The French Menu Cookbook: The Food and Wine of France - Season by Delicious Season - Tapa dura

The perfect prose is as beautiful as the menus.
-Rachel Cooke in The Observer Food Monthly

Immaculate instruction. Glorious prose. Recipes for serious kitchen folk. My most cherished cookery book.
-Simon Hopkinson

[Olney] was a true genius in the kitchen, and his writing was as sensual and precise as his handling of ingredients. Let trumpets sound to mark the timely resurrections of this, one of his best-loved books.
-Alan Davidson, author of The Oxford Companion to Food

‘Comes wreathed in compliments from people such as Simon Hopkinson, Alan Davidson and Prue Leith ... reading it is almost enough in itself; for perfection, give it to someone clever enough to cook it all for you.’ – Telegraph Magazine

‘Meticulous in its advice, the seasonal menus and recipes are superb. Food writing as good as this is rare indeed.’ The Western Mail, No. 8 of the 30 best cookbooks of all time

Henry Harris of Racine told FT Magazine that Richard Olney “writes so beautifully, you can lose yourself in his glorious prose.”

The book was selected by The Week as one of the best cookbooks of 2010 – “this cookbook is the perfect introduction to (Richard Olney’s) ‘passionate and idiosyncratic’ approach to French cooking.”

The Sunday Tribune (Eire) has called it a “seductive read for any Francophile, even better for one who can cook.”

Voted 'The Best Cookbook Ever' by The Observer Food Monthly, Richard Olney's The French Menu Cookbook is a beautifully written celebration of French food and wine. Filled with inspirational seasonal menus, over 150 authentic recipes and evocative writing, this celebrated book conjures up the scents and scenes of Provence.

Originally published in 1970, The French Menu Cookbook became an instant kitchen classic that redefined modern cooking. Written from Olney's home in the hills of southern France, Olney takes the reader through spring, summer, autumn and winter with enlightening guidance on French wine, exquisite dishes, lucid instructions and inspired seasonal menus.

The French Menu Cookbook includes 32 thoughtful menus - from a simple Provencal lunch to an informal autumn dinner, an elegant winter supper and a festive meal for two. Each menu includes honest and enlightening explanations of how the French really cook and compelling descriptions of dishes and techniques. With lyrical writing and unsurpassed French recipes, Olney's delightful book is a masterful resource that is a must for every home cook.