One of the most intriguing nonfiction reads. If you love The Bear and Anthony Bourdain, this book is sure to be a hit with you.

I loved this book so. much! What an incredible view of firsthand experience working in the restaurant industry in New York City over time. I found myself laughing out loud at some of Cecchi-Azzolina's stories and found myself simultaneously wishing I could have experienced restaurant life in Manhattan in the 80's and at the same time being glad that I didn't - ha. I saw that some of the reviews complained about language used in the book, but if you are from New York or New Jersey, you won't even notice it. Great book, highly recommend.

The author clearly thinks he’s the Bourdain of FOH but he really isn’t. He did a poor job of explaining the different roles within the restaurant, which made a lot of the interactions he had with his fellow restaurant workers confusing. It was also hard to tell what year or even decade it was at various points & the book would have benefited greatly from adding the year to the beginning of each part. Overall I was expecting something detailing what the actual job was & wound up with a bunch of name-dropping & hard-to-believe shenanigans.

I was very interested to read this memoir. I love memoirs in general but as a New Orleanian, food culture is part of my blood. Practically everyone I know has worked in the food industry (not me ofc, I was too busy reading) but many have stuck with it since our younger days and are now general managers, maître d’, and sommeliers.
So, when I heard about Michael Cecchi-Azzolina‘s memoir I was excited to read it and it did not disappoint. The insider look at the FOH of some of NYC’s fine dining restaurants rivals Bourdain's Kitchen Confidential.
How would you like that? Well done. well done, indeed.

There is something that I absolutely love about the behind the scenes intricacies of how the restaurant business work.

I loved reading this collection of stories from some of the most well known places in NYC. I've always wanted to work in a restaurant, but after reading some of these, I don't think I ever could!

As someone who used to work in a restaurant and was a host, this book was amazing. Hit home and loved the stories.

This was a fascinating look a bit behind the curtain in the food service industry. I have a lot of respect for people who work in the food service/hospitality industry - and a lot of the stories in this memoir highlight exactly the types of things that these folks have to deal with on a regular basis. The author highlights why the hospitality business is a lifestyle, not just a career, and gives a glimpse into some of the highs (and lows) of spending time in that lifestyle.

The flow of the writing was fast paced and engaging. A lot of quick stories and anecdotes grouped together in a flow that generally made sense - bookended by the food critics award show. The epilogue addressing what has happened to the hospitality industry as a result of Covid was fascinating and on point, while also highlighting the opportunities that exist.

I found some of the stories to be laugh out loud funny and irreverent. The style of prose is also very obviously "New York" - a bit rough around the edges and profane. There's a bit of a seedy quality to some of the stories that I wasn't necessarily expecting. What I did expect (based on the well documented nature of employee hostility in the hospitality industry) was to read the stories of abuse and mistreatment of individuals working in hospitality.

Definitely an interesting memoir and would be highly entertaining for foodies who are familiar with the landscape of New York restaurants and/or have spent time in that space. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC for me to read and review.

Michael's memoir describes in detail his 35 plus years of working every front of the house job in high end restaurants in New York City. With plenty of celebrity gossip he describes the many ups and many downs (some defying belief) of his profession.
Fascinating, Eye-Opening and Page Turning!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for a copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

I love a memoir, and I especially love a memoir that deals with the food/restaurant industry. Your Table Is Ready by Michael Cecchi-Azzolina behind the scenes of the "it" restaurants in NYC. As a self-proclaimed foodie, I loved the journey.

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for sharing this book with me. All thoughts are my own.

YOUR TABLE IS READY is a fabulous read for anyone who loves to read tales of New York's foodie world. This book is wildly entertaining and completely bingeworthy.

This feels like an extreme version of the new york waiter life or someone with the worst hand in life. Hopefully besides the underpaying and high stress, the rest of the drama is not the normal for waiters.

A very interesting look at the New York City restaurant industry with lots of behind the scenes
stories. A must-read for anyone who works or has worked in the restaurant business. A quick and fun read.

While this might not be fore everyone, I found the book enjoyable and a fun read. There were some parts I skimmed a little but overall, it was interesting to read about the interactions and experiences. Always love an insider's point of view and this was definitely one of those books.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and St. Martin's Press for providing me with an ARC copy.
All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Your Table is Ready is a fascinating look at the world of restaurants from the front of the house. I’ve seen people call it Kitchen Confidential from the front and I think that’s 100% accurate. I’ve never worked in a restaurant so I can’t say if all these stories are accurate, but it tracks with what Bourdain said - lots of drugs, alcohol, and sexism. If you don’t want to read about that… don’t pick up this book. If you, like me, are fascinated by the alien world of fancy restaurants and want the inside scoop (narcissistic narrator included), give this one a try.

Thank you to Netgalley for the review copy!

Thank you, @stmartinspress for this gifted copy! Your Table Is Ready was such an enjoyable read. Mike takes us back to the beginning of his long career in the wild world of restaurant business, starting as a nervous server, finding his place in and passion for foodservice, and becoming a highly sought-after Maître D'. He shares funny and cringy stories all throughout (that sort of made me question if I ever want to visit a restaurant again) and brought readers along on his mountains-and-valleys journey splendidly. This would be fun for anyone in NYC who may have visited or simply seen some of the establishments mentioned.
For anyone who works in the food service industry, or appreciates good food or memoirs in general, add this to your list.

This was a really interesting peek behind the curtain of some of New York City's elite dining experiences.

I did not finish this book. The author spent too much time talking about the terrible things he has done, and this did not live up to my expectations at reading the inside scoop of the restaurant industry. This was a wolf of wallstreet wannabe.

3.75
while the first 120 pages took a while to crack through, the last 120 were a breeze. this book is not classy, it isn't touched by a poetic pen, nor does it revolutionize the genre of restauration nonfiction. but that's its charm. it delivers on what it intended to be and it's lack of class is what makes it unique. cecchi takes you through the filthy environment that was lux nyc restauration in the 70-90s with the intention of making your mouth drop.

cecchi is a story teller, and i really liked how the book was structured and how it flowed, but the best parts of this were when it stayed about the story. the times when opinions or feelings were discussed (or one-liner reactions were added), it made it somewhat cringey and sometimes even gave me the ick. some of the "this behaviour wouldn't be accepted today" lines read as something he was forced to say.

overall, this book takes you on a trip; you'll see drugs, medium-rare lamb, sex dungeons, wine lists, problematic characters, mobsters, influencers, the AIDS crisis, 9/11, celebrity name-drops, food critics, and so much more. it's a person's life put on paper for our entertainment. all that is left for you to see if it's your type of entertainment!

This insiders look into the elite world of dining was utterly fascinating. I loved the personal, and public, tea that was spilled all over this book. It was a page turning appetizer, main course, and dessert wrapped into one.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this advanced copy Netgalley and the publisher.

Highly engrossing & entertaining. I learned alot about the restaurant industry that I never knew. The stories and tidbits along I read along the way are so wonderfully amusing. I recommend this book to anyone who has ever wanted to learn about the inner workings of a fine dining establishment.