Culinary personality and author coming to town

MANSFIELD – Culinary personality and author Simon Majumdar will be in town Monday for a public book reading and signing.

Majumdar, whose most recent book is “Fed, White and Blue: Finding America with My Fork,” will appear at 7 p.m. Monday at Ed Pickens’ Cafe on Main.

More information and the required event registration are available at MansfieldTourism.com.

“Richland County offers travelers uniquely American culinary experiences, and meeting Simon and hearing readings from his book are the perfect complement to the area’s memorable food offerings,” said Lee Tasseff, president of the Mansfield and Richland County Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Majumdar is a recurring judge on cooking shows such as “Iron Chef,” “The Next Iron Chef” and “Cutthroat Kitchen.” He also has written two other books.

With his latest book, Majumdar and his wife, Sybil, have hit the road for a tour that started in mid-March in New England.

Majumdar called the News Journal from just north of Cincinnati, heading to Columbus, on Friday morning.

“We’ve been so many places, I have to check with my wife each morning to ask where we’re going,” he said.

Although he’s on a book tour, Majumdar says he’s more interested in talking to people about food.

“It’s such a good way to get to know people,” he said. “I hope people will come out and share their food stories with us.”

Majumdar will stop Monday morning at the Pioneer Career & Technology Center. He said he likes to visit culinary schools or high schools that have culinary programs.

A native of the northern part of England, Majumdar moved to London to go to college and relocated to Los Angeles in 2010 when he got married.

Although he still sees too much fast food, Majumdar said he also has found some fantastic food in his travels across the country.

“If I had to pick one cuisine, I’m a real fan of barbecue,” he said. “People seem surprised at that. Barbecue speaks American history to me.”

Majumdar notes his tour is not a big event organized by public relations. It’s just him, his wife, a rental SUV and a U-haul truck filled with books and cooking equipment.

The last event of the tour is scheduled in September.

“We’re doing this as a real road trip,” Majumdar said. “It’s been an amazing journey, but we’ll need a vacation at the end of it.”

mcaudill@gannett.com

419-521-7219

Twitter: @MNJCaudill