The Ultimate Cook Book

Today I took the day off from work [yes, I have a regular day job that pays the bills for this blog ;-) ] because I had to meet celebrity chef Tyler Florence. I've been a fan of Tyler since I ate at his restaurant Cafeteria in Chelsea in New York. The restaurant was chic comfort food, edgy and fun. I think that reflects Tyler's personality, although he's probably more hometown boy than urban chic.

Tyler was at the Williams-Sonoma store at Union Square in San Francisco promoting his new book, Tyler's Ultimate. This is his third cookbook for the Food Network, where Tyler also stars in a show of the same name. He definitely had a lot of charm and energy when he met fans who lined up during a weekday to meet him.

His cooking style is similar to my approach to cooking -- simple, easy, and timeless. He experiments with a few more ingredients that I usually cook with and his book definitely reflects a bold approach to cooking. My approach to reading cook books is to flip through the pretty pictures :) and then get ideas or inspiration for recipes that fits my flavors but uses the recipes from a cook book as a launching pad.

I got a lot of ideas flipping through Tyler's previous book, which includes a mix of Italian and Asian influences. This book looks like a lot of fun ideas with luscious ingredients. I'm looking forward to reading it. Tyler Florence was a very cool guy to meet in person and seems like someone who recognizes his fan base. Now that's the ultimate approach to promoting a book.