Yes, Chef

A Memoir

By: Marcus Samuelsson

Narrated by: Marcus Samuelsson

Length: 11 hrs and 47 mins

Publisher's summary

JAMES BEARD AWARD NOMINEE • NAMED ONE OF THE TEN BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY VOGUE • NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

“One of the great culinary stories of our time.”—Dwight Garner, The New York Times

It begins with a simple ritual: Every Saturday afternoon, a boy who loves to cook walks to his grandmother’s house and helps her prepare a roast chicken for dinner. The grandmother is Swedish, a retired domestic. The boy is Ethiopian and adopted, and he will grow up to become the world-renowned chef Marcus Samuelsson. This book is his love letter to food and family in all its manifestations.

Marcus Samuelsson was only three years old when he, his mother, and his sister—all battling tuberculosis—walked seventy-five miles to a hospital in the Ethiopian capital city of Addis Adaba. Tragically, his mother succumbed to the disease shortly after she arrived, but Marcus and his sister recovered, and one year later they were welcomed into a loving middle-class white family in Göteborg, Sweden. It was there that Marcus’s new grandmother, Helga, sparked in him a lifelong passion for food and cooking with her pan-fried herring, her freshly baked bread, and her signature roast chicken. From a very early age, there was little question what Marcus was going to be when he grew up.

Yes, Chef chronicles Marcus Samuelsson’s remarkable journey from Helga’s humble kitchen to some of the most demanding and cutthroat restaurants in Switzerland and France, from his grueling stints on cruise ships to his arrival in New York City, where his outsize talent and ambition finally come together at Aquavit, earning him a coveted New York Times three-star rating at the age of twenty-four. But Samuelsson’s career of “chasing flavors,” as he calls it, had only just begun—in the intervening years, there have been White House state dinners, career crises, reality show triumphs and, most important, the opening of the beloved Red Rooster in Harlem. At Red Rooster, Samuelsson has fufilled his dream of creating a truly diverse, multiracial dining room—a place where presidents and prime ministers rub elbows with jazz musicians, aspiring artists, bus drivers, and nurses. It is a place where an orphan from Ethiopia, raised in Sweden, living in America, can feel at home.

With disarming honesty and intimacy, Samuelsson also opens up about his failures—the price of ambition, in human terms—and recounts his emotional journey, as a grown man, to meet the father he never knew. Yes, Chef is a tale of personal discovery, unshakable determination, and the passionate, playful pursuit of flavors—one man’s struggle to find a place for himself in the kitchen, and in the world.

Praise for Yes, Chef

“Such an interesting life, told with touching modesty and remarkable candor.”—Ruth Reichl

“Marcus Samuelsson has an incomparable story, a quiet bravery, and a lyrical and discreetly glittering style—in the kitchen and on the page. I liked this book so very, very much.”—Gabrielle Hamilton

“Plenty of celebrity chefs have a compelling story to tell, but none of them can top [this] one.”—The Wall Street Journal

“Red Rooster’s arrival in Harlem brought with it a chef who has reinvigorated and reimagined what it means to be American. In his famed dishes, and now in this memoir, Marcus Samuelsson tells a story that reaches past racial and national divides to the foundations of family, hope, and downright good food.”—President Bill Clinton

©2012 Marcus Samuelsson (P)2012 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

"The Red Rooster's arrival in Harlem brought with it a chef who has reinvigorated and reimagined what it means to be American. In his famed dishes, and now in this memoir, Marcus Samuelsson tells a story that reaches past racial and national divides to the foundations of family, hope, and downright good food." (President Bill Clinton)

"I've read a lot of chefs' books, but never anything like this one. Marcus Samuelsson has had such an interesting life, and he talks about it with touching modesty and remarkable candor. I couldn't put this book down." (Ruth Reichl, best-selling author of Tender at the Bone)

"Marcus Samuelsson has an incomparable story, a quiet bravery, and a lyrical and discreetly glittering style - in the kitchen and on the page. I liked this book so very, very much." (Gabrielle Hamilton, best-selling author of Blood, Bones, & Butter)

Depth of Flavor - Depth of Soul

Yes, Chef is an extraordinary memoir and one of my favorite Audible Audiobooks. I have always been curious to learn more about Marcus Samuelsson's multicultural background which led me to choose this. I had no idea that I would learn so much about so many different things, including myself from this book. Marcus tells his story in a very honest and straightforward way. This leaves him very vulnerable and I greatly respect his bravery and the fact that he shares everything that happened without trying to make himself look good. This is an important story for Americans to read because it touches on so many social issues. While there is a lot of life lesson material, there is also a lot of insight about food, cooking, flavors, and the inner workings of the food industry. Food and flavor are used literally and figuratively to help the reader understand much broader universal truths. I am very pleased that the author reads his own words. His accent is a reflection of all of his experience and no one else could have done the story justice. Fans of Food Network and Bravo TV will already be familiar with Marcus' unique vocal delivery. Folks who are not already fans will have a small learning curve - just a matter of unique phrasing and inflection mostly. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn about themselves and the value of honest self reflection. I would also recommend this to anyone who wants to learn more about other cultures and what it's like to come from a multicultural background. This work would also be very valuable for anyone interested in becoming part of the food industry.

