Thank you to Netgalley and the author for the opportunity to read and review this novella. Content warnings for domestic violence and verbal abuse against LBTQIA+ people. Also to make a note, this story has a lot of unconventional sexual experiences, so if that is something that you are not interested in, I would recommend staying away. However, for me personally, I thought it was a great story that ticks all of my boxes when it comes to a realistic contemporary story. I would also recommend it to readers who enjoy Rowan Shaw's books. My only gripe with this story was that it felt like despite the standalone label, I needed to read other books in the world to get all of the easter eggs(but that is not something everyone cares about, its only a me thing.) Because of these points, I have to give this a 5 out of 5 stars

I found this book to be good for what it is. A simple striaght forward romance story with little plot and agnst. I honestly prefer books with little plot. If I want a romance than I don't want a bunch of random stuff getting in the way, That being said, the writing was a bit clunky.

This was a short novella with a fairly simple plot and premise. It was an easy enough read and I did enjoy it but I just couldn't find a 'spark'. I also didn't like it anywhere near as much as I did the first novella in this series which is unfortunate but it was definitely an okay read. Same as with the previous novella I wish it were fleshed out more and there was more character and plot development.

The setup of this book just called to me and turns out that this one is everything I enjoy in a book. Ezra meets up with his son's best friend Noah years after they have been separated and they fall in love with each other. I always love this trope and the age gap in this one was absolutely delicious.

This book just had the sweetest romance I read in a long time and reading it put the biggest smile on my face.

An interesting story full of twists, turns, fun characters and overall a book I would consider reading time and time again.

This is a novella that connects with several of the author's other series and has a wonderful modern, .cozy feel with an added dose of kink and sexytimes. Noah's best friend and his family helped him to escape an abusive father when he was much younger. The night he got out - he also discovered that Noah's parents were queer and pretty kinky. Since then, Noah has been moving around while learning and building his skills as a chef. He's been in a small college town in North Carolina for a few years cooking modern comfort food in an a diner. When Ezra, his best friend's father shows up one day, it throws his whole world off its axis.

Ezra has recently gone through a divorce - but has maintained a strong relationship with his ex-wife. He's a workaholic who is trying to make positive changes in his life. When he meets Noah again - they connect in a very real way. The age gap isn't a big deal for either of them - not really - but the prior relationship (aka father of Noah's best friend) does have some impact.

This short story has a healthy dose of emotion and angst - and a LOT of food porn.

I had not read any of the connected stories - but I kind of want to now! And I loved the representation of all of the LGBTQ+ community!

I received this via NetGalley as an arc, but these opinions are all my own.

This book was a short read and it had a fairly simple storyline too.

I thought that the book was a pleasant one to read but nit much happened

It is 3 stars from me for this one, a quick read that left me wanting more!

One of the things I really enjoyed about this book was the way that food was not just there to add color and texture to the novella - it was also an important emotional connection between the characters. Their past, present, and future was all tied up in their shared love of cooking and food. The memories it carried as well as the ways the two men used it to signal love and comfort were important to the book. It was also erotic and meaningful. When Ezra visits the diner where Noah cooks daily, he is learning something about the young man.

This is a novella, so it seems a little unfair to critique the fact that we don't really get to know Noah very well. Noah's childhood best friend was Ezra's son. They help Noah escape his abusive father and don't see or here from him again, until Ezra shows up as a visiting professor in the town where Noah has lived the longest (only a few years). Noah is always ready to run, because his father has pursued him in the past. He is afraid not just for himself, but for any around him who might be collateral damage.

We know Noah wanted to go to culinary school, but he didn't. We know he is living under an assumed name and is afraid of his father. We know he is a really good chef. But we don't know a lot else. Meanwhile Ezra, who is amicably divorced from his wife, seems like a much more developed character.

Right before Noah escaped from his father's control, he discovers that Ezra and his wife participate in a BDSM party scene and that Ezra is queer. This is a liberating moment for Noah, who given his tyrannical father, has been unable to acknowledge his own queerness. I really liked this connection and thought it might be developed further. But you can't really blame a novella for being a novella!

This was even better than the first book. I absolutely loved it. Noah has been on the run from an abusive live. Ezra is in town and they cross paths. I loved watching these two get over the age gap issue. There is mild d/s kink in the story, would have liked more as I’m a kink kind of gal. If you are in the mood for food porn, u got it here. I don’t recommend reading this as a stand-alone.

