The Thrifty Foodie

Anthony Bourdin's Rough and Tough Culinary Travel Tales Featured in The Nasty Bits

The Nasty Bits, published in 2006, follows along a strain similar to his first behind-the-scenes culinary expose, Kitchen Confidential, published six years earlier.  I love the insider's, voyeristic glimpse that Bourdin offers up in both publications, but this later book, divided into narrational segments as "Salty," "Sweet," "Sour," "Bitter" and "Umami," seems to empahsize more of the grit of the restaurant business, as he simultaneously writes with greater romantic and sentimental abandon about the actual food.

Bourdin describes his days now, as a work-a-day Manhattan chef turned international food writer and TV show host of No Reservations.  This new lifestyle shift seems to have made him woefully reminiscent for his earlier days as a rough and tough, heroine-addicted youth in the kitchens of New Jersey and Manhattan - hard work and even harder play.  He has softened, still a hard-core smoker and drinker, but constantly conflicted about this cushier new life as a traveling celebrity chef.  Has he sold out?  Maybe, but who cares when it means that he is able to bring us all such vivid, slurpy, sexy descriptions of his unique dining experiences from all over the world?

I have seen some episodes of No Reservations, from the first season, and I must say I enjoy reading Bourdin more than I enjoy watching him; experiencing both is informative, but his nervous personality ticks and the cheesey segues and vignettes they concoct for the television series are too much for me.  Bourdin seems much more of a natural with culinary prose.  When writing about his food travels he achieves those adrenaline-pumping, heart-stoppingly damn good food descriptions that make my taste buds quiver.  For me, I appreciated seeing all the colorful and seductive visual descriptions of the dishes on the series, but I'll take more out of Bourdin's intelligent, enthusiastic and visceral written descriptions in The Nasty Bits any day. 

It is truly Bourdin's love of food, framed by a life that has revelled in the grit and grime, that remain his thesis as he reflects upon his restaurant days, his friendships with and thoughts on other celebrity food chefs - man does he like to give Emeril and Bobby Flay a hard time (Flay deserves it, though) - and his mounting catalogue of international food adventures.  When it comes down to it, how many other food writers are gonna say that dining with one's shoes on, as opposed to barefoot (as he did, joyously, while in the West Indies), is like "trying to eat in a straitjacket or f$ck through a shower curtain?"  Very few.  I love to hate the grit and grime he pushes on us readers as much as I hate to love it. 

Marlene's Pick: Two For the Road...Jane and Michael Stern Inspire Travel For Our Stomach's Sake

I recently finished reading Two For the Road: Our Love Affair with American Food, by Jane and Michael Stern.  It was an inspiring and delicious read.  Inspiring in that it beckoned for me to pull out some comfort food recipes from the "Dietrich" Family Cookbook, which, unfortunately, in turn has encouraged my waist band to expand within the past couple of weeks.  But as I said, I have finished the book and now the dietary cleansing can commense. 

The Sterns met in graduate school (art students, like myself, no less) and once they graduated decided to take their love of food on the road.  This book outlines what they have learned, oftentimes the hard way, about how to find a delicious meal while traveling about the country.  For the last thirty years they have built a career out of making new road food discoveries and writing reviews on some of their favorites finds, and even divulging some of their not-so-tasty road food memories. 

Okay, so these people are SERIOUS eaters.  They are professionals.  They claim to eat, on average, twelve meals a day when they are on the road researching.  Yeesh!  My eyes and my taste buds could feast all day, but my stomach...well let's just say I'm not willing to enter into that level of professional dining.  However, I am mighty glad the Sterns have chosen, so graciously, to hazard their waistbands for the sake of us readers.

At the end of each chapter they feature two recipes given to them from various road food establishments they've frenquented over the years.  I am keeping these recipes and the listings near the index of all featured restaurants, organized by state, on file.  It's never certain when I might need to whip up a pizza with white sauce and clams or bake that perfect, tall, fluffy bisquit, OR when I might need to take off for Tennessee to sample the menu at the Loveless Cafe.

The Stern's enthusiasm, stories and recipes will have me prepared to eat well whether I am at home cooking or on the road searching for that perfect road food dish to satiate my palate.  I am anxious to read more of their books, and I would encourage all of our readers to sit down to enjoy this book, or any other, by the Sterns as well.