The Soul of a Chef: The Journey Toward Perfection Paperback – August 1, 2001

This is a very interesting and enjoyable collection of three in-depth sections. The first has author Ruhlman shadow a group of seven professional chefs taking the Certified Master Chef exam at the CIA facility at Hyde Park, NY. Ruhlman spends the most time with, and seems to root for, Brian Palcyn from Detroit. The grueling pace of the week of twice-a-day tests comes across in the writing, as does the sense that the examiners care less for taste than for technical exactitude, with most of the participants not earning their CMC. He's troubled by the experience, though he can't yet put his finger on why.He then moves on Michael Symon's restaurant Lola in Ruhlman's own Cleveland. Ruhlman is caught up in the fun vibe at Lola, which pervades both the dining room and the kitchen. Again Ruhlman roots for his adopted favorite as important NY-based food reporters visit the restaurant. Though Symon serves a soggy pasta dish, which the critic responds to by saying, "He knows nothing about pasta", the critic can't help but feel the joy and fun that the customers experience.Finally he has a lengthy session on Thomas Keller's French Laundry, and the amazingly innovative dishes that Keller and he highly trained staff produce. Though Keller is exacting inside the kitchen, he doesn't let that feeling out into the dining rooms, where customers are delighted by every serving.In his postscript chapter, Ruhlman finally figures out what disturbed him about the CMC exam. He writes that the purpose of cooking, particularly restaurant cooking is to give people pleasure and fun. Symon's restaurant had a sense of fun in front and back of the house. Keller's restaurant was like a monastery in the kitchen, but the customers had an amazingly pleasurable experience. But the CMC examiners weren't testing for fun, and gave no points for the fun or pleasure that a chef's dishes might bring. It's an excellent summation of the book.

If I was writing the review just based on the first two parts of the book, I would have given it 5 stars. The first part about the Certified Master Chef competition really did read like a suspense novel. It took a lot of self control not to jump to the end to see who won! Part II about Michael Symon's Lola restaurant in Cleveland gave a real feel for the restaurant, the chef and even the city. But Part III about Thomas Keller's French Laundry read more like a hagiography written by a blushing school boy. I admit I have never eaten at the French Laundry, and unless I win the lottery I am very unlikely to do so. But his gushing praise of everything about the chef and his restaurant came across like a desert that his two or three shades too sweet.

Brought The Soul of a Chef with me on holiday travels and finished it today... gosh, I loved it. At the risk of waxing poetic... Ruhlman achieves that delicious mix of confidence and humility in his writing voice. His mix of suspense, humor, and journalism kept me buoyant. Ruhlman shows-not-tells on every page. His writing style is a bit like Lola and TFL styles combined. Love love love how he ended the CMC section. I love all the foreshadowing about Chef Brian, but how it was still a cliff-hanger until the end. I love his spiraling back and how he drops a punchline and then circles back to explain explicitly. I loved all the little touches, how he slows down to develop the characters... the story about how Chef Michael was giving directions to two diners and the guy was on the phone, with the U-turn... follow that guy!! Classic.Ruhlman writes a damn good story! Happy to finally get on board with this author.

I am fortunate to be currently employed in a good paying job with an excellent quality of life yet still I am logically and instinctively aware that I am outside the target audience for this audible on The Soul of a Chef. I admit that I checked out the Amazon audible version The Soul of a Chef by Michael Ruhlman more with the intent to broaden my understanding of the world of cooking as told from a chef’s perspective (as I am in the process of being more decisive and clear on what I prefer goalwise in my career life). Some of the helpful points of the audible; intensive information was shared on what attending cooking classes are like from the students taking them. There is even information to candidly suggest that it was a delicate balance of getting some of the culinary students to open up safe that their disclosures would be exploitation free. One of the profiles of the culinary students discussed was of a man who was 43 at the time of the audible and he had been cooking since the time he was 13. Information is included to explain what the CMC (Certified Master Chef) exam is like and some of the reasons why the test is rigorous and more.

This book is worth reading for the portrayal of (in my opinion) the greatest American Chef this land has ever know, Thomas Keller. I learned more about what drives this Zen-master of cooking in this book than any articles I have read about Chef Keller or even from his drool-worthy cookbook.Michael Ruhlman is a great journalist. He has heart and is a passionate food writer. He doesn't go as in-depth as I would perhaps but he brings a chef's sensibility from his own experiences to his writing which I enjoyed. He profiles two other chefs (Michael Symon, another of my favorite chefs and Brian Polcyn from the Detroit area)and a number of other character surrounding these chefs under extraordinarily different circumstances and is able to create them in as enigmatic but real people in the process.His Epilogue was brilliantly done and wrapped it up nicely, I felt sad to see it end but look forward to reading his next book - The Reach of a Chef.This is required reading for anyone who wants to be a Chef, love a Chef or just admire a Chef.I am a fan of Ruhlman's for life and will read everything he has written. I know I am gushing but seriously, I was transported in this book yet left grounded at the same time. That's a rare gift in a writer.