July 18, 2008
Anthony Bourdain in D.C. for 'No Reservations'
Anthony Bourdain and José Andrés after a visit to the Penn Quarter farmers market
OK, he may not be Brad Pitt or George Clooney, but I'd bet $5 on Anthony Bourdain in a bare-knuckle boxing match. So, if you see him around town this weekend, filming segments for his Travel Channel show, No Reservations, best not tick him off.
We spotted Bourdain yesterday afternoon at the weekly Penn Quarter FRESHFARM market, accompanied by new BFF (unconfirmed) Chef José Andrés. Together, they spent the better part of an hour visiting each vendor as Andrés expounded on the revolution in American cuisine, particularly in D.C. They then escaped the gazes of curious onlookers into Andrés's Café Atlantico.
As for the contents of the episode, the No Reservations crew were mostly hush-hush. We were able to glean that the list of locations would include spots inside the Beltway, not just within the city, and that one possible theme would be the "two-sides" of the city. But after a bit of cajoling, we confirmed one, totally unsurprising spot: Ben's Chili Bowl. They wouldn't say when he'd be stopping by the famous U Street eatery, though.
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Bourdain's been to Ben's a couple times before. He shoulda gone to Weenie Beenie, which serves the same Baltimore brand halfsmokes. And their chili doesn't suck.
Really hope he went to Cakelove. I'd love to hear Bourdain c**p all over their godawful cupcakes.
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i never got the whole cake love thing. it's overpriced and all their frosting tastes like way too much butter.
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oh come on....not Ben's bowl again!! show some imagination. we have better places in the 'burbs.
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I wanna see the guy from Bizarre Foods.. Andrew Zimmern come to DC.
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Kit-fo! Kit-fo! Kit-fo! Best damn raw beef this side of Paris!
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Which of the "two sides" of the city is Ben's on? And will this "two sides" theme involve a trip across the Anacostia?
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ugh Andrew Zimmern. I lost all respect for him when, after seeing him eat deer weiner and snake butt, or whatever, he tried horchata and had a fit over how disgusting it was.
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I will continue the thread-shifting over to zimmerman. This effing guy has one reaction to every type of food he eats and it always confuses the natives. He makes that face that appears to be constipation and inguinal pain and utters something gutteral, typically, "awwwwwwwwwwh." Also, "ongghhhhh." Good show, though.
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If any American city ever needed an Anthony Bourdain-style show to change its tourist reputation, it's DC. Who cares about the food options, do you think he'll mention that people actually live here?
Pupusas, anyone?
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Cany anyone confirm that Bourdain was indeed the "mystery chef" at Junkpunchers last night?
FYI, there are still some 2-4-1 coupons available. No expiration date.
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At least Bourdain shows some diversity in his reactions to food - I swear if I have to hear Zimmern describe something as "briney" or "gamey" again I'll have to stab my eyes out. No shit that testicle and brain meal is going to taste of some salty wildlife deliciousness.
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had a happy hour drink with Bourdain at Chadwicks in Gtown while his crew was setting up in the upstairs. we sent him a beer and he was more than happy to drink it with us.
his jeans are usually tight enough for a Ben's appearance but not enough popped collar for a Reef night closed out with a jumbo slice.
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Seriously, I've lived in DC for 8 years and eaten at Ben's maybe twice. It sucks. There. I said it. I could provide a list of 10 places with more character and better food that should be featured as part of DC's DCism without thinking.
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Zimmern is lame...the guy can down eskimo ice cream and monkey eyes but he can't handle a piece of durian...WEAK!
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registeringsucks - We're waiting.
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Where's he going to go east of the Anacostia, you ask?
Why, he could start at the Nutsack Whompins on Alabama Avenue. Best Irish-Russian-Thai fusion cuisine in the city and its famous Brown Taint martinis are to die for!
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@registeringsucks:
I've heard people rip on Ben's before. Twice. Both times, I asked what they ordered. Neither had a half smoke. So if you went and ordered the tuna sandwich or a turkey burger, well, no sh*t it sucked.
If you didn't like the chili half-smoke, well, as Rev. Lovejoy once said to Homer (at an AA meeting): "I cast thee out!"
;-)
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I agree that Ben's is overrated.
And I want to see Bourdain go to Murky Coffee and order an iced espresso. Hilarity will no doubt ensue.
Then Andrew Zimmerman can come by and sample someone's sore testicles.
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Murky Coffee is probably a pretty good representation of "DC's DCism." You know, service with a sneer.
