Book Review: Yes, Chef by Grace Reilly

Official Synopsis: After a public meltdown in the dining room of one of Manhattan’s most elite restaurants, Chef Jack Hartman is back in his South Florida hometown. Angry, grieving, and saddled with the unwanted storefront his late mentor left him, his life is spinning out of control. And that’s before Poppy Winfield, the blond, bubbly, utterly infuriating daughter of his former boss, shows up at his dock.

Poppy needs to escape. From her disapproving family, her horrible ex-boyfriend, and her reputation as someone who has never taken anything seriously. But more than that, she wants to prove herself—and she has just the plan to do it. Unfortunately, that plan involves Jack Hartman, the most arrogant, prickly, intimidating man she’s ever had the pleasure of throwing a shrimp at.

She knows Jack is desperate to come back from his unceremonious firing, so she proposes a deal: working together to open a revamped version of his mentor’s restaurant. He’ll handle the menu, and she’ll use her skill as a social media influencer to sell the hell out of its grand opening. If she and Jack can make the restaurant a success, it’ll be an accomplishment no one can deny—and a ticket for them both to return to New York.

Jack is intrigued, but only on his terms: if Poppy’s going to work for him, she must learn the ropes of the entire business. Including how to cook. From him.

As sparks fly both in and out of the kitchen and tensions reach a boiling point, Poppy and Jack are left wondering--could they be a perfect pairing? Or is this whole experiment a recipe for disaster?

Poppy is a member of an influential culinary family, her father owns a bunch of restaurants, her mom is a food blogger and her older sister works for their company. Poppy doesn't feel like she fits in, having struggled through school and always seeming to find herself in weird situations, instead she works as an influencer, sharing things on her socials and posing in ways to sell products. It might not be her life's dream, but its at least something she is good at. When she is, very, publicly broken up with in one of her dad's restaurants, it goes viral. Especially since the head chef, and annoying, Jack Hartman was working and approaching a food critic harshly at the same time.

The two of them have always butt heads, finding themselves in ridiculous scenarios any time they seem to start bickering, including ruining something at her sister's wedding. Poppy can't stand how rude Jack is, and Jack can't stand that Poppy doesn't seem to know her own privilege, yet both of them never talk about the things they have in common. Jack ends up leaving NYC after being let go by Poppy's dad, going back to his hometown in Florida, a place he never thought he'd go back to. His mentor left him his old restaurant in his will, and now Jack had no choice but to face what was left for him. Jack's plan was simply, go back and get the restaurant going, then sell it and give the money to his mentor's daughter, Kiara, who is a vet and basically his sister.

But somehow Poppy has ended up in his small town too, looking for an escape and way to prove to her parents that she can handle being a 'full adult'. Now they are teaming up to bring the restaurant to life, Jack working on the menu and Poppy working on the socials and helping with decor. As they start to talk more, they start to realize that maybe they do have a lot in common, even with their vastly different childhoods, but both of them know this ends with them trying to go back to NYC, and hopefully never having to deal with each other again. But they both start to feel more than frustration with each other, sharing small looks and heated moments that have them adding a whole new 'deal' to their plan. Hooking up with someone who is just going to leave should be easy...right?

I have never read at Grace Reilly book before and I really do want to go back and read more after this one. I found this book really entertaining, even in its more 'dark/serious' [5];moments. Poppy and Jack work well together, both of them working through their struggles with ADHD and but being able to find common ground that isn't just in the bedroom. I think there were times where their communication wasn't great, but it worked well in the story overall. I also really liked how they came to trust each other and understand each other throughout their time together. Plus, there is a very funny cat in the story and we do love when there is a cat.

Overall, I really liked the writing and overall plot of this book. Jack and Poppy are both entertaining characters and specially Jack had a background and history he had to work through that I found interesting. I also really enjoyed the connecting certain foods to memories and Poppy's journey to figuring out how she fits within her whole family.

I rated this book 3.5 out of 5 stars!

Yes, Chef comes out July 21,2026!

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