It is 1955, and Colette Rossant, newly married, has just arrived in America with her husband Jimmy. She is twenty-two, a Frenchwoman in New York, bemused by American customs and most importantly by the food: the limp sandwiches, the ubiquitous mayonnaise, the iceberg lettuce. But post-war New York is humming and Colette and Jimmy discover a whole new world in Greenwich Village: theatre and avant-garde cinema, farmer's markets and Jewish delis. Colette slowly falls in love with her adopted country, relishing the brisket sandwiches at Katz's, the exquisite dim sum in Chinatown and the Italian pastries in Mulberry Street. Madeleines in Manhattan is the story of her journey from young housewife and passionate cook to acclaimed food writer, from the romantic early days of marriage to grandmotherhood, told with her unique ability to conjure up her memories through food.