What a fun read! I enjoyed this and I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys rom-coms and/or foodies.

My honest opinion - this book deserves every bit of five stars.

I was drawn to this book because the main characters are living in Paris - love this - and are working chefs in an up and coming restaurant.

The book has so many of my favorite tropes: opposites attract, enemies to lovers, forced proximity, and retribution, but there are twists to each, giving them a fresh take.

A nice touch was that each chapter started with a food description that is featured within the story. I adored the main character, Claire, her back story and the dynamic between her and her boss, James.

What I really appreciated is the two main characters - they were so endearing they really pulled me into the book.

I recommend this book absolutely and I am blown away it is a debut.

Please note, I did receive this ARC for free; I am writing an honest review voluntarily.

I had an amazing time with this book. Maybe because I'm a foodie that also happens to love cooking, I couldn't have asked for a better setting.

Claire is a girl trying to make her own way in the world and so she decides to move to Paris to work at a restaurant called Teaks to help it gain a Michelin star. She's in line to inherit a whole winery in the States, but wants to really experiment being a part of something that she goes after on her own. Soon after she gets there, Teaks welcomes a new head chef: James Sullivan. He's charming and everything, but due to a messy past Claire is wary of work place romances. There's also the matter that he just seems to have a special dose of indifference he only reserves for her.

Their romance was really cute, will give you all the feels! It had been a loooong time since a romance book made me this warm and happy. I particularly liked the fact that they had meaningful conversations on page, and the amount of respect James showed her. It was a slow burn, ennemies to friends to lovers, and truly a great ride. What could have made it better? Making it a double POV! I was dying for a look into James' mind!

The main reason why this book worked for me is because there was actually stuff going on in the character's lives apart from the romance. The chase for a Michelin star, the restaurant and wine scene along with family dynamics made for a well rounded story. More kitchen technique and food descriptions would have been amazing to me, but maybe some readers would have gotten bored.

Claire was a fun main lead, she really does carve a path for herself while learning along the way that she doesn't have to do everything on her own. She was realistic, flawed and yet determined and I found myself rooting for her.

James is quite literally the golden retriever guy we always talk about but don't often see executed well in most rom coms. He's cute and thoughtful and was able to balance the authoritative traits of a head chef with a flexible and approachable demeanor both with his workmates and Claire.

Overall a great book, but without any spoilers, I do feel certain moments could have been less cliché. I also felt like the near end dragged on a bit for me and some things James did kinda annoyed me and felt out of character. However Claire didn't seem to mind and I wasn't the main lead so..I guess its ok?

Would definitely recommend this to a friend and may read again in a year or so.

Content: Closed door romance, a bit of swearing.


3.75 stars

I really, really wanted to like this book more than I did. I loved all the tropes— foodie romance, forced proximity, forbidden romance—and all set in Paris?! But unfortunately the actual romance felt flat for me. The author’s writing style was very much “tell” instead of “show”, so we got very little dialogue and interaction between the FMC and MMC. Again, I enjoyed the plot line but I couldn’t buy into them actually falling in love. The final nail in the coffin was the last 30% of the book which took a sharp left turn (just not my taste) and ultimately felt incredibly rushed. This book had so much potential, I truly wished it was a better experience for me.

Yes, Chef by Waitlyn Andrews is a sweet book about a chef named Claire who leaves the US to work as a Sous Chef in Paris, escaping from heartbreak and pressure from her family. She loves her job at her new restaurant, but she’s thrown for a loop when James arrives to be the new head chef as the restaurant attempts to achieve earning a Michelin star. James is cold and Claire doesn’t understand why she seems to be the only person he doesn’t like. While they but heads, Claire must learn to heal herself and learn to trust the process - both in work and in love.

I loved this book. I couldn’t put it down. I felt the beginning of the book what’s the strongest while Claire and James butt heads and learned to trust each other; however, I felt the relationship and the end of the book was a bit rushed. However, that doesn’t take away from the sweetness of the story.

Thank you to the publishers and to Net Galley for an advanced copy of the book in exchange for my honest review.

Claire is a chef from wine making royalty back in the US. She is working in France at a restaurant when along comes head chef James who ignores her and smiles and chats to everyone else.
A cute rom com that shows a passion for food and France. I really loved this one! It’s low in the drama stakes but still a sweet relationship develops over the book. Claire is a lovable and relatable fmc who is strong and kind. James is a dreamy MMC who is respectful and shows some grumpy traits. Lots of swooning slow burn moments.
Tropes
Grumpy x sunshine (where he is grumpy to her and any males who come around but nice to everyone else)
Slow burn
Rivals to friends to lovers
Closed door

Thank you to the author, publisher and netgalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are my own.

"Yes, Chef" is the debut novel penned from author Waitlyn Andrews.

