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Top Chef in the Media

Bella

By Bella
in Top Chef

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susannot
susannot

Re Mike Isabella: anyone who invested in his restaurant empire should have watched Top Chef.  It is 100% obvious that he is a gross sexist pig and probable sexual harasser.  I can't count the number o

akr
akr

Re podcasts vs synopses:  I'm always going to prefer a 3-minute read to a 45-minute listen, but I've pretty much given up on anybody putting such things in writing anymore.  Podcasts are easier for th

Rambler
Rambler

There was a reddit thread the other day titled “People that have been on a cooking show, what does the viewer not see? Are the time limits legit? Does the food go straight to the judges? Any behind th

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kittykat

kittykat

I remember Karen Akunowitz from the Boston season had been nominated while she was on the show but didn't win.  Now she is a winner, good for her.   She even beat out Tiffani Faison.

And I'm super happy for Nina Compton as well, still bitter about season 11.

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cooksdelight

cooksdelight

“Would you want to set a cat on fire?”

Geez.... I guess the guy who attacked Marcel and shaved his head fooled the psych team. And I’d love to know who the eliminated person was that Marcel replaced.

The guy who had the meltdown on Top Chef Pastry must have fooled them also. 

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dleighg

dleighg

43 minutes ago, Colleenna said:

Really do not like Malarkey. Not at all. 

remember that weird show on ABC (I think) he was part of? The "just one taste" on a spoon along with the kitchen goddess Nigella Lawson?

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Colleenna

Colleenna

28 minutes ago, dleighg said:

remember that weird show on ABC (I think) he was part of? The "just one taste" on a spoon along with the kitchen goddess Nigella Lawson?

Never saw it. 

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dleighg

dleighg

I recognize his face, but he didn't make an impression on me that season, positive or negative. Was neither a hero nor a villain. But man, that's pretty off-the-rails.

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ProudMary

ProudMary

I'm gutted by Anthony Bourdain's death.  May he have found peace in the afterlife. 
And I'm heartbroken for Chef Ripert.  I don't even know how he was able to come up with words to go with his emotions today.  Just the thought of finding another human being dead is traumatic enough; but your best friend?  That's life changing; earth shattering.  I hope he's able to find some peace. 

For anyone who's interested:
 https://www.cnn.com/2018/06/08/us/anthony-bourdain-obit/index.html
 

Quote

Programming note: CNN will air "Remembering Anthony Bourdain," a special report on the life and legacy of the chef, storyteller and writer, tonight at 10 p.m. ET.

Also, former TC cheftestant  Edward Lee has penned his own tribute here:
Chef Edward Lee: Bourdain changed my life
 

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spacefly

spacefly

So heartbroken. I was trained as chef in Nantucket and had the opportunity to meet Eric more than once and he is genuinely a kind man. I also met Chef Bourdain very briefly and he seemed like a good fellow. I am sitting down with my dog eared copy of "Kitchen Confidential" that was given to me by a chef I worked for. The book has been to Nantucket, Alaska and back to New England. It kept me company on my first backpacking trip across the country and gave me some good laughs when I recognized the similar experiences. As someone who lives with a partner that suffers from Major Depression with Generalized Anxiety I fear this situation. He has even told me he wouldn't do it in our home because he know how much I love this house. Thank God he has a great Psychiatrist and is working on meds but I do know he still sinks deep at times and it is scary. Rest in Peace Chef Bourdain and know you were loved by many.

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VintageJ

VintageJ

16 hours ago, spankydoll said:

Bourdain!  What a loss. I am stunned. I saw him speak a few years ago and he was more charming and handsome in person.  This and Kate Spade have encouraged me to work on finding a therapist for myself and keep aheads of depression just burying me. 

 

In case you know anyone who needs help.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5818407/Ex-TV-chef-contestant-accused-poisoning-neighbors-tree.html#comments

Please do.  I’m glad you are encouraged to find help.  I’m sure your family and loved ones want to keep you around for a long time.

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Fostersmom

Fostersmom

On 6/8/2018 at 12:50 PM, cooksdelight said:

That will undoubtedly haunt Eric for the rest of his life. It would me.

My friend lost her son to suicide, he hung himself in his closet. His roommates hadn't seen him in a couple of days and one of the women opened his closet, they thought he had just skipped out on them and the rent and found him. Of course my friend was devastated, but one of her biggest points of grief was the thought of that poor girl finding him. She always said her son ruined the girl for life. I'm sure media coverage for death's like Bourdain's and Kate Spade are particularly jarring for the woman. 

Bourdain has left a lasting impression on the world. I've read more tributes to him in the last 24 hours than I would have ever imagined and from such a cross section of the population. He was obviously well loved and admired, I can only hope he knew this. 

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cooksdelight

cooksdelight

I am friends on Facebook with a lot of chefs and food professionals, and some of them are just devastated. John Tesar hurting the most. Posting pictures of them working together long ago when they both were young, talking about the parties, getting high, fighting, making up, etc. He truly loved Anthony. Some of the people who were on The Taste are also grieving. I’ve never seen anything like it. 

