Anthony Bourdain Said These Are the 13 Restaurants Everyone Should Eat at Before They Die
Anthony Bourdain learned about food and culture in lesser-known parts of the world in the CNN docuseries Parts Unknown. The late celebrity chef and best-selling author also traveled the globe to find the best restaurants on Earth — and he made a list of his absolute favorites before he died.
As the new unauthorized biography Down and Out in Paradise: The Life of Anthony Bourdain by Charles Leerhsen prepares to hit shelves — and cause some controversy — it’s the perfect opportunity to share Bourdain’s list of the 13 restaurants everyone should eat at before they die.
The new Anthony Bourdain autobiography has made his family unhappy
It’s been more than four years since Bourdain died by suicide in June 2018 while on location in France for Parts Unknown. Since his tragic death, Bourdain’s life and work have been documented in the film Roadrunner and the book Bourdain: The Definitive Oral Biographraphy by his former assistant Laurie Woolever.
The new unauthorized biography reveals previously unknown details about Bourdain’s final days. Leerhsen spoke to multiple sources, had access to Bourdain’s laptop, and published the texts and emails Boudain sent in his final moments.
According to The New York Times, Bourdain’s family is already unhappy with the book. In August, his brother Christopher sent emails to publisher Simon & Schuster that called the book “hurtful and defamatory fiction.”
“Every single thing he writes about relationships and interactions within our family as kids and as adults he fabricated or got totally wrong,” Christopher said in an interview.
The celebrity chef made a list of ‘final, glorious dining experiences’
In 2011, Bourdain wrote an editorial for Men’s Health that documented his picks for the “13 Places to Eat Before You Die.” The list includes eateries from all over the world — but the United States had the most entries by far.
“If you’re planning on dying in the near future and want to knock off a list of final, glorious dining experiences, these places would make a very respectable binge. Start with one. Make a reservation today. Go on an empty stomach. Trust me: This is livin’,” he wrote. Here are 13 of Anthony Bourdain’s favorite restaurants.
13. Anthony Bourdain said the best barbecue in the world comes from Joe’s Kansas City
When Bourdain wrote his piece, this restaurant was known as Oklahoma Joe’s Barbecue. Now, the popular BBQ joint located at 47th & Mission Road in Kansas City, Kansas, goes by Joe’s Kansas City Bar-B-Que. Known for the famous Z-Man sandwich — which is loved by everyone in the KC Metro, including Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes — Bourdain said Joe’s had the best BBQ in Kansas City, which made it the best in the world.
“People may disagree on who has the best BBQ. Here, the brisket (particularly the burnt ends), pulled pork, and ribs are all of a quality that meets the high standards even of Kansas City natives. It’s the best BBQ in Kansas City, which makes it the best BBQ in the world,” Bourdain wrote.
12. Hot Doug’s — where food doesn’t have to be expensive to be great
Bourdain noted that after eating the Chicago red hot at Hot Doug’s in the Windy City, he was convinced that it was superior to the New York hot dog. The chef explained that Hot Doug’s was home to “two great innovations in American gastronomy”: the “foie gras dog” and the “weekends-only practice of cooking French fries in duck fat.”
“It’s proof that food doesn’t have to be expensive to be great,” Bourdain said.
11. Anthony Bourdain loved the sushi at Sukiyabashi Jiro
Bourdain raved about Sukiyabashi Jiro in Tokyo, sharing that it just might be the “best sushi on earth.” Owner Jiro Ono- now almost 100 years old- has been serving up old-school Edo-style sushi his entire life. He opened this restaurant in 1965 and is considered one of the greatest living sushi craftsmen ever.
“Every piece of fish is served at precisely the right temperature, and the rice and seaweed alone are blackout good. Ono will ruin sushi for you from anywhere else,” Bourdain said.
10. Salumi is a ‘true mom-and-pop’ sandwich shop
Located in Seattle, Salumi is a “sandwich shop with a couple of tables.” Bourdain describes the small restaurant as a “true mom-and-pop,” even if they are the “mom and pop of famous chef Mario Batali.”
“Anything cured, anything braised, any of the limited hot specials…in fact, anything the Batalis make is worth grabbing with both hands,” Bourdain noted.
9. Russ & Daughters in New York City started as a pushcart
Even though it started out as a simple pushcart almost a century ago, Russ & Daughters in New York City should be on your restaurant bucket list. Now, the restaurant serves up “some of the last traditional Eastern European Jewish-style herring and smoked belly lox, sable, and sturgeon.”