The book was enjoyable and the descriptions of Parisian culture were delightful, however at times it leaned more towards women's fiction than romance. The journey the main female lead went on to feel self-empowered, confident, and capable was inspiring, albeit the pacing of the book was a bit slow. Her not-like-other-girls attitude and self-doubt was a bit off putting and felt immature at times, to an extent that didn't feel necessary for her character arc.

The relationship between her and the main male lead was sweet, but the transition from coworkers with a disdain for one another to his affection for her somehow felt sudden despite the slow build up. The resolution of conflict with her past trauma and familial expectations also felt rushed and I was disappointed in the lack of apology she received before moving on to the epilogue.

All in all, this was a good read and I will be picking up future books from this author.

Thanks to the author and Netgalley for providing me with an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

Claire Richards is a sous chef living her best life in Paris after leaving her home in California, USA, and her cheating ex-boyfriend. She is healing in her own way from that and her somewhat toxic family, though she knows moving back to take over the family business is inevitable. Everything is going wonderfully until a new head chef is hired. James Sullivan is somewhat of an enigma to Claire, seeming to befriend everyone else but only speak to her with criticism. They are forced to get to know each other better between working together, gathering ingredients at the market each day, and being neighbors. Claire would be a fool not to notice his piercing blue eyes, luscious hair, and toned muscles. But thinking about those things is pointless when he despises her...or does he?

I absolutely adored this book and ate it right up. Claire is such a relatable character, and James is so sweet and patient with her that it made me want to cry. His feelings for her were so subtle in the best way, but she had no idea, the lovable idiot. The transition from their friendship to romantic relationship was so smooth and believable as well. I was so happy there were no frustrating miscommunications or misunderstandings! Outside of the two main characters, I loved the playfulness and mischievousness of their co-worker Gabe. He was so funny! The food explanations at the beginning of each chapter were such a delight, and the author gets brownie points from me for mentioning Zac Efron.

While I loved this book, there were a few pain points for me. Firstly. I am not a big fan of first-person writing, so at first, it felt more like I was reading a journal than a book, but I did get over it after a few chapters. Secondly, the "dadgum"s were supremely annoying. I don't think that's the proper way to spell it, but even so, there had to be a better word to use. Thankfully, it was only used a handful of times but was irritating enough for me to note it. Lastly, once they realized their feelings for each other and decided to date, everything else happened way too fast. I won't mention the details to avoid spoilers, but those things may have been better with chapters where things jumped to the future, like the epilogue.

With all of that being said, this was a super cute romance that was mostly realistic and didn't make me cry. Romance readers will love it!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me an advanced copy in exchange for a review. All thoughts are my own.

🪴 Claire is trying to escape her family’s wine business and the drama surrounding it. She moves to Paris to earn a Michelin Star and solidify her dream of being a chef before taking over the family business. When a fellow American Chef known for his Star joins her restaurant, she knows the team will earn a star - if only she can learn to get in his good graces.

❤️ I adored these characters. Claire’s confidence in herself, and James' desire to understand and support her was the perfect balance.

❤️ Solid backstories, a little bit of bookish joy, slow burn, immersive Paris setting, industry insights, and more.

📖 This book had minimal drama but was a joy to read as they all strive to work as a team and join together towards a common goal. The writing was very well done.

If you are a foodie, fan of slow-burn romance, love the culture of Paris, or are looking for a palate-cleansing book, this one is definitely for you.

The spice in this story was closed door.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this title prior to publication day, it was a joy to read and review!

Update: The author has changed the ending of the book since my reading of the eARC copy.

The descriptions of Paris and cooking were very well done in this book and really set the scene. I enjoyed the slow burn of Clair and James' relationship, up until the end. Unfortunately the end of the book was very rushed and unearned. Rushing to elope to get around a core value of Claire's didn't make sense to me at all. While I liked Claire as a character, and appreciated that she was tough and driven in chasing her dreams, I didn't like that in her toughness she came across as disliking most of the other women. She was quick to judge other women and name call. It felt unnecessary for the kind of character that was being built and portrayed otherwise. With a different or slower ending, I think this book hits so many of the right spots for foodie romance lovers.

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for the eARC of this book.

Yes, Chef! I loved this sweet read. I am on a romance kick lately and this book was exactly what I wanted to read. I think that Andrews did a great job of adding tension, a bit of mystery and creating a really tender love story.

I so desperately wanted to love this book. A
romance between two chefs set in Paris? Yes please. Sadly, I lost interest about halfway through. As the characters developed, I found I did not enjoy either of them.

Once Claire and James solidify their relationship, it became way too “honeymoon phase,” and kind of repetitive and boring. I get it, they repressed their feelings for each other for a long time and can finally express them! But it was too much for me! Claire came off as a bit of a “pick-me” girl, especially when she was around her sisters bridesmaids. I found her judgment of the other girls’ interests and behaviour kind of yucky. And yes, James was a loveable, golden retriever type. But I found the juxtaposition from how strict he was on Claire as a head chef, to how goofy and loving he was as her partner, was just not believable.

