I saw Laurie Woolever speak on a panel at the Texas Book Festival, and once I realized she was Anthony Bourdain’s long-time assistant, I was intrigued. Bourdain’s writing always stood out to me. Sam and I sometimes go back and rewatch his shows, and I’m still struck by the quality of his writing in the voice-overs. I have such a soft spot for good food writing.

Good thing Laurie Woolever is an excellent writer in her own right. I believe her memoir Care and Feeding is for the Venn diagram overlap of Bourdain fans and those who like memoirs by messy, vulnerable women. (It’s me.)

Woolever starts in her young adulthood when she realized she loved cooking for other people. She went to culinary school, but what she wanted to do most was become a food writer. The first half of the book is riveting, as she recounts odd jobs as a personal chef for the ultra wealthy and celebrities, freelance food writer, and assistant to much more famous male chefs.

Care and Feeding has tense moments, particularly around Woolever’s time as Mario Batali’s assistant. If you know anything about Batali, you likely know that he fell from grace thanks to a pattern of sexual harassment and abuse. Woolever details her own experiences and what she observes, and it is not easy to read.

She also gets pretty real about her struggles with addiction and her unhealthy approaches to sex and relationships. The memoir drags in the second half, and it was challenging to read about her self-destructive behaviors, especially when they came at the expense of her ex-husband and young son. The last quarter of the book covers her recovery, her contentious divorce, and her grieving Bourdain’s tragic death. She’s had a full life.

This book includes the recounting of many memorable meals that she both ate and prepared, and I loved it. I really could read endlessly about delicious, memorable meals. I also loved how much of this book takes place all over New York City. New York and food – there is nothing better for me, really.