The Nasty Bits: Collected Varietal Cuts, Usable Trim, Scraps, and Bones

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The Nasty Bits: Collected Varietal Cuts, Usable Trim, Scraps, and Bones

3.7 of 5 stars 3.70 · rating details · 5,891 ratings · 594 reviews

The good, the bad, and the ugly, served up Bourdain-style.

Bestselling chef and No Reservations host Anthony Bourdain has never been one to pull punches. In The Nasty Bits, he serves up a well-seasoned hellbroth of candid, often outrageous stories from his worldwide misadventures. Whether scrounging for eel in the backstreets of Hanoi, revealing what you didn't want to kno...more

Hardcover, 288 pages

Published May 16th 2006 by Bloomsbury USA (first published 2005)

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The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan

Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver

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Jan 06, 2008 Mike rated it 3 of 5 stars

Sitting home on a Saturday night reading a book has become a rather preferable way for me to spend my time lately. Perhaps I’m just getting old. So this Saturday it has come to pass that I finished the book I was reading. I just closed the back cover on “The Nasty Bits” by Anthony Bourdain. You all know who Bourdain is from his show “No Reservations” on the Travel Channel or his autobiographical “Kitchen Confidential” that I reviewed in an earlier blog. Bourdain is kind of like the punk rocker...more Sitting home on a Saturday night reading a book has become a rather preferable way for me to spend my time lately. Perhaps I’m just getting old. So this Saturday it has come to pass that I finished the book I was reading. I just closed the back cover on “The Nasty Bits” by Anthony Bourdain. You all know who Bourdain is from his show “No Reservations” on the Travel Channel or his autobiographical “Kitchen Confidential” that I reviewed in an earlier blog. Bourdain is kind of like the punk rocker of celeb-chefs…the Joey Ramone of his occupational milieu.
In “The Nasty Bits” he collects a bunch of his magazine articles and diaries and blogs from assorted places and gathers them beneath a single cover. I guess for a wider range of readers than just those who read “Gourmet” or “Food Arts”. If you liked anything else to do with Bourdain you’ll enjoy this collection. He’s the same brash, opinionated asshole (in a sense) that he is everywhere else. He goes on about how he hated Singapore and now he loves it. How he’s always had a love affair with Vietnam. He’s been hard on Emeril but in truth he loves him. And that some ridiculous sounding food craze called raw eating that is seemingly being espoused by Woody Harrelson (Why, oh why, would anyone ever take life cues from the schmuck from “Cheers” is beyond me.) is akin to the devil incarnate. There’s even a fictional cooking Christmas story to finish things off. After everything he includes comments at the end for each piece included. Just a basic explanation as to where his head was at when he wrote each piece. It gives a new insight to some of the stuff you just read.
For anyone that’s already a Bourdain fan read this book. If you’re not a fan yet, read “Kitchen Confidential” and watch a couple of episodes of “No Reservations” then read this book. Either way, get around to it. You’ll get a few new reasons to appreciate the people that cook your food and a few new reasons to appreciate the food itself.
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Jun 24, 2007 Jae rated it 1 of 5 stars Recommends it for: NO ONE

Oh, ugh. At least I got this for free. A series of "essays" by Bourdain, many recycled from various magazines where he'd published them. Actually, I started to be grateful for those, because some of those were at least readable. I liked his previous book Kitchen Confidential a lot, although I thought that his portrayal of chefs as heroes engaged in a noble war perhaps only slightly less difficult and dangerous than being in Iraq was perhaps slightly overblown. I liked the way he wrote about food...more Oh, ugh. At least I got this for free. A series of "essays" by Bourdain, many recycled from various magazines where he'd published them. Actually, I started to be grateful for those, because some of those were at least readable. I liked his previous book Kitchen Confidential a lot, although I thought that his portrayal of chefs as heroes engaged in a noble war perhaps only slightly less difficult and dangerous than being in Iraq was perhaps slightly overblown. I liked the way he wrote about food and various meals -- which is very difficult to do -- and I thought he was good at explaining how things in a kitchen worked. It's hard to find people who can write clearly and compellingly about food and also about work, and I enjoyed KC for that.

