This is an older novel of Anne Tyler's which was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize in 1983. It deals with family life and is set in Baltimore during the 1950's and 1960's. Pearl is a young mother with three children and a husband, Beck, who is not home much because he is a travelling salesman. One day he comes home and tells her he is leaving her and the family. She is stunned but does not tell her children he is gone. When they ask, she tells them that he is travelling and they accept that for a very long time. She gets a job at a local grocery store to help make ends meet and, through the years, Beck occasionally sends money along with notes to Pearl about his latest job.

There are alternating points-of-view which I liked since this has become a dysfunctional family and I liked the children's viewpoints as they matured. The oldest, Cody, was insecure and had antisocial behavior; Ezra was a peacemaker and wanted a normal family; and Jenny, the youngest, was very determined, yet cautious. Pearl became complicated and used verbal abuse, mostly at Jenny.

I was curious about the title: Ezra owned a restaurant and featured a varied menu so if a diner felt hungry for a specific food, he would try to make it. He was always trying to get his family to eat together but something always happened and they never finished a meal at his restaurant. I felt sorry for Ezra through most of this novel because he was so easy going and put up with Cody's terrible behavior toward him.

I felt love existed in this family even though the fractures in their relationships were evident. Tyler creates and develops characters in a way that, for me, brings them to life. She writes about world-wide subjects: forgiving and loving each other, being kind and accepting, and the moral obligation of parents to their children and children to their parents. ( )