48 replies to this topic

[danlepard]

Hello everyone,

As it becomes available in Canada, Asia and Australia and the UK over the next few months I thought you might like to have an advance peek at the long-awaited Giorgio Locatelli book, "Made in Italy".

http://www.danlepard.com/giorgio/pdf
(the page that comes up contains links to early adobe acrobat pdf files of some of the pages, containing low-res image scans and text before final proofing that may contains errors).

Although there will be some imported copies of the book in the US, it is possible that there will be an Americanised edition so the US distribution might be delayed until the rights are decided.

I worked as the photographer on the book (an old hat of mine) and for everyone involved it's been an immense challenge over the last 4 years. The book is part biography, in small 3 - 6 page sections that precede each chapter, and the rest is recipes and essays on ingredients. It's 600+ pages, hundreds of photographs, quite extraordinary.

We took on the task of making a "chefs book for the home kitchen" and I hope achieved a good balance, as I didn't want the book to either ignore the fact that Giorgio is a restaurant cook, nor give the impression of some wincingly contrived set up in a pretend home kitchen. I tried to keep it real always, and as raw as possible even if that bordered on brutal and plain. There were no home economists or prop stylists, but just chefs and home cooks throughout Italy as well as Giorgio preparing and cooking food while I dashed about capturing it on film (rather than digital). I hope that this documentary style will be useful and honest.

A copy arrived yesterday and I'm still at the point where it's just like an object, as it's a beautiful book to hold and feel. I'll do some cooking from it this weekend and post the pictures here.

regards

Dan

[jackal10]

Wow Dan! Another must have...

[Carlovski]

Is there a bread chapter? Bet that could have caused some heated discussion!

[danlepard]

There is a 20-page bread section, and you're right, Carlovski - I kept out of it. Partly that I had enough to do, but also because the restaurant has a baker (Federico Turri) who has his way of doing things. Also, I have an Italian baking book in mind to start at the end of 2007 (for release Autumn 2008) so I wanted to keep my own ideas out of this one.

Jack, I would go with amazon uk to buy a copy as they're offering a whopping 50% off the cover price at the moment.

Dan

[kutsu]

Looks good, another 15squid I have to fork our for!

[docsconz]

The photos of the book itself are quite lovely. The photos within the photos are a very nice tease. looks good. Can you tell us more about Locatelli's work for a little background to the thread? I am looking forward to your photos of the items you will prepare or have prepared.

[danlepard]

Hello John,

Giorgio Locatelli became the "chef to watch" as soon as he left the Savoy (where he was sous chef) to run his first kitchen at Olivo, a restaurant in Pimlico. Partly that his food was full of vigour at a time when most Italian food in London was heavy and stodgy, partly his looks (he was, and is, a handsome man), his youth and the fact he was an Italian cooking Italian food in London. Though there were others trying to demonstrate the lightness and freshness of Italian food, in London in the early 1990s - like Alastair Little, and Ruth Rogers and Rose Gray - Giorgio was "the Italian" doing it.

A while after than he was tempted by Claudio Pulzo, a restaurateur in London, to open his own place that would be a hybrid of the food he'd trained to do - at Tour d'Argent and Laurent in Paris, and at the Savoy - together with more simple dishes that reflected his mothers cooking and taste. So they found a site in Knightsbridge, where an old fish restaurant (Wheelers) had been, just gave it a lick of paint inside and replaced the windows outside, and called it "Zafferano".

This is where I came in. I'd opened St. John (as the head pastry chef / baker) after having spent the previous year line cooking in New York (at a place called VIX with Patricia Yeo in Soho, at a little place called Dakota Bar on the upper west side, and then back to open that Portuguese restaurant that VIX became for a couple of months), and Giorgio kept saying to me, "come with me, do this restaurant", and so eventually I gave in and took the job (again as head pastry chef, but without the bread) and we opened the restaurant. Unlike St. John, which opened to very few customers until the end of the first month when the reviews came out, Zafferano was packed as soon as it opened. Customers just came in and sat down as if we'd been there always. So it was hard work starting that way, and I haven't encountered an opening like it since (the one month lull is typical).

I remember him as a remarkable chef, especially then when we had so little equipment to work with in the kitchen and he would was really inventive (as chefs are in that situation) both in method and res-using old bits of kit. After I left, Giorgio opened a few more restaurants for Claudio before deciding to do his own thing. About 8 - 9 years later he was approached by the Intercontinental group to take over a tired old site in a slightly off the radar hotel called The Churchill (but in a great location, somehow it had just gone unnoticed). This time the money was there to build a great kitchen, and so I went in as baker to help on the opening. And the restaurant was, and still is, a great success.

As soon as I can I get cooking and post some pictures here.

regards

Dan

[Swisskaese]

I loved the "Tony and Georgio" programme on the BBC. I wish he would doing another round of that show. I am going to put this book on my wish list.

Edited by Swisskaese, 05 September 2006 - 03:00 AM.