Here, there are a few articles about meals that I liked, but I found a lot of what he wrote either boring or just appalling (there was a speech that he gave at some event that he clearly intended to be Speaking Truth to Power, confronting the restaurant industry about why there are so many people of color working in kitchens but so few restauranteurs and celebrity chefs of color. In this speech, he basically says, in almost so many words, that he likes to hire certain minorities in his kitchen instead of white kids out of culinary school because the white kids demand reasonable pay and will quit if you yell at them too much or make them do things they don't want or if they get offered a better opportunity, which they will b/c of their education. So in his big I'm So Progressive speech, Bourdain basically says he likes to hire people in his kitchen who are quite skilled but have little power, few options and few connections, so they basically have to eat whatever shit he dishes out. Good job!) There's also a horrifying piece of "fiction" too.

Then at the end there's an enraging author's note where he basically says, "Hey, looking back on these essays, I realize there's a lot of rants I don't really agree with anymore and a lot of self-indulgence, etc." Which, I guess I'm glad he gets it, but did someone hold a gun to his head to put those essays in the book? Or to put out a book at all? If you realize it's shitty, early enough that you can insert an author's note to that effect, why not fix it? Or at least put the author's note in the beginning so we can be warned off.(less)

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Sep 02, 2007 Anne rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is a collection of essays directly and tangentially related to Bourdain's exploits as the chef of a fabulous restaurant in New York, and his travels around the world eating at Michelin rated venues and off-the-beaten path jewels. Bourdain's relentless rantings are often hilarious, sometimes exhausting, but always (in my opinion) entertaining. I loved his first book Kitchen Confidential, though I've never seen his television show on the Travel Network called No Reservations. I can see people...more

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Aug 17, 2009 Syndi rated it 4 of 5 stars

An entertaining read, although I feel like I've learned less about food than I'd hoped, and more about Anthony Bourdain. There have been a few laugh out loud points, and his descriptions of his travels are, in my opinion, the best essays. Quite a few of the names he refers to are of other chefs that I've never heard of, and so have lose some meaning for me in the context of the story. Overall, entertaining and a fun read.

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Jun 20, 2012 Johnathan Weston rated it 4 of 5 stars

I found this collection of short works to be interesting and entertaining if not as engaging as Kitchen Confidential. The pieces are organized according to the basic tastes (bitter, salty, sweet, sour, umami) and for the most part, the feeling of each matches the taste grouping. The subject matter is not limited to things culinary and in that respect, the book is more like the show “No Reservations.”

The flow between the various writings is at times smooth and other times choppy. This may be attr...more

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Jan 21, 2012 Ashland Mystery Oregon rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: culinary-narratives

It's almost impossible for me not to enjoy anything Bourdain writes, and The Nasty Bits is no exception. It's a collection of previously published and new, unpublished short non-fiction. The wonderful subtitle, "Collected Varietal Cuts, Usable Trim, Scraps and Bones" is clever and tempts the reader with the taste of what's to come. When I browsed the table of contents, organized by flavors (Salty, Sweet, Sour, Bitter, Umami), my salivary glands activated, I started drooling, and my reading radar...more It's almost impossible for me not to enjoy anything Bourdain writes, and The Nasty Bits is no exception. It's a collection of previously published and new, unpublished short non-fiction. The wonderful subtitle, "Collected Varietal Cuts, Usable Trim, Scraps and Bones" is clever and tempts the reader with the taste of what's to come. When I browsed the table of contents, organized by flavors (Salty, Sweet, Sour, Bitter, Umami), my salivary glands activated, I started drooling, and my reading radar intensified.

Pieces on managing Les Halles and putting out thousands of covers, the intricate intimacies of celebrity chefdom and food television, global travel and incredible foods, the jacket's right on with its "rude, funny, brutal, and passionate stew."

I find it hard to pull any one piece out for discussion, but Salty's A Life of Crime (on Bourdain's love of crime fiction and his real life experiences in the gray-black underworld) was a high point for me. I also loved the Sour piece, Notes From the Road (sick in Singapore: "My stomach is distended like a just-fed python's from an eating bing that began early in the morning...my eyes look like dark sinkholes, my skin is erupting from the tropical heat, and my guts are roiling..." Hah! I wondered how in the world he does it! and whether he ever got sick. The Woody Harellson piece from Bitter just cracked me up - the chapter's rant on vegetarianism rescued with a respectful treatment of Charlie Trotter creative cuisine.

The Commentary is a welcome finale to Bourdain's work and the back stories were just as fun to read as the chapters themselves. Sometimes providing the perspective of time and better judgement (A View From the Fridge, "Something of an apology here, to all the waiters I've been curt with or abuse to over the years" or to Robert Downey Jr. in Bottoming Out, a scathing self-criticism on Sleaze Gone By ("Who was I kidding? The bullshit meter is flashing bright red.")

