Food - Drink
Here's What Marcus Samuelsson Loved Most About Dining With Anthony Bourdain
By KAREN HART
On the podcast “Travel That Matters,” the “No Passport Required” host Marcus Samuelsson nostalgically discussed what he loved most about dining with his peer Anthony Bourdain.
Samuelsson said, “One of my favorite dinners in L.A. was actually eating with Anthony Bourdain in San Gabriel Valley [...] going to a place where he had heard of.”
Samuelsson, owner of the famed Red Rooster restaurant in Harlem, shared that the outing entailed eating Sichuan food for a taste of San Gabriel Valley’s incredible Asian cuisine.
Whenever he would go out with Bourdain, Samuelsson was often very quiet so he could listen to the late chef’s captivating stories and take them all in.
Samuelsson told Metro, “Tony influenced me deeply by working and being around him many, many times, whether we were having a drink at a bar in New York or traveling to Ethiopia.”
Fellow stars of “The Taste” Nigella Lawson and Ludo Lefebvre would occasionally join as well, but Bourdain always had dibs on choosing the location.
It was always “greasy and grimy,” according to Samuelsson, but the group’s engaging conversation added to the fun discovery process.
Samuelsson shared that he and Lefebvre listened while Bourdain and Lawson talked about their favorite authors, saying, “I learned so much about storytellers they admired.”
According to People, some of the group’s favorite eateries to frequent while filming their show included Korean barbecue hot spot, Park's, and Ludo's restaurant, Petit Trois.