Antony Bourdain (USA)
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| Antony Bourdain is one of "The World's Most Influential, creative and important Chefs" |
Anthony
Bourdain, executive chef of Brasserie Les Halles in New York City, is
the anti-celebrity chef. He’s crass, offensive, and doesn’t wear
starched, white jackets or fancy hats. He is, however, a great cook, a
great writer, and has an infectious passion for food of every kind. His
passion and adventurous spirit are what have created millions of gourmet
fans around the world. Chef Bourdain may have turned more people onto
good food than any five-star, fancy-hat chef out there.
Anthony
Bourdain was born in New York in 1956. After high school, he spent two
unproductive years at Vassar College before attending the Culinary
Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York. Following graduation from
the C.I.A., Bourdain was the chef at New York City’s Supper Club, One
Fifth Avenue, and Sullivan’s before coming to Les Halles.
The Writer:
Bourdain has written several books including the crime thrillers Bone in the Throat (1995), Gone Bamboo (1997), the Bobby Gold Stories (2002), and the nonfiction work Typhoid Mary: An Urban Historical (2001).
Chef
Bourdain came to many people’s attention with his exposé of New York
restaurants, “Don’t Eat Before Reading This”, published in the New
Yorker (1999). He expanded this behind-the-scenes look at the not so
glamorous world of restaurants and his own personal history with the
hugely successful bestseller, Kitchen Confidential (2000).
The Television Star:
The success of Kitchen Confidential led to a Food Network television series, A Cook’s Tour.
Chef Bourdain travels around more than a dozen countries in a search
for the perfect meal. Some of his most memorable episodes include dining
with gangsters in Russia, swallowing the still-beating heart of a
cobra, and revisiting the tiny fishing village of La Teste, France where
he experienced his first raw oyster as a boy.
Anthony
Bourdain remains the executive chef of Les Halles, which has expanded
to five restaurants, including locations in Washington, D.C. and Miami.
Chef Bourdain is also capitalizing on the success of A Cook’s Tour with a new traveling culinary program, Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations, on the Travel Channel (2005).