Like I said, if Bourdain writes it, I'm likely to love it.

--Ashland Mystery

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Dec 02, 2011 Tom Franklin rated it 2 of 5 stars

I'm a big fan of Bourdain's KITCHEN CONFIDENTIAL and A COOK'S TOUR. In those books, Bourdain mixed his signature egomaniac writing with knife-sharp insights into his flaws as a human being, chef and foodie, not to mention humor. There was a sense of purpose to those books. He was telling a story that gave his writing a much-needed structure.

THE NASTY BITS is a collection of articles and various writings that have been taken out of context and thrown together into a book. Anecdotes and/or observa...more

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Nov 13, 2011 Laura rated it 3 of 5 stars

A misc hodge-podge of pieces that were published elsewhere, or not published at all. The range here is pretty broad - some of the pieces just evoke an experience, or a taste - they seem a little incomplete. But some are brilliant, funny travelogues, filled with restaurant recos and behind-the-scenes info for people who love food. If you're a fan of his non-fiction, it's definitely worth checking out - not as well-edited as Kitchen Confidential and not as Dishy as 'Medium Raw' (or as cohesive as...more

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Sep 25, 2011 Patrick McCoy rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: essays

I read Anthony Bourdain's most recent book Raw earlier this year and realized when researching about that book that I had missed an earlier book. Since The Nasty Bits: Collected Varietal Cuts, Useable Trim, Scraps, and Bones was a collection of short pieces I thought it would be ideal reading for my new Kindle and that proved to be true-especially when using the Whispersync function on my iPhone I could read some pieces in one sitting waiting for and catching trains. Bourdain has strong opinions...more

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Nov 27, 2010 K2 ----- rated it 3 of 5 stars

I was in a used bookshop looking to buy "Kitchen Confidential" for a friend's son who wants to be a chef and I stumbled upon this and bought it mistaking it for his newest book. Indeed it is a collection of useable trim, scraps and bones like the title states.

I have several middle-aged women friends who are just ga-ga over Bourdain---it makes me laugh. I have rarely seen his show as I'd rather read than watch TV, but I find him to be a good if gritty writer. He is a hard living egotistical sexi...more I was in a used bookshop looking to buy "Kitchen Confidential" for a friend's son who wants to be a chef and I stumbled upon this and bought it mistaking it for his newest book. Indeed it is a collection of useable trim, scraps and bones like the title states.

I have several middle-aged women friends who are just ga-ga over Bourdain---it makes me laugh. I have rarely seen his show as I'd rather read than watch TV, but I find him to be a good if gritty writer. He is a hard living egotistical sexist guy, who is also a fine word smith and I'm certain a decent chef. Because I didn't read these articles elsewhere, as some may have, I enjoyed them for the first time.

I love Asia and his writings about Asian eating particularly foods presented on a banana leaf was well-described bringing back fond memories of crowded streets and street vendors with tasty treats to share.

I presented an interview of him talking about his newest book to a friend who never misses him when he appears in Seattle who has Mick Jagger-like fantasies about the guy. "This will cure you" I told her. In the interview he continually slammed every woman chef that was mentioned and particularly liked to pick on California celebrity chef and community gardening activist Alice Waters. My woman friend said She enjoyed the interview and didn't think he was the slightest bit sexist but instead more sexy and appealing (proving that it takes all kinds).

He is an urban east coast guy, cigarette smoking, former heroine/cocaine addict, heavy drinking risk-taker, who isn't afraid to insult. I found his notes in the back of the book interesting, sort of a round up of his take on the collection piece by piece as seen from a future viewpoint. He freely admits he's on a ride of a lifetime and is milking it for what it's worth. I'm sure the offer to publish this collection of pieces he'd already been paid to publish was just too tasty to pass up. I thought the comments on Good Reads that readers were disappointed these were recycled pieces to be funny given book
s subtitle front-and-center, but in haste I bought it thinking it was the newest book so there you have it!

His hatred of vegetarians goes hand in hand for my hatred of smokers.

