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Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations Seasons 1-5

Louisa Chu

By Louisa Chu
in Food Media & Arts

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Jason Perlow

Jason Perlow

Posted
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I love that 72 Eldo. What a gorgeous automobile.

The next time I am in Vegas I will definitely take in Bouchon.

Great to see Ruhlman in his element, although I think the preppie look suits him better.

Jason Perlow, Co-Founder eGullet Society for Culinary Arts & Letters

Foodies who Review South Florida (Facebook) | offthebroiler.com - Food Blog (archived) | View my food photos on Instagram

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Behemoth

Behemoth

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Finally got around to cleaning out TiVo. The Sicily episode was very good, so good in fact that I ended up watching the Vegas episode as it was finishing taping. Did he really meet those people for the first time at the bar? For the first time I could actually imagine wanting to go to Vegas.

Yes, it does seem like the show is hitting it's stride. Actually, I think what I liked about both these episodes, as well as the Jersey one, is that he (or in any case his audience) starts off with one set of preconceptions about a place, and over the course of the show uncovers something much more nuanced and interesting. Something you really don't see very often in any other travel shows, but has always been for me the most rewarding part of travelling. Nice job.

FoodMan

FoodMan

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Wow! Mesa Grill! I sure did not see that coming. So how does that work Tony? Is Flay involved in any shape or form in granting access to the film crew?

I also loved the Bouchon scenes and the food. Tony admiting two things in the same episode, Bouchon's fries are the best and a Flay restaurant in Vegas serves good food. Precious.

I was not too crazy about the accordion piece or the poker game. Felt like just filler.

Was Tony really writing an article about Vegas restaurants? For who? Is it out yet?

Ok, enough questions...back to work.

E. Nassar
Houston, TX

My Blog
contact: enassar(AT)gmail(DOT)com

VeryApe77

VeryApe77

Posted
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Was Tony really writing an article about Vegas restaurants? For who? Is it out yet?

It's in this months (or was it last months?) issue of Gourmet. The one with Emeril on the front cover.

ronnie_suburban

ronnie_suburban

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. . . Was Tony really writing an article about Vegas restaurants? For who? Is it out yet?

Yes. The piece appears in the October issue of Gourmet (page 206). It's a "dual" piece with Tony and Caroline Bates each writing reviews of the same places. Neither writer knew about the other -- and the pieces appear side by side in the issue.

=R=

"Hey, hey, careful man! There's a beverage here!" --The Dude, The Big Lebowski

LTHForum.com -- The definitive Chicago-based culinary chat site

ronnie_suburban 'at' yahoo.com

Foodie-Girl

Foodie-Girl

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RE: The Las Vegas episode. Geez, poor Tony was SO out of his element...it was almost painful to watch his suffering.

The Travel Channel better stick to what Tony does best...explore the world on his terms and forget about 'theme park' locations. His distaste for Vegas was palpable in most every scene.

Edited by Foodie-Girl (log)
purplewiz

purplewiz

Posted
Posted (edited)

The Las Vegas episode taught me something important:

I can get a deep fried Twinkie in Las Vegas any time.

This is important because deep fried Twinkies are on my top 10 list of foods I want to try before I die. Our state fair, which I thought was my only chance of trying one, is extraordinarily inconveniently timed for me - I missed it AGAIN this year. I have been wondering if I'll ever be able to knock this one off the list and fill that spot with something less embarrassing. Now I know there's hope.

Who says that TV isn't educational?

Marcia.

who does not want to make a steady diet of such things, but dammit, she wants to TRY it.

Edited by purplewiz (log)

Don't forget what happened to the man who suddenly got everything he wanted...he lived happily ever after. -- Willy Wonka

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LindaJ

LindaJ

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Next time I'm in Vegas, I'm hitting up Peppermill's Fireside Lounge. I love me a good girlie drink. That is just the best tip on a place in Vegas that I've ever heard. I am so in Bourdain's debt.

inny

inny

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Finally caught this episode...

Not my favorite of the bunch, but you can't beat Bourdain and Ruhlman doing Thompson (unless they're bitch-slapping each other in a thread here). Vegas has never been a destination for me, so I probably over-identified with Bourdain's perspective. Seeing Washington Square in mini form was heartbreaking. I hugged my NYU t-shirt and wept.

Maybe it's just me, but I found this more painful than the pig-killing in Malaysia. Interestingly enough, I'd lay odds that Bourdain did too.

Anna

------

"I brought you a tuna sandwich. They say it's brain food. I guess because there's so much dolphin in it, and you know how smart they are." -- Marge Simpson

Genny

Genny

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I caught this and liked parts a lot, other parts, well, not so much. I did chuckled at the fried twinkie. AB: "Disgusting." blows off powdered sugar and takes another huge bite. :biggrin:

I'm still having a hard time envisioning MR as twisted, hardened and sadistic as described in the opening. He looks like such a farm boy! Those two really have to be considered among the great comedy duos. They should have their own show, almost like The Odd Couple but twisted :blink::wub:

Oh! And "I'm a loser baby so why don't you kill me" Jayzus! One of my favorite songs of all time!!!!!! Just cracked my ass up!

