It's good to hear that behind the scenes Bourdain was every bit as authentic, compassionate and devoid of hypocrisy as he appeared to be on screen (and in his writing)... but that article hit...
It's good to hear that behind the scenes Bourdain was every bit as authentic, compassionate and devoid of hypocrisy as he appeared to be on screen (and in his writing)... but that article hit pretty deep for me since I really liked him and was pretty devastated when I heard he committed suicide. That last paragraph is an absolute heartbreaker, too. :(
I own and have read most of his books. I have worked as a line cook and Sous for about a decade now he was a really big influencer in my life. I too was pretty devastated when I heard about his...
I own and have read most of his books. I have worked as a line cook and Sous for about a decade now he was a really big influencer in my life. I too was pretty devastated when I heard about his death.
A couple of his books go in depth on the behind the scenes aspects of his film career and while they are not his best literary works they are a really great read and it's amazing how much his voice comes across in his writing.
I highly recommend digging into his novels if you have not previously.
I have only read Kitchen Confidential, a bunch of his articles/essays, watched all his shows and a ton of his interviews over the years but haven't actually read any of his other books. Is there...
I have only read Kitchen Confidential, a bunch of his articles/essays, watched all his shows and a ton of his interviews over the years but haven't actually read any of his other books. Is there any one in particular you think is better than the rest and that I should start on? I am looking for something to read now so this is actually pretty perfect timing.
Well, obviously 'Kitchen Confidential' would be my first recommendation, but after that I would definitely say 'A Cook's Tour' and 'Medium Raw'. 'A Cook's Tour' is definitely more of a behind the...
Well, obviously 'Kitchen Confidential' would be my first recommendation, but after that I would definitely say 'A Cook's Tour' and 'Medium Raw'.
'A Cook's Tour' is definitely more of a behind the scenes sort of book, it was written after he was given his first TV show (of the same name) and takes place earlier on in is career as a world traveler than some of his later books. He is still pretty 'young' as a writer and world traveller at this point and I like how that comes across.
'Medium Raw' is the sequel to 'Kitchen Confidential' and more of a series of things Bourdain wanted to comment on in the industry and a follow up to 'Kitchen Confidential' ten years later. If you liked 'Kitchen Confidential', you will love 'Medium Raw'.
I appreciate the suggestions and summaries. Ultimately, I will probably wind up reading both, because why not? But thanks for taking the time to write those. I will probably start with Medium Raw...
I appreciate the suggestions and summaries. Ultimately, I will probably wind up reading both, because why not? But thanks for taking the time to write those. I will probably start with Medium Raw since Kitchen Confidential was so funny and eye opening for me, so I can't wait to see what else he had to say about the industry 10 years later.
That is a really good plan (and what I did when I first started reading his novels). 'A Cook's Tour' is the first book he wrote as a travel/chef/wanderer so if you do end up liking it, there are...
That is a really good plan (and what I did when I first started reading his novels).
'A Cook's Tour' is the first book he wrote as a travel/chef/wanderer so if you do end up liking it, there are about five more after it that follow his travels and different shows.
I thought about submitting this separately a while ago, but never did, so I'll leave it here in case it interests anyone. Here's a very long (probably an hour or longer read) transcript of a...
I thought about submitting this separately a while ago, but never did, so I'll leave it here in case it interests anyone.
Here's a very long (probably an hour or longer read) transcript of a wide-ranging, casual interview with Anthony Bourdain by the editor of Popula. I don't know that there's anything specifically interesting in it, but it's an entertaining read and goes through his thoughts on all kinds of topics: https://popula.com/2018/07/15/bourdain-confidential/
It's good to hear that behind the scenes Bourdain was every bit as authentic, compassionate and devoid of hypocrisy as he appeared to be on screen (and in his writing)... but that article hit pretty deep for me since I really liked him and was pretty devastated when I heard he committed suicide. That last paragraph is an absolute heartbreaker, too. :(
I own and have read most of his books. I have worked as a line cook and Sous for about a decade now he was a really big influencer in my life. I too was pretty devastated when I heard about his death.
A couple of his books go in depth on the behind the scenes aspects of his film career and while they are not his best literary works they are a really great read and it's amazing how much his voice comes across in his writing.
I highly recommend digging into his novels if you have not previously.
I have only read Kitchen Confidential, a bunch of his articles/essays, watched all his shows and a ton of his interviews over the years but haven't actually read any of his other books. Is there any one in particular you think is better than the rest and that I should start on? I am looking for something to read now so this is actually pretty perfect timing.
Well, obviously 'Kitchen Confidential' would be my first recommendation, but after that I would definitely say 'A Cook's Tour' and 'Medium Raw'.
'A Cook's Tour' is definitely more of a behind the scenes sort of book, it was written after he was given his first TV show (of the same name) and takes place earlier on in is career as a world traveler than some of his later books. He is still pretty 'young' as a writer and world traveller at this point and I like how that comes across.
'Medium Raw' is the sequel to 'Kitchen Confidential' and more of a series of things Bourdain wanted to comment on in the industry and a follow up to 'Kitchen Confidential' ten years later. If you liked 'Kitchen Confidential', you will love 'Medium Raw'.
I highly recommend both.
I appreciate the suggestions and summaries. Ultimately, I will probably wind up reading both, because why not? But thanks for taking the time to write those. I will probably start with Medium Raw since Kitchen Confidential was so funny and eye opening for me, so I can't wait to see what else he had to say about the industry 10 years later.
That is a really good plan (and what I did when I first started reading his novels).
'A Cook's Tour' is the first book he wrote as a travel/chef/wanderer so if you do end up liking it, there are about five more after it that follow his travels and different shows.
I own far to many books lmao.
I basically just quoted you. I am searching for words and can't sum it up any better. Thank you
Current status: trying to not ugly-sob in the library
I thought about submitting this separately a while ago, but never did, so I'll leave it here in case it interests anyone.
Here's a very long (probably an hour or longer read) transcript of a wide-ranging, casual interview with Anthony Bourdain by the editor of Popula. I don't know that there's anything specifically interesting in it, but it's an entertaining read and goes through his thoughts on all kinds of topics: https://popula.com/2018/07/15/bourdain-confidential/
Thank you for posting this!
As a long time Bourdain fan I really appreciated the read.