Life, on the Line; A Chef's Story of Chasing Greatness, Facing Death, and Redefining the Way We Eat

Achatz, Grant, and Kokonas, Nick

ISBN 10: 1592406017 / ISBN 13: 9781592406012

Published by Gotham Books, New York, 2011

About this Item

[x], 390 pages. Illustrations (some in color). Inscription appears to be signed by both authors (different ink) on the title page. Clearly signed by Grant. Additional ink notation on title page not from author. DJ has minor edge wear and flap creases. By 2007, chef Grant Achatz had already achieved the kind of success that most chefs only dream of. He had been named one of the best new chefs in America by Food & Wine in 2002, and received the James Beard Foundation Rising Star Chef of the Year Award in 2003. In 2005 he and Nick Kokonas opened the conceptually radical restaurant Alinea, which was named Best Restaurant in America by Gourmet magazine. Then, positioned firmly in the world's culinary spotlight, Achatz was diagnosed with stage IV squamous cell carcinoma--tongue cancer. Five months later, Grant was declared cancer-free, and just a few months following, he received the James Beard Foundation Outstanding Chef in America Award. This book tells the story of a culinary trailblazer's love affair with cooking, but it is also a book about survival, about nurturing creativity, and about profound friendship. This is not a cancer story in which the disease makes the guy realize he needs to stop focusing on his work and finally spend time with his two young sons, see his parents more, and reconnect with his former sweetheart. No, this is the cancer story that makes a man realize that his screaming ambition was right the whole time, and that if he had only a month to live, he'd better get some stuff done. Grant Achatz (born April 25, 1974) is an American chef and restaurateur often recognized for his contributions to molecular gastronomy or progressive cuisine. His Chicago restaurant Alinea has won numerous accolades and Achatz himself has won numerous awards from prominent culinary institutions and publications, including the Food and Wine's "best new chefs" award in 1998, "Rising Star Chef of the Year Award" for 1999, "Best Chef in the United States" for 1998 and a 2003 "Who's Who Inductee" from the James Beard Foundation. In 2005, Achatz opened Alinea in Chicago's Lincoln Park neighborhood with Nick Kokonas. The restaurant is located up the block from the famed Steppenwolf Theatre Company and is housed in a modest gray brick building which bears no external markings beyond its street number. Inside, the restaurant has no bar, no lobby and seats just 64 guests. Achatz serves diners a small-course tasting menu, consisting of approximately 18 courses. After less than two years of operation, the Mobil Travel Guide bestowed its Five Star Award on Alinea, making Alinea one of just 16 restaurants nationwide to rate five stars for 2007. On July 23, 2007, Achatz announced that he had been diagnosed with stage 4 squamous cell carcinoma of the mouth, which may have spread to his lymph nodes. University of Chicago physicians prescribed a course of chemotherapy and radiation treatments. This led to full remission. Derived from a Publishers Weekly article: In this memoir, chef Achatz and his business partner, Kokonas tell of their Chicago restaurant, Alinea, as well as his cancer diagnosis and recovery. Achatz grew up in Michigan in and around restaurants. He attended the Culinary Institute of America and studied with Charlie Trotter and Thomas Keller with whom he began developing both his palate and culinary vision. He returned to Chicago, where he met Kokonas, who became his business partner in 2005, when they opened Alinea. As Alinea evolves from drawing board to reality, the narrative alternates between the two men's voices. They discuss finding the right team of chefs and dealing with Achatz's diagnosis with stage IV tongue cancer. The various narratives?childhood, professional development, Alinea, Kokonas, illness?have individual strengths. The authors convey their passion as well as a solid business philosophy.

Seller Inventory # 82553

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Life, on the Line; A Chef's Story of Chasing Greatness, Facing Death, and Redefining the Way We Eat
• Publisher: Gotham Books, New York
• Publication Date: 2011
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1592406017
• ISBN 13: 9781592406012
• Binding: Hardcover
• Illustrator: Lara Kastner (Jacket photographs)
• Edition: First Printing [Stated].
• Condition: Very Good
• Dust Jacket Condition: Very good
• Signed: Signed by Author(s)

About this title

Synopsis

"One of America's great chefs" (Vogue) shares how his drive to cook immaculate food won him international renown-and fueled his miraculous triumph over tongue cancer.

In 2007, chef Grant Achatz seemingly had it made. He had been named one of the best new chefs in America by Food & Wine in 2002, received the James Beard Foundation Rising Star Chef of the Year Award in 2003, and in 2005 he and Nick Kokonas opened the conceptually radical restaurant Alinea, which was named Best Restaurant in America by Gourmet magazine. Then, positioned firmly in the world's culinary spotlight, Achatz was diagnosed with stage IV squamous cell carcinoma-tongue cancer.

The prognosis was grim, and doctors agreed the only course of action was to remove the cancerous tissue, which included his entire tongue. Desperate to preserve his quality of life, Grant undertook an alternative treatment of aggressive chemotherapy and radiation. But the choice came at a cost. Skin peeled from the inside of Grant's mouth and throat, he rapidly lost weight, and most alarmingly, he lost his sense of taste. Tapping into the discipline, passion, and focus of being a chef, Grant rarely missed a day of work. He trained his chefs to mimic his palate and learned how to cook with his other senses. As Kokonas was able to attest: The food was never better. Five months later, Grant was declared cancer-free, and just a few months following, he received the James Beard Foundation Outstanding Chef in America Award.

Life, on the Line tells the story of a culinary trailblazer's love affair with cooking, but it is also a book about survival, about nurturing creativity, and about profound friendship. Already much- anticipated by followers of progressive cuisine, Grant and Nick's gripping narrative is filled with stories from the world's most renowned kitchens-The French Laundry, Charlie Trotter's, el Bulli- and sure to expand the audience that made Alinea the number-one selling restaurant cookbook in America last year.

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About the Author

Grant Achatz is the multiple award-winning chef and owner of Alinea in Chicago. He has written for Gourmet, The New York Times Diner's Journal, and is a columnist for The Atlantic's Food Channel.

Nick Kokonas partnered with Grant Achatz in 2005 to develop Alinea, where he remains actively engaged in its strategy, marketing, and business planning.