Cooking In Paradise : Culinary Vacations Around the World

by Joel Naftali, Lee Naftali

Release Date: 16 April, 2001

Edition: Paperback

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Save Your Money

Having attended several cooking schools throughout Europe, I was really looking forward to "Cooking in Paradise". I'm sorry to say that I was very disappointed. While the descriptions of the cooking schools make the reader want to hop on the next plane, the prices of the schools reviewed are prohibitive. I doubt that the average home cook would want to spend $2,500 for a 5 day cooking school, not including international airfare. I had hoped that there would be classes in all price ranges listed, but the majority were very high end. The book is dull in that it has no photographs. There are many glaring errors in the book such as; in one paragraph a school is listed as Devina Cucina (which is incorrect) and in the next Divina Cucina. About two years ago I attended the Podere Le Rose cooking school listed in the book. I noticed that the address listed for the school was an address that was old, the school had moved at least 3 years ago. Of the 5 schools in the book that I decided to research on the internet, 3 of them had incorrect websites and addresses. Did anyone really go to these schools or was this information just pinched from the internet many years ago? The recipes in the book are average but many of the ingredients listed are ingredients which are not readily found in the United States. This book might be enjoyable reading for those readers who are not seriously planning on attending a cooking school, but for those who are looking for a reliable source of information this is not the book for you.

Don't Waste Your Time

Having attended several cooking schools in Europe, I was eager to read COOKING IN PARADISE. I am sorry to say that I was very disappointed in this book for several reasons. First, the majority of the schools listed were way out of my price range. Most of the courses started at $2,500 for five days not including airfare. I don't think that the majority of average recreational home cooks would be willing to spend that type of money for a short cooking course. While the descriptions of the courses and their locations was enticing, the cost of most of the classes listed was certainly a turn off. The second major fault I found with the book was its inaccurate information. Two years ago I attended the Podere le Rose cooking school listed on pg. 87 of the book. The description was fairly good but then I noticed that the address listed for the school was incorrect as they had moved at least three years ago. I found this odd since the book was printed a short time ago. I assumed that this was the only glitch and continued to read the book. Of the five schools listed in the book that I decided to research on the internet, three of them had incorrect websites. I know that websites do change but I think that the authors of this book did not follow up and check their information before having the final version of the book printed. There are many spelling errors, one school is listed as Cucina Devina (which is incorrect) in one paragraph and in the next it is referred to as Cucina Divina. There are no photos in the book which leads me to wonder if anyone really visited these schools. Photos would have been a wonderful addition. The recipes in the book were average and some contained ingredients which would not be readily available in the United States. If you are not seriously considering attending a cooking school and simply want to read about what they are like then you might enjoy this book, but for those of you who are looking for a book with solid useable information then this is not for you.