Thank you for the opportunity to review - this was a journey! I absolutely commend the team on the amount of work that went into this detail and research - it's definitely noticeable.

For me this was a fun cookbook to read and look at however there very few recipes that I would consider trying. The Publican is a very popular restaurant in Chicago. Many of these recipes are based on what is available to them and many of those ingredients are not available everywhere. However there philosophy to buy local and the best you can is rule everyone can follow. The recipes are written clearly and easy to understand and the accompanying photos are beautiful. There is also a lot of introduction and explanation for each recipe. I do think beer and wine suggestions would have been helpful. As a cookbook this book is for advanced and adventurous cooks. For foodies this is a fun book to read and look at. Enjoy

Wonderful recipes from the past to try in your own kitchen

This is a gorgeous book, unabashedly enthusiastic and wonderfully friendly. The detail is terrific – had I the resources to tackle any of the recipes included I have absolute confidence that I would be walked through it safely and successfully from start to finish.

I love the warmth of the book, the sheer contentment that breathes through the pages in the lives the authors have made for themselves, for the place that they've made and the community they've formed. It's lovely. There's even photographic proof throughout – the obligatory "here we are eating the things we're telling you about" shots, as enviable and admirable as any I've seen. It all makes me want to become a regular at the Publican, and if I ever get to Chicago I'm definitely seeking it out.

One of my favorite things about the book is the series of profiles of "Friends of the Publican", suppliers and other allies, each given a full page with a photo and a warm essay. It's credit where credit's due, in spades.

The poems are fun, too.

As a cookbook, though, it is largely aspirational. It isn't tremendously useful to me, because as a foodie I'm frankly low-class. Between my paycheck and my lack of space, I won't be following the directions (however clear and concise) to make my own sausage anytime soon. All throughout the text, the authors direct the reader to go to farmers' markets, the finest suppliers, basically anywhere but the grocery store … Buy tomatoes from the guy who charges the highest prices. Don't buy strawberries at the grocery store. Don't buy eggs at the store. Don't you dare buy fish at the store. In fact, have your trout flown in from San Francisco. Even the recipe that perked me up (I might be able to make this one!), calling for Yukon gold potatoes (I've heard of those!) specified "size C" potatoes, which … I didn't know they were classified like that. Makes sense, I suppose, but ...

I might be able to do the pork pies …

They do here and there almost apologetically bend, and say <I>or the dates you get at the grocery store would be fine</i> or something. And I find it delightful that in amongst the ingredients sourced from across the country and the world (not afraid of a carbon footprint, these chefs), they profess their loyalty to Hellmann's mayonnaise. It's adorable.

It's actually kind of fun to read this point of view; it's a little like reading a fantasy novel. These are people who live in as completely different a world from mine as Pern or Arrakis, and it's all they know. Their first and only priority is food and feeding people, and they're apparently unfamiliar with a lifestyle in which going out to eat is a rare luxury. I'm not condemning this – bless their hearts, long may they cook meals which cost what I get in a week's paycheck. "As Herb says, it's all about life, liberty, and the prosciutto happiness." Cheers.

The usual disclaimer: I received this book via Netgalley for review.

I now want to head down to Chicago to visit The Publican. On requesting the book I didn't realize it was from a restaurant, but now visiting there is on my travel wishlist, The restaurant was originally envisioned as "oysters, pork, and beer", and the fresh food focus of the dishes in this book and tablescape photos feel so warm.

This book is lovely, and packed full of recipes. The crisp photos of dishes as well as the farms and suppliers make my farm-to-table loving self very happy. The dishes are mostly a sort of upscale comfort food - comfortable enough to make daily, but with enough to elevate the recipes at the same time. For meat lovers, this book is amazing, with a full chapter on making your own charcuterie, as well as an amazing section on seafood. The bread chapter is also a treat. There is just a single dessert recipe, but it's one of the most asked-for desserts at the restaurant and combines two styles of waffles into a "rule breaking" winner.

My top picks to make:
- Bread-and-Butter Pickles (I can never get enough interesting pickle recipes - and this is a fridge pickle variety, so easier)
- Fried Sweet Potatoes with Hazelnut Mayo and Shabazi Vinaigrette (parmesan-tempura battered)
- Honey Crisp Apple and Kohlrabi Salad with Burnt Chile Chimichurri
- Shrimp Ceviche with the Best Homemade Crackers
- Mussels in Sour Beer (in a Belgian Gueuze - yum yum), Salsa Verde (with anchovies!)
- Pan-Roasted Turnip & Mushroom Fettuntas (on one of their freshmade bread recipes)
- The Publican Waffle with Honey Butter (the single dessert recipe in the book)

Oh, holy hell!

Not being up on the food scene in Chicago, the Publican just came across my radar in the form of their cookbook Cheers to the Publican, Repast and Present: Recipes and Ramblings from an American Beer Hall by Paul Kahan, Cosmo Goss, and Rachel Holtzman.