I enjoy reading his work but would never want to be at a table with him or his larger than life ego. (less)

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Jun 18, 2012 Arjun Mishra rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: food

Bourdain wins with me on this one. A grand slam home run, really. His first memoir/food book/diatribe/anthology, Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly drew my ire in many regards. Here, he changes the focus by actually concentrating and dividing the book into essays. This helps with organization and it also provides him with real structure. It permits him to tackle - okay, Bourdain does not tackle, he confronts head on - various topics and challenges to his lifestyle and ph...more Bourdain wins with me on this one. A grand slam home run, really. His first memoir/food book/diatribe/anthology, Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly drew my ire in many regards. Here, he changes the focus by actually concentrating and dividing the book into essays. This helps with organization and it also provides him with real structure. It permits him to tackle - okay, Bourdain does not tackle, he confronts head on - various topics and challenges to his lifestyle and philosophy. Bourdain does not have matters of indifference or insouciance; he possesses life-pouring adulation and major psychotic hatreds.

One reason I connect with this book is through an ideological congruence. I suppose that makes it easier to enjoy and read Bourdain, but I had the ideological congruence with the previous book and that failed to meet expectations. His characteristic writing style and conversational language flowed. His feelings and thoughts jumped off the page, especially when constructed polemically or in a haranguing format. An eloquent defender against something that seems to be dissipating at alarming rates - meat-eating - Bourdain again criticizes the terrorist tactics of animal rights splinter groups and approving animal rights groups (PETA). The main story is a terrorist animal rights group that threatened a chef's life in California and has threatened his family's life over their bete noire. As Bourdain points out, there is actual animal oppression occurring in the country. However, for reasons of sympathy, they can easily attack the foie gras chefs. States have been banning foie gras and it seems like I will have to journey to Montreal if I am ever to delight in this delectable dish. Culinary genius dies, diners suffer, and animal rights terrorists win essentially. I know that animal rights activists have actually murdered prominent European politicians (the Netherlands jumps to mind). While vegetarian consumption and lifestyles are on an uptick for reasons of health (totally deluded), animal cruelty (semi-deluded; there are other options: own butcher, local farm slaughtering), and general lifestyle choices (risible), meat-eating consumption has decreased. I hope that purveyors adopt better means of slaughter and distribution. However, that is no reason to assassinate chefs and threaten their families in the spirit of Bourdain's term for them, Hezbollah. This is matter of constant concern and dismay for me. Bourdain mentions that he believes foie gras will be eliminated in his lifetime. I imagine other meat dishes will disappear from restaurant tables, haute cuisine, and regular dining. This is definitely a cause that needs resistance and push from the meat-eating side.

Bourdain's travels are fascinating. You have to be willing to live vicariously through his TV budget because it allows him to eat a $500 dollar sushi meal in an exclusive New York hideout, endless courses of seafood in Japan, and perfected fried recipes in Singapore. Where Bourdain really shines in this book is explaining to the reader the real wonder of "fast food" in foreign countries. His second trip to Singapore is a testament to this. Fast food and food courts there operate how fast food really should operate. It should by small business owners and independents, not hackneyed chains serving disgusting resemblances created out of processed scraps and spraying them to appear like actual food. His descriptions make me want to travel, a prospect which rarely crosses my radar. I will have to check out his show on the Travel Chanel because he has sparked a real interest in international food and cultural perceptions of food. Hopefully American chains and businesses can learn from those cultural perceptions and incorporate them into their model of service and food.

Of course, there are also the passionate defenses of the heroes of the kitchens - Hispanic line cooks - who receive zero credit. Bourdain is adamant that they begin to receive credit. With immigration looming (I suppose it always is) is a hot-button issue with legislation, it matters for Bourdain and for restaurants. He makes sure to viciously attack some of the "personalities" on Food Network, though he is overly receptive to Bobby Flay's Las Vegas restaurant. There is no point in overspending on a meal just because the owner of the restaurant has a show on Food Network where he shows us how to make basic foods. I think that is worth keeping in mind. Seek out the best foods, not merely the famous ones. Bourdain does that, and he does it to perfection.

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Sep 24, 2012 Bookworm Smith rated it 4 of 5 stars

Bits. That is what this book is made of - Bits. Not entrails or chicken toes. Not those kind of bits. Just bits of writing. A short account of eating a seal. A page or two on where Chefs and other kitchen staff drink after hours. A few paragraphs about other books by cooks. A rather short travel log about cooking on a cruise ship. Just bits like that.

