Anthony Bourdain at Borders

Tuesday, some friends and I went to Anthony Bourdain's book signing for Nasty Bits at the Borders on Michigan Avenue. There were more people there than anticipated, so I didn' t get a copy of the new book. The talk before the signing was actually pretty interesting.

I generally have a somewhat dim view of humanity, but I thought Tony was interesting, entertaining and even magnanimous at times. I guess I never fully appreciated how many stupid questions people could come up with in an hour's time. Tony fielded all of the questions with a degree of kindness (instead of smart-a**ness) that I did not expect.

Were there any other LTH folks there? If so, what was your impression of the event.

On Wednesday Bourdain was at the Standard Club and I had the pleasure of meeting him at a luncheon there. He is very charming and agrees he is very lucky with his "day job" He said the worst thing he's ever eaten in his life is the fermented shark in Iceland. (I had asked if it was the iguana or porcupine) One of the questions he answered was the fois gras issue in our fair city and he stated he's very mad at this whole movement and said that, unfortunately, he sees it spreading all over the country. He also said everyone on his crew eats street food except one of his female producers who eats at the Hilton, etc. and she is the one who always gets sick! His new book is made up of amusing essays....and I now have a picture with two of my favorite chefs.

an addendum to my post: he likes Chicago hot dogs better than New York, likes New York pizza better, Avec and Blackbird his favorites here and was stopping at Al's Beef on Taylor on his way to the airport.

Cinny's Mom wrote:I generally have a somewhat dim view of humanity, but I thought Tony was interesting, entertaining and even magnanimous at times.

I'm sorry I missed him there.
On his "No Reservations" show and in Kitchen Confidential, he tries to project this major machismo, punk rocker, tatooed, a-hole persona, but it's obvious he's a teddy bear at heart, with a real soft spot for real food and the real people who make and enjoy it.

See, it's exactly his smart-ass, Jersey guy, Ramones-loving, devil-may-care attitude that endears him to me so much. I have read several books of his (his novels included) and watched all his shows and he never ceases to entertain me with his sarcastic form of humor. But beyond the humor, he's the real deal. His travels through exotic destinations in No Reservations has shown me the man has some depth as well. Anyone who would blow off the Food Network & reject becoming yet one more plastic robotic chef on tv does it for me. I envy you being able to meet him, Donna.

The Lovely Donna wrote:he likes Chicago hot dogs better than New York, likes New York pizza better, Avec and Blackbird his favorites here

and he finds veganism offensive... i don't think a man can get more respectable than this...

Has anyone read or taken a look at Nasty Bits yet? I haven't had a chance to get to the bookstore yet, but I'd love to hear an opinion or two.

I finished it a few days ago. It's a collection of past writings (essays, articles, etc), so some of it may already be familiar to you. It's entertaining, but certainly not my favorite of AB's books.

I was a bit surprised to find Tony eating at Al's last wednesday when I was there. I introduced myself and told him I was a big fan.

As was my forum duty, I also pointed him towards Mario's Italian Ice, but Tony said he would have to try them next time.

I am in the middle of "Nasty Bits." It is entertaining, but I agree, not thet best book by AB. It is good though if you only have a few minutes each day and need something that doesn't demand a long attention span.

There is an interesting interview with Anthony Bourdain posted at http://tinyurl.com/kpc7u, byChicago author/blogger Jessa Crispin.

Cheers

That's a GREAT interview. With some pungent comments about Chicago among many other good things:

Of course it’s an irresistible issue for PETA, it’s a win for them. Who’s going to stand up and defend it? Who’s going to be pro-foie gras? What politician, who’s your constituency there? A tiny group of food nerds and rich people. And yet it’s a terrible thing, what’s happened.

It was a unanimous vote, too.

Gutless punks. Chicago is now emerging, just now, as an international food destination, just called the new Barcelona. And at this point these people are struggling mightily to give the impression that it’s a cow town. That’s awful. There are only two cities in America. This is one of them.

It's entertaining, but certainly not my favorite of AB's books.

While I love No Reservations, I have not read any of AB's books. Which are his best ones?

Thanks,
Katy

I think Kitchen Confidential is really good, it's infused with his personality and great stories of his beginnings in kitchens. Evil Ronnie enjoyed this one, too

Both Kitchen Confidential and A Cook's Tour are probably his most popular and most engaging pieces of non-fiction. I have not read his Typhoid Mary history or any of his novels.

I would highly recommend Kitchen Confidential and A Cook's Tour.

Best,
Michael

I have to say that Kitchen Confidential is one of my favorite books. I thought Cook's Tour was good as well, but didn't hold my interest all the time.

Maybe not the sort of book you had in mind, but the Les Halles cookbook is a fantastic read. I have yet to actually cook anything out of it, but I've read it cover to cover.

kl5 wrote:Maybe not the sort of book you had in mind, but the Les Halles cookbook is a fantastic read. I have yet to actually cook anything out of it, but I've read it cover to cover.

In absolute agreement. I loved Kitchen Confidential for it's behind-the-scenes view on life as a cook, but you can read the Les Halles cookbook cover-to-cover just for fun. It is also very instructive and provides a nice history to some of the various sections on meat, "blood and guts," etc.

I third the Les Halles cookbook. You get Tony's superb b.s. meter along with solid recipes. Not to mention fairly verite' photography for the genre.

What the hell, I will 4th Les Halles. Cookbooks with personality are a good thing, and his is oozing personality. And the recipes are pretty good too.

schenked wrote:What the hell, I will 4th Les Halles. Cookbooks with personality are a good thing, and his is oozing personality. And the recipes are pretty good too.

I've gotta say that I really enjoyed the cookbook as well, but the only thing I've "cooked" from it is the "garlic confit" (which is a pretty fancy way of saying "garlic roasted in oil"). I always roasted heads of garlic whole (with the tops sliced off), but after reading his book I've started breaking up the cloves and just cooking them separated, but still with the skin on. They cook much faster and with great results.

Most of the rest of his recipes I have in other french cookbooks, but I really like the book.

I've gotta say that I really enjoyed the cookbook as well, but the only thing I've "cooked" from it is the "garlic confit" (which is a pretty fancy way of saying "garlic roasted in oil").

I have done a few recipes out of it. The beef burgundy (very good), the lemon tart (very, very good) and his roast chicken recipe (very good too). I have to admit, however, I was not a huge fan of his Coq au Vin recipe compared to other variations I have made.

schenked wrote:

I've gotta say that I really enjoyed the cookbook as well, but the only thing I've "cooked" from it is the "garlic confit" (which is a pretty fancy way of saying "garlic roasted in oil").

I have done a few recipes out of it. The beef burgundy (very good), the lemon tart (very, very good) and his roast chicken recipe (very good too). I have to admit, however, I was not a huge fan of his Coq au Vin recipe compared to other variations I have made.

If you haven't already, try the French Onion soup and the Mushroom soup. The Mushroom soup is especially easy and delicious.

Debra Pickett has Sunday Lunch with Bourdain.