A Bloody Valentine to the World of Food and the People Who Cook [Hardcover] [2010] 1 Ed. Anthony Bourdain

Say what you want about Tony, he is incredibly transparent, incredibly honest, and incredibly introspective. I find this book, like the rest, to be an amazingly candid view into this amazingly neurotic right-brained introspective halliuciation that is Tony Bourdain. I love it. Brilliance at its best and it's worst.

I was unimpressed with his language. It took away from a decent book. Too many "F" bombs that didn't add to the content, and were distracting. I would be embarrassed to recommend this to a friend.

HE SAYS THE DARNDEST THINGS.........BUTON TV HE TALKS TOO FAST....HOWEVER, HE IS ENJOYABLE TO READ.....AND WE LOVE SEEING HIM EAT EVERYTHING IN FRONT OF HIM. HE IS ALSO VERY FRANK WHICH IS GOOD FOR A CHANGE.

I liked Kitchen Confidential very much. I consider myself as a foodie want a be. All the talk about what goes on behind the scenes is very interesting. But in Medium Raw, Tony gets a little to weird. He goes off on some rants that really do not make any sense, there is not connection to the rest of the story. I will NEVER eat another fast food burger in my life.

As a former kitchen monkey of 30 plus years Anthony keeps me smiling throughout his follow up to KC and I must say his skills keep improving ... I hope he continues to write books with a satirical slant about the business.. It is welcomed!!'

Based on the positive reviews and as a fan of Kitchen Confidential, I downloaded Anthony Bourdain's latest title onto my Kindle. P.S.: I hated this book. It started out promisingly with a diatribe against the Food Network and the dumbing down of the culinary scene. From there on out, the book seemed a loosely held together string of essays without any relevance to one another. Some made me think Bourdain was high when he wrote them, they were barely coherent. Bourdain's frequent use of the f*bomb becomes tiresome. It's a gratuitous nod to his bad boy image, completely misplaced, as cursing is merely a lazy way to communicate. The gross out factor used in his analogies, and his belittling of everyone and everything from hotel restaurant workers, personal chefs, to food stylists, comes across as petty and mean. Then again, maybe as a woman I'm not the right audience for this book, as his prose is pumped full of testosterone.

If you are looking to get into the food industry and want a good understanding of what its like, look no further than this book. Author Anthony Bourdain does not sugar coat anything. If you're already in the industry, you'll be laughing constantly at the hard truth, and the way you can relate. From personal stories, to the insight of others, this book is hilarious, honest, and great.

This book is a great read for anybody who like Kitchen Confidential. I'd really recommend reading Kitchen Confidential first, as Bourdain references it periodically in Medium Raw.

Either way, this book is pure Bourdain and if you like his wit and way with words, you'll love this book.

I love his show(s) but Anthony lost me on about Chapter 4. I found it hard to stay interested in one weird chef after another, with not as much incite as I expected, maybe it was all in Kitchen Confidential.

Wow my fiancee was so surprised and happy to see a New Anthony Bourdain book, he loves the way he writes and the fact he is so emersed in the chef/food world!!!!!

Would definitely say for anyone who loves Anthony Bourdain the chef and traveler, or has a passion for the food world this is a welcomed addition to any personal library*

If you read Kitchen Confidential Updated Edition: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly (P.S.) and didn't like it, it doesn't necessarily mean that you shouldn't pick up Medium Raw.

This is a much more refined, contemplative work by Bourdain. His age and cynicism shows in the writing, but for the better. He attacks the Food Network personalities that we all love to hate, or hate to love, while explaining to us who we should be following. His writing is much tighter and has a definite flow while still maintaining his "stream of consciousness" voice.

Love Bourdain's style. He gives it straight between the eyes with just the right dose of irreverance. Also like the way his arguments unfold as he plays devil's advocate with himself. Often the reader is watching the author arrive at a conclusion which even he does not fully appreciate until he gets there. Don't think anyone can describe food quite as well. Never mind Pavlov's dogs, I am often left salivating.

...and he's done it again. I'm laughing my ass off and can quite clearly hear Bordain's voice as I read each word. He makes me want to be a better cook, a methodical, loving and unapologetic parent and leaves me reveling in a vision of food- good food all around me. My last trip to Singapre was filled with food stalls. Little white girl walking the streets solo in search of a great stall. It was good. And now I remember why I was inclined to go. Bordain.

Chapter 5.....

I read this book to see if it could be as great a read as KITCHEN CONFIDENTIAL. It was. I really believe it takes a writer to grab a readers attention. And Bourdain is a great writer. I find his discriptions of food mouth watering and his narrrative colorful.

Another great read from the master wordsmith Tony Bourdain. While there isn't a smooth flow between the chapters, there are lots of interesting rants and tidbits about the culinary world and those who dwell in it. I didn't want to put this book down and tore through it in a matter of days. Bourdain has the ability to describe a simple subject, such as cleaning fish at Le Bernardin, with such passionate and intricate detail. Bourdain fans will not be disappointed in the least in his latest book.

Mr. Bourdain writes better than one might expect. Very few transitions from topic to topic. The story is not time- nor career sequential, but it is interesting because of the author's total engagement with life. His writing on his daughter is not tobe missed.

What a great read from an unpretentious guy who tells it like it is. Thought he couldn't top Kitchen Confidential but this is every bit as good. Gonna try his fiction stuff next. Love the way this guy thinks, writes and does his TV shows.

Great follow up to "Confidential". Just as much laugh out loud antics as the first book. Bourdain still maintains his sarcastic, yet classy approach at explaining to us the beauty of the food world and why we all are chefs deep down inside.

Save your money, I have been a fan of Anthony both as an author and on TV. This book serves no purpose except to slander others who are in his trade. I don't know where he thinks he is an expert on all the other chiefs when it fact he has done nothing in his trade for a very long time. I am not interested in his political feelings or who is on his list or good or bad people. Some of the chapters are drawn out and BORING at best. At least his first books told a story of interest, this book does not come close to any kind of meaningful story. To put in cooking term it was like a dish of corn beef hash, leftovers, dry, served on a tasteless plate. He tried to cover it up and failed, it is still a plate of crap.

Anthony Bourdains writing is a shear delight to read. The good doctor Hunter S thompson would be proud.The food industry is open to the public with Bourdains no b.s. attitude. Some of those creepy little fiends at Food Network need to be locked up in padded room and forced to watch their pathetic programs 24/7 with only clown and royal burgers to eat with a side of run of the bowels tacos.

the store, how many reviews do you want me to write today? I bought the stuff, I never sent it back or complained? isn't that enough? Never read Bourdain's nonfiction? Maybe you'll like it, maybe you won't. I liked it. Why do reviews have to be so objective? We have to hold your hand while you make the decision to buy a book? What if you read it and don't like it? Are you gonna get mad at me? Are you going to keep my review in mind the whole time you're reading it? And are you going to send me a Christmas card every year if you found this review informative and helpful? You won't but you should. I like Christmas cards.
Anthony Bourdain talks about food for however many pages the book goes on. Obvs.

I loved Kitchen Confidential -- the no-holds-barred story of Bourdain's life, from innocence to dissolution to wisdom. Medium Raw is little more than a series of mediocre, disconnected essays, written mainly for shock value. But they don't really shock. Soon enough, the raw language becomes old, the raw situations tedious. This is a book written mainly to exploit the success of the first. It has no other reason for existing.

I cannot believe this is the same author who wrote Kitchen Confidential. It seems as if the author has nothing left to write about, now that he no longer cooks. This book reminds me of a post-Born in the USA Springsteen, where the material becomes desperate, watered-down and sold out.

There is much here that sings of the visceral love of food and the vehement defense of all its forms against idealists and peddlers mediocrity that is signature Bourdain. But there are also undercooked, I'll conceived bits. There is a chapter on psyops conducted to put his toddler off McDonald's which I suspect will be an embarrassment to Bourdain a few years down the road. If the book were a dish, I wouldn't send it back to the kitchen. But I wouldn't order it again.

Mr. Bourdain's always-evident potty mouth wears thin after two or three chapters. How many references to body parts does he really need to use to make/prove his point? Methinks AB's brain is still scrambled from all of his former recreational drug use.

Thrown together to make money. No coherence, just babbling away, mocking us.

He has endless contempt for everybody and everything. Once, he had a purpose and style. In this book, it is hard to be found. He is wasted most of the time, just looking for another high, as so often.

Food, alcohol, other drugs, sex. Nothing is ever fulfulling. He finds some happy moments and they make him go on for the moment. 5 minutes later, he is in another valley of dispear, discomfort, uneasiness, disconnected from what makes us go on: meaningful relationships, centeredness etc.To anybody!

It's always a conquest, he is always enlightened but nobody else. And, I don't think he ever made real love or said I Am Sorry, to anyone that lasted longer than a moment. Too stoned, too full of himself, far too angry and spiteful and insecure in his personhood.

Nevertheless, he tried for 61 years and did very well for who he was. I read Kitchen Confidential and Medium Raw in one week after his suicide and he got to me in many many ways. I certainly will be an even better cook.

Finally, RIP. I'll miss him, and I know for certain that if he could, he would not again go through with killing himself. The Sichuan hotpot and the roast goose in Mongkok, Hong Kong, were far too delicious for not going back for it. But it was just a matter of time and thank you, Anthony, for making it this long. You did well.

It is very difficult to express how deep my contempt for Bourdain goes.
The books first offering discusses a secret dinner for chefs that tells how each individual chef participant is served a tiny bird, one that IS ON THE ENDANGERED SPECIES LIST...which is why it was secret. Bourdain's very intense pride at being invited to such an event is obscene, just the kind of intense that is a hallmark of the social climber that finally makes it. His obsequious pleasure at being able to eat this tiny bird is beyond disgusting. The fact that all the chefs participated and were aware that they needed to eat the small bird in one bite, feet first should inform more sentient people that this was a crime.
Those participating chef-criminals should all be in prison.
I threw this book into the garbage with Bourdain without reading another word.

