An Economist Gets Lunch - by Tyler Cowen (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

A leading economist, "who may very well turn out to be this decade's Thomas Friedman" (Wall Street Journal), illuminates the state of American food today.

Tyler Cowen, one of the most influential economists of the last decade, wants you to know that just about everything you've heard about how to get good food is wrong. Drawing on a provocative range of examples from around the globe, Cowen reveals why airplane food is bad, but airport food is improving, why restaurants full of happy, attractive people usually serve mediocre meals, and why American food has improved as Americans drink more wine. At a time when obesity is on the rise and forty-four million Americans receive food stamps, An Economist Gets Lunch will revolutionize the way we eat today--and show us how we're going to feed the world tomorrow.

Review Quotes

"A perfect marriage of economics and food. Tyler Cowen is my newest guilty pleasure."
--Rocco DiSpirito, author of the #1 New York Times bestselling Now Eat This!

"Tyler Cowen's latest book is a real treat, probably my favorite thing he's ever written. It does a fantastic job exploring the economics, culture, esthetics, and realities of food, and delivers a mountain of compelling facts. Most of all it's encouraging--not a screed, despite its occasionally serious arguments--and brings the fun back to eating. Delicious!"
--Stephen J. Dubner, author of Freakonomics and SuperFreakonomics

"A gastronomic, economic and philosophical feast from one of the world's most creative economists. Tyler Cowen offers the thinking person's guide to American food culture, and your relationship with food will be hugely enriched by the result."
--Tim Hartford, author of The Undercover Economist and Adapt.

"A fun and informative book that environmentalists, economists, and (most of all) foodies will enjoy."
--Library Journal

"Cowen writes like your favorite wised-up food maven...a breezy, conversational style; the result is mouth-watering food for thought."
--Publishers Weekly, starred review

"Economist reveals how to find great food."
--Seattle Weekly

"Tips on eating food that's better for you, your wallet, and the environment."
--Fast Company

"Tyler Cowen explains with great authority why good food doesn't have to be expensive and why expensive food isn't inevitably good. Cowen makes an argument for affordable food that results in both economic and sensory benefits. He espouses a fascinating new discipline I couldn't help but think of as 'Foodienomics.'"
--Barb Stuckey, author of Taste What You're Missing

"An Economist Gets Lunch is a mind-bending book for non-economists."
--USA Today

About the Author

Tyler Cowen is a professor of economics at George Mason University. He is a prominent blogger at marginalrevolution.com, the world's leading economics blog. He also writes regularly for The New York Times, and has written for Forbes, The Wall Street Journal, Newsweek, The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times, and The Wilson Quarterly.