The Book of Yields: Accuracy in Food Costing and Purchasing Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)As a culinary student this book is a must have for any student who wants to succeed. I used the previous version at school and it is so valuable it is hardly available to check out. When this book came out I decided to buy it and have had it just a few days and it is amazing how fast and easy requisition forms and mass quantity recipes are easy to convert. Thank you to everyone who put their hard work into this book. Now I need to buy the CD.rom version.


Click Here to see more reviews about: The Book of Yields: Accuracy in Food Costing and Purchasing

The only product with yield information for more than 1,000 raw food ingredients, The Book of Yields, Eighth Edition is the chef's best resource for planning, costing, and preparing food more quickly and accurately. Now revised and updated in a new edition, this reference features expanded coverage while continuing the unmatched compilation of measurements, including weight-to-volume equivalents, trim yields, and cooking yields. With helpful worksheets; a clear organisation by food type; and a convenient, durable comb binding, The Book of Yields, Eighth Edition is a must-have culinary resource.

Click here for more information about The Book of Yields: Accuracy in Food Costing and Purchasing

Large Quantity Recipes, Fourth Edition Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)The recipes in this cookbook are all prepared in quantities of 50. It contains both US Standard and Metric weights and measures. The dishes are basic and easy to prepare. This is very important when you are dealing with feeding a large number of people. I have personally used many recipes from this book to serve over 200 people. All the dishes were well received. They turned out exactly as they should and the cookbook even has additional information to aid in figuring how much of each ingredient to buy. When it comes to cooking in bulk, this book is - hands downs - my favorite.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Large Quantity Recipes, Fourth Edition

Get 20% OFF

Click here for more information about Large Quantity Recipes, Fourth Edition

Guest-Based Marketing: How to Increase Restaurant Sales Without Breaking Your Budget Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I have long been a fan of Bill Marvin's publications and have utilized many of his ideas in my own restaurant. This book is no exception. While many of the ideas presented are geared towards a more upscale environment, I have been able to use more than a few in the restaurant that I operate, which is a unit of a national chain. With a little thought, you can adjust most of the ideas in this book to fit your needs!

Click Here to see more reviews about: Guest-Based Marketing: How to Increase Restaurant Sales Without Breaking Your Budget

This book addresses one of the most-asked-for restaurant management topics—marketing—in practical terms. It shows how to increase restaurant sales, starting with an existing customer base, building customer loyalty and increasing the frequency of their visits.

Click here for more information about Guest-Based Marketing: How to Increase Restaurant Sales Without Breaking Your Budget

Good Night and God Bless: A Guide to Convent & Monastery Accommodation in Europe: Austria, Czech Republic, Italy Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)"Good Night & God Bless" dropped into my hands directly from heaven on the wings of angels, or so it seemed.
In it, Trish Clark gives us heavenly insider information on convent and monastery accommodations in three of the most romantic and picturesque countries in Europe: Austria, the Czech Republic, and...ah!...Italy.
The actual hard information in the margins is so complete and good that it preempts questions arising from her wonderful descriptions of these remarkable lodging opportunities in the main text. The author even divides information for readers seeking spiritual retreats or those just wanting to soak up the ambiance of these sacred places.
You don't have to be a monk to sleep in a 13th century monastery in Tuscany, with a balcony overlooking a quiet, rose-clustered cloister garden -- or a nun to breakfast on coffee with steamed milk and just-out-of-the-oven pastries in a 500-year-old Austrian convent. "Good Night & God Bless" makes accessible fabled places that only the clergy and their friends knew about in times past. But more than that, the book educates us on the origins of these splendid institutions and the rich historical context in which they are set.
Whether you are planning a trip or just wanting to travel from the couch, get hold of Good Night & God Bless and read it from cover to cover -- it really is a blessing.
Joseph Dispenza, author of "The Way of the Traveler: Making Every Trip a Journey of Self-Discovery" and "God On Your Own: Finding a Spiritual Path Outside Religion."


Click Here to see more reviews about: Good Night and God Bless: A Guide to Convent & Monastery Accommodation in Europe: Austria, Czech Republic, Italy

Ever Slept in a Bishop's Bedchamber?Good Night and God Bless is the modern traveler s Bible. This unique guide lists details of atmospheric and affordable accommodation in convents, monasteries, abbeys and Christian hotels across Europe. It is aimed at tourists and travelers seeking a unique experience as well as those pursuing a pilgrimage or religious retreat.Most of these alternative accommodations are run by various mainstream Christian religious denominations. Religious orders have traditionally offered hospitality as part of their ministry and a bed and a bite to eat was provided for the cost of a donation. However, these days offering hospitality has become a means of survival. Taking in overnight guests is a practical way for religious orders to raise revenue and a cheap, safe, clean and often well-located accommodation option for travelers.The book appeals not only for its quirky, eye catching, pick me up title but equally and more importantly for its very concept. It is an informal and user-friendly travel guide which brings together tantalizing cultural tidbits and tourist trivia amidst the popular and sometimes controversial, but always fascinating, backdrop of history and religion.

