S09.E01: Los Angeles

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Quote

An alternative tour of Los Angeles by Bourdain focuses on the impact and contributions of its less photographed and often overlooked Latino communities. From downtown, for Oaxaqueno specialties at Gish Bac and redefined Mexican food from chef Ray Garcia at Broken Spanish, to Hollywood, for a health-conscious but savory dinner with actor Danny Trejo (Machete) at Trejo’s Cantina, the host experiences this vibrant culture against a backdrop of LA glamour.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Bourdain's blog on Los Angeles

Promo video

[ElectricBoogaloo]

I didn't initially post my reaction to this episode because I had mixed feelings about it. I love that in his old age, he has mellowed and gotten over his stereotypical hatred of LA to fully embrace it for what it really is (although he did finally admit liking LA during The Layover). I remember when I saw the Los Angeles episode of A Cook's Tour about a million years ago, I was really annoyed. Why go somewhere to film an episode if you're already convinced that you hate it? To just point out everything that you knew you would hate? And what was with the intense avocado hatred?

Although I liked this episode, I felt annoyed because he could have done this episode and visited the same or similar places in S3 of No Reservations or S1 of The Layover. He has filmed episodes in LA for various shows over the years but this is the first time he's actually bothered to really focus on the Latinx aspect of it (aside from going to a taco shop here or there in previous episodes), which is just crazy to me - especially since he has been so blunt about how many of the cooks in fancy French and Italian restaurants with stars and ratings are Latinx AND when does episodes he often tries to dig into the roots of a place. How can you basically ignore the huge Mexican and Latinx population of Los Angeles as well as its influence on the food there? Sadly, I feel like his main motivation was just so he could ask all the non-white people how they felt about Trump saying he was going to build a wall.

But whatever his reasoning, I'm just glad that he finally put the spotlight on some awesome Mexican and Latinx food in Los Angeles. I think some people have this preconceived notion that Mexican food and Chinese food are like White Castles - they assume it's cheap and greasy and you get the exact same kind of food no matter where you go. It really wasn't until PF Chang's came along that people were like ooh, fancy Chinese food! I'm willing to pay extra for that! Never mind the fact that they are serving the same dishes you can get at a good strip mall Chinese restaurant. Sadly, the existence of PF Chang's hasn't made Chinese food more respectable overall. It just means that people are willing to pay twice as much to eat the same food at PF Chang's but not anywhere else. Mexican food has a similar problem. People bitch when the taco shop raises their prices to $2/taco but then there are people going to Rick Bayless restaurants paying $9 for a quesadilla and $34.50 for a carne asada plate. 

[LunaMia]

On 5/8/2017 at 2:39 AM, ElectricBoogaloo said:

I didn't initially post my reaction to this episode because I had mixed feelings about it. I love that in his old age, he has mellowed and gotten over his stereotypical hatred of LA to fully embrace it for what it really is (although he did finally admit liking LA during The Layover). I remember when I saw the Los Angeles episode of A Cook's Tour about a million years ago, I was really annoyed. Why go somewhere to film an episode if you're already convinced that you hate it? To just point out everything that you knew you would hate? And what was with the intense avocado hatred?

Although I liked this episode, I felt annoyed because he could have done this episode and visited the same or similar places in S3 of No Reservations or S1 of The Layover. He has filmed episodes in LA for various shows over the years but this is the first time he's actually bothered to really focus on the Latinx aspect of it (aside from going to a taco shop here or there in previous episodes), which is just crazy to me - especially since he has been so blunt about how many of the cooks in fancy French and Italian restaurants with stars and ratings are Latinx AND when does episodes he often tries to dig into the roots of a place. How can you basically ignore the huge Mexican and Latinx population of Los Angeles as well as its influence on the food there? Sadly, I feel like his main motivation was just so he could ask all the non-white people how they felt about Trump saying he was going to build a wall.

But whatever his reasoning, I'm just glad that he finally put the spotlight on some awesome Mexican and Latinx food in Los Angeles. I think some people have this preconceived notion that Mexican food and Chinese food are like White Castles - they assume it's cheap and greasy and you get the exact same kind of food no matter where you go. It really wasn't until PF Chang's came along that people were like ooh, fancy Chinese food! I'm willing to pay extra for that! Never mind the fact that they are serving the same dishes you can get at a good strip mall Chinese restaurant. Sadly, the existence of PF Chang's hasn't made Chinese food more respectable overall. It just means that people are willing to pay twice as much to eat the same food at PF Chang's but not anywhere else. Mexican food has a similar problem. People bitch when the taco shop raises their prices to $2/taco but then there are people going to Rick Bayless restaurants paying $9 for a quesadilla and $34.50 for a carne asada plate. 

Yes! As a born and raised Angeleno/a!? Lol. That has always bothered me about Bourdain. His disdain for what he "knows" about Los Angeles is so short sighted. The city and county is so much more than television, Beverly Hills, Hollywood. It's a diverse and welcoming melting pot, where you can find about any type of cuisine. It's easy to generalize 4-10 million people, but it's harder to look closer at your own prejudices and biases.