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Kitchen Confidential

Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly
Jul 27, 2018SCL_Justin rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
When Anthony Bourdain died this year, I hadn't read anything by him, but my partner got me to watch some of his CNN show, Parts Unknown and I could see why people really liked his work. Kitchen Confidential was the book that put Bourdain on the map (or on the Food Network) and it is a good look at a weird style of workplace. Though in the book he's writing with the brashness of someone who knows everything, I wonder how much of the experience of these styles of kitchens only apply in New York City. In a late chapter he does tell the reader that what he's describing (a macho sadistic culture Jordan Peterson would admire) is not the only way a kitchen can be, but he's described his kitchens so well already they're what stick with you as a reader. In the end, I prefer late-career Bourdain's work but I can see why this would become so well-regarded.