I received a free copy through Netgalley and voluntarily reviewed it.

Blue Plate Special is part of the Table for Two series. I really like this series as it has great romances and a strong foodie theme. Blue Plate Special was a great read. I liked seeing Ezra and Noah meet each other again and how they grew closer and fell in love. There are plenty of scenes with food in it and it feels like an important part of the book.

This book starts off with a short prologue where Noah back when he still was called Hudson escaped from his abusive dad. It was a sad and tough scene to read, but sets the stage for the rest of the book and introduces both main characters. The story is told from both their point of views and I liked reading about Ezra and Noah. They have an instant connection when they meet again after all these years, but it takes some time for it to grow into a romance and turn physical.

I liked the romance between Ezra and Noah. Age gap isn't a trope that I read a lot, but I found it worked well here as the connection between the two was clear and I liked them together. There is a bit of steam later in the book, but the main focus is on the connection and deepening bond between the two characters. I liked how it wrapped up with a satisfying conclusion.

There are plenty of scenes involving food. Noah works as a chef in a kitchen and he cooks for Ezra. There's also Ezra cooking for Noah or providing food. I liked the integral part the food played in the story as well as reading about all the dishes they made.

To summarize: I like this series, it's a great series to pick up if you like foodie romances. The romance in this one was great with the connection between Ezra and Noah building throughout the book. I liked the two of them together. I liked how the author wrote these characters and how they were together and I enjoyed the ending and how it wraps things up. There's plenty of food and the character sharing meals in this book and it was fun to read about all the dishes.

I don't love age gap romances, so I approached this romance between a man and his childhood best friend's dad with a bit of a leery attitude. But I really loved the first book in this series, The Last Drop, so I dove in anyway. While age gap still isn't my jam, I really did enjoy this relationship between Noah and Ezra. I appreciated that their best friend's dad trope romance was less cringey than this trope can sometimes be, and felt a lot more organic and natural after over a decade of estrangement and Noah being 33 (while Ezra is 58), which seems like less of a gap than if it had been 20/45.

Despite the dark content (abuse, Noah changing his entire identity and being on the run because he's terrified of his father), the romance between Noah and Ezra is so cozy and sweet. Also this book made me HUNGRY! I love that Noah's love language seems to be cooking for/feeding people.

There also seems to be some overlap with another series, I assume, that has some Shakespeare serial killer? I tried poking through the blurbs of some of Layla Reyne's other books and I'm not sure if this is in one of those series, or if it's just some VERY elaborate backstory/side story. It took me out of the story a bit because I kept going searching seeing if there was some book about what they were talking about.

This is the second book in the Table for Two series, and can be read as a standalone. As far as I can tell, there's very minimal overlap with book one (The Last Drop) aside from book two Noah's childhood best friend Tyler being an investor in book one Greg's restaurant (I think, I might have the wrong guy there, even, but they do mention Dram very briefly in this book).

3.5 🍷

Encore une bien jolie nouvelle pleine de romantisme et de délicieuses saveurs !
Layla Reyne a décidément l'art de mettre à l'honneur les métiers de bouche, qu'ils soient chefs, barman, apprentis ou encore vignerons (en herbe), cette fois encore j'ai eu l'eau à la bouche en lisant les noms de plats préparés par Noah, des saveurs automnales et réconfortantes que j'aurais adoré déguster tout en lisant !

La romance joue sur différents tropes, mais au-delà du fait qu'il y ait une grande différence d'âge entre les deux héros, et que l'un soit le père du meilleur ami d'enfance que l'autre, c'est surtout l'histoire de deux hommes qui osent se donner une chance et explorent une attirance mutuelle explosive, partagent le même amour de la bonne nourriture et ont une vision commune de ce que devrait être un bon restaurant. Je reste néanmoins sur ma faim en ce qui concerne le développement de cette relation, le format nouvelle pouvant parfois être terriblement frustrant, même si l'ensemble est cohérent et peut se suffire à lui-même.

Une nouvelle à la fois gourmande, sexy et romantique, vraiment bien écrite, qui donne envie d'en avoir plus !

I loved the whole premise of this book. It was fresh, different and kept me engaged. I love a good age gap- this was that and then some. The writing was very sensory- I could almost taste all the food described. Definite heat and connection between the main characters. I enjoyed the twists and turns. Read this in one sitting! Highly recommend!!!

