The Physiology of Taste (1000 Books to Read)

Surprisingly, I really liked this quirky little book! The whole time I was reading, I thought, "Those French and their food!" It is SO important to them, and if you ever get to go to France, you will be GLAD they take such care with their food. It is a delightful experience to eat there, and the most amazing meal I have ever had was eaten there at this restaurant:

Bayeux, France

So I was delighted as I read with warm memories of our time in France in June 2018 and November 2019 in the Alsace region. Both delightful gastronomical adventures!

Here is why James Mustich thinks it should be one of the 1000 Books You Read Before You Die:

Composed in aphorisms, anecdotes, and brief topical essays, The Physiology of Taste can be picked up at any time and opened to any page; it is a browser’s delight, best sampled serendipitously. The thirty “meditations” that make up the meat of the book cover a wide range of gustatory subjects, from underlying matters such as taste, the senses, and the pleasures of the table to overriding concerns such as the end of the world, sleep, dreams, death, and digestion. Brillat-Savarin’s appetite is catholic; he tackles turkeys, truffles, chocolate, and coffee with equal gusto. His penchant for theorizing is as French as his fondness for food, and he applies it to subjects as diverse as frying, gourmandism, obesity, and restaurants. Imagine a postprandial conversation, fueled by fine wine and cognac, with a worldly and loquacious uncle whose store of anecdote and eloquence seems endless, and you’ll approach the pleasures that await you in this quirky masterpiece. It is unrivaled to this day as a compendium of food lore, culinary observations, and philosophical ruminations on the art of eating and the art of living. Fortunately, because of the labors and inspirations of M. F. K. Fisher, Anglophone readers lose nothing in translation [Note from Carol: I read the free translation] for Fisher’s version of Brillat-Savarin’s chef d’oeuvre is not only exquisitely translated, but made immeasurably richer by her amplification of the text in her own notes and glosses. It is guaranteed to bring hours of diversion and delight—and perhaps even a few minutes of the promised transcendence—to any food-loving reader.