Books like these always fascinate me - the hours, the drugs, the relationships and the NYC setting. No surprise, I thoroughly enjoyed this one, an honest recount of Michael Cecchi-Azzolina’s career working in some of the hottest and most in-demand NYC restaurants. The stories are great, and I listened to this via audio and flew through it in one setting. This is not a career I would have lasted in, but I am always fascinated by those that do and are successful in it. I highly recommend it as there is a lot that goes into bringing food to your table, and one thing that stuck out to me was the question he was asked in an interview - what is more important, the food or the service? It is a questions we can apply to any career I think, and keeping this at top of mind seems to have served Michael well in his.

Thank you to @NetGalley and @Stmartinspress for the #gifted copy to review.

Have a fine dining friend on your gift list? Look no further as you and they will love this book! A ring side seat to the circus of the best restaurants in NYC, the A-List who dined there and a look back at the times then which post pandemic and an increased awareness of the need for ethical behavior in a professional establishment may not be as prevalent now. It’s fast read on a tough industry!

This book is like sitting at the bar of your favorite restaurant and people watching in the grittiest and realest way. Michael Cecci-Azzolina shares all of his front of the house stories from years in some of the most prestigious restaurants in NYC. I've seen this compared to Anthony Bordain's Kitchen Confidential, and I would agree with that. Take that but make it front of the house. This is raw, scandalous, and full of sex, drugs, and some rock and roll characters. It's an honest view of what goes on in restaurants and Michael does not hold back.

One of the reasons I really loved this book is that the chapters are short, and it was easy to pick up in between tasks. The book was a quick read, and felt like a scandalous, gossip column at times.

If you like food writing, but want more of the logistics behind how restaurants work, this would be the book to read. It was one of the more fun memoirs I read this year, and I have recommended it to so many people!

Being a lover of food, wine and the hospitality industry this book was right up my alley. Michael does an excellent job of describing the day to day life of a high profile maître d as he experienced it.
Some of the language and situations may be offense to some but to me it just added the true color of his job. A definite 5 star read.

This book is the memoir of Maître D Michael who worked in many world class restaurants in New York City. He discusses his experience from getting into the industry, to working in new restaurants and dealing with customers. I really loved hearing the behind the scenes of the restaurant world. I’ve always wondered what restaurant staff think of different types of customers.

I thought this was a great book and would definitely recommend this to friends and family. I think if you have ever worked in a restaurant you will relate to many of the stories and really enjoy it

I loved this book and the real life look at what it’s like from the front of house view of things. Great memoir, gritty, no holds bar.

I have never worked in the food industry, but I certainly love food and dining at restaurants. This book was such an interesting and entertaining look into the restaurant world of NYC. There is no holding back as Michael Cecchi-Azzolina tells of his experiences working in some of the best dining spots in NYC. He doesn’t hold back on the good, the bad and the very ugly! One reason this memoir stands out is because it focuses on the front of the house, rather than on the chefs in the kitchen. Sex, drugs, alcohol, gossip, celebrities…this book has it all!

One major takeaway is that I would never want to work in the restaurant industry! It is such a tough job! If you are interested in reading about the crazy world of restaurants, give this one a try!

As someone who has always worked in the service industry, I was super excited to read this memoir about Michael Cecchi-Azzolina’s 30-year career in restaurants in NYC. The craziness and antics he describes are similar to any restaurant although I’m not sure the drug use is as heavy as it was in his story.

I loved all the stories of different celebrities in his restaurants, in particular, my favorite, Leonardo DiCaprio! He was mentioned twice. There’s an interesting story about Winston Churchill and many other celebrities although I did start to feel there was a lot of name dropping.

The middle of the book dragged a bit, but I really enjoyed the ending and his stories of his last restaurant, Le Coucou. I’m glad he mentioned the long hours and low pay because that’s always been an issue in this industry. I definitely could relate to his story, and was glad I got to read it. I read along while listening to the audiobook which the author narrates. You could really hear his passion while telling his story.

Thank you NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press for a #gifted copy and eARC, and Macmillan Audio for and ALC in exchange for my honest review.

This book sounded so intriguing to me but as I was trying to reading I was not finding myself paying attention or caring about what was happening. It also was much more crass than I would like.

I was looking forward to reading this book…..experiences of a Maître D' in an exclusive fine dining restaurant in New York City.

I was looking forward to work anecdotes and interactions with customers in the restaurant.

What I did not expect was the raunchiness and constant name dropping, many of the names I was not familiar with. So, I suppose the effect was lost on me. I imagine the truth was told but it was told in a self serving way. I did find a few interesting parts, but on the whole, it seemed quite repetitive.

