Celebrity blogging experiments usually just end up confirming how dull said celebrities are when the camera is gone and we're exposed to their own original thoughts. Cranky celeb-chef Anthony Bourdain, however, has just the right combo of snarkiness, controversy-baiting and hatred of the MSM to crossover into the online world.
Bourdian's blog to accompany his Travel Channel show "No Reservations" has been going since December 2007, although the posts have come in fits and starts. With his new season underway, Tony has amped up the blogging, churning out a new post just about every week.
The blog is basically a promo for the show--offering in-depth background on each of the episodes. Fortunately, the promotional aspect doesn't ruin Bourdain, who is as raw and uncensored as ever, waxing poetic about "Hollywood ****tards," "well-paid dochebags" and, of course, food from around the world. And for even more behind-the-scenes action, there's also the show's Crew Blog, featuring background on the filming locations from the cast and crew. This week, Bourdain's brother Chris has a post on the Uruguay episode that has us ready to pack our bags.
If there's one thing Chef Anthony Bourdain knows, it's food. But it'd take some serious persuading to shovel a lot of what he devours on the Travel Channel's No Reservations down our hatch. Sewer rats, beef tongues and meal worms anyone?
Luckily, the man knows how to travel, and he's made it easy to follow his lead. The No Reservations website includes online itineraries for adventurous palates. He's delivered salvation to travelers in search of soup dumplings in the streets of Shanghai, along with wealth of hotel options. And he offers up local flavor and advice from Ghana's Ministry of Tourism for those willing to get off the beaten path.
Chances are good that if there's a place you've longed to go, Bourdain has already been there. And he can tell you what to eat--and what to avoid--on your visit.
As we mentioned in our preview on Friday, the T, the Times Travel/Style mag, featured a ramble through Singapore by our own personal man-crush, Tony Bourdain. As you'd expect, it made us so...very...hungry.
Bourdain forgoes any real discussion of the country itself to focus on the mélange of culinary influences there, including Malaysian and Chinese. We'll give you, well, a taste of his summary:
It was another day in foodie paradise. And that is Singapore's singular danger. It is easy to get sucked in, to get used to the little things on your daily table -- the tiny dishes of sambal or chopped red chili peppers, the soy sauce, even the moist towelettes. You begin quickly to expect them, to take them for granted. And once you get used to the sights, sounds, smells and tastes, there is no going back.
Yup, Singapore will hold you hostage, at least until you spit out your gum in public.
Last night we finally caught up with the Beirut episode of Anthony Bourdain's show on the Travel Channel, No Reservations. For those of you who may have missed the drama surrounding the show, Bourdain was taping in the city when Israeli air strikes began last month; the episode documents the tiny sliver of Beiruti life he was able to experience before that happened, as well as the crew's experience trying to get out of Beirut.
We were very impressed with the way that the show was put together. Bourdain's interviews with Ramsay Short, the editor of Time Out Beirut, and his guide the night when the air strikes began were quite telling. While everyone was the first to say that Beirutis like to party through danger, they both resigned about what was to come.
Much of the show documents what it was like trying to escape, which was interesting, and could easily have come off as whiny and self-serving. Luckily, Bourdain makes it clear he knew how easy he had it.
Ultimately, we were most impressed with the closing thoughts of the show. Bourdain talks about getting the opportunity to travel, and how that experience food and travel seemed to foster a kind of cross-cultural understanding, but now he's now so sure. "Are we all crushed under the same wheel?" he asks. While that's a heady sentiment for a travel show, he's making a good point. In a situation such as the one he was in, it's clear that all the hummus and kibbeh in the world cannot escape the weight of history.
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by BS
