Eat a Peach: A Memoir

Besides mashing his gnarled thumbs into my pork buns when I visited his restaurant in 2004, Dave Chang has done nothing but make life my daily life more entertaining. Senor Chang has slowly become my favorite media personality over the course of the past decade. He is an extremely talented story teller. Unlike Anthony Bourdain, whom I think is only interesting to people who’ve never worked in a kitchen, Dave Chang’s insider knowledge of the daily functions of the restaurant business will be entertaining to anyone. His podcast is brilliant! I always wondered what types of people had time in their lives to listen to a podcast regularly and it turns out this person is me. It’s kind of like when you meet the right person you are going to marry and spend the rest of your life with…you know when you know. My only gripe with the Dave Chang Show Lodcast is the forced laughter by his lackeys at anything mildly funny the guys says. **note to podcast staff- Dave Chang is regularly extremely funny. You do not have to burst into hysterical laughter at the mildly funny stuff he says. It’s detrimental to the flow of the show. My only gripe with Eat A Peach Memoir is that he focuses too much on how he wants to kill himself and his depression. I applaud his efforts to raise awareness about mental illness, but it is too much of a focal point in this book. I do not think that anyone who doesn’t suffer from depression can truly understand it. I have someone in my life that suffers from depression and I constantly try to learn more about it, but I still do not understand it. Reading about depression is depressing and I think it may be slightly overstated in this book. I’d like to hear more stories about how his depression has caused him to totally destroy an innocent line cook during service than him itching about how he wants to kill himself. This would’ve delivered his message of ongoing depression in a more entertaining way. That being said, I gave this book 5 Stars because it is extremely entertaining, much like the person who wrote it.

I first came to know about David Chang when my niece took me to eat at his Momofuku Noodle Bar in NYC's East Village in the early 2000's. I thought of him only in terms of the spare look of the (tiny) restaurant and the delicious Asian-inspired food. Then I accidentally came across The Mind of a Chef on PBS. Chang was the featured chef in season one (and according to his memoir, was the originator of the series). I found him to be an original, innovative, wide-ranging, deep thinker and an excellent, engaging communicator and so have followed his career ever since. His memoir, Eat a Peach, is a chronicle of his life in food as a chef, restauranteur, tv star, podcaster, author, colleague/mentor, but even more so it is a set of brutally honest yet eloquent reflections on his struggle to continuously develop as a human being. Chang doesn't mention Socrates, but I'm sure he believes that the "unexamined life is not worth living." In Eat a Peach, we read that his bipolarism, difficult relationship with his father, and close friendship with Anthony Bourdain (who appeared to live with similar demons and ended his life by committing suicide) seem to drive Chang to question his considerable success with not a small degree of self-flagellation but, thankfully, with a great sense of humor and exceptional generosity towards young chefs as well. Written in a fast-paced conversational style (with the help of Gabe Ulla and Chris Ying), the book addresses the existential question of "Who am I?" Because Chang's life is a remarkable one, the book is a fascinating read.

If you like Dave Chang, which I do, you will like this book. If you don’t, you won’t. If you’re not familiar with him, I highly recommend Season 1 of Mind of a Chef, this book, and Ugly Delicious, specifically the fatherhood episode.

This book was just as incredible as I thought it would be! I’ve always fangirled a bit about Momofuku’s chef, but after reading his book, I see it was 100% justified. David Chang talks about everything you want to read about in a chef’s book - behind the scenes kitchen snafus, the history of all his restaurant openings, paying his dues in other kitchens, mental health struggles, hilarious footnotes (my jam 🙌🏼), and FOOD. So much glorious food. Our author really delves into the challenges of being an Asian chef. Are people mad he’s not making more upscale Korean food? Why doesn’t he fit the stereotype of “the smart Asian kid?” Do they think he’s being “too Asian?” From growing up feeling isolated from his peers to figuring out his take on his culture’s cuisine, he does not shy away from facing these race struggles head on. This book definitely has an irreverent Kitchen Confidential sort of vibe too. In fact, Chang mentions Bourdain several times in the book. I’ve started watching a few episodes of Chang’s show Ugly Delicious and I’m enjoying all the attention he pays to underdog foods that often don’t get much praise. What is it about chef books that simultaneously makes me want to drop everything and join a fancy fast-paced restaurant while also wanting to sprint away as fast as I can in the opposite direction? How does it make me want to splurge on a 5-course meal, but also exhaust me to the point of just wanting to eat a bowl of cereal? 🤷🏼‍♀️ If you love memoirs (yes), gorgeous covers (for sure), and food (duh) you must give this book a read.

Great book!

At first, David Chang's self-deprecating prose seemed like cliche humble bragging. As he wrote of his life and his intertwining journeys with his restaurant empire, mental wellness, race and gender, family, et. al., the writing morphed into sincerity - someone being real in real-time. Chapter 15, entitled "35", might be the best chapter ever written in a memoir. You don't need to be a foodie to read this. Chang shares lessons on leadership, management, parenting, and life in general through his own lens, processed, practiced, and reflected upon. Read this book.

Its an interesting insight into a talented man and his struggles

Great book

This is a very good read, well worth it

A must read book for any David Chang fan. It was a quick read that I couldn't put down. Pretty fast paced and very interesting. Also up to date with his most recent struggles (2020) which was interesting to read about.

This reads really well and great for all interested in food. Great personal stories, tips, things about opening a restaurant, about what is it to be a cook, life lessons along the lines, good humour.. Really enjoyable book.