OP: Loaves and Fishes Cookbook (first printing)

Macmillan Publishing Company, 1985. Hardcover. Very Good. First printing.

A great contribution to the satisfying international hash we call "American cuisine" was the emergence in the late 1970s and 1980s of shops, restaurants, and brands that offered quality without pretense—stuff you could feed on in perfect comfort. The epic leader in this trend was that miniature juggernaut known as the Silver Palate. And another, which gave rise to the book we offer here, was a “gourmet” shop in East Hampton, New York, known as Loaves and Fishes. 

Helmed since the early 1980s by an energetic German-born cook named Anna Pump (1934–2015) it fed—and indeed continues to do so—an affluent clientele, who craved food they could sit back and enjoy after a hard day at the beach. Quality dishes, with occasional special touches, but mostly just nice. 

There are fresh peas with dill; clams and sausages in parsley sauce; crushed wheat with vegetables and mint; raspberry tea bread; apricot mousse. To be sure, there are international influences—couscous with almonds, a paella salad, cold sesame noodles—but all with characteristic unstuffiness and sometimes with sparks of luxury—potato salad with lobster—though utterly lacking in pretense.

An attractive book sporting decorative illustrations, it is filled with appealing headnotes, sidebars, and little essays, some of a pleasant personal nature. It has had a great following, far beyond the New York area, and although a paperback remains in print more than 35 years after its publication, the original hardcover is frequently requested. This copy we offer is a first printing in Very Good condition, including the jacket.