Blood, Sweat & Asparagus Spears
Author: Andrew Turvil
ISBN: 9781783969111
Publisher: Elliott & Thompson
Year first published: 29 Dec 2025
Pages: 272 Format: Hardback
In 1990, Britain was mocked for its bland food and over-boiled veg but by 2000, the country was on its way to being one of the world’s most exciting culinary hotspots.
Former Good Food Guide editor Andrew Turvil was there, tasting Marco Pierre White’s three Michelin starred food, clocking Jamie Oliver’s first TV take, and fielding volcanic phone calls from irate chefs. In sparkling prose and a veritable feast of 1990s food, Blood, Sweat & Asparagus Spears charts the wild ride from the cigarette-fueled ‘SAS of kitchens’ to Hakkasan’s velvet-dark glamour via the £5 recession lunch and the arrival of conveyor-belt sushi.
What you’ll find inside:
• First-hand stories from Marco Pierre White, Paul Heathcote, Vineet Bhatia, Heston Blumenthal, and more.
• The 1990s trends that shaped today - coffee outlets rose 847% and monthly eating-out nearly tripled by 2015, while organic sales doubled.
• A tasting tour of 33 iconic dishes that still shape restaurant menus now, from Black Cod Miso to Triple-Cooked Chips.
• Insight into how the 1990s forged the careers of current headline chefs and set the template for Britain’s modern, multicultural food identity
Fast-paced, funny and meticulously researched, this is a love-letter to restaurants—and the people who bled to make them great. If you’ve ever yelled “Yes, chef!” at a TV, queued for ramen, or Instagrammed a marrow bone, this is your origin story. This is the ultimate feast of 90s nostalgia.
ISBN: 9781783969111
Publisher: Elliott & Thompson
Year first published: 29 Dec 2025
Pages: 272 Format: Hardback
In 1990, Britain was mocked for its bland food and over-boiled veg but by 2000, the country was on its way to being one of the world’s most exciting culinary hotspots.
Former Good Food Guide editor Andrew Turvil was there, tasting Marco Pierre White’s three Michelin starred food, clocking Jamie Oliver’s first TV take, and fielding volcanic phone calls from irate chefs. In sparkling prose and a veritable feast of 1990s food, Blood, Sweat & Asparagus Spears charts the wild ride from the cigarette-fueled ‘SAS of kitchens’ to Hakkasan’s velvet-dark glamour via the £5 recession lunch and the arrival of conveyor-belt sushi.
What you’ll find inside:
• First-hand stories from Marco Pierre White, Paul Heathcote, Vineet Bhatia, Heston Blumenthal, and more.
• The 1990s trends that shaped today - coffee outlets rose 847% and monthly eating-out nearly tripled by 2015, while organic sales doubled.
• A tasting tour of 33 iconic dishes that still shape restaurant menus now, from Black Cod Miso to Triple-Cooked Chips.
• Insight into how the 1990s forged the careers of current headline chefs and set the template for Britain’s modern, multicultural food identity
Fast-paced, funny and meticulously researched, this is a love-letter to restaurants—and the people who bled to make them great. If you’ve ever yelled “Yes, chef!” at a TV, queued for ramen, or Instagrammed a marrow bone, this is your origin story. This is the ultimate feast of 90s nostalgia.
