I have been a restaurant critic for over a decade, written reviews of well over 700 establishments, and if there is one thing I have learned it is that people like reviews of bad restaurants. No, scratch that. They adore them, feast upon them like starving vultures who have spotted fly-blown carrion out in the bush.They claim otherwise, of course. Readers like to present themselves as private arbiters of taste; as people interested in the good stuff. I'm sure they are. I'm sure the...

The UK’s most influential food and drink journalist shoots a few sacred cows of food culture.Buying ‘locally’ does no good. Farmers’ markets are merely a lifestyle choice. And ‘organic’ is little more than a marketing label, way past its sell by date. This may be a little hard to swallow for the ethically-aware food shopper but it doesn’t make it any less true. And now the UK’s most outspoken and entertaining food writer is ready to explain why.Jay Rayner combines personal ...

Why are gravy stains on your shirt at the dinner table to be admired? Does bacon improve everything? And is gin really the devil's work? In this rollicking collection of his hilarious columns, the award-winning writer and Observer restaurant critic Jay Rayner answers these vital questions and many, many more. They are glorious dispatches, seasoned in equal measure with both enthusiasm and bile, from decades at the very frontline of eating

Britain's culinary Moses brings us the new foodie rules to live by, celebrating what and how we eatThe Ten Commandments may have had a lot going for them, but they don't offer those of us located in the 21st Century much in the way of guidance when it comes to our relationship with our food. And Lord knows we need it.Enter our new culinary Moses, the legendary restaurant critic Jay Rayner, with a new set of hand-tooled commandments for this food-obsessed ag...

I have been a restaurant critic for over a decade, written reviews of well over 700 establishments, and if there is one thing I have learnt it is that people like reviews of bad restaurants. No, scratch that. They adore them, feast upon them like starving vultures who have spotted fly-blown carrion out in the bush.They claim otherwise, of course. Readers like to present themselves as private arbiters of taste; as people interested in the good stuff. I'm sure they are. I'm sure they...

The UK’s most influential food and drink journalist shoots a few sacred cows of food culture.The doctrine of local food is dead. Farmers’ markets are merely a lifestyle choice for the affluent middle classes. And ‘organic’ has become little more than a marketing label that is way past its sell by date. That may be a little hard to swallow for the ethically-aware food shopper but it doesn’t make it any less true. And now the UK’s most outspoken and entertaining food writer is ready ...

Penguin presents the unabridged, downloadable, audiobook edition of The Ten (Food) Commandments, written and read by Jay Rayner.Britain's culinary Moses brings us the new foodie rules to live by, celebrating what and how we eatThe Ten Commandments may have had a lot going for them, but they don't offer those of us located in the 21st Century much in the way of guidance when it comes to our relationship with our food. And Lord knows we need it.Enter ...

You're about to die. What would your final meal be?This question has long troubled Jay Rayner. As a man more obsessed with his lunch than is strictly necessary, the idea of a showpiece last supper is a tantalising prospect. But wouldn't knowledge of your imminent demise ruin your appetite?So, Jay decided to cheat death.The plan was simple: he would embark on a journey through his life in food in pursuit of the meal to end all meals. It's a quest tha...

'This is Rayner at his rambunctious best: upfront, full-fat, and always deliciously written.' Nigella Lawson'A sophisticated palate and a fiery, comic tongue. Jay Rayner's food writing is brilliant.' Stanley TucciWhy are gravy stains on your shirt at the dinner table to be admired?Does bacon improve everything?And is gin really the devil's work?In this rollicking collection of his hilarious columns, the award-winning writer and Observe...

*INCLUDED THE TIMES AND WATERSTONES' BEST FOOD & DRINK BOOKS OF 2021*Fill your year with flavour.The official The Kitchen Cabinet compendium is here at last, with over 100 hours of dinner table talk distilled into this handy almanac, a year in the life of our kitchens to aid you in yours.Open up to find food tips and tricks, stories, recipes, anecdotes and seasonal fun, all held together with our trademark titbits ...

A Pulitzer Prize Finalist: This collection of moving short stories is “a treasure trove of lush scene setting in faraway times and places” (Alexis Burling, San Francisco Chronicle).On a fateful flight, a balloonist makes a discovery that changes her life forever. A telegraph operator finds an unexpected companion in the middle of the Amazon. A doctor is beset by seizures, in which he is possessed by a second, perhaps better, version of himself. And in Rege...

**Named a Wall Street Journal and Washington Post Top 10 Book of 2025Named a Best Book of the Year by Vulture, Marie Claire and Vanity Fair"I loved RUTH."—Lorde“It would never work out, but I’m in love with Ruth.”—Ron Charles, The Washington Post“A wonderful, loving, tenderly teasing and often moving portrait … [a] standout.”—Sam Sacks, Wall Street Journal“There are inklings of greatness ...