ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

This is too long. But a lot of people helped to get this book into your hands.

I’d like to thank everyone at Viking Penguin, notably Carolyn Cole-burn, Lindsay Prevette, Stephen Morrison, Nancy Sheppard, Paul Slovak, Patti Pirooz, Beena Kamlani, and my wonderful editor, David Cashion. My amazing agent, Larry Weissman, and his clever wife, Sascha Alper, offered remarkable patience, advice, and feedback. They also fed us great scallops at their home in Brooklyn. A nod goes to my friend Cyrus Krohn for hooking us up.

My assistant, Lisa Simpson, has as astute a palate for words as she does for food, and for that I’m grateful. My sister, Sandra Klim, let me share her unrequited dreams of attending the Sorbonne and gave great editing advice. My mother, Irene Flinn, nurtured me through anxious phone calls and shared memories of life on the farm.

I have a lot of talented friends, and many read drafts, offered advice, gave feedback, and came to early readings. Chief among them: Deirdre Timmons, Laura Evelev, Kevin O’Halloran, Jane O’Halloran, David John Anderson, Cherie Jacobs, Kim Thompson, and Jeff Manness. My chef friend Ted Lawrence did all this, plus evaluated and edited recipes and gave me his two-thousand-word missive on stock. My pal Bill Radke didn’t complain that his sole appearance involves food poisoning.

Food-studies major Jamaica Jones and chef Richard J. Lawson fact-checked culinary history and details. Elizabeth Prot cheerfully corrected my French. Several avid home cooks tested recipes, among them Lee Mohr, Diana Wisen, Barry Foy, Liz Herrin, and Marie Claire Dole. Staff at the Richard Hugo House in Seattle offered an encouraging environment; I wrote much of the book in my office there.

Gillian Kent eliminated my job in London, and I’d like to thank her for that. It’s one of the best things that ever happened to me.

At Le Cordon Bleu, many fellow students had a major impact on my experience. Among them: Katherine Ferguson, Karina Ferrari, Juliana Garcia-Uribe, Julie Hinson, Tzay Pyng Hong, Anne-Catherine Kruger, Dennis Herrera Lozano, Susan Luter, Shanaz Rauff, Jose Riutort Canovas, Shelly-Anne Scott, Lely Simatupang, and Sharon Yahalom.

Of the many gracious people at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, I’m indebted to André J Cointreau, Catherine Baschet, Sandra Messier, Sylvie Sofi Alarcon, and Patricia Gastaud-Gallagher. More thanks go to Margaret Warren of Le Cordon Bleu, Inc. and Tony Garcia of Le Cordon Bleu Ottawa.

I owe much to the talented chefs who unwittingly became major characters in this book, notably Chefs Didier Chantefort, Bruno Stril, Patrick Terrien, Marc Thivet, and Claude Boucheret. I will never forget them or what they taught me.

Finally, thanks deeper than the Pacific go to Mike Klozar. I knew he was remarkable, but he turned out to be an inspiring editor on top of his many other talents. I couldn’t have done this—any of it—without him.