An authentic story of discovery and success.

Would you listen to Yes, Chef again? Why?

Stories of rising from poverty to the world stage are often mythic. This is real, authentic, showing the unfolding of awareness and discovery of the world and himself. Not heroic, but the world through the eyes of a person born into war, disease, and poverty, who grew up in very provincial Sweden, and learned to compete on the global stage.

What did you like best about this story?

The simple honesty of the continual rediscovery of himself, his capability, and the moral principles needed to be balanced and focused.

Oh, yeah, and the story is about food.

If you liked Anthony Bordain's down and dirty view of the restaurant world, this is a counterbalance. Yes, there are jerks, racists, and blowhards, but as told by Samuelsson, it's one that allows for good souls to emerge, too.

What three words best describe Marcus Samuelsson’s performance?

Authentic, personal, a bit struggled

Any additional comments?

I learned of Samuelsson through the book, Aquavit. An Ethiopian Swede presents a global fusion style that is simple, elegant, inspired. Honoring and extending the cuisines. Not a celebrity book or an instant fad cuisine, but something very honest. The opportunity to hear his story in his own voice was not to be passed up. The story transcends food, surely, but uses cooking as the expression of his discovery of the world and himself.

I'm not a fan of inspirational books as a genre, or of fad food books and stories. This is different, a must-listen if you're a foodie or not.

His reading is not as fluent as a professional voice, and there are passages where there is a bit of a struggle in his reading, but it also lends to the authenticity of his story.

in awe.

I have been a fan of Marcus Samuelsson’s for a long time. I own all of his cookbooks. “Yes, chef” opens up his world and his life in such a beautiful and intimate way. The world needs more humans like him; someone who knows where their talents lie, and constantly strives to bring people together, and to give peace and love to the world. I was a fan of his cookbooks before, and now I’m a lifelong fan of him personally.

Who knew?

This was a great insight into Marcus Samuelson's roots and feelings. How his cooking skills grew.

second listen with a more open mind

this is my second try at this book and the audible version has definitely made all the difference. i had my own preconceptions about sammelsson and as a black chef myself came to the table with a mixed bag of opinions. my first read was admittedly a judgemental and skeptical one and i left with a bland if not bad taste in my mouth with some of his references to identity and his space as a chef of color, but listening to the book in his own voice and a few years post red rooster buzz i can respect and respectfully disagree with a great deal of what i found problematic upon first read. i found the book authentic, honest with reference to some of his petsonal failings and insightful if not a bit overstated in some parts. im glad i gave the book a second try and am glad that the samuelsson phe omenon has at bare minimum made way for broader consideration of blackness in american cooking.

Great story by a great chef

What made the experience of listening to Yes, Chef the most enjoyable?

I heard about Marcus Samuelsson very early in his career at Aqua Vit. To hear him tell his own story, with that wonderful voice of his, is terrificly entertaining. I often listen to audio books on long drives, and this book is a great traveling 'companion', for sure.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Yes, Chef?

His detailed memories of cooking with his Grandmother.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No. I've been listening in it, in "spurts", as I drive. I like the book so much, I don't want it to end!

A Love Letter to Family and Food

This is a beautiful memoir by a remarkable man. Yes, Chef addresses the areas that most other "celebrity chef" autobiographies hit - the discovery of flavors, the rigors of the professional kitchen, etc. What distinguishes this book is its heart - it's like a love letter to his family, to his craft, and to his community. And definitely an example of a book where the reading by the author makes the audio experience far richer than reading the text.

Different But Good

I must say I've never read a book like it. I did enjoy it. I've always liked Marques on Food Channel.

Listening to this audiobook was food for the soul

I enjoyed every minute of this wonderful story. Listening to it was a calming and inspiring escape from the day. I can’t wait to go to Red Rooster the next time I’m in New York.

A Truly Great Hear (read)...

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

"Yes, Chef" is a wonderful heartfelt book by a man with such spirit and drive. It gave me insight into the restaurant/cooking industry as well as a few hints about roasted chicken. It is a fascinating look at the life of an international man.

What did you like best about this story?

Samuelsson reveals his faults as well as his achievements honestly and without excuses.

Have you listened to any of Marcus Samuelsson’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I initially bought the book because I love cooking, and because I have an adopted Ethiopian grandson which has resulted in a personal interest in all things Ethiopian.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

My reaction to this book is that I am looking forward to going to NYC so I might go to the Red Rooster for a meal or two.

Any additional comments?

BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR FOR ME.