Guess I'm in the minority but I put this book down right after the Alice Waters chapter. When Bourdain writes about himself, his life, his travels, he's truly enjoyable. As soon as he leaves the personal, it becomes rather boring. First few chapters were very good (all about himself), after that it took a dismal dive into dullness.

This awful,opinionated , stupid bit of writing was a dissapointment at best.I have enjoyed His T.V. programs but this was not in the least informative or enjoyable reading.I would like to buy Mr Bourdain for what hes worth and sell him for what-he thinks he is worth.

I purchased this book by accident (being careless in the Kindle store) but since I enjoy reading about food, cooking and such I kept it and gave it a "go". Awful. Just awful. Don't like this persons attitude or style. That's my 2-cents.

Forgetting that Mr. Bourdain cannot write a complete sentence without using the F bomb at least twice, I foolishly bought another one of his books. However when he started mentioning something men shouldn't be doing to one another that was it. Book closed. In the garbage. If you don't mind reading something written by someone with the mindset of a fourteen year old then this book is perfect for you!

I found this author to be exceedingly intelligent with a POTTY mouth to match....I am not a prude but his profanity distracted from his writing. It seems he is an alcoholic who writes well [aside from his profanity] which greatly distracts from his credibility. I read only a few chapters before calling a halt to this book of ranting and ravings....too much for my taste!!!!!!!!!!

This book is little more than self indulgent rambling. There is no substance or continuity, just a confusing series of essays. Having read other Bourdain books and watched No Reservations, I expected the usual crude language, but he has sunk to an all time low. Almost every sentence is filled with "f" bombs and other unnecessarily crude language. I can't help but wonder if this was the only way to come up with enough words to fill a book. I gave up after reading half the book, and felt like I needed to take a shower. The negativity is difficult to read with relatively baseless harsh criticism of many in the celebrity culinary world. I would definitely not recommend purchasing this book.

Trust me, I tried. I really, really tried to like this book. However, half way through the book I finally gave up because it was so negative and so disturbing. It made me want to jump off a bridge and get this, I'M A VERY POSITIVE PERSON! The book is such a downer and I wouldn't recommend it at all. The book just gives Anthony Bourdain another platform to report on his negative views on EVERYHING!

Anthony Bourdain's book "Medium Raw" is an interesting series of diatribes on both Bourdain's life and the food service industry. It is laced with his characteristic writing style, including lots of profanity. Now I'm no prude, but there do seem to be times when his use of off-color language is too much. But if you've seen Bourdain on TV, or read about him, you won't be surprised with his language.

The book itself has flashes of brilliance and periods of 'ho-hum'. Unfortunately, the sections detailing Bourdain's life (including his drug habit and his crazy girlfriend) aren't terribly interesting, and I found myself zooming through them to get to the good stuff. But some of the sections are sheer brilliance. The opening foreword, entitled "The Sit Down" includes a fascinating description of Bourdain's consumption of the ortolan - his prose when he describes how he eats this animal is vivid and brilliant. In the chapter entitled "Lust", Bourdain describes a bevy of culinary delights in an engaging and likewise vivid manner. After reading this chapter, I felt like I needed a cigarette!

There is also a great section towards the end when Bourdain describes "Heroes and Villians" of the food industry. Interestingly, you may not know several of them, but you will enjoy reading his honest and blunt criticism (or adulation) of these very important members of the culinary community.

Overall the book is enjoyable, but it goes from topic to topic without a lot of coherence. It almost seems like a collection of essays put together in one book, which are only minimally weaved together. It should give you some entertainment value, but only if you hang in there.

If you like Anthony Bourdain and want to be entertained, go ahead and read this one. If you are looking for the inside stories behind conventional chefs and the food industry (including the Food Network), you're not going to find too much of that here.

This audiobook allowed me the pleasure of listening to Tony's familiar scratchy voice that I have grown to love from his television shows. As he proclaims in the book, he is a proud hypocrite. This is evident in his follow up observations and veiled apologies, some of which are indeed hypocrital, to the stories from Kitchen Confidential (a better book, IMO). Some of the chapters kind of lost my attention, including the ranting and raving about who is and is not, a douchebag. Funny at first, then seems to drone on a bit. It's like when your mom tells you about her friend's grandson's performance at school and how amazing he is - you may listen for a few minutes, then the rest is just noise. Overall, it's an entertaining book to listen to if you enjoy his show.

Brilliant, unfiltered, rollercoaster ride with Bourdain.

Bourdain follows up Kitchen Confidential with a nice collection of unvarnished observations and opinions about a wide range of topics.

His discourse on the importance of EVERYONE learning basic cooking skills may be worth the price of the book itself. "Basic knife skills should be a must. Nothing too serious. Just enough facility with a knife to be on par with any Sicilian grandmother." Words of wisdom concerning the merits of attending cooking school and career advice to aspiring chefs is priceless for those so inclined. Like Michael Douglas, surprised that his Gordon Gekko character inspired a generation of young people to go work on Wall Street, Bourdain marvels that people still want to become a chef despite his blunt talk in Kitchen Confidential.

He opines on the sorry state of Food Inc., and the danger of eating hamburgers in this country: "Call me crazy, but I believe that when you're making hamburger for human consumption, you should at no time deem it necessary or desirable to treat its ingredients in ammonia. Or any cleaning product, for that matter."

One of the best parts is his soul-searching after the break-up of his first marriage, and how he struggled as an aspiring writer and slightly burnt-out chef.

Bourdain may be more introspective, but make no mistake, he still retains his rapier wit. He pens an entire chapter to vilify (mediocre yet famous) food critic Alan Richman. He pulls no punches, entitling the chapter "Alan Richman is a douchebag."

Still "uncut" he writes lines like this one, when describing an episode of a cooking contest TV show: "The plate looked like the last shot of a backache video - filmed at Chilis." This is why I love Bourdain.

For me, the absolute climax of the book is the chapter in which he describes the dominican man, Justo, the fish prep chef for Le Bernardin. Again, if the book had only this chapter, it would be worth the price. Bourdain again shows his humanity when he takes Justo to eat at Le Bernardin for lunch- the first time the man had ever eaten the food he has spent years prepping for cooking.

Must-read!

The title pretty much says it all. I have loved all that Bourdain was. He is/was a unique and straight up talent who is as quick to call himself out, as his is others. He lets his anger and frustrations particularly take center stage in this diatribe. I give it 3 stars because the overall organization of the book felt a bit disjointed. I continue to applaud his raw and candid writing, but it seemed the total work needed a bit more polish. If you have enjoyed Anthony Bourdain, read this book.

RIP, we will indeed miss you tremendously.

Before reading this, I thought Anthony Bourdain was a celebrity French chef.

Then one day he popped up on a cable TV channel and, lo and behold, turned out to be a good old American presenter who spends his time traveling the world and eating food in street markets.

Spiders fried in pepper sauce in Rangoon, starlings stewed in vinegar in Corsica, grasshoppers dipped in palm oil in Madagascar, vampire bat cutlets in Transylvania, goat entrails with reindeer brains in Kamchatka and jellied bear claws with baby scorpions in Syria. He has gone where no man's stomach has gone before, eaten everything up and lived to tell the tale.

I have since learned that he was never a chef but worked in a restaurant in New York for some years and wrote a book in which he exposed what goes on in the kitchen that those of us in the dining room don't know - or don't want to know - about.

This book explains how he shifted "career" from chopping onions to posing for the camera and writing travelogues. He also manages to sound like a jaded rock star when he recounts the days when he was into drugs. (Yawn, yawn, we've heard it all before, Mr. B.)

Bourdain would probably be entertaining in small doses. However, 250 pages is enough. Homespun philosophy about how he raises his adorable little daughter appears alongside foul-mouthed rants about people in the food business most of us have never heard of. Lots of humdrum thoughts about nothing of any importance pad it out.

I suspect Bourdain is one of those media creations who is famous because he is famous and takes himself too seriously despite his attempts to show how he is really just a laidback guy like the rest of us.

If you don't have anything to say Mr. Bourdain, then don't say anything. Please don't be tempted to write a follow up.

I was reading some of the negative reviews for this book; it astounds me that people would be offended by it. HELLO!!! Its Anthony Bourdain we are talking about here; he is not known to be one of the more politically correct people in the universe. I believe that if you pick up any book written by Bourdain, it is automatically implied that you are prepared to read potentially offensive material. That's part of his charm. How he weaves his wit with crude language is brilliant. Yes, he uses words such as retard. Yes, this might be insensitive, but please understand that he didn't write this book to spare anyone's feelings. I do see how a person can be offended but it doesn't mean that the rest of the world needs to stop using certain words. If we were to take into account everyone's feelings we may as well demand the store remove 50%+ of the books they sell. Come on people!

Anyway, back to the book: Anthony Bourdain is a wonderful writer. I envy his writing style. He has great stories about his life; some of them made me think about aspects of my own. He is hilariously funny , the kind of funny that is smart and witty. I would suggest you read Kitchen Confidential first since certain chapters in this book act as a sequel to it. I have both the paperback and audio versions of this book. Get the audio too; his cadence adds a wonderful twist. Bourdain is the Man.

I love Anthony Bourdain & I loved Kitchen Confidential, so when I saw a hardcover copy of Medium Raw on sale at McKay, I bought it. Meh... It was okay. It wasn't bad, but Kitchen Confidential it's not. Medium Raw is basically a mea culpa for Kitchen Confidential. He tones it down a lot & explains why he gave certain chefs so much grief. In many cases, he apologizes & says he was wrong. Luckily, there is still angst-ridden diatribes like the one about Alice Waters. Man, he does not like Alice Waters. But these brutal attacks are few & far between. This book is mostly one, big love letter. He talks about how great his life his, how much he loves his family, how much he loves his job, how unbelievably lucky he is, how much he respects certain chefs, how different & hard the business is now & how sorry he is for some of the chefs he wronged in his previous book.

