Chez Panisse Menu Cookbook

by Alice Waters

One hundred thirty recipes by the founder-chef-proprietor of one of America's truly great restaurants range from simple salads to roast duck with wild mushrooms and coulibiac of salmon with wild rice

Genres: Cookbooks, Cooking, Food, Reference, Nonfiction, Food and Wine, 20th Century

312 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1982

About the author

Alice Waters is a chef, author, food activist, and the founder and owner of Chez Panisse Restaurant in Berkeley, California. She has been a champion of local sustainable agriculture for over four decades. In 1995 she founded the Edible Schoolyard Project, which advocates for a free school lunch for all children and a sustainable food curriculum in every public school.

She has been Vice President of Slow Food International since 2002. She conceived and helped create the Yale Sustainable Food Project in 2003, and the Rome Sustainable Food Project at the American Academy in Rome in 2007.

Her honors include election as a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2007; the Harvard Medical School’s Global Environmental Citizen Award, which she shared with Kofi Annan in 2008; and her induction into the French Legion of Honor in 2010. In 2015 she was awarded the National Humanities Medal by President Obama, proving that eating is a political act, and that the table is a powerful means to social justice and positive change.

Alice is the author of fifteen books, including New York Times bestsellers The Art of Simple Food I & II and The Edible Schoolyard: A Universal Idea.

Reviews

[Mandie Lowe]

Published in 1982, the recipes in this book run the risk of being outdated. Luckily Alice Waters was ahead of her time and her book holds up to this day. In her introduction, she describes her history as an eater, someone who appreciated good food from an early age. She did this enviable thing:

I bought Elizabeth David’s book, French Country Cooking, and I cooked everything in it, from beginning to end.

I've always wanted to cook every recipe in a recipe book, but have yet to begin! One day...

My one unbreakable rule has always been to use only the freshest and finest ingredients available.

You can hardly go wrong with that rule when it comes to cooking great food. The recipes here are quite simple, if not always in preparation, then in flavours. The ingredients are made to shine. Waters explains how to compose a menu, allowing each course to complement the rest of the dishes, without anything overwhelming the meal. She pairs Roasted Red Peppers with Anchovies with Hard-Cooked Quail Eggs, followed by Roast Pigeon with Purple Grapes and an Almond Tart to finish. Another menu starts with Deep-Fried Squash Blossoms, then a Corn Soup with Roasted Poblano Chiles and finally, Charcoal-Grilled Rockfish with Onion and Tomato Relish. If something sweet is desired, Papayas with Fresh Lime is the suggestion.

Nothing here is terribly complicated to make. Waters herself advocates cooking without machines and gadgets. You need good knives and a pestle and mortar to prepare most of the dishes here.

Whether this is a book to own depends entirely on the taste of the cook - I would suggest looking at the list of recipes before you decide whether this is something you might enjoy. As for me, I think this is a beautiful cookbook, despite the lack of photographs. The strong love of food that comes across these pages is something any cook can appreciate.

[Jennifer]

definitely a cook book for the intermediate to advance person. lots of fine dining recipes, and uses a variety of ingredients while keeping to Alice Waters philosophy of fresh ingredients and simple and delicious food.

There are no photos in the book, and the book assumes the reader is fluent in most cooking terms.

While I did not try any of the recipes, the book gave me some good ideas on flavor profiles and combinations. Alice Waters also includes a sample of some of the menu's she's offered at the Chez Panisse over the years, including one for "birthday dinner for a triple Scorpio". nice!

[Joanna]

I actually read this for an essay as part of a history class here at Cal...and I kind of fell in love. I read a lot of other books about Alice Waters, but this was the only primary source. And I will go out into the world now and find this book, so I can buy it, and eat it. (Or at least the things inside).

[Rachel]

While most home cooks would rarely ever make any of these dishes, I love the simplicity and the way in which Alice Waters uses her love of good, pure, seasonal, organic, sustainable food to create beautiful menus. In my eyes, she can do no wrong and this book is yet another testament to that fact.

[mollie]

This is at once my dream and the easiest path to a nervous breakdown: to serve a chez panisse menu-inspired meal to several people, at once. eee cooking anxiety! I love to pour over the recipes and notes though.

