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Editorial Review:
Kitchen Confidential is for diners who believe that their sublime sliver of seared foie gras, topped with an ethereal buckwheat blini and a drizzle of piquant huckleberry sauce, was created by a culinary artist of the highest order, a sensitive, highly refined executive chef. The truth is more brutal. More likely, writes Anthony Bourdain, that elegant three-star concoction is the collaborative effort of a team of "wacked-out moral degenerates, dope fiends, refugees, a thuggish assortment of drunks, sneak thieves, sluts and psychopaths," in all likelihood pierced or tattooed and incapable of uttering a sentence without an expletive or a foreign phrase. Such is the muscular view of the culinary trenches from one who's been groveling in them, with obvious sadomasochistic pleasure, for more than 20 years.
Bourdain, currently the executive chef of the celebrated Les Halles, wrote two culinary mysteries before his first (and infamous) New Yorker essay launched this frank confessional about the lusty and larcenous real lives of cooks and restaurateurs. He is obscenely eloquent, unapologetically opinionated, and a damn fine storyteller--a Jack Kerouac of the kitchen. Those without the stomach for this kind of joyride should note his opening caveat: "There will be horror stories. Heavy drinking, drugs, screwing in the dry-goods area, unappetizing industry-wide practices. Talking about why you probably shouldn't order fish on a Monday, why those who favour well-done get the scrapings from the bottom of the barrel, and why seafood frittata is not a wise brunch selection.... But I'm simply not going to deceive anybody about the life as I've seen it." --Sumi Hahn
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0
ANTHONY BOURDAIN Kitchen Confidential Perhaps the first celebrated 'real-life' chef memoir and certainly one that makes the man who just julienned your carrots sound like Sgt. Elias in 'Platoon'.
This is an entertaining read with great advice on knives, garlic, ordering fish and what the professionals think of vegans, though it is often pointlessly testosterone fuelled and banal. I don't know what it is about chefs that they see the world split into 'chefs' and 'civilians'. Maybe they are all frustrated NCOs. I can think of a TV chef who... more info
Mouthwatering - good enough to eat This a feast for the mind. Before muppets like Ramsey and his ilk lumbered onto our screens Bourdain wrote this work of genius. He took a fairly boring subject food and crafted a funny, engaging, well written thrill ride. The subject is now a crowded marketplace, but this is unique. Bourdain's passion carries you a long way , he clearly adores food in all its guises and forms. His bubbly, infectious style pulls you along with its easy charm. The writing reminds you of an old fashioned crime... more info
A fantastic story of life in professional kitchens. Like so many people working in kitchens Bourdain came to it as a last resort, down and out. Through luck, coupled with occasional ambition and judgement he found a crazy world into which he fitted and could thrive. This warts and all tale of his life in food has something for everyone. His passion for food from a first oyster in France to his restaurant Les Halles will please the foodies. The tales of mayhem in the kitchen will be familiar to anyone who has anything to do with professional chefs. The... more info
Highly recommended This book/Anthony is hilarious! i'm really enjoy reading his books, especially this 'kitchen confidential', the food business around him as well as the you-know-what dark side, a must read for food n travel lover.
