The first book of its kind in English: a playful and delightfully written history of the restaurant
A behind-the-scenes exposé of the world of restaurants and the people who work in them
Rights sold in 11 territories and critically acclaimed on first publication in Germany
With special guest appearances from Ferran Adrià, Simone de Beauvoir, Paul Bocuse, George Orwell, Elvis Presley, Marcel Proust and many others
This is a book for our food-obsessed times, for fans of Masterchef and Chef’s Table, and Foodstagrammers
"Academic but compulsively readable... Christoph Ribbat's fascinating cultural history of restaurants transcends gastronomy to trace how this 250-year institution developed and its place in society." — Nancy Powell, Shelf Awareness
"A dazzlingly entertaining, eye-opening volume that shows the restaurant is where performance, fashion, commerce, ritual, class, work and desire all come together… an impressively informative and unreservedly fascinating study." — Midwest Book Review
"A fascinating buffet of fare and facts. . . Deliciously diverse, In the Restaurant is a uniquely intellectual and gastronomic experience." — Foreword Reviews
‘A delightful celebration of the restaurant.’ — Guardian
'A veritable smorgasbord of mouthwatering gastronomic tales.' - The National
'A playful story, most entertaining, and wonderfully documented.' - Ferran Adrià of El Bulli
'An entertaining smorgasbord of tasty stories that build into a deeper picture of the places where we eat, from fast food joints and cafés to the temples of gastronomy.' - Hattie Ellis
'Fascinating, multi-layered, audacious and unique . . . mixes fact and fancy so compellingly that I read it in a single sitting.' - Russell Norman, author of Polpo
"Glorious stuff along the way ... we are unquestionably gripped by the stories... Brilliant. Just bloody brilliant." -- Giles Coren, The Times
"All edible life is here - and tasty gossip, as the lid is lifted on the bubbling cauldron that is culinary society." - Tatler
"Knowing and nourishing in equal measure, the short, sharp chapters arrive like delectable hors d'oeuvres." -- Monocle
"A brilliant, provocative, wonderful, satisfying book. A proper gallimaufry of anecdotes that has been a real pleasure to lose myself in." -- Desperate Reader (blog)