aovenus's review against another edition
3.0
Overall I enjoyed this raw and honest "memoir" of Chang's life. Yes, the order and the ideas could've been organized and expressed better. Yes, he could've included less copy & pasting of his email exchanges. And yes, his PR agent probably told him to write this to try and change his image now that he's rich and famous. But at the end of the day, I give him credit for opening up and discussing difficult topics like mental health, challenges of the restaurant industry, and negative perceptions of Asian cuisines. I got to know him from watching Ugly Delicious, but this book introduced me to the "bad boy" phase of his life and surprisingly made him more likable. I'm sure a lot of people criticize or dislike his no fs given attitude. But this book makes you realized that often times, it takes these bold no fs given people to speak up about the not so glamourous parts of our society and to make a change in the world.
annasforages's review against another edition
4.0
I love David Chang's work and this memoir was very relatable on the whole "mental illness in a corrupt industry" issue
hollielovesromance's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
Interesting look into David Chang’s life and journey in the restaurant industry. You can tell that he has been working on things and tries to not justify instances of his shitty behavior. That being said it felt like some things in the book could have been reflected on longer and put in whatever memoir he’ll inevitably put out in the future.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Drug use, Alcohol, and Racism
bibliograflieg's review against another edition
4.0
Before reading this book, I really had no idea who David Chang was, but I had heard this was a good memoir. Chang had a lot of interesting ideas - especially on the relationship of culture, food, philosophy, and art - and has lead an interesting life, but the organization seemed a little off. Sometimes it seemed like he was just talking about whatever he felt like right then. That said, it was an enjoyable and honest depiction of depression, life as a workaholic, and struggle with anger.
greatheights's review against another edition
3.0
Dave acknowledges and shows contrition for his past toxic behavior and wants the world to know he knows and is growing and changing. But he also insists that he wouldn't have been successful any other way, so he ends up in a paradox of "tortured artist for me but not for thee" that undermines what often feels like an earnest movement toward self accountability.
rebekahcraft's review against another edition
5.0
Excellent and introspective memoir from the only celebrity chef I follow, having eaten at Momofuku in NYC and Toronto. I remember first learning about Chang’s shortfalls, intense personality, and vision after reading a profile of Momofuku’s CEO Maguerite Mariscal in the Times back in 2019.
Chang does not apologize for his horrible behavior and mistreatment of staff in this memoir, which is my biggest complaint. He was awful and overbearing and those parts were hard to read.
He delves into his history, introduction to the food world, workaholism, history of depression, familial and cultural pressures, and journey as a chef in the first part of the memoir. The second part examines his shortfalls and is framed around his mental health and substance abuse struggles. He featured insights on the following that really resonated with me:
-Ignoring your emotional problems by diving into your work or obsessing about other hobbies/tasks/addictions is not healthy
-receiving Bipolar disorder, PTSD, and Borderline Personality Disorder diagnoses, including a really raw and emotional look at how living with mental illness can make you a miserable person and hate yourself and those around you, which was helpful to me in understanding a family member’s struggle better
-Business development, responding to feedback, working with a mentor
The final section is a list of really helpful tips for chefs, which also translates well into customer service within libraries and leadership, management, and personal development tips. I especially loved this point that he shared as he is always looking to stay fresh in the industry:
Reject prior success. Entitlement and complacency are your enemy. When you feel the job getting easier, your task is to find a new challenge. The day you stop making mistakes is the day you stop growing.
Chang does not apologize for his horrible behavior and mistreatment of staff in this memoir, which is my biggest complaint. He was awful and overbearing and those parts were hard to read.
He delves into his history, introduction to the food world, workaholism, history of depression, familial and cultural pressures, and journey as a chef in the first part of the memoir. The second part examines his shortfalls and is framed around his mental health and substance abuse struggles. He featured insights on the following that really resonated with me:
-Ignoring your emotional problems by diving into your work or obsessing about other hobbies/tasks/addictions is not healthy
-receiving Bipolar disorder, PTSD, and Borderline Personality Disorder diagnoses, including a really raw and emotional look at how living with mental illness can make you a miserable person and hate yourself and those around you, which was helpful to me in understanding a family member’s struggle better
-Business development, responding to feedback, working with a mentor
The final section is a list of really helpful tips for chefs, which also translates well into customer service within libraries and leadership, management, and personal development tips. I especially loved this point that he shared as he is always looking to stay fresh in the industry:
Reject prior success. Entitlement and complacency are your enemy. When you feel the job getting easier, your task is to find a new challenge. The day you stop making mistakes is the day you stop growing.
annmariereads's review against another edition
5.0
This book was just as incredible as I thought it would be! I’ve always fangirled a bit about Momofuku’s chef, but after reading his book, I see it was 100% justified.
