Book tip of the week: Taste. My Life for Cooking and Filming

When food becomes biography
© Arche Literatur Verlag
© Arche Literatur Verlag
31. August 2025

 | Editorial team

With Taste: My Life in the Kitchen and on Camera, Stanley Tucci delivers much more than a culinary autobiography. This book is a subtle, intelligent reflection on life, told through the prism of food. Between film sets and family kitchens, between Meryl Streep and Nonna Tucci, a mosaic of anecdotes, memories, dishes, and deep insights emerges – sometimes humorous, sometimes touching, always with genuine flavor.

We didn’t just read Taste – we lived it. Tucci succeeds in presenting cuisine as the language of life: how much it shapes us, connects us, comforts us – and even brings us back to life when we lose our taste for it, as in his own battle with cancer.

In addition to lovingly told family stories, he makes us smile with anecdotes about cooking with celebrities or his ironic take on his own Italian cliché. The recipes scattered throughout – some traditional, some surprisingly modern – make the book not a classic cookbook, but a very personal culinary reader.

INFO:

Stanley Tucci: TASTE. My Life Through Food and Film
First German edition (original title: Taste. My Life Through Food)
Translation: Steffen Jacobs
Publisher: Arche Literatur Verlag
320 pages
ISBN: 978-3-7160-2813-1
Price: €25.00 [D] | €25.70 [A] | also available as an
e-book
Publication date: February 2023

Stanley Tucci serves up memories, emotions, and recipes with depth

Our conclusion: For anyone who sees food as culture, communication, and a compass, this book is a gift. A book for connoisseurs, film fans, lovers of Italy, and anyone who believes that a good pasta dish says more than a thousand words.

A la table, s'il vous plaît! A la table, s'il vous plaît! A la table, s'il vous plaît! A la table, s'il vous plaît!
Copyright for the featured images used:
© Arche Literatur Verlag

Book tip: HADN – The Buckwheat Cookbook

A local supergrain that bridges tradition, modernity and the future

Buckwheat, affectionately known as ‘Hadn’ in Southern Carinthia, is one of those products that quietly disappeared – and is now making a natural comeback. HADN – The Buckwheat Cookbook is dedicated to this almost forgotten powerhouse grain with remarkable dedication: rooted in culinary, cultural and regional traditions.

Together with the Klopeiner See – South Carinthia – Lavant Valley tourism region, food expert and editor cookingCatrin (Catrin Ferrari-Brunnenfeld) embarks on a journey to the roots of Carinthian ‘Hadn’. The book combines over 55 creative sweet and savoury recipes with in-depth background knowledge – from cultivation and history to its modern-day significance as a gluten-free, nutrient-rich superfood. Buckwheat is not only presented as flour, but also as semolina or rice: given a modern twist, suitable for everyday use and surprisingly versatile.

INFO
HADN – The Buckwheat Cookbook
Authors: Catrin Ferrari-Brunnenfeld (cookingCatrin)
Publisher: Klopeiner See Tourism Region – Southern Carinthia – Lavant Valley / KSL Tourismus Marketing GmbH
Length: 180 pages
ISBN: 978-3-200-09933-3
Price: €24.90
Publication date: September 2025

The Personal Touch

Italian rituals, as told by the people behind Portrait Hotels

With its new ongoing editorial series ‘The Personal Touch’, Portrait Hotels turns its attention to the individuals who shape the character of its properties in Milan, Florence and Rome: hosts, concierges, chefs, bartenders and members of the lifestyle team, whose stories, rituals and local perspectives become part of the Portrait Experience.

The focus is on personal insights, everyday Italian culture and those small gestures that turn a stay into more than just a trip. Rather than simply showcasing places, the series tells the stories of the people, memories and traditions that define the Italian way of life.

George Papazacharias at Restaurant Ikarus

The Delta Effect reaches Hangar-7

In July 2026, George Papazacharias, head chef at the acclaimed Delta restaurant in Athens, will bring his interpretation of modern Greek cuisine to Salzburg. At Restaurant Ikarus in Hangar-7, he will demonstrate why, in culinary terms, Greece has long been more than just moussaka, souvlaki and holiday memories, and how radically contemporary local produce can taste.

quick & dirty
Taste by Tucci © Arche Literatur Verlag
Book tip of the week: Taste. My Life for Cooking and Filming

With Taste: My Life in the Kitchen and on Camera, Stanley Tucci delivers much more than a culinary autobiography. This book is a subtle, intelligent reflection on life, told through the prism of food. Between film sets and family kitchens, between Meryl Streep and Nonna Tucci, a mosaic of anecdotes, memories, dishes, and deep insights emerges – sometimes humorous, sometimes touching, always with genuine flavor.

We didn’t just read Taste – we lived it. Tucci succeeds in presenting cuisine as the language of life: how much it shapes us, connects us, comforts us – and even brings us back to life when we lose our taste for it, as in his own battle with cancer.

In addition to lovingly told family stories, he makes us smile with anecdotes about cooking with celebrities or his ironic take on his own Italian cliché. The recipes scattered throughout – some traditional, some surprisingly modern – make the book not a classic cookbook, but a very personal culinary reader.

INFO:

Stanley Tucci: TASTE. My Life Through Food and Film
First German edition (original title: Taste. My Life Through Food)
Translation: Steffen Jacobs
Publisher: Arche Literatur Verlag
320 pages
ISBN: 978-3-7160-2813-1
Price: €25.00 [D] | €25.70 [A] | also available as an
e-book
Publication date: February 2023