A Fork in the Road: Tales of Food, Pleasure and Discovery on the Road

by James Oseland (Editor), Lonely Planet

Overview

Lonely Planet: The world's leading travel guide publisher

A Fork in the Road: Tales of Food, Pleasure and Discovery on the Road

2014 James Beard Award Nominee and 2014 Society of Travel Writers Foundation Thomas Lowell Travel Journalism Bronze Award Winner for Travel Book

Join us at the table for this 34-course banquet of original stories from food-obsessed writers and chefs sharing their life-changing food experiences.

The dubious joy of a Twinkie, the hunger-sauced rhapsody of fish heads, the grand celebration of an Indian wedding feast; the things we eat and the people we eat with remain powerful signposts in our memories, long after the plates have been cleared. Tuck in, and bon appetit!

Featuring tales from: James Oseland, Frances Mayes, Giles Coren, Curtis Stone, Annabel Langbein, Neil Perry, Tamasin Day-Lewis, Jay Rayner, Madhur Jaffrey, Michael Pollan, Josh Ozersky, Marcus Samuelsson, Naomi Duguid, Jane and Michael Stern, Francine Prose, Ma Thanegi, Kaui Hart Hemmings, Rita Mae Brown, Monique Truong, Fuschia Dunlop, David Kamp, Mas Masumoto, Daniel Vaughn, Tom Carson, Andre Aciman, MJ Hyland, Alan Richman, Beth Kracklauer, Sigrid Nunez, Chang Rae Lee, Julia Reed, Gael Greene

About Lonely Planet: Since 1973, Lonely Planet has become the world's leading travel media company with guidebooks to every destination, a suite of inspiring travel pictorials, literature, and references, an award-winning website, mobile and digital travel products, and a dedicated traveller community. Lonely Planet covers must-see spots but also enables curious travelers to get off beaten paths to understand more of the culture of the places in which they find themselves.

Important Notice: The digital edition of this book may not contain all of the images found in the physical edition.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781743601105
Publisher:	Lonely Planet Global Limited
Publication date:	10/01/2013
Series:	Lonely Planet Travel Literature
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
File size:	3 MB

About the Author

James Oseland is the Editor-in-Chief of SAVEUR. Under his stewardship, the magazine has received more than 25 awards, including five James Beard Awards and an award for best single-topic issue from the American Society of Magazine Editors.

Table of Contents

Introduction James Oseland 08

Consider the Twinkie Giles Coren 13

We'll Have the Cassoulet Francine Prose 25

The Good Witch Sandi Tan 33

The Oyster Men Jay Rayner 43

Southern Exposure Jane Michael Stern 53

How to Eat for Free in Helsinki M.J. Hyland 61

An Italian Education Curtis Stone 75

Afloat on the Amazon Gael Greene 85

What Becomes a Lady Rita Mae Brown 93

Enchanted Isle Monique Truong 101

They Eat Maggots, Don't They? Joe Dunthorne 113

Last Supper in Tuscany André Aciman 121

Chasing the Tail of Chiuchow Fuchsia Dunlop 131

Face To Face With Fugu Marcus Samuelsson 141

High on the Hog in Georgia Daniel Vaughn 149

Stolen Apples, Yankee Pot Roast and a Cabin By the Lake David Kamp 161

The Right Side of the Fall Line Annabel Langbein 171

Omar Sharif Slept Here Alan Richman 181

A Melancholic's Guide to Eating in Paris Josh Ozersky 193

The Importance of Chicken Livers Beth Kracklauer 203

Cuisine by Design Madhur Jaffrey 215

A Wedding Feast Tom Carson 229

Leek of Faith Carla Hall 241

Guns and Gluttony on the Campaign Trail Ma Thanegi 249

A Taste of Coconut Sigrid Nunez 257

Fish Heads Louisa Ermelino 267

City of Wonder Neil Perry 273

Devil in a Blue Apron Frances Mayes 281

The Boys of Summer David Mas Masumoto 289

A Coffee Ceremony Kaui Hart Hemmings 299

Meat on the Hoof Naomi Duguid 307

The Catch Tamasin Day-Lewis 317

In My Mother's Kitchen Martin Yan 325

Made By Hand Michael Pollan 331

Editorial Reviews

10/07/2013
As Oseland, who is the editor-in-chief of Saveur, points out in his introduction to this richly appetizing and sometimes humorous collection of travel stories by food critics, chefs, and writers, “At their most intense, these tastes of the new reveal something about the place you’re in and about yourself.” Among the stories from the book’s 34 contributors are a tale of eating fish heads and rice on a boat from Jakarta bound for Singapore by PW reviews director Louisa Ermelino; Texas Monthly barbecue editor Daniel Vaughan’s account of his search for the perfect ’cue in Georgia; and the London Observer restaurant critic Jay Rayner’s description of an encounter with oysters in Colchester, where “eating them is like being slapped around the face with spray off the bow of a wave-crashing yawl.” Other notable entries include novelist Andre Aciman’s story about his “last supper in Tuscany,” food writer Josh Ozersky’s “melancholic’s guide to eating in Paris,” and Wall Street Journal food editor Beth Kracklauer’s paean to chicken livers. Marcus Samuelsson, a contributor and owner of Red Rooster in Harlem, sums up the tone of the collection best: “It’s my curiosity about different cultures that keeps me tasting and seeking, and I don’t even want to lose my constant search for the next bite that I have to have.” (Dec.)

