The Fourth Star, by Leslie Brenner. This book chronicles a year (2000) behind the scenes at Daniel, Chef Daniel Boulud’s New York City restaurant. Brenner, a food writer, observes restaurant operations for endless hours as Boulud and his staff of 140 work for endless hours to create and sustain a successful French restaurant. Upon opening in 1999, the New York Times gave Daniel only 3 stars. Hurt and miffed, Boulud broods silently as all under his employ know that getting the deserved fourth star is what the year 2000 is going to be all about. Of course, they succeed. Two other restaurant books are reviewed on this page. The kitchen scenes at Daniel are at another, higher, level than those portrayed by Bourdain in Kitchen Confidential, and Brenner’s narrative lays waste the dismal title of Patric Kuh’s The Last Days of Haute Cuisine. Fine dining is alive and well. Still, the three books are of a piece. A dark side of Kitchen Confidential is here too, where cooks at Daniel, albeit in a prize kitchen, endure long hours, low pay, burn out and high turnover. Front of the house operations at Daniel are apace with those described historically by Kuh. Brenner documents the key requisites of success in today’s restaurant world: culinary flair, command leadership and marketing genius. Daniel Boulud has all three. If your interest in fine dining includes diners as well as restaurant operations, Brenner portrays them–the regulars and VIPS–as quirky yet lovingly catered to by Boulud who recognizes them as vital to the success of his restaurant. A lot of pointers are provided here for the eccentric diner.
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