Chef's Choice

Talking With my Mouth Full: My Life as a Professional Eater
Gail Simmons
Memoir

I’m gonna be honest, I am not a reality show fan. “Candid” or competitive. I don’t watch them, don’t want to watch them. So when I initially saw this book on the shelf at the library, I skipped past it when I caught the words Host of Top Chef: Just Desserts. But then my eyes came back to it again at the My Life as a Professional Eater part. Hmmm, she might have some interesting stuff to say about food. And I do love food. So I stuck this baby in my bag, hoping Ms. Simmons’ book wouldn’t be too swallowed up by her reality TV experiences.

Luckily for me, it wasn’t. She’s led an interesting life, staring in Toronto and finally ending up in NYC. She’s gone to culinary school, written for food magazines and newspapers, worked as an assistant to a famous chef, slaved away at several critically-aclaimed restaurants, and now juggles two shows. Impressive, I must say. She’s also a great writer: funny, descriptive, interesting. And what can I say about her food descriptions? Divine. Made me hungry.

The only part where I lost interest was when she talked about certain seasons of Top Chef and gave behind-the-scenes scoop on contestants. I’m sure Top Chef fans will enjoy that part, but the thing was, even the sections I didn’t care about were interesting. That’s the sign of a good book. She also drops plenty of cooking and baking tips along the way (most I already knew, but still, I never get bored reading about food). This is a great read for any Top Chef fan, competitive reality show junkie, or even your average foodie. Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to figure out what to have for lunch…