Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations Seasons 1-5

[GordonCooks]

I like to watch because he does exactly what I would do in those locales. Where else (or how else) are you going to see the kitchen at Etxebarri.

[pogophiles]

I know you are all in denial here

Yes, but that is appropriate since he was in Egypt last episode...

[hungryCAT]

I know you are all in denial here, because there is some unexplainable worship of Bourdain, but all of the shows are very shallow and not very informative.  He has fallen into the celebrity trap where he believes that his snarky comments is the story and he fails to be able to see the incredible opportunity that he has.  What  a wasted opportunity

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Huh?

Apparently, you haven't even seen the Spain and Tokyo (I have not yet seen

the Egypt show, so I cannot comment on that one), 'cos these were two of the

most sensitively done programs Tony has done. Snarky? hmmmmmm . . .

As far as 'all of the shows' being 'shallow and not very informative', nothing

could be further from the truth.

[Claudia Greco]

Ummmm . . . this board is the No Reservations board, where one could reasonably expect fans of the show to post comments. It's not about hero worship or sycophancy - we just like the show, find it entertaining and (to a point) educational. Occasionally, there is also criticism of an episode. What I can never understand, MitchBill, is why readers like you would bother to expend the energy insulting fans of the show on a board specifically set up so we can exchange comments and POV. I think it less a matter of us being "in denial" than you subscribing to the wrong board, perhaps.

[lala]

Been catching reruns...

I wish he had gone deeper in the Southwest show - WHY are there labor problems in harvesting the peppers in that town? He mentioned Ted Nugent's right wing views, but didn't really explore them.

Loved the Spain Show. I want to go right now!

[BeeZee]

I really enjoy the show...but it is about traveling around to experience the culture of food. I found the bit with Nugent and rifles a bit self-indulgent, since that was really just about blowing up things. Bowhunting as it relates to procuring your own food is one thing, shooting a rifle into a hanging bottle of explosives is just about blowing stuff up. Yes, there was a part of that segment about food, but the theme of giving Tony automatic weapons for amusement seems to be recurring a bit more than I'd like. There was so much more interesting stuff he could have explored in the SW show and he just skipped it.

[RAHiggins1]

I really enjoy the show...but it is about traveling around to experience the culture of food. I found the bit with Nugent and rifles a bit self-indulgent, since that was really just about blowing up things. Bowhunting as it relates to procuring your own food is one thing, shooting a rifle into a hanging bottle of explosives is just about blowing stuff up. Yes, there was a part of that segment about food, but the theme of giving Tony automatic weapons for amusement seems to be recurring a bit more than I'd like. There was so much more interesting stuff he could have explored in the SW show and he just skipped it.

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Its a big country, He's got 40 minutes or so of playtime in a week. Hopefully, AB will continue discovering what's great about rural america.

[Kevin72]

I could've sworn that this season he was going to do a show about and in San Francisco. Did I miss it? Am I wrong?

[Tri2Cook]

So in the Spain episode (which was incredible and inspirational) during the Albert Adria segment Chef Adria tells him what's in the mix that he aerates and microwaves for the sponge. I caught almond flour, sugar and egg white but couldn't quite make out the first ingredient he named. Did anybody happen to catch it?

[Toufas]

So in the Spain episode (which was incredible and inspirational) during the Albert Adria segment Chef Adria tells him what's in the mix that he aerates and microwaves for the sponge. I caught almond flour, sugar and egg white but couldn't quite make out the first ingredient he named. Did anybody happen to catch it?

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yogurt

[Tri2Cook]

Thanks!

[Claudia Greco]

My gorilla was too tired to focus on that (!) But the gorilla DID notice, watching NR reruns yesterday, that Tony has a new show on Travel Channel - At the Table With Anthony Bourdain, starting Monday 10/20. This week's guests are Ted Allen, Chris Wilson NY Post Page 6 columnist), Bill Buford and Amy Sacco of Bungalow 8.

[Margo]

Claudia, I saw that too and can't figure out if it's a one-off or a whole season's worth of dinners? And Amy Sacco?

[Claudia Greco]

Claudia, I saw that too and can't figure out if it's a one-off or a whole season's worth of dinners? And Amy Sacco? 

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Yeah, I'm going to have to check the TC site -

[tsquare]

From Tony's blog - perhaps this qualifies as a "special":

"In the interim between seasons, there will be some "specials" from time to time--stand-alone projects and ongoing mini-series-within-a series on various food and travel themes."

[Margo]

And here's a more expansive blog entry. Apparently the guests were selected for their expertise in high-end restaurants. And WD-50 is a restaurant Bourdain respects and finds "intensely interesting." And in his opinion, he comes off as a drunk John McLaughlin. So maybe it's not a shark-jumping escapade.