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stfu, he was at chadwicks???
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He should visit Suitland and go to Steak in a Sac. Now THAT is the "other side" everyone's wondering about!
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nope, no Denny's east of the Anacostia. For chains, you're gonna have to check out Penn Quarter.
while Anacostia doesn't have much yet, here's to hoping it doesn't develop into a generic open-air mall like other recently-redeveloped neighborhoods in DC.
www.anacostianow.blogspot.com
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I just wanted to complain about Luigi Mclanahan von Leningrad Standing Horse's Omni-ethnic Sub Pub. Their gyros chop suey po' boy is terrible and completely inauthentic. Nothing like what we get back home in Bangalore.
Although the chilled monkey's brains were not uninspired.
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Bourdain - loves durian
Zimmerman - hates durian
Bethesdaist - loves durian
therefore, Bethesdaist - loves Bourdain
(And I'm sure he'll be thrilled to learn of this!)
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stfu, he was at chadwicks???
Well, that is the "other side" of DC, innit? By which I mean "the LNS side."
He probably wanted to go to Sequoia, but the waterfront handrails had too much herpes.
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Yes, Kranky! I want to see Bourdain get an iced espresso cockpunch!
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I'd love to see Bourdain go to Horace & Dickie's for a fish sammich. What I love about Bourdain is that even though he's a world renowned chef, he can appreciate aesthetics that aren't fine dining without being condescending.
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It looks like Bourdain's trying to escape from Andres' grip. He has a pained look on his face in that shot.
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Boudain's like, "Jose, if I have to eat one more goddamned plate of tapas, I'm taking your ass to Junkpunchers. My treat."
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I had a half smoke and chili cheese fries. Both were less than impressive. I'm not saying horrible, but not at all worthy of the hype.
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DGrad: Unless it has closed recently, there is indeed a Denny's east of the river, on Benning Rd. NE just up from East Capitol. It's even Metro accessible.
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Fuck Bens Chilli Bowl. Fuck it and the other three items on the 'Spin the subject wheel for something Oh-So-DC'. It's not even that good. Just some dump where white people can espouse "OH DAHling we are dining just like the colored folk! How chaaaaaah'ming." ITS JUST STANDARD UNFRANCHISED FAST FUCKING FOOD YOU WOULD FIND ANYWHERE IN JERSEY OR NEW YORK OR ANY GODDAMN REAL FUCKING CITY. I'm moving, fuck this place. Where are my razor blades. Gragh@&8!@^!!(@*#&!!
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my bad - forgot about NE.
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I'll have what carn is having, but can I get the Gragh@&8!@^!!(@*#&!! on the side for dippin?
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So I guess he will not be stopping by ESPN Zone?
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God, I'm so in love with Anthony Bourdain, in a creepy sort of way.
I didn't realize there was so much animosity against Ben's Chili Bowl though. It's probably overrated, but I like them well enough. They're always the place I go after I go to a show at the Black Cat or whatever because they're cheap greasy food and they're open late. The people who work there are always quite surly though, I've found.
My family is from the Cincinatti area and I've been dying for a place that serves good Cincinatti/Dixie chili. I want my chili served over a plate of spaghetti, dude.
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So a place is good if it has one good item on the menu and the rest sucks?
That's DCism for you.
Ben's is more of an institution than a place to eat anyway.
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Hardtimes does a mean 4way for you Cincinattians.
I swear if I have to listen to one more stupid person talk about how it's crap food and it was so much better where they were from I'm moving to Canada so I can bitch how rough I had it with American health care caused by my half-smoke, coney dog, soft-pretzel, perogie, 4way, empanada, brooklyn style slice, deep dish eatin ass!
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@badtzmaru:
To be fair the chili burger is pretty good too, as is the veggie chili.
The chili cheese fries are good if you've been drinking and don't mind the melted velveeta.
But what's so bad about a greasy spoon having one item on the dish that's outstanding, and a bunch of other generic crap? It's not the reincarnation of Palladin, and it's not pretending to be. If I go to a bbq joint in San Antonio that's known for its brisket, and order a f'ing turkey burger, then I deserve all the suck that I get. Just because it's on the menu doesn't mean you should be foolish enough to order it.
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You forgot the "Cleveland steamer."
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What's with all the Ben's-hate?
Do New Yorkers react the same way when people bring up Katz's Deli? Or is this just a DC phenomenon?
Most of the other cities in which I have lived are far less eager to rag on their culinary landmarks.
