Columbia Restaurant Spanish Cookbook or All the Presidents Pastries

Columbia Restaurant Spanish Cookbook

Author: Adela Hernandez Gonzmart

Out of secrets and dreams and romance, Adela Hernandez Gonzmart and Ferdie Pacheco re-create their passion for the Columbia in this narrated cookbook inspired by the nation's largest Spanish restaurant and Florida's oldest. Adela's affair with food is a family legacy that began more than 90 years ago, when her beloved grandfather Casimiro emigrated from Cuba to Tampa, then a little town on Florida's west coast. There, amid scrub palmettos and rattlesnakes, an enclave of Cubans, Spaniards, and Italians worked in the growing cigar industry in a neighborhood known as Ybor City. This book is both a history of the elegant family restaurant, which now boasts six locations in Florida, and a cookbook of 178 recipes that make them famous. It is also the biography of Adela, the heart of the Columbia, with commentary by Ferdie Pacheco, television's "fight doctor," Ybor City's famous raconteur, and Adela's neighbor as they grew up together in Ybor City.

Book review:

All the Presidents' Pastries: Twenty-Five Years in the White House

Author: Roland Mesnier

This extraordinary success-story-told by the hero himself-of a young French pastry chef who climbed his way to the top, embodies the great American dream. After working at the Savoy in London, the George V in Paris, the Princess in Bermuda, and the Homestead in Virginia, Roland Mesnier took on the job of a lifetime as pastry chef to the White House. He provides behind-the-scenes insight into the characters, tastes, and obsessions of the five presidents and first ladies he served during his 25 years in Washington. Having witnessed major world events from the hub of the world's superpower, Mesnier has unique perspective on both crises and celebrations. He recounts stories such as Carter's incessant battle for the return of American hostages in Tehran, the aftermath of the attempt to assassinate Reagan, Bush senior's doubts after the war in Kuwait, and the shock of September 11. He uncovers intimate details such as Mrs. Reagan's bad moods and Prince Charles's embarrassment at not knowing how to use a tea bag. Fiercely loyal to each of the first families, Mesnier's bipartisan message is positive and inspirational. Twelve easy-to-follow recipes include the favorite desserts of presidents Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, George Bush, Bill Clinton, and George W. Bush.

Elizabeth Rogers - Library Journal

Mesnier (Dessert University) takes us through his early days of climbing the pastry ladder, an adventure that eventually landed him in the White House kitchen. Readers will gain insights into the world of cooking and food preparation in some of the world's finest restaurants. Reflecting on his years of service in the White House (beginning with the Carter administration through the current Bush administration), Mesnier includes observations not only of the eating habits of our First Families but also of what it's like to live in presidential quarters and how the dynamics of each family differ. Included are recipes for some of the favorite desserts mentioned (carrot cake for Bill Clinton; pecan bourbon pie for the Carters; rhubarb parfait for the G.W. Bushes). Mesnier's specialties—spun sugar desserts and petits fours—come to life through his descriptions. This is not a tell-all book but a rather gentle regaling of the author's unique experiences with these special people. An entertaining, insightful, and informative slice of American life; recommended for public libraries.