-
Knives at Dawn
- America's Quest for Culinary Glory at the Legendary Bocuse d'Or Competition
- Narrated by: Sean Runnette
- Length: 11 hrs and 6 mins
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Buy for $17.62
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Publisher's summary
The Bocuse d'Or is the real-life Top Chef, a biannual cooking competition in France featuring teams from 24 countries vying for the top honors. Named after Paul Bocuse, one of the greatest, most influential living chefs, the Bocuse d'Or has become the most sophisticated and closely watched cook-off in the world. Ironically, though American cuisine now rates among the best in the world, a U.S. team has never placed among the top three in the competition. In 2008, under the auspices of renowned chefs Daniel Boulud and Thomas Keller, the two-person U.S. team of Timothy Hollingsworth and Adina Guest trained in a specially outfitted facility in preparation for the 2009 competition with the goal of a best-ever showing for the United States.
With unparalleled behind-the-scenes access, Andrew Friedman follows the American contestants and other hopefuls as they spend months training to cook and serve their dishes just once, over the course of five and a half tense hours, in an arena filled with a thousand screaming spectators. Along the way, he paints intimate portraits of Boulud and Keller, two of the leading culinary figures of their generation, revealing their hopes and aspirations for their proteges as well as for American cuisine. Through this compelling sports-meets-cooking story, Friedman explores the clash of culinary titans and cultures in a real-world kitchen stadium and ratchets up the suspense of who will reign supreme.
Critic reviews
More from the same
Related to this topic
-
Back of the House
- The Secret Life of a Restaurant
- By: Scott Haas
- Narrated by: Johnny Heller
- Length: 7 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Food writer and clinical psychologist Scott Haas wanted to know what went on inside the mind of a top chef - and what kind of emotional dynamics drove the fast-paced, intense interactions inside a great restaurant. To capture all the heat and hunger, he spent 18 months immersed in the kitchen of James Beard Award-winner Tony Maws's restaurant, Craigie on Main, in Boston. He became part of the family, experiencing the drama first-hand.
-
-
Truly horrible narration
- By Fidge on 03-28-15
By: Scott Haas
-
Hotbox
- Inside Catering, the Food World's Riskiest Business
- By: Matt Lee, Ted Lee
- Narrated by: Matt Lee, Ted Lee
- Length: 7 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Matt Lee and Ted Lee take on the competitive, wild world of high-end catering, exposing the secrets of a food business few home cooks or restaurant chefs ever experience.
-
-
Needs to be a series!
- By Sallyterra on 04-27-19
By: Matt Lee, and others
-
Ferran
- The Inside Story of El Bulli and the Man Who Reinvented Food
- By: Colman Andrews
- Narrated by: Don Hagen
- Length: 10 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In his lively, unprecedented close-up portrait of Ferran Adrià, award-winning food writer Colman Andrews traces this groundbreaking chef’s rise from resort hotel dishwasher to culinary deity, and the evolution of El Bulli from a German-owned beach bar into the establishment voted annually by an international jury to be “the world’s best restaurant”.
-
-
recasting needed
- By Marco I on 09-09-18
By: Colman Andrews
-
Life, on the Line
- A Chef's Story of Chasing Greatness, Facing Death, and Redefining the Way We Eat
- By: Grant Achatz, Nick Kokonas
- Narrated by: Johnny Heller
- Length: 12 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In 2007 chef Grant Achatz seemingly had it made. He had been named one of the best new chefs in America by Food & Wine in 2002, received the James Beard Foundation Rising Star Chef of the Year Award in 2003, and in 2005 he and Nick Kokonas opened the conceptually radical restaurant Alinea, which was named Best Restaurant in America by Gourmet magazine. Then, Achatz was diagnosed with stage IV squamous cell carcinoma - tongue cancer.
-
-
A Tasteless World?
- By Exec. Chef 'Special K' on 03-18-14
By: Grant Achatz, and others
-
The Devil in the Kitchen
- Sex, Pain, Madness, and the Making of a Great Chef
- By: Marco Pierre White, James Steen
- Narrated by: Timothy Bentinck
- Length: 9 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In The Devil in the Kitchen, White tells the story behind his ascent from working-class roots to culinary greatness, leaving no dish unserved as he relays raucous and revealing tales featuring some of the biggest names in the food world and beyond, including: Mario Batali, Gordon Ramsay, Albert Roux, Raymond Blanc, Michael Caine, Damien Hirst, and even Prince Charles.
-
-
A chef / restaurateur must.
