If you like the smell of truffles, you also like sex. If, on the other hand, you think it reminds you of socks, then you're probably lousy in bed.' Star journalist and popular television anchor Vir Sanghvi wears many hats. By day he writes serious political columns, in the evenings he's at a studio interviewing a celebrity, and sometime in between he is both gourmet and gourmand. And when Sanghvi writes on food, he pulls no punches. Celebrating what is good and savagely attacking what is bad, he combines culinary history, travel and culture to rank among the best food writers of today. Inspired, erudite and wonderfully witty, Rude Food is a collection of Sanghvi's essays on food and drink.

From breakfast rituals to sinful desserts, airlines khana to what our favorites film stars love to eat, from chefs at five-star hotels to food critics, Vir Sanghvi has his finger on the pulse of what we put into our stomachs and why. If you want to know how tandoori chicken arrived in India, the Three Golden Rules of sandwich making or the three kinds of bad service you should absolutely not put up with, who eats out the most in Bombay and where you are most likely to find Prime Minister Vajpayee tucking into his favorites cuisine, then this is the book you must have.

Full of culinary secrets and gastronomic tips, Rude Food tells you the key to the perfect pizza, the easiest way to make risotto, what the nation's fast food of choice is, the truth about your cooking oil, and much much more. A feast of sparkling prose that entertains as it informs, this is a book to be read, consulted and savored.