The purpose of the organization is to "protect the pleasures of the table from the homogenization of modern fast food and life," and we cannot agree more. However, in its fight against fast food Slow Food looks like Ghandi, as opposed to the I'm-gonna-tear-down-a-Mickey-D-with-my-tractor approach of Jose Bove: promoting education and awareness programs, participating with local, sustainable producers, and publishing books, of course. The guide is a good idea, but to be honest, it confused us a bit. First, it lacks an introduction as to what Slow Food is. There is a charter printed inside the cover, and a little introductory essay, but there is no explanation as to what makes a place a Slow place. The guide is basically a list of restaurants, shops and markets, with a little paragraph for each written by an array of 80 contributors. How those places were selected, what criteria were used, we don't really know. We won't really complain, as most of the places in the guide deserve to be highlighted.

Free Chocolate after the Break