The Nasty Bits: Collected Varietal Cuts, Useable Trim, Scraps, and Bones
by Anthony Bourdain
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I've never watched any of his TV shows (save a glimpse of an interview clip on the Internet), nor read any of his books other than Confidential Kitchen. My impressons after reading Confidential Kitchen? An interesting read, no-nonsense contents, very bold and with a choice of spicy expressions. Needles to say, his writing loudly describes his personality; a typical "Bourdain" style. Having enjoyed reading that book, I eagerly took The Nasty Bits off its shelf at Waterstone's not so lon...more
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Read in January, 2006
I was not going to write my own review after commenting on Tita's review on the same subject. But my big mouth wouldn't let me as it has not had its fair share of yapping. So here it is.
I started reading with feeling of boredom. The bad boy is here again, rambling on about how chefs are like. Didn't he do that already in Kitchen Confidential? However, his poking and prodding on each chosen topics are so ruthlessly albeit comically done that I had to swallow my grudge and read on.
I could ...more
I started reading with feeling of boredom. The bad boy is here again, rambling on about how chefs are like. Didn't he do that already in Kitchen Confidential? However, his poking and prodding on each chosen topics are so ruthlessly albeit comically done that I had to swallow my grudge and read on.
I could ...more
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Read in January, 2007
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 ...more
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Read in September, 2007
recommends it for:
Foodies, anyone interested in behind-the-scenes of the cooking industry and travel/cuisine shows
I had read Bourdain's Kitchen Confidential some time ago and really enjoyed his passion for cooking as well as his pulling back the covers to have a look at the seedy side of the industry. Although I really enjoy cooking for people I care about and have fun entertaining guests, this book helped to reaffirm my gut feeling years ago that having to cook for a living wouldn't be the right path for me...
Anyway, I was happy to see...more
Anyway, I was happy to see...more
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Read in December, 2007
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 o...more
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Read in August, 2007
In this rather far-reaching collection of articles Bourdain has had published, mostly in magazines, nary a topic is taboo. He lashes out at obese people, rude diners, legislation against foie gras...even Woody Harrelson.
But on the other side of that coin, we get to see a different version of Tony Bourdain, that is to say someone other than the highly opinionated and routinely snarky persona he usually portrays. He provides ample evidence not only that he is a good writer, but a chef who trul...more
But on the other side of that coin, we get to see a different version of Tony Bourdain, that is to say someone other than the highly opinionated and routinely snarky persona he usually portrays. He provides ample evidence not only that he is a good writer, but a chef who trul...more
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Read in June, 2007
Anthony Bourdain would not like me. I'm a Billy Joel-listening vegetarian. He expresses deep disdain for vegetarians (and for Billy Joel!). Were Bourdain and I to visit a restaurant together, he'd roll his eyes in disbelief at how I choose to miss out on the dining experiences he describes in beautiful detail.
Maybe it's living vicariously, then, or perhaps it's a streak of masochism in my personality, but I love reading Bourdain's stuff. Read Kitchen Confidential first. Get to know Bo...more
Maybe it's living vicariously, then, or perhaps it's a streak of masochism in my personality, but I love reading Bourdain's stuff. Read Kitchen Confidential first. Get to know Bo...more
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Read in September, 2007
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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recommends it for:
cooks,fun people,girls that just want to have fun
Any book that is dedicated to Johnny,Joey and Dee Dee, and is not about the Ramones or music in anyway is off to a good start.Next page-seal hunting. What next? More classic Bourdain. I love reading his stuff because it brings up a lot of memories. When he talks about restaurants I've eaten in, I think of times I was there,from California to New Orleans.When he mentions a bunch of Emeril's cooks drinking after work,I remember shooting pool with probably those same cooks,and making fun of them fo...more
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Read in June, 2008
This book is a collection of previously published articles, written for a variety of magazines, from Gourmet to some (unnamed) British travel mag. If you've watched any of Bourdain's TV series, or read any of his previous books, you already have a sense of what this is like. Bourdain has a consistent voice and attitude (sarcastic working-class New Yorker), and as expected, brings it here to bear, for the most part, on food, travel, and the restaurant trade.
The collection is a bit uneven, bu...more
The collection is a bit uneven, bu...more
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If you’ve ever seen him on TV, read one of his seven books, or eaten at his restaurant, you know that he really loves food. At least as much as me. Maybe even more?
In fact, the guy is a little bit nuts. And probably not particularly nice. But, he is clearly in touch with his passion and I love him for that.
I just finished his latest book, “The Nasty Bits: Collected Varietal Cuts, Usable Trim, Scraps, and Bones,” which is a collection of short stories, published and unpublished es...more
In fact, the guy is a little bit nuts. And probably not particularly nice. But, he is clearly in touch with his passion and I love him for that.
