“Anyone who thinks they're too grown up or too sophisticated to eat caramel corn, is not invited to my house for dinner”

“...in the end you are the only one who can make yourself happy. More important, ...it is never too late to find out how to do it.”

“Growing up, I was utterly oblivious to the fact that Mom was teaching me all that. But I was instantly aware of her final lesson, which was hidden in her notes and leters. As I read them I began to understand that in the end you are the only one who can make yourself happy. More important, Mom showed me that it is never too late to find out how to do it.”

“A thousand years ago the Chinese had an entirely codified kitchen while the French were still gnawing on bones. Chopsticks have been around since the fourth century B.C. Forks didn't show up in England until 1611, and even then they weren't meant for eating but just to hold the meat still while you hacked at it with your knife.”

“Pull up a chair. Take a taste. Come join us. Life is so endlessly delicious.”

“...I was not prepared for the feel of the noodles in my mouth, or the purity of the taste. I had been in Japan for almost a month, but I had never experiences anything like this. The noodles quivered as if they were alive, and leapt into my mouth where they vibrated as if playing inaudible music.”

“I had done this. I had pulled my life apart. I would never, ever be safe again.”