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The idea for this blog is to blog about everything I think about food and food culture. I'll tell you what I like to eat, where I like to eat it and if I thought it was good or if I thought it was crap. My thoughts about food could go anywhere. Hey if you don't like it go blog at methodicaldudereallythinksalotaboutthefoodhesgoingtoeat.blogspot.com

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Tuesday, August 9, 2011

No Reservations Hits A Homerun With elBulli Episode

The other day as I was flipping around channels on my TV I decided to stop for a second on No Reservations with Anthony Bourdain on the Travel Channel.  It's hard to explain how I feel about this show.  I really like Anthony Bourdain as his blending of both the eloquent and profane is something of pure majesty.  I really like shows about travel/food.  I really like the concept of a show that promotes enjoying street food as well as more fine dining offerings.  However, even though No Reservations is about all of those things every episode doesn't necessarily click for me.  Some episodes I just find endlessly boring.  That was not the case with the episode I watched the other night.

In this particular episode Bourdain was in Spain with his friend and celebrated chef, Jose Andres.  The goal was not just to travel the Spanish countryside however.  The goal was to allow Bourdain and Andres to sit down to their final meal at elBulli.  The restaurant, considered by many to be the best in the world, serves incredibly interesting, creative and intricate cuisine typically served in 35-55 small courses.  During this episode Bourdain puts on the chef whites and steps into the kitchen, and we as viewers get an up close look at just a little bit of the crazy stuff they were doing in the kitchen.  It turns out that was just a glimpse into the genius of the restaurant's owner and executive chef, Ferran Adria.
The kitchen at elBulli.  Courtesy of Wikipedia.

As Bourdain and Andres sit down for dinner at the restaurant with Adria the full measure of his brilliance is on display.  Some might call it "molecular gastronomy", but this is much more than just using some liquid nitrogen.  This was food that both looked delicious, and not only stepped outside of the box but destroyed it all together.  Obviously, I didn't get to taste the food so I can't comment too much in that regard, but I can comment about how fascinating it was to watch Adria comment on his own food and way of thinking.  The episode was especially poignant given that the restaurant is now closed.  I think the episode provided a good sendoff.  If you see a rerun on the Travel Channel I implore you to watch.  You'll probably find yourself as engrossed in food you'll never taste and people you'll never meet as I was.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

I hands down agree with you - this episode was fantastic. We DVR it all the time, but most episodes I watch and same thing, just doesn't click. However, I was drooling and expressing my jealousy to my hubs throughout the whole episode. I was fascinated with Adria and his concept - I love that he tries his food all the time to ensure he continues to enjoy it. Great man - love what he is doing in the food world.

Erin L. said...

Off topic but maybe you will like this... Have you ever been to www.foodnetworkhumor.com ? Think you would appreciate it. Cracked my ass up...

Brent said...

@Erin L
I actually go there quite frequently and follow her on Twitter. Very funny.