The Taste of Britain [Hardcover]

‘HarperCollins has given it a major redesign in hardback and very attractive new look, turning it into a covetable item…(and) it settles arguments and solves pub quiz questions.’ Time Out

‘“The Taste of Britain” is a fantastic compendium of all that is great about regional British food, and it is stunning to look at the range of produce we can draw from this country, from our pears to our hams to our ginger beers. [It] tells you everything you wanted to know, from the difference between a Norfolk knob and a Dorset knob, to the history of Tizer and the average weight and dimension of the haggis…a book that makes you proud to be British.’ Gordon Ramsay, The Times on Saturday

‘“The Taste of Britain” conjures up an image of a vibrant, productive kitchen, the eaves hanging with strings of onions, tomatoes ripening in the windows, bread in the oven, chutneys on the dresser…It shows also that avoiding supermarkets is not some grey penance that we choose to impose on ourselves in order to save the world but, on the contrary, an embracing of pleasure, variety and quality. And for all the attempts of television chefs to encourage locally based cooking, TV by its very nature as a medium encourages sitting down and staring rather than cooking – so really TVs should be thrown out of the window, and the money saved should be spent on books like this.’ New Statesman

More praise for ‘The Taste of Britain’:

‘This is a heavenly book, put together with love and scholarship…”The Taste of Britain” is nothing less than a celebration of local produce, of the best food and drink to be bought within these shores…this is a book to cherish for what it reminds us about quality, and about the culinary treasures in our midst…and it is a model of book-making, beautifully designed and printed. Forget all those collections of recipes piled high in the bookshops. Buy this instead…there is nothing quite like it.’ Sunday Times

‘A book so sumptuously rich in detail that you want to swallow it at a single sitting. It opens up a dazzling new world of unknown food … this rich and heartening celebration … (is) wonderfully informative.’ Daily Telegraph

‘For the sake of our culinary souls, it’s to be hoped this handsome new hardback will sell a million… Rush out and buy it, dip into it daily and never leave the motorway without it.’ Literary Review

‘This is the kind of thing everyone should read and keep for reference…’ Simon Hopkinson (taken from article in The Independent)

‘The 1999 classic tome has had a magnificent face-lift…essential for any British food lover.’ Tom Parker-Bowles’s ‘Book of the Year’, Mail on Sunday

‘[A] magnificent compendium of indigenous food and recipes…he combination of food lore and history is irresistible. And like the best dishes it is beautifully presented.’ The First Post

'If you've ever wondered what a Bedfordshire Clanger was or what goes into a Fidget Pie, then this book is for you. Some wonderful idiosyncratic recipes and definitions of dishes are to be found in this riveting compendium. We have an impressive culinary history and here is a book that celebrates it to the full. A real treat!' Antony Worrall Thompson

'This appealing book started life as a pretty unappealing but extremely useful EU subsidised paperback…which documented and described Britain's traditional foods. Harper has taken it and shaken it by the scruff of its neck to create a large, elegant volume with a cloth cover and sepia etchings…the publishers have had the wit to signal that this is a serious work of reference…for anyone interested in our British foods and traditions, this is an exhaustive encyclopedia, an essential work of reference…it’s also a fascinating read, full of serious information. Full marks to Harper for seeing its potential and for giving the painstaking authors a chance to shine.’ Country Life

‘An enthusiast at HarperCollins has reissued the work as a truly beautiful book.’ Observer

‘[A] scrupulously thorough attempt to document the food specialities of each region of Britain’ Cathy Pryor’s ‘Book of the Year’, Independent on Sunday