A Cook's Tour: In Search of the Perfect Meal

Anthony Bourdain will probably never be a writer remembered for his mastery of the craft. Not in the sense that you will eagerly attest that Tom Wolfe or David Wallace (or heck, even Dr. Seuss!) to be. His books might make the bestseller list (as his commercially successful Kitchen Confidential has) but the prospect of a literary award in the near future, however, is doubtful.

What he is, however, is a great chef and a gifted storyteller. This ‘great chef’ part is also of suspect, as I have not tasted his culinary creations, and he’s never appeared on any of the ‘Best Chef’ list I’ve ever ran into. His storytelling, however, is of an entirely different matter. His life’s journey as a misfit chef in the culinary jungle of Mahattan is fascinating (as told in Kitchen Confidential) and in A Cook’s Tour, he’s able to tell his stories just the way you’d expect him to be in real life: worldly, wise-crackin’, down-to-earth and most importantly, passionate.

A Cook’s Tour is a book Bourdain’s written on his experience of taking a global culinary tour as a part of film the Food Network’s show by the same name. Instead of touring the Michelin star restaurants or famous eateries, however, Bourdain aims for the kitchen and the soul -- and recounts tales of his pursuit for ‘the perfect meal,’ which he suspects correctly, might only be found in the most unexpected of places. While he also visits a fair share of TV show-friendly places and obliges the production crew’s request for various meaningless, but audience-friendly activities, (video gold, baby!) his best stories come from his experiences that probably never left the cutting-room floor. Fortunately, Bourdain captures them in A Cook’s Tour.

As it turns out, Anthony Bourdain had many a perfect meals on his quest– whether it is a simple meal(?) of mole poblanos in the dusty village of Pueblo, Mexico, or a steaming bowl of pho in Saigon. Along with fresh ingredients, faultless preparation and right backdrop and atmosphere that are crucial in making the meal perfect, what truly distinguishes a dining experience is the passion and heart of those who prepared the meal and share the meal with Anthony. All the nights he gets wasted on vodka (Russia), sake (Japan), mescal (Mexico) or any other concoction offered to him, on the other side of the glass is his generous host – often family members of his associates or other chefs – who bestow upon him the most gracious of hospitality and generosity and come away winning his heart with their simple pride in their country and passion for their culture.

There are many faults, too. For one, stories on some of the locales he’s visited are simply weak and sub par, and his obsession over Vietnam (and the full gamut of Vietnam War references) tends to become annoying after the third chapter on Vietnam (the other countries only get one chapter each). I guess it’s up to the individual’s tolerance, but for me, the good outweighed the bad and ultimately, made this a worthy reading.

Whereas Bill Bryson is probably the better writer of the two, Anthony Bourdain’s book is a much more enjoyable reading -- despite the glaring faults. Whereas Bryson showed how clever he is in dissecting his observations into right-sized portions of cynical humor, Bourdain serves up ample portions of simple observations from the heart.

Notes:

1. I’d recommend Audiobook versions of Bourdain’s books over the printed ones. Anthony Bourdain, as I mentioned, is quite a character and his reading of his own works add an extra touch of his style and personality that really amplifies the ‘reading’ experience.

2. What REALLY won me over about this book is his recount of the trip he’s taken to Puebla, Mexico, the home to many of the cooks who work in his kitchen (this chapter starts with: “There’s a little town in Mexico where cooks come from”). He pays homage to all the Latin Americans who toil endless hours in (seemingly) menial jobs, and in general, not given nearly enough credit for all the things they’ve accomplished; they didn’t just simply settled for spending the rest of their lives cleaning after the Americans – they’ve watched, learned and trained. Were they of a different cultural background (fair, Caucasian complexion also helps), they would have been given a lot more respect. Kudos to Tony Bourdain on this one.