Arguably one of the most famous yet controversial chefs of our time, celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain is considered by many the “bad boy” of the kitchen for his excessive lifestyle and culinary skill. He caught the attention of media and foodies around the world when he published his first book, Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly. The book served as a memoir of his culinary experiences as well as the hidden aspects of being in the culinary field. He describes how his love for food was ignited in France, when he ate oysters while on vacation with his family. Immediately after that, Anthony Bourdain was a cult celebrity, sought by many who couldn’t resist his mouthwatering recipes and admired his techniques in the kitchen.
Since then, he has appeared in numerous cooking shows, but today hosts his own show in the Travel Channel’s No Reservations. On the show, he trots various locations around the world, even those not regularly frequented by tourists, on the quest for unique and exotic culinary experiences. He has had very notable episodes, such as eating sheep testicles while in Morocco, fermented shark in Iceland, warthog rectum in Namibia, and the beating heart of a cobra in Vietnam.
Anthony Bourdain’s culinary training began when he was working at restaurants in Provincetown. The experience sparked an interest for a culinary career, which he later pursued at the Culinary Institute of America. He graduated in 1978, and worked the various levels upwards the ladder to becoming a chef. Anthony Bourdain worked as a dishwasher, did preparation, up until he became a sous chef and then finally, chef. With more than 20 years of experience under his belt, Anthony Bourdain’s experience includes running the kitchens of some of New York’s most famous restaurants including the Supper Club, Sullivan’s, and One Fifth Avenue.
Apart from being a world-renowned chef, Anthony Bourdain is also a great writer. He has written fiction books, namely Bone in the Throat, Gone Bamboo, and Bobby Gold. His other non-fiction books include A Cook’s Tour, Typhoid Mary: An Urban Historical, Anthony Bourdain’s Les Halles Cookbook, The Nasty Bits, and No Reservations. The talented chef and writer has also written essays for The Times, The Independent, The New York Times, and The New Yorker, among others. The controversial chef gained even more attention with Don’t Eat Before Reading This, an expose on New York restaurants, which he published in 1999.
Today, Anthony Bourdoin has garnered several awards, including Food Writer of the Year by Bon Apetit Magazine, while his book A Cook’s Tour was awarded Food Book of the Year. One episode of his show No Reservations was filmed in Beirut during the height of the conflict with Israel, and was nominated an Emmy for Outstanding International Programming. He has cooked for celebrities around the world, being the executive chef of Les Halles today.
