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American cuisine has come a long way from mid-20th century melting pot doldrums. This evolution from bland to grand is laid out quite nicely in David Kamp's The United States of Arugula: How We Became a Gourmet Nation. In his preface, GQ contributing editor Kamp exclaims that today is "a great time to be an eater" in our country -- that is, if you're paying attention to what you're eating. Fast Food Nation and Super Size Me argue that the majority of Americans are truly what they eat: fatty messes with no taste. But The United States of Arugula proposes that over the past century, American culture has developed along with its taste in food -- thanks, in part, to our domestic lineage of foodies.

To Kamp, the development of American food is a mix of foreign invasion, rustic pleasure, regional discovery and cultural fusion, from Julia Child showing Americans how to craft formal French classics to Cajun chef-restaurateur Emeril Lagasse helping make remoulade a household word. Kamp loosens the gourmet world's tangle of critics, cooks, entrepreneurs and farmers -- all of whom have a distinct vision of what should be sent down American throats.

At stake is what Kamp calls the "national eating disorder," i.e. "Americans obsessing about being thin while getting still more fat." He explores the debate over whether celebrity chefs and the food establishment should embrace fast food in order to get more Americans involved in making healthier food choices. Berkeley chef Alice Waters vigorously protested Mexican food master Rick Bayless's decision to promote a not-entirely-healthy but less-processed sandwich for Burger King; Bayless fought back saying that those in the healthy food movement should "applaud any positive steps [they] see in the behemoth quick-service restaurant chains." Kamp hopes that the two camps will converge and notes that the supermarket is already "transforming itself from a lowest-common-denominator vendor...into a hybrid store" offering local, healthy alternatives.

For those even remotely interested in good food, there are now more gourmet options available than even 15 years ago. Wolfgang Puck's pizzas are baked in airports, cable's Food Network teaches cooking 24/7 and the Starbucks on every corner offers a gazillion varieties of espresso beverages. If one seeks it out, it's easy to become a part of the gourmet nation. Don't super size me -- sushi size me.