A dazzling new cookbook from the chef-owner of the famed Michael's restaurants, featuring eighty-five mouthwatering recipes. Michael McCarty has played a major role in defining a uniquely modern American attitude toward cooking, dining, and entertaining since 1979, when he opened his first acclaimed Michael's restaurant in Santa Monica, California.

McCarty's approach, now enjoyed on both coasts with the opening of Michael's New York in 1989, has always been refreshingly simple: start with the best ingredients, cook them in ways that highlight their natural qualities, pair them with complementary wines, and serve them in a relaxed yet stylish setting. The
result, in Michael's own words, should be a Great Party, which this book makes possible for any home cook.

Adding to the lively spirit of Welcome to Michael's are the voices of dozens of Luminaries from the worlds of entertainment, the arts, the media, business, politics, and cooking--Including Wolfgang Puck, Alice Waters, Jeremiah Tower, Tom Brokaw, Beverly Sills, Joan Rivers, Helen Gurley Brown, Ruth Reichl, and Jann Wenner--who share their own insightful, sometimes irreverent opinions about the Michael's experience. The result is a book to be savored on many levels: as a guide to cooking for yourself, your family, and your friends and to entertaining with style; as a primer on the rewarding relationship between food and wine; and as an experience that comes as close as words and pictures possibly can to enjoying a meal at one of Michael's restaurants, surrounded by the well-known people who dine there.

With clear and concise recipes for everything from Pan-Seared King Salmon with Blood Orange Vinaigrette to Michae l's famous Cobb Salad,
this beautifully produced cookbook will enable everyone to enjoy a bit of the Michael's magic.