I thought this would interest me, but it just didn't. I didn't care for it at all and don't know why a book was needed. There are articles that have already been published that gave the majority of information and the new things in the book, I didn't care about.

Am I raving about this book? No. I can’t say I am. I’m also not against the narrative, however, because it feels like this memoir was a therapy session where the author needed to chew on her restaurant experiences, digest, regurgitate, and chew again. Some of the narrative felt repetitive and flat at times, but I enjoyed learning a few new nuggets about fine dining that were unknown to me before. All told, in probably closer to 2.5 stars than 3, but the recipes at the end of each chapter rounded up my overall score.

Thank you Little, Brown and Company for allowing me to read and review Cellar Rat, My Life in the Restaurant Underbelly by Hannah Selinger on NetGalley.

Published: 03/25/25

Stars: 2

Disappointing. I was intrigued specifically by her sommelier position. Unfortunately I found the swearing trashy and that took away my interest. How do you present an expensive bottle of wine in a classy setting and not show your true self. I wanted pictures: was she well groomed? As Selinger shared her tricks of clearing shelves I wasn't surprised, I was disgusted.

I found the book tacky.

How does an Ivy League graduate (complete with MFA, no less) somehow take a detour from even beginning a career in either the writing or publishing world and end up re-educating herself as a sommelier at the hoity toity-iest of fine dining establishments? Well, that’s not super clear, but the good news is I don’t want to know everyone’s entire life story (more often than not, I am only interested in name dropping and trash talking, including here when I was reminded how utterly heartless I am as my attention was waning with the story of her dying dad. Sorry, but I’m really only interested in confirmation Bobby Flay is a real twat (sadly, she claims he is not . . . but I still have a feeling he is - just sooooo smarmy!) and for the olive loaf, ma’am, not to feel things.)

I was real scared when I started this and it kicked off with talk of Momofuko and Lucky Peach that my fave famous chef David Chang (I REALLY have a thing for Davids, I’m starting to realize) was going to be some sort of sex pest at best and sex criminal at worst, but thankfully it was a business partner who was the most vile and Chang is simply the expected brand of psychopathic kitchen dictator I have come to realize is fairly the norm when it comes to successful restaurateurs.

If you are like me and a little gossip mongering goblin who can’t get enough of kitchen secrets, this one might be a winner. Boy do I appreciate a tea spiller who will drop alllllllllllllllllllllllllll the names . . . .

And if you have any recs for me, drop a comment!

I actually received an ARC of this from NetGalley, but realized I wanted to listen so I waited for an audio copy from the library.

This read gave me everything I needed while waiting for the new season of The Bear. If you've ever worked in the food service industry, you know it's unlike anything else in the world. It's a very "iykyk" situation. I SO appreciate the authenticity in Selinger’s writing. You can tell when someone's lived through the chaos of the service industry and this book tackles that mess along with her own coming-of-age story. It’s not glamorous, but it’s honest and rich in detail - the perfect pairing. I'm a big fan of celebrity memoirs and someone who's willing to not only spill the tea but NAME DROP? Here for that!

Bonus points for the included recipes, 4/5 stars for the lack of Bobby Flay slander (sorry not sorry!)

This bio is a fabulous, emotion-filled ride that keeps the tension high and the surprises coming. The writing is crisp and cinematic, making each scene feel immediate and gripping. The people are deeply human, their flaws and fears fueling the story’s emotional core. A razor-sharp, unforgettable read that’s impossible to put down.

I was so looking forward to reading this one (I always enjoy a memoir about food/the restaurant industry!), but unfortunately it wasn’t quite for me. Thank you to NetGalley and Little, Brown and Company for the ARC!

Cellar Rat by Hannah Selinger - this was good, but I have been reading a lot of food/restaraunt memoirs lately and this wasn't my favorite of the bunch.

3.5 stars. Hannah Seling graduate from Columbia University with the goal of becoming a writer, but instead spent the next decade working in some of New York City’s buzziest restaurants as a server then a sommelier. This book is gossipy and drops a lot of names in the restaurant business. It also talks of the trauma and unpredictability of a life working in restaurants. I enjoyed this book, but it also felts somewhat ill-timed as the trauma of the world seems a lot bigger than upper class restaurants in the uber expensive city. This is well written, though, and those that follow the restaurant world will find it interesting. I received a complimentary digital copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley.

"Cellar Rat" was a DNF for me at 64% of the way through. This highly personal story follows the author's career, starting right out of college. She fell into working in the restaurant industry and eventually became involved with wine, mostly because it allowed her to remain in restaurants, but in a more prestigious position.

She shares the seedier and toxic aspects of restaurant work and focuses a lot on the dysfunction. As someone who has spent ten years in the wine industry myself, I had hoped to hear more about an appreciation for food and wines, and while she does touch on it periodically, it focuses a lot more on the toxicity of the industry, the bed hopping, and the excessive behaviours.