It's not a bad book. I enjoyed reading it. I think you should definitely read Kitchen Confidential first. It's been recommended that I also read A Cook's Tour, so I'm going to keep an eye out for that.

Meh, three stars.

"When I sat down at my desk every morning to write Kitchen Confidential and began clacking away at they keyboard, I was gloriously free of hope that it would be read outside a small subculture of restaurant people in New York City," writes Anthony Bourdain in his newest book, and third since Kitchen Confidential, called Medium Raw.

When Kitchen Confidential was published, it became an almost overnight success. As it pushed higher and higher on the NY Times Bestseller List, so to did the stardom of Anthony Bourdain.

Kitchen Confidential was perhaps so popular, because for the less initiated, it unveiled in a terribly entertaining way, the obscured and raw "culinary underbelly" of the restaurant industry. It was precisely because it was written for a "subculture" of insiders that Kitchen Confidential was adopted by the masses. Its authenticity proved irresistible.

Fast forward ten years: Bourdain has become a celebrity. He is the writer and personality of an Emmy award-winning television show: No Reservations. He is employed by the very network he has so long railed against: The Food Network. He is a married family man, who resides with his young daughter and wife within the yuppy confines of the Upper East Side of Manhattan.

The thing is- these contradictions are certainly not lost on the self-deprecating Bourdain. They do, however, rob Bourdain's newest effort, Medium Raw, of any hope at the authenticity and refreshing originality of Kitchen Confidential, and even of No Reservations.

In Medium Raw, Bourdain does not fail to offer healthy servings of his unique, vitriolic, acerbic, laser-sharp, and hilarious wit, which his fans have come to expect of him.

In the chapter, "Lower Education", Bourdain shares the creative ways he has devised to protect his daughter from the subversive and manipulative marketing tactics of McDonald's and other fast food chains, "Where you take the Clown and the King and the Colonel is in the streets- or more accurately, in the same impressionable young minds they have so successfully f'ed with for so long. `Ronald has cooties,' I say [to my daughter]- every time he shows up on television."

Less successful than his use of humor, however, is the way in Medium Raw, that Bourdain shells his rage-against-the-machine attacks on food celebrity "villains" and other pillars of the industry. Nearly all of Bourdain's targets will be familiar to fans of his show. In his book, Bourdain's rants teeter dangerously on the edge of a played out stand-up routine.

Even some of the praise Bourdain showers in Medium Raw, on David Chang for example, comes across as shameless pandering to the hordes of foodies and Food Bloggers.

More authentic, and reminiscent of the pre-fame Bourdain, is the author's portrait of Erik Hopfinger, a failed Top Chef contestant, who works in a, compared to Chang's Momofuku, far more pedestrian restaurant.

The distance with which Bourdain both appreciates and understands Hopfinger only reinforces how Bourdain, at least a little bit, has become part of what he has slung arrows at for so long.

Medium Raw will entertain, and at times inform. It will fail, though, to inspire, as Kitchen Confidential did for so many. Bourdain attacking, complaining, grumbling from his perch of fame lacks the panache and verve the same voice did when he was a debt-laden, aspirin-popping, over-worked, and sleep-deprived average Chef. One, at times, when reading Medium Raw, will even find themselves wishing for the exulting, humble voice in which Bourdain feels most comfortable writing for on his show No Reservations.

Ive been a fan of Anthony Bourdain ever since I stumbled across his television show and got hooked. I enjoyed him because he was a disenfranchised cook traveling the world full of snarky attitude and eating some of the most disgusting stuff you've seen. His genuine dislike for all things vegan is enough to endear me to him. However, with his growing fame, something has changed in him. Tony has now become the thing he once loathed. He is now a pretentious name-dropper and this book is testament to that.

For example, this is a guy who travelled the world, eating some of the most disgusting stuff and bits off of animals you can think of. Pickled snake in Vietnam, seal eyeballs, beating cobra hearts, you name it. Not to mention the questionable "meat" he constantly gushes over any time his goes to a street market in some dank corner of the world. Bear that in mind when you read his hypocritical chapter "Meat."

I think wadding through all of name-dropping and co-opting the whole organic, local grown food nonsense that seems to be pervasive in the whole food culture, Tony has lost his edge. Hes still mean and throws the f-bomb around. Hes not the outsider looking in that he used to be and that's the part about him I liked when I first turned it on his show. It seems he is now desperately trying to fit in with the whole tattooed, hipster chef scene and this book is his love letter to them.

Bourdain can be grating in his global quest for delicious but often unhealthy food, seemingly-calculated (unlike Ramsay) profanity, and silly smokin'-in-the-boys-room braggadocio about drinking too much; at 56-years-old, he resembles his contemporary Howard Stern, still exulting in teen-age-level transgression and, in this book, gratuitous reference to specific sex acts.

But here, in 2010, he fairly humbly, for him, and charmingly (if profanely), acknowledges possible flaws in his outlook, not only in the years leading to Kitchen Confidential (2000), but in the ensuing decade, in his contretemps with Food Network/Cooking Channel and its stars. He remains critical of Rachael, Sandra, Guy, et al., nevertheless tempering his sweeping critique to recognize the indisputably talented - not merely media-successful (like him) - culinary figures such as Mario, Bobby and Emeril. A millionaire UESer now - not from cooking but making TV - he says he's matured, even as he continues to protect his outlier brand. Perhaps some of the relative humility derives of his own blatant product placements on the Travel Channel.

Some fans of Kitchen Confidential see this book as leftovers, but it doesn't claim to be anything other than a collection of 20-odd essays about food, very much in Tony's voice, along with anecdotes about his alleged personal evolution.

Interestingly, he seems far more infuriated by people like Alice Waters, whom he sees as a myopic fabulist, believing that (broadly unaffordable) organic food is more important than street crime or even homeland security, than by celebs like Rachael or Sandra, who are trying to make it easier, not harder, for ordinary folks to cook at home for their families.

Many names are named, for all kinds of things, good & bad, making fun reading for people who love food & restaurants.

Anthony Bourdain's Medium Raw is a pseudo sequel to his immensely popular and influential memoir Kitchen Confidential. Mr. Bourdain looks what has happened in the food industry in the ten years since Kitchen Confidential hit the shelves. No longer actually working in a restaurant, Mr. Bourdain now gets paid good money to travel around the world to eat, drink, film, write and talk about food. He's living a charmed and envied life and is fully aware of his good fortune, but he can't quite shake the darkness and malice in his head and heart. Despite being happily married and loving his new role as a father, he still finds himself wanting to leap through his TV screen and choke out some of the "chefs" he feels are committing culinary atrocities. That being said, as he states in the book, he doesn't want to forever be known as the crotchety, cantankerous guy with only bilious things to say about others. While Sandra Lee is still an evil presence in his mind (he passage about meeting her about some function is laugh out loud funny), he has softened his stance on Emeril Lagasse (whom he has met and actually likes), Rachael Ray (who sent him a fruit basket), Jamie Oliver (who he describes as a hero in one of the better chapters in the book, "Heroes & Villains") and others he had previously skewered. While no longer being a working chef, Mr. Bourdain still has a deep respect and affinity for the people who work in the restaurant industry. He brilliantly writes about the Justo, a man who sole job is to break down the fish in the high end seafood restaurant Le Bernardin. His detailed description of the speed and precision in which Justo cleans and cuts the fish puts you right in the room. Also, he takes Justo to eat in the restaurant where he works for the first and probably only time in his life shows how much respect he has for these workers whose hard labor largely goes unnoticed by those who dine and write about restaurants. There is a chapter where Mr. Bourdain writes about selling out (he claims that he sold out long before he wrote Kitchen Confidential and became a TV host) that is dead on about what it actually means to do as such. All in all, if you are a fan of Mr. Bourdain, this book will be a must read and those who aren't aware of his writing should give it a try as Mr. Bourdain is insightful, funny, brutally honest and above all, interesting.

Have always enjoyed Anthony Bourdain and his commentary. Find his raw character to be truthful without any sugarcoating. Yes, he can be vulgar with his language, but his straightforwardness is refreshing in today's hyped media.

Of course I had to grab the new Anthony Bourdain book, Medium Raw: A Bloody Valentine to the World of Food and the People Who Cook. I spend a lot of time reading about food, for one. When I'm not eating it, or cooking it, that is.

It's no Kitchen Confidential, but I wasn't expecting that. That one had the audacity of a first tale from the seamy underbelly of professional restaurant cooking; we now know that Bourdain is brash and opininonated, and that he will go the distance to eat unusual meals. The main questions when picking up this book: Has Bourdain mellowed? (Not entirely.) Does he have anything new to say, since he seems to have touched on a lot of bases in his previous books, and now that he's no longer a struggling chef but now no longer a chef at all, but a success both in print and television? (Yes, and No.) He has a daughter, now. Responsibility. But he still hates non-Hindu vegetarianism.

Kitchen Confidential provided more of a storyline; this book is discrete chapters, basically separate essays. Some of them read like filler but others show insight, sometimes cantankerous, but often with more nuance than back in the old days. And yes, now eat your fish on Mondays if you want (depending on where you are).

Bourdain tends to name-drop a lot -- not necessarily a bad thing when one is assessing the brand new world of celebrity chefdom. It is interesting to learn why (and think on these reasons oneself) he respects some of these chefs, and not others. He's blunt about himself as well about others, but often sees surprising levels of nuance in the viewpoints of, say, Alice Waters. In other chapters, he gets down home and encourages everyone to learn and use the basics of cooking. I'm all for that. He talks about his fears of "selling out"; he assesses the Food Network, and takes on other targets as well as added reflections (if one can give them so genteel a name) of things discussed back in Kitchen Confidential days.

