The Lost Supper

“An outstanding and crucial read amid this global emergency.” —Quill & Quire, STARRED Review “I cheered when I read this book, a series of lyrically descriptive essays telling of the author's interesting journeys to find world's forgotten foods. It is beautifully persuasive.” —The Spectator “[An] informative and engaging travelogue.” —Winnipeg Free Press “Fascinating… Grescoe is ambitious for solutions.” —The Daily Telegraph “...[the author’s] intrepid attempt to satiate ‘a wild impulse to experience the taste of ancient foods.’... sobering and hopeful in equal measure” —Literary Review of Canada ""The Lost Supper... thrills with its escapist, aspirational appeal and ripped-from the-headlines documentary qualities. Surprising, often enthralling, facts about the past anchor Grescoe’s trips... The book excels at bridging these deep histories with the present, resulting in the immediacy of an epicurean and archaeological adventure... Covering a global culinary adventure, The Lost Supper melds food history with culinary derring-do."" —Foreword Reviews ""Grescoe sets out an illuminating analysis of “dwindling nutritional diversity,” what a more sustainable, nutritionally varied future might look like, and how food systems should change to get there... This is worth a look."" —Publishers Weekly ""In vivid and engaging prose, Grescoe makes the case that we shouldn’t blame farming for our ills, but rather we need to return to ancient techniques and breeds. By remembering the diversity of forgotten foods we once ate, he argues that we can rebuild the health and resilience we've lost. The Lost Supper weaves fascinating history with delightful culinary adventure and will entrance anyone who’s longed to taste the flavors of the past."" —Gina Rae La Cerva, author of Feasting Wild ""A treasure map that guides us to the delicious and nutritious foods that could very well save our species."" —Paul Greenberg, author of Four Fish ""A fresh look at our wild roots, from the true meaning of paleo (eating termites) to the dawn of monoculture and the collapse of culinary (and agricultural) diversity."" —Matt Siegel, author of The Secret History of Food ""Prepare for intrigue and a deep dive into the history of food, the Anthropocene’s often unintended hand in shaping it, and what it means for the future. Grescoe’s vibrant writing and delectable storytelling bring deep understanding to how we eat."" —Ian Knauer, chef and author of The Farm ""A surprising, flavorsome tour of ancient cuisines demonstrating how the way forward involves looking back. This is not just another slick volume about cooking exotic food. . . Grescoe advises readers to look beyond the supermarket shelves, think before they buy, and take some culinary chances. 'For those who champion the Earth's dwindling nutritional diversity,' he concludes, 'the message is as simple as it is urgent: to save it, you’ve got to eat it.' Grescoe writes with color, energy, and humor, and the result is a fascinating book that leaves you hungry for more."" —Kirkus STARRED Review “If you are suffering from apocalypse fatigue when reading about global food, The Lost Supper may be the sane, personable, and imaginative exploration of the possibilities of eating here and now that you need. Grescoe has a historian’s precision concerning the forces that imperil great foods and knows that the major lesson to be imparted to readers is how to surf change and keep community vital.” —David S. Shields, author of The Culinarians and co-author of Slow Food USA's The Ark of Taste