Audiobooks by Andrew Friedman

The Dish: The Lives and Labor Behind One Plate of Food

Acclaimed “chef writer” Andrew Friedman introduces readers to all the people and processes that come together in a single restaurant dish, creating an entertaining, vivid snapshot of the contemporary restaurant community, modern farming industry, and food-supply chain. On a typical evening, in a contemporary American restaurant, a table orders their dinner from a server. It’s an exchange that happens dozens, or hundreds, of times a night—the core transaction that keeps the place churning. In this book, acclaimed chef writer Andrew Friedman slows down time to focus on a single dish at Chicago’s Wherewithall restaurant, following its production and provenances via real-time kitchen and in-the-field reportage, from the moment the order is placed to when the finished dish is delivered to the table. As various components of this one dish are prepared by the kitchen team, Friedman introduces readers to the players responsible for producing it, from the chefs who conceived the dish and manage the kitchen, to the line cooks and sous chefs who carry out the actual cooking, and the dishwashers who keep pace with the dining room. Readers will also meet the producers, farmers, and ranchers, who supply the restaurant, as Friedman visits each stop in the supply chain and profiles the key characters whose expertise and effort play essential roles in making the dish possible—they will walk rows of crops that line Midwestern farms, feel the chill of the cooler where beef dry-ages, harvest grapes at a Michigan winery, ride along with a delivery-truck driver, and hear the immigration sagas prevalent amongst often unseen and unheralded farm and restaurant workers. The Dish is a rollicking ride inside every aspect of a restaurant dish. Both a fascinating window onto our food systems, and a celebration of the unsung heroes of restaurants and the collaborative nature of professional kitchen work, The Dish will ensure that readers never look at any restaurant meal the same way again.

Andrew Friedman (Author), Michael Lomonaco (Narrator)

Audiobook

Chefs, Drugs and Rock & Roll: How Food Lovers, Free Spirits, Misfits and Wanderers Created a New Ame

Chefs, Drugs and Rock & Roll transports listeners back in time to witness the remarkable evolution of the American restaurant chef in the 1970s and 1980s. Andrew Friedman goes inside Chez Panisse and other Bay Area restaurants to show how the politically charged backdrop of Berkeley helped spark this new profession; into the historically underrated community of Los Angeles chefs, including a young Wolfgang Puck; and into the clash of cultures between established French chefs in New York City and the American game changers behind the Quilted Giraffe, River Café, and other storied establishments. Along the way, the chefs, their struggles, their cliques, and, of course, their restaurants are brought to life in vivid, memorable detail. As the '80s unspool, we watch the profession evolve as American masters like Thomas Keller rise, and watch the genesis of a "chef nation" as chefs start crisscrossing the country for work and special events and legendary hangouts like Blue Ribbon become social focal points, all as the industry-altering Food Network shimmers on the horizon. A (mostly) oral history told primarily in the words of the people who lived it-from writers like Ruth Reichl to chefs like Jeremiah Tower and Jonathan Waxman-Chefs, Drugs and Rock & Roll treats readers to an unparalleled 360-degree re-creation of the industry and the times through the perspectives not only of the pioneering chefs but also of line cooks, front-of-house personnel, investors, and critics who had front-row seats to this extraordinary transformation.

Andrew Friedman (Author), Roger Wayne (Narrator)

Audiobook

Family, Inc.: Office Inspired Solutions to Reduce the Chaos in Your Home (and Save Your Sanity!)

Does your work life "balance" feel anything but? Most people will probably tell you that you need to be more strict about separating your office and home lives, and WHATEVER YOU DO, DON'T TAKE THE OFFICE HOME WITH YOU! To this, husband-and-wife authors Caitlin and Andrew Friedman say: Think again! In Family Inc., they share how they were able to use the organizational strategies they'd relied on in their professional lives to bring the joy-and yes, the sanity-back into their home. Caitlin and Andrew Friedman met while working at a thriving midsize PR firm. Fifteen years of marriage, twins, a house, and three career changes later, they found themselves overwhelmed by their daily responsibilities. In this invaluable guide to making your household run more smoothly, the Friedmans take listeners step by step through a process of reenvisioning their domestic lives as well-run, successful business ventures. According to the Friedmans, by introducing such simple activities as family meetings, job descriptions, and regular "employee evaluations," it's amazing how simple and stress-free life suddenly can become. Using the tools offered in this audiobook, you will soon see tensions eased, household tasks completed, and family downtime rediscovered.

Andrew Friedman, Caitlin Friedman (Author), Erik Synnestvedt (Narrator)

Audiobook

Knives at Dawn: America's Quest for Culinary Glory at the Legendary Bocuse d'Or Competition

The Bocuse d'Or is the real-life Top Chef, a biannual cooking competition in France featuring teams from twenty-four countries vying for the top honors. Named after Paul Bocuse, one of the greatest, most influential living chefs, the Bocuse d'Or has become the most sophisticated and closely watched cook-off in the world. Ironically, though American cuisine now rates among the best in the world, a U.S. team has never placed among the top three in the competition. In 2008, under the auspices of renowned chefs Daniel Boulud and Thomas Keller, the two-person U.S. team of Timothy Hollingsworth and Adina Guest trained in a specially outfitted facility in preparation for the 2009 competition with the goal of a best-ever showing for the United States. With unparalleled behind-the-scenes access, Andrew Friedman follows the American contestants and other hopefuls as they spend months training to cook and serve their dishes just once, over the course of five and a half tense hours, in an arena filled with a thousand screaming spectators. Along the way, he paints intimate portraits of Boulud and Keller, two of the leading culinary figures of their generation, revealing their hopes and aspirations for their protégés as well as for American cuisine. Through this compelling sports-meets-cooking story, Friedman explores the clash of culinary titans and cultures in a real-world kitchen stadium and ratchets up the suspense of who will reign supreme.

Andrew Friedman (Author), Sean Runnette (Narrator)

Audiobook