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Kitchen Confidential

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Besser und ehrlicher kann man die Situation in den Küchen dieser Welt kaum beschreiben. Und wer Großküchen kennt, weiß das Herr Bourdain mit diesem Buch den Nagel (bzw. den Kochlöffel) auf den Kopf trifft. Das dabei der Witz nicht zu kurz kommt versteht sich von selbst. Schließlich kommt dieses Buch aus der Küche. Nicht nur, aber besonders für Köche und alle anderen Vollblutgastronomen, höchst amüsant und interessant zugleich. Alle Branchen-Fremden brauchen sich nicht davor zu fürchten nach dem "Verzehr" dieser Lektüre auf den nächsten Restaurantbesuch verzichten zu müssen. Vielmehr trägt es vielleicht dazu bei, die Leistung der gastronomischen Betriebe und vor allem Ihrer Angestellten etwas mehr zu würdigen (und dieses vielleicht auch zu zeigen!).
Also: Lesen, lesen, lesen

Ein wirklich unterhaltsames Buch, witzig und spritzig erzaehlt hier Anthony Bourdain sein Werdegang zum Koch und gibt wuerzige Details aus dem Inneren der Kuechen wieder.
Ich kann dieses Buch nur auf's Waermste empfehlen, allerdings weiss ich nicht wie gut die Deutsche Uebersetzung ist, da ich es auf Englisch gelesen habe.

Anthony Bourdain probably had a great deal of fun writing this book: it is, at different levels, a Catholic confession, an exposé of the restaurant industry, several psychological case studies, a twelve-step self criticism session, a truly picaresque tale, a how-to book, a how-not-to manual, a tract on God and the nature of man, and a book of prayer.

I cannot know how competent a chef Mr. Bourdain is, but I do know, from reading his prose, that he is a very fine writer and a humorist of the first order. Yes, he makes you smile through the tears. He makes you laugh while in pain.

The reviews that this book has elicited from Amazon readers have been bi-polar, love-hate. Those who don't like the author call him a narcissist and a phony; a drug-addled fool, and an ignoramus. He is called a "New Yorker" in its pejorative sense; and a traitor. Some say the book is not worth its price. Hah!

There is a short chapter (less than ten pages long) called "How to Cook Like a Pro" which alone justifies the price of the book. Bourdain gives far more than he takes. Tucked away in his chronicle of food adventures are dozens of slivers of profound wisdom, tiny truffle particles of divine knowledge that will enrich the life and the productions of anyone entering the kitchen with creative intents. Good reading. Practical advice. A useful pleasure - therefore a rarity.

Kitchen Confidential is more of an autobiography than an expose of the upscale restaurant industry. Certainly we feel privileged to have the insider's view of the kitchen, and the uninitiated will have a better understanding of the restaurant industry. Mr. Bourdain proffers tips on what to seek out, what to avoid, and why the kitchens at some of the most exclusive restaurants in the world are anything but what we expected them to be. But if the purpose of the novel was an expose of the underbelly of haute cuisine, the author's contribution could have been made in less than 50 pages. But the insiders' guide that you think you're getting is auxiliary to Anthony Bourdain's story of his life in relation to food. And it's a good story. The author is a decent writer and has a refreshing style of narrative; very frank, upbeat and witty. But the novel is a little longer than necessary. While the final chapter was invigorating, edifying and compelling, the few chapters preceding it were tedious, much of it repetitive. Though I was contemplating finishing the book a bit early, the final chapter rewarded my patience. My advice: if you find yourself restless two-thirds through the novel and want to put it away, feel free to skip to the last chapter.

Bourdain has answered all my questions about cooking and chefs, I think! I have had a tendency to think chefs were like the ones we see on TV shows, with this peak into the underbelly of the kitchen, I can see that a job is a job is a job! The same personality types are found in every workplace. The descriptions of the food and how it comes to the plate were great. I esp. liked the chapter where he took us from the time he woke up until his day was over. Keep writing and cooking, I will look for your next book!

