by Joe Piaza)
Not even the bluster of a snowy day could keep 50 adults and a dedicated 11-year-old away from an inaugural book club at the East Village restaurant Calliope.
They met to discuss "Provence, 1970," a nonfiction account of that year in the lives of a handful of influential foodies. Attendees spent $75 each to hear the author, Luke Barr, discuss the intricacies of food snobbery while they tucked into platters of Wellfleet oysters, beef daube a la provencale with herbed fettuccine, and blackberry-mulled winter fruit over homemade vanilla ice cream.
"This is just like Barnes & Noble, with food," said Rich Schmidt, a devoted member of another book club that went virtual not long ago, transformed from in-person gatherings to a Google Hangout.
A 50-person book club wouldn't fit into many New York City living rooms, and hosting one online leaves some readers craving more togetherness. In fact, the need to host a book club altogether is often the reason clubs perish.
The solution? Move it to a restaurant.
Naama Bloom started a book club this month with five friends. The idea of getting together at one of their homes was out of the question. Instead they discussed Jhumpa Lahiri's "The Lowland" at Corkbuzz, a wine bar in Union Square.
"I wanted it to be simple, since we're all working moms," said Ms. Bloom, the founder of the website helloflo.com. "I was in a book club years ago where whoever hosted would cook dinner. That was fine then, but my lifestyle now won't accommodate that."
Over the past two years, Christina Vuleta's book club for 40-somethings has table-hopped across the city, selecting restaurants based on their seating availability, acoustics and occasionally the intellect of the waiters.
"It takes the burden off people. We choose places it is easier to book a large table at, like the Atlantic Grill," Ms. Vuleta said. "Ditch Plains on the Upper West Side has a great, round corner table that is excellent for discussion. Plus, our waiter got involved in our conversation about the thriller 'Reconstructing Amelia.' "
The 9th & Coles Tavern in Jersey City launched a book club because of its closeness to Kevin Singer, a customer and published author. When his "The Last Conquistador" came out in February, 9th & Coles regulars met over beer and whiskey to share their thoughts on the novel's supernatural love story. Seven months and seven books later, the group is still going strong.
"We are a fun, casual, drinking bunch, so anything goes during our meets, although we're pretty serious readers, too," said owner Greg Gude. So far they've powered through "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies," "Dante's Inferno," "Zealot" and "The Monk."
"A neighbor of mine just published a book, too, so we will probably give that a try in the next couple of months," Mr. Gude said.
There is never a cost to participants. They don't even have a drink minimum.
Not every bookworm needs to be of drinking age to participate in a book club. Back at the Calliope, after Mr. Barr read a section from "Provence, 1970," he fielded questions from the crowd, including one from the room's youngest member, Peter Wenger, 11 years old.
"This is my first book club," Peter said while enjoying the cheese course.
Calliope has worked with McNally Jackson, an independent bookstore, and plans to welcome author Gary Shteyngart ("Super Sad True Love Story") to discuss his forthcoming memoir, "Little Failure," next month. The book club members seemed most pleased that the restaurant allowed them to focus on the reading, not the event planning.
"That's why I love restaurants," said Calliope's co-owner, Eric Anderson. "They're just a good excuse for conversation about books."
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