Anthony Bourdain

[Magpie]

Did anyone watch his new show on the Travel channel last night?

[katbalou]

yup, was rolling on the floor when he was in front of the rat store!!!!
quite entertaining.

[chrose]

I missed that one, I meant to watch it. Maybe next time. I am wondering though about that other new show "Kitchen Confidential". I haven't seen it yet obviously, but I can't help but think it's going to stink up the joint. I don't know how Hollywood can translate a persons unique persona into a weekly script that tries purposley to be funny. It didn't work for Tony Kornheiser who's very funny on paper, and if I'm not mistaken didn't they try it with Dave Barrry as well?
I'll stick with the real Tony thank you very much

[MarkV]

I saw it.

It was mildly entertaining. I was hoping it was going to be more food oriented, meaning gretaer detail and instruction about the food and cooking but then again, it's a travel channel show, not a foodtv show.

Anyone ever try that absynthe stuff?

Mark

[Mezzaluna]

I think absinthe is illegal- made with wormwood, or something that rots your brain worse than "normal" alcohol. It's highly addictive, too. But I think there may be a "safer" version out there.

[Kerryclan]

Actually, it is the alcohol content that is dangerous. The wormwood active ingredient, thujone, is in very low concentration and not harmful unless you really overindulge. By the time you could do that, you would already be in a coma from the alcohol. It is banned in the U.S. and some other countries. But it is not illegal to import or to possess in the U.S. unlike marijauna or other substances.

[Headless Chicken]

I'm not sure in the states but we have a very mild version of absinthe and its quite expensive, I havn't indulged for that reason.

My mother regularily watches the Travel Channel, whats his show called? She hasn't mentioned any show hosted by Bourdain on the TC.

[mudbug]

Saw it. Liked it. Always respect food shows when they actually show headless animals with legs and fur and it's "OK".

Airs on Mondays, show info here:
http://travel.discovery.com/fansites.../bourdain.html

Each episode of Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations will air several times each week. Click here for the schedule.

Keep in mind the motif of the show is about traveling and eating and "letting things happen". So I don't think MarkV, that you're going to get anything near a Julia Child technique demonstration. I appreciate the approach which offers a street view of wandering around and stopping at things that catch attention along with some glimpses of behind the scenes of traditional aspects of the culture which few to no shows do on such a "loose"/"informal" level. Not leading you by the hand as all the other shows do. It's accented with tidbits on history presented if off-beat ways and glimpses of the masters at work... without intrusion... the "thanks for letting me hang out and just watch" which would be an unlikely privilege for most travelers.

The next episode in Iceland looks promising, entertaining, informative.
http://travel.discovery.com/fansites.../bourdain.html

Kerryclan, absinthe is not illegal because of the alcohol content, which for "good absinthe" is 25%. It is illegal in the US because of the thujone content. Even though... as they said on the show, it would take 200 drinks for it to be a problem and obviously the alcohol would the first to bring someone down.

Absinthe. "In the U.S., traditional Absinthe is illegal to sell for human consumption because it contains the chemical thujone which is banned by the FDA for use in foods but allowed in some herbs known to contain thujone (Title 21, Chapter 1, Part 172.510)). Some types of absinthe are sold in the U.S. which contain no thujone and other absinthes are imported into the U.S. despite FDA regulations."
http://www.erowid.org/chemicals/absi...nthe_law.shtml

chrose, Kitchen Confidential in some form was bound to happen. It was only a matter of time. I think it's actually refreshing to see a primetime show with a culinary theme that is not a reality show. That in and of itself should be appreciated. I don't like to judge shows before seeing them personally. But there are a couple of actors in the cast of whom I do respect their choices so I'm confident it'll at least entertain me. It's always hard to please the general "ignorant" public along with those in the profession - whether it be medical, law, etc. In the end, they all have to appeal to being human. I certainly won't be surprised to see other wannabe shows of similar subject matter emerge which prove to fall by the wayside.

You can see a clip of the show here:
http://www.canwestmediasales.com/tel...fidential.html

[panini]

Like this guy alot. Reminds me of all my friends back home. Always make time to watch him.

[Krokodyle]

No Reservations: I liked it, and I liked the fact that it was rated TV-MA. I enjoyed A Cook's Tour very much, but the episodes were too short. Having a full hour is nice, but I got to admit that I would have liked to have seen more of the food aspect in this new show. Then again, maybe it's a 'been there, done that' when it comes to the food, so they're focusing on the travel.

I'm just glad he's got a new show to watch. I've always liked his no-B.S. style.

Kitchen Confidential: Not really looking forward to this, especially because it got picked up by Fox--not a network known for creating quality television. It may be entertaining, I suppose we'll see. I'll definitely give it a shot, but somehow I get the feeling that the cooks will continue to look their L.A. best, with perfect hair, even after a 400+ cover saturday night shift...not a sweat-induced pimple or flourescent light pallor to be seen. Then again, maybe they've incorporated some of the pranks and rites of passage inherent to many kitchens, ones that only could be shown on Fox.

Absinthe: Easily importable into the States, there are many online shops that reliably deliver true absinthe. I've tried more than a few different kinds, some were mouthwash and some were fantastic, subtle bliss. But you really, really have to like the taste of licorice/fennel to drink it straight (or with the sugar/ice/water blend). I prefer to use it in mixed drinks, and a little goes a long way.

When I got my first bottle of true absinthe, I, like many others, tried to see what all the fuss was about. There is a certain magic in the preperation of the standard drink, what with the absinthe spoon, cube of sugar, and slowly dripping ice water. The clear absinthe will "louche", turn a milky green, as the water is added (Medieval alchemy comes to mind). Anyhow, after drinking about 7-drinks worth over a 3 hour period, which was a decent amount (due to the fact that the brand I was drinking was a higher-than-normal proof/thujone content), besides being rather buzzed (but not drunk) I did experience some mild hallucinations.

I haven't tried cooking with it yet...

[Botanique]

that you are having a discussion involving thujone -- I did some of my masters research on the glandular trichomes (plant hairs) that produce it, as well as other things related to it. I am open for any questions you may have.

And btw, saw the show with Anthony drinking absinthe and thought "I need to email him and tell him to just step away from the absinthe!" LOL (I am quite fond of him -- don't want him to cut off his ear or anything ;-).

[Krokodyle]

Sounds like a very interesting research subject. Thesis, yes?

The EU has limited the Thujone content in commercial Absinthe to 10mg/liter or less for most countries. I believe Germany has a 30mg limit, and the Czech Republic has no limit. Of course, it's very simple to make your own Absinthe, and you can find lots of info on the net.

Anyhow, back to Tony...

Hrm. Iceland sounds interesting, perhaps a mid-winter visit isn't the best time to see everything. Who knew Puffin was so delicious?

Egad, he's going to Jersey next week... That ought to bring a smile or two around here.

[Mangilao30]

I have yet to try it, I'm not much of a drinker so I have been wary. Here in Italy, alcohol can be purchased in the grocery store but I have only see absinthe in the enoteca, wine shop. There are three on my block alone. Absinthe is pricey about 35 Euros for a 1/2 litre bottle.

[Krokodyle]

Really good episode on Vietnam.

Set aside the fact that Tony loves Vietnam, and that A Cook's Tour already went pretty deep with their two-episode treatment, the episode brought some new info to light and really had a decent food & drink orientation. The James Bond theme was a bit silly (although Mr. Sang needed NO embellishment...that guy was creepy!), but you got to see Tony really drunk!

[openyourbag]

i saw the show last night on the travel channel, "why the french don't suck." really great show. he is no doubt very arrogant but very entertaining as well. last night's episode (the same one everyone is talking about- paris, absinthe) really brought back some amazing memories...my wife and i were in paris and corsica this summer on our honeymoon...i felt like i was on the champs elysees all over again! i think they played out the absinthe thing a little bit- there's much more to paris than that drink- but overall it was a good show.