David Chang talks about everything you want to read about in a chef’s book - behind the scenes kitchen snafus, the history of all his restaurant openings, paying his dues in other kitchens, mental health struggles, hilarious footnotes (my jam
David Chang talks about everything you want to read about in a chef’s book - behind the scenes kitchen snafus, the history of all his restaurant openings, paying his dues in other kitchens, mental health struggles, hilarious footnotes (my jam
laurenkd89's review against another edition
3.0
David Chang's much-anticipated memoir was pretty good, but not great. I'll preface by saying that I don't know a lot about David Chang. I've seen a few episodes of one of his shows, Ugly Delicious, and I know of his famous noodle bar Momofuku. So I'm definitely not the target audience to read this memoir - it's written with the idea that readers will be familiar with Chang, his multitude of restaurants, his magazine, his attitudes in the kitchen, etc. I had very little prior knowledge of these things. That being said, I like chef's memoirs and find the personality and tenacity it takes to be extremely successful in the restaurant industry very impressive - so I picked this up anyways.
One of the more interesting and difficult components of this book is Chang's in-depth discussion of his mental health issues. Apparently he's known to have an explosive temper in his restaurants, witnessed by diners and busboys and sous chefs alike. He reveals that he has bipolar disorder and has been seeing a therapist to work through his issues for 20+ years; he's tried different medications and even being off medication, and he's still working on his temper, his depressive episodes, and his mood swings to this day. I appreciate his honesty on a subject that is incredibly difficult to talk about, and it explains a lot about his creative bursts, his passion (sometimes too much) about his work, and other aspects of his personality.
Overall, I found this to be pretty good, but it wasn't the best chef's memoir I've read - I didn't feel like I really got to know David Chang as a chef, what truly motivates him, and all of the gory details of his "origin story." I don't know - I think he tried to execute on all of this, but I didn't find it satisfying. Maybe it's because in all of the cases in which his restaurant was on the verge of failing, all they did was listen to customer feedback, stop being so weird and artsy, and just do things in a more straightforward way, and it worked. I kept comparing Chang's book to [b:Notes from a Young Black Chef: A Memoir|40645634|Notes from a Young Black Chef A Memoir|Kwame Onwuachi|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1538695770l/40645634._SX50_.jpg|63156643] and remembering how much I adored that book - Kwame's narrative voice, his life story, his culinary and non-culinary pursuits, it was all just a fantastic story in a way that Chang's wasn't for me. I hate giving mediocre reviews to memoirs because this is someone's life! But it just didn't quite do it for me.
One of the more interesting and difficult components of this book is Chang's in-depth discussion of his mental health issues. Apparently he's known to have an explosive temper in his restaurants, witnessed by diners and busboys and sous chefs alike. He reveals that he has bipolar disorder and has been seeing a therapist to work through his issues for 20+ years; he's tried different medications and even being off medication, and he's still working on his temper, his depressive episodes, and his mood swings to this day. I appreciate his honesty on a subject that is incredibly difficult to talk about, and it explains a lot about his creative bursts, his passion (sometimes too much) about his work, and other aspects of his personality.
Overall, I found this to be pretty good, but it wasn't the best chef's memoir I've read - I didn't feel like I really got to know David Chang as a chef, what truly motivates him, and all of the gory details of his "origin story." I don't know - I think he tried to execute on all of this, but I didn't find it satisfying. Maybe it's because in all of the cases in which his restaurant was on the verge of failing, all they did was listen to customer feedback, stop being so weird and artsy, and just do things in a more straightforward way, and it worked. I kept comparing Chang's book to [b:Notes from a Young Black Chef: A Memoir|40645634|Notes from a Young Black Chef A Memoir|Kwame Onwuachi|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1538695770l/40645634._SX50_.jpg|63156643] and remembering how much I adored that book - Kwame's narrative voice, his life story, his culinary and non-culinary pursuits, it was all just a fantastic story in a way that Chang's wasn't for me. I hate giving mediocre reviews to memoirs because this is someone's life! But it just didn't quite do it for me.
polkadotbot's review against another edition
2.0
I'd be lying if I said the Eater article that came out about Chang's behavior while I was in the middle of reading this book didn't affect my rating. (The same behavior I was already cringing at by Chang's own descriptions, by the way.) But beyond that revelation, there just isn't a lot here besides complaints, excuses, self-congratulations, and mea culpas. He wants to acknowledge bad behavior but also gloss over it and complains about not wanting to talk about it. But there aren't that many insights here either.
I have long been a fan of Chang's various docu-series from The Mind of a Chef to Ugly Delicious. I'm not sure this self-indulgent refocus from what he does best helped his brand, and it honestly, my have actively tainted it.
I have long been a fan of Chang's various docu-series from The Mind of a Chef to Ugly Delicious. I'm not sure this self-indulgent refocus from what he does best helped his brand, and it honestly, my have actively tainted it.