Main, Middle & Gay
A Chef Finds His Place in the World Against All Odds
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- Pre-Order
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- Expected Sep 15, 2026
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- $15.99
Publisher Description
“It is amazing to read the story of how he came to be the chef he is―a pioneer for the industry, a believer in rural America, a supporter of local economies, and a wizard creating pure magic.” ―Chef José Andrés
The chef and founder of the Michelin-starred restaurant The Inn at Little Washington gives us an inside look at the tumultuous joys and struggles that have brought him to his special place at the intersection of Main, Middle, and Gay.
World-renowned chef Patrick O’Connell has been recognized as a pioneer of American cuisine; his internationally acclaimed restaurant in the Virginia countryside, the Inn at Little Washington, is Michelin-starred and a Relais & Châteaux hotel. Named for the three historic streets in the little town where O’Connell’s life and career have taken root, Main, Middle & Gay chronicles O’Connell’s winding journey through the rough-and-tumble restaurant world.
Growing up gay in the 1950s and working as a paperboy and a cook at a hamburger joint, O’Connell found his place with other misfits in the addictive restaurant scene, where he learned to be nimble and grew up fast while working long hours and late nights with colorful characters. He lived free-spirited on farms with friends and traveled Europe, teaching himself to cook along the way. When he opened his restaurant in an old abandoned garage, he had no idea it would grow to the heights it has achieved today.
In his first-ever memoir, O’Connell shows us the evolution that has led the Inn at Little Washington to become a global destination for foodies and travelers alike.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
This delectable debut memoir from chef O'Connell charts his path to establishing the acclaimed Inn at Little Washington restaurant in Virginia. He chronicles his struggles growing up gay in 1940s and '50s Maryland, and the refuge he found in his first job at a hamburger joint, where he discovered his love of the industry ("A restaurant has a mystical way of bringing unlikely characters together. Much like a theatre troupe, it connects them with the daily challenge of putting on the show"). As a young adult, O'Connell traveled to Paris, discovered its culinary treasures, and returned to work on a farm in Virginia, where he found his niche catering parties. In 1978, O'Connell and his partner, Ryan, decided to open a restaurant, converting an abandoned garage at the intersection of Main, Middle, and Gay streets in Little Washington, Va., to the Inn at Little Washington. By the 1980s, awards started rolling in; in 2019, O'Connell received the James Beard Foundation's Lifetime Achievement Award. (His relationship with Ryan, however, soured, ending in an ugly divorce.) O'Connell sensuously describes favorite meals and key events early in his career, offering readers a bounty of memories worth feasting on. Photos.
