Joanne Hendricks Cookbooks, New York, West Soho, Used Books, Antique Books, Antiquarium, Unusual Books, 10013, Recommendations, Where to buy cookbooks in New York, Soho, New York City, Cookbooks, Antique Cookbooks, Used Cookbooks, Food and Wine Cookbooks, Bookstore, Cooks Books, Larousse Gastronomique, Chashtsu, Lovely Food, Fluxus Codex, April Bloomfield, Spotted Pig, Jody Williams, Angela Hartnett, Alain Ducasse.

Like the books in Joanne Hendricks’ shop, her store is a rare find. Located downtown, on Manhattan’s far west side, this tiny shop is filled with vintage and out-of-print cookbooks, classic cocktail books, unique menus, old photographs, and collectable tableware.

Joanne Hendricks opened the store in 1995 on the ground floor of an 1850’s brick-faced townhouse, where she also lives. After working at Ruby’s Book Sale on Chambers Street for 20 years, she decided she wanted to open her own place. Opening was easy, parting with what she’s acquired - well, that’s the hard part. Joanne admits she loves what she finds so much, she often has trouble selling it, and still has the two books she first collected: “Flavor of France in Recipes and Pictures” and the “Flavor of Italy in Recipes and Pictures” by Narcissa Chamberlain.

Some of her rarest books are the ones that were never published, like a cartoon cookbook from the 1930’s by Syd Hoff. She has an MLK Fisher first edition from 1937, Gertrude Stein’s Tender Buttons from 1914, and her favorite: an Alice B. Toklas first edition. Most of what she carries if affordable, but she does have a few on the upper end of the spectrum. “Book of Bread”  tips the scale at $3,000 and contains silver gelatin photographs illustrating the do’s and don’ts of making bread.

The hardest books to keep in stock are the cocktail books, and since the release of the movie “Julie & Julia,” “Mastering the Art of French Cooking” by Julia Child.

While many of her books are snatched up by knowledgeable dealers, she gets her fair share of foot traffic from professional chefs. April Bloomfield, from The Spotted Pig and the Breslin at the ACE Hotel, Jody Williams of Gottino, Michelin-starred chef Angela Hartnett of Gordon Ramsay’s Murano, and world class chef Alain Ducasse are just a few who have browsed the stacks.

Even if you’re not in the market for a vintage book, the store is definitely worth a detour for browsing and a peek back in time, before recipes were downloaded and thrown away after cooking.