NetGalley ARC Educator 550974

A steamy and thought provoking read. It is a part of a series but can be read as a standalone. Trigger warnings: child abuse and age gap

I was totally left wanting more and I wish it were longer. Which is both the best and worst compliment. I do feel like it barely scratched the surface of kink exploration and building a winery and restaurant. More of that please! 😂

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

Blue Plate Special is yet another wonderful little nugget from the talented Layla Reyne. Proving that no matter the length of her stories, you get the right amount of steam and heart. It's an engaging age-gap romance featuring Ezra Rosin and Noah Becker and the past that threatens to get in the way of what could be everything they've always wanted.

We get the full story of how a younger Noah has to move away from his best friend Tyler and the rest of the Rosin family who had given him so much in his troubled life. The mere coincidence of Noah seeing Tyler's sexy father again jolts him into almost wanting to flee yet another town and another chef's job just to keep those he cares for most, safe. Safe from the homophobe father who beat Noah way too often and whose presence despite his absence all these many years, still looms over the talented culinary artist.

But heated looks across a restaurant to sharing a few meals between two lonely apartment dwellers lead to so much more between Ezra and Noah yet it continues to remain in Noah's court as to whether or not he is up to the task of loving his former best friend's father even when he shouldn't. These two, however, have a chemistry that neither can deny thank goodness and their erotic trysts become everything and more to both of them. Not to mention cooking side by side and simply just being themselves which seems to be the easiest thing either of them has ever done.

I loved getting cameos from prior Reyne books and I look forward to getting more from this Table for Two series. A series that doesn't shy away from the difficult but always maintains respect and true adoration for both the couple and those who care for them most. You can't help but get addicted to Reyne's characters and the love that is downright addictive each and every time.

Blue Plate Special is the perfect respite from more intense reads and is thoroughly enjoyable from beginning to end.

4 huge stars!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for being able to read this early in exchange for an honest review.

If nothing else, Layla writes about food so well. This story is in the same series as The Last Drop and many of the characters from Dine With Me are also mentioned, so I’d recommend reading those books too. This is a standalone story, but those books are great too, so why not?

I loved this story featuring Noah and Ezra. It uses the best friend’s dad trope, but spins it in a meaningful way. With Noah trying to hide from his dad, there’s a deeper undercurrent, but that only makes the happy ending that much sweeter.

I’d love more time with these two (and Tyler - the best friend), but for a novella, it was a solid, contained story.

I might be silently praying for some massive sequel that includes Noah, Ezra, Greg, Tony, Miller, and Clancy. Because they’re all chefs and/or foodies, so how easy would it be to have them all meet up somewhere to critique some new restaurant? Please Layla!

In short, this novella was awesome and you should check it out along with all of Layla’s backlist..

I'm a big fan of age gap and best friend's dad, so this novella hit quite a few of my favorite tropes! Add in Noah's troubled history, Ezra's health issues, the tension of keeping their relationship a secret, and I was hooked. This novella is a celebration of family, both found and biological, second chances, and, of course, food. There's lots of joy and comfort to be found, all set in a charming small town diner. For fans of Layla Reyne's work, there's a host of references to characters from other books, and it's interesting to see how their stories intersect. I wish this story had been novel length because I would have liked to delve deeper into the characters and explore more of their HEA! Think of this novella as a hearty bowl of stew filled with all kinds of good ingredients and spices, a dish that's sure to whet your appetite for more.

A big thank you to Layla Reyne and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review. Blue Plate Special comes out January 24, 2023.

Noah has been gone from home for 13 years after escaping an abusive father. He has made a life of moving from small town to small town and doing what he loves cooking. He is surly not expecting a blast from the past in the form of the man who drve him to the train station 13 years ago. Ezra is the father of Noah's best friend and is taking a sabbatical in the small town Noah is at. While recnnecting through their love of food and wine their relationship starts to turn into something hotter. They will have to decide if the chemestry that id brewing between them is only meant for no strings or if it is the start of a steamy future. Blue Plate Special is a very quick read, that is full of humor and tons of heart. I loved both of the main characters, they were both warm and intelligent. The small town had a big found family feel. If you are looking for a good, quick heartwarming read, then Blue Plate Special is the novella for you.