NEXT
by Anthony Bourdain
Monday’s episode in Penang is, in my opinion, one of the best shot, best edited episodes ever. It helped that we were in what cinematographers call a “shot rich environment”—where it seems that everywhere you point, there are bright colors, characters, beautiful things. The food is generally thought of (even by many proud food nerds in Singapore and Kuala Lumpur) to be among the very best in the Straits— and I think you’ll see why. Penang is the kind of place that ruined me for an ordinary life.
I feel inexorably attached to Malaysia for many reasons, but one of them is that I got there early in my career as a traveler, wasn’t really ready for it, and was changed by the place. It seduced and overwhelmed me at the same time. The smells and colors and flavors—the look and sound of the place, the at times impenetrable mix of Indian, Malay and Chinese cultures—it ****ed me all up.
I tried to capture that in the first scene—a shot of a woman’s fingers, unwrapping nasi lemak from its traditional banana leaf package. That’s a particularly vivid image for me, and it’s yet another testament to the ZPZ crew that they were able to recreate it so perfectly. Scenes like this matter to me. And the ability to imagine a thing—and then see it executed brilliantly, that matters too.
It was never my intention on NO RESERVATIONS to be a reporter, a critic, an advocate. It was also never my intention to provide audiences with “everything” they needed to know about a place—or even a balanced or comprehensive overview. I am a storyteller. I go places, I come back. I tell you how the places made me feel. Through the use of powerful tools like great photography, skillful editing, sound mixing, color correction, music (which is often composed specifically for the purpose) and brilliant producers, I can—in the very best cases—make you feel a little bit like I did at the time. At least I hope so. It’s a manipulative process. It’s also a deeply satisfying one.
As you may or may not have heard, at a point in the not too far away future, the Zero Point Zero team and I will be moving on to do what we do elsewhere. We recently filmed the last shot of our last episode. That means you’ve got 9 new episodes of NO RESERVATIONS still yet to be edited, or waiting in the pipeline to be aired. We have yet to shoot 10 new episodes of THE LAYOVER, which we’ll do this June and July. After that, I’m planning on taking my first extended break in eight years. A “normal” family vacation—where I plan to putter to excess, dote on my daughter—and do what people are said to do on vacation. Also, I’ll be writing a book.
Rest assured that whatever ZPZ and I do in the future, we will not be dumbing it down, we will not change our basic natures, we will not be morphing into something we are not. We will continue to do what we do. And have a hell of a good time doing it.
Enjoy the family! They are young but once. We will see you on your return.
Haiti, really,you need a better crew and producers.That was by far the most fucking stupid thing i have ever seen and 23 years in public service i have seen a lot.
Sick angry poor starving people you could have gone to many places in USA for that but really the most screwed up place in the world with people that would kill you and your crew in a heart beat
Think before you film a food show in a place of famine and starvation and anarchy…
Tony you should come to Costa Rica, you'll be more than surprised, in a good way.
Hi Chef,
I’m Brazilian (Carioca)and i think you commited a little mistake. Though you were right when you said cariocas don´t cook (generally, we really don’t care), you messed up going to São Paulo to eat a feijoada. It’s a Carioca dish, ok?
Wish you my best, love your shows!
Finland, Portugal, Romania, Sardinia some of my favorites. Completely delightful, hell I want to visit; soon!
Thank You!
Where did you go ? My Mondays are all screwed up now. I don't care where you go, I NEED your show !!!
By the way, my offer still stands…I'll be your Ralph Stedman anytime !
Hola Pura Vida! Hi Anthony! I would like to see one of your videos made in Costa Rica. I saw every single video of your "No Reservations" show and I would like to see one from Costa Rica. I am from Costa Rica and I am living in Seattle WA. My husband and I would like to invite you to my country in Costa Rica.
Maria Saulness
Dear Mr. Bourdain,
Aka, Tony.
I love your show. I try never to miss an episode. Now Sir, I just watched you in Venna. Great! I am second generation Austrian/Hungarian. You have accomplished 1/2 of the journey. Now, please complete the second half and visit Budapest… one of the most beautiful cities on the planet. Try to look past what the Russians did to
Hungary starting in 1955 and destroying their hopes and dreams for two generations to come. We Hungarians plead with you to right a terrible wrong that was done by Andrew Zimmern about a year ago. We true Hungarians do cook our food. We have wonderful dishes and pastry. We have wonderful wines. We are a nation of artists, poets, playwrites, scientists, engineers. We do not eat currly hog meat raw. We do not eat slow cooked penas of young, and old, bulls. Please include Budapest in your future. The food, wine and public art are terrific. Be sure to visit Hero's Park outside of the city and admire the skulptures. We Hungarians are coming back… slowly but surely. We will return. Otto's Delie in Glendale/Burbank area of Southern California is a terrific source of Hungarian "Pick" salamie.
Mr. Bourdain,
I thought the Penang episode was lovely, but I just caught the Tijuana show and thought it was f***ing brilliant!
Great music, great shots, great writing, and of course, the food looked fantastic.
I'm on my way to Thailand (I live in South Korea and have a lot of vacation time) as it's a favorite place and might have to go to Penang again. Luckily, I'm spoiled for choice in this part of the world.
Enjoy your vacation!
Wow, some interesting comments here. I'll just say I LOVE THE SHOW, it is fun to watch, and I get to see places I will never see in my lifetime! Tony makes me laugh too! I love his comments, they help make the show so entertaining! I live in a very small town called "Slapout" in Alabama, (bet you haven't heard of it, LOL) , so "No Reservations" is a favorite for us
The best thing… no the only thing worth watching on the Travel Channel is No Res / Layover. Now the ZPZ team moves to CNN and I can downgrade my satellite to the basic package and I no longer have to support Zimmern, Sam Brown, those ghost adventures idiots, and/or other chodely rerun TC shows. Yay.
