{3.5 stars rounded up]

"Chef's Kiss" was lots of fun to read! Ben finds his calling at a restaurant while looking for writing jobs, thus leading him on a whimsical journey of pleasing the head chef's pet pig with his culinary creations! The friendships in this were sweet and relatable, and the budding romance (while a little abrupt and cliche) was cute and sweet.

(Side note: Vlad the Inhaler bong joke made me snort soda through my nose, so kudos on that.)

The art is clean and vibrant, very modern graphic novel in it's style. Overall a fun read!

Ben Cook is newly graduated from college and looking for his first job in the writing world. After many interviews with no luck he stumbles upon a help wanted sign at a restaurant. He gets the job temporarily with his actual hiring defendant on passing some cooking tests and pleasing the palate of Watson, the food tasting pig. One of the reasons for Ben wanting to work there is handsome sous chef Liam.

The graphics in this novel are great with lots of detail. Ben's friends/roommates (2 girls, 1 guy) are supportive of each other and distinct. The story itself is a little simple. The book is only 125 pages on my device and a couple of those pages are spent in a yoga class and getting a fake history of Watson. It really comes down to Ben deciding what he wants to do work wise and exploring a potential romance with Liam. The book contains a few mild curse words and one kiss. I think it is appropriate for high school and up. Thank you NetGalley and One Press for an digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Personally, I enjoyed the story. It's new and exciting. Ben is a recent graduate looking for writing jobs, and after many failed interviews, he came across a chef job that required no experience. He was able to meet restaurants' sous chefs, whom he adored. He begins working at the restaurant and lies to his parents about getting a job as a writer. However, things do not go as planned. Is he jeopardising his friendship and writing career by falling in love with Liam?

I would love to keep and add a physical copy to my collection!

Very sweet lgbt comic. Loved the characters and the set up. Can’t wait to see if there are more volumes.

This book was cute and a quick read. Although the romance felt a little rushed and some of the dynamics between the characters just felt off. It was a cute read under 200 pages but I wouldn’t reread it

I loved this! This book was absolutely adorable with the art style and the story. I loved the characters (Watson is my new favorite pig!) and the story was great. The art was really good as well. I want to sit here and gush about this for hours.
If you are into graphic novel romances in the vain of Check Please then this is for you! Its a very different story but the atmosphere is similar and it's just as sweet and adorable.

This graphic novel was everything I could hope for. A queer story about what it's like to navigate the world right after college. Not being sure what you want to do with your life and ending up on a path that you didn't see coming. I adored everything about this book.

Ben Cook cannot break his way into a job after college. He's caught in the post-undergrad cycle of needing job experience to get hired, and thus he cannot get the experience since no one will hire him. That is until he stumbles across a "no experience needed" job at a restaurant, but first he must impress the chef with his skills, and even more importantly, impress the test-tasting pig that lives behind the restaurant, Watson. Will Ben be able to pass the test? And in his attempts to do so, what else will he lose or gain along the way?

"Chef's Kiss" biggest success is in its cast of characters. We see a wide range of people in the span of what is about a 100 page graphic novel, and yet they are all fleshed out and bring a unique and necessary charm to the story. Despite this, I did find myself annoyed with certain characters at points, for instance Rachel's "Shakespeare jargon," phase felt forced and rather faked. Perhaps this was the authors intent to make her annoying, however it wasn't necessarily clear what our perspective on this was supposed to be.

The most unique part of the story is Watson, a test-tasting pig who gained its testing abilities in a moment of magical realism. Watson must approve of all of Ben's dishes before he gets hired. While I love an absurd charm to a story, there was something to this that felt distant and out of place from the rest of a very well-realized story about new adult struggles. From keeping in contact with one's parents, to career searching, to relationships, everything regarding post-undergrad experiences was very well established.

Given this is a graphic novel, I also would like to take a moment to commend the artwork and formatting. All the illustrations help build the world and helped create a sense of movement vs stagnancy (a major theme in the story), while also being quite stunning to look at. The text and illustrations compliment each other to create a charmed story of early-20s life, that has yet to find its footing in balancing with magical realism.

