Bookshelf

A Critical Look at the Frankies’ Cookbook Cover

Photo: courtesy Artisan Books

Eschewing conventional covers the same way their restaurants eschew conventional notions of what constitutes Italian food (pretzel dumplings!), the Frankies have gone Gothic for their first cookbook release. The Frankies Spuntino Kitchen Companion & Cooking Manual bypasses glossy head shots and drippy food porn and goes straight for gold-embossed black, complete with heraldic crest. There’s a dog, and a castle. Also a crescent. And a star. There are, however, no beards. But this is everything most cookbook covers are not, and everything we now want most cookbook covers to be. You can discreetly rub it against your cheek on June 14, when the book lands in stores.

A Critical Look at the Frankies’ Cookbook Cover