Yes, Chef: A Romance Novel by Grace Reilly

The Bear” x It Happened One Summer • foodie romance • South Florida hometown • grumpy/sunshine • found family

A delicious, high-heat rom-com about rebuilding your life (and a restaurant) when everything’s gone up in flames. Yes, Chef pairs a prickly, down-on-his-luck chef with a bubbly social media maven who’s tired of being underestimated—and forces them into a reluctant partnership that turns into cooking lessons, late-night tension, and chemistry that refuses to stay off the menu.

After a very public meltdown at one of Manhattan’s most elite restaurants, Chef Jack Hartman retreats to his South Florida hometown—angry, grieving, and stuck with an unwanted storefront his late mentor left him. He’s barely holding it together when Poppy Winfield shows up: blonde, bubbly, utterly infuriating… and the daughter of his former boss.

Poppy needs an escape—from her disapproving family, a horrible ex, and her reputation as someone who never takes anything seriously. She wants one undeniable win, and she has a plan: team up with Jack to revamp and reopen his mentor’s restaurant. Jack brings the menu; Poppy brings the influencer marketing to sell the hell out of the grand opening. If they pull it off, it’s a ticket for both of them back to New York.

Jack agrees—on one condition: if Poppy’s going to work with him, she’s learning the entire business. Including how to cook. From him. And as the heat rises in and out of the kitchen, they have to decide if they’re a perfect pairing… or a recipe for disaster.