I absolutely adored this graphic novel, full of humor, warmth and romance, while all the while tackling the serious. topic of finding yourself after college.

The illustration style harmonizes well with the story being told and it will be hard for any reader not to fall head over heals in love with the characters.

This was such a delightful story about Ben trying to find himself in his own world. His parents have pressured him his entire life to be what he wants, but when the job market doesn’t cooperate, he takes a chance on a job as a cook at a quirky vegetarian restaurant with an interesting head chef and behind the scenes partner! This story is sweet and heartfelt. Fans of Check, Please will like this one, too!

Chef’s Kiss is a sweet, quick read about a recent college graduate, Ben, who is finding it impossible to find a job in his field. On a whim, he applies to work at a restaurant, putting to use his years of home cooking. As he settles into his training - and the tests that, inexplicably, involve a pig having to approve of his food - Ben finds that he is really enjoying his new job. It doesn’t hurt that one of the cooks, Liam, is very dreamy. This isn’t what he went to school for, and it certainly won’t please his parents, but is it what he actually wants?

This book is marketed as New Adult, but it would fit into either an adult or young adult collection. Teens can relate to the themes of feeling lost and unsure of what to do with their lives, as can the target age of young 20s and older adult as well. The romance is woven throughout the story but is secondary to Ben’s own internal struggle of what path he should take and the way his choices are affecting his friendships.

One small thing I found really distracting was the yoga class! Dialogue asks the class to be in table top pose… and clearly they’re in downward dog. It’s a tiny thing but very noticeable, so I’m hoping that either the dialogue or artwork is changed before publication.

Overall, a very cute book that a lot of readers will be able to enjoy and relate to.

A richly-drawn and detailed visual and narrative graphic novel, really a character study through pictures. Very well done and worth reading.

In Chef’s Kiss, Ben tries to find his place and himself after graduation, while facing a discouraging job search and the ever-looming fear of disappointing his parents. The book is at turns funny, instructive, and introspective, although maybe a bit wordier than I expected. The art style and colors are appealing and well-balanced. Dynamics between Ben and his roommates/friends—as well as his new coworkers, and Winston the food-critic pig (!!!)—are rich and delightfully portrayed, and the characters are engaging. I’d happily hang out with any/all of them. And eat their food!

A sweet and savory tale of navigating your dreams and the expectations of others, with a hint of romance to garnish the dish.

I would eat here—would eat this—again.

Sweet, although a bit too simple at times, Chef's Kiss delivers exactly what it sets out to do: a cute gay romance story.

**I received an electronic ARC from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for honest review.**

Jarrett Melendez presents a new adult queer romantic comedy with Chef's Kiss. Readers follow Ben Cook and his trio of roommates. Ben is a recent college graduate who is trapped in the cycle of needing experience for entry level work denials after job applications. When Ben stumbles upon a restaurant hiring with no experience necessary, he meets the handsome sous-chef, Liam, and begins a series of culinary challenges.

This graphic novel watered my crops, cleared my skin, and ended a reading slump. Bless up.

Melendez perfectly embodies the variety of after-college experiences in Ben and his roommates as well as the struggles of being pushed in a certain career direction by parents. The comedy was just right for me, and seems perfect for the target age demographic. The meet cute between Ben and Liam was everything I could have hoped. But really, Watson had to be the star of the show as the official food critic pig.

Illustrator Danica Brine had just the art style to complement Melendez's narrative. The style is something that pays homage to a shoujo manga style, while still being signature enough to stand out as Brine's. It is entirely well suited to a romantic comedy vibe, and her ability to illustrate not only the characters in an expressive way, but also the background and food was key in conveying this graphic novel. Supported by the beautiful coloring from Hank Jones (in a wonderfully warm and romantic palette!) and the lettering from Hassan Otsmane-Elhau, this team could not seem to miss.

Not only will I be looking for future works from Melendez and Brine, but I will absolutely be purchasing my own copy of this work as well. And likely shoving it on any of my friends that needs a serotonin boost. As one does.