I wish the editor helped reshape this story. In a memoir, I want some sort of coherent narrative flow that everything centers around/builds to. This felt less like a memoir and more like some vignettes to me. I’m not sure of the source material, so maybe that’s what I’m missing? The author writes on IG, so maybe this was just a bunch of little moments that were strung together for the novel? It just felt really uneven. It took until the final moments to help understand the meaning of food/sex to the author... I wonder if the whole book had been shaped to build to that if it would have felt better? And then here’s a thought that I don’t know that I’ll explain well: it was both not slutty enough... and too slutty? When I think of “slutty” I think of someone in charge of their sexuality ... Samantha a la SATC... She wasn’t really slutty to me... There were maybe only three men in this book and they were all situationships... not short one night things? That said, there was graphic sex.

Some “If you liked” style comparisons: If you want a cross between The Bear and Sex and The City/Girls... but with less heart.

It’s really a shame this story is labelled as literary fiction because I’d have enjoyed hating on her a lot more knowing she wasn't a real person.
(I decided to laugh at this and not think about my recent strike of mediocre books, or this could have been my last straw.)

In a few words: what an obnoxious, little brat.
In the same way Victoria Beckham told the world she wasn't wealthy when her daddy drove a Rolls-Royce, Slutty Chef is the friend with the mansion in the countryside who could afford to leave multiple jobs for the spike of it — and with lovely parents, too.
She's so heroic and so peculiar to have chosen a career in a kitchen, making our problem the difficulties of this job, the impossible schedule, the odd people, the cuts — so many bruises, so many burned arms and sliced fingers, poor thing.

The worst criticism I've read about her and her book — as someone who had no idea of her existence — is a Gen Z insult, because she's full of herself and quite annoying.
I don’t know about that because, as a fellow Gen Z, I thought she was like forty or something. And yes, I'm saying it as an insult, like when one of your relatives you see at Christmas tries to “connect with the youths” by using outdated words and showing off how funny they are — the amount of time she uses the word “lover” is enough reason to burn my copy, just saying.

But, also, slutty? Have we lost the meaning of the word “slutty”?
I could excuse pretending to be a feminist and then choosing a mediocre dick over your girlfriends, the uncountable meltdowns and that irritating interior monologue, in exchange for some good sex.
Instead the feeling is that if someone, anyone, would have told her that chefs are the worst boyfriend, of all this would have never happened.

Thanks to Simon Element, S&S/Marysue Ricci Books and NetGalley, who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest opinion.

This was so different than anything I’ve read recently but in the best way! A funny yet insightful memoir about two of the best things in life: food and sex.

Slutty Cheff, a woman in her mid-20s who remains anonymous throughout the book, just quit her nice, stable job at a marketing firm to pursue her new dream: become a chef.

This book is filled with the high highs and the low lows that only being an unsure 20-something struggling to find her place in this world can bring.

The insight into the chef world was so fascinating. I have worked in restaurants before, but always as front of house, so it was interesting to get a look into what really goes on in a kitchen.

The author has such a unique voice and it really worked for me. I laughed unexpectedly, I visibly cringed, I gasped out loud, I went through all the emotions while reading this!

Overall, this has been my favorite non-fiction read of the year! I definitely recommend! 5 stars for sure!

Thank you to NetGalley for this arc!

First and foremost, don't let the author's name, Slutty Cheff make you believe this is some kind of very smutty read...it is not, and neither is she. That is her Instagram name, and she has kept herself anonymous for some time. Her posts of food and restaurants never include her face. And her posts as well as her personal story are delectable!

Tart is her autobiography of sorts. She decided to make a transition from her 9-to-5 corporate job which she hated to something in the food industry because she loved food. As she was taking a course on cooking, she got her first job as the lowest cook in a restaurant and has not looked back since. Well, she did take a few mental illness, need to figure things out "vacations".

As she began her restaurant jobs, she fell in love with the hustle and bustle, but so much more. The cooking, the comradery between employees, the after-service drinks at the bar...and yes, even falling for a bartender and a few chefs!