Publishers Weekly

The Guardian, December 16, 2013

“In a time when most food writing is about dieting or recipes, it’s a real pleasure to revisit the old art of food travel writing.”

Refinery29, December 16, 2013

“For the world traveler who thinks they've eaten everything, this is THE present of the year. Told through the personal stories of chefs, foodies, and travel writers, A Fork In The Road offers tales of legendary meals and truly unique food experiences across the globe. Dig in.”

The New York Times Book Review, December 6, 2013

“Critics, chefs and just plain bons vivants contribute to this anthology of food-themed travel yarns, which spans the globe from Addis Ababa to the Amazon.”

Kirkus Reviews, December 2013

“A savory collection of personal narratives about the ‘fabulous and even miraculous’ ways that food revives ‘the great, exciting promise of life’. . . . Funny, insightful and revealing, Oseland’s anthology is not just a delightful adventure in world cuisine, but also a thoughtful exploration of the emotions that so often accompany cooking, dining and eating. . . . Delicious reading for the discerning foodie.”

360 West Magazine, December 2013

“A bite of cassoulet can transport you to the French countryside, just as a taste of perfect mole launches you to a cobblestone street in Oaxaca. Enormously sentimental—and often funny—food memories fill each page of a A Fork in the Road, Lonely Planet’s new 304-page book of essays. Michael Pollan, Frances Mayes and Dallas’ own Daniel Vaughn (aka The Barbecue Snob) are among food writers, chefs and novelists who demonstrate with eloquence how eating shaped their travel experiences.”

Longitude, December 2013

“You don't have to read Proust to know how a single, well-composed bite can transport the diner to distant lands. This anthology gathers the great food and travel writers — from Michael Pollan to Frances Mayes — around one table.”

DailyCandy, November 27, 2013

”No matter the source of the story, the writing throughout the book is consistently tight enough to intrigue and descriptive enough to evoke emotion. . . . It’s so good. You’ll gobble it up.”

Los Angeles Magazine, November 26, 2013

“James Oseland has edited the book all food lovers wish they could compile. Some of the best food writers in the country recount tales of travel and tastes of far-away places in Lonely Planet: A Fork in the Road.”

Martha Stewart Living Online, November 2013

“Inspire the hunger and the wanderlust of your favorite food fiend with this 34-course banquet of stories from writers and chefs about their most life-changing culinary experiences and favorite food memories from their travels.

From the Publisher

2013-11-07
A savory collection of personal narratives about the "fabulous and even miraculous" ways that food revives "the great, exciting promise of life." Saveur editor in chief Oseland (Cradle of Flavor: Home Cooking from the Spice Islands of Indonesia, Singapore, and Malaysia, 2006, etc.) invites readers to feast on writing by distinguished restaurant critics, writers, cookbook authors and chefs that celebrate the "tastes and sensations…[that] alter our view of the world." The book's opening essay recounts British restaurant critic Giles Coren's first, and last, encounter with Hostess Twinkies. To Coren's boyhood self, these sugary confections symbolized both the golden promise of America and, by extension, the "endlessly thrilling" meals Americans always ate. Food, however, does not evoke place alone. As novelist Francine Prose shows in her essay about a Christmas holiday spent in France, it can also be tied to memories of finding gustatory, if slightly guilty, pleasures in unexpected situations. For others--like poet and memoirist Frances Mayes, who talks about her life-changing decision to study cooking in Provence, and chef Marcus Samuelsson, who describes his risky but scrumptious encounter with fugu--food has been salvation. Exciting and exotic as it can be, the best food is sometimes the simplest. Food critic Alan Richman discovered this truth on a trip to post–Arab Spring Egypt, where his happiest culinary experience was with the "unsophisticated [and] unruly" dishes eaten by ordinary people. But for chef Martin Yan, who affectionately recalls his impoverished mother's modest yet magical kitchen in rural China, the most mouthwatering dishes are often born at home. Funny, insightful and revealing, Oseland's anthology is not just a delightful adventure in world cuisine, but also a thoughtful exploration of the emotions that so often accompany cooking, dining and eating. Other contributors include David Mas Masumoto, Sigrid Nunez, Michael Pollan and Rita Mae Brown. Delicious reading for the discerning foodie.

Kirkus Reviews