The variety of recipes is fascinating, and the diet phase they correspond to in the original diet (which you can easily comprehend from this book alone) is clearly marked.

Mind you, this is not a "low carb" book. It is about lowering "bad" carbs while allowing "good" carbs. The South Beach idea veers around keeping the Glycemic Index low and Agatston does a pretty good job of explaining the nutritional logic for doing so.

The recipes that I have tried so far are quite good in terms of taste. The best thing for me is that none of the recipes includes any fancy condiments that you'd only find in some super-elite department stores on the other side of town. Very handy for a health-conscious bachelor.

Give it a try. Healthy *and* tasty recipes can't be a bad investment anyway!


Pretty Pictures   April 15, 2004
 167 out of 173 found this review helpful

Okay, having read the basic bible to the South Beach Diet (ISBN: 1579546463), which I would recommend to you if you are interested in this cookbook, I wanted to try some of the meals Agatston referred to in his book.

The author divides the cookbook into the following sections: breakfast, snacks, soups, salads, side dishes, fish and poultry, meats, vegetarian, and desserts. Each section has approximately 20 recipes, that appear easy enough to prepare and follow the 40% protein, 30% carb, and 30% fat you would expect on a diet plan like this. Also, most of the recipes included carb counts, protein grams, etc. I noticed in the dessert section (my personal favorite of any cookbook) that the recipes employ yogurt, almonds, and fresh fruit extensively. Some sugar substitutes were noted, but not a lot.

The author also dedicates 8 pages of the book to summarizing the diet plan, a long chapter on shopping in accordance with the diet plan, and 5 pages of question and answer type stuff that addresses general questions relevant to the diet. Color photos were available for about 50% of the recipes, which is why I titled this review "Pretty Pictures." I would recommend this book to any reader who enjoyed and plans to use the SouthBeach Diet.


Another Cookbook Suggestion   July 13, 2004
 68 out of 69 found this review helpful

I really like South Beach by design. I have lost 40 pounds and love the fact it is a "healthy" low-carb alternative. It was great to see them (though not a suprise considering book sales) to come out with the cookbook. Overall the recipes I have made were good BUT

1) They use a lot of ingredients I don't - aspaagus for breakfast, expensive seafood like seabass, sole and lobster and interesting but umcommon vegetables like choyote squash and fava beans
2) They take a long time to make - and I am an accomplished cook
3) The desserts are too limited and so-so

The point is they worked hard to make pretty, chef like food so you feel you can eat well, but forgot how many of us love the basics - easy to follow recipes with easy to find ingredients for "regular" food.

I highly suggest Fantastic Food with Splenda - 160 Recipes Low in Sugar, Carbs, Fat and Calories. It is compatible with SB and I love the Chai Tea, the Breakfast Cheesecake Cups (high in protein), the Three Bean and Spinach Salads, Sweet and Sour Chicken and Barbequed Pork Tenderloin. Better yet the Frozen Peach Yogurt and Key Lime Pie will truly make you forget you are on a diet. I have suggested it to many friends and they are also hooked. Delicious everyday recipes that are healthy - that's dieting made easy.


What were they thinking?   August 16, 2004
 65 out of 72 found this review helpful

I think in general that this diet is something needed in this fat country of ours, and I fully support the basic principles of it. HOWEVER, I find this cookbook overly complex, and I am an accomplished cook. The recipes are complicated, require too many 'special' items, seem exotic just for the sake of making you feel like you are really doing something special, and don't taste all that great. In EVERY SINGLE recipe I have tried so far, the instructions are either incomplete, contradictory to themselves, or obviously wrong, and the ingredient list is inconsistent with the instructions. It is as if the book was written in a hurry, and no one tested them, much less proof read them for accuracy or completeness. If you othink you can hold a day job and follow these recipes you are fooling yourself. I have been getting up an hour early to prepare for the day, and I end up in the kitchen, after work, twice as long as I normally am to create these monstrous masterpieces of odd tasting entrees. Since we have moved on to phase 2, I have reverted to the Body For Life cookbook, whichi s by FAR easier to read, create, and much tastier. I would HIGHLY recommend it- it follows the basic principles of the SB diet, but it is SO much better; better thought out, better (fewer) ingredients, better tasting, and easier on those of us who don't have live in cooks. Unfortunately, like the SB Diet, the desserts are completely disgusting, but I think there is not much you can do when you cut that much out of your diet. I still advocate REAL dessert- just don't eat so much of it.


The cookbook that passed our road test!   September 19, 2004
 51 out of 51 found this review helpful

We've now had over 30 patients in our cardiology practice "road-test" and try many of the recipes in Dr. Agatston's companion volume to his popular South Beach Diet. The response has been overwhelmingly favorable, both in taste as well as in weight loss.

The condiment recipes, like South Beach Barbecue Sauce and South Beach Teriyaki sauce, have gotten rave reviews from our patients, as well as some of the unique vegetarian entrees, like tofu cacciatore and baked Portobello caps with melted goat cheese. Dr. Agatston, a professed chocoholic, concludes with 20 recipes for desserts that use some clever substituting to avoid excess sugar, flour, and unhealthy oils.

The Cookbook is also a graphically-beautiful book, with full-color photos accompanying many, if not most, of the recipes.