So the wife surprised me with some tickets to see Anthony Bourdain last night. I am a fan of his show No Reservations and find him to be entertaining. I like the show because it is based on food and culture (which I am totally about) with very little emphasis on history. I love to see all the places he gets to go which always tend to be off the beaten path (which are the best places I find). Well last night it was a bit of a disappointment..he gave us a bit of background (not much) and just really told jokes about co-workers on the show. His perspective that I agree with entirely on travel was to be a good guest above your standards. For instance he said in some of the undeveloped countries he would be a guest for dinner and food placed in front of him that was unidentifiable. He said you smile, thank them, and eat it. He said his favorite place to travel was Vietman..excellent food and culture. He has yet to visit Cuba..love to see that episode.
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I think he's kind of a douche, but I still enjoy the show.
I like Andrew Zimmern a lot better. He's a straight up good dude. :-)
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Absolutely.
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Im a huge fan of the show and Tony as a person. His books are really great reads as well.
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I think he's great!


:-)


Chris.....
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I really like Andrew Zimmer as well. I do like Anthony though and will get around to reading his books one of these days. It just seemed like his stuff was so scripted.
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Andrew Zimmerman is one show I can't watch. I have no interest in what he eats.
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Check this out:-)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3xB7V...eature=related
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I enjoy Bourdains show a lot...as well as Zimmers and Man VS Food!! :-) :-)
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Another favorite clip
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mG1Ye...eature=related
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I like Anthony's and Andrews shows but I think Man vs food is the best!
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I enjoy the show.
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I like the show, however, it bugs me when he makes comments giving a lot more credit and respect to outside cultures then he does for the entire united states outside of New York.
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Eric, I should have mentioned that Zimmern did an episode in Cuba. One of my favorite shows I've ever seen on Travel, and I watch it almost every night before bed.
He was at a family's house having dinner and they had tobacco growing out back. It was so full of bug holes I wondered how they'd use it. :-)
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I'm usually entertained by Bourdain's shows. Cool places, interesting food and usually drinking involved. Less so by Zimmern. I like Man vs. Food when it came out, but it is slowly becoming less attractive to me.

That Cuba episode was cool and yes, the tobacco leaves looked horrible. :-)
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I found the Cuba episode. Some clips at least.
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I like Bourdain. Loved Kitchen Confidential. My son worked at Les Halles for a while and met him a couple times when he stopped by - said he seemed like a decent guy in person.
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I think that with either Bourdain or Zimmern, What You See is What You Get. Warts and all, abrasiveness or foppishness, coarse or refined. I would bet serious money on either, and I would be honored to hang out with either one for a week to learn, share experience and simply enjoy la joie de vivre. Both appeal to me, as I have virtually no food fear, and can appreciate anything done well, with good ingredients.
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Same here, mostly. I just enjoy Zimmern better because he comes off as a sincerely good guy. I should have said I love Bourdain's show, because I do. I watch it all the time. I'm just not crazy about him. If I had to spend a week with him, I imagine it'd end up with me wanting to smack him in the mouth for being a dick.
That's just my impression though. I do admire his work. :-)
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I just picked up a copy of Bourdains new book Medium Raw...if anyone has not read him yet, you are doing yourself a disservice.
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