If you like books about the inner workings of the foodie world, and you like brash writers, give this a try. It's not perfect, but it is easy to read a segment here, a segment there, and enjoy Bourdain's use of language. The book's a keeper, for several of these chapters.

Most food celebs of Bourdain's stature would be content to rest on their laurels and take the easy road to nirvanaville - but Bourdain being Bourdain decides to crank up the volume, exceeding even the screeching levels of his incendiary 'Kitchen Confidential' in this no-holds barred diatribe of things that Bourdain finds right and (mostly) wrong in today's food scene.

Reading through this book is like sitting with Bourdain and his closest chums in an after-hours watering hole while he unleashes his thoughts and rips apart various culinary luminaries that are typically regarded as untouchable (Alice Waters, Alan Richman, Thomas Keller, Alain Ducasse, etc). His thoughts are extremely insidery, frank and lucid and his commentary cuts straight to the bone even if you're not familiar with most of the sacred cows in question.

Of course, a fair portion of the book is dedicated to things that Bourdain has deep appreciation and fondness for such as Vietnam, Fergus Henderson and David Chang - but the raw, candidness of Bourdain's head-space is really what we came for and yes, he does deliver in full yet again.

...so if you hated "Kitchen Confidential" or turn hastily away from the Travel Channel whenever "No Reservations" comes on, stay away from this book. For the rest of us, this is tremendous fun, a compulsive page-turner in which Anthony Bourdain is his old sharp-tongued, curmudgeonly, marvelously astute and honest self. Whether he is discussing his drug-ridden, dead-end past; depicting his week of horror on St. Barths in the company of a lunatic, cokehead heiress; paying homage to chefs he admires, such as Fergus Henderson or David Chang; excoriating people he despises, most memorably restaurant critic Alan Richman; or revealing his seriously conflicted feelings about Alice Waters, Bourdain is always a bracingly witty, scorchingly candid companion.

What comes through loud and clear throughout the various short pieces that make up "Medium Raw," through all the rants and f-bombs, is that Bourdain is, first and foremost, a moralist. In the chapter about the heiress on St. Barths, for example, it is clear that what he most despises about her is her rudeness to service staff. "She accused me of caring more about waiters than I cared about her, and she was right," he says. Later on, in "The Fish-on-Monday Thing," he stresses to finicky travelers his "Grandma Rule:" "You may not like Grandma's Thanksgiving turkey. It may be overcooked and dry--and her stuffing salty and studded with rubbery pieces of giblet you find unpalatable in the extreme. You may not even like turkey at all. But it's Grandma's turkey. And you are in Grandma's house. So shut the (expletive deleted) up and eat it."

It is these bits of humane wisdom--and Bourdain's refusal to exempt himself from them, or deny his own culpability--that make "Medium Raw" more than just a collection of animadversions. For those who can stomach Bourdain's attitude, it's a delight. And yes, Tony, I can TOTALLY get behind your telling your small daughter that Ronald McDonald has cooties!

This is a charming collection of observations without any real unifying purpose or theme other than food. Bourdain, in a characteristically vulgar and vaguely misanthropic way, follows his phenomenal Kitchen Confidential Updated Edition: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly (P.S.) (which I loved, if that helps a reader evaluate this review) with more of the same. He catalogs amazing multi-course tasting dinners, shares the sensual pleasures of chomping down an endangered species of bird that has a rich culinary history, and snarks about how ridiculous the fabulously wealthy act while they vacation. He offers a reasoned critique of the impact of Alice Waters and David Chang on dining in America, and he lovingly goes through a laundry list of contemporary culinary heroes and villains (I don't agree with his assessment of each one, as I don't see foie gras as the "I will kill or die for this" issue that he does, but I appreciate the analysis). I think Bourdain's target audience is probably someone who is familiar with the fine dining scene in New York, but not someone who is too immersed in the scene to be able to appreciate the absurdities of it. Then again, it also appealed to me, who would just like to be that target audience someday. I recommend that readers check out Kitchen Confidential first, but anyone who liked that earlier work will surely like this one as well.

Anthony Bourdain is suffering from a case of split personalities. On the one hand, he's an international traveler and food critic par excellance, with a vast respository of knowledge and insight about the places he's been and the people he's met that can only be envied. On the other hand, he's a former chef (and, as he admits, not a great one) who has been out of work for years and can't help wondering if he's somehow betraying his roots by being a TV travel host instead of a working chef.

Those are the Two Tonys that clash in "Medium Raw," and what's left for the reader is a bloody mess of a book in which his two sides duke it out for supremacy. The highly entertaining "Kitchen Confidential" put Bourdain on the map, but now instead of dishing behind-the-scenes tales of food-related debauchery he is forced to tell us about his many glorious meals (which a lot of us can't afford, even if we could appreciate it) and indoctrinating his little girl against the lure of McDonald's and other fat-burger, fat-people fast food emporiums. The book is uneven, more a collection of essays than proper memoir, but it doesn't have to be. Bourdain's cantankerous charm shines through the sections that are weakest, and "embiggens" the parts that work quite well.

Bitter Tony is on full display, railing against those in his industry whom he feels degrade the process of cooking food (many of the names weren't that familiar to me, but he lays into them with such brio that I can't help but feel the same way). But he's contrite as well, admitting that some of the people he'd have spoken ill of in the past (Rachael Ray, for instance) no longer deserve his scorn. He even admits to his mistakes, such as telling people not to have the fish on Monday (a relief for those of us whose favorite sushi place advertises "all you can eat" Monday dinners). He's always entertaining, no matter what the subject or his own reaction to it. Anthony Bourdain is quite full by the time he concludes his gastronomical love letter, and you might be as well.

Medium Raw: A Bloody Valentine to the World of Food and the People Who Cook by Anthony Bourdain, a Kindle book I started reading on March 15th.

In some ways, I spoiled this book for myself without realizing I did or even meaning to - I was in attendance during the Minneapolis leg of his speaking tour in April 2010 where he verbatim related word-for-word segments of this book in the lecture. A spectacular, witty, informative experience then, a souffle-sinking bummer now. Ah, well.

Without giving away exactly what he spoiled, I can say that I did enjoy his always-in-depth gourmand meal description, No Reservations locales, David Chang, and Justo, the fish prep specialist from Le Bernardin that I believe was featured during a quickfire challenge in this year's Top Chef All Stars

Anthony Bourdain REALLY needs an editor! I love the rants and rages of Bourdain, and most of his television shows but his overworked run on sentences are tiresome. I was so distracted by the incessant rambling of descriptive adjectives and overused "ly" words that I often missed the point. For the most part, his off-handed undermining of the profession and industry that keeps him on the Upper East Side or traveling the world is... boring.
One could get at the raw meat of this book by trimming about 100 pages of fat.

But Bourdain is funny and tempestuous. Which is why he's relatable. He makes plenty of righteous, good points, especially about the fast food nation. But his schtik is now old and hard to read.

Tony does not, for the most part, pull any punches. For the record, Sandra Lee terrifies me too. He doesn't divulge Bigfoot's identity, but for the most part, does name names. I especially liked the chapter on heros and villains. His takedown of Alan Richman is priceless.

The bottom line with Mr. Bourdain is that he really cares about food and the people who prepare it, whether it's the guy in the Czech Republic who stuffs sausages with his bare hands, or the man who cuts the fish at Le Bernardin.

Food is too important to leave to the Rachael Rays and Sandra Lees of the world. We need fewer people clamoring about EVOO and more people cooking and eating a well-executed omelet or a good simple tomato sauce.

Start reading this on a Friday. It will last most of the weekend, and when you're finished, you'll be eager for the next course. I don't know how many more of these Tony has in him, but I'm waiting for the next one.

Medium Raw does not have a single narrative. It is basically a collection of disparate stories (all relative to the restaurant business). Being said that, it is quite interesting to read Bourdain's wide array of opinions about food, chefs, and restaurants. Stories vary. "It's Not You, It's Me" is about his experience as a customer of renowned restaurants, in "The Fury" he details his conversations and opinions about David Chang (of Momofuku Ko), in "So You Wanna Be a Chef", he provides advise to those thinking about, well, being a Chef, in "The Rich Eat Differently Than You and Me" he tells tells us about a relationship that led him to spend some time with "The Rich" (not necessarily "The Famous") in some Caribbean island (and how he hated it). And so on.

This is a nice, different and interesting book. There are not too many good reads about food and restaurants. This is one of them. Just don't expect a single story, or a common thread.

I make no pretense at being a foodie. I love Bourdain because I respect anyone who takes responsibility for their own choices and doesn't try to shift the blame. That old saw about when you point a finger at someone else, you point three back at yourself, holds true here. Bourdain makes no excuses for who he is or where he ended up, and he's not going to make excuses for anyone else, either. When he says "Luck is not a business plan" he's telling the truth. This is a scattershot but great work on the state of food, foodies and Food (capital letter) today. A few hours with one of his books is like talking to an old friend about what he's been doing since you last caught up. Bourdain worries about tempting me with his 'food porn' descriptions of things I'll never eat, but they're things I'd never want to try! Medium Raw offers a great look into a culture I don't live in, with a funny, raw edge and the clear view of a man who refuses to lie to anyone, especially himself. Is it always fair? Probably not. Is it always entertaining? Absolutely. Even when my toes were curling in horror (see that first chapter!) I was entertained.

He tells of what is happening in high end restaurants now as well as the television end of it. It was interesting when I knew who he was talking about when he talks of Food Network people. Not as interesting as he talks about chefs in high end restaurants. He does say what is happening to the high end restaurant now that the economy is not as good as it was. He also explains why the chefs open additional restaurants and what money is spent on when you go to a restaurant. Fascinating look at the food industry.

I was pretty psyched to hear about this book coming out, so on release day I plonked down my money at the local Border's bookstore (Albeit with a nice 40% coupon!) and grabbed my copy.

