Rating: 
Summary: Destined to be a Classic Indeed
Review: Being a huge Iron Chef fan sent me on a search for a Joel Robuchon cookbook about
a week ago. I have never been more pleased with a cookbook selection as this one.
My husband who was lucky enough to eat several meals that Robuchon had cooked
while traveling in Paris says the recipes certainly live up to his taste. The
meal that I cooked my husband has moved to the best meal I have ever fixed for
him.
Rating:
Summary: Destined to be a classic
Review: I first encountered this book while working at a bookstore several years ago--a customer ordered it, and while it was waiting behind the counter, I thumbed through it. Though the various dishes look fairly daunting, I was impressed enough that I ordered it, too. What luck! What appears daunting is easily handled with Wells' guidance. I find her preference for simple yet elegant foods to be ideal, and she demystifies the Robuchon aura a little bit, bringing the impossible down to the level of the probable. Some of the items (like the "Lemon Lover's Fresh Lemon Tart") are HARD to make, but if you've got enough patience, you'll pull it off. I've had the cookbook for about three years, and have probably made about 40 of the recipies. They're incredible--every one is well-constructed, well-described, and yields amazing results. I can't recommend this one highly enough.
Rating: 
Summary: Great, but not for beginners
Review: I have the French version of this book (it sells well here in France - a good sign) and have just sent the English version to my US-based daughter at her request! It's really excellent, the recipes are delicious (do them once as prescribed, then adapt according to your own inspiration) and beautifully presented. One word of warning, it's not a basic cookbook; although some recipes are simple, it's more a book for an experienced cuisine fan (hence my four star rating, rather than five). Bon appetit !
Rating:
Summary: Good writing, good food, but complicated and expensive.
Review: I won't tell you you can't do these recipes - with some hard work and time you can. Furthermore, the recipes are delicious. But this is celebration cooking - and I just can't afford the time or money to go elbow deep into this book very often (with the exception of a few recipes) the way I can with Ms. Wells Trattoria cookbook. So when you buy this, look forward to the tips, the good writing, some mouth-watering ideas, and some wallet lightening trips to the store for oysters and truffles and fattened goose liver. And then set aside some major amount of time to 1) plan out how you are going to get a full meal to the table in the right order and 2) cook, cook, seive, and cook some more.
Rating:
Summary: If I could have only one cookbook
Review: I'm a professional private chef with an international clientelle. This book is more than just a cookbook, it's a way of life. Its all about paying attention to details. The book is worth every penny just to read the interview with Patricia Wells; and Joel Robuchons' thoughts in the introduction. I've been re-reading just these two sections for over ten years now and am continuosly inspired. The photographs are amazing, even frameable. One in particular I have removed and used as a cover shot for my private notebook. Its of a bottle of wine, a piece of cheese and loaf of bread. But oh..... what wine, cheese and bread! I always look at that picture to remind me whats its all about. My copy has fallen apart long ago. The pages are now in clear sheet protectors and I travel with this book in this condition all over the world. I never leave home without it.
Rating:
Summary: If I could have only one cookbook
Review: I'm a professional private chef with an international clientelle. This book is more than just a cookbook, it's a way of life. Its all about paying attention to details. The book is worth every penny just to read the interview with Patricia Wells; and Joel Robuchons' thoughts in the introduction. I've been re-reading just these two sections for over ten years now and am continuosly inspired. The photographs are amazing, even frameable. One in particular I have removed and used as a cover shot for my private notebook. Its of a bottle of wine, a piece of cheese and loaf of bread. But oh..... what wine, cheese and bread! I always look at that picture to remind me whats its all about. My copy has fallen apart long ago. The pages are now in clear sheet protectors and I travel with this book in this condition all over the world. I never leave home without it.
Rating:
Summary: Good writing, good food, but complicated and expensive.
Review: I've made a few of the recipes in this book, so I can't say that I'm giving an exhaustive review, but some of the quantities in the recipes have to be wrong. The monkfish recipe was strange, and it seemed that the amounts of fish and vegetables were way too high. The strawberries in pink champagne also had the same problem, with the large quantities of sugar syrup.
The madeline recipes are WONDERFUL, however; I've made the chocolate and lemon versions to rave reviews! The cheese puffs and chocolate mousse also came out great.
Rating: 
Summary: This cookbook needs better testing
Review: I've made a few of the recipes in this book, so I can't say that I'm giving an exhaustive review, but some of the quantities in the recipes have to be wrong. The monkfish recipe was strange, and it seemed that the amounts of fish and vegetables were way too high. The strawberries in pink champagne also had the same problem, with the large quantities of sugar syrup.
The madeline recipes are WONDERFUL, however; I've made the chocolate and lemon versions to rave reviews! The cheese puffs and chocolate mousse also came out great.
Rating:
Summary: Delicious, Vicarious Experience of Retired Chef's Cuisine
Review: Robuchon, recently retired at the pinnacle of his fame as the world's leading restaurateur, has a surprising number of tricks up his sleeve for the savvy home cook. To my mind, the true value of the book, beyond the many helpful short-cuts and good kitchen habits presented in side-bars, appendices and the recipes themselves, is Robuchon's epicurean philosophy. To learn to know when the food has reached the peak of flavor, in other words when to stop, is his key. The interested amateur and the foodie-freak may love him or loathe him, but Robuchon's methodology is as indisputable as it is rewarding. I would rate this as tops among my favorite cookbooks: not only is it fun to read in and of itself, but it offers a number of "do-able," world-class recipes. And now that one can no longer visit his restaurant, his cookbooks present the only (delicious) vicarious option
Rating:
Summary: Well written, clearly presented, and really good
Review: Since acquiring this book I have been fascinated at the reciepes and the way the cooking philosophy of Joel Robuchon is presented. This is a good book for people looking to understand the subtle nuances of great food
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