I just finished his latest book, “The Nasty Bits: Collected Varietal Cuts, Usable Trim, Scraps, and Bones,” which is a collection of short stories, published and unpublished es...more
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for reasons i would be hard pressed to explain, i adore anthony bourdain. he's bossy, crass and kind of hypocritical...but he's an excellent writer, astute and frequently hilarious.
this book lost a star because i suspect that his publishers told him to stop being such a bitch about other celebrity chefs--so there's a lot of placating asides in there (along the lines of "emeril is a gibbon, but his staff really love him!" etc) which feel sort of out of character.
this does not, h...more
this book lost a star because i suspect that his publishers told him to stop being such a bitch about other celebrity chefs--so there's a lot of placating asides in there (along the lines of "emeril is a gibbon, but his staff really love him!" etc) which feel sort of out of character.
this does not, h...more
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Read in March, 2008
I basically like this jackass against my will, because he's good at describing what it's like to eat gross stuff so that I shall never have to. But I draw the line at the last entry, which is fiction called "A Chef's Christmas." Really, Tony? What happens, he shoots up and then canes Santa Singapore-style because he eats cookies instead of tete de veau? So if "A Chef's Christmas" is the unifying pinnacle of this "I already wrote it so why not publish it again?" ...more
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Read in March, 2008
Devoured it over a weekend! Anthony Bourdain's compilation of his musings is titled "The Nasty Bits," but I think these tidbits give you a wonderful taste of his writing style. He admits that his ruminations are sometimes overly testosteroned and hostile, but I respect his candor and frankness regardless. If you can stand a generous peppering of less-than-couth words and phrases, then you'll love this book.
It's a super fast read (most chapters are only a few pages), and like a nic...more
It's a super fast read (most chapters are only a few pages), and like a nic...more
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Read in July, 2007
recommends it for:
anyone interested in food and/or travel.
The Nasty Bits is collection of essays written over the past several years - mostly dealing with food & traveling, but Bourdain also takes a swipe at "celebrity chefs", reminisces about the Good Old Bad New York and writes a rather charming Christmas story. The essays are gathered into 5 sections - Salty, Sweet, Sour, Bitter and Umami - with the short story at the end.
Bourdain pulls no punches & is still rather rough around the edges, tho part of me wonders how much of it ...more
Bourdain pulls no punches & is still rather rough around the edges, tho part of me wonders how much of it ...more
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Has a copy to sell/swap
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Read in November, 2007
recommends it for:
foodies, cooks, and writers
As a writer and a person who loves to cook, I found this collection of essays wonderful. Sure, it didn't have the flow to it that Kitchen Confidential did, but these are essays, written at different points of his career for very different publications (and he explains the context of each piece in the back of the book). I think one measure of a good writer in the newspaper and magazine medium is being able to adapt your writing to the audience. And I believe he does this very well. Sure, the Fea...more
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Read in May, 2008
I'm a big fan of Anthony Bourdain. I'm incredibly jealous of the life he gets to lead. This book is a prime example of why. First off, it is nothing more than a collection of previously published articles. Way to cash in. Second, and probably more importantly, is that in these articles he chronicles amazing meals, exotic locations and drunken adventures. This is a quick read, good for the bus or the bathroom, as it is split into easily digestable "bits" that don't have to be read in or...more
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Read in April, 2008
recommends it for:
anyone who loves food - and a goodhearted smartass
Anthony Bourdain is what he is. He's smart (though mostly just a smart ass), funny, self-assured, and a damn good writer. Half the foods he describes aren't foods I'd ever want to eat, but it's not the food so much as the experience that makes the food what it is. It's not that you are eating blubber from a freshly killed seal, it's that you are sitting on the floor with an Inuit family and Grandma is letting you have some of the best parts. It's not that you're eating a $300 dinner and have n...more
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recommended to Briana by:
Molly
Ok, so I started out not really knowing if I was going to enjoy this book or not. I thought Bourdain was an opinionated snob. Then it grew on me. I started to laugh out loud. I started to associate w/ the experiences from my years working in a restaurant. I began to really like him and the stories. My mouth watered; my mind wandered to exotic places. Now I can’t put it down. It’s great for anyone who is passionate about food, travel or both. It it a constant reminder to me to practice mindf...more
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Read in August, 2008
I picked this up after seeing someone on my newsfeed was reading it; Bourdain is one of my favorite celebrity chefs, and I've always loved his point of view of the entire industry, from dishwashing to celebrity chefs to the food itself.
This book is a collection of articles Bourdain has written, and a fictional story to top it off. The articles are educational, darkly hilarious, insightful, and fascinating. The fictional story, however, falls short--he does not do happy endings well; his fort...more
This book is a collection of articles Bourdain has written, and a fictional story to top it off. The articles are educational, darkly hilarious, insightful, and fascinating. The fictional story, however, falls short--he does not do happy endings well; his fort...more
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