I am continuing my cookbook bender with this offering from some seriously cheffy chefs. These are chef’s chefs, full of swagger and confidence. Reading their recipes makes me positively gleeful. I know nothing of these folks personally but I love what they’re bringing to the Midwestern food scene in the form of a well-visited beer hall with solid and approachable dishes. Pork? Beer? Yes! These are things that we Midwesterners do well. In the Publican’s case, they appear to do them exceptionally well. Throw in a little seafood and some inventive charcuterie and you’ve got a party in the making.

Sure, they’re a bit removed from my running grounds (think Topeka-Lawrence-Kansas City) but I now aspire to go to Chicago for the sole purpose of visiting the Publican and eating my way around their menu.

In the meantime, I will have to settle for cooking some of their amazing food at home. Peaches, Grilled Green Beans, and White Balsamic Dressing with Burrata? YES. I have plans on scoring some peaches and green beans from the farmer’s market tomorrow for just this recipe. Pork belly with Calabrian chile glaze? YES. Barbecued carrots? I am intrigued. YES. I should also note that while I love to eat charcuterie, I have never made anything that could be classified as such. So I issued a challenge to myself to pick at least two items from the charcuterie section. So… Toulouse sausage and chicken liver pâté? YES and YES.

My ‘To Make’ List:

Barbecued Carrots
Mom’s Icebox Tomatoes
Elotes
Cosmo’s Magic Bacon Dressing
Peaches, Grilled Green Beans, and White Balsamic Dressing with Burrata
Brussels Sprouts, Pear, Fried Shallot, and Balsamic Onion with Burrata
Waxman Potatoes
Pork Belly with Calabrian Chile Glaze
Flap Steak with Strawberries, Mint and Feta
Toulouse Sausage
Chicken Liver Pâté
Pepper Jelly
Calabrian Chile Aioli

The Publican is an extremely popular restaurant in Chicago, opened by celebrated chef Paul Kahan. The emphasis is on “Oysters, pork, and beer.” Recipes from the restaurant are now presented in a beautiful cookbook Cheers to the Publican, Repast and Present: Recipes and Ramblings from an American Beer Hall which he has written along with his executive chef, Cosmo Goss, and Rachel Holtzman, a well-known writer, editor, and recipe tester. The book not only contains recipes, but also vignettes about restaurant life, friends, and other musings.

The recipes are unique, and not the type you would normally find in mainstream cookbooks. There are recipes for incredible breads, as well as appetizers, salads and main dishes. There is only one recipe for a dessert: the publican waffle with honey butter. Although this seems a bit strange, the waffles are easy to make and are very similar to those served in Brussels (where the Belgian waffle is may be considered the national dish).

Some of the unusual recipes include Squid and Blood Sausage, Braised Octopus Ribolitta, Dry- aged Duck Breast with Pumpkin Seed Vinaigrette, and Mussels in Sour Beer. Among the recipes that may appeal to mainstream cooks are Swordfish and Butternut Squash in Acqua Pazza, The Publican Fish Fry, and Pork Shoulder and White Grits. Kahan’s Pimento Cheese is excellent, as is Flap Steak with Strawberries, Mint, and Feta. There is even a recipe for homemade bacon.

Beautiful photographs, not just of the dishes, but also of areas where the ingredients can be obtained, and interesting people in the area, are included in this cookbook.

For those who are interested in preparing the recipes in the cookbook, be aware that many are quite involved and have long lists of ingredients. The breads must be started early – sometimes days early – and others call for hard-to-find and unusual ingredients. While the book is well-written and interesting reading, there are a lot of recipes that most won’t want to prepare, and others that most cooks won’t have time to prepare.

Special thanks to NetGalley for supplying a review copy of this book.

Stunning, mouth-watering read! A worthy addition to every cooks library.

I don't review books that I cannot read on my tablet during my commute. Sorry.

I love the restaurant Publican so I was super excited when I found out about this book!

It's a super gorgeous book that has the most wonderful pictures. I really enjoyed just looking through it. It is definitely one of those books that would look good on someone's coffee table. I have not had a chance to actually try any of the recipes yet but I have bookmarked a couple and it all looks really really lovely. It is however one of those cookbooks that insist on things like "getting the freshest mussels straight from the fishmonger" type books so definitely not for an everyday cooking kind of thing. Fun for special occasions and just to read and look over.

I was excited to receive a copy of Cheers to the Publican, Repast and Present by Paul Kahn, Cosmo Goss and Rachel Holtsman, though NetGallley.
This cook book really gave us some variety, and in ways one wouldn't think to prepare many things. I was surprised to find fresh fruit as in many dishes, which I thought was brilliant. Lots of fresh ingredients, these are not the average foods I find in most cook books.
I was bummed I won't be able to try the many spectacular sea food dishes described because of allergies, but they really sounded amazing. I wish I was a much more skilled chef and had the resources to make many of the salami's and charcuteries, I was very impressed! You can really see the absolute love that goes into each recipe.
I will say I don't think this is a cook book for the average person, or the average home chef. More appropriate for someone who works in the restaurant business, or is a very skilled home cook would be who I would recommend this for.
Cheers to the Publican, Repast and Present is full of heart, love for the art of food, and sharing it with everyone you can.