I am a career restaurant and wine guy, so of course I love reading Bourdain's books which expose the side of restaurants that diners rarely see. What is nice about this book is that unlike Kitchen Confidential, this is more of a collection of stories and essays than a chronological recounting of a checkered restaurant career. I enjoyed this book more than Kitchen Confidential because it is better written and Bourdain includes lots of heartfelt and positive stories.

Kitchen Confidential seemed to be a sort of autobiography, Medium Raw gives a lot of nods to others in the industry, people Bourdain has met and traveled with, and even his family. It seems that he has grown up.

What I also like is that he is not preachy like Alice Waters or Micheal Pollan (though I love Pollan's books). Bourdain has always had at least one foot firmly planted in the real world. When he discusses the vexing problem of sub-par elementary school lunches, he also points out that funding is needed in other areas as well, including literature and mathematics programs.

Also, Bourdain doesn't hold back any punches. He also doesn't just bash anybody or any particular restaurant that is undeserving. He does bash McDonald's (rightly so!), the James Beard Foundation, Alain Ducasse, and several two-faced restaurant critics. He also advocates chefs' creativity and applauds some of the little known and well respected (by their peers) chefs taking chances and producing amazing dishes from the best ingredients and not charging $400 per plate in what can be best described as a dining museum.

He talks about travel, other cultures and their cuisine, and just about every other subject a foodie would possibly be interested in.

After reading Kitchen Confidential, I felt kind of 'dirty' being a career restaurant guy, but after reading Medium Raw I discovered that there is a bright spot on the horizon of culinary creativity.

Sadly, as a fan of this author, I found this most recent offering a BIG disappointment. I wanted so much to like this book, having been delighted to share Kitchen Confidential with many friends. But AB now not only feels himself expert enough to tell us which is "the best version" of Lou Reed's Sweet Jane (oh, please), but also shares his view about writing for us plebes: "I had it, I lived it--and, chances are, most of the people reading this have not." Well, DUH, dopehead! Self-indulgent "reflections" like this are sprinkled through the book and undermine any otherwise creditable writing. Has success spoiled Anthony Bourdain? Indeed--and it seems he wants us to give him credit for not having let this happen earlier.

This book wasn't nearly as good or compelling at Kitchen Confidential. Medium Raw comes across as just the random whining of the author with no real direction. Half way through, boredom sets in as I got tired of the excessive use of words to describe nothingness.

I love Anthony Bourdain's writing style. His blunt honesty is appreciated and hilarious. His "potty mouth" can be considered crude by some but I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I listened to this on audio and it is read by Anthony and it is just perfect. I laughed out loud while driving in my car alone and I'm sure people looked at me like something was wrong. I highly recommend his books if you enjoy watching his shows.

Ten years after his surprising best seller, "Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly," Anthony Bourdain has perhaps mellowed a bit, but only a bit. In "Medium Raw: A Bloody Valentine to the World of Food and the People Who Cook," the former chef-turned critic and global traveler surveys the current state of the food and restaurant industry.

As always, Bourdain is witty and profane, and he rarely pulls a punch as he takes on topics ranging from the Food Network, to the fast food industry, and to several of the biggest names in the culinary world today. In the process he traces the arc of his own career over the last decade, which has seen him rise from being a chef with fairly modest credentials and the writer of a couple of unsuccessful mystery novels to something of a megastar.

Even those who pay little or no attention to food and to the food industry will almost certainly enjoy this book, simply because Bourdain is an excellent writer--irreverent, engaging, and funny as hell, even when he's being serious.

This was a poor read. First, there is no plot, but simply just a random series of thoughts about the food industry that Tony loves or hates. It's almost as if someone took a years worth of blog posts and made a book out of them. Secondly, Tony dramatically changed his writing style for the second book. His first book was written with a very simple vocabulary, while "Medium Raw" is written using much more sophisticated words. It's almost as if Tony was using a thesaurus while writing this book. We get it, Tony, you think you're smart!!! Overall, I thought this book was pointless and completely unnecessary.

Aw, Tony, don't feel so bad. You seem to wear your heart on your sleeve about not being of the same caliber of chef as, say, Eric Ripert. It's time to let go of that (as if you would take my advice - perhaps your former assistant should just pin me to the wall with an aggressive elbow).

You have earned your place on the pantheon of current food gods by observation and sheer talent for expression. What you have is a gift that "chefs" do not have - the art of telling a story. Historically, spinning a good yarn has been rewarded at least as much if not more than, putting a good meal on the table. Ruth Reichl also does this extremely well and she never went to cooking school or became a chef either.

Your comment on the "mob dinner" of Top Chef about the chicken being covered up "like a dead body under a layer of cement" is priceless entertainment and clever observation all in one.

Celebrate your uniqueness and get rid of the useless inferiority complex. You have every right to eat where you like and not be hassled by celebrity wannabees in late night chef's bars. We love you!

It's hard for me to think of anything I learned from the book. But I sure had a good time reading it. Anthony Bourdain is a great story teller. If you've read or seen him before, you have a good idea what to expect. The book is written in a conversational style and reads like listening to the most interesting friend you've ever known say whatever's on his mind. The chapters are mostly independent and contain Bourdain's current thoughts on various parts of the food industry. Famous food people show up throughout the book. Icons (Alice Waters) and critics (Alan Richman) of whom he has mostly negative things to say get detailed treatment as do chefs he admires (David Chang). Bourdain also has stories to tell about places that most of us won't have access to (e.g. food network meetings, top chef judging, dinners with famous chefs). Though Bourdain is often brutally honest, he rarely goes for the cheap punch. Even his extremely critical chapter on Alan Richman repeatedly acknowledges the GQ critic's skills. In one of my favorite chapters, Bordain describes being pushed by a crazy cokehead girlfriend to leave his comfortable and modest caribbean island to join the hoards of St Barths super-rich. In another, he goes off on lengthy tasting menus. If you're at all interested or familiar with the food scene, this is the perfect summer or airplane quick read.

Anthony Bourdain clearly never learned that if you cannot say something nice, you should not say it at all. In this case and for most of the book, that is a very good thing indeed. Anthony does not hesitate to review his own flaws and those of others in (very) biting and funny observations. A more mature Anthony is willing to see the black and the white in every situation and does not shy away from expressing his views, and while there are plenty of cream pies dished out, you can almost see Anthony get to a place of compassion for the people who populate his world. Almost, as he never really allows himself to get there fully and by doing so cleverly keeps us on the edge of our seats. It is this raw honesty and unwillingness to bend that makes the book a compelling read. Anthony Bourdain is relevant not only for his deep knowledge of the restaurant industry all over the world which he brings to us through his TV shows, but because he incarnates one of those rare few who've made it out of the grind by remaining himself and writing about it. While my guess is that Mr. Bourdain has not interest in being the poster child for those over-the-hill mid-lifers who still hope to make it, his appeal is undeniably much broader than the industry he writes about. So I remain hopeful that we will someday see a book about his great and funny observations of the world he has the unique privilege of traveling (not a travel log for sure but perhaps his personal observations of the world at large, the many characters he is bound to have met along the way, and why he is still hungry for more...); this book is exactly what it said on the cover, a Bloody Valentine to the World of Food...No false advertising there. The highlights of the book are his exploration of diverse topics including, being a father (the McDonald part is hilarious), selling out?, the hamburger, his best meals and the lively review of a food critic (which is sure to have made the recipient winced if not cried). There are parts that fall flat for sure (his revisiting his feelings on vegetarianism a second time toward the end of the book while he had done it so well at the beginning of the book), but taking along the book with me and reading it during my lunches gave me the feeling of having Bourdain right across the table, listening to one of the most interesting characters on television today.

Anthony Bourdain's previous collection "Nasty Bits" felt like a watered-down overcooked rehash of his original shtick. His new one, "Medium Raw," is a true revival. Bourdain has shaken off the cashmere of complacency to don a Viking bear-shirt of rage, and even though he takes stabs at familiar targets--TV, the corporations and the rich--he has come up with bloody fresh reasons to hate them (which is something.) His jokes are disturbing, his horrors hilarious, his meals orgasmic: his food descriptions are as far beyond crass culinary porn as Caravaggio and Boticelli are beyond "Jugs." Schlosser and Pollan may better connect food to economics and politics; Bourdain is supreme at plugging it to the gonads and guts. No one better demonstrates that food is part of life. This book makes both more interesting.

Once you realize that this is a collection of short essays, it's easier to read. I didn't get that at first since I would have thought they would have said something on the cover. Without that framework to understand what you are reading, it does come off as just a rambling piece of garbage - but that's not the most annoying thing about the book.

I got a little tired of his weird combination of snobbery and groveling 'I KNOW that I'm just SO privileged to be doing the things that I'm doing so that I can tell you about them but I'm just sooo unbelievably cool, I can't help it'. And I also thought that it was funny how he went on and on trashing the elitist weirdos that are so out of touch with reality while he is sucking the brains out of endangered species. The main difference between him and the people he criticizes is that his friends are more talented so he eats better.

But, at the end of the day, I would give anyone $20 to publish a widely-read description of Sandra Lee that confirms both things that I think about her 1) Her food is crap 2) She is quite possibly the Devil.

So, if you love (not like...but love) Anthony Bourdain (or inversely hate Sandra Lee in equal proportions) you would like the book. He is a good writer and some of it was worth reading. Not all of it but enough of it that I'm not too annoyed for the time spent....just a little annoyed.

I love Anthony Bourdain, book aside, he is my kind of people. When I referred back to what I strongly suspect was the original intent of the book, a tribute to his peers, he hit it. Yes, the book went off on more tangents than a round-about, reading more like a random collection of disjointed thoughts that looped around on themselves several times over (what was the outcome of chapter 1 and that illegal bird they were eating?) but still there was a tie-in. His method at arriving at the point is definitely original. It didn't matter to me at all because Bourdain is so refreshingly honest, biting, and just plain funny. The obviousness of his deep caring toward humanity and that what one does in life matters even if no one else is watching is always present and for that alone, you have to like him. The bonus, he is willing to name names and don't we all love that.

