Bizarre Foods

[SheenaGreena]

finally no more repeats. they are actually doing a series on this show, which I can gather from the commercials on the travel channel.

as much as the show kind of bothers me, I still really like it becuase there are a lot of things on the show that I have never seen, heard, or would love to try.

anyone else interested in it?

[Joe Blowe]

Based on the one show he's done so far, it's going to take a lot to convince me to watch another episode...

[SheenaGreena]

I know I know.....he kind of makes you want to vomit and hes really rude in some scenes

I looked on the travel channel and I am having a hard time finding out if he is making more episodes or if they are just doing repeats

[Joe Blowe]

My wife, who's kind of a militant ABC, finds him repulsive! And her brainwashing has convinced me that he's quite a dork.

It appears that new episodes will begin airing on Feb 26th...

[SheenaGreena]

az's blog

apparently he shot an episode with mr. bourdain

[zpzjessica]

yes he did.

they ate at an egyptian restaurant in astoria, queens for the new york city episode of ABNR.

[I_call_the_duck]

they ate at an egyptian restaurant in astoria, queens for the new york city episode of ABNR.

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He must have eaten at Mombar in Astoria. It's a cool restaurant, but I don't remember any bizzare food on the menu. I'm just kind of bothered that he refers to the food as bizzare, because I'm sure people who live in the countries he's featuring do not consider that food to be bizzare. Heck, my mom thought a tuna sandwich was bizzare when she first came to this country.

I think I've used the word bizzare more times in this post than I ever had in my life.

[hummingbirdkiss]

I dont like him

.....I love food adventures and will eat most anything at least one time...usually three times ..but he is just gross and honestly I find no appeal to what he offers in the way of an eating adventure

I find the way he goes at this to be offensive and insulting......I mean if someone came to my house and shot a piece on something I considered a very special delicacy..and then ate it for the gross out factor of the US population to get a kick out of it ...

honestly I would be very upset and offended ...

[zpzjessica]

i can't remember if it was mombar or not, but the place was TINY...a little counter and one little table inside with enough room for two people. there was a table or two outside though.

and the food was a little 'off' if you ask mainstream america. not saying that i agree, but it was food that a lot of americans might not eat. intestines, brain, stomach, etc...

[Matcha Eyes]

I just have to wonder if somewhere deep in Asia, a tv show exists in which a host goes around America remarking about what weird foods us westerners eat. Sheesh, everyone eats to live but sometimes we all can't eat the same thing. Sorry, but shows like this one piss me off. While it's fun to learn about other cultures, especially food-related things, I don't think "bizarre" is an appropiate word for cultural differences.

[I_call_the_duck]

Wasn't Mombar then.

I set the DVR to record this show on Monday, but I don't have much hope for it.

[SheenaGreena]

perhaps a better title would be?

unusual?

off the beaten path?

not boring?

[Pan]

[...]and the food was a little 'off' if you ask mainstream america. not saying that i agree, but it was food that a lot of americans might not eat. intestines, brain, stomach, etc...

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Big deal! Maybe most of them don't eat things like that, but they're hardly "bizarre"!

[Zeemanb]

I don't know what you people are talking about. Maybe this means I am FINALLY close to selling my TV show idea...the one where I don my "Try to burn this one" American flag t-shirt, then criss-cross the globe visiting exotic places and people....and urinating on them.

I've only seen the one episode from last year, so I can't totally judge where they are headed with it, but my understanding of the micro-focus up to this point is "With all the tact of your civil war reenacting grandfather at a gay pride parade...Uncle Fester travels the globe trying to make you puke!".

Am I way off here? Don't get me wrong, I was the first kid on my block to own a copy of Jackass 2, so I don't wilt at the thought of alienating various cultures. The advertisements for this show just strike me as one tiny level above a show called "The World's Noisiest Poops".

[scubadoo97]

I know I know.....he kind of makes you want to vomit and hes really rude in some scenes

I looked on the travel channel and I am having a hard time finding out if he is making more episodes or if they are just doing repeats

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I recall from the one episode I saw he did indeed vomit after trying durian. When watching Bordain eat it, you want to try it but his reaction left a lasting impression.

[Pan]

I recall from the one episode I saw he did indeed vomit after trying durian.[...]

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It's very rich. How much had he eaten before vomiting?

[SheenaGreena]

I recall from the one episode I saw he did indeed vomit after trying durian.[...]

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It's very rich. How much had he eaten before vomiting?

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he put one section, pod, seed, or however you call it in his mouth for about 5 seconds and immediately spit it out

[Pan]

I recall from the one episode I saw he did indeed vomit after trying durian.[...]

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It's very rich. How much had he eaten before vomiting?

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he put one section, pod, seed, or however you call it in his mouth for about 5 seconds and immediately spit it out

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And then he vomited?

[SheenaGreena]

no no he didn't actually vomit. he basically gagged a little and then spit it out into his hand

there was no projectile vomit or anything, yuck

[Pan]

Well, durian is not for everybody. I used to hate it when I was a kid, so I can well understand someone spitting it out, although I like it OK now. (I still think lychee is the real King of the Fruits, though, and prefer a bunch of other Malaysian fruits like rambutan, local tree-ripened bananas, and jambu air to durian.)

[Lei Feng]

Let me first say that I have not watched a single episode of this program.

I don't think it's available where I live in Hong Kong.

So, if the actual content doesn't match the title, I apologize.

However, the program was described to me by some people associated with another other food TV show. My reaction was basically.... disgust. Not at the thought of eating weird stuff, but that a high(ish) profile TV program on a big-time channel would go forward with such an ethnocentric, divisive concept for a TV show.

