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Editorial Review:
How long does it take before somebody becomes a national treasure? It’s certainly happened to Nigel Slater, and Eating for England is a highly enjoyable reminder of just why we esteem the estimable Mr Slater. Subtitled The Delights & Eccentricities of the British at Table, this is wonderfully entertaining stuff, explaining such matters as how some of our most cherished foods are the result of frugality (bread and butter pudding, for instance, is the direct result of utilising a few slices of leftover bread and a pat of butter, rather than culinary aspiration). As Slater points out, the British have a relationship with food which is quite unlike that of any other nation -- for many years, we were reluctant to discuss food matters (leaving culinary discussion to, for instance, the French), but we now appear to be in the grip of a national food obsession, with program after program on television and -- inevitably -- a host of books on the subject. But few are written as entertainingly as Nigel Slater’s. It isn't just the discussion of food itself (from haute cuisine to the humblest of comfort foods) that’s so diverting here, but other sociological (and tongue-in-cheek) related matters, such as ‘A Teenager at the Table’ (‘The shoulders droop, the head hangs sulkily down, eyes glaring intently at an invisible spot on their lap. Their whole body seems to say ‘I'm not eating this’). And Nigel Slater is perfectly happy to address subjects not found in any other food books (such as the modest chocolate bar -- different varieties are entertainingly compared and contrasted).
This is a personal portrait of the British and their food, filled with love of the eccentricities and peculiarities that encapsulate the national character. And it's great fun. --Barry Forshaw
'a beguiling, dreamy read...'
`No one takes the biscuit better than Slater...Slater leaves you wanting more'.
'Slater is one of our most talented cookery writers...it will be snapped up in its thousands for Christmas.'
'A joyously tongue-in-cheek nostalgic mix...yum, yum.'
'Nigel Slater celebrates the eccentricity and diversity of the Brish attitude to food, cooking and eating.'
'[A] highly addictive, extremely funny and thought-provoking book on British eating habits.'
'Warm, funny and soulful writing. Grab a copy, lock yourself away and enjoy.'
Written in a style similar to that of Nigel Slater's multi-award-winning food memoir 'Toast', this is a celebration of the glory, humour, eccentricities and embarrassments that are the British at Table. The British have a relationship with their food that is unlike that of any other country. Once something that was never discussed in polite company, it is now something with which the nation is obsessed. But are we at last developing a food culture or are we just going through the motions? 'Eating for England' is an entertaining, detailed and somewhat tongue-in-cheek observation of the British and their food, their cooking, their eating and how they behave in restaurants, with chapters on -- amongst other things -- dinner parties, funeral teas, Indian restaurants, dieting and eating whilst under the influence. Written in Nigel Slater's trademark readable style, 'Eating for England' highlights our idiosyncratic attitude towards the fine art of dining.
'Fudge is toffee for romantics. Melting and honeyed, this fragile sweetmeat lacks the hardman undertones of a block of toffee, carrying instead the ghost of the British countryside. As you drive around the Scottish Highlands, Yorkshire Dales or along the Cornish coast you can sometimes feel as if you have stepped into fudge world, a place where visitors are bombarded by packets of sweet brown lumps in cellophane packets tied up with lilac ribbon. Taking home a packet of fudge is the middle-class equivalent of putting a stick or two of Blackpool rock in your suitcase.'
The British have a relationship with their food that is unlike that of any other country. Once something that was never discussed in polite company, it is now something with which the nation is obsessed. But are we at last developing a food culture or are we just going through the motions?
Eating for England is Nigel Slater's personal portrait of the British and their food. A celebration of the glories, humour, eccentricities and embarrassments that make up that extraordinary thing that is the British at table.
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 3.5 / 5.0
Lovely promise but.... I had looked forward to this for some time. I have been a fan on NS on TV since he first appeared. I like his style, his taste and his appreach to food. So why oh why or WHY did NS have to ruin it all for me with a single thoughtless - and eeming uncharacteristic - comment. He makes the point that continental stews are flavoursome and interesting while ours '...smell of old people.' As newly retired. I found it belittling, insulting and it stopped me reading the book in my tracks.
Liked it for what it is Most of you, if you're cookbook collectors, know by now that you rarely get a straight-through cookbook. Rather, it's usually a melange of "where this recipe came from" coupled with some history and/or the author's comments. Such, even more so, is the case with EATING FOR ENGLAND. This is really not so much a cookbook as a reminiscence and "thoughts" about cooking and England. I was immediately reminded of the novel "Barring Some Unforeseen Accident" in that the author incorporates an actual cookbook... more info
Pontefract Cakes, Cadbury's and other British Heroes My only gripe with this book is, as others have mentioned, the repetition. Whether this was purposeful on Nigel Slater's part, or something overlooked in a swift editing process, I don't know - nor do I care, very much, because the repetition didn't stop me loving "Eating For England". Like "Toast", reading this often felt much like sitting down with Nigel over a cup of tea and discussing foodie memories that, despite our age gap, we both shared. You can rave about organic roast beef and... more info
I feel I've read it all before Nigel Slater is my favourite cookery writer, but this was a disappointment. I loved Toast but this book seems to be made up of its leftovers. There doesn't seem to be anything new in it - I feel I've read it all before. Toast was a much more personal reminiscence and was both funny and sad in places, but I really can't be bothered to finish this one. And I really do love Nigel Slater.
