Deepa Shankar
ThreeFish Consulting
The culinary arts world was shaken in June 2018 at the news of Anthony Bourdain, the famous chef, author and TV show host, taking his own life in a hotel in France. While his last days were certainly painful and tragic, I would recommend reading his best-selling book – Kitchen Confidential – published a decade earlier.
I don’t often venture into reading memoirs, but when my professor recommended Anthony Bourdain’s freewheeling memoir about the inner workings of a restaurant kitchen – I decided to take the leap. And, I’m so glad I did! The narrative never gets stuck and there are no boring parts – each sentence is fun to read. Bourdain describes the job of chef as being “a leader of cooks, a wrangler of psychopaths, the captain of (one’s) own pirate ship,” as he successfully captures the intensity of a professional kitchen.
Amongst many interesting titbits – like why you should never order fish on a Monday; Bourdain weaves a story of a man who appears to be sceptical of authority, motivated by his passion for cooking, and someone who appears to have a very blunt interpersonal style with those who haven’t earned his respect. He is willing to accept his mistakes and seems to be very self-aware of his shortcomings.
Throughout the book, I loved the author’s honesty – about the kitchens, the people who he worked with, and about his own shortcomings. He also comes across as a person who enjoyed learning, and was always willing to open himself to new experiences.
His numerous books, including this one, certainly created a trend of celebrity chefs writing books and giving us rich insights into the world of haute-cuisine.
Where and how his life derailed, leading to his tragic and untimely demise, is a story of another book.