Bizarre? To whom!? All this approach does is serve to separate us from each other and reinforce outdated stereotypes.

[caroled]

Let me first say that I have not watched a single episode of this program.

I don't think it's available where I live in Hong Kong.

So, if the actual content doesn't match the title, I apologize.

However, the program was described to me by some people associated with another other food TV show. My reaction was basically.... disgust. Not at the thought of eating weird stuff, but that a high(ish) profile TV program on a big-time channel would go forward with such an ethnocentric, divisive concept for a TV show.

Bizarre? To whom!?  All this approach does is serve to separate us from each other and reinforce outdated stereotypes.

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Well said. I did have the displeasure of seeing this show once. I thought it would be along the lines of one of Bourdain's shows, CT or NR.I was wrong. Masked in a forum that led me to believe that he was interested in other cultures and their foods, it ended up being all about the ick factor.

Most of what he consumed ,items such as raw frogs, with the torso and head in the beverage,and yakatori of keel bone cartilage, seemed to be more about having the "odder" things served to him that he could find (not my idea of odd, although I've not had either of these and don't know that I ever will) but his idea of what has the most wow .

And don't get me started on his expressions (impressions) of the items he tries. I was so tired of hearing him say things along the lines of , yummy and not bad, not bad. I half expected him to find something he really liked and throw out a YUMMO!

I don't think I'll be giving this one a try. It has already left a bad taste in my mouth

[JohnL]

Let me first say that I have not watched a single episode of this program.

I don't think it's available where I live in Hong Kong.

So, if the actual content doesn't match the title, I apologize.

However, the program was described to me by some people associated with another other food TV show. My reaction was basically.... disgust. Not at the thought of eating weird stuff, but that a high(ish) profile TV program on a big-time channel would go forward with such an ethnocentric, divisive concept for a TV show.

Bizarre? To whom!?  All this approach does is serve to separate us from each other and reinforce outdated stereotypes.

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Maybe you should have at least seen an episode or two before forming an opinion.

"ethnocentric" "divisive"?

First, when it comes to poking fun (or even being disrespectful) at other cultures no one is innocent. If we are having fun with them they are having fun with us and others.

Second, the program in question has in no way been disrespectful. The host is often joined by one or more locals and the dialog often approaches preachiness in its attempt to show some deference to another cultures.

Third, no one seems to notice that the locals often seem to be having as much fun watching this foreigner wrestle with what they themselves often seem to be aware is "odd" cuisine. Like some country folk enjoying the city slickers try to eat mountains oysters.

How many of these so called "strange" (to us at least) items are universally accepted as standard fare in the country of origin? Even the Asians seem to know that durian is a "special" item given they have laws against eating it in many public places. The average Japanese family is probably not feasting on fugu three times a week either. In reality, many of these food items share a level of strangeness or rarity even within the cultures in which they have originated.

Strange and bizarre are relative terms.

People often revel in being offbeat or enjoying "different" things" not everyone else likes. "gee you don't like peanut butter and banana sandwiches?--heh heh heh!"

So please, this has nothing to do with disrespecting other cultures. In fact the more of this people are exposed to the better. After watching everyone from Bourdain to Bayless to....eat those fried crickets in Mexico, I wouldn't be adverse to one or two myself! (I am not ready for the live cobra heart).

I think we should stop reading into these programs and just enjoy the guilty pleasure in watching someone try something new and different! "Look aunt mabel is trying an oyster!"

[MikeM]

I will disclose up front that I'm from the Twin Cities and Zimmern is a food critic for the Minneapolis/St. Paul Magazine. I enjoy his reviews - and I personally think he has done a tremendous job promoting the Twin Cities' restaurant scene.

Presently, I dislike the show. For me, the bizarre food concept tires quickly. But I have to think the concept of the show was created by the Travel Network rather than Zimmern. Of course, I could be wrong. I honestly think that this show was simply a chance for Zimmern to "cut his teeth" on national television. Further - don't you think that Bourdain's fame began when he was filming episodes, which seemed to focus on obscure foods? Would this be an issue if a thinner, more handsome individual was hosting the show? Would the concept of the show be an issue of Bourdain was hosting?

[JohnL]

I will disclose up front that I'm from the Twin Cities and Zimmern is a food critic for the Minneapolis/St. Paul Magazine.  I enjoy his reviews - and I personally think he has done a tremendous job promoting the Twin Cities' restaurant scene.

Presently, I dislike the show.  For me, the bizarre food concept tires quickly.  But I have to think the concept of the show was created by the Travel Network rather than Zimmern.  Of course, I could be wrong.  I honestly think that this show was simply a chance for Zimmern to "cut his teeth" on national television.  Further - don't you think that Bourdain's fame began when he was filming episodes, which seemed to focus on obscure foods?  Would this be an issue if a thinner, more handsome individual was hosting the show?  Would the concept of the show be an issue of Bourdain was hosting?

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I thought you were ok in not liking the ick factor (tiring). I would agree. In fact, I believe that Bourdain's show is now one part National Geographic special, one part travelogue and one part foods of the world (with a touch of ick thrown in). The ick alone wears thin after a while.

You lost me on the "fat guy" issue. Weight has nothing to do with it. The main problem is that Bourdain has already done this and evolved. Maybe they figure that Zimmern can get a visibility boost from the sensationalism factor and also evolve into something more.--we'll see.

For pure "ick" quotient, these food shows can't hold a candle to programs like Fear Factor who dispense with the restriction that what is eaten has to be tied in to some culture--they just go ahead and create weird and disgusting stuff to eat out of whole cloth--now that's real creative genius!!!