As she takes the reader into the kitchens where she is working, we see not everything is exciting. When she was starting out, she was basically the only woman in the kitchen and unfortunately was looked down on a bit. As the male chefs stripped off their clothes to get into their cooking outfits, she would just stand there awkwardly and wait so she would be able to change. Many chefs who for whatever reason could not fathom a woman in the kitchen, made sure she knew how they felt. And let's not get into the bullying which would have any human resource department's head spinning! But she got used to this and she endured.

She loved the work and the long hours and the food. She also explains in the book how she fell in love with a couple of chefs, and this is a part of her story as well. Parts which would break anybody's heart and have them retreat and never want to step foot in a restaurant again. And she does give herself a break, only to realize cooking and food are in her blood and no matter what she knows this is where she truly belongs.

Tart will amusingly immerse you into the world of a woman chef who through her wit explains her loves of food, hard work, loss and bravery. It will also make and keep you very, very hungry!

Thank you #NetGalley #S&S/MarysueRucciBooks #SluttyCheff #Tart for the advanced copy.

What a fun memoir! Slutty Cheff is a 20 something young woman who comes from a "posh" upbringing and is just trying to find herself. After being bored at her office job, she decides to build on her love of cooking and go to culinary school. That's the springboard for her entry into the world of working in a restaurant kitchen in London. In this brief snapshot of her life in Tart, it's clear that she has lived a life filled with lots of ups and downs (professional, personal and psychological).
I loved a number of different aspects of the book: the food, details about working in a restaurant kitchen, and the glimpse into life in London. She tells a fast-paced story that's almost manic at points. Ms. Cheff's writing style, while occasionally overwritten, displays her ability for great biting commentary about her life and the lives of others around her. There's lots of sex and substance abuse, in case that's something you don't want to read about!
Thanks to Netgalley and Simon & Schuster for the opportunity to read Tart. I received a complimentary copy of the book and opinions expressed are completely my own.

A fun and funny look into what it's like for women to work in a professional kitchen. Slutty Cheff shares the perfect mix of the kitchen, living with depression, and what it's like to date men in this day and age. While the timeline moved at a changing pace the story was captivating that it didn't affect my enjoyment of the book.

pretty effective memoir that felt a lot like a novel, despite being a memoir. the writing style was charismatic and interesting. 5 stars. tysm for the arc.

Tart is a love story between a woman and cooking. And it’s also maybe just an excuse to overshare about her sex life for 300 pages. The food writing in this memoir was the best part- I really felt the passion Cheff has for cooking. I also really appreciated the details of working as a woman in male-dominated kitchens. It sounds like the author was really able to hold her own in these spaces and that’s something to be proud of.

However, the whole thing sort of feels like the author read some Anthony Bourdain and wanted to emulate his lifestyle. The author quits her boring corporate office job and experiences a brief period of depression which she solves by moving home with her loving parents and dropping $10k on cooking school. She then gets hired to cook in the first restaurant she interviews at but burns out after seven months of long hours of cooking and quite a lot of partying. But don’t worry, her family owns a cottage by the seaside, so she spends an idyllic summer cooking at a smaller, slower-paced restaurant. However, she’s bored out of her mind there and finds another job at a fine dining spot in London where she quickly moves up in the kitchen hierarchy.

While I appreciate the intention to share the way her passions fueled her journey, a lot of the content of this book felt like it was just there for the shock value and was quite gratuitous and tedious after awhile. It’s not my intention to slut-shame Slutty Cheff by any means- it’s just that it felt like there was nothing original there. Anyone who has worked in hospitality knows the stereotype of the chefs who drink to excess and sleep around. This felt like the story of a privileged young woman who wanted to live an edgier lifestyle and never really experienced any growth that made it worth writing a book about.

I rounded my rating up from 2.5 stars to 3 stars here because the food writing and the author’s cooking journey were compelling and I found myself wishing the best for her.

Thank you to NetGalley and S&S/ Marysue Rucci Books for the opportunity to be an early reader of this title, available now!