[Lissa]

Although interesting, I have to say that I was disappointed. Somehow I thought that Alice Waters focused on healthy foods - these menus are heavy on meats, fat, wine. I found a couple ideas I might be interested in adapting, but overall, it was a waste for me.

[NL]

picked off the shelves of http://www.boxcarkitchen.com/

[Maria]

Stayed up all night reading it from cover to cover; I couldn't stop. Who knew a "cookbook" could be so thrilling???!!

[Catherine Woodman]

This is outstanding as a cookbook and as a culture guide to what happened in American Cuisine as a result of Alice Waters

[Bree]

Notes:
not really useful to me
fancy recipes, no photos, too gourmet

[Ally]

Made the cassoulet - best recipe ever. So so so so so so good!!!

[Tim]

One of the standard cookbooks which every collector should have.

[Raihan Siam]

"The book that permanently changed how I think about food, seasons, and the sacred act of feeding people I love!"
There are cookbooks that teach you recipes, and then there are cookbooks that fundamentally rewire your entire philosophy about eating, cooking, and living. Alice Waters' Chez Panisse Menu Cookbook belongs squarely in the latter, transcendent category. Long before "farm-to-table" became a meaningless marketing buzzword plastered on every mediocre bistro menu, Waters was quietly igniting a culinary revolution in Berkeley, California, and this magnificent book is the definitive, timeless document of that movement. Reading it feels less like studying a standard cookbook and more like being invited into the most beautiful, sun-drenched kitchen in the world, where a wise, passionate mentor gently teaches you that the secret to extraordinary cooking isn't technique—it's reverence for the ingredient.
The genius of this book lies in its structure. Rather than presenting hundreds of disconnected recipes, Waters organizes the book around complete, seasonal menus—thoughtfully composed multi-course meals designed to celebrate what is at its absolute peak of ripeness and flavor at any given moment. I cooked my way through an entire autumn menu featuring a delicate butternut squash soup, a perfectly roasted chicken with a simple pan sauce, and a rustic pear tart that made my dinner guests fall completely silent with joy. The recipes are deceptively simple on paper—often just five or six ingredients—but the results are nothing short of transcendent. Waters teaches you that if you start with a perfectly ripe, sun-warmed tomato, a drizzle of exceptional olive oil, and a pinch of flaky sea salt, you don't need twenty-seven steps and a blowtorch to create a masterpiece. You just need patience, respect, and a willingness to let the food speak.
What truly elevates this book to legendary status is the profound, almost spiritual storytelling woven between the menus. Waters shares her formative experiences in France, her obsessive relationships with local farmers and foragers, and her unwavering belief that cooking is an act of community, generosity, and love. The chapters on building your pantry, selecting produce at the farmers' market, and pairing wines with your menu are worth their weight in gold. She doesn't preach or lecture; she simply shares her joy with such infectious warmth that you find yourself suddenly caring deeply about where your carrots come from and why a July peach tastes fundamentally different from a January one. The photography is gorgeous and understated, capturing the rustic, golden-hour beauty of Northern California cuisine at its finest.
Whether you are a seasoned home cook looking to strip away the noise and rediscover the pure, elemental joy of seasonal cooking, or a complete beginner who wants to learn how to host an elegant, stress-free dinner party that will leave your guests talking for years, this book is an absolute, non-negotiable essential. It will make you a more thoughtful shopper, a more confident cook, and a more generous host. Alice Waters didn't just write a cookbook; she wrote a manifesto for a more beautiful, delicious, and connected way of living. Buy it, read it slowly, and let it change your life!

[kelly]

I am never going to make any of these fancy menus, but I somehow found it to be very calming to read. Als0 a bit hungry-making.
Actually, the one recipe I did make was one for marinating cheese in garlic and olive oil. I love bringing the jar with you on a hike for a snack. Your friends will think you're so fancy when all you did was put stuff in a jar.
At the end of the book, she describes how she sources food and specifically mentions Bay Area resources (like Chinatown for duck), which was interesting and relevant for me.

[Pinky]

Want to try the Deep-Fried Squash Blossoms, Red Onion Tarts, and the Mexican Garlic Soup recipes.

[Ani]

This is a classic cookbook but I ultimately had to admit I wasn’t planning to make any of the recipes. It was hard to donate it back to the library but there just isn’t room on the shelves anymore.

[Tristan Raffan]

Thank you Alice. You're a blessing.