If just glancing at the cover of "The Club Menu" doesn't make your stomach jump and your hunger churn, you're not human.

The "Club Menu: Signature Dishes from America's Premier Golf Clubs," by authors Scott Savlov and Jon Rizzi, combines two of my favorite passions, food and golf, into 128 pages of delicious photos and recipes. It takes a unique behind-the-kitchen-doors look at why some people actually join swanky private clubs. Not for the golf, but the food!

I've played some of the courses listed in the book: East Lake in Atlanta, Pebble Beach in California and the Olympic Club in San Francisco. Unfortunately, I've only tasted one of the courses in the book: The Burger Dog from the Olympic Club. Kind of symbolic that the only fancy meal featured in the book I've experienced is a hot dog, but that's OK. It was mighty good, as I recall.

Of all the recipes, several caught my immediate attention. For years, the TV broadcasters covering the PGA Tour's The International touted the legendary milkshakes at Castle Pines in Colorado. The tournament is no longer but the milkshakes are still the club's signature. I'm drooling on my computer screen right now thinking of a tall cold creamy one.

I'm a big seafood buff, so the Maidstone Chowder at Maidstone, the Shrimp and Grits at the Ocean Forest Golf Club and the Lobster Bisque at the Stanwich Club sound superb. The book features a nice blend between the photographs of the food and the photos of the courses.

It's not for every golfer, but the book can make a nice gift in the right hands: a food-loving golfer or a golf-loving foodie. Or better yet, a golfer whose spouse loves to cook!

Published by Pindar Press, the hardcover book retails for $50.

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