Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Untasty Pudding



Charlotte au Chocolat: Memories of a Restaurant Girlhood
Charlotte Silver
Memoir

Any non-fiction book with “chocolate” in the title (especially if it’s in French) is guaranteed to lure me in. While this wasn’t the best restaurant memoir I’ve ever read, it certainly wasn’t the worst.

Charlotte Silver grew up in the restaurant biz. Her parents ran Upstairs at the Pudding, a restaurant in Harvard Square. Eventually, her parents divorced and Charlotte's mom ran the place on her own while Charlotte observed. Only she didn’t really observe all that much. You’d think a book about watching all the behind-the-scenes action in a restaurant would be juicy. But it’s not. Ms. Silver spends most of the time describing her dresses and sometimes the food. It all gets kind of boring after awhile and I found myself skimming a lot.

If you grew up in Boston or around Harvard, you’ll probably like this book. Otherwise, forget it.

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