Foie Gras – Foie Gras has become a big issue these days and I know Tony has done several shows and reports on it. Tony, shame on you!! I understand you are a food-lover but how can you only go to these farms and be led by the farmers themselves who OBVIOUSLY will make it a point to show you what they want to show you. You only talk to them so of course you are only going to have one view on it – their view. Why don't you talk to the Animal Legal Defense Fund and see what they have to say or watch the hidden videos on http://www.stopforcefeeding.com/
Are you telling me they made that up? I think that the least you could have done is showed both sides of the story instead of just some of your buddies who are farmers (which I'm sure you'll get some good kick backs for).
HOLA ANTHONY, YO NO HABLO INGLES, PERO NO ME PIERDO NUNCA SU PROGRAMA PORQUE LO VEO
EN EL CABLE CON TRADUCCION EN ESPAÑOL, ME GUSTA MUCHO VER TODOS SUS VIAJES Y VER COMO
SABOREA TODAS LAS COMIDAS, PARA MI HA SIDO UNA FORMA DE ESCAPE O REFUGIO, ESTABA MUY DEPRIMIDA PORQUE ESTOY PASANDO POR MI DIVORCIO Y AL VER LO A USTED IMAGINO QUE YO ESTOY EN
ESA CIUDAD Y COMIENDO ESO, NO SE IMAGINA LO QUE ME HA AYUDADO VERLO TODOS LOS DIAS. DIOS LO
BENDIGA A DONDE QUIERA QUE VAYA. YO SEGUIRE IMAGINANDO, QUE VOY CON USTED. SALUDOS Y OJALA DIOS ME PERMITA ALGUN DIA CONOCERLE EN PERSONA. SU FAN. SRA. MARIA ZEPEDA , DE CIUDAD JUAREZ, CHIH. MEXICO. ES LA FRONTERA CON EL PASO TEXAS.
I hate to say it Tony, but your once great project has turned into some kind of thing you'd probably hate if you were, like us, watching it. You've become a shill, a fraud and a BJ artist, and not the hero of folks like me who had once admired your antics. Now, with your arthouse frames and magic-hour shoots, the show is for people who probably would have kicked you out of the houses when you started as a punk. So, you ditched the long-suffering wife and picked up a young bimbo (from the land of my family) and have tried to start life again, this time rich and living in Connecticut. I guess it's safe to say that most of your older fans aren't really fans anymore. And, I guess, you'll be forced to act the way you do now to pay the bills and keep the young gal in tow. Good luck in your future, but, I have to say your gonna have to do without me, a long time fan.
You must go to El Salvador and eat a Pupusa
Costa Rica, Tony, Costa Rica is waiting for you, you will be more than amazed…
Hello Tony,Watched "No Reservations" from the beginning! You were the First of this unique, fabulous,explorative quest on a journeyto those places only a fewcould ever taste! National Geographic on steroids!! Coming from a long line of chefs and resort owners from the D.C ChesapeakeBay area to Coral Gables ..then Islamorada., I have always loved the more unusual flavors, like oysters, Uni,Lobster guts That soft custard inside the Stone crab..witch 30 yrs ago was not so popular.And bone marrow, of course.How exciting it was when you confirmed and relished every 'bite'!! Hope you have some great quality time with your family!!!THANK YOU..Ilona
I watched your program today,enjoying a well cooked plate de mariscos, while praising Castro's Cocina, while the rest of the "cubanos" are starving. , You and your program can go to hell~ do not wait for me to turn in your program ever again you piece of "Mierda"
Bourdain: You have really "lowered" yourself by doing the AMC Mobsters' bit! My perception of you is now extremely negative. I guess money TALKS!!!
Yay! Just received my tickets in the mail for your November show in Nashville. I am thrilled….can't wait!
Hello to Tony and the editors of this blog,
I saw a lot of negative comments here, and so I just wanted to add a very positive one:
Thanks for making the No Reservations show, and thanks for keeping up and improving the quality of the years.
I am a German living in Ireland, and I am a somewhat nerdy computer scientist. Without Tony I would have never found the motivation to start seriously cooking, to start traveling and to try living in a different country.
So no matter what the haters say, and no matter if anybody actually will read this comment,
"No Reservations" is basically the most important TV show in my life.
And I am looking forward to see the future projects of Tony and ZPZ.
cheers from Ireland, Benjamin.
just looking for a spot to place some sort of a comment on a fantastic ep. from season 5 ep. 18 "Burning Questions" especially the last bit with adam it was hilarious ! keep on rockkin Bourdain ! your show is an insparation for artists and the free spirited who walk the earth in constant restless and curiosity !
thanks for a good time and cheers !
Dear Anthony
As a school teacher I truly enjoy your show. It gives me the opportuity to travel to places without actually having to pay for it. I thiink that is so neat to have a job that allows you to visit so many places. Kudos to you for doing your homework and having so much knowledge about the places you visit. Summers are long and watching your show allows me and my family (I have 2 great daughters) to enjoy some of the most beautiful places in the world without leaving home.
Marisol Gomez
Anthony, you are the best. Enjoy your much deserved break. Thank you for all you do and contribute to this planet.
Good street food, good pork, good drinks are just some of the things Costa Rica has to offer. You will always find a "bowl of something good" really amazing.
Costa Rica is waiting