Let's Eat France! - by François-Régis Gaudry (Hardcover)

About the Book

Book Synopsis

There's never been a book about food like Let's Eat France! A book that feels literally larger than life, it is a feast for food lovers and Francophiles, combining the completist virtues of an encyclopedia and the obsessive visual pleasures of infographics with an enthusiast's unbridled joy.

Here are classic recipes, including how to make a pot-au-feu, eight essential composed salads, pâté en croûte, blanquette de veau, choucroute, and the best ratatouille. Profiles of French food icons like Colette and Curnonsky, Brillat-Savarin and Bocuse, the Troigros dynasty and Victor Hugo. A region-by-region index of each area's famed cheeses, charcuterie, and recipes. Poster-size guides to the breads of France, the wines of France, the oysters of France--even the frites of France. You'll meet endive, the belle of the north; discover the croissant timeline; understand the art of tartare; find a chart of wine bottle sizes, from the tiny split to the Nebuchadnezzar (the equivalent of 20 standard bottles); and follow the family tree of French sauces.

Adding to the overall delight of the book is the random arrangement of its content (a tutorial on mayonnaise is next to a list of places where Balzac ate), making each page a found treasure. It's a book you'll open anywhere--and never want to close.

Review Quotes

"An encyclopedic (yet playful) celebration of French gastronomy."
--The New York Times Book Review

"Foodies will savor this stunning coffee-table book about all things French food--from recipes to guides to oysters and frites."
​--Real Simple, Holiday Gift Guide

"Truly epic. That's the only word to describe this book: more than 400 pages that crawl into every cranny of modern French cuisine. . . . Every topic you can think of is covered from onions to cheese to natural wine to Le Grand Couscous. And Gaudry does so with more personality and wit than one might expect from a project so vast."
--Houston Chronicle, The Best Cookbooks of the Year

"This six-pound compendium of everything French cuisine is a light-hearted collection of recipes (from mayonnaise to cassoulet); tips (best gastronomy museums, a guide to wild berries); a tour of the country via its breads, wines, and signature dishes; and anecdotes on star chefs from Julia Child to Daniel Boulud."
--National Geographic, Inspiring Books to Gift Travelers

"Ginormous . . . exuberant."
--Newsday, The Best Cookbooks of the Year

"Fascinating . . . astonishing."
--The Daily Mail(UK)

"If you love France you'll be in heaven as it's . . . an utterly joyous celebration of all things French."
--The Telegraph (UK), Diana Henry's 20 Best Cookbooks to Buy This Autumn

"Gaudry . . . surpasses expectations with this monster of a book (it weighs 6 pounds!). Any questions you could possibly have regarding the food of France are answered here. Sprinkled with a mix of recipes, fun facts, personality profiles and more, this book is perfect for any Francophile."
--FoodNetwork.com

"A master class in French gastronomy for the food-loving Francophile in your life."
--Afar.com

"[A] boisterously beautiful, ingeniously designed and illustrated book that answers every question you have about French cuisine and all the questions you didn't know you needed answers to. . . . C'est merveilleux!"

--BookPage, Top Pick in Cooking

​"From fun facts, anecdotes, ingredient highlights, and recipes to wine infographics and personality profiles, Let's Eat France! is not just another celebration of French classics through time; it's a fun and nostalgic reverence to l'art de vivre à la française, one deeply rooted in gastronomic tradition."
--Daniel Boulud

"When the most influential French food writer pays tribute to his country's cuisine, the result is an ambitious, entertaining, and funny book that makes you salivate."
--Alain Passard

"Let's Eat France! is a literary pot-au-feu--a stew of ingredients and stories that perfectly captures French cuisine."
--Dan Barber

"This new reference book of French food heritage is a must-have for your bookcase and your kitchen!"
--Anne-Sophie Pic

About the Author