COOKING & FOOD

We Are What We Eat: A Slow Food Manifesto

by Alice Waters
Penguin Pr. Jun. 2021. 208p. ISBN 9780525561538. $26. COOKING
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In this ode to slow food, chef Waters (Chez Panisse in Berkeley, CA) considers fast food and slow food cultures. She examines convenience, availability, cost, and speed in fast food, juxtaposed with biodiversity, seasonality, and simplicity in slow food. She sets out her concept of “fast food values,” by which she means demand for uniform, constantly available food, in the U.S. and other countries; she argues that these values deplete the land and spur hyperconsumerism. Waters shares stories from her years as a chef and restaurateur to draw attention to the subject and propose solutions.
VERDICT Waters has important ideas about nature, respecting the land, eating seasonally, and appreciating traditional and/or organic agriculture, but readers may find her overall message a bit insensitive, when quality food and green space are luxuries inaccessible to many. Recommended for fans of Waters’s works in general, and those interested in food culture narratives and sustainability.
Reviewed by Gricel Dominguez, Florida International Univ. Lib., Miami , Jun 01, 2021
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