A Cook's Tour

Tony travels to Tokyo where he discovers a radically new cooking attitude with a delicate respect for ingredients. He begins in the Tsujiki market, Tokyo's largest fresh fish market. and then is introduced to the sophisticated techniques involved in preparing edomae sushi. Finally, Tony is introduced to the hefty, yes sophisticated, culinary diets of Sumo wrestlers.

Moving on from Tokyo, Tony decides to look for a more relaxing, traditional Japanese culinary experience in the countryside. Aboard the ultra fast Shinkansan bullet train, Tony travels to an old-style Japanese inn that specializes in kaiseki cuisine, ancient tea ceremony, and local ingredients served by women in traditional geisha attire.

Tony soaks up the intoxicating beauty upriver of Ho Chi Minh City as he samples the wares of the Cai Rang floating market. Further upriver, Tony shares laughs, sings, and drinks a lot of Mekong moonshine with the welcoming owners of a duck farm. Although thoroughly seduced by his Vietnam experience, Tony is not sure the royal dish "Bird's Nest Soup" is all it's cracked up to be.

With a friend along for the ride, Tony travels to Phnom Penh, Cambodia, where he explores a food culture that is both pleasing to the palette and slightly frightening. Scouring the local outdoor market for delicacies, they experience a sensory overload, finding everything from deep-fried crickets to flourescent Jello-like substances and steaming containers of tripe and tongues.

Arcachon, the birthplace of Tony's father, is where Bourdain first learned to love food as a child. Returning for a trip down memory lane, Tony enjoys childhood staples, including steak frites, gaufres (waffles), soupe de pecheur (fisherman's soup) and fresh oysters. Tony's sentimental journey ends with French bread and garlic sausage-a simple tribute to his father.

Experience the formative moments of Tony's career as he revisits his first job, the culinary institute that taught him the basics, a normal workday at Les Halles Brasserie, and his mysterious mentor, Bigfoot.

According to Tony, the best line cooks in NYC come from Mexico, and with this in mind, he travels to the Puebla, the heartland of Mexican cuisine, and enjoys numerous mole sauces, toasted ant eggs, fried worms, and the legendary pulque (a slightly hallucinogenic drink made from cactus sap).

Tony plays spy in Russia when he receives instructions to seek out a man holding a torn newspaper in front of St. Isaac's Cathedral. Once contact is made, Tony and his new partner (Zamir Gotta) set off to locate the best blinis and borscht St. Petersburg has to offer, but first the two spies enjoy a country lunch of pickled salads and braised reindeer. Tony concludes his mission with a trip to St. Petersburg Market and a hearty home cooked meal of borscht, meat filled dumplings and large amounts of vodka.

New York chef, Anthony Bourdain, descends into the culinary underbelly of his metropolitan nemesis, Los Angeles, where he experiences the trials of celebrity fame and the joys of West Coast cuisine.

Chef Tony Bourdain arrives in Morocco with a mission: to eat a roasted sheep in the desert. As Tony journeys through the Sahara, he observes the slaughtering of a sheep, eats meat pies with blue-robed Berber men, rides a camel and, finally, experiences the flavors of mud-oven-roasted sheep.

After taking a cyclo ride through Ho Chi Minh City and trying various foods from roadside vendors and markets, Tony enjoys a unique dining atmosphere where sizzling hot rice cakes fly overhead. Later, Tony tests his might with a few shots of snake wine and a live cobra heart.

Taking his obsession with the film Apocalypse Now a little too seriously, Tony sets out of Pailin-reputed to be one of the most dangerous towns on earth. On his journey, Tony experiences nameless waterways, landmine infested roads, unwelcomed guests, and road side delicacies. Arriving in Pailin, Tony realizes the city may be much different than he imagines. After completing his journey in Cambodia, Tony returns to Japan to reacquaint himself with civilization.

Chef Tony Bourdain explores the exotic and colorful indigenous zone of Mexico's Oaxaca region. Here he tastes toasted grasshoppers, tripe soup and a local red-oil sausage, while observing the making of the regional variation on tamales. His adventure ends with dinner on the street, mariachi music and, of course, lost of tequila.

Tony continues his mission in Russia with a tour of local working class specialities. The first stop is the frozen Neva River, where he tries his hand at ice-fishing-an exercise in stamina and vodka drinking. Following the workout, Tony feasts on Russian foods, including the rare koulibiak, a baked fish pie formerly eaten by the Czars. After so much food and vodka, Tony takes a break at a Russian bath. He steams, eats smoked fish and ends the outing with a dip in the outdoor cold pool.

Tony lands in London on a mission to dispel the myth that all English food is disgusting and over-boiled. Trying Nose to Tail Eating, Tony enjoys a meal of kid liver salad, whole roasted pig head, grilled ox heart, and breaded pigtails. Tony also explores traditional fare at Pie and Mash Shoppes and then visits a predominantly Indian community and indulges in a home-cooked London Punjab meal.

Passionate about his city, Tony gives us an intimate tour of the New York City foods he knows and loves-sturgeon and bagels, fluke ceviche, pan-seared foie gras, braised veal cheek, authentic cheese and, of course, a hotdog at Papaya King Frankfurters and Juices.

Marooned in San Francisco, Tony tastes local shellfish and durian ice cream before embarking on a pilgrimage to experience the genius of Thomas Keller, chef and owner of The French Laundry.

Tony is invited to experience the culinary heart and distinct walled medinas (districts) of the Moroccan city Fes. Tony's meals revolve around the family's home kitchen, where the cooks show Tony the preparation of the region's most beloved dishes such as pigeon bastilla, cous-cous with steamed vegetables, and a variety of exquisite salads.

Portuguese cuisine holds a dear place in Tony's culinary heart. Not only is it the first type of food he learned to love as a young chef, but his boss, Jose Meirelles, hails from Portugal. With Jose, Tony travels to Porto, home of the famous Port wine, where he is immediately exposed to the codfish and the almost mythical place it holds in Portuguese cuisine and culture.

In San Sebastian, Spain, Tony explores the food-crazed Basque culture. Tony's guide, Chef Luis Irizar, takes Tony into the exclusively male underworld of Basque gastronomic societies. Later, Tony explores the tapas bars that reflect the city's finest example of everyday Basque delights.

Visiting his boss's family farm in Portugal, Tony helps slaughter and feast on a pig the family has been fattening all year. Having had enough pork, Tony heads to France to experience the rich delights of a foie gras farm. Finally, Tony revisits Arcachon with his brother Chris, where he attempts to devour a veal's head.

Adventuring to the outer reaches of the United Kingdom, Tony insists that Scotland is a place of extraordinary cuisine. Beginning in Glasgow, Tony experiences the heart-clogging glory of a deep fried pizza, deep fried mars bars, deep fried pickled eggs, and deed fried everything! Moving on to more traditional fare, Tony tastes a classic haggis and learns to hunt and fish for his food.