[docsconz]

Hello John,

Giorgio Locatelli became the "chef to watch" as soon as he left the Savoy (where he was sous chef) to run his first kitchen at Olivo, a restaurant in Pimlico. Partly that his food was full of vigour at a time when most Italian food in London was heavy and stodgy, partly his looks (he was, and is, a handsome man), his youth and the fact he was an Italian cooking Italian food in London. Though there were others trying to demonstrate the lightness and freshness of Italian food, in London in the early 1990s - like Alastair Little, and Ruth Rogers and Rose Gray - Giorgio was "the Italian" doing it.

A while after than he was tempted by Claudio Pulzo, a restaurateur in London, to open his own place that would be a hybrid of the food he'd trained to do - at Tour d'Argent and Laurent in Paris, and at the Savoy - together with more simple dishes that reflected his mothers cooking and taste. So they found a site in Knightsbridge, where an old fish restaurant (Wheelers) had been, just gave it a lick of paint inside and replaced the windows outside, and called it "Zafferano".

This is where I came in. I'd opened St. John (as the head pastry chef / baker) after having spent the previous year line cooking in New York (at a place called VIX with Patricia Yeo in Soho, at a little place called Dakota Bar on the upper west side, and then back to open that Portuguese restaurant that VIX became for a couple of months), and Giorgio kept saying to me, "come with me, do this restaurant", and so eventually I gave in and took the job (again as head pastry chef, but without the bread) and we opened the restaurant. Unlike St. John, which opened to very few customers until the end of the first month when the reviews came out, Zafferano was packed as soon as it opened. Customers just came in and sat down as if we'd been there always. So it was hard work starting that way, and I haven't encountered an opening like it since (the one month lull is typical).

I remember him as a remarkable chef, especially then when we had so little equipment to work with in the kitchen and he would was really inventive (as chefs are in that situation) both in method and res-using old bits of kit. After I left, Giorgio opened a few more restaurants for Claudio before deciding to do his own thing. About 8 - 9 years later he was approached by the Intercontinental group to take over a tired old site in a slightly off the radar hotel called The Churchill (but in a great location, somehow it had just gone unnoticed). This time the money was there to build a great kitchen, and so I went in as baker to help on the opening. And the restaurant was, and still is, a great success.

As soon as I can I get cooking and post some pictures here.

regards

Dan

Hi Dan, Thanks for the background. Though I may not have much to add for a while, I will follow this thread with interest.

[El Bundy]

Hello Dan I can't wait till the book is out I'm checking play.com everyday but they're still waiting for there delivery stock, ah well it shouldn't take to long by now.
I'm a big fan of Giorgio and had the honour to eat at Locanda and even spoke to the man himself at the taste of london back in June.
His previous book "T&G" is very good but I imagine this one will be even better.

Edited by El Bundy, 07 September 2006 - 04:36 AM.

[danlepard]

Hello El bundy,

It is slowly getting into the distribution system, from the warehouse to the shops, but this can be a slow process some times. Especially in/from the UK. In the US they seem to have couriers and mail ordering down to a art form, but here in the UK it grinds along bumpily.

The other thing, that might cause the mail-order companies to pause, is that the book is much bigger and heavier than anyone expected, coming in at just over 2.6kg. So it's other kitchen uses - you can wrap it in foil to weight that gravlax, press a terrine - are endless. Postage/shipping might be a bit steep. Just thought I'd warn you.

regards

Dan

[kutsu]

Looking to order this, but currently 6 weeks delivery on Amazon? is this just because it's not out yet/slow to come through, or is that looking like an accurate figure?

EDIT: play.com shows 24 hour delivery, hmm wonder which I will go for!!

Edited by kutsu, 08 September 2006 - 04:27 AM.

[danlepard]

edit***have just looked at amazon.co.uk and they're listing it as in stock now.


I can't really see that the amazon.co.uk delivery time is accurate, it must just be that they don't have their full number of orders, or that they have already allocated their advance copies and need a second shipment to fill later orders (these are only guesses). The book is in some of the bookshops. Waterstones has it, but only at the full cover price. I'd go after amazon as they're offering a hefty (50%) discount.
Dan

Edited by danlepard, 08 September 2006 - 08:27 AM.

[kutsu]

Well book is on order, I've just made the Spaghetti al Crudo, and it was a hit with the family, looks like a wise purchase!

[Raj Banerjee]

I ordered the book from amazon uk last Friday and it got delivered here today. It is, as Dan says, beautiful. And massive. Really nice...production? Is that the right word?

Anyhow, owing to being on placement at a surgery in North Yorks (beautiful up here, good eating pubs as well, Black Bull in Moulton was fantastic) at present (but still finding the time to shop online obviously) I have not yet had the chance to cook anything from it. I have however read through bits and pieces, and it reads really well. Seems like Locatelli and publishers put a lot of effort into this one.

I enjoyed Tony & Giorgio, both for the banter and the recipes. Seems like this one will have lots of nice insights as well as some solid recipes. Havent yet come across anything too restaurant-y.