Get 25% OFF

Click here for more information about Good Night and God Bless: A Guide to Convent & Monastery Accommodation in Europe: Austria, Czech Republic, Italy

Advanced Bread and Pastry Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)This is without doubt the largest, most informative, most inclusive bread and pastry book in existence. Just imagine the 'Professional French pastry series' and the 'Special and decorative breads series' in one huge tome.The book does not have 880 pages as stated in the description, but 1043 including the indexes.
Mr Suas has created a comprehensive, easy to follow textbook for advanced baking and pastry. The book uses the French tradition in baking/pastry apprenticeship and includes both American and French products. Mind that this is not a coffee table book but a student's guide to advanced baking/pastry. So the author approaches the reader as a teacher would approach the student. There are explanations for every single detail and at the end of each chapter there are questions. A word of caution; this is a book strictly for professionals. One cannot just open it and start measuring cups and spoons to make a cake. Anyone lesser than an apprentice will probably get lost in the plethora of information. So if you are not a professional or a very knowlegable amateur, don't blow your money.
The book starts with a history of bread and pastry making and is divided into three main sections: Bread, Vienoisserie and Pastry. Each section is then subdivided into many others. The chapters are:
PART 1: INTRODUCTION
a) History
b) Food safety
PART 2: BREAD
a) Baking process and dough mixing
b) Fermentation
c) Advanced flour technology and dough conditioners
d) Alternative baking processes
e) Bread formulas
PART 3: VIENNOISERIE
PART 4: PASTRY
a) Cookies
b) Quick breads
c) Pastry dough
d) Pies and tarts
e) Cake mixing and baking
f) Syrups,creams,custards,egg foams,icings
g) Mousses
h) Classic and modern cake assembly
i) Petit-fours and confections
j) Frozen desserts
k) Plated desserts
l) Advanced decoration
m) Chocolate
There are photos throughout, including procedures and most of the products, the paper is glossy, and there are tables with information interspersed between the text. All formulas are given in Metric, Baker's percentage, US decimal, and Lbs and Oz. Also there are instructions to sites in the internet where one can expand on what is in the book and get additional information. These are throughout the book and in all the sections.
In the bread section, all the different breadmaking procedures are discussed, including the straight dough method, retarded dough method and sourdough method. This is the only book I know that in some products uses two different sourdoughs to produce a bread. Another innovation is the inclusion of a whole program for breadmaking on a professional scale, with days and times for each procedure spanning several days. There is also an extensive discussion on par-baked goods which are being favored lately by many bakers.
Bread products include: Baguettes, ciabatta, San Francisco sourbread, challah, rye breads, naan, tortilla, pita, pan de los muertos and many other European and American breads.
The Viennoiserie section is one of the most comprehensive and inclusive and can be only compared to the ones in the 'Traditional and decorative breads'. All the known products are here, including croissants, danish, kugelhopf, brioche, panettone. Different methods are given for the production of the same product eg retarded croissant, sourdough croissant etc.
The pastry section is larger than the bread one by 200 pages. The theory is divided between the chapters, as each family of products has its own technology and science, besides the basic science that goes for all pastry.
There are literally hundreds, if not thousands of products in this section. Most of the classics are here, as well as modern pastries. Too many to mention.
On the downside. Some recipes (not many) use shortening, a blasphemy against both health and taste. I also noticed a few typographical errors in some of the recipes and the temperatures, eg 375F is given as 96C in one recipe, while it should be 196C.
These faults though, are a drop in an ocean of excellence.
To conclude, at this low price this book is a give away. Just think that for the same money you can only get one tome of the 'French pastry series' with 200 pages and here you get more than a thousand pages.
Top quality, top price, the best money can buy.


Click Here to see more reviews about: Advanced Bread and Pastry

Advanced Bread and Pastry, A Professional Approach is a comprehensive guide to bread, viennoiserie, and pastry that is designed for students, professionals, and enthusiasts. Balancing a respect for tradition with modern approaches to method and technique, Advanced Bread and Pastry unites appealing presentation and indispensable instruction. It is written to help today?s baker respond to the recent evolution of ingredients, products, and presentation. The recipes (called formulas) are based on a variety of classica methods and processes. With this strong foundation of knowledge, a baker or pastry chef can develop further skills, experiment with new ideas, and understand any formula.

