Friday, June 8, 2018

Anthony Bourdain in West Plains

by Pa Rock
Collector of Local Color

There is news out of France this morning that Anthony Bourdain has killed himself.  Bourdain, a celebrity chef and author who performed his culinary magic on the world stage, had surprisingly made a sojourn into the Missouri Ozarks a few years back, and even recorded his experiences from that trip for his Travel Channel television show, No Reservations.

Bourdain visited the small town of West Plains, Missouri, in 2011, in order to spend a few days with his favorite writer, West Plains resident Daniel Woodrell (author of Winter's Bone and several other novels of life in the Ozarks.).   Bourdain had called Woodrell the "best writer in America."

According to a few local news stories from that time, Bourdain and Woodrell enmeshed themselves in Ozarks food-gathering and preparation.  They skinned squirrels which Bourdain used in pot pies, and spent some time on the Current River gigging for suckers.  It was during the later pursuit that Woodrell broke his shoulder.

Anthony Bourdain stepped into the world spotlight with a book that explored the "dark corners" of New York restaurants, and he was still exploring dark corners when he came to the Ozarks.   Although I was not living here at the time, I am sure that both Bourdain and the city of West Plains benefited from his brief visit to our rustic community.

Rest in peace, Chef.

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