Like Bourdain, I've been cooking for more years than I care to admit. My wife gave me this as a gift, and I read it in a few days. Not an easy task when you work the hours that the culinary trade demands. I, fortunately, was never exposed to quite the degree of hedonism that Mr. Bourdain was, but I can certainly remember similar stories about the kitchens I've worked in. The language and attitude of line cooks is just how he spells out; it's not for the weak or timid. I laughed many times during reading this book, because his recollections were a lot like ones I endured. Being a chef/cook is not and never will be 'easy'. To the non-kitchen public, they'll never understand the hell or joy of the biz, they will find the book not to their liking. If you've been through it, read it - it's good therapy.

Although not a universally likeable book by any estimation, Bourdain's narrative voice, as crass and straightforward as one would believe the man himself to be, is definitely endearing. He makes few attempts to describe for the lay person the many digestibles he hints at in the book, relying on the wit and sheer perusability of the rest of his work to grasp the reader. And it does, for over 300 pages. Kitchen Confidential is a must read for anyone remotely affiliated with the hospitality industry and well worth reading for those with at least a passing interest in the inner-workings of the kitchen from hiring to the way to make one's purveyors arrive on time. A person with generally no knowledge of fine cuisine will find the first half of the book fine, but the second half less friendly as it delves into the more specific nuts and bolts of the restaurant business. The book is really part culinary textbook, part biography, with a few eye-catching treks into hedonism. It's uneven in parts, but this is altogether in keeping with the life of Bourdain, as the reader will come to find.

Tony Bourdain, the Keith Richards of the culinary world, has written an entertaining and shocking "dish" book in "Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly." With the advent of armchair adventures of food television, Americans are glamorizing the chef as cult hero. Bourdain takes the reader behind "the line" to show that cooking is not pretty. While this book will not scandalize the New York restaurant business as did Upton Sinclair's "The Jungle" for the Chicago meatpacking industry, it will give pause to those who are willing to look past his "raw" presentation to discover his satiric "bite."

As a long time vegetarian, I am a member of one of Bourdain's "hate groups," but, oddly enough, his "forking" did not offend me. As he says himself, this book is a "rant," which I hope is a but a preface for a second book in which he will find further courage to fling open the back doors of more hot kitchens.

An aside for female readers: yes, this book is phallocentric, but so is the world which Chef Bourdain describes. At times, I found the language of the kitchen to be appalling, but that is the reality of what one does not hear from the "four top." Read this book and learn from him!

As a (retired) chef I am not shocked nor scandalized as so manyreviewers apparently are about the inner workings of professionalkitchens. If that is why you want to read the book, you will receive a little titillation and learn that, yes, some kitchens are dirty and that, yes, some restaurants sell bad food at high prices to people who do not know any better. This book is, however, not particularly well-written nor well organized. The too few chapters which actually deal with cooking and behind the scene restaurant matters are fine, if a bit overwraught with expletives and sexual themes. There are a few words on knives and kitchen equipment and what it can be like cooking three hundred meals a night. The remainder - which unfortunately for me felt like the bulk - of the book concerns the author's involvement with drugs and a few sketches of people he worked with, some anonymously described.

Mr. Bourdain may be a fine chef. He could have benefited from an editor who could help him tell his tale, and perhaps also caught the several typos sprinkled throughout the text.

Anthony Bourdain kann schreiben. Das ist bereits auf den ersten Seiten spürbar. Das Buch ist vorallem eine Autobiografie und verschweigt auch seine Fehler im Leben nicht. Wo war er zu egozentrisch und selbstverliebt? Wo hat er gelernt? Wo Erfahrung gesammelt?
Immer wieder streut der Autor Tipps für Hobbyköche ein. Oder Weisheiten aus dem Restaurantalltag. Kein Fisch am Montag im Gasthaus essen, weil noch vom Wochenende übrig, gehört ebenso dazu, wie der Hinweis auf Fleisch zu verzichten, was durchgebraten ist (Abfall) oder in einer Sauce verschwindet (ebenfalls Abfall).
Gegen Ende des Buches beschreibt er, was ihn daran gehindert hat in die Sterneliga aufzuschreiben. Auch hier ist er ehrlich zu sich.
Eins aber ist immer spürbar. Seine Liebe zum Essen.