I did not find this collection much different than Kitchen Confidential or Medium Raw. Yes, Kitchen Confidential had a storyline, but, it was mostl...more Bits. That is what this book is made of - Bits. Not entrails or chicken toes. Not those kind of bits. Just bits of writing. A short account of eating a seal. A page or two on where Chefs and other kitchen staff drink after hours. A few paragraphs about other books by cooks. A rather short travel log about cooking on a cruise ship. Just bits like that.

I did not find this collection much different than Kitchen Confidential or Medium Raw. Yes, Kitchen Confidential had a storyline, but, it was mostly made up of bits like this. No argument that the stories were longer and much deeper, but, in the end they were separate stories thrown together in one book to give you a glimpse into the world of cooking. Nasty Bits is similar, it is just missing a destination.

Overall, it had that same cuss filled opinionated writing about food and food culture that I was expecting from Bourdain...and secretly craving. I'm still looking for a author who can outdo Anthony in this little niche of the literary scene. The niche I'm referring to is the attitude filled, overly profane, insult ridden, darkly humorous, yet easily readable food and/or food related (including Cookbooks) books. As of yet, I have not found anyone that can best him. But, if you know of someone please instant message me asap.

A lot of reviewers of this book seem to get a really worked up over the structure. I read complaint after complaint about how this book is hard to get into because it's choppy, disjointed...blah blah. Hello?! It implies right on the front that this book is made up of scraps, bits, etc. The preface has Bourdain explaining that he has assembled a collection of articles he wrote for magazines, bits (again with the bits) that did not make it into his other books, and a small work of fiction. Did these reviewers just forget to read the preface. First rule in book reading - Read the Preface! Skip the table of contents, but, don't ever skip the Preface.

My only complain, the same one I had with Medium Raw, is Bourdain's preoccupation with insulting the 'celebrity chef'. Come on, the Bobby Flay or Jaime Oliver bashing gets really old after a dozen go-rounds.(less)

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Aug 18, 2011 Lil' Grogan rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: food, non-fiction, collection, 3, general, humour, travel

Collection of articles written through the years: mainly opinion pieces and travelogues, with one fiction short story. Should say I've only seen his show once and stumbled across Bobby Gold years ago, so didn't really know much about Bourdain before this. Found his writing an interesting mix of the arrogant and self-deprecating, posturing and honest. It was also better than I remembered it being. Found the commentaries at the back of the book funny since they offer a more balanced view as he ref...more

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Jul 13, 2010 Terry rated it 3 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Fans of Anthony Bourdain

"The Nasty Bits" is excellent book for fans of Anthony Bourdain and his show "No Reservations". This book contains various articles that Antony has written magazines and other books. So that the first warning, there is no new original work from the author in this book. Everything is re-purposed previous works. Having said that, I had not previously read any of the material it was nice to have it all collect in one bound book.

I am a big fan of his television series so I really enjoyed the article...more

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Jan 09, 2012 Katie rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: food, journalism, humor, opinion, nonfiction, true-story

Count this as another book I randomly picked up that I ended up enjoying much more than I thought. I've never read "Kitchen Confidential," and even though I liked Bourdain on "No Reservations," I figured he was a bit of an ass and wasn't sure I'd be able to tolerate him in his writing. But Mom had this on her living room shelf, and I was without a book, so I gave it a whirl.

And yeah, Bourdain IS a bit of an ass, but totally redeems himself in his passion for food. I recently read another food bo...more

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Aug 29, 2010 PurplyCookie rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: biography-memoir

Bourdain, like the fine chef he is, pulls together an entertaining feast from the detritus of his years of cooking and traveling. Arranged around the basic tastes: salty, sweet, sour, bitter and umami (a Japanese term for a taste the defies description), this scattershot collection of anecdotes puts Bourdain's brave palate, notorious sense of adventure and fine writing on display.

From the horrifying opening passages, where he joins an Arctic family in devouring a freshly slaughtered seal, to a...more

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Apr 27, 2011 Margaret rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: essay

I can see where Anthony Bourdain would be a polarizing person - he's pompous, way too cool for school (and knows it), and lives so much better than the rest of us slobs. But... the guy is just so darned entertaining, and he writes wonderfully. So, there are the two poles: terrific intelligence and writing talent versus Major League Pomposity. Personally, I find the former to way outweigh the latter. He has an intelligent, humorous, and sarcastic, very distinctive voice, and if sardonic, over the...more

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Jul 27, 2009 okyrhoe rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: bookcrossing, food

