Awesome Cookbook - Eat Me: The Food and Philosophy of Kenny Shopsin

I started hearing and reading about about Kenny Shopsin a few years ago. I remember rumors of a restaurant in Greenwich Village with a 900 item menu, and a long list of rules for patrons. There were stories of him kicking people of out of Shopsin's a la Soup Nazi. I didn't hear or read anything about Shopsin's over the past year or so, until one day, gleaming like a beacon on top of a bookcase in a used bookstore, I found Kenny's cookbook, Eat Me: The Food and Philosophy of Kenny Shopsin.

They say you should never judge a book by it's cover, but Eat Me has the best cover of any cookbook, ever, period. You know when a lady greets you with a big smile and you know you are going to like her? That's the impression I got with the cover, and the impression was right. I mean, come on, the cover even has a little pull tab that reveals a secret picture of sunny-side-up eggs, bacon and toast!

Inside are tons of fun recipes for crazy dishes like Mac and Cheese Pancakes, Blisters on my Sisters, and Ho-Cakes. But this isn't just a cookbook, it's a life story of Kenny Shopsin and his family's grocery store-turned-diner. Kenny writes eloquently about love for his kids, for his patrons, for cooking, for control, and for his abhorrence of bullshit. The way he interweaves the subjects of cooking, family, and sex is inspiring. I hope I get to story-tell like he does someday.

What made the most impression on me from Eat Me is how Kenny controls his customer base. Shopsin's is a small diner in a big market, and Kenny is particular about who he wants to cook for. For Kenny, Shopsin's is not just a place to work, to make a buck, it's practically a home for him and his family, and he doesn't like assholes in his home. He wants conversations with his customers, he wants connections. Kenny wants to have a give-and-take relationship with each person who walks in the door at Shopsins. He wants to cook delicious food for everyone there, and he does not think payment is enough of a return on his investment. He wants feedback, appreciation, conversation, and loyalty. Anyone who is not up for conversation, who has a bad attitude, who shows the slightest risk of being bad customers, are shown out the door before ordering.

Do yourself a favor - get this cookbook!
http://www.amazon.com/Eat-Me-Philosophy-Kenny-Shopsin/dp/0307264939/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1327723349&sr=8-1

-Chef Wax

Edited from a post on my own blog:
http://chefwax.blogspot.com/