Reader Score
65%
65% of readers
recommend this book
Critic Reviews
Good
Based on 6 reviews on
From New York Times bestselling author Mark Kurlansky, a delectable novel following one Manhattan block as an ancient cheesecake recipe-and a conniving landlord-change the Upper West Side forever.
West 86th Street knows its desserts. It's the 1970s, and poppyseed strudel, praline ice cream cake, and New York cheesecake are as integral to Manhattan's Upper West Side as clustered pigeons, suited doormen, and greasy diners. That is, until Cato comes to town. Cato the Elder, a Roman born in 234 BCE, is credited with the earliest written recipe ever found. A recipe for . . . cheesecake. No cream cheese, no graham cracker crust, somehow savory and sweet, the recipe is enigmatic-and suddenly, it's all anyone on West 86th Street can talk about.
"Mark Kurlansky is among our most intelligent, prolific and literate writers about food." --Mark Bittman, The New York Times
"Mr. Kurlansky is a veteran writer . . . He has come to be known for his ability to weave history, philosophy and personal experience into compelling narratives . . . Often marvelous." --Wall Street Journal on THE UNREASONABLE VIRTUE OF FLY FISHING "The sort of book that Proust might have written had Proust become distracted by the madeleine . . . you step away from this book with a new vantage on history." --New York Times Book Review, Editors' Choice, on MILK! "Elegant . . . related with vast brio and wit." --Los Angeles Times on COD "Magnificent . . . a towering achievement." --Associated Press on THE BIG OYSTER