In August 1995 self-taught chef Heston Blumenthal opened the Fat Duck restaurant, which gained three Michelin stars in January 2004 when Heston was only thirty-seven-years old. In April 2005 the Fat Duck received worldwide recognition for its unique approach to gastronomy and was proclaimed The Best Restaurant in the world by the "50 Best" Academy of over 600 international food critics, journalists and chefs. This lavishly-illustrated, stunningly-designed, and gorgeously-photographed masterpiece will take you inside the head of the world's most maverick restaurateur.
The Fat Duck Book will be carefully separated into the following three sections: Part I, History Heston's improbable background and the unorthodox path he took to acheive his goal; his early ideas and early days running The Fat Duck, as well as his philosophy for what a food should be and what a chef's responsibility is in forwarding cuisine. Part II, Recipes For the first time ever, a large selection of recipes from the award-winning restaurant. Some are broken down into their many component parts, but they will remain very "cheffy." Part III, Science The science of it all, the technology and implements that make the dishes work. Various food scientists and taste experts will contribute to this section. It will be a foodie's dream to open up The Fat Duck Book and discover just what goes on in the head of one of the world's most famous chefs. How did he come up with the idea to open The Fat Duck? What book made him fascinated with cooking and the idea of opening a restaurant? How does he make dishes involving cans of nitrous not just delicious, but even comforting? And just what are his plans for the future...
"The Big Fat Duck Cookbook is the biggest (10 pounds with box), the most expensive ($250) and the most flamboyant (four brightly colored silk marker ribbons, uncountable full-page color illustrations and gatefolds, mainly caricatures of Mr. Blumenthal gliding through a dreamland of foods) cookbook in a bumper year. But like its author, who turns out to be a clear and even affecting writer, there is gravity holding the rocket in orbit. In the back, you will find deadly serious essays on such matters as the effect of heat on meat protein or "ice cream science," by himself and his entourage of university food scientists along with detailed rundowns on new kitchen tools such as refractometers. But all of this is stagesetting and infrastructure for the recipes with the wacko names, the sci-fi techniques and the eureka tastes and flavors... Makes you want to call Bray immediately to get a table at the earliest opportunity, which is two months from now. Meanwhile, there's the book." --Wall Street Journal
"The Big Fat Duck Cookbook is itself a work of art, combing a luxurious package with striking page layouts and artwork. Its recipes are almost the least of its appeal: Blumenthal's accompanying essays are the meat of the text and make for a fascinating 500 pages of reading." --Metroland (Albany, NY)
"I have never been so captivated, visually, by a cookbook (my own books excluded, of course), primarily by the illustrations, the playfulness of them, the exuberance of spirit they convey. A brilliant move to include these. The food photography is stunning, I think, because it's so big and Blumenthal's food is so dramatic... Huge congratulations to Blumenthal and his team for this over the top, way over the top, effort." --Michael Ruhlman
