13 Best Fiction Food Books, Ranked

A cold iced coffee dripping with condensation, your legs stretched out on a lounge chair, the sun beating down on you, and a good book in hand — we can't think of a more perfect situation. There truly is nothing like devouring a good book. And if you're anything like us, you probably prefer reading about things you enjoy. Yes, everyone loves dipping their toes in unfamiliar waters and learning about things they know nothing of, but it is just as fun to read a book about the thing you're passionate about. If you're a dancer, a fiction book centered around ballet will be a delight. And if you're a home baker, professional chef, coffee shop enthusiast, or some iteration of a foodie, reading books about food and drinks is extra delicious.

With that in mind, we've come up with a list of the best fiction food books, because who wants to read cookbooks all the time? Sometimes you want to step into a world that's not your own and see what it would be like to be a bartender in Brooklyn, a pastry chef, or even work in a gourmet ice cream truck. Those are all plot points of the fiction books we've gathered, and we're tickled pink to present you with our list, ranked based on how universally appealing the books are as well as how central food/drinks are to the plot.

No, we didn't put this one in second-to-last place because of the title — we do actually have standards and reasoning behind the rankings. This sequel to a book called "My Italian Bulldozer" (what a name, right?) is about a cookbook author who finds himself in the French countryside when working on his next project. The author of "The Second-Worst Restaurant in France," Alexander McCall Smith, is well-regarded in the book world, and his writing is solid. But one of the reasons we ranked this where we did is because we think this read doesn't pull you in as much as some of the others. It's an enjoyable one if you're already in a good place with reading, but we wouldn't exactly recommend it to you to get out of a slump.

Even so, the plot is fun, the characters are vibrant, and the food elements are certainly there. If you've ever wondered what it takes to be a cookbook author, we think this book gives you a fun peek into what that's like. And if you already happen to be a cookbook author yourself, that'll only make this book all the more enjoyable.

Reading about someone whose dream failed doesn't exactly sound like a fun time, but we promise you this book is nothing short of a wild ride. There are quite a variety of fiction books in this ranking about a wide range of food and drink topics, but funnily enough, this is the only one where the main character is a chef who opens up their own restaurant. Well, that's not exactly the plot, as that restaurant subsequently doesn't work out, and Lumi (the main character) is forced to take a job as a chef at someone else's eatery. That's a tough blow.

We enjoy this book for its tenacious wit and the different types of tension going on. You have tension between Lumi and her past, tension in her career, and, of course, the tension between Lumi and her boss, Julien. If you're a foodie, you'll enjoy this book for its culinary anecdotes and misadventures, but also the nods to life in NYC and what it's like when your dream doesn't exactly pan out. It's a great read, but it just wasn't our favorite on this list.

A summer job. Haven't we all had one growing up at some point? For most people, you probably worked as a waitress at a local restaurant or maybe a lifeguard at the beach. But Birdy, the main character in "The Summer Job," landed herself the odd gig of working as a wine expert in a Scottish hotel. Except, well, she didn't get the job — she technically stole it from her friend who does actually know the difference between chardonnay and Champagne.

A genuinely funny book about not only not knowing what you're talking about (not only in the expert wine world, but in general), author Lizzy Dent takes you on a ride of reds, whites, and everything in between. We think it's a crime to read this book in any other season than summer, and if you're a wine person (or perhaps are a wannabe wine snob), you'll get a kick out of this one. But, we know wine isn't everyone's forte, so that's why it lands in the middle of our list. Even so, a fun read about unexpected summer plans and drinking rosé is fun for everyone, so give it a try.

Have you ever walked down a street and seen two similar restaurants right across the street from each other? How do people decide which one to eat at? Questions like those were the premise for "A Phở Love Story" by author Loan Le, and the answers led to quite a fun coming-of-age novel. This book is about (you guessed it) two rival Vietnamese restaurants located directly across the street from each other. The family's rivalry dates back a while, and the two main characters, Bao and Linh, had been taught to despise the other's family in the rivalry.

What makes this book fun is not the Romeo and Juliet-esque vibes of the story, but rather the exploration of how food and family are connected. Yes, the banter is amazing and the side characters have plots that are just as interesting, but what we enjoyed about this read was the authenticity of it. The characters felt real, as did the food. So curl up with a warm bowl of phở or a plate of bánh cam and devour this Young Adult novel.

Though fiction food and drink books are a burgeoning genre, we'd like to submit a new sub-genre to be created based on our love for this book alone: Fantasy books about food and drinks. When you typically think of fantasy books, we're sure you picture something like "The Lord of the Rings" where everyone is fighting battles and going on epic journeys with names of characters you can barely pronounce. In "Legends & Lattes" by Travis Baldree, all that action has already happened. The main character is done with her battles and hangs up her sword (no, literally, she hangs it up).

This book is about a character opening a coffee shop in a town where no one has heard of coffee — which, off the bat, is absolutely a fantastical element. But what makes this "high fantasy, low stakes" cozy fantasy sing is watching the lead, Viv, through her journey to open up her coffee shop. It's all she wants, and therefore it's all that you as a reader want. "Legends & Lattes" is ideal for when you want to feel like you know the characters, and if you don't read this in a coffee shop, that's genuinely a crime. If you love coffee, or if you just want a comforting (but still engaging) read, this is the book for you. The only reason it isn't ranked higher is because we know not everyone wants to read a fantasy.

We've always been suckers for a book centered around a reality show, and "Love & Other Disasters" hits all the marks we're looking for in the trope. It's hilarious, heartfelt, and incredibly witty, and the fact that the reality show is about a cooking competition just brings all those elements together like a perfectly-cooked fish taco (that's a joke about the book if you've read it before).

Not only is this a delightful look behind-the-scenes of what it means to be in a cooking competition television series, but it's a book that celebrates what cooking is all about — bringing people together. The two main characters switch perspectives throughout the book, so you get to see two points of view. Is there also a delightful love story in here? Yes. But even if you're not on the look for a romance book, we think the universal themes in "Love & Other Disasters" will capture your heart and make you hungry for what they're cooking up on the show called "Chef's Special."