Jianna’s owner and chef, Michael Kramer, is releasing his premiere (and probably only) cookbook, “Jianna,” Sept. 23.
While the book capstones a longstanding career, it focuses mainly on Kramer’s passion — the food. Some of the compiled recipes come from the Italian eatery and some predate it. For example, the pastrami smoked salmon is a derivative of Kramer’s days at McCrady’s, the Charleston restaurant he worked at earlier in his career.
“There’s really no reason for me to say, like, ‘simple pasta recipes’ or ‘fun in the kitchen with Michael’ – I just didn’t see that,” Kramer said, “Jianna is the brand. I’m a brand inside the brand. I felt like it just worked.”
The book begins with an intro touching on a surf-filled childhood in Los Angeles, time abroad and his time under the tutelage of culinary artists such as Wolfgang Puck, and his mentor, Marc Valiani. From then, the book mentions a stint in Texas before Kramer’s introduction to the Carolinas, opening the now-shuttered Charleston culinary spot, McCrady’s, then finally, the move to Table 301 and opening of Jianna.
The book also includes an Italian wine preamble and cocktail recipes, written by Andrea S. Royko, Jianna’s sommelier and managing partner, and dessert recipes, contributed by pastry chef Alison Legg. The photos in the book were taken by Andrew Cebulka, who once worked with Kramer at McCrady’s.
The team was given full creative control over the book. They chose the paper, layout, cover and size, along with the photographer. This was important to the chef-turned-author because “Jianna” is the only cookbook he plans to write.
Kramer had toyed with the idea of writing a cookbook for about 30 years after he was first urged to the task by celebrity chef and founder of Gramercy Tavern in New York, Tom Colicchio. At the time, Kramer thought the idea was only for famous chefs and didn’t feel he was in that league.
“It’s kind of a bucket list thing,” Royko said. “He (Kramer) started talking about it with me after we got through the pandemic together, and figured out how to open as a curbside restaurant and socially distanced restaurant, PPP funding… That was a whole other business side of things for me because I’ve always treated the restaurants that I’ve run like they’re my own. But that really helped mine and his growth on professional level. And I think when chef Michael Smith from Farina came out with his cookbook, is when chef started talking about it.”
“Farina” was published in 2022 by Story Farm, which Kramer reached out to thereafter.
The book took roughly a year to write including recipe writing, testing and editing. Cebulka would come up once every four weeks on Sunday nights, take photos all day Monday and leave Tuesday.
Kramer never wanted a book about himself and “Jianna” the book, isn’t. Still, that doesn’t omit the reminiscence in a cookbook penned by a chef/entrepreneur with a longstanding, respected career and life filled with vibrancy and flavor.
The cookbook will release Sept. 23 with a launch party at the restaurant just as euphoria, Greenville’s food and wine festival, closes. Keep an eye out for talks on it during euphoria weekend. The book will be available in store and on Jianna’s website, jiannagreenville.com.
Jianna is located at 600 S. Main St. in downtown Greenville. It is open Tuesday through Thursday from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m., Friday from 5 to 9:30 p.m., Saturday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. then 5 to 9:30 p.m. and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. then 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.
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