Lotta anguish over the fact that Britain’s Phaidon Press, which produces glossy expensive art books, is bringing out Coco, 100 emerging global culinary stars — but no Canadians.
Get over it. As Groucho Marx said I wouldn’t want to belong to a club that would have me as a member.
The “curators”, the word reveals the editorial pomposity, include such Foodnetwork biggies as Mario Batali and the egregious Gordon Ramsey, Ferran Adria and Alice Waters who last time I checked was a pol rather than a chef.
But why am I taking this seriously? Coco is just another coffeetable book. Can you imagine rolling up to Portland, Oregon to eat at Bunk’s Sandwiches and Bar because Tommy Habetz was named one of the l00 emerging chefs?
Still, Britain’s parochialism is depressing. Have to wonder how the Australian Shannon Bennet, who she?, could be a curator, why couldn’t Susur Lee, who is far better known internationally?
As for emerging stars, I bet there’d be no difficulty in finding as many Canadians as the five Australians — from Toronto, I’d pick Claudio Aprile of Colborne Lane.
