First published 2011
Gabrielle Hamilton chronicles her path from a restless twenty-something to the owner of acclaimed New York restaurant Prune. She begins with her childhood kitchen, where her mother wielded an oily wooden spoon over a six-burner stove. Hamilton then recounts two decades of searching for direction, working in kitchens across France, Greece, and Turkey. Strangers fed her and taught her the true nature of hospitality. She details the unexpected obstacles of running Prune and navigating her complicated marriage to an Italian man. His mother's kitchen becomes a bridge between Hamilton's nostalgic past and her emerging role as a family matriarch. Hamilton writes with raw honesty about her unconventional route through various kitchens that shaped her identity. The memoir captures both grand adventures and intimate moments with equal candor and humor.
Genres: autobiography, memoir, biography-memoir, food-writing, culinary
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, unconventional-path
Setting: France, Greece, Italy, New York, Turkey
Period: 20th-century, 21st-century
304 pages · Hardcover · Random House