On a positive note, I adored all of the settings the story took us to. Paris as the seasons changed, New York City for Christmas and New Years, and finally a wedding at a gorgeous Napa Valley vineyard. I also loved Theo, and wish he somehow was more involved than he was.

I’m sad I have to give this 2/5 stars. There was a lot to love about this book. And what I loved, I really loved!

Thank you to NetGalley and Waitlyn Andrews herself for providing me with an advanced reading copy!

The author surpassed my expectations. I thoroughly enjoyed seeing a strong female lead setting goals for herself and not letting attraction get in the way of her professional goals. This is a woman journey in healing from an emotionally abusive relationship. The fact that it included a chef just made it sweeter. I can't wait to see what the author writes next.



******************I received an ARC for my honest opinion from NetGalley.*************

I really wanted to like this book, but I think I had a hard time connecting to the writer's voice. It happens! The first few chapters didn't pull me in as much as I originally hoped they would, but I'd definitely give this author another try in the future. This book might be for someone else, especially since it's such a great concept!

This book is adorable slow burn romance. I enjoyed this book and there were cute. This is my 1st time reading Waitlyn Andrews. Cant wait to read her other books!
Thanks netgalley for the ARC, all thought & opinions are mine!

Thanks to NetGalley for providing this book.
This book has a lot of good things going for it. I loved the descriptions of the French markets, the behind the scenes of the restaurant, and some of the food and recipe paragraphs were great. The characters arc was sweet and although predictable, appreciated. I did feel like the ending of the story was somewhat rushed and would've been fine had the wrap up not been quite so tidy or if it had been explained in an epilogue instead. All that said, you'd never know this was a debut author. I look forward to seeing what Waitlyn Andrews writes next.

This is my first romance book where I read so much about cooking and all the different kinds of food. I actually really enjoyed those little descriptions of food before each chapter. I felt like I could enjoy my time reading AND learn more about the food industry, which really helps, when you wanna start trying out new recipes.

The story was really cute, I love that Claire had some past experience trauma, family drama and how it brought them together while solving them. James was really cute, He's love language is physical touch, but it contained those little details that not everyone would notice. I enjoyed that it was a closed door romance and there weren't any descriptive making out sessions. I would say that it felt a bit fast once you get behind the hating part, the dating transition was fine and smooth. How can you just not want James and Claire to finally be a couple.
But the ending felt rushed. I mean, if you're going to include some incident in the last part of the book, make it a bit tense and don't solve everything in two seconds, give them place to heal, talk it out and grow as a person.

The only ick this book gave me, was the nickname "baby", anything but this and "babygirl". Yeah you can use it few times, but I personally really love when the characters have cute nicknames related to some incident or a memory.

Thanks to NetGalley and Waitlyn Andrews for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC! This was adorable! I’m all about a chef romance (which is quickly becoming just as popular as sports romance imo) and this one was excellent. The banter and chemistry between the characters was addictive and I absolutely fell for them. Highly recommend!

Perfectly delicious slow burn romance. And a very satisfying ending, including an epilogue which tied everything up beautifully. So often writers will create a last minute obstacle, but I love that Andrews just wrote this story so organically, it didn't need manufactured twists to keep interest, especially in 2nd half of book, which I couldn't put down. There was a bit of a twist at the end, but the couple was so established, it wasn't a twist to bring them apart, but no more...otherwise, I would spoil it...just read this book!
Thanks #Netgalley and #Waitlyn Andrews for the ARC.

This book was a 4.5 stars for me!

"Is he trying to make me fall in love with him? Because he's one more crepe and book adventure away from it, and he doesn't even know it."

Lately I've been reading more on the darker, spicier side so this book was a palate cleanser for me. (Insert smirk emoji here) This book was a slow burn, closed door romance which I usually find to be a bit boring but this one kept me interested with all of the food and Paris. Claire, the FMC, had some trauma that caused her to be insecure and quite judgey. I can completely understand that and though some of her reactions I was like really?! Get your head out of your butt! But, I also understood why she was the way she was. James on the other hand was a bit confusing in the beginning, which eventually gets explained, at first I thought that there was some past between them that Claire didn't remember by how he treated her. I enjoyed watching Claire grow as a person, and the way James let her, gave her space and support was comforting to watch as well.

Tropes/Content: F/M, single perspective, cheating in past, past car accident trauma, loss of a loved one talked about, he falls first, workplace romance, restaurant, Paris, forced proximity, cinnamon roll MMC

Thank you Waitlyn and NetGalley for this copy of Yes, Chef!