The French Laundry Cookbook (The Thomas Keller Library) Hardcover – November 1, 1999

Maybe one of the best cookbooks ever written....certainly in the top 5 in my opinion. LOADED with fantastic recipes and excellent instructions.

Possibly the best cookbook written to date

This cookbook blew my mind on page two. Page 2: “When you acknowledge, as you must, that there is no such thing as perfect food, only the idea of it, then the real purpose of striving toward perfection becomes clear: to make people happy. That’s what cooking is all about.” This is inherently true. The recipes in this book are yet to be tried and devoured, but the layout, stories, and pictures, are exactly (and more-so) what I wanted from this book. I will say that I am a very seasoned and talented home cook, so my experience may be different than others’ experience. I have had training and tips from professional chefs. But I am a home cook and have never cooked professionally, unless you count throwing wings in a fryer at a bar. I’m looking forward to making many of these recipes, and the inspiration behind them inspires me. I probably have over 150 cookbooks in my collection. This one will be used AND displayed. ❤️

This book provides important insight into the philosophy behind great cooking. Some might argue that the recipes are too complicated— and some are— but there is a great story incorporated into this book. The author talks about the philosophy and he highlights the people that provide the products that he uses. The photographs alone are worth the price of the book.

The easiest way to put this book into it's unique perspective is with an amusing metaphor. This is the sort of book that hardcore foodies and regular line chefs alike read in the same way that a horny teenage boy will oogle a drop-dead gorgeous penthouse centerfold ... the essential experience is one of vicarious (but maddeningly indirect) communion with utterly impractical & unnattainable perfection.The recipes that Thomas Keller creates & serves at The French Laundry in Napa Valley California (which is widely acknowledged as one of the greatest restaurant experiences in America) simply cannot be made at home, or even in 95% of most restaurants, without the aid of a top-flight fully staffed "brigade system" of supporting chefs, along with a commitment to using nothing but the absolute best and freshest high-end ingredients available, without regard to labor or cost.The average chef, hardcore or not, simply doesnt keep (for example) a speed rack of 12 varieties of freshly made herb oils, 12-15 varieties of freshly made and perfectly clarified and reduced demi-glaces of assorted wild game, veal, beef, and lobster on hand ... and that's just for sauce bases and garnishes. Even the simpler recipes with relatively few ingredients are all difficult, if not impossible to make, without 'brigade' support, because the ingredients required aren't commonly available (or are of insufficient quality/freshness), and require skills and/or time commitments that are beyond one's ability, impractical, or both. And even if you DO succeed in making a given dish, the essence of 'amuse bouche' is to enjoy only a tiny portion (a mere 1-2 bites) before palate fatigue can mute the expience.Like I said ... most home chefs arent going to expend copious manhours making a dish that you're only supposed to have 1-2 worshipful tastes of.So, this is a book that you read because you want to commune, in some small way, with the mindset and spirit of the man who authored it ... and Thomas Keller is all about the quest for brief moments of sublime perfection. He will stop at nothing to attain the perfect taste experience. That's what "amuse bouche" (small 1 bite appetizers) are all about.It's a humbling experience to buy and avariciously savor, from cover to cover, an entire cookbook, and STILL know that it's unlikey that you'd ever be able to do justice to even a tiny handful of the recipes described within.Very highly recommended ... but also wildly impractical for most home cooks.

Was I sober when I ordered this book? What was I thinking...? (I mean this with humor). If you are not a professional chef, or maybe if you are, this book will be... humbling. It’s beautiful, of course, and humongous. It’s obviously not meant to be a grab-and-cook cookbook, but certainly built as a coffee table book. The stories are interesting, I loved learning about the mushroom lady (I’m not really someone who reads cookbooks for entertainment, though I can appreciate this, especially from a world renowned chef). I’m familiar with the French Laundry, but not *that* familiar, and as a lowly home cook who wants to cook interesting and thoughtful meals, this book is just way over my level - both in technique and energy. I think these could be fun recipes to try as an activity with family or a loved one or just on a day you have to yourself, but these aren’t recipes you’ll be whipping out regularly to feed your kids, especially if you have other things you need to do with your day, it just would require so much time and effort for what amounts to mostly bite-sized (but undoubtedly delicious) dishes. I’m honestly not sure I’ll ever attempt any recipes in this book, but I’m keeping an open mind. I just don’t know if I have the sheer patience and energy, let alone the tools in my kitchen or the availability of ingredients near me. So, like I said, I don’t really know what I was thinking when I bought this, and that’s on me. Maybe I’ll appreciate it more down the line once I’ve been cooking more and as I slowly grow my own experience and skill (and curiosity) in the kitchen. But for now, it’ll probably sit on my bookshelf making me look classier than I am, and I’ll try to crack it open now and then to remind myself that food should of course taste good, but it can be beautiful and artistic and creative, too.