Tart: Misadventures of an Anonymous Chef by Slutty Cheff

Admittedly, I did not know about the author’s anonymous IG account before requesting this book. I merely was pulled into the book with this one sentence from the blurb: “It’s the two best things in the world: food and sex.”

I love food memoirs and this was a love letter to food. It was also an ode to pleasure, obsession, and highs and lows. Giving up, starting over, falling in love (love with food, people, your own choices), repeat cycle.

I thoroughly enjoyed getting a peek behind the kitchen curtains, and I respected that the author wrote the same way about food and sex - with reverence, curiosity, and a dash of raunchiness. Fans of food memoirs, memoirs that explore highs and lows, and memoirs where the passion is evident will find much to enjoy here.

A tour through the kitchens of London and the author's sex life. While her experiences as a woman the male dominated high end kitchen might be familiar, her dry sense of humor keeps it lighter than it could have been. I liked the restaurant anecdotes more than the ahem, slutty parts, although I understand that that's her schtick. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. It's a quick read and quite entertaining.

Tart is more than spice: it’s soul. It’s the story of someone searching for identity and purpose, one reckless recipe at a time.

Tart is an unapologetically bold, wildly entertaining romp through the world of culinary pleasure, identity, and rebellion. Slutty Cheff (aka the internet sensation) brings their signature sass, heart, and fearless storytelling to the page, creating a book that’s part memoir, part manifesto, and all flavor. It’s sharp, sexy, and deeply empowering—an ode to living (and eating) authentically. The recipes and reflections are as savory as they are soulful, blending food, feminism, and fun in unforgettable ways. Whether you're here for the humor or the heat, Tart is a triumph of voice and vision.

Slutty Chef’s memoir Tart, delivered on its promise of a tale about sex and food. I found the premise of working as a female chef in a male dominated industry interesting and enjoyed the behind the scenes look at the fast paced life of restaurant kitchens. At times the book felt repetitive but overall it was a fast fun summer read.

I expected some sex to be part of the story, but I was hoping for more behind-the-scenes kitchen stories. Unfortunately, I found the book a bit boring overall. Maybe I’m just jaded after spending so many years in the service industry. It wasn’t a bad book, it just wasn’t what I was expecting. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this advanced reader’s copy.

Sexy book with a splash of fun I love this one if you're into sex and drama this is for you I will recommend

I would like to thank Net Galley for the opportunity to read this as an ARC. I was not familiar with the Slutty Cheff blog, but I do love to to read about cooks and restaurant kitchens. There was a fair amount of that that here. Mostly it was about the chef's sex life, which I really didn't care about. I wanted to hear more about what kitchens are like in England, what the heirarchy is,, how they are alike or different from what I read about in the US. What I got was a lot of whining, and a lot of sex. Not the book for me. I do know I should have expected the sex with the nom de plume, however was hoping for more kitchen stories.

What a fun summer read!!!! IRL, Slutty Cheff is an anonymous columnist for British Vogue that writes about food, sex, and being a chef in a male dominated field. This is her first book, and I was along for the ride. The dry British humor. The snarky introspection. The story is mostly told in vignettes strung together. While the lead-up to the wrap-up felt a bit aimless, I still enjoyed picking this book up every chance I got.

Thank you NetGalley and S&S/Marysue Rucci Books for this delicious eARC!

This book was compulsively readable. I loved hearing the behind-the-scenes of the London restaurant world and as the author found herself more and less enamored with it.

I read Tart in one sitting, and that hasn't happened for a long, long time. Slutty's no Tony Bourdain. Then again, he was a one-off. Her book is a chronological telling of her birth as a chef while simultaneously being a female in a series of mostly-male kitchens. It's sexy, for those who like a good literary sex romp... and there's food, as well, so if this is your jam -- enjoy it. I did.

I enjoyed the cooking parts. It felt like I was in the kitchen, hot and rushed. I enjoyed hearing how the food was prepared and managed, as well as the restaurant dynamics.

I was less impressed with the author's need to measure her worth only by the metric of who wanted to sleep with her. Like, I get that's her schtick but it doesn't make for a great book. And in the end, she just kept repeating all her old patterns.

This chef needs to grow up!