Nothing Matters But Delicious: A Radically Honest Cookbook

Learn how to make restaurant-quality dishes at home with this accessible, achievable, and delicious collection of 75 recipes from the award-winning chef and owner of Olmsted, Patti Ann's, and Five Acres.

"Trust Greg's ability to guide you through these dishes, and you'll quickly become the dinner-party hero among your friends and family."--Grant Achatz, chef and restaurateur

Much of the fancy technique you see at restaurants doesn't really matter. You can get the nearly same effect with infinitely less work, and it's more fun and you might actually do it. Many of tropes of fine dining cookbook recipes--the hyperspecificity, the rigidity of the recipes--they don't matter either. Nothing Matters . . . but Delicious.

In this cookbook-like-no-other, award-winning chef and restaurateur Greg Baxtrom invites you into his energetic kitchen, sharing his honest and encouraging methodologies for exquisite dishes. Nothing Matters . . . but Delicious gives home cooks of all abilities the confidence and techniques to never quit on their culinary journey.

Filled with sidebars containing helpful tips and lessons, like how to recover from cooking mistakes, and photographs and infographics to assist you every step of the way, readers will delight in this guide to culinary perfection. Recipes flow from easy to complex, with beginner recipes like Simple Ribeye with Roasted Root Vegetables and Easy Peasy Mac & Cheesy to the more complicated Bouillabaisse and Indoor S'more.

With a slew of broken-down tips and easy-to-digest guidance, Nothing Matters . . . but Delicious has something for everyone.

Author: Greg Baxtrom
Publisher: Ten Speed Press
Published: 05/26/2026
Pages: 224
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 1.85lbs
Size: 9.22h x 7.49w x 0.80d
ISBN: 9781984863560


Review Citation(s):
Publishers Weekly 04/20/2026
Library Journal 05/01/2026 pg. 60

About the Author
Greg Baxtrom is the chef-owner of the acclaimed restaurants Olmsted, Patti Ann's Family Restaurant and Bakery, and Five Acres. Prior to opening Olmsted, Greg worked in some of the world's most exciting kitchens, including Alinea, Blue Hill at Stone Barns, Per Se, and Lysverket in Norway. Olmsted showcases a seasonal and creative vegetable-forward menu that highlights produce from the lush backyard garden, as well as local farmers and purveyors. The restaurant was named one of Esquire's Best New Restaurants in America; Bon Appetit's 50 Best New Restaurants in America; Food & Wine's Restaurant of the Year; The New York Times' 10 Best Restaurants; among others.

Joshua David Stein is an editor, author, and journalist. He is the co-author of numerous books including My America: Restaurants from a Young Black Chef; Notes from a Young Black Chef; The Nom Wah Cookbook; Vino: The Essential Guide to Real Italian Wine; and Il Buco: Stories & Recipes as well as many children's books about food. He is the author of the cookbooks Cooking for Your Kids and Stranger Things: The Official Cookbook, the editor of a collection of essays called To Me He Was Just Dad: Growing up with Famous Fathers, and previously the editor-at-large at Fatherly. He regularly contributes to Esquire, Men's Health, New York, Eater, Grub Street, and more. Stein lives in Brooklyn, New York, with his two sons, Achilles and Augustus.