At more than midway through the book, it seems like the rest of the story will just be more of the same, so I decided to move on to something else.

Thanks anyway to Hannah Selinger, Little, Brown and Company, and NetGalley for an advance review copy.

Hannah Selinger has graduated college and wants to be a writer, but first she spends several years in restaurants as a server and then sommelier in a series of NYC restaurants. This is her story -- her experiences in restaurants from casual to "fine dining" until she finally begins her career as a writer for a variety of food magazines.

While this is an informative book, I think it would appeal most to those who live in NYC or are enamored of the City. Since I am neither, I found much of the book a bit tedious -- there's just too many references to restaurants, clubs, and general life in NYC. Selinger name drops a multitude of celebrities, many of whom I was unfamiliar with. This is a highly personal book. There are pages of introspective musings that, frankly, I found overdone and unnecessary. There are definitely moments of intriguing tales of how restaurant life works -- conflicts with overbearing chefs, intrigue over missing liquor, stories about celebrities who tip poorly, etc. On the whole, I found myself skimming much of the book. I'm likely not the target demographic (I'm not young, hip, or a City dweller), so this was just "meh" for me, but I'm sure others will find it fascinating.

This was an interesting book about Hannah who went to school at Columbia and decided to work in the restaurant business. Every chapter had a different theme. What happened to her? And these different restaurants she worked and she also provided recipes at the end of the chapters. I worked in the business my whole entire life. And I can really relate to what she was saying. She had A.
Lot of confidence because she got jobs but she is actually learning how to be in the restaurant world. It is a very tough world to work and especially for women. And I don't know how she pulled it off in New York because that's the hardest place to pull it off. People just don't understand the restaurant business. It's very hard. It's very competitive, very stressful. And a lot of drugs and alcohol goes on as well. Why I lived in Boston? I was part of that world. We had our local bars. We'd go after work and drink. She tells it like it really is.

This was a DNF at about the halfway mark, where I finally decided I was bored of hearing about restaurant work.
Thanks to #netgalley and #littlebrownandcompany for this #arc of #cellarrat in exchange for an honest review.

I love when a curtain is pulled back, exposing industries, giving a real-life account of how things truly are. Hannah Selinger very much wrote 'Cellar Rat' as her own experience, and she doesn't pull any punches with name dropping bad experiences and shady and abusive people. However, it does not read as a '"tell all" of the restaurant industry but rather the habits and patterns Selinger experienced in the 2000s/2010s. I would have appreciated more introspection and/or bringing in other voices. As it is now, it reads much like a well-written personal journal that I enjoyed but doubt will shake anything up.

3.75/5, big thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC

Can you like a book but not the author?
I did enjoy the behind the scenes and the time in the wine cellar- the food, the service and even the politics and celebrity were worth the read. But the reflections of relationships a decade or more later made me wonder if the author was mining for material based on historical trends.

But I love the cover!

If you’ve ever wanted the tea on problematic celebrity NY chefs (David Chang, Johnny Iuzzini, Christina Tosi, to name a few), this is it.

While I thought it would explore more about the author’s journey to becoming a wine connoisseur, I was entertained reading about the gossip, some I knew, some I didn’t.

There were anecdotes and details repeated several times (I don’t know if maybe the book had begun as individual essays), which became a little distracting, but I was satisfied overall.

In a time where The Bear and other cooking shows are becoming more and more popular, CELLAR RAT feels like a gritty, greasy, breath of fresh air, telling the tales of Hannah's time in the restaurant industry.

It was really fun reading stories of the different parties that Hannah was a part of, from the food, to the gossip, and everything in-between.

Hannah Selinger's writing feels like a conversation with a friend- it's light, easy to read, yet full of details that feel honest and raw. There were times where I wondered if I should really be reading what I was reading, but it was entertaining the entire time.

This memoir peels back the glossy veneer of fine dining to expose the underbelly rich in misogyny, exploitation, and ego-driven hierarchies. At times I think the author overlooked her privilege and some of the stories just came off as vindictive and bitter, particularly toward the personnel associated with David Chang and Momofuku. But I would likely feel the same way after being subjected to abusive working environments.

Sincere thanks to NetGalley and Little, Brown and Company for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

I am so thankful I graduated with an accounting degree and worked as a boring accountant for thirty years, as I would have never made it in the restaurant business. I didn’t realize how hard they all work just to provide a meal to customers. I loved the raw details and vulnerability she shared. And it was so engaging and interesting that I couldn’t put it down. Great read!

Since Anthony Bordain's death, fans of Kitchen Confidential type books exploring the behind-the-scenes of the restaurant world have had a void to fill. Hannah Selinger's Cellar Rat details the underworkings of restaurants from the beverage side, working her way up from a waitress at a neighborhood bar to being the sommelier to superstars such as David Chang. Selinger explores the toxicity and misogyny of the industry with shocking yet sadly unsuprising vignettes from her life. She is not afraid to name names, either, and those interested in "how things work" in any kind of job will find much of interest.