Another great read from Anthony Bourdain. It is the forth book I have read of his and I liked it. It ties the time line in from Kitchen Confidential and updates a lot of holes. It shows how he has grown and life after the kitchen. Of course it reads as a no hold punches book but at some point I start to believe it is all an act for he contradicts himself from earlier books that's why I have it a four star not five. Other then that I enjoy his writing style which is consistent and his escapades. If you enjoy his other writings and his personality it's a must read.

This book has a familiar feel. Like catching up with an old friend, the reader is presumed to know the story of Kitchen Confidential, the harrowing heroin years, and the subsequent ups and downs. In fact, it probably is not a good idea to read this book without some familiarity with the author's other writings and TV persona. Bourdain is a joy to read IMHO, particularly as in his earlier work he brought to life all the wonderful Portuguese cooking to be found in Provincetown (actually, Portuguese sweet bread is, in fact, manna, but don't let the word get around). So I am an admitted fan: I even liked the critically unacclaimed novels. I read this in one bite and don't regret a moment of it. However, if you are going to complain about "dumbing down", there should be no letting phrases like "rights of passage" slip by. Shocking!

Medium Raw was an entertaining read for anyone who enjoys Bourdain. However, even though I am a fan, I began to wonder why he did his best to stick sexual language as much as he could. Its not like I didn't expect this, its just that after a while it seemed the publisher gave him a number of sexual references to use and he was sticking them in the text as many times as possible. Some chapters, such as the one on Justo Thomas, are very interesting. Instead of writing about a chef he is writing about a person who can either make or break the chef. In a way it gives power to the no named workers no one in the dining area sees. His criticisms of celebrity chefs seem valid if only he had devoted a chapter to them specifically and given them each a long paragraph. Instead I found them such throughout the chapters. I came away thinking that Bourdain found a niche and did his best to say in it. I was hoping he would begin to blossom out and do something new. Instead I found the same old "hate and nitpicking" that I find everywhere else. Telling an audience about a tasting menu that most can never afford is not helping. If I do not know if foie gras tastes good then why should I care that you are such a champion of it? Anthony does his best to include the best chefs of today, however, most of the readers will never be able to even sit in those chefs' restaurants. So complaining how much food he and Eric Ripert ate doesn't do anyone any good. I often wondered where the common dishes were in this book, the ones readers could afford. Instead, I found dishes I never heard of. I understand cursing, as an ex-navy man I know the F-word is very flexible and can be used in almost any situation. But why use it here? Why put it within the context of food? You have enough money to eat your "foie gras" every day, why curse what you do not like? Most of your readers would be very happy to enjoy what you have eaten. But we can not. I have never had the chance to afford a tasting menu and all I would be able to afford at the French Laundry is a glass of water. Come down from your inflated cloud and please, join us, those who have watched and enjoyed you on television. I don't care if you feel that you were dumbing down, you did it and there is no reason you can't do it in a book.

Anthony Bourdain, the star of the series No reservations on the Travel Channel, and the author of Kitchen Confidential now releases his sharp tongue, never apologizing ways in this new collection about the chefs in the industry, the economy, the best places to find a good burger... it reads like we are sitting and talking about cooking and food.... Anthony Bourdain flies from topic to topic, while occasionally hard to follow - it almost always is interesting.

If you have seen his show, you pretty much know what you are in for. At least... I thought I did.

I admit it. I like the tone of Anthony's voice. He is level and matter of fact. he has a quick wit, a knack for sarcasm - and he tells it like it is. Even, when I necessarily do not need to know to that extent of "what it is".

What do I mean by that? Well, while I do enjoy Anthony Bourdain's show, No Reservations... I have come to realize that they clean his words up quite a bit. In this audio, there is none of this and you can plan on being encased in everything that is on Anthony's mind and without any sensors, all of this will come right out of his mouth. You will hear the "F" word... frequently. You will hear pretty much every other word as well.

So why, a person that usually avoids such books and audio, why would I put myself through this?

Honestly... I like to hear about the food behind Anthony's language. If you can filter (and you will need a heavy-duty one at that) through that, the audio is quite interesting.

I enjoyed hearing how the economy changed the look and feel of some of New Yorks higher class restaurants forever - and even possibly for the better. Anthony shares that while some restaurants may no longer be able to afford to serve the salmon they once did, they have found ways to serve delicious lesser priced fish just as well. In some cases - they are thrilled to do so as chefs have known that some of the fish that normally would not grace their menu, is actually very good - and the economy has given them the opportunity to show this.

I also learned - that the economy has made the classy restaurants friendlier. There was a time you would be snubbed for walking up to a high-class eatery without a reservation. If you called to get a reservation without weeks and weeks notice, you would practically be hung up on. These days are gone. People are now encouraged to come in anytime. The phone service has greatly improved and the wait staff is considerably friendlier. Well - yay for all of that. :razz:

I also enjoyed hearing about other big named chefs. Bourdain is not easy on any of them. He takes no prisoners. Some he admires. More, he does not, and he is not shy to tell you why. Names are tossed on the chopping block. He even goes into detail about his time as a judge on Top Chef. Bourdain will share, occasionally at great lengths about the importance of the great chefs actually being at their restaurants - actually cooking meals instead of relying on their name alone to get people in the door.

The chapter talking of the great detail that chefs go to prepare the fish for our meals - astounded me. I had never thought about what the big name restaurant may pay for a pound of fish and that would be including - head, innards, scales etc... much of which they paid for is thrown away in the cleaning process and they pay a very talented chef with a knife to do just that long before we ever see it on our plate.

At times I applauded Anthony Bourdains' boldness. At other times I cringed at his references, language and crudeness. I am well aware that some of what make me cringe... are part of what has made him the success he is today.

The over all thing I have to admit here is that despite his great flaws.... I like him.

Anthony Bourdain's Medium Raw is superbly written, partly a paean to cooks and restaurants he admires, partly a screed against the elements of the food industry that he detests.

Bourdain may have mellowed, with marriage and a young child taming him. But his writing zings like before and his descriptive powers are still vivid and virile. Casual profanity and vulgar metaphors (often funny) are integral to his franchise and he maintains his R rating with this book.

Since KC brought him fame, then TV success and semi-stardom, Bourdain has become acquainted with the highest levels of US restaurants. His refreshingly blunt views about what he's eaten, and who he's met are always entertaining. He's like an opinionated friend, yet one who's willing to admit he could be wrong. The topics run the gamut: should you go to culinary school, what should every competent person learn to cook, how to school a toddler into MacDonald's aversion, what's wrong with rich people's resorts (St. Barth's), food world heroes and villains -- and the morality of a superb 20 course meal. Bourdain doesn't hold back; he names names. The chapter on Alice Waters alone is worth the price.

My favorite hero in this book is Justo Thomas, the man who skins, bones and cuts 700 pounds of fish daily for New York's high temple of seafood, Le Bernardin. Bourdain observes Thomas's daily toil, describing his finely honed expertise, the care he takes with the fish, his obsessively clean and organized habits. It's a fine illustration of what the highest level of cuisine requires. The chapter has a satisfying end, with Bourdain getting permission to break the standard rule -- employees don't dine at their employer's restaurant -- and taking Thomas for his first meal at the restaurant he has served so long.

I feel like I sat down with a great conversationalist. He expresses his views with gusto, sometimes vehemence, yet admits he could be wrong. And at heart he's a gentleman. His expressed loyalty to the lower rungs of the restaurant industry (where most rungs are low), his respect for their hard work, is admirable. And his beliefs on accepting hospitality exemplify old school chivalry -- you are obliged to accept what is offered with gratitude, and claiming dietary restrictions or vegetarian squeamishness is rude in the face of your host's generosity . Bravo Mr. Bourdain!

Overall, a fun and very fast read. Bourdain is reminiscent of Dennis Miller, and this book is a compilation of his "rants." He takes on various topics in no specific order, and offers up his opinion of them. Period. Peppered with lots of F-bombs and written without regard for perfect sentence structure, the reader gets the sense of his wry humor, cynycism, and especially passion about food, the people who create it, and the overall industry. I appreciated his frankness about his own shortcomings and "past mistakes", and the fact that he doesn't sugar coat anything or blame anyone but himself for his actions. How refreshing to finally encounter an individual who says he had a great childhood, loving, stable parents, does not consider his alcoholism to be a "disease", and acknowledges that he and he alone selected the path of self-ruin. One of my favorite chapters in the book is "I'm dancing", where he discusses how fatherhood has changed him and the aspirations he has for his daughter. Some things are no longer cool once you procreate, he notes. He seems to take this new responsibility seriously.

He pulls no punches when discussing individuals for whom he has absolute disdain, such as Alan Richman, but even these individuals get their props when and where he feels they are due. It almost feels like a small crutch he can lean on, so as to not be accused of absolute obliteration. He has truly reached the enviable position of, as he claims, "not having a restaurant or reputation he needs to protect" and the freedom to call it as he sees it.

I read Kitchen Confidential years ago and loved it. This book made me want to go back and read it again and compare the younger, angrier Bourdain with the older, perhaps wiser and slightly more refined individual he has become. I look forward to more from him.

Having loved Kitchen Confidential, I was excited when Medium Raw. Unfortunately, I was a bit disappointed.

The book certainly isn't bad. But is very hit and miss, and lacks the focus of the previous book. Like Kitchen Confidential, it's a series of vignettes. Unlike kitchen confidential, some of these vignettes have very little to do with food or the restaurant industry.

Bourdain's cynical critique of certain parts of the food/restaurant industry are hilarious (e.g., the Chapter entitled "Alan Richman is a Douchebag"). Likewise, his biographical vignette of David Chang is a very fun read. However Bourdain also delves into his personal life a bunch, describing misadventures in the Carribean following his divorce, for example. These chapters drag a bit, and I didn't feel like Bourdain had anything special to offer while discussing them.

