This is a great cookbook of recipes from throughout Mediterranean regions. It wasn’t a great fit for me personally for several reasons. Firstly, there are not a lot of photos. Secondly, no nutritional information is provided. Thirdly, I like to cook frugally with lots of local and foraged ingredients. These recipes use ingredients as far from my rural Minnesota home as you can get so they are neither frugal nor local for me. Fourthly, the author is a gourmet chef and restaurateur and while I’m sure the dishes are delicious, they are generally more work than I feel like going to on a normal evening. Lastly, I had a hard time reading about the author’s life of extreme privilege or relating to him. He talks a lot about growing up vacationing with his family in the south of France, taking wine sampling vacations, island hopping in Greece and so on. He travels the world and that is great for him but all of the talk of it felt a little offputting to me. That’s not to say people won’t love this book. I’m just not the target audience.

I read a temporary digital copy of this book for review.

Mediterranean cuisine is having a much deserved moment! And I could not be happier.


Ben Tish has gathered stories, recipes and gorgeous photos, in one place for all of us. The recipes aren’t crazy, they are quite achievable for the home cook.
I tried a few and they are delicious. Which ones were my favorite?
Lebanese seven spice falafel, pork belly gyros, and lentils with pumpkin.


All were very simple but delicious. Lovely book.


Bloomsbury August 13, 2024

‘Mediterra’ cookbook by Ben Tosh, is an absolute bounty of information, both through prose and recipes, that beautifully captures the essence of Mediterranean cuisine.

I felt like each dish is a delightful surprise, offering a fresh perspective on Mediterranean ingredients. ‘
It was clear very quickly that Mediterra is not just a cookbook; it’s an invitation to explore and savor Mediterranean cooking.
I absolutely loved it!

Thankyou to author Ben Tish, Bloomsbury Publishing, and NetGalley for allowing me to see this treat of a cookbook!
Charlene 📚🌸🤗 @lastnownext

In my opinion, cookbooks should include photographs for all recipes. The photographs that are included are colourful and enticing, but there are a quite a few recipes where there are no photographs at all. Most people, myself included, will choose to cook a recipe based on what the dish looks like first. If I were to purchase this cookbook, I probably would not attempt the recipes without first knowing what they are supposed to look like. As well, the author goes on at length about his travels around the Mediterranean, different places, and different methods of cooking such as wood-burning ovens. It would have been nice for some photos of this to be included as well.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bloomsbury for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Achievable recipes with mouth-watering photographs. A great addition to your mediterranean cookbook shelf.

Thank you to the Publisher and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.