8. Anthony Bourdain said pastrami is ‘done right’ at Katz’s Delicatessen
The famous Katz’s Delicatessen is just down the road from Russ & Daughters in the Big Apple. Bourdain said this place should not be missed when you need to remind yourself “how pastrami is done right.”
“This is what New Yorkers do better than anybody else. And here’s where they do it,” Bourdain wrote.
7. Don’t let the ‘grimy’ look of Sin Huat Eating House fool you
Bourdain admitted that Sin Huat Eating House in Singapore was “grimy looking” and the service “less than warm.” He also conceded that beer was served in a bottle with ice, and the tables sat halfway into the streets of Geylang — Singapore’s red-light district. But despite all of that, Bourdain said the food was absolutely worth it.
“The crab bee hoon—giant Sri Lankan beasts cooked with a spicy mystery sauce and noodles—is pure messy indulgence. The whelks, steamed spotted cod, prawns, scallops (in fact, any seafood available that day) are all worth having. Warning: It looks cheap, but it’s not,” Bourdain shared.
6. Anthony Bourdain loved the fish at Le Bernardin
It’s clear from Bourdain’s list that he loved seafood. And he declared that Le Bernardin in New York City was “the best fish joint…anywhere.” Despite the formal service and fine-dining ambiance, Bourdain said this restaurant is “relevant and fun.”
“The grand tasting menu is a stripped-down thing of relatively austere beauty. And whatever they’re doing this year or this month is always, always interesting,” Bourdain noted.
5. No one is eating better than at Etxebarri
Located in Axpe, Spain, Etxebarri is where chef Victor Arguinzoniz “grills unlikely ingredients over homemade charcoal: baby eels, imperial beluga caviar, oysters.”
“Theoretically you can’t grill a lot of this stuff, but a handcrafted series of pulleys that raise and lower each item makes it possible. Eat here, and no one is eating better,” Bourdain declared.
4. Anthony Bourdain had the best sit-down dinner of his life at The French Laundry
The French Laundry in Napa Valley, California — run by chef Thomas Keller — was the location of the “best sit-down, multicourse, white-tablecloth meal” of Bourdain’s life.
“There’s no better way to go than the full-on tasting menu, a once-in-a-lifetime marriage of the best ingredients, creative thinking, and high standards, along with the personal imprint of the most respected chef in the world,” Bourdain gushed.
3. Thomas Keller also runs Per Se in New York City
How does Chef Keller run two restaurants on opposite coasts? In addition to The French Laundry, Keller is also in charge of Per Se in New York City. Bourdain wasn’t sure how the chef was able to pull it off, but ultimately it didn’t matter because the food was so good.
“How can Keller be at both restaurants at once? It doesn’t matter. Pick one. Fast for 2 days, stretch your stomach with water the day of, and then see how they do it at the very top. It’s a level of perfection in food and service that few even try to approach,” Bourdain said.
2. The hardest reservation in the world is at elBulli
Noting that it was the hardest reservation in the world, Bourdain raved about elBulli in Girona, Spain. According to the celebrity chef, brothers Ferran and Albert Adrià and their team are “the most influential and creative people working in food.”
Bourdain noted that everything they say about the restaurant is true — “It’s an adventure, a challenge, a delicious and always fun acid trip to the farthest reaches of creativity.”
“This surprisingly casual restaurant on a sleepy cove on Spain’s Costa Brava is probably the most important restaurant of our time. Love it or hate it, if you have the opportunity to wangle a reservation, do it. It’s like seeing Jimi Hendrix’s first show. Forget any preconceptions you might have. Is it good? Yes. More important—is it fun? Yes. Yes. Yes,” Bourdain wrote.
1. Anthony Bourdain loved the ‘proudly English’ menu at St. John
Anthony Bourdain’s favorite restaurants included St. John in London because it is “as wonderful for what it does as for what it doesn’t do: compromise.” The “famously pork-centric” eatery specializes in good ingredients from “happy” animals, which are “treated with love and respect.” And Bourdain couldn’t get enough of it.
“If I had to die with half a bite of anything hanging out of my mouth, it would probably be the roast bone marrow in Fergus Henderson’s plain-white dining room at St. John,” Bourdain wrote.
“Scooped out and slathered onto a crust of toasted bread and sprinkled with sea salt, it’s simple yet luxurious. The menu is proudly English, a rebuke to anyone still laboring under the impression that English food sucks.”
Bourdain also praised St. John for the crispy pigtails and ham in hay. Plus the fact that it is one of the “truly bulls***-free zones on the culinary landscape.”
Down and Out in Paradise: The Life of Anthony Bourdain by Charles Leerhsen hits bookstores on Oct. 11.