Not bad if you're looking for something to read, but don't expect another Kitchen Confidential.

After the success of Kitchen Confidential, Anthony Bourdain did the logical thing. He took several years to trot the globe, enjoying newfound celebrity and all its perks while making even more money being paid to do so by the Travel Channel. Then after that he sat back and cranked out another book, or more accurately, a series of wide ranging essays collected into one omnibus. Part travelogue, part manifesto, part enemies list, Bourdain spends time on topics like factory farming, what should be in school lunches, and which celebrity chefs he hates. (Emeril is not one of them).

This is not as good a book as Kitchen Confidential. You get the sense that unlike that effort, which is clearly his masterpiece, Medium Raw is not the product of years of blood, sweat and tears, which to be fair Bourdain admits. Instead, this one seems more simply the product of a healthy advance and a deadline. Which is not to say it doesn't have its moments, but rather it just lacks the revelatory intrigue and vague sense of desperation that made its predecessor so compelling. I guess, in a way, you just can't open Pandora's Box a second time.

Medium Raw is not a book you have to read cover to cover. Consider it a collection of newspaper columns or blog posts and feel free to bounce around, and skip any chapters that seem boring. There is a ton of name dropping going on, and it is less fun if you, like me, haven't heard of any of the restaurants or chefs Mr. Bourdain discusses.

When picking up Medium Raw I was fairly certain that Bourdain would not be able to top his runaway success, Kitchen Confidential; well I was wrong. This book runs the gamut, from describing his personal struggles in the years following his rise to fame, his tenacity (and luck) which helped him overcome those challenges, and his many travels around the globe experiencing food and culture the rest of us can only hope to experience a fraction of. He may be merciless in his assessments of other celebrities and restauranteurs but, unlike most authors and critics, he judges himself by the same hard standards. He also takes the time to give credit to the many talented and dedicated cooks and staff behind the scenes that enable celebrity chefs to enjoy their rockstar-like status. If you enjoy either his show, No Reservations, or his other books then this is a must-read; Medium Raw is Bourdain at his best.

Like a lot of people, I liked Anthony Bourdain when he was alive and took his shows and work for granted. But like so many things in life, I didn't really appreciate him fully until he was gone. Now I realize that he is not only a great culinary scholar but he used food as a vehicle to explore humanity...and his style was both unique and "raw".

If you love Bourdain you will enjoy this read. If you aren't as familiar with him, this title could make you a fan!

Anthony Bourdain, proper noun: iconoclast par excellence run amuck in the rarified world of high-end restaurants, glorified super-chefs, self-aggrandized magazine food writers, errant producers of television food shows, and the moneyed "foodies' themselves who pay obscene $$$ for the perceived privilege of supporting this mini-sub-culture.

Anthony Bourdain, author of the lean-back-and-laugh-out-loud Kitchen Confidential, (circa 2004; update, 2007) exposé has done it again with Medium Rare. In which no one is spared the sting of his vitriol, not the least of whom is Anthony himself. He makes no excuses for the travesties committed by any and all connected to the production, consumption, and critiquing of elite restaurant food.

His Anglo Saxon-laced prose skewers the pompous, the incompetent, the hypocrite, the imposter, the snob, the schnorrer. HOWEVER, he waxes equally as eloquent about the "good guys" as well as the redeeming features of the less than perfect individuals who populate, at best, a flawed niche in our society. Anthony Bourdain is a welcome-with-open-arms breath of untarnished air in the jaded confines of the ultra-elite World of Fine Dining. Anthony, don't ever change. I love you just the way you are.

P.S. Bourdain's most valued contribution may well be the means by which he speaks. He is more than a mere teller of tales, a critic, a moralist. Anthony Bourdain is a bona fide writer.

Say what you want about this book, the author's passion for food shines through. So, foodies will love much about this book. Those who enjoy being in the know about restaurateurs and chefs will also be over the moon with this book. Those who enjoy a well-written book, however, will be disappointed.

Written as a series of essays that don't necessarily mesh and filled with four letter expletives throughout, the book is a bit of a slog. Our potty-mouthed author could certainly have used the services of a good editor to give this book a little more polish. It is written as if the author needed money and dashed off this book, a jumble of thoughts not all that cohesively put together.

While the author's innate, self-deprecating charm comes through, and he certainly has a lot of inside poop and opinions on many of the dominant figures in the world of chefs and restaurants, it somehow gets a little lost in his stream of consciousness approach to this book. Consequently, the author and the book come off as self-indulgent rather than colorful.

If you are a foodie, you will want to read this book. Do yourself a favor, however, and borrow it from the library rather than buy it.

Medium Raw is Bourdain's second volume of, I guess you'd call it, memoirs after the much better Kitchen Confidential. This book isn't so much an account of his life as it is a sort of "stream of consciousness" narrative about his likes and dislikes. Among the topics covered are; some time he spent in the Caribbean getting wasted, restaurant industry personalities he likes and dislikes, advice to people considering a cooking school and a career in food and the "slow/local food movement. All of these topics are covered with little to no narrative flow. It was ok, but no better. I'm glad it came from the library.

Not nearly as fluid as kitchen confidential regarding story. The book is disjointed and all over the place. I get the feeling he heard he had a book deal and instead of actually writing his autobiography since kitchen confidential he just grabbed a series of essays he had locked away. Story just wasn’t there more like he just felt like ranting on random cooking subjects. As far as his audiobook goes he’s a little more into the story of medium raw. With kitchen confidential it sounds like a guy doing his own biography for the first time and not an experienced voice over actor. This time for medium raw we get the Anthony bourdain of TV talking to us which is nice and much better all around. So to summerize, the story was lacking but the voice over aspects were great. It’s definitely worth a listen or read but only if it’s on credit or discount. Do not pay full retail for this. Kitchen confidential is a much better story

I agree with others that this is mostly a collection of articles, blog posts, tv snippets rather than a cohesive story. That being said, I did really enjoy the last few chapters of the book - the one about the fish cleaner, Top Chef, and the one about David Chang stand out.

Some of the chapters I felt I had read before, and perhaps I had. You get the usual assortment of praise/savage ridicule that you expect from Bourdain, and he doesn't disappoint. You also get a more introspective and reflective Bourdain than you did with Kitchen Confidential, which I found a little suprising and welcome.

He may be an a**hole, but at least he explains why he thinks what he thinks and makes a case to back up his position.

Overall, it was a bit slow going at the beginning, and generally picked up steam as it rolls along. It's a must read if you've already picked up Kitchen Confidential. Also, glad to know I can eat fish on Monday's again. ;-)

As a younger man, I spent about a decade working in restaurant kitchens. More recent, I've enjoyed Bourdain's television shows. His insightful, Billy Bob Thortonesque approach to food and travel commentary is hillarious. So, I had to circle back this summer and read Medium Raw. It was witty, vulgar, and thoroughly entertaining. Best of all, I've come to deeply appreciate his affection for honesty and the working class. Thank goodness he lived to tell the tales.

Sadly, as a fan of this author, I found this most recent offering a BIG disappointment. I wanted so much to like this book, having been delighted to share Kitchen Confidential with many friends. But AB now not only feels himself expert enough to tell us which is "the best version" of Lou Reed's Sweet Jane (oh, please), but also shares his view about writing for us plebes: "I had it, I lived it--and, chances are, most of the people reading this have not." Well, DUH, dopehead! Self-indulgent "reflections" like this are sprinkled through the book and undermine any otherwise creditable writing. Has success spoiled Anthony Bourdain? Indeed--and it seems he wants us to give him credit for not having let this happen earlier.

Buy it just for the chapter about cutting fish at Le Bernadin - it's like something out of Zola. The rantings of the first couple of chapters made me think it would be a repeat of everything he's already written but when I finished the book, I realized it's his best one, better than Kitchen Confidential as he's learned very effectively the art of poignancy.

With just the right combination of self-depricating confession, restaurant inside game, food porn, chef bashing and chef praising, Anthony Bourdain's follow-up to his breakout book "Kitchen Confidential" brings us an older and wiser, perhaps a little more mellow and introspective Bourdain, but the results are just as entertaining and satisfying as his inaugural effort.

The book is being avidly devoured by my wife. The little I've been able to peruse it shows the writing to be as fascinating as Bourdain's own life. He writes like he talks. When my wife finishes it I'll finally be able to do it justice. My youngest son has his other book "Kitchen Confidential". I'm waiting to read that as well.

I loved Kitchen Confidential, and I adore Anthony Bourdain's show on the Travel Channel, but I just couldn't get into this book. Parts of it were interesting, but other parts went on and on about people and things that those of us outside the restaurant industry don't know about. I loved his narrative about turning his daughter off to McDonalds. Hilarious. Sad to say, I gave up on this book about half-way through, which was disappointing. I wanted to love it as much as Kitchen Confidential, but I will always be a Tony fan. I would love to invite him over to dinner and cook my version of a home-cooked meal for him.

If you're a fan of Anthony Bourdain, his show, No Reservations, or his book, Kitchen Confidential, this is a MUST read. Medium Raw is a continuation of Tony's adventures told from the perspective of and adult, clean, responsible, and parent Tony. New stories and revisiting of old ones from Kitchen Confidential made this one I couldn't put down!

I really enjoy Bourdain's careless writing, and the enthusiasm he puts on describing food, or food porn as he may call it. Overall a light and hilarious reading, that includes tales from Chefs personalities, and Bourdains personal point of view on wether they should be adressed as heroes or villains.

I love the booked. I found it to be riveting. I love it when an author is able to open up a world to everyone. Bourdain opened my eyes to things in the food world have never even known of. This book may have been written for people in the industry but I found it fascinating!

Anthony Bourdain is one of those polarizing personalities whom one either loves or hates. The same can be said for his latest book, "Medium Raw". Personally, I enjoy Bourdain's bristly sarcasm, dry as a bone humor, scathing cynicism, and vulgar language. Not surprisingly then, I found this book to be thoroughly entertaining.

