I still miss Anthony Bourdain. Remembering he is gone makes me sad although, I don’t know that he would have been enjoying himself in Covid Times – hell, he wasn’t enjoying himself in pre covid times, I guess. I hope in whatever comes next he is doing what he loves and finding joy where he found pain here. This world isn’t easy for those who see beyond themselves.

Anthony Bourdain is Not a Bullshit Artist

One of my favorite celebrities in the world – Anthony Bourdain. I was introduced to him back in 2005 when a close friend handed me a book called Kitchen Confidential and said “Read this. You’ll love this guy.”- The title sounded like a bullshit Hollywood Madam type of book so I took it with low expectations and planned to give excuses whenever she asked me if I’d read it.

Then, one day when I knew I’d be in the bathroom for a while, his book was the closest thing on hand aside from a box of Apple Jacks I’d already read – so I grabbed it. Within two paragraphs I was hooked.

You see, I’ve worked in some kitchens. I’ve made sandwiches, worked as a seafood line chef in a high-end kitchen, been the sous chef in a southern BBQ joint, and washed all kinds of dishes. I’ve smoked more dope and done more lines of coke with kitchen staff and pantyless waitresses than I care to admit. Check out this line:

I want to tell you about the dark recesses of the restaurant underbelly – a sub-culture whose militaristic hierarchy and ethos of ‘rum, buggery, and the lash’ make for a mix of unwavering order and nerve-shattering chaos -because I find it all quite comfortable like a nice warm bath.

Hunter S. Thompson was dead but this guy was still alive and kicking. I read his book and then I went looking for more. I found it. This was a guy who could write, made me hungry for food, made me feel like my adventures were pretty tame, and who was traveling the world and making a spectacularly kick ass television show where he didn’t seem to be pretending to be someone else.

Anthony Bourdain is smart, funny, irreverant, and successful. He’s introduced a whole generation of punk-rock lost souls to the joy of food and travel.  Here’s a bit of his backstory (pulled from Wikipedia and his website at AnthonyBourdain.net)

Anthony Bourdain was born  in 1956 in New York City.He graduated from the Culinary Institute of America in 1978 and went on to become a professional chef. Hi s love of food was kindled by an oyster he ate in France as a boy. It was given to him by a fisherman while his family was on a vacation there. In 1998 he became Executive Chef at Brasserie Les Halles in Manhattan.

Kitchen Confidential was a New York Times best seller in 2000 which led to his writing two more best sellers – The Nasty Bits and A Cook’s Tour. He’s written nine other books including a graphic novel for DC Comics.

His TV show : No Reservations began in 2005, so when I went looking for more, I found one of the most enjoyable food and travel shows ever produced. Yeah, I’m a fan, that’s why I’m writing this to introduce you to him.

I have no idea how many countries Anthony Bourdain has been to, nor does it matter. I would guess that he doesn’t even know…the important thing is that he goes, he eats, he shares, he learns, and you know what?

He’s not a bullshit artist. He shows respect to the food, the cultures, the places, and the people wherever he goes. He doesn’t mind disrespecting blatant commercialism, celebrity, or even himself and calls bullshit as he sees it. That’s why I’m a fan and that’s why I recommend you read his books, watch his series (there’s another called  The Layover) and miss him like hell.

This is an excerpt from my book “Vagabonds: Sometimes Getting Lost is the Point” . It’s available as an ebook for kindle or ebook readers. Over the next several months we will be exploring some of these amazing vagabond characters from the past (and present).