Sadly, this was not the book for me. But, not every book is the right book for everyone.

Thank you to NetGalley for the Advance Readers Copy.

Thanks so much to the author, St. Martin's Press, and Netgalley for the gifted advanced e-copy of this book in exchange for my honest thoughts. { partner } All opinions are entirely my own. My reviews can also be found on Instagram @Tackling_TBR and on my blog at tacklingtbr.home.blog

TW: Discussion of physical/mental/sexual abuse (including related to children), mention of violence, heavy drug and alcohol use

DNF at 50%.

It isn't very often that I DNF a book, because I end up feeling really guilty when I do. Especially in these situations when the author or publishing company gifted me with a copy. And in the case of Your Table is Ready there wasn't any specific moment that I decided I wasn't going to finish it, or any part in the book that made me throw it down and not pick it back up. I think it was maybe a case of high expectations not being met.

As someone who worked in my share of restaurants, and is still in customer service, I was really excited for this book to come out. I knew it was a memoir, and in my head I had imagined it as a memoir more specifically about the times in the restaurants - a good mix of personal life and funny/crazy/ridiculous stories of the guests or staff members at the restaurants themselves, maybe leaning a tiny bit more to the latter.

In reality the beginning of this book, and a good portion of what I read before putting it down, was really slow for me. It gives a lot more background on the author's youth than I expected based on the focus of the book, but I didn't mind because I could see the small ties to what I thought the rest of the book would be, and figured that once I got through those first few chapters I'd be ready to jump back in.

But instead I just found this book a bit exhausting. There were lists upon lists upon long-winded lists, and it all felt very repetitive. I felt a bit like I was trying to force myself to get through it, and kept putting it down to find something else to do, because I felt like my brain and eyes were tired from reading even after only a few minutes.

I can tell that the author has a distinct voice in his writing, but it just wasn't enough to pull me through. I think that, for me, this book might have been more successful on audio. And if I try to return to it in the future, I'll definitely try it that way instead.

I'm sure there are plenty of people who adored this book, but it just wasn't for me. At least not at this time and in this format.

Your Table Is Ready by Michael Cecchi-Azzolina is a delicious dive into the underworld of restaurant workers with juicy tales giving all the unbelievable dirt of what the staff is up to (and it is quite a lot)! with the soup to nuts of all their high society and celebrity customers.

This can’t put down book tells intimate details of the goings on before, during and after a day of servicing customers, (in more ways than one). Azzolina explains in honest detail why sometimes customers can never get that window table with the beautiful view, or why that twenty does not seem to get you a table without a reservation. He even gives tips on how to do both!

But, for the most part it’s his stories which both amuse and sometimes shock the reader, at least this one! His accounts are from an era long ago, when there were no Human Resource departments and literally anything could happen and there was no one to complain to. It was also sadly during the beginning of the AIDS epidemic a time in which Azzolina lost many of his close co-workers and friends. In one story he explains how close he came to actually getting the disease and by sheer luck did not.

But it all starts when he was a young boy in Brooklyn looking for something to do. While all his friends were doing drugs and dying, he decided to find something else to do and that was working in a local restaurant. This led him to his amazing career. But he honestly admits he was no angel. He tells of the easy access to drugs, alcohol and the abuse which goes along with each. The drinking for the staff did not exactly start after the restaurant closed for the night but could begin as early as when someone got a bit stressed. He admits to doing many things for and to customers to make a little extra money.

But some of his stories are haunting. One in particular is about how he unknowingly made a person in the Mafia mad by innocently kicking a rude customer out at the request of his boss and being stalked and assaulted by him. It would forever change the way he managed rude customers.

The best stories are of course those in which he talks about the celebrities and people we know. The list is impressive…Dustin Hoffman, Madonna, Jackie Gleason, famous models and designers, and a not so nice Anna Wintour anecdote.

As one can imagine, working sometimes 10-to-15-hour shifts can be not only grueling but exhausting, only to have to get up and do the same thing over and over again. Relationships are difficult to maintain, and the last place a staffer wants to be on their day off is on a date at a restaurant.

Your Table Is Ready is not only an enjoyable read but could also be a bible of sorts and a how to (and not to) for those interested in the restaurant business. It’s terrifically gossipy, funny, heartwarming and sometimes cringy. I for one will never enter a restaurant the same way again!

Thank you #NetGalley #St.Martin’sPress #YourTableIsReady # MichaelCecchi-Azzolina for the advanced copy.

This book reminded me greatly of Anthony Bourdain's works about his early cooking/chef days but for the front of the house. Admittedly, I asked to read it to read about Meghan Markle's incident at Cou Cou (also a favourite place of Anne Delvey) and although it could have been a lot more salacious, it is a great read for anyone who loves food and restaurants.