Chapters swing between impassioned raves and rants about various chefs, restaurants, ingredients, cuisines, and regions of the world. Some of these chapters are a bit tough to get into if you are not an extraordinarily well-versed foodie. But, even if you have no idea about what or whom he is talking, you can't help but admire the voracity with which he attacks his subjects.

As a younger man, I spent about a decade working in restaurant kitchens. More recent, I've enjoyed Bourdain's television shows. His insightful, Billy Bob Thortonesque approach to food and travel commentary is hillarious. So, I had to circle back this summer and read Medium Raw. It was witty, vulgar, and thoroughly entertaining. Best of all, I've come to deeply appreciate his affection for honesty and the working class. Thank goodness he lived to tell the tales.

Medium Raw - he certainly is - his use of language would make any of the "Sopranos" blush. But as always, Bourdain entertains even those unfamiliar with the network of "foodies." His description of the ortolan ceremony makes you feel that you are sitting at the table with everyone (not that I'd want to).

short and to the point review - it's another great book by a talented storyteller. Every page of it is hysterical, disturbing, enlightening and fun, laced with the usual Bourdain-isms we've grown to love and expect based upon prior books and his tv show. his writing is really amazing; there's not too many people who can make me feel like i'm there, living it with them, but he does it effortlessly. whether you love him, hate him, or have no idea who the hell he is... his books are not to be missed, because this man has lived an adventure that few are able to put to paper so excellently. Loved it, and you will too.

I almost put this book down in the first chapter. ALMOST. I am so glad that I didn't. The first 2 chapters are angry, vicious, harsh, and raw. But to grill a perfect steak one must first put it first to the fire. Mr. Bourdain will piss you off, make you laugh, warm your heart, and let you take a taste that of that feeling in the pit of his stomach. The audience both savors and regrets that his experiences are not thier own. Even if you do not LIKE this provacative book, you cannot deny that he has done what all good writers must do - he will evoke much in you. None of it will be boredom!

You get the sense that you are sitting at a table (maybe eating something exotic) with your new friend Anthony while reading this book. His voice comes thru load and clear, and if you like him, you'll love his book. He takes you to places you'd never be able to go to, and eats and rants and chats about everything. Yes, some of it is very random, but, some of it, is so fascinating and just plan interesting, it makes me want to move to New York and hang out with the man. His views on chefs and fellow food writers is right on. He has a style all his own and you either love it or hate. I - love - it.

I enjoyed this latest book. It is written in classic Bourdain style. It is witty, entertaining and informative. Bourdain seems to have matured a bit compared to his earlier writings. There is no longer the glorification of drugs and partying, but rather several honest descriptions of how partying nearly destroyed him. Bourdain seems more introspective this time around. He is still funny, acerbic and brutally honest. Good book, fun read.

Tony at his best.Liked it better than Kitchen Confidential.He's more reserved(some),and definitely wiser.Shows that the journey for him to get to this point was well worth all the bumps in the road along the way.A good read.

Not a bad read I guess. A bit of general rant by Bourdain about mostly food and chefs generally. Nothing too ground breaking really, a bit of pontificating about the state of food and the food business with a few gems of what makes some cooks, chefs.

This is just more great Tony. If you are in the business and you love Tony-you'll love this book. Expounds on old topics, has changed his perspective on a few and has some new thoughts-all great reading. Tony is a real restaurant guy-he has mellowed a bit over the years but he is as clever as ever. My copy of Kitchen Confidential is dog-eard and worn and I expect this one will be as well. It will travel through both restaurants I work at. Can't wait for the CD-it's even better hearing Tony tell me himself!

I enjoyed Bourdain's No Reservations because it gave us a more egalitarian view of good food that is often missing in this country. The book starts with some interesting, often self deprecating, insights into his life before settling down as a family man, but just when you think what's coming is a more mature Anthony he reverts back to ugly and pointless rants. After a few chapters you get the feeling he is just a bitter aging semi-chef who never had the talent to make cooking central to his legacy and instead decided to milk his attitude to pontificate on the merits or demerits of more successful colleagues.
At one point he rants about Alice Waters' take on slow food and for good measure throws in some reference on other cultures' food etiquette. Unfortunately he misses the point when he tries to defend the Midwesterner faced with the prospect of overpriced slow food world. Its not about price and affordability - good food culture is driven from the bottom up so until we have that base there is no hope - just go to any highway gas/food station in Italy for lunch and you'll find a better meal than most restaurants in NY.

I was hoping for much better

I don't know why I enjoy reading Anthony Bourdain books, he can be a little harsh and a bit vulgar, but he sure knows what he is talking about. His stories in the restaurant business and little bits of famous chef info is always fun and entertaining.

This book was everything I'd hoped it would be. If I hadn't had to go to work, I'd probably have read the entire book over the course of a single day. It reads much like the voice-overs on No Reservations, and very like what I'd expect actually sitting down with the man and chatting would be. There's plenty of snark, confessions, some truly hilarious anecdotes and lots of peeking-behind-the-curtain stories.
If you're a Bourdain fan, this will make you want more more more. If you aren't a Bourdain fan, this one may just hook you.

This book is entertaining & the Bourdain you wish he could be on the travel channel. I love his angry rants. If you're not one for salty language, this isn't the book for you... go read Rachael Ray.

There must be a large enough audience for all food topics to prompt publishers to feed readers with books like Anthony Bourdain's Medium Raw: A Bloody Valentine to the World of Food and the People Who Cook. I found Bourdain's writing to be blunt, unwavering in judgment and often witty and lively. After I finished this collection of essays I realized that for my taste, I would have preferred eating to reading.

Rating: Two-star (Mildly Recommended)

Another great book by my favourite tv cynic/food connoisseur and road less traveller, Anthony Bourdain.

Once again, providing the reader with an indelibly in depth look at the food and restaurant industry today, for any person who considers the term "foodie" a compliment, a must read.

short and to the point review - it's another great book by a talented storyteller. Every page of it is hysterical, disturbing, enlightening and fun, laced with the usual Bourdain-isms we've grown to love and expect based upon prior books and his tv show. his writing is really amazing; there's not too many people who can make me feel like i'm there, living it with them, but he does it effortlessly. whether you love him, hate him, or have no idea who the hell he is... his books are not to be missed, because this man has lived an adventure that few are able to put to paper so excellently. Loved it, and you will too.

This book reminds me of many days of left over bits of food mixed together into a big mess. Maybe there were extra pieces left over from writing his other books that he and his publisher felt they could still make money off of. The tone of the book sounds like it's written by a hater who wants to lash back at anyone who doesn't meet his ideals. He tries to be witty and a bad a$$ but just comes off as an a$$. Disappointing because I really liked his shows. I totally agree with all of the one and two star reviewers.

Anthony Bourdain is one of those polarizing personalities whom one either loves or hates. The same can be said for his latest book, "Medium Raw". Personally, I enjoy Bourdain's bristly sarcasm, dry as a bone humor, scathing cynicism, and vulgar language. Not surprisingly then, I found this book to be thoroughly entertaining.

Chapters swing between impassioned raves and rants about various chefs, restaurants, ingredients, cuisines, and regions of the world. Some of these chapters are a bit tough to get into if you are not an extraordinarily well-versed foodie. But, even if you have no idea about what or whom he is talking, you can't help but admire the voracity with which he attacks his subjects.

Another great book by my favourite tv cynic/food connoisseur and road less traveller, Anthony Bourdain.

Once again, providing the reader with an indelibly in depth look at the food and restaurant industry today, for any person who considers the term "foodie" a compliment, a must read.

Mr Bourdain has an amazing way with words. So much so it takes him five pages to say what could be said in a paragraph.For me this book was just tedious. I loved No Reservations and expected to love the book. He does write just like he talks,only a lot more.

I bought this book the day it came out and read it very fast. I highly recommend this book to anyone and would say that it is his best book yet. Kitchen Confidential was very good and it is nice to have a follow up to that book. You learn so much more about his life and his view point on many things in the culinary industry. I would recommend even reading this book before going to one of his gigs because it will help you understand more about the stories he is talking about. This book should be on your reading list and please go buy it today. It is worth the read!

Anthony Bourdain is a born loser. In my opinion he has lost stars in every restaurant he has had control of a kitchen, returned the word "boring" to culinary books and will soon devastate television as a medium for food shows. If you must read the book buy it. You won't get yourself in trouble with the library when you tear it up and burn it.

Tony at his best.Liked it better than Kitchen Confidential.He's more reserved(some),and definitely wiser.Shows that the journey for him to get to this point was well worth all the bumps in the road along the way.A good read.

Well written and sobering. Funny, of course, but Mr. Bourdain does give some sharp critique of other chefs/writers in the restaurant world, which is why it is so awesome. Ballsy, considering he will no doubt be running into them at some function in his near future. The Sandra Lee part was hysterical and yes, I agree that the James Beard house is the devil. Well worth the time even if you don't know the people or places he's speaking of.

Been a huge fan of Tony's since Kitchen Confidential. I recently went to see him when he came to town and was a little turned off when his show was basically the same thing as his p.r. interview from the local newspaper interviewing him for the show. Now that I've read Medium Raw I've found out that this is exactly the same as the interview and the stand-up show. Wish I wouldn't have wasted the $100 plus seats and $30 book for what I could of read in a newspaper article.

Medium Raw - he certainly is - his use of language would make any of the "Sopranos" blush. But as always, Bourdain entertains even those unfamiliar with the network of "foodies." His description of the ortolan ceremony makes you feel that you are sitting at the table with everyone (not that I'd want to).

I found myself skipping pages when Bourdain would wander off on a story about a chef who I had no idea who he was.I liked it most when he kept to stories about himself, he shined at this.
I don't want to have to Google Marco Pierre White or David Chang to find out what the heck he's talking about and frankly I didn't care much about these people or what their exploits were.