Six California Kitchens by Sally Schmitt (Photo – Chronicle Books)
Food enthusiasts and home cooks alike are invited to gather this Wednesday at 7:00 p.m as The Arboretum’s ongoing “Reading the Western Landscape” Book Group turns its focus to the culinary world. This month’s selection, Six California Kitchens, is a memoir and cookbook by pioneering chef Sally Schmitt, the original founder of The French Laundry.
By Melanie Hooks
The discussion will take place at the Los Angeles Arboretum Library. Attendees are encouraged to RSVP by emailing Susan.Eubank@Arboretum.org for confirmation and any location updates. Organizers note that guests are welcome to attend and listen even if they have not read the book, provided they indicate this in their RSVP.
Published in 2022 by Chronicle Books, Six California Kitchens was written by Schmitt as told to Bruce Smith, with photography by Troyce Hoffman. The book earned both a 2023 IACP Cookbook Award and the Golden Poppy Book Award in the Glenn Goldman Cooking category.
Schmitt opened The French Laundry in Yountville in 1978, building her menus around local, seasonal ingredients, a then-novel approach that helped lay the groundwork for the farm-to-table movement in Northern California. In Six California Kitchens, she reflects on the six kitchens that shaped her life and career, weaving personal history with 115 recipes that embody the ethos of regional, seasonal cooking.
Written, photographed, and designed by members of Schmitt’s family, the volume is both a personal tribute and a culinary archive. For home cooks, food historians, and wine country devotees, the book captures the spirit of Northern California’s food revolution—one plate at a time.
Arboretum Book Group: "Six California Kitchens" by Sally Schmitt and Bruce Smith Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2026 7:00 pm - 8:00 pm Location LA Arboretum Library 301 N. Baldwin Ave. Arcadia, CA 91007
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