Edited October 17, 2008 by Margo (log)

[RAHiggins1]

And here's a more expansive blog entry. Apparently the guests were selected for their expertise in high-end restaurants. And WD-50 is a restaurant Bourdain respects and finds "intensely interesting." And in his opinion, he comes off as a drunk John McLaughlin. So maybe it's not a shark-jumping escapade.   

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AB Blog said - "No. It's not a new series.

And no. I'm not suffering from some kind of weird, late-in-life, delusional Arsenio-esque urges . Monday night's AT THE TABLE thing is a one-off (or maybe a two or three-off) idea where I get to sit down, talk about a lot of pretty obscure, insider food and travel-related issues with some opinionated friends--and at the same time--eat for free at a restaurant I respect and find intensely interesting. We may repeat may do a couple more down the road--locally based and with local chefs and guests in other cities, but this does not signify some strange new direction."

Which is really a shame, cause I enjoy his critiques immensly. It turns out Tony's a damn fine food critic who unlike some has earned respect and notoriety in his industry as such. I would completely freak if he had a plate I did in front of him.

Edited October 17, 2008 by RAHiggins1 (log)

[Kevin72]

I like the idea too. Harkens back to when FTV first started, when they had a restaurant talkshow on in primetime where critics would discuss hot trends and have notable chefs on, etc.

[jsmeeker]

My gorilla was too tired to focus on that (!)  But the gorilla DID notice, watching NR reruns yesterday, that Tony has a new show on  Travel Channel - At the Table With Anthony Bourdain, starting Monday 10/20.  This week's guests are Ted Allen, Chris Wilson NY Post Page 6 columnist), Bill Buford and Amy Sacco of Bungalow 8.

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I tried to find this new show on my TiVo, but couldn't. After poking around a bit, I noticed Travel Channel is listing this as an episode of "No Reservations" This seems to mesh up with ABs comments that someone posted above.

So, if you can't find a listing for a new show name, don't fret. Look for it as an episode of NR.

[BSmith]

I've been following Bourdain for nearly ten years now, and I love nearly everything he's done, but this "talk show" is setting off my pretentiousness meter already.

I hate to say it, but I think all the money he's made has changed him for the worse. Remember the episode of No Reservations where he bought a vintage Hawaiian shirt for several thousand dollars?

I don't want to see him with a table of, well, frankly, wannabe celebrities, talking about subjects like "Is it morally wrong to spend $1800 on sushi?" This is the question the king asks the pauper only to get a blank stare, when he knew it was going to be the response in the first place. (Note: If you've got the money, by all means, spend what it sells for, I'm a capitalist. Just expect people to look funny when you tell them about it.)

Edited October 21, 2008 by BSmith (log)

[purplewiz]

I watched the show because I always enjoy listening to Ted Allen. Some of the topics had the potential to be interesting, but they were, as a rule, cut off too quickly.

The biggest thing I took away from this show is that I'm grateful I don't live in NY.

Marcia.

[docsconz]

I loved the meal that was served and some of the banter, however, I thought it was a very self-conscious version of the much better and more fun After Hours with Daniel.

[mexigaf]

Absolutely doc I was thinking the same thing as I was watching the episode. It just didn't bite my interest. Maybe it's because this type of discussion has been done by Tony plenty of times and I can pretty much guess what's going to be discussed.

I think that After Hours does better by making the main subject the collaboration of the restaurants identity and Daniel's classic cooking. In this episode of No Res there were plenty of incredibly interesting plates but little explanation of the techniques and preparations used.

In case someone hasn't seen this show. http://www.hulu.com/after-hours-with-daniel

Edited October 21, 2008 by mexigaf (log)

[lala]

The questions were lame, and it really seemed stilted. Everyone was too self concious about the camera. And the answers were off -

Why is food tv gaining more male viewers? - well, Rachel Ray and Giada Delaurentis falling out of their shirts, perhaps?

Claiming that people are cooking more - well, up until this financial crisis, no, they weren't. The glamour was in having the nice kitchen, not using it. Food tv is entertainment, not education.

Last meal - Tony obviously expected more interesting answers than Mom's spaghetti and fried chicken.

It didn't really get rolling until the last 15 minutes, then it was cut off. They should have started filming midway through the meal, when everyone was more relaxed and had a few glasses of wine.

It also seemed disrespectful to the food. Their attention was split. If I were eating at WD50, I'd want to pay more attention to the food than talk.

[Jon Savage]

I thought this episode fell flat.