Where Chefs Eat: A Guide to Chefs’ Favourite Restaurants

I was recommended this book by another book – so to say. When I bought it I was somehow expecting that you would find hints for good restaurants in basically every country. Unfortunately, this is not the case. Still, you find a nice selection of tipps for good restaurants (the chefs’ favourites) all over Europe, Oceania and the Americas.

I will soon be going to Serbia and was absolutely hoping to actually find a recommendation for Belgrade – well, that is definitely not the case as well as it is not with a lot of other countries.

The main problem though is not the fact that there are not all countries in this reference book but much more its structure. While it is sorted by country somehow, it is weirdly divided. When looking at France, you find two chapters for Paris and somehow no real third chapter for the rest of France which is confusing. Also, although the restaurants are sorted by city, you have to go through all the pages to find the city you are interested in within the respective country section.

Last but not least, the “recommendation” for a restaurant strongly varies. Some are just a posting with the name, coordinates of the restaurant, description of kitchen, price, if credit cards are accepted and who recommends it. Others even include a statement of a chef which can be one sentence or a quarter of a page. One does not know what e.g. “expensive” means in their terms or what they mean by “worth the travel”. Somehow this index is missing.

Overall, given the moderate price of only EUR 16.95, it can serve as a helpful guide to get an idea where one could go eat given the city you’re interested in, is part of the book. And I think it could be a very valuable source if they would re-consider the way it is built, giving an explanation what means what and keeping it consistent throughout the book itself.

Update 6th June 2013: I have tried one restaurant from this book while in Madrid, the Boton y Fogon de Sacha, and I must say it was so damn mind-blowing that I have to rate this book a bit higher. Although it is maybe not ideally structured, it is definitely worth a lot as a guide when you are in a foreign city!

Updates based on the book’s recommendations:

• London: Restaurant The Botanist, (20th July 2013)
• Milan: Restaurant Alice, (18th July 2014)
• Amsterdam: Supperclub, (25th October 2014)
• Oslo: Restaurant Onda Sea, (25th April 2015)
• Helsinki: Restaurant Gaijin, (30th June 2015)

About the Author: Sven

I started the blog in October 2009, while living in Milan which I definitely consider to be one of the food capitals of the world. I was in touch with food since my early childhood (as my father is a former chef). Whenever I can, I travel the world to discover new places, to meet people but mostly to try local dishes and to find hidden gems! If you know a place worth going, please drop a line to: info@thediningexperience.org. Currently, I am a member of the following food-related associations: Chevalier @Chaîne des Rôtisseurs Zurich-Ville; Membre Gourmet Dégustateur @Ordre Mondial des Gourmets Dégustateurs [OMGD]; Gesellschafter @Goldener Fisch and Member @Slowfood Convivium Zurich City.