Some may prefer well-done, but Bourdain serves it raw

In the year 2000, a young chef named Anthony Bourdain wrote a two-installment piece for The New Yorker about restaurant dining.

It was terrific — brash, mean, and remarkably accurate. This author could sling words as well as hash: Brunch is for culinary idiots because it’s where the previous week’s leftovers are offered; those in the know don’t eat fish at a seafood place on a Monday; diners who order their beef well-done don’t get the best quality. Etc., etc.

Lo and behold — a shtick was born.

A very successful shtick, actually. That duet of stories unleashed an amazing career. First a hardcover book, “Kitchen Confidential,” followed by many others, then a travel/food television show “No Reservations” and the inevitable book following it, a gig as a judge on TV’s “Top Chef.”

Medium Raw

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