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📖 Book Synopsis: JAMES BEARD AWARD NOMINEE • NAMED ONE OF THE TEN BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY VOGUE • NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
“One of the great culinary stories of our time.”—Dwight Garner, The New York Times
It begins with a simple ritual: Every Saturday afternoon, a boy who loves to cook walks to his grandmother’s house and helps her prepare a roast chicken for dinner. The grandmother is Swedish, a retired domestic. The boy is Ethiopian and adopted, and he will grow up to become the world-renowned chef Marcus Samuelsson. This book is his love letter to food and family in all its manifestations.
Marcus Samuelsson was only three years old when he, his mother, and his sister—all battling tuberculosis—walked seventy-five miles to a hospital in the Ethiopian capital city of Addis Adaba. Tragically, his mother succumbed to the disease shortly after she arrived, but Marcus and his sister recovered, and one year later they were welcomed into a loving middle-class white family in Göteborg, Sweden. It was there that Marcus’s new grandmother, Helga, sparked in him a lifelong passion for food and cooking with her pan-fried herring, her freshly baked bread, and her signature roast chicken. From a very early age, there was little question what Marcus was going to be when he grew up.
Yes, Chef chronicles Marcus Samuelsson’s remarkable journey from Helga’s humble kitchen to some of the most demanding and cutthroat restaurants in Switzerland and France, from his grueling stints on cruise ships to his arrival in New York City, where his outsize talent and ambition finally come together at Aquavit, earning him a coveted New York Times three-star rating at the age of twenty-four. But Samuelsson’s career of “chasing flavors,” as he calls it, had only just begun—in the intervening years, there have been White House state dinners, career crises, reality show triumphs and, most important, the opening of the beloved Red Rooster in Harlem. At Red Rooster, Samuelsson has fulfilled his dream of creating a truly diverse, multiracial dining room—a place where presidents and prime ministers rub elbows with jazz musicians, aspiring artists, bus drivers, and nurses. It is a place where an orphan from Ethiopia, raised in Sweden, living in America, can feel at home.
With disarming honesty and intimacy, Samuelsson also opens up about his failures—the price of ambition, in human terms—and recounts his emotional journey, as a grown man, to meet the father he never knew. Yes, Chef is a tale of personal discovery, unshakable determination, and the passionate, playful pursuit of flavors—one man’s struggle to find a place for himself in the kitchen, and in the world.
Praise for Yes, Chef:
- “Such an interesting life, told with touching modesty and remarkable candor.”—Ruth Reichl
- “Marcus Samuelsson has an incomparable story, a quiet bravery, and a lyrical and discreetly glittering style—in the kitchen and on the page. I liked this book so very, very much.”—Gabrielle Hamilton
- “Plenty of celebrity chefs have a compelling story to tell, but none of them can top [this] one.”—The Wall Street Journal
- “Red Rooster’s arrival in Harlem brought with it a chef who has reinvigorated and reimagined what it means to be American. In his famed dishes, and now in this memoir, Marcus Samuelsson tells a story that reaches past racial and national divides to the foundations of family, hope, and downright good food.”—President Bill Clinton
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Discover the captivating memoir that takes you on a journey through flavors, cultures, and the culinary world. Introducing "Yes, Chef: A Memoir," the James Beard Award-nominated, New York Times bestselling book by the world-renowned chef Marcus Samuelsson.
Immerse yourself in the heartwarming tale that starts with a simple ritual of cooking alongside a Swedish grandmother and evolves into an extraordinary culinary adventure. As a three-year-old Ethiopian boy adopted into a loving Swedish family, Marcus Samuelsson's passion for food is ignited by his grandmother, Helga's, delicious recipes.
Explore the remarkable journey of Marcus Samuelsson as he rises through the ranks of Switzerland and France's most demanding restaurants, grueling stints on cruise ships, and his ultimate triumph at the celebrated Aquavit in New York City. At just twenty-four, Samuelsson earns a coveted New York Times three-star rating, shaping his status as an exceptional chef.
But the memoir doesn't stop at professional success. Samuelsson candidly shares the personal struggles he faced, the price of ambition, and the emotional journey of meeting his long-lost father. Prepare to be inspired by his unshakable determination and unwavering pursuit of flavors that transcend borders.
Join Marcus Samuelsson on this captivating culinary odyssey, as he creates a truly diverse and multiracial dining experience at the beloved Red Rooster in Harlem. At the Red Rooster, presidents, prime ministers, jazz musicians, artists, bus drivers, and nurses converge, making it a place where anyone, regardless of background, can feel at home.
Experience the delightful memoir hailed as "one of the great culinary stories of our time" by The New York Times. Let Marcus Samuelsson's touching modesty and remarkable candor whisk you away into his mesmerizing world of food, family, and passion. Order your copy of "Yes, Chef: A Memoir" today and embark on a culinary journey like no other.
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