Dan, photos are exactly as you describe them, and look great. I like the fact that the book opens with the series of photos that it does, seems like a purposeful introduction to set the mood, and it did exactly that. As a result, I am now only 1/5th of the way through my case report. Lazy afternoon in the garden reading on possibly one of the last pleasant days of the year...

Cheers
Raj

[El Bundy]

The package has arrived!
I did a quick scan through the book and it looks absolutely great, good job on the photo's mate. The only problem with these kind of books is that you can't decide what to make first...

[kutsu]

Mine came a couple of days ago, and i'm cooking a three course meals (I say cooking, the first course will be antipasto from the first section) on Saturday for my mother in law.

The book is absolutely fantastic, and that's not just lipservice because of Mr Lepard's involvement, it really really is. Nice that Giorgio also aknowledges other great restaraunters in their as well, Blumenthal, Ramsay, Fergus Henderson, etc.

Best cookbook I've looked at in ages, a real treat. Please buy this book and support it for what it is!

Edited by kutsu, 14 September 2006 - 04:46 AM.

[JasonZ]

I used to live in the UK, so I had an account with amazon.co.uk, ordered it, and had it shipped to the US. Arrived less than a week after I placed my order.

Spectacular photos (wonderful work, danlepard!!), but more than that, the text itself is beautifully typeset and the photos are reproduced exquisitely. It reminds me of some of the photographic art texts I have that are printed in Singapore on heavy, acid free, blazing white stock. Fourth Estate (London) is to be congratulated -- it is as much an art book as a cook book. This could easily sit on a coffee table in one of the McMansion's living rooms, next to any art classic.

Haven't had time to make any of the recipes, but just reading them brings tears to your eyes ... and saliva to your taste buds!

Edited by JasonZ, 25 September 2006 - 05:21 PM.

[Ohba]

There was an article in the Guardian newspaper this week about Giorgio Locatelli, and the book.

Link.

[mukki]

I kept thinking I should hold off and see whether this is published in the US rather than shipping it from the UK, but I couldn't wait. It's on its way and I hope it turns out as beautiful as the previews lead me to believe it is.

[Pweaver1984]

Just received my copy, and would just like to add my praise for the work that has obviously gone into it. Cookbook of the Year....

[Carlovski]

I thumbed through it in the bookstore the other day - I'll buy it tomorrow (Payday!). Normally I'm opposed to the phenomenon of the £25-30 cookbook - I want the new Fuschia Dunlop one, but I think I'll wait for the Paperback thank you. But this one looks well worth it - on top of the content it is a beautifully made book.
If you prefer Bookshops to buying online like me they have a fiver of the cover price in Waterstones at the moment.

[peter cook]

Well Done Dan,

I looked through the book in Waterstone's yesterday, and it is a lovely thing. The photos are superb, and I love the close ups of Georgio's workers at the back.

But, I didn't buy it. It is a lot of money for a poor baker to part with, and every cookery book in our kitchen has to work for its place. I just didn't think I would make many of the recipes. Love to eat them, yes. But, not cook.

If I can find a good deal on amazon, I will maybe buy it just for the read. The Observer article says that there is a fair bit of autobiography in there!

Well done, and I look forward to your own book soon.

Peter Cook.

[kutsu]

Get it on amazon, 50% off and well worth it!

[joiei]

I ordered my copy of the book through Amazon UK and was notified that it was shipped today. I am hoping that it arrives as quickly as my Spoon book did from Amazon France. Reading all the posts about it makes the book intriguing.

[Andy Lynes]

Well done, and I look forward to your own book soon.

If you haven't already seen it, Dan's book The Handmade Loaf is outstanding.

[Jean Blanchard]

Okay, I'm seriously considering buying this book but before I do, I'm wondering if any of you have done any actual cooking from it yet. If so, what's your thoughts?

Jean

[joiei]

My book just arrived from Amazonuk (took for friggin ever) and I have finally had a chance to browse through the book. The first thing I will make is the garlic soup. The recipes are not filled with a lot of techno equipment or hard to find ingredients, I think I can find most everything even here in Oklahoma. There are several of the ravioli recipes I will be trying. Though out the book, Georgio has little tidbits about his life, it is interesting to read the bits about working at the Savoy. I do not regret getting this book.

[kutsu]

Okay, I'm seriously considering buying this book but before I do, I'm wondering if any of you have done any actual cooking from it yet.  If so, what's your thoughts? 

Jean

I've cooked solidy from it for the past two or three weeks, with only 1 or 2 meals that were not inspired or taken directly from the book. Fantastic, not overly hard for the most part, but very tasty results.

I've made, off the top of my head and without a copy of the book anywhere to hand;

hand made gnocchi
gnocchi with tomato and rocket sauce
hand made pasta
pasta with wild mushrooms
pasta with beef ragu
lasagne
risotto milanese
stuffed cabage with fried rissotto
potato parcels with pepper sauce
chicken under a brick
lamb and pepper stew
confit of pears with zabligone
lemon rissotto soufle

etc etc

lots of stuff!

[danlepard]

in the interest of fair comment, not everyone liked it.

Philippa Davenport in the Financial Times on how the book was a little too heavy to be taken seriously.