Medium Raw: A Bloody Valentine to the World of Food and the People Who Cook
The long-awaited follow-up to the megabestseller Kitchen Confidential
In the ten years since his classic Kitchen Confidential first alerted us to the idiosyncrasies and lurking perils of eating out, from Monday fish to the breadbasket conspiracy, much has changed for the subculture of chefs and cooks, for the restaurant business—and for Anthony Bourdain.
Medium Raw explores these changes, moving back and forth from the author's bad old days to the present. Tracking his own strange and unexpected voyage from journeyman cook to globe-traveling professional eater and drinker, and even to fatherhood, Bourdain takes no prisoners as he dissects what he's seen, pausing along the way for a series of confessions, rants, investigations, and interrogations of some of the most controversial figures in food.
Beginning with a secret and highly illegal after-hours gathering of powerful chefs that he compares to a mafia summit, Bourdain pulls back the curtain—but never pulls his punches—on the modern gastronomical revolution, as only he can. Cutting right to the bone, Bourdain sets his sights on some of the biggest names in the foodie world, including David Chang, the young superstar chef who has radicalized the fine-dining landscape; the revered Alice Waters, whom he treats with unapologetic frankness; the Top Chef winners and losers; and many more.
And always he returns to the question "Why cook?" Or the more difficult "Why cook well?" Medium Raw is the deliciously funny and shockingly delectable journey to those answers, sure to delight philistines and gourmands alike.
Reviews
incredibly written, frank and directly to the point. Mr. Bourdain pulls no punches, not for the faint of heart or weak in the stomach. A great read.
I regularly watch and enjoy Anthony Bourdain on the Travel Channel. His show alternatively amuses, entices, and repulses me and I eagerly wait to see what he will do next. I suspect that is Bourdain's intention as he goes back and forth from what looks delicious to the "nasty parts" such as entrails, blood, and testicles that he insists are the "good stuff" while presenting unique views of the local people and cultures. No matter what, I know he will give me a view of a city or country I have never seen and will seldom be dull. While bright, funny, and curious, Bourdain can also be self-satisfied, snobby, and contemptuous of our culture and tastes (Pardon me for preferring prime Filet Mignon over Tripe and liking Tex-Mex). Although often justified, he is also full of himself, condescending, and eager to please the right people. Perhaps I am not too far off calling him the Howard Stern of the food media. I always want to see what he will do next. That being said, "Medium Raw," although interesting at times was largely a series of rants with unnecessary foul language. Some of the good stuff in the book was a profile of a day in the life of a Fish Cutter, tasting menus and foodies gone wild, and profiles of those Bourdain considers the good guys. I have not read Kitchen Confidential. Perhaps I would have appreciated Medium Raw more if I had. I certainly would have enjoyed the "Where Are They Now" chapter at the end. In fact, I have already bought Kitchen Confidential, thus confirming my fascination with Anthony Bourdain and his world even if I am not thrilled with Medium Raw.
I loved his first book and his show. So I was looking forward to this follow up book. I was very disappointed with this book. Except for one good chapter describing wonderful dining experiences at various locales, this is just one big whine fest. I live in San Francisco and could've listened to the rants in this book on any street corner. Never mind paying for the pleasure.
The book is being avidly devoured by my wife. The little I've been able to peruse it shows the writing to be as fascinating as Bourdain's own life. He writes like he talks. When my wife finishes it I'll finally be able to do it justice. My youngest son has his other book "Kitchen Confidential". I'm waiting to read that as well.
From my blog post:
[...]
You can usually tell who I am reading by the way I write that day. If I am writing short paragraphs full of gratitude, I've probably been reading Mitch Alblom. If I'm a little more snarky than usual, I've just read Mark Twain's Innocents Abroad for the hundredth time. And, if I'm writing confessional pieces about things like aging and my temper, there's a good chance I'm reading something by former chef and current television personality Anthony Bourdain and for the last few weeks, for fun, I've been reading his new book, "Medium Raw."
I should tell you, if you are easily offended by foul language, irreverence and the frying of certain endangered species for culinary delight, you will HATE this book by the not so warm and cuddly Top Chef judge. However, if you like brutal honesty, true emotion, lessons from life experience and a good laugh, you'll be as captivated by this series of essays as I am.
Bourdain is the celebrity I'd most like to get to know, we are the same age, from the same region and I even share a half a nationality with him (French). His TV show begins with the words I would like to someday use to describe myself, "World Traveler, Author, Chef." I have in fact, taken cooking classes in Tuscany and I am convinced that, if in the 70s, someone had told me that I could cook for people and get paid for it, Wall Street would have lost a young star. (Ok, maybe not Star, maybe, oh let's see... pain in the ass). Suffice to say, if I ever have a chance to buy him a drink, I'll happily do so and share whatever the chef is sending to his table.
Medium Raw is a series of rants on food critics, fast food, haute cuisine and the Food Network. Bourdain talks about his recovery from substance abuse, sleeping with super models, cooking on TV and being a Dad with an honest humor that makes you feel like you are having a beer with him at a local pub. Not exactly high literature, but entertaining stuff that we working stiffs can identify with, Bourdain is the fry cook who won the lottery, the guy with a writer's soul who had a day job. (Hmmm, I can identify with that!) Medium Raw is about him coming to terms with his sudden fame and fortune and, if you are a fan of good writing, I think you'll enjoy it as much as I do.The Affluent Artist: How Creative Could You Be If Money Wasn't an Issue? the Money Book for Creative People