Where Anthony Bourdain Stood On Pumpkin Spice Lattes

Whether raving about New York City hot dog joints or hating on culinary awards ceremonies, Anthony Bourdain's opinionated takes only served to enhance the man's charm. Unfortunately for many pumpkin spice latte lovers, this traveling foodie was decisively not in the corner of fall-flavored treats. While many wait for temperatures to drop so that warm beverages and sweets flavored with spice and earthy pumpkin can be pushed across cafe countertops, Bourdain simply shook his head. 

When asked by Town and Country Magazine about Starbucks' unique unicorn frappuccino, Bourdain quipped that the question itself contained enough to balk at. "Just add pumpkin spice to that mix, and you can nuke the whole county," he answered. The publication also questioned Bourdain about some of the annoying food trends at the time (2017). Bourdain managed to slip mention of pumpkin spice into his reply, calling it "silly" and something that is easy to make fun of. Pumpkin itself wasn't the problem, Bourdain explained to People magazine, listing off pumpkin pie, pumpkin tortellini, and pumpkin soup as examples of recipes he could tolerate. "I think pumpkin spice is disgusting," he asserted. "I certainly don't want it in my coffee."

When asked in a Reddit AMA (ask-me-anything) thread about food trends Bourdain might want to see die quickly, Bourdain was even more direct about his dislike for pumpkin spice. "I would like to see the pumpkin spice craze drowned in its own blood. Quickly," he wrote. Bourdain followed his vehemence for pumpkin spice by listing juice cleanses and the frequent use of the word artisanal to describe food items as other trends he wished would fall out of public favor.

Later, however, Bourdain eased up on his disdain for pumpkin spice food and drinks, recognizing to Refinery 29 that he sounded like a "complete curmudgeon" and was clearly not winning the war against the popularity of pumpkin-spiced anything. While his Reddit reply may read harshly, Bourdain admitted that there was no foods he hated "in an existential way." To People, Bourdain offered the helpful rubric of asking whether an ingredient makes an overall experience more enjoyable. "I'm really happy for whoever sits around eating pumpkin spice marshmallow, but does it make the marshmallow better? That's often a useful question with food." What is one man's bliss could very well be another's banality.