What Is Queer Food weaves the constellations of possibility underlying our cuisines in Birdsall's gorgeous, ebullient prose. Warm and generous, precise and exacting, this book is one of a kind, tied together by Birdsall's knowingness and generosity. An absolutely gorgeous work.--Bryan Washington, author of Family Meal

A staggering, sweeping work full of wit and bite. What Is Queer Food defies category: It's a history and a philosophical argument, a chain of interconnected stories told in Birdsall's unmistakable voice, sexy and joyous and angry and thrumming with life. It casts a bright light on an essential, under-recognized dimension of American gastronomic history.--Helen Rosner

John Birdsall masterfully unveils the hidden stories of influential figures who have shaped American cuisine--individuals whose queer identities often remain unrecognized. With compassion and insight, he brings their journeys to life, celebrating their strengths while thoughtfully examining their complexities and humanity.--Nik Sharma, author of The Flavor Equation and Veg-Table

Poetically tracing the fascinating, elusive history of queer people and food, John Birdsall, author and former chef, serves us a scrumptious buffet of queer bakers, chefs, cookbook writers, eaters, foods, food parties, food writers, restaurant owners, and reviewers, and the waitpeople who carry it to us--in a nutshell, everything and everyone from soup to nuts. A feast to remember!--Jonathan Ned Katz, author of The Daring Life and Dangerous Times of Eve Adams

An important decree of queer visibility in food history, excavating and restoring a narrative long buried and obstructed. What Is Queer Food? is also wildly entertaining. John Birdsall continues to establish himself as one of my most anticipated writers.--Lisa Donovan, author of Our Lady of Perpetual Hunger

Delectable, delightful, delovely! Birdsall's genius has given us a queer chronicle, full of both famous names and untold stories, revealing the subversive secret life of food in America. And done with all the charm and wit of M. F. K. Fisher--a seemingly effortless feast of the senses.--Andrew Sean Greer, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Less and Less Is Lost

Combining a novelistic imagination with razor-sharp analysis, Birdsall fills in historical gaps to highlight the resiliency of queer people and the cast the culture of food and dining as an unlikely but powerful symbol of resistance. Readers will be eager to dig in.-- "Publishers Weekly (starred review)"

Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company

Pub date: 2025-06-03

Length: 304 pages