The Art of Living According to Joe Beef

Morin and McMillan are the chefs and co-owners of Joe Beef, a modern French restaurant in Montreal. Erickson is a freelance writer and former Joe Beef waitress. They combine forces to create a savvy page-turner full of meats, oysters, attitude and irreverence. There are a few American dishes to be found among the 125 recipes, such as New England clam chowder, but mostly there are riffs on classical French cuisine. Foie gras parfait with Madeira jelly blends duck liver with cream, and wine with maple syrup. Blanquette de veau aux chicons is a rich veal stew that also goes heavy on the cream. Other dishes show up mostly to amuse. Mackerel Benedict is a whole smoked fish plated atop an English muffin, topped with hollandaise and eggs. "This isn't much of a recipe," say the authors. "It's more an idea." Similarly, hot oysters on a radio are literally that, but if lacking a radio, allowable substitutes are "bags of sugar, erotic novels, or old album covers." In addition to all the foodstuffs, there are sections on pretty much whatever was felt worthwhile. These include instructions on how to build a smoker, a lengthy section on train rides, and a "brief history of eating in Montreal." (Oct.)