- By Brandon on 07-18-16
By: Marco Pierre White, and others
-
Chefs, Drugs and Rock & Roll
- How Food Lovers, Free Spirits, Misfits and Wanderers Created a New American Profession
- By: Andrew Friedman
- Narrated by: Roger Wayne
- Length: 14 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Chefs, Drugs and Rock & Roll transports listeners back in time to witness the remarkable evolution of the American restaurant chef in the 1970s and 1980s. Andrew Friedman goes inside Chez Panisse and other Bay Area restaurants to show how the politically charged backdrop of Berkeley helped spark this new profession; into the historically underrated community of Los Angeles chefs, including a young Wolfgang Puck; and into the clash of cultures between established French chefs in New York City and the American game changers.
-
-
the reader makes the audiobook - unfortunately
- By Lawrie Thicke on 04-20-19
By: Andrew Friedman
-
Back of the House
- The Secret Life of a Restaurant
- By: Scott Haas
- Narrated by: Johnny Heller
- Length: 7 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Food writer and clinical psychologist Scott Haas wanted to know what went on inside the mind of a top chef - and what kind of emotional dynamics drove the fast-paced, intense interactions inside a great restaurant. To capture all the heat and hunger, he spent 18 months immersed in the kitchen of James Beard Award-winner Tony Maws's restaurant, Craigie on Main, in Boston. He became part of the family, experiencing the drama first-hand.
-
-
Truly horrible narration
- By Fidge on 03-28-15
By: Scott Haas
-
Hotbox
- Inside Catering, the Food World's Riskiest Business
- By: Matt Lee, Ted Lee
- Narrated by: Matt Lee, Ted Lee
- Length: 7 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Matt Lee and Ted Lee take on the competitive, wild world of high-end catering, exposing the secrets of a food business few home cooks or restaurant chefs ever experience.
-
-
Needs to be a series!
- By Sallyterra on 04-27-19
By: Matt Lee, and others
-
Ferran
- The Inside Story of El Bulli and the Man Who Reinvented Food
- By: Colman Andrews
- Narrated by: Don Hagen
- Length: 10 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In his lively, unprecedented close-up portrait of Ferran Adrià, award-winning food writer Colman Andrews traces this groundbreaking chef’s rise from resort hotel dishwasher to culinary deity, and the evolution of El Bulli from a German-owned beach bar into the establishment voted annually by an international jury to be “the world’s best restaurant”.
-
-
recasting needed
- By Marco I on 09-09-18
By: Colman Andrews
-
Life, on the Line
- A Chef's Story of Chasing Greatness, Facing Death, and Redefining the Way We Eat
- By: Grant Achatz, Nick Kokonas
- Narrated by: Johnny Heller
- Length: 12 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In 2007 chef Grant Achatz seemingly had it made. He had been named one of the best new chefs in America by Food & Wine in 2002, received the James Beard Foundation Rising Star Chef of the Year Award in 2003, and in 2005 he and Nick Kokonas opened the conceptually radical restaurant Alinea, which was named Best Restaurant in America by Gourmet magazine. Then, Achatz was diagnosed with stage IV squamous cell carcinoma - tongue cancer.
-
-
A Tasteless World?
- By Exec. Chef 'Special K' on 03-18-14
By: Grant Achatz, and others
-
The Devil in the Kitchen
- Sex, Pain, Madness, and the Making of a Great Chef
- By: Marco Pierre White, James Steen
- Narrated by: Timothy Bentinck
- Length: 9 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In The Devil in the Kitchen, White tells the story behind his ascent from working-class roots to culinary greatness, leaving no dish unserved as he relays raucous and revealing tales featuring some of the biggest names in the food world and beyond, including: Mario Batali, Gordon Ramsay, Albert Roux, Raymond Blanc, Michael Caine, Damien Hirst, and even Prince Charles.
-
-
A chef / restaurateur must.
- By Brandon on 07-18-16
By: Marco Pierre White, and others
-
Chefs, Drugs and Rock & Roll
- How Food Lovers, Free Spirits, Misfits and Wanderers Created a New American Profession
- By: Andrew Friedman
- Narrated by: Roger Wayne
- Length: 14 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Chefs, Drugs and Rock & Roll transports listeners back in time to witness the remarkable evolution of the American restaurant chef in the 1970s and 1980s. Andrew Friedman goes inside Chez Panisse and other Bay Area restaurants to show how the politically charged backdrop of Berkeley helped spark this new profession; into the historically underrated community of Los Angeles chefs, including a young Wolfgang Puck; and into the clash of cultures between established French chefs in New York City and the American game changers.
-
-
the reader makes the audiobook - unfortunately
- By Lawrie Thicke on 04-20-19
By: Andrew Friedman
-
Provence, 1970
- M.F.K. Fisher, Julia Child, James Beard, and the Reinvention of American Taste
- By: Luke Barr
- Narrated by: John Rubinstein
- Length: 9 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Provence, 1970 is about a singular historic moment. In the winter of that year, more or less coincidentally, the iconic culinary figures James Beard, M.F.K. Fisher, Julia Child, Richard Olney, Simone Beck, and Judith Jones found themselves together in the South of France. They cooked and ate, talked and argued, about the future of food in America, the meaning of taste, and the limits of snobbery.
