'Commonplace books are rarely compiled by commonplace people ... this book plucks gastronomical crumbs from off and from under the tables of the great, sub-great, superficial wits and thinkers of History' to form a collection of proverbs, anecdotes, opinions and obscure facts on food, drink, cooks, cooking, dining, diners and dieters, dating from ancient times to the present; a facsimile of the limited edition produced by the Arion Press in 1975, designed by Andrew Hoyem, preface by M.F.K. Fisher. 'The poor seek food, the rich seek an appetite'. Hindi proverb.
