By Jim McGrody 2011 iUniverse, Bloomington, IN, 149 pp., $24.95

Now here's a book written about healthcare foodservice by a real director and chef who works in the segment. No academician with divorced-from-the-real-world theories here for actual directors to snicker at.

Granted, McGrody is writing for a general audience as well as his peers, so some of what he says is familiar and unremarkable to insiders. But he leavens that with his informal style and good humor (yet another difference from many “theorist” books).

McGrody traces his experiences in the foodservice world of the Army (he enlisted after high school) and his subsequent career in college, hotel, B&I and, finally, healthcare foodservice, both with contractors and self ops. It's a very diverse resume.

Perhaps the most interesting chapter for onsite foodservice professionals is the one where he discusses some of the questions hospitals should ask before engaging outsourced dining management (he's not against it, necessarily). It's a rather fair and balanced exploration.