I've been officially brainwashed.

I read food blogs and try to keep my finger on the pulse of things food-related. This book has been mentioned on several sites and why not? Thomas Keller's French Laundry is incredibly well-known, as is Per Se, his New York City restaurant. So any book that reveals intimate details about Per Se was bound to be a seller.

I recently got Service Included as a birthday present from my sister--it had been sitting on my Amazon Wish List for at least six months, so I was completely pleased when I unwrapped it.

I put it aside for a few days, because I knew that reading it would be like setting a plate of fine chocolates in front of me--I wouldn't stop until the book was done. It turned out to be a great thing, because I had an unexpected plane trip to take and it was the perfect book for ignoring obnoxious travelers. There was no feigned interest in my book to avoid staring openly at other people (this tends to be a bad habit of mine--don't ask me why, but people fascinate me to the point of stupor), especially when my mom was running late to pick me up and I had to wait outside, puddles of luggage around me, while people ran off in a million directions, curious about the poor girl waiting on the steps.

The premise is simple--Phoebe was a server, then captain, at Thomas Keller's Per Se when it opened, prompted to apply because she needed work and loved the French Laundry. I wasn't that into her relationship with Andre the sommelier--yay for the happy ending and all that, but I wanted to know about the restaurant, so I absorbed those details with much more hunger. I mean, no one is lucky in love, there's always weird things that happen in relationships--yada, yada, I can read chick-lit any day.

But the details about service were incredibly hypnotic. The stories about where the food came from were charming. The pure luxury of dining at Per Se was broken down--but not to the point where you ended up not wanting to eat there. In fact, it had the opposite effect--I now want to dine at Per Se before I die, or it closes, whichever comes first. It helps that Phoebe had no beef with her job, that she loved it, that she communicated that their pretty words on their website (Per Se) were not just lip service, but the truth.

For a foodie, a waiter, a restaurateur, a gossip-lover, Service Included is that first make-out session with an aching crush you've harbored for ages: that first touch that doesn't lead to sex, that caress that makes you desire more, the foreplay to the best lovemaking in the world, both because you have longed for it and because that lover is just that good. She has made me ache for a taste of Keller's creations and now I dream of Oysters and Pearls, salmon cones and truffles.

Looks like I'll be saving some major cash to drop in Keller's hands, because I am convinced.