Heat by Bill Buford - Book Review

Heat is a fascinating and surprising story of one man’s journey from journalist to kitchen slave to culinary apprentice. Bill Buford’s memoir covers his time working in a first-class New York restaurant and repeated journeys to Italy to apprentice with the country’s best chefs. The narrative is complemented by research into culinary history back to ancient times. Heat is a page-turner you can take to the beach, but also interesting enough for readers with an appetite for a meatier experience.

If you’ve ever wondered what life is like as a professional cook, you’ll love Heat by Bill Buford. And even if you’ve never harbored a secret desire to cook with the pros, you’ll be fascinated by Buford’s tale of politics, pressure, and the literal heat inside the world’s best kitchens.

Heat opens with the story of Mario Batali, a chef who earned stardom on the Food Network and respect with his critically-praised restaurants. Buford recounts Batali’s biography while learning the trade the hard way, by taking an unpaid internship in the kitchen of Batali’s restaurant, Babbo. The work is serious and high stakes, and Buford enjoys it so much that he leaves a prestigious job at the New Yorker to work full-time for Batali. Heat describes his time in the kitchen, his attempts to study with prominent chefs in Italy and England, and his research into traditional recipes and ingredients.

Heat does a masterful job of juxtaposing the successful stature and larger-than-life personality of Batali against Buford’s decidedly unglamorous experience as a peon in a professional kitchen. Lyrical descriptions of the smallest details of the kitchen are absorbing. Some of the best nonfiction lets readers peek into an otherwise secretive or specialized world, and Heat does so masterfully. Buford transforms himself—and the reader—from novice to burgeoning connoisseur. Heat will satisfy those who want to get lost in a story and those who want to reflect on food, restaurants, and chefs.