Reviews tagging 'Vomit'

Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly by Anthony Bourdain

9 reviews

kurtwombat's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny informative tense fast-paced

5.0

I’ve watched Anthony Bourdain’s food/travel show on and off for years, enjoying his long cool languid demeanor and hip, inquisitive voice. What provokes is the sense that there is a vigorously lived life idling beneath the surface. In KITCHEN CONFIDENTIAL a younger than TV age Bourdain provides a florid splash of his adrenaline-fueled life as a chef. The pace is fast like his kitchens and is at turns shocking and hilarious--feeling like Jim Carroll’s BASKETBALL DIARIES meets Upton Sinclair’s THE JUNGLE delivered by Spalding Gray on speed. Because of his sad passing I had stayed clear of his shows and hesitated picking up this book. Enraptured, my concerns fell away as I realized every page celebrates his life and passion.  The book will teach you about different foods and may encourage you to learn more but you don’t have to care about food at all to enjoy KITCHEN CONFIDENTIAL.  Able to pinpoint the childhood meal that ignited his interest in food, soup served cold, that love never wavers despite page after page working insane hours under grueling conditions in crazy environments for little pay. Does that sound like fun, probably not, but it certainly is.

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Body shaming, Bullying, Cursing, Drug abuse, Infidelity, Racial slurs, Toxic relationship, Vomit, and Alcohol

The graphic warnings I gave above are definitely referenced in the book but are not condoned but rather just to describe the atmosphere of this kind of workplace.

anna_luvs_cheez's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional reflective fast-paced

3.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Mental illness, Misogyny, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Vomit, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

Great book, audio book is great, can get a little graphic at times with kitchen injuries

taracloudclark's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted medium-paced

5.0

I noticed a friend of mine posting about Bourdain often. I knew almost nothing about him, so I decided to take in a book by him. First, Bourdain is sexy as hell. How did I never know this?! He also gives great voice to his own words. Makes me want to be in the NY restaurant culture. Second, this is such a fun read. A bit vulgar for milder tastes, but such a great insight into the biz. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Cursing, Drug abuse, Drug use, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Blood, Vomit, Toxic friendship, and Sexual harassment

cibani's review against another edition

adventurous informative medium-paced

3.5

---

Content Warnings

Minor: Addiction, Bullying, Cursing, Drug use, Suicide, Blood, Vomit, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Deportation

kimveach's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny informative reflective tense medium-paced

2.5

My son, a bartender, wanted me to read this.  I was not an Anthony Bourdain fan, having never read any of his books, nor watched his shows.  This book didn't make me a fan, either.  

I think I would have liked it if I'd read it in the early 2000s when it was first published.  As a forty-something person, I would have enjoyed this book's rough, vulgar, stream-of-consciousness.  But reading it in 2023 was a different experience.  I found the repeated descriptions of substance abuse, criminal activity, and swearing tiring and boring.  

The book's best parts were the detailed descriptions of what it takes to manage and run a restaurant and the incredible skill and timing of the people working on the line.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Cursing, Drug abuse, Drug use, Misogyny, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Medical content, Medical trauma, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

cmcrockford's review against another edition

adventurous challenging funny informative fast-paced

4.5

Obviously would be very different in many senses if published in 2023 but this is fun as all hell. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, Racism, Sexual content, Violence, Vomit, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

tyrannosaurus_lex's review against another edition

dark funny informative lighthearted reflective fast-paced

4.5

Bourdain’s writing feels effortless, though knowing the final outcome of his life tinges the entire book with a thread of sadness. I’d highly recommend the audiobook, read by Bourdain himself. The final chapters are unforgettable. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing

Moderate: Vomit and Injury/Injury detail

julied's review against another edition

informative reflective fast-paced

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Alcoholism, Cursing, Drug abuse, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Misogyny, Sexism, Blood, Vomit, Alcohol, and Classism

mlewis's review against another edition

adventurous funny informative inspiring reflective fast-paced

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Cursing, Drug use, Blood, and Alcohol

Moderate: Addiction, Suicide, and Vomit

Minor: Body shaming, Bullying, Homophobia, Mental illness, Racism, and Sexual harassment