Anthony Bourdain is always a pleasant read. Even though this book is, by his own admission, a haphazard collection of "varietal cuts, usable trim, scraps and bones" it's his force of character which comes through in the end - a man passionate about the pleasures of life - besides the culinary arts - & always willing to express his gut responses and his opinions in a brash, yet oftentimes sensitive, manner.
Because Bourdain does sincerely believe in a strong work ethic, in a dedication to doi...more

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Mar 29, 2010 Melissa rated it 2 of 5 stars

Anthony Bourdain is a lot of things for me. On one hand, he seems like a cool guy to hang out with...one that will cook you something fun while cursing good naturedly. On the other hand, "Tony" seems like an intimidating guy to hang out with...one that will drink you under the table, take you to a back alley somewhere, and drop the c-bomb casually in conversation. While I like his honesty, I felt like the book was a little ADD. I didn't really understand the point of each story or if they relate...more

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Feb 28, 2009 Sydney rated it 5 of 5 stars

I cannot help but like this guy. I know he is self-important, crude, etc...but I just love the way he writes. This is a collection of some prior-published articles along with some other musings he has written along the way but never published. He writes about his fascination with gangsters (the old school kind), the food industry, his recent travels, and his love of New York City. He is no longer the chef that wrote Kitchen Confidential, no longer a working-class guy who hasn't paid his rent on...more

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Mar 12, 2012 kimberly rated it 3 of 5 stars

if you read this book - READ THE COMMENTARY AT THE END WHILE READING THE ARTICLES.

this one took me a bit to get into.

having read both kitchen confidential and medium raw, this book felt so... disjointed. i'd end each chapter/article and come to a SCREECHING HALT - it was like hitting a wall of blank space. uh, that was it? that was the article? excruciating!!!

maybe by the middle (or when i read 'my manhattan'), it started getting a little better. 'my manhattan' felt kind of personal, like a lett...more

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Jan 12, 2011 Jacob rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: nonfiction-general

I loved this book just like I love everything I've read or watched so far from Bourdain. He has an unmistakable voice, although I never seen to hear the voice in from the No Reservations voiceovers. This is strange because David Sedaris, who's voice narrates every essay and short story of his when I read them, is another writer with a favored voice. You'd think the No Reservations Tony would transfer as easily as the NPR David.

Oh well.

My main complaint here is that I would have liked dates or so...more

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Aug 08, 2008 Smokinjbc rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Fans of Bourdain

Recommended to Smokinjbc by: Goodreads

Shelves: booksthatdontsuck

I really enjoyed most of this book, especially the opener "System D" article. The short story at the end never hooked me in very well but everything else was a witty, interesting exchange between cynicism and a strong passion for food and life.

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Oct 28, 2010 Jackie Farmer rated it 4 of 5 stars

For fans of his show and previous works, this book is a fun read. With each chapter acting as its own story, this book is great for people who do not have a lot of time to read.
I can understand how Bourdain's brutally honest way of talking can be shocking to first time readers, but that is my favorite part of his style. His opinions are never sugar coated but at the same time, he is honest enough to know that his opinion is not fact. The last few pages of the book are dedicated to his comment...more

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May 08, 2009 Angel rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: fans of Bourdain, food writing readers, travel readers

Shelves: commentary-and-opinion, foods-and-epicurious

This was an excellent reading experience. If you have read Bourdain before, then you know what you are getting. If not, this book makes an excellent entry point into his writing. He writes in a direct, honest style; he is very conversational. The work reads as if he was there sitting with you telling all those stories of places visited around the world, cooks and chefs he has met, and what he has learned along the way. He has a good eye for detail, and his descriptions just make you long to be t...more This was an excellent reading experience. If you have read Bourdain before, then you know what you are getting. If not, this book makes an excellent entry point into his writing. He writes in a direct, honest style; he is very conversational. The work reads as if he was there sitting with you telling all those stories of places visited around the world, cooks and chefs he has met, and what he has learned along the way. He has a good eye for detail, and his descriptions just make you long to be there, wherever there happens to be. This is a collection of his short works, organized in broad themes ("bitter," "sweet" etc.). So you can read it through, or you can pick and choose. This book will make you want to travel, and it certainly will make you want to seek out some better food fare at the closest hole in the wall place you can find.