-
-
Superb Narration, Engrossing Tale
- By Robert R. on 10-22-13
By: Luke Barr
-
Out of Line
- A Life of Playing with Fire
- By: Barbara Lynch
- Narrated by: Christina Delaine
- Length: 9 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Out of Line describes Lynch's remarkable process of self-invention, including her encounters with colorful characters of the food world, and vividly evokes the magic of creation in the kitchen. It is also a love letter to South Boston and its vanishing culture, governed by Irish Catholic mothers and its own code of honor. Through her story, Lynch explores how the past - both what we strive to escape from and what we remain true to - can strengthen and expand who we are.
-
-
Hardheaded, arrogant, profane.
- By Minneapolis listener on 10-26-22
By: Barbara Lynch
-
The Kitchen Counter Cooking School
- How A Few Simple Lessons Transformed Nine Culinary Novices into Fearless Home Cooks
- By: Kathleen Flinn
- Narrated by: Marguerite Gavin
- Length: 8 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
After graduating from Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, writer Kathleen Flinn returned with no idea what to do next, until one day at a supermarket she watched a woman loading her cart with ultraprocessed foods. Flinn's "chefternal" instinct kicked in: she persuaded the stranger to reload with fresh foods, offering her simple recipes for healthy, easy meals.
-
-
Just as much a self-help book as a cookbook.
- By J. Locke on 03-07-13
By: Kathleen Flinn
-
JGV
- A Life in 12 Recipes
- By: Jean-Georges Vongerichten, Michael Ruhlman
- Narrated by: Eric Yves Garcia
- Length: 7 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From his first apprenticeship in France to his Michelin-starred restaurant empire, Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s cuisine is inspired by the freshest ingredients, the simplest techniques, and the drive to make the ordinary perfect. It all started at home. JGV is an invitation into the kitchen with a master chef. With humor and heart, Jean-Georges looks back on success and failure, sharing stories of cooking with legendary chefs Paul Bocuse and Louis Outhier, traveling in search of new and revelatory flavors, and building menus of his own.
-
-
Informative and fun!
- By David Stuk on 11-24-22
By: Jean-Georges Vongerichten, and others
-
State of the Onion
- A White House Chef Mystery, Book 1
- By: Julie Hyzy
- Narrated by: Eileen Stevens
- Length: 8 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Introducing White House Assistant Chef Olivia Paras, who is rising-and sleuthing-to the top. Includes recipes for a complete presidential menu! Never let them see you sweat-that's White House Assistant Chef Olivia Paras's motto, which is pretty hard to honor in the most important kitchen in the world. She's hell-bent on earning her dream job, Executive Chef. There's just one thing: Her nemesis is vying for it, too. Well, that and the fact that an elusive assassin wants to see her fry.
-
-
Annoying
- By Carla on 04-03-14
By: Julie Hyzy
-
The President’s Kitchen Cabinet
- The Story of the African Americans Who Have Fed Our First Families, from the Washingtons to the Obamas
- By: Adrian Miller
- Narrated by: Ron Butler
- Length: 9 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
James Beard award - winning author Adrian Miller vividly tells the stories of the African Americans who worked in the presidential food service as chefs, personal cooks, butlers, stewards, and servers for every First Family since George and Martha Washington. Miller brings together the names and words of more than 150 black men and women who played remarkable roles in unforgettable events in the nation's history.
-
-
Disappointed
- By TS on 08-17-21
By: Adrian Miller
-
Cooking as Fast as I Can
- A Chef’s Story of Family, Food, and Forgiveness
- By: Cat Cora
- Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell
- Length: 7 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Cooking as Fast as I Can, Cat Cora reveals, for the first time, coming-of-age experiences from early childhood sexual abuse to the realities of life as a lesbian in the Deep South. She shares how she found her passion in the kitchen and went on to attend the prestigious Culinary Institute of America and apprentice under Michelin-star chefs in France. After her big break as a cohost on the Food Network's Melting Pot, Cat broke barriers by becoming the first-ever female Iron Chef.
-
-
Great listen for a chef
- By Nikki on 04-10-24
By: Cat Cora
-
Angelina's Bachelors
- A Novel, with Food
- By: Brian O'Reilly
- Narrated by: Xe Sands
- Length: 7 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Far too young to be a widow, Angelina D’Angelo suddenly finds herself facing a life without her beloved husband, Frank. Late one night shortly after the funeral, she makes her way down to the kitchen and pours all of her grief and anger into the only outlet she has left - her passion for cooking.