My goodness, y’all. This author holds nothing back in his exposure of the NYC restaurant scene. He dishes out alllll the juicy details. It was a little “New York tough” for my little Southern self, but eye opening to say the least!

This was a different read than I was expecting. Reader, be warned - the author holds nothing back in this honest memoir. My favorite part of the book was actually the epilogue when he is sitting in a restaurant with his adult daughter, reflecting. It seemed the most sincere section of the book.

This book to me was absolutely fascinating. Having never worked in the food Industry I was absolutely enthralled by all of the tales of the people behind the scenes. I liked the breakdown of the different archetypes of food service workers. As a people watcher and being friends with many servers/bartenders it was spot on.

I am a huge fan of these types of Memoirs that give insight into not only a place but a time in which I was experiencing things so differently. It shows just how different we all are and I love learning about others journeys.

There was a bit of a dip from the service industry as he told tales of trying to be an actor but even in that I still found it very enjoyable. If you enjoy deep and dirty stories with humor in abundance this is the book for you!


Thank you to Netgalley and St Martins Press for this gifted copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

From altar boy to waiter to actor to maitre d’hôtel, Michael Cecchi-Azzolina’s life story and peek into the world of fine dining is amusing, appalling, but ultimately eye-opening.

With the voice of a story teller Cecchi-Azzolina describes how booze, drugs, sex, and money fueled the restaurant industry, laying out the good, the bad and the ugly of his life-long experience spent serving.

I found the book to be very engaging, the chapters are short and it keeps you turning the pages. However, at times I found some of the writing to be a bit repetitive and jumpy, but not enough by any means to ruin the book.

There is a lot of inappropriate material, but the author warns the reader of this beforehand, and while often times crude I think it paints an authentic picture for the events of the industry during that time period. Overall, I really enjoyed this book and if you have any interest in restaurant behind-the-scenes or the dark side of fine dining then this the book for you!

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for access to an advance copy to review.

I love to read the memoirs of people who have led lives very different from my own, especially in worlds I know nothing about. Michael Cecchi-Azzolina definitely qualifies on both counts.

Cecchi-Azzolina worked in the front of the house in a number of high-end New York restaurants. If he is to be believed, and I have no reason not to, there was a great deal of debauchery going on in his day, and not just among the staff. The book covers his childhood and youth in Brooklyn, his work at a busy lunch counter, and his sojourning in the restaurants of New York. He drops a lot of names, and retails floods of gossip about celebrities.

On the whole I enjoyed this book, and I would recommend it with a few caveats. I didn't mind the crudeness, but others of a more sensitive nature might. He claims to have had Mob connections, the reader can believe that or not. If your eyes are wide open, this is a fun and interesting book and worth reading.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.

When you want to know what it is like to work at a restaurant... this is the book. Michael Cecchi takes you along a timeline of the New York restaurant scene = this is a New York story through and through and I could see it making an excellent biopic, especially knowing Cecchi had a career in film and years of restaurant work to back up the authenticity. We all know the stories of actors working at restaurants waiting for their big break. This is that story, but with the sex-drugs-and-money-chasing details you didn't know needed. Not gonna lie - there were times when I was positively scandalized, but it made it all the more real. I mean, why lie? The truth is far more exciting. And I do think this is the truth - I've eaten at most of the places where Cecchi has worked. Le Coucou, The Water Club, The River Cafe, Minetta Tavern, and his descriptions of the scene were spot-on. Not since the book Sevice Included (written about working at Per Se) has a book captured the reality of restaurants. Pun intended - I ate up every detail.

A memoir in search of a theme, YOUR TABLE IS READY, is a combination of abused childhood, wild young adult, drug and party fueled worklife and disparaging interactions with customers in restaurants high and low. At the end, when the Pandemic has sent the author home, I finally got the sense that he enjoyed his life. It was a long time coming. This memoir doesn’t make me want to know more about restaurants in New York or the people who staff them. It would make me very uncomfortable to even be a gracious customer; I would assume the staff would be laughing at me somewhere. I received my copy from the publisher through Netgalley.

I worked in restaurants at the beginning of my working life and was addicted to the speed at which everything moved. Life is definitely different when you work while everyone else is winding down and it makes you spend more time with those you work with. While this book told Michael Cecchi-Azzolina’s stories in the restaurant industry, it was more about his life after work and how he spent his time and while entertaining, it was a little crass than I want to deal with. Drug use is something I’ve always been uncomfortable with and there was a lot of it in here. Otherwise, the stories were entertaining, there were a few interesting tips sprinkled in but not my cup of tea.