unexpected.
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Wed. Feb. 29 • Gerald Asher • A Carafe of Red • 6-7 p.m. • FREE
Every wine has a story. In this collection of elegantly written essays from the past thirty years, updated with a new introduction and endnotes, renowned author Gerald Asher informs wine enthusiasts with insightful, engrossing accounts of wines from Europe and America that offer just as much for those who simply enjoy vivid evocations of people and places. Asher puts wine in its context by taking the reader on a series of discursive journeys that start with the carafe at his elbow.
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Thurs. March 1 • Elizabeth Andoh • Kibô (Brimming with Hope): Recipes and Stories from Japan's Tohoku. 6-7 p.m. • FREE
Kibô, an e-book, was written by Japanese culinary authority Elizabeth Andoh, who was in her Tokyo kitchen when the Great Eastern-Japan Earthquake struck. Over the following months she witnessed the strength of the people of the Tohoku region—one of the largest miso- and sake-producing areas in Japan--as they struggled with the effects of the resulting tsunami and nuclear accident. She was inspired to write Kibô (meaning "brimming with hope") to not only tell the story of the food of the Tohoku region but also to document the experiences of its people, both before and after the disaster.
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Sun. March 4 • Joy Wilson • Joy the Baker Cookbook • 3-4 p.m. • FREE
Joy Wilson is the voice behind the popular blog Joy the Baker. She's obsessed with butter, sugar, cream, and dark chocolate. Joy's love for sweets began at an early age with her father, a fanatical pie baker, and her mother, a cake decorator. Joy quickly learned that the shortest route between her and a warm batch of brownies was a bowl, wooden spoon, and hot oven.
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Tues. March 6 • WHAT MEAT-EATERS NEED TO KNOW: Guidance On Making Good Food Choices From Experts In Carnivory. Butcher's Guild Panel Discussion at Revival Kitchen + Bar • 2102 Shattuck Ave., Berkeley • 6-7 p.m. • FREE
Panel with butchers Ryan Farr, Marissa Guggiana, Peter Hertzmann and Morgan Maki of Bi-Rite, and led by Tia Harrison (Avedano's) who will be discussing the business and art of butchery. Followed by a book signing, salumi, and a specialty cocktail created by Revival for the evening and meaty snacks. No reservations necessary, just come on by!
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Thurs. March 8 • Tanya Denckla Cobb • Reclaiming Our Food: How the Grassroots Food Movement is Changing the Way We Eat • 6-7 p.m. • FREE
Reclaiming Our Food tells the stories of people across America who are finding new ways to grow, process, and distribute food for their own communities. Their successes offer both inspiration and practical advice. The projects described in this book are cropping up everywhere, from urban lots to rural communities and everywhere in between.
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Sat. March 10 • Shauna Sever • Marshmallow Madness • 3-4 p.m. • FREE
Shauna Sever is The Next Door Baker. With her easy, fun and accessible approach to baking and entertaining, she inspires both the pastry proficient and baking-phobic alike to tie their apron strings and head into the kitchen. And who doesn't love homemade marshmallows?! Samples will be served.
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Mon. March 12 • Chloe Coscarelli • Chloe's Kitchen: 125 Easy, Delicious Recipes for Making the Food you Love the Vegan Way • 6-7 p.m. • FREE
Classically trained Chef Chloe Coscarelli brings fun and energy to this healthful, animal-free cuisine by reinterpreting 125 of America’s favorite foods with great-tasting ingredients and clever techniques. Chef Chloe burst onto the culinary scene by winning the Food Network’s hit reality show Cupcake Wars—the first time a vegan chef captured the top prize—which delighted her many fans who had been loyally following her on chefchloe.com.
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Wed. March 14 • Kathy Gunst • Notes from a Maine Kitchen: Seasonally Inspired Recipes • 6-7 p.m. • FREE
"Kathy Gunst’s new cookbook, Notes From a Maine Kitchen: Seasonally Inspired Recipes, isn’t just another collection of Maine recipes. It’s her love letter to her adopted home state, and to the kitchens all across the state that produce the food synonymous with Maine." –Bangor Daily News
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Wed. March 21 • Barb Stuckey • Taste What You're Missing: The Passionate Eater's Guide to Why Good Food Tastes Good • 6-7 p.m. • FREE
A seasoned food developer, Barb Stuckey reveals that much of what we think we know about how taste works is wrong. And the truth is much more fascinating—for instance, your tongue is not divided into quadrants for sweet, sour, salt, and bitter and only a fraction of what you taste happens in your mouth. As Stuckey explains how our five senses work together to form “flavor perceptions,” she tells intriguing stories about people who have lost the sense of smell or taste and the unexpected ways their experience of food changes as a result.
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Sat. March 24 • Andrea Nguyen • Asian Tofu • 3-4 p.m. • FREE
Asian Tofu’s nearly 100 recipes explore authentic,ancient fare and modern twists that capture the culinary spirit of East, Southeast, and South Asia. There are spectacular favorites from Japan, Korea, Thailand, Singapore, and India, as well as delicious dishes from Taipei, San Francisco, Santa Monica, and New York. Andrea demystifies tofu and interprets traditional Asian cuisine for cooks, sharing compelling personal stories and dispatches from some of the world’s best tofu artisans along the way.
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Wed. March 28 • Willi Galloway • Eat Grow Cook: A Food Lover's Guide to Vegetable Gardening, including 50 Recipes • 6-7 p.m. • FREE
Grow Cook Eat will inspire people who already buy fresh, seasonal, local, organic food to grow the food they love to eat. For those who already have experience getting their hands dirty in the garden, this handbook will help them refine their gardening skills and cultivate gourmet quality food. The recipes at the end of each guide help readers explore the foods they grow and demonstrate how to use unusual foods, like radish greens, garlic scapes, and green coriander seeds.
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Wed. April 18 Jacques Pepin The Essential Pepin 1-2 p.m. FREE
Jacques will give an informal talk followed by a signing, so make your way over at lunch time and meet the master! For the first time ever, the legendary chef collects and updates the best recipes from his six-decade career. With a searchable DVD demonstrating every technique a cook will ever need.
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