Get 23% OFF

Click here for more information about Advanced Bread and Pastry

How to Open a Financially Successful Specialty Retail & Gourmet Foods Shop: With Companion CD-ROM Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)"How to Open a Financially Successful Specialty Retail and Gourmet Foods Shop" is a great read for anyone looking to own their own specialty or niche store. From selling only jam to selling complex kitchen gadgets, this book is great for anyone looking to delve into any niche market.
The authors take readers through a number of get ready steps. They include, among other things, picking location, deciding what merchandise to carry, identifying the target audience, writing a business plan, filing the loan application, and getting the necessities (such as company name, licenses, insurance, etc.).
I love that the book details every thing I would need to know about opening a specialty business. It even discusses decorating tips, hiring a staff, marketing the business, and creating a press kit. Because the book covers so much, it tends to cover only the basics of all the topics. It does not go really in-depth on most items, so if you are looking for some exact how-to guide, this book probably is not for you.
The book also comes with a handy cd-rom that provides sample business plans and other worksheets that I found very helpful. You can easily take the business plan and modify it to suit your start-up business. In addition, there are a number of great resources listed within the pages of the book that any new business owner would find beneficial.


Click Here to see more reviews about: How to Open a Financially Successful Specialty Retail & Gourmet Foods Shop: With Companion CD-ROM

The $20 billion gourmet market is nearly recession-proof. In fact, experts indicate that gourmet products actually do better in uncertain times like these as consumers seek out affordable luxuries. If you plan to open a specialty retail store, or perhaps a small store inside an existing retail space then this book is a must Although gourmet foods command a price double and up to ten times higher than that of grocery store brands, there are those consumers that are content and look to pay a premium price for premium items. This book shows how, with minimal effort and a small investment compared to other food businesses, how you can start your own specialty retail store and be highly profitable! This is the A-to-Z guide to making it in your own store. Learn the expert tips, tricks, and a vast gold mine of crucial how-to information you just can't find anywhere else. This is a perfect book for entrepreneurs, schools, colleges and technical training centers. This detailed text contains all the information you will ever need to needed to start, operate, and manage a highly profitable specialty store. While providing detailed instruction and examples, the author leads you through finding a location that will bring success, learn how to draw up a winning business plan (The Companion CD-ROM has the actual business plan you can use in MS Word TM), how to buy and sell a store, basic cost control systems, profitable product planning, sample floor plans & diagrams, successful kitchen management, equipment layout and planning, food safety & HACCP, successful food & beverage management, legal concerns, sales and marketing techniques, pricing formulas, learn how to set up computer systems to save time and money, learn how to hire & keep a qualified professional staff, brand new IRS tip reporting requirements, managing and training employees, generate high profile public relations and publicity, learn low cost internal marketing ideas, low and no cost ways to satisfy customers and build sales, learn how to keep bringing customers back, accounting & bookkeeping procedures, auditing, successful budgeting and profit planning development, as well as thousands of great tips and useful guidelines. Never before has so much practical information about the specialty store business been offered in one book. This is an ideal guide new for comers to the business as well as experienced operators. In addition to basic operational practices this book will demonstrate show how to: increase impulse sales and improve presentation, utilize merchandising fixtures and techniques, cross merchandising, point of purchase materials, how to develop a product sampling program.

Get 34% OFF

Click here for more information about How to Open a Financially Successful Specialty Retail & Gourmet Foods Shop: With Companion CD-ROM

About Professional Baking Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I am a chef educator who teaches several introduction to baking courses at a culinary school. Myself and one of my collegues at another institution were interested in using this book, and the publisher was so friendly and inviting. My peer even got to speak with the author on the phone.
The book is fantastic, by the way...by far the best baking text I have seen to date. It is clear, informative, and complete with beautiful pictures and easy-to-follow instructions.
That is compared to Wayne Gisslen's book, which I and several of my collegues use. His approach utilizes much smoke-and-mirrors, unlike Sokol's text.
This book is a great find for professionals and home chefs alike.

Click Here to see more reviews about: About Professional Baking

This IACP (International Association of Culinary Professionals) finalist text is designed to present the principles of science that are applicable to baking.Each distinct chapter covers one or a group of related concepts, and contains introductory narrative and background information; an exemplary recipe; and a series of culinary lessons.Additional recipes are included in each chapter, and a step by step, full color series of photos accompanies each culinary lesson.The special features of this text include discussions of science related topics; pastry history; Lessons Demonstrated boxes, which highlight important principles in each chapter; Professional Profiles sections that highlight important culinary figures; and numerous tables, charts, and photographs designed to explain the principles in recipes. The unique presentation of material, the author s accessible writing style, the culinary lessons, and the numerous recipes provided make this text the most appropriate baking text available for today s culinary student.

Get 32% OFF

Click here for more information about About Professional Baking