"The shared meal elevates eating from a mechanical process of fueling the body to a ritual of family and community, from the mere animal biology to an act of culture."

"You can’t just eat good food. You’ve got to talk about it too. And you’ve got to talk about it to somebody who understands that kind of food."

"Smile a lot, talk to strangers, accept all invitations and eat everything you’ve been offered."

"If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world."

"Dining with one’s friends and beloved family is certainly one of life’s primal and most innocent delights, one that is both soul-satisfying and eternal"

"One of the delights of life is eating with friends, second to that is talking about eating. And, for an unsurpassed double whammy, there is talking about eating while you are eating with friends."

"A recipe has no soul. You, as the cook, must bring soul to the recipe."