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"Fuck Bens Chilli Bowl."
Yeah man, fuck them! Just....fuck them!!!
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The very fact that Ben's is considered an institution is just proof positive of DC being a Bermuda fucking triangle for Cheap Good Eats.
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@carn: Awwwwww...does poor baby want to go back to LA for a fish taco and a bacon wrapped hot dog, all for $0.25? Off you go, then. try not to choke on your horchata.
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What's with all the Ben's-hate?
Racism. White folk can't stand to see a brotha gettin' PAID. Mo' money, mo' money, dolla dolla bill, y'all.
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I'm with you, carn!
Now, Geno's in Philly, that's proof positive that you really need a large menu of cheap greasy food to be considered an institution! oh wait...
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Geno's...sheeyit, talk about a naked emperor...
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Bourdain location update... (if anyone cares)
I just happened to be at lunch today at Busboys and Poets, where I got a glimpse of Mr. Bourdain in the flesh. I couldn't tell if he and the crew were actually planning to film there, or just stopping for a rest, but they seemed in good spirits... and he already had a cold beer in hand at the bar within seconds of walking in. Well done...
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"What's with all the Ben's-hate?
Do New Yorkers react the same way when people bring up Katz's Deli? Or is this just a DC phenomenon?
Most of the other cities in which I have lived are far less eager to rag on their culinary landmarks."
The problem is that those culinary landmarks are just exemplars of a well-developed local food culture. NYC has plenty of delis; Philly has plenty of cheesesteaks. But DC doesn't have plenty of shitty hotdogs. Ben's is an icon of a food culture without any real culture there. In sum, Ben's is an institution, not a culture, and that makes people from *real* food culture cities now doomed to DC very very sad.
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Hey, lay off Geno's! Pat's cheesesteaks are FAR worse than Geno's. Between the rancid grease and the Cheeze Wiz, they make this monkey's butthole weep noisy brown tears.
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@EdTheRed
Emphatic co-sign! Geno's sucks; you're much better off going to Jim's for cheese steak. Of course, if you want to go to the summit of sammich mountain, you'll take yer stinkin' ass to Tony Luke's for a Pork Italian.
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@hillrat: it's all about the roast pork Italian. God bless whomever invented sharp provolone, the King of Provolones.
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Of course he should go to Ben's.
And for all the people who hate Ben's.
Good. Then I dont have to wait in line behind you while you cant figure out how to order a fucking Half Smoke.
He should also check out the Blue and White on RT One in Alexandria.
Plus the following places.
Steak and Egg.
Florida Grill.
Dixie Bones in Woodbridge.
Al's Steak and Cheese in Del Ray.
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Bourdain was shooting at Eammon's last night (19 July), then he came upstairs to PX to hang out with the Armstrongs. Mrs. Monkey chewed him out for hogging Todd Thrasher and holding up our drinks. He apologized and even wished her a Happy Birthday. This guy does not deserve coupons for free apps at Junkpunchers. I will definitely pay his bail.
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a Bermuda fucking triangle for Cheap Good Eats
Bullshit. DC may not have its own special brand of blue collar heart dynamite, but it has plenty of good, cheap ethnic dives. Of course to find them, you have to go where the immigrants are. And that ain't Cleveland Park, Woodley Park, Glover Park, Georgetown, or any of the Circles. I love my pupusas, I love my pho, I love my boolawnee, and I love my fucking injera, goddamn you.
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And that ain't Cleveland Park, Woodley Park, Glover Park, Georgetown, or any of the Circles.
Are there any good cheap eats in a neighborhood with a "Park" in the name? I can't think of one. You need to go to a neighborhood with housing projects with "Dwellings" in the name to find the good $5-a-plate styrofoam-container s**t.
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Yup, I was having celebratory birthday drinks at PX with Mr. Monkey & Kellygo when Tony Bourdain stopped in. I didn't see any camera crew, but he looked like he was having a great time at the bar, monopolizing our favorite celebrity barkeep, Mr. Thrasher. I hope his visit inside the Beltway resulted in some interesting clips.
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He should have hit Ray's the Steaks and Ray's Hellburgers. Michael Landrum definitely deserves some shine.
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He went to a Vietnamese spot in Falls Church where I like to eat.
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What is the address of Junkpunchers? Does it have a website?
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You'll find Junkpunchers located between Cockamamies and Wangsters in the Meatpacking District. Hang a left at the Hammock District. Can't miss it.