Some of the passages I enjoyed include: his look at the celebrity chef phenomenon, the story of the celebrity chef he would like to see (very unlike anything on TV), the story of cook Hamilton (the hardcore cook), eating in China where "everybody pays tomorrow" but they come back anyways the next day (my kind of food, hehe), oh, and reading about Chef Ferra was also very cool. But he also expresses other opinions such as on caning in Singapore (which is a great foodie place, by the way). He has a small piece on how to behave in restaurants that I think should be mandatory reading for anyone who needs to learn some basic manners. In the end, Bourdain combines passion with open mindedness and, this I admire, a respect for the cultures and places he visits that I find moving, interesting, entertaining, and informational; I feel I learned a lot just from this book about all sorts of places. By the way, he also includes a sampling of his fiction (I did not know he wrote fiction; nice, but I like his nonfiction better), and at the end, there are some commentaries on some of the essays. These small commentaries are kind of like the extras on a DVD, giving some further insights. This is a book I highly recommend. To those readers who have gentle dispositions, Bourdain does use some language here and there, but don't let that deter you. This is definitely a book worth reading. (less)

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Jul 09, 2008 Diane rated it 4 of 5 stars

I love Anthony Bourdain. He's acerbic, smart, unafraid of exotic foods and customs, plus he loves to diss celebrity chefs and vegans. (though he'll retract his disdain when face-to-face with the attacked...)

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Aug 14, 2011 Jesse Decker rated it 4 of 5 stars

This compilation of essays and articles was a strong comeback from the mediocre Medium Raw. Organized by tone, the short pieces flow together nicely. Bourdain mostly avoids food porn and layers in plenty of insight into eclectic styles of food and places to eat. It's a fast read and the short nature of each piece makes it great to read in fragments. If you bus or train to work, it's a great choice to read while commuting. I like Bourdain's prose, especially when he's voicing strongly held opinio...more

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Dec 01, 2010 MsSmartiePants ...like the candy... rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I love Anthony Bourdain. I love the way he writes, the way he is brutally honest about his own shortcomings, the foibles and habits of those engaged in the profession of serving fabulous food, the stories about obscure cultures and their unheard of (to Americans) foods. He's brave, bold, sometimes foul-mouthed, controversial but honest about his opinions and experiences.

Some condemn him for his arrogance. I don't view him as arrogant. I view him as refreshingly honest and confident about his own...more

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Mar 28, 2009 Toby rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: adult

I liked Anthony Bourdain when I picked up his first book Kitchen Confidential. I liked his second book, No Reservations, about his travels around the world to find perfect food. But this collection of short essays doesn't seem to have an organizing principle that pulls them together. He does talk about a lot of food, waxing eloquent about things like, well, the varietal cuts, trim, and scraps of the title but none of it is appealing. I think the whole theme of the book can be expressed in one st...more

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Aug 05, 2010 tina added it

yes-i liked this too. and i recommend it for anyone who is going on vacation. if you read this on vacation, you will decidedly eat better while you're away. my favorite essay was one written when mr. bourdain was on an island in sicily, where i happened to be when i read it. it was as unrestrained as the big cliff dive at the end. the best thing about this book were the comments at the end. bourdain wrote reflections on his publications, which were confessional and enlightening. i'm jealous of t...more

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About Anthony Bourdain

Anthony Bourdain is the author of the novels Bone in the Throat and Gone Bamboo, in addition to the megabestsellers Kitchen Confidential and A Cook’s Tour.
His work has appeared in the New York Times and the New Yorker, and he is a contributing authority for Food Arts magazine. He is the host of the popular television show No Reservations.

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Books by Anthony Bourdain

Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly

Medium Raw: A Bloody Valentine to the World of Food and the People Who Cook

A Cook's Tour: Global Adventures in Extreme Cuisines

Anthony Bourdain's Les Halles Cookbook: Stategies, Recipes, and Techniques of Classic Bistro Cooking

No Reservations: Around the World on an Empty Stomach

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“Travel changes you. As you move through this life and this world you change things slightly, you leave marks behind, however small. And in return, life - and travel - leaves marks on you. Most of the time, those marks - on your body or on your heart - are beautiful. Often, though, they hurt.” — 122 people liked it

“It’s an irritating reality that many places and events defy description. Angkor Wat and Machu Picchu, for instance, seem to demand silence, like a love affair you can never talk about. For a while after,you fumble for words, trying vainly to assemble a private narrative, an explanation, a comfortable way to frame where you’ve been and whats happened. In the end, you’re just happy you were there- with your eyes open- and lived to see it.” — 7 people liked it

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The Nasty Bits: Collected Varietal Cuts, Usable Trim, Scraps, and Bones

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