Michael Ruhlman

Michael Ruhlman

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I'm still having a hard time envisioning MR as twisted, hardened and sadistic as described in the opening.  He looks like such a farm boy!  :blink:  :wub:

Thank you. I AM a total suburban farm boy. swear to god. tony's people called me, yes, he has people, said tony would like to apologize for all the bad blood, was flying me out first class to have dinner in vegas, everything would be totally comped and the next thing i know, i'm trashed, in polyester hawaiian shirt and driving through the dessert. really got to hand it to his pharmacist. I can't say i wasn't happy during. but i felt really lucky to be bolting the moronic inferno when I did. and i have no idea where those cigarettes came from. when i walk by her, my young daughter, who saw the show whle i was away, is still looking at me with narrowed eyes. I'll settle the score. I still have those tapes from the post-Masa debauch. And a book coming out in may.

inny

inny

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I was wondering which one was Fear and which one was Loathing... now we know. :wink:

Anna

------

"I brought you a tuna sandwich. They say it's brain food. I guess because there's so much dolphin in it, and you know how smart they are." -- Marge Simpson

john b

john b

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The AB/MR tag team deserves its own show. My Dinner with Tony??

John

"I can't believe a roasted dead animal could look so appealing."--my 10 year old upon seeing Peking Duck for the first time.

MHarney

MHarney

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Parts of the Uzbekistan episode were strangely reminiscent of some other TV show...

"It may have moved, I don't know."

"You didn't dance, did you?"

The crunching added (I assume) to the underground torture chamber footage was quite effective.

Edited by MHarney (log)

Mike Harney

"If you're afraid of your food, you're probably not digesting it right because your stomach is all crunched up in fear. So you'll end up not being well."

- Julia Child

"There's no reason to say I'm narrow-minded. Just do it my way and you will have no problem at all."

- KSC Pad Leader Guenter Wendt

inny

inny

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We've seen the funny hat, and now dancing... 2 down, karaoke to go...

Great installment overall - good mix of history and culture, great looking food, and lots of fun. Two instances of Tony-torture? Good tv.

Ruhlman may be the perfect tv foil for Bourdain, but Zamir seems to be the perfect partner in crime. Impishly wicked sense of humor.

The crunching added (I assume) to the underground torture chamber footage was quite effective.

Indeed. It looked painful enough, but the sound editors really came through.

The previews for the NZ show? Ouch! I'd read about the rollover in a Q&A somewhere, but wow. And ouch.

Anna

------

"I brought you a tuna sandwich. They say it's brain food. I guess because there's so much dolphin in it, and you know how smart they are." -- Marge Simpson

elfin

elfin

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The show brought back memories of Uzbek cuisine and culture during our travels. 10 and 15 years ago we were there (Tashkent, Samarkand and Bokkhara) and the food universally sucked. Bad Russian pivo, awful hotel food in lieu of scarey food stalls and vodka. And those time warp discos did not have the belly dancers but rather , ahem- you know. Great show.

What disease did cured ham actually have?

Megan sandwich: White bread, Miracle Whip and Italian submarine dressing. {Megan is 4 y.o.}

Busboy

Busboy

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Posted

Finally got the Travel Channel in DC. Not a bad show for a Monday night.

If you looked quick during the credits, you could see that the "Crib Salesman" did indeed get an executive producer credit for the show (as promised during bartering over the cost of the crib).

I'd watch it again just for that.

I'm on the pavement

Thinking about the government.

zilla369

zilla369

Posted
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If you looked quick during the credits, you could see that the "Crib Salesman" did indeed get an executive producer credit for the show (as promised during bartering over the cost of the crib).

I'd watch it again just for that.

Thank you! I did forget to look, and regretted it later. That's cool.

Marsha Lynch aka "zilla369"

Has anyone ever actually seen a bandit making out?

Uh-huh: just as I thought. Stereotyping.

Louisa Chu

Louisa Chu

Posted
  • Topic Starter
Posted

I'm in Chicago at the moment and got to see Tony in Uzbekistan last night and Vegas from last week - and even Paris finally! What incredibly beautiful shows - hard to believe such good times produced such stunning work. And who knew Tony was so limber?? BTW that Uzbek pilaf/palov looked especially amazing. Ukbek National Cuisine says "The oshpaz, or master chief, often cooks palov over an open flame, sometimes serving up to 1000 people from a single couldron on holidays or occasions such as weddings. It certainly takes years of practice with no room for failure to prepare a dish, at times, containing up to 100 kilograms of rice." That is bad-ass cooking.

Movable Feast
Lynette Hanson

Lynette Hanson

Posted
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Louisa, thank goodness you're getting to watch some of "No Reservations" including your episode from Paris. I was wondering about that as I checked Movable Feast earlier this evening, so I was extremely pleased to find your post here.

  • 2 weeks later...
GordonCooks

GordonCooks

Posted
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As the resident foodie of the household - the kitchen tv is usually tuned to something food related while I putter about the kitchen. While watching the NZ episode of "No Reservations" as I broke down some chickens for stock - my better half clearly displayed her expertise.

She: He’s the Kitchen Confidential guy, right?

Me: Yep

She: What's his restaurant called again?

Me: Les Halles in NY – I don’t if he’s still there though

She: Is that the place where you tried to bribe the person to have your picture taken behind the glass as you walked to the union square market from the hotel.

Me: yeah

She: That’s not the place we had really good steak frites at?

Me: No, that was Montparnasse, We’ve never been to Les Halles

She: I can’t believe he has a big cigarette burn hole in the front of his shirt – He did get a nice new Tag Heuer Link watch though

Me: Huh?

Genny

Genny

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I truly cackled through this.

Biggest cackle "My momma done told me, bring somethin for dinner." Sing-songed. Bourdaine is such a huge dork, human and just plain funny. (Although I really could have done without the wetsuit shots :blink: )

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