“Care and Feeding: A Memoir”

Do you fantasize about being an assistant to a celebrity chef?

Read “Care and Feeding: A Memoir” (Ecco), of which I received a review copy, by Laurie Woolever and you will probably have second thoughts.

Woolever is a writer and editor who has written about food and travel for the New York Times, Food & Wine and GQ. She also was an assistant to the late-great Anthony Bourdain and to the now irreputable chef Mario Batali.

No surprise, Bourdain comes off as a thoughtful and professional boss while Batali’s antics are as lecherous and unseemly as you imagine.

But when it comes to telling all, Woolever doesn’t spare herself, either. Indeed, her writing is raw and unflinching as she describes this period in her life, where drugs, booze, and extramarital affairs nearly did her in.

Thankfully, as the title implies, she finally learns the importance of taking care of herself first, and in so doing, emerges as the respected and successful writer she was meant to be.

“I’m Not Trying To Be Difficult: Stories From the Restaurant Trenches”

He is one of the most storied restaurateurs in the country, having opened such iconic New York establishments as Tribeca Grill, Nobu New York City, Nobu Next Door, Batard, and Montrachet.

Founder of the wildly successful Myriad Restaurant Group, Drew Nieporent has written a memoir, “I’m Not Trying to Be Difficult: Stories from the Restaurant Trenches” (Grand Central), with Los Angeles food writer Jamie Feldmar.

The book, of which I received a review copy, chronicles how Nieporent, a middle-class kid from New York, developed an early passion for fine food as he tagged along with his father whose job it was to help New York restaurants obtain a liquor license.

He went from an always underestimated kid, who got his first job working the grill at his neighborhood McDonald’s, to a force to be reckoned with in his class at Cornell University’s School of Hotel. At age 29 in 1985, he opened his first New York restaurant, Montrachet, with the mercurial Chef David Bouley, whom he notoriously butted heads with routinely.

Montrachet earned three stars from the New York Times, and became the “It” place where everyone who was anyone wanted to dine. An anecdote involving actor Don Johnson is particularly amusing.

Nieporant would go on to partner with Robert DeNiro and Nobu Matsuhisa to open Nobu in New York and London, but got pushed out from the subsequent expansion of the Nobu brand.

At 70 now, he’s survived a stroke and has battled weight issues most of his life. But reading the book, you don’t doubt for a second that this is a man so committed to his work and who finds such satisfaction in it that he can’t fathom ever retiring.

“Wine Simple: Perfect Pairings”

If there’s anyone who knows wines and how to pair them with food, it’s Aldo Sohm.

After all, he’s the James Beard Award-winning wine director of Michelin three-starred Le Bernardin and a partner in his own Aldo Sohm Wine Bar, both in New York City. He’s also been named “Best Sommelier in the World” in 2008 by the Worldwide Sommelier Association.

For those non-wine geeks who find their eyes glazing over while perusing most wine books, his “Wine Simple: Perfect Pairings” (Clarkson Potter), of which I received a review copy, will be a refreshing change. It was written with veteran cookbook writer Christine Muhlke.

With colorful, easy-to-read graphics and writing that never veers into flowery verbosity, it’s a very accessible read for anyone interested in learning more about varietals, how to discern aromas and flavors, and what considerations go into pairing wines with foods.

It starts with the fundamentals, teaching you what the color of a wine can tell you (“Redder-hued wines typically have higher acidity than their purplish cousins.”), and what aroma types (citrus, peppery, melon, etc.) generally correspond to what varietals.

Even if all you wanted to know is what to pair with that dry Riesling a friend gifted you, it’s easy to figure out by turning to that exact listing in the book, where you’ll find not only that it goes swimmingly with salads with fruit, beef rendang and dim sum, but also learn the major tasting notes for that particular wine and the major regions where it’s grown.

No matter how much or how little you know about wine, this is assuredly one book that you will turn to again and again.

“What Is Queer Food”

In this day and age, we’ve come to realize just how much of our food traditions have been shaped by immigrants. Much less known, however, is the contributions that the LGTBQ community has had in all of that.

John Birdsall, recipient of two James Beard Awards for food and culture writing, pulls back the curtain on that in his new cook, “What is Queer Food?” (W.W. Norton & Company), of which I received a review copy.

Named one of the New York Times’ “100 Notable Books of the Year,” it’s a worthy follow-up to his last book, “The Man Who Ate Too Much: The Life of James Beard.”

Birdsall showcases how LGBTQ members in Europe and the United States found comfort and community around the table when they were so often ostracized elsewhere.

He shines a light on the food contributions of such well-known icons as James Baldwin, Craig Claiborne, and Truman Capote, and more obscure ones, including Esther Eng, the world’s first female Chinese American filmmaker who was openly lesbian and went on to open Bo Bo Restaurant in New York City’s Chinatown in 1950.