"This fills a gap between studies of British regional food and the legion of book on Anglo-Indian eating, as it has a much wider sphere of influences."

The Bookseller

"His book demonstrates convincingly that whether drawing on its former colonial and imperial possessions (including the United States, with its ever-popular hamburger and other fast foods) or on its European neighbors, the openness of British society has truly enriched its diet and produced its present-day variegated cuisine."

Martin Rubin | Washington Times

"Next time someone fulminates about ’foreign invaders’ or ’lazy immigrants’ give them a copy of Panayi’s book. Or buy them a meal."

Alasdair Buchan | Diplomat

"What makes Panayi’s book distinctive and valuable is that he demonstrates his central point by examining the diverse dimensions of Britain’s food supply and catering business over the past 150 years. . . . If Panayi has an agenda, it is to wake up ignorant Brits, to make them realise how central immigrants have been to the development of the UK’s economy and culture in the last century and a half."

Jeremy MacClancy | Times Higher Education Supplement

"Some books are researched. Others are lived. This book reflects both modalities and is strengthened by the author’s life experience and sensitivity to cultural nuance. . . . Panayi’s many examples, most of which delve deeply into the subtleties of food culture, are carefully researched, detailed, and convincing, giving the reader a taste of the dynamism of culinary interchange."

Choice

"Spicing up Britain shows in detail how Britons’ eating habits have been reshaped by immigration,globalisation and increased wealth. It also shows how other cultures have woven themselves into British society through the medium of food...The research for Spicing up Britain draws largely on social surveys and recipes - mostly from cookbooks - which prove to be valuable sources of information. The way in which Panayi draws on cookbooks is very ‘tasty’ and makes his book a really good read."

Ilse van Liempt | The Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies