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Biography & Autobiography. Cooking & Food. Essays. Nonfiction. HTML:Anthony Bourdain, host of Parts Unknown, reveals "twenty-five years of sex, drugs, bad behavior and haute cuisine" in his breakout New York Times bestseller Kitchen Confidential. Bourdain spares no one's appetite when he told all about what happens behind the kitchen door. Bourdain uses the same "take-no-prisoners" attitude in his deliciously funny and shockingly delectable book, sure to delight gourmands and philistines alike. From Bourdain's first oyster in the Gironde, to his lowly position as dishwasher in a honky tonk fish restaurant in Provincetown (where he witnesses for the first time the real delights of being a chef); from the kitchen of the Rainbow Room atop Rockefeller Center, to drug dealers in the east village, from Tokyo to Paris and back to New York again, Bourdain's tales of the kitchen are as passionate as they are unpredictable. Kitchen Confidential will make your mouth water while your belly aches with laughter. You'll beg the chef for more, please.… (more)
User reviews
He’s brutally honest about the industry - to the point that it’s prompted some others in world to get quite irritated with him. He gives away some great secrets, such as: 1. Never order seafood on Monday nights because restaurants get their fish delivered on Thursdays, which makes it pretty old after the weekend; 2. Beware of “Specials” – they are how a lot of restaurants use up older ingredients and leftovers (so is brunch for that matter); 3. Butter and bread are usually recycled from other tables if they are unused.
You'll either love Bourdain or hate him. He disrespects vegetarians, uses offensive language, tells some bawdy stories, and is generally full of chutzpah. But he is one great story teller.
You should definitely read this book if:
- You're a foodie. Even though, by Bourdain's standards, I am not "worthy" to eat garlic, I'm a bit of a foodie: I like reading about food, watching the Food Network, cooking, and eating. It's clear throughout the book that whatever his feelings on the restaurant business, Bourdain loves food, and that passion comes through loud and clear.
- You like "behind the scenes" non-fiction. Kitchen Confidential is an insider's point of view on a world that is right there, on the other side of the restaurant wall, but which most of us will never see, and it's thoroughly fascinating. It almost reads like an ethnography on restaurant culture, and it simultaneously made me daydream about becoming a chef, and want to run screaming and never step foot inside a restaurant again. Since I've read it, dining out has become a much more interesting experience.
- You like books read by the author. Although Bourdain is also a published novelist, the writing in this book is very personal and informal, like Bourdain is just sitting there, regaling you with hilarious tales of his adventures and shooting the shit over drinks. He writes like he talks, and so the audiobook doesn't feel like he's reading a book to you, so much as like he just sat down in front of a microphone and eight hours of stories came pouring out spontaneously.
You should avoid this book if:
- You like a structured, linear narrative flow. Kitchen Confidential is not a straight-up memoir; it jumps pretty frenetically from topic to topic and from time period to time period. It got a little confusing in places; Bourdain would do things like refer to his wife on one page and then his girlfriend a few pages later, and then leave it to the reader to figure out that the later chapter actually occurred before the former. I can pinpoint the beginning and end of Bourdain's professional timeline as described in the book, but as to the order of the events in the middle? No way. Once I got into the rhythm of the writing, I was fine, but approaching this book looking for a single cohesive story is going to land you in a world of confusion.
- You're easily offended. Bourdain is not at all shy about discussing drug use or sex, or calling people idiots when they're idiots, and there's plenty of all three in the restaurant industry. The book is also laced with swearing, and incidental bits of racism and sexism. These things didn't bother me - they're part of the subculture of the kitchen, and any attempt to bowdlerize them would have made the book feel inauthentic - but if you're sensitive to such things, you'll probably want to steer clear.
- You like to cherish your illusions about the sanctity, deliberation, and care with which your meals are prepared in sparkling clean, calm, and organized restaurant kitchens by dedicated, morally-upright, and careful chefs. Good luck with that. 4.5 out of 5 stars.
Kitchen Confidential came out ten years ago and is still in print. It is Bourdain's description of his career as a cook and chef and many observations on the restaurant industry. The man can write. It is one of those books where you start reading it and you can't stop. He says he wrote the book for the guys who work in restaurants. He tells a lot of stories about working in restaurants. I am sure that some of the stories are actually true. They are all entertaining.
I rate the book 4 stars out of 5 it is a darn good read.
There were certainly
I also felt that Mr. Bourdain was annoying as hell. He was so damn proud of himself, and even his self-deprecating humor didn’t do much to convince me that he doesn’t think he’s the most fabulous person on the earth. The prose was overly complicated and it regularly took him forever to get to the point.
The sexism, racism and homophobia in this book really rubbed me the wrong way as well. He was completely unapologetic about it and insisted that it’s just ‘the way things are’ and that these people aren’t really racist – they just say racist things all the time! Duh! I was embarrassed by the way Mr. Bourdain felt the need to fall all over himself every time there was a mention of a successful woman in the kitchen, as though a few mentions of women makes up for all his sexism. It’s kind of like your neighborhood racist insisting that he’s not racist because he has himself a black friend!
All that said, there were some interesting chapters. I learned a few things and there wasn’t really a point where I considered giving up on this book. It just didn’t excite me enough to pick up on a regular basis.
As we made our way into the city on NJ Transit as we’ve done countless times before, I took my usual news junkie status to a new level. My hero, he was gone. Gone without explanation. The BBC, CNN, NBC, ABC, NPR, no one had anything else to report except that which we already knew. He was gone. I texted my boss at the bookstore straight away and begged him to put the books in stock out on display with the staff pick blurbs I’d written for them ages ago. Medium Raw, my favorite summer read, Appetites, the only cookbook I cook out of, and, though I hadn’t read it, obviously we needed to order in Kitchen Confidential ASAP. Then I started dreading the fact that I’d be meeting with our publisher rep at the start of the week, the rep who handled his imprint for Harper Collins. I couldn’t bring myself to think straight.
I looked up whether or not we could get a reservation for a mid-afternoon meal at Les Halles, only to discover it had closed. Only months ago, we could have gone and didn’t. I kicked myself for it. When we walked past it later in the day, I saw the remembrances people had left. It inspired my first post two days later, Dear Tony. I debated whether or not I could bring myself to watch Parts Unknown anymore and when it turned out to be too tear-inducing, I decided to read the one book of his I didn’t want to, Kitchen Confidential.
I was afraid I wouldn’t like it. I was afraid it would talk too much about drug use and that I didn’t really want to read about, I’ve dealt with it enough in my family. I was afraid that the Tony writing was different than the Tony we’d come to know and love. And then, I decided to be brave and listen to him read it. I was on my way to London to visit my sister when I finally gave in. I still didn’t even own a copy of it. But after only five minutes, I realized I had nothing to worry about – Tony was still Tony – already a master storyteller, already with three novels to his name, already well on his way to not becoming, but staying himself, and then revealing that self to the world. And when I found a special edition of the book with all his notes and handwritten margin doodles at a bookshop in London, well, I had to have it.
Kitchen Confidential is, for anyone who has gotten to know Anthony Bourdain through his various shows, thoroughly him. The story isn’t linear or chronological (his never are, even Parts Unknown), and he is very open and honest about his periods of dishonesty and chef-poaching, honest about his privileged upbringing and squandering it, honest about the world of the professional kitchen. Honest and candid about his life and how he got to where he is, and the result, for anyone who, like me, had watched for years and never read, is heartbreaking.
Because in reading now, for the first time, it is impossible to disassociate the book with the end. It is impossible to ignore the fact that we will never have another Bourdain masterpiece. Impossible to forget that he’s no longer here to tell us stories on Sunday night. Impossible to understand how things went this way. Because as much as I wish I had known him, I didn’t. I didn’t know, I don’t know, what led him to do what he did. But I can read his works, reread, rewatch, and hope, beyond hope, that he has changed the world for the better.
A titillating exposé of life in the kitchens of some serious metropolitan retaurants. It's witty, frenetic and obviously embroidered for effect. You wouldn't be scared off eating out by this book and are not really meant to. But you might heed the
At times, Bourdain comes across as arrogant or smug (which he definitely can be), but if you've watched his show "No Reservations," you can almost hear his voice, his cadences, in his writing. More authors need to learn how to do that.
Reading Kitchen Confidential made me sad that the sitcom based on the book was cancelled so quickly. I had really enjoyed it when it was on the air (2 or 3 years ago now), and I still think the exploits in this book are great entertainment.
Thumbs up.
And by the way people, brunch really is okay. But yeah, don't get the fish on Monday.
Most of the revelations didn't surprise me much, but Bourdain tells interesting stories. One thing I wasn't aware of is the amount of raiding going on -- hiring away people from other restaurants to staff a new (or take-over) establishment. Bourdain doesn't really give much detail on how many left him (voluntarily) under such auspices.
Bourdain does scatter in some advice for the restaurant-goer (don't eat fish on Mondays) or the home chef who wants to improve (#1, fresh ingredients, #2, a good knife). I think he probably could have elaborated on that more..but maybe he felt he already stepped on enough toes. The book ends with Bourdain taking a job in Tokyo, but before his name-sake TV show appeared. He was perhaps a little jealous when he scoffed at the TV star chefs, I wonder what is take is on them now that he is also a personality? As far as personalities go, though, Anthony Bourdain is quite the character and I think I will make a greater effort to keep up with his show.
And he likes food. All manner of food so long as it fits his definition of honest. Three Michelin star, diety inspired bistro and street meat vendor are equally admired and lauded for their contributions to what he thinks is honest. Woe betide you however if you approach your craft from a different angle or with different intentions; Bourdain will let you know the error of your ways in no uncertain terms. Wanker.
The first few chapters of KC made me not want to set foot inside a restaurant again. Scary. Not that I didn't know it from previous reading (ok, ok it was one book, but still I sort of knew what a hellhole most kitchens really are), but this reinforced that. A few more chapters in and I amended my decision to only large restaurants with huge turnovers both of staff (but how will I know that?) and seats. The descriptions of life at The Rainbow Room was enough to put me off the place forever. Not that I plan to visit NYC at any time, but there it is.
So what was me, a decided non-foodie doing reading a book like this anyway? Well I am a foodie, albeit a non-typical one. No, I've never worked in a restaurant - never even been a waitress or taken your order at Micky D's. No, I do not have nor do I read food blogs. Ok, yes, I watch the Food Channel occasionally, but I know it's schlock and full of "personalities" rather than real cooks. Ok, yes, I read Bon Appetit and Wine Spectator, but I do it from the viewpoint of an eater rather than a cook. I'm not even a particularly adventurous eater. My motto is no fewer than two legs no more than four.
But I do know what I like and this book gave me a lot of information about how it's made and the kind of people who make it. Bourdain has a lot of experience and a decent turn of phrase (albeit a bit repetitive) and can spin a tale well. I wasn't put off by the vulgarity or the self-indulgent tone and I enjoyed it on the same level as pecan pie; one piece at a time - have too much and you end up sick and never wanting to eat pecan pie again.
Bourdain makes no bones about the tough life of a chef, but his love for the job shines through. We're introduced to his soft side through his description of eating a fresh raw oyster just seconds out of the ocean and how it sent him on a journey through gourmet food. While it seems incredible that he worked in such grueling conditions and still has love for the job, he proudly talks of the challenges like he talks of his scarred-up chef's hands. He speaks frankly in tell-it-like-it-is language that is better for speed-reading than savoring. While he effects a cooler-than-thou persona, he's not afraid to tell embarrassing stories about himself, or use himself as an example of what not to do. All-in-all, an entertaining read not just for would-be chefs, but fascinating for anyone who loves to dine out.
I'll start with what I like. I found the descriptions of behind the scenes in a restaurant
What don't I like? Well, the foul language grows monotonous. It says something for his writing that I was willing to read through that. I realize that the language and foulness is part of the reality of his life and the lives of people who work in that realm. It wouldn't have been real without it, so here I am turning a "dislike" into a sort of a "like." Notice, I can't use the words "love," "adore," or "delight." The book was somewhat painful for me to read, which is OK. There is something beyond the language that makes me not love this book. I noticed it in another book of his I read as well. It is hard to keep track of where he is in his life during the writing. He seems to start from the beginning and be working chronologically, then it becomes difficult to tell. I'm not sure whether that is because during his drug using years he couldn't keep track himself, or whether it is intentional. It seems unclear whether he is a good chef (he claims not to be, but his actual descriptions of the work and restaurants indicate otherwise) or not. Is this purposeful? I'm not sure. Is he the jackass he makes himself out to be? I'm not sure. Anyway, I'm glad I've read the book, I probably won't read any more by Bourdain, but I may watch some of his shows.
After that however I found myself reading a disorganized jumble of anecdotes mixed with some self pity and too much pride. I got tired of reading Bourdain's pity party of working for managers who don't know what they're doing, applying for jobs that were beneath him and cooking food that was gasp not haute cuisine! You almost wanted to reach into the book, grab Bourdain, shake him and tell him to suck it up! Where had the drive, the ambition and the humour gone from earlier in the book? Oh and “sex, drugs and bad behaviour”? Only alluded too. They were just brief passages connecting stories that left you wanting more.
Bourdain gives us an honest account of his experience in the restaurant industry. Do not, however, assume this is everyone's experience. Sure there are things we would rather customers didn't know. But the restaurant industry I know isn't a top secret exclusive club. It's filled with a bunch of people, who even with the bad days enjoy what they do (yes even a lot of waiter's like what they do, despite what you may believe) and the chef's I know are proud of it!
Bourdain is a talented chef and I am a huge fan of his show No Reservations but this book left me wanting more. I wanted more of the “bad behaviour” he constantly refers to. I wanted more tips and tricks that aren't common knowledge for a lot of people (like owning a chef's knife – I own one, my mother owns one, my grandmother got one for Christmas). And I want less complaints about other staff in the restaurant (waiters, managers, hosts, runners etc). You're a team! Now act like it! If Bourdain can do all that, than I will happily pick up his next book and try again. Until then I'll stick with my own culinary adventure.