-
-
A Mouthwatering Comfort Listen
- By Blee Medel on 01-30-12
By: Brian O'Reilly
-
Super Sushi Ramen Express
- One Family's Journey Through the Belly of Japan
- By: Michael Booth
- Narrated by: Ralph Lister
- Length: 10 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Japan is arguably the preeminent food nation on earth, a Mecca for the world's greatest chefs, with more Michelin stars than any other country. The Japanese go to extraordinary lengths and expense to eat food that is marked both by its exquisite preparation and exotic content. Their creativity, dedication, and courage in the face of dishes such as cod sperm and octopus ice cream is only now beginning to be fully appreciated in the sushi and ramen-saturated West.
-
-
Interesting material that's well-narrated
- By John S. on 11-09-16
By: Michael Booth
-
Buttermilk Graffiti
- A Chef’s Journey to Discover America’s New Melting-Pot Cuisine
- By: Edward Lee
- Narrated by: David Shih
- Length: 8 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
American food is the story of mash-ups. Immigrants arrive, cultures collide, and out of the push-pull come exciting new dishes and flavors. But for Edward Lee, who, like Anthony Bourdain or Gabrielle Hamilton, is as much a writer as he is a chef, that first surprising bite is just the beginning. What about the people behind the food? What about the traditions, the innovations, the memories? A natural-born storyteller, Lee decided to hit the road and spent two years uncovering fascinating narratives from every corner of the country.
-
-
Good listen for the aspiring food snob
- By thurman r. on 02-09-22
By: Edward Lee
-
Lunch in Paris
- A Love Story, with Recipes
- By: Elizabeth Bard
- Narrated by: Ann Marie Lee
- Length: 7 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Paris for a weekend visit, Elizabeth Bard sat down to lunch with a handsome Frenchman - and never went home again. Was it love at first sight? Or was it the way her knife slid effortlessly through her pavé au poivre, the steak's pink juices puddling into the buttery pepper sauce? Lunch in Paris is a memoir about a young American woman caught up in two passionate love affairs - one with her new beau, Gwendal, the other with French cuisine.
-
-
ok to pass the time
- By Robin on 03-25-13
By: Elizabeth Bard
-
The Way Life Should Be
- A Novel
- By: Christina Baker Kline
- Narrated by: Caitlin Davies
- Length: 7 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Angela can feel the clock ticking. She is single in New York City, stuck in a job she doesn't want and a life that seems to have somehow just happened. She inherited a flair for Italian cooking from her grandmother, but she never seems to have the time for it - these days, her oven holds only sweaters. Tacked to her office bulletin board is a photo from a magazine of a tidy cottage on the coast of Maine - a charming reminder of a life that could be hers if she could only muster the courage to go after it.
-
-
Simple story
- By Dianna Bogart on 06-09-15
What listeners say about Knives at Dawn
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Jeanne
- 01-07-12
An Interesting Look at Competitive Cooking
Knives at Dawn provides a look at a world few people in the United States even know exists. There are many chefs and cooks. A few participate in the strangely wonderful world of competitive cooking. Well written and well read, Knives at Dawn makes me wish I could be ringing a cowbell or at least cheering loudly for my favorite chef.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Linda Zimmerman
- 02-07-12
Fascinating for Foodies
If you're a foodie, you'll be fascinated by the chef competition,. the Bocuse D'Or ...and centered around the American Team, a chef from Thomas Keller's The French Laundry. The story bogs down in parts, but the food descriptions and attention to all details revolving around the competition are worth the listen.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Stephen T. Coomes
- 05-22-12
Really interesting story, but mostly for chefs
If you could sum up Knives at Dawn in three words, what would they be?
Well worth listening to.
What was one of the most memorable moments of Knives at Dawn?
the team meeting Paul Bocouse at Keller's Yountville, Calif., home.
Have you listened to any of Sean Runnette???s other performances before? How does this one compare?
No, I don't think so, but as a reader, he's really good.
Any additional comments?
If you're a budding, current or former chef, you'll likely love the book. I can't imagine others who don't know the difficulty of the trade caring much. Though I never competed as a chef, I know the skills they were struggling to master for the contest. That kept me interested throughout. Great story and documentary.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Amazon Customer
- 05-10-14
Polictical propaganda in a book about cooking?
What disappointed you about Knives at Dawn?
Poor writing. Fascinating story but hindered by awful rambling thoughtless writing. The author for some reason decided this would be a good platform to spew political propaganda. He took on the task of deciding what the entire world (to a person) thought about the US before and after the 2008 elections and presented his thoughts on that as indisputable fact. Thank goodness that time has proven him very wrong and made him look silly and stupid.
Would you be willing to try another book from Andrew Friedman? Why or why not?
Not no but h$ll no!
Have you listened to any of Sean Runnette’s other performances before? How does this one compare?
Yes, he is very good. He does a great job with Tufo's books
If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from Knives at Dawn?
I would have hired Michael Ruhlman to write this story, confident he could have told the story as it happened in a easy to follow way.
Any additional comments?
The book offended me.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!