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Wings

Wings

I was hit hard by his death as most fans were.  He has been a huge part of my food life.  I have seen every episode of his shows and some many times (Vietnam and Thailand).  He was loved by everyone he touched, myself included.  His humor was dry and delightful.  In China someone asked what they were eating and he answered, Squiezel.   So funny!!

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Jextella

Jextella

(edited)

I'm not a foodie and don't know Bourdain well, but there is something about him that I've found interesting.  I was listening to an old interview on MPR and IMO, he seemed as if he cared deeply about people and the human condition.   And while his shows were billed as food shows, food was just a way to connect with the people in the regions he visited and the shows often had a bit of a political twist.

He also said something about how chefs aim for technical finesse and fame but he wished they would instead focus more on cooking food that makes people happy. 

I REALLY liked what I heard during the interview across the board.  It did seem, however, that social issues weighed heavy on him and that he wanted to feel as if he were making a difference in the world.

Edited by Jextella
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Yeah No

Yeah No

(edited)

I have been decimated ever since hearing the news.  What strikes me is how so many people felt so similarly about him, like he was a friend even if they didn't really know him personally.  And they are reacting the same as those people that actually did know him personally.  No one can fathom why he chose to end his own life.  There was obviously a lot going on that he never shared, and even though the signs were all around of a "dark night of the soul" with Tony, no one ever thought that it would extend all the way up to suicide.  Even his mother was as shocked as anyone else.

So many of the people coming out to grieve publicly about Tony are people I know of and have followed through the years along with Tony.  Never has any star died that so many of the people coming forward are people I have my own history with, at least as a fan.  And we're all going through the exact same thing.  Seeing Andrew Zimmern's eyes well up on CNN set me off too.  Even Anderson Cooper was as raw and real as I've ever seen him.  I greatly enjoyed how Tony would try to get him to eat exotic foods.  And Ruhlman.....Good old Ruhlman.  Just seeing him made me break down in tears remembering the early days when he and Tony would happily snark at each other both on screen and on Ruhlman's blog.

Seeing the Twitter messages from all sorts of public figures that I never thought would have any interest in Tony was very moving because obviously somewhere along the line he managed to touch them too in ways that remind me of how he touched me.  And because of that I feel like we're all a little closer than I might have realized.  

I had a moment that brought me back to the final scene of "American Beauty" after Lester Burnham dies and he talks about what being dead is like while we see through walls at the moment the shot rang out to what everyone in his life was doing right then.  Only my moment was imagining how Tony's family, friends and everyone that knew him was feeling and thinking since hearing of his death.  We are not alone, we're like this big grieving family right now.  Too bad Tony himself didn't feel that sense of family before he chose to end his life or I am sure he never would have done it.  

And Eric.  Poor Eric.  I can't even imagine how he and Tony's daughter and girlfriend must feel right now, not to mention his mom.

I've known of Tony for 16 years.  I watched him continuously from "A Cook's Tour" all the way to the most recent "Parts Unknown" episode.  He reminded me a lot of myself and of people I grew up with.  I caught every snarky/humorous reference he ever made, no matter how obscure.  We shared similar backgrounds.  We loved New York.  I ate in the restaurants where he worked before I ever knew who he was.  I sometimes wonder how many of my meals he actually cooked.

I read that Tony traveled 250 days a year and anonymous sources said he was feeling very tired recently.  I've known people that travel that much for a living and most of them don't last till 60 at the same pace much less almost 62.  The fatigue takes a toll on a person's mental state, and more as they age.  So I wonder how much that contributed to Tony's depression, and why he was so driven to keep up that kind of schedule.  I am wondering what will come out about him in the days ahead.  I am almost worried about that.  I am not alone as Andrew Zimmern said the same thing.

What really hurts about losing Tony is that he was a voice for my generation.  He was from a certain place and time and had a certain perspective that resonated with me.  As he traveled and his experiences broadened him, he opened my mind as well.  I don't need to lose someone that actually remembered and loved the things I remembered and loved, but also made me look at new things in a new way.   There is no one else that I can think of that hit that mark so well.  So it is a huge loss for me.  I am so sure a million people feel the same exact way for their own reasons.

I loved Tony like the brother I never had.  I know a lot of women saw him in a romantic sense.  Somehow I never did and I don't know why because theoretically I should have.   I didn't always like him and at times rolled my eyes at him, but in the end, like family, I always loved him nonetheless.

RIP Tony.  

Edited by Yeah No
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spacefly

spacefly

@Yeah No, so much of what you said rings true for me too. As someone who worked in that hectic upscale and demanding restaurant scene (Nantucket/Aspen) so much of what he talked and wrote about hit close to home. I loved when he would comment that he was a cook and not a chef, I have always felt that way. Chef's sit in an office, order supplies/food, balance budgets and train the Sous on how to make a dish. I loved being a cook. As I said earlier I had met Eric more than once as I washed dishes and prepped at The Boarding House which is owned by the Raynors who own The Pearl, he is just such a nice man and the one time I met Tony he was friendly and talking with anyone who wanted to engage him.

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