Review: At the Table With Anthony Bourdain

Recently my roommate has been watching back episodes a show called "Dinner for Five". The format of the show is pretty simple. Jon Favreau hosts a dinner with four other Hollywood stars including ones like Kevin Smith, Peter Faulk and Carrie Fisher. During this dinner, the five stars have a round-table discussion about the biz.

The show isn't an ongoing weekly event. There have only been nine shows since 2001. But it's a nice inside look at the people sitting around the table and their views on the industry.

What's all this got to do with food - other than that the show has "Dinner" in the title)? Well. Nothing... Except that when I was watching "No Reservations" on the Travel Channel last week I saw a promo for Anthony Bourdain's new special "At the Table With Anthony Bourdain."

Recognizing the format, and being a pretty big admirer for Mr. Bourdain, I marked the date for this little event and sat down to watch it with my roommate last night.

All I can say is that I seriously hope he does more of these.

Sitting around the table at wd-50, with the likes of Ted Allen, Bill Buford and Amy Sacco of Bungalow 8, Bourdain partakes of a tasting menu prepared by Chef Wylie Dufresne while discussing such things as whether or not it's a waste to spend a ton of money on a single dinner, if one should feel a certain amount of shame when eating a tasty animal, and bizarre or embarrassing things that happened to them in restaurants.

More importantly, they discuss the importance of cooking in every day lives. Most American's don't sit down to real meals these days. Even as someone who cooks for a living and enjoys cooking as a hobby, I'm terrible about bothering to prepare meals. Most days I don't feel like standing in front of a stove when I get home, much less contemplating the shopping that needs to be done.

And boy do I ever feel guilty about it.

But they're right. It is important. Food is part of our culture. It's history, art, love, something comforting after a bad day. It's all these things and sustenance. And when prepared lovingly and eaten with the right people, it can be the experience of a lifetime.

I think that's some of what Bourdain and company were trying to convey here. Good meal, good friends, good conversation. A recipe for good times and a good life.

So if you missed this the first time around, I'm sure the Travel channel will air it again. It's a unique and fun look at food and the people who prepare it, and a reminder that we often don't appreciate the stuff we put into our bodies nearly enough.

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