| 1 | | | The Other Side of the Bridge |
| | Douglas | Hollis | An artist. Aka: Doug: Duth. |
| | Nick | | The household patriarch. |
| | Dr. | Bronner | A devotee of millet. |
| | Jules | | The most sympathetic among the households. |
| 2 | | | The Success Machine |
| | Martha | | Nick's girlfriend. |
| | Ruth | Reichl | A restaurant critic. Aka: Rug. |
| | Alice | Walters | An American chef. |
| | Richard | Olney | A culinary genius. |
| | Pat | | Alice's friend. |
| | Phil | Reich | A wine writer. |
| | Colman | Andrews | A food editor. |
| | Marie | | Ruth's friend. |
| 3 | | | Paris |
| | Patrick | Terrail | American restaurant and hotel consultant. |
| | Orson | Welles | An actor. |
| | Wolfgang | Puck | The most talented chef in Los Angeles. |
| | Piero | Selvaggio | A restaurant owner. |
| | Beatrice | du Croix | Ruth's friend. |
| | Guy | Savoy | A French chef. |
| | Chez | Isadore | Colman's friend. |
| | Claude | | Colman's close friend. |
| | Pepita | | Claude's wife. |
| 4 | | | Blow Your Socks Off |
| | Darrell | Corti | A man who knows about food and wine. |
| | Charlie | Perry | One of Los Angeles critics. |
| | Joseph | Swan | A chemist and an inventor. |
| | Michael | McCarthy | Phil's business partner. |
| | Jonathan | Waxman | A chef. |
| | Mark | Peel | A young chef. |
| | Ken | Frank | The head chef. |
| | Sally | Clarke | Jonathan's friend. |
| | Pierre | Vedel | Michael's friend from Paris. |
| | Ingrid | | Michael's acquaintance. |
| | Lori | Powell | One who tested Michael's recipe. |
| 5 | | | Garlic is Good |
| | Les | Blank | A Berkeley's filmmaker. |
| | Robert | Charles | Owned a restaurant which served only lamb. |
| | Bruce | Aidells | Owner of Aidells's Sausage Company. |
| | Amora | | Robert's wife. |
| | Bruce | Cost | A cook. |
| | Virginia | Lee | A cook. |
| | Anzonini | Del Puerto | A great singer. |
| 6 | | | Armadillos in China |
| | Miriam | | Ruth's mother. |
| | Mr. | Bergamini | Owner of a butchers' shop. |
| | Mr. | Chan | Ruth's father's friend. |
| | Mr. | Chen | A chef. |
| | Mr. | Lee | Hotel usher. |
| | Ed | | A free lance travel writer. |
| | Marion | Cunningham | Ruth's friend. |
| | Cecilia | Chiang | Owner of Cecilia's restaurant. |
| 7 | | | The Sage of Sonoma |
| | Mary Frances | Kennedy Fisher | Ruth's acquaintance. |
| | Al | Fisher | Mary Frances's husband. |
| | Ellen | Frank | Ruth's very good friend. |
| | Michael | Singer | A journalist. |
| | Susan | | Ellen's friend. |
| | Franco | | Owner of a coffee shop. |
| | Charlie | | A cat. |
| 8 | | | Five Recipes |
| | Jeffrey | | Ruth's acquaintance. |
| 9 | | | Raining Shrimp |
| | Jacques | | Ruth's friend. |
| | Boonchoo | Pholatawarna | A Thai chef. |
| 10 | | | Midnight Duck |
| | Vernon | | A cook. |
| | Charlene | Rollins | A cook. |
| | Dorothy | | Miriam's friend. |
| 11 | | | Dali Fish |
| | Barbara | Lazaroff | One of the owners of Chinois restaurant. |
| | Joachim | Splichal | A Los Angeles chef. |
| | Robert | Epstein | Editor of the Los Angeles Times. Aka: Bob. |
| | Richard | Krause | Chinois's chef. |
| | Edison | | An electrician. |
| 12 | | | Foodies |
| | Danny | Kaye | A cook. |
| | Paul | Bocuse | A French chef. |
| | Roger | Berger | An American statistician. |
| | Fredy | Girardet | A Swiss chef. |
| | Evelle | Younger | A former attorney general of the state of California. |
| 13 | | | Mashed Bananas |
| | Nancy | Silverton | A baker. |
| | Joshua | | A lawyer. |
| | Roxanne | | A pregnant young girl. |
| | Kathleen | Turner | Ruth's close friend. |
| | Darlene | | A pregnant woman. |
| | Billy | | Darlene's husband. |
| | Romana | | One of the pregnant women. |
| | Amy | | One of the pregnant women. |
| | Veronica | | One of the pregnant women. |
| | Joanna | | One of the pregnant women. |
| | Louella | | One of the pregnant women. |
| | Rachel | | One of the pregnant women. |
| | Sally | | One of the pregnant women. |
| | April | | One of the pregnant women. |
| | Gabriella | | Ruth's adoptive daughter. Aka: Gavi. |
| | Lincoln | | The judge. |
| | Eres Anna | Delgardo | Gabriella's birth mother. |
| | Lourdes | | A witness. |
| | Juan | Rodriguez | Gabriella's father. |
| 14 | | | Barcelona |
| | Bradley | Ogden | A chef. |
| | Lydia | Shire | A chef. |
| | Julia | Child | An American chef. |
