Andrew travels a lot shooting for Bizarre Foods and working on his new radio show. When he returns home, he'll sit down and answer your questions.

Do you have something you would like to ask about the show? If you would like to ask Andrew a question, post it as a reply to this thread...

My question for Andrew is.. how do you know about bizarre foods of each country & have you ever experienced stomach upset after trying these foods????.. Thank you

Love the show. My question to Andrew is...Out of all the bizarre foods you have tried around the world, which surprised you the most? Which tasted completely different than you thought?

I LOVE Bizarre foods! My question to Andrew is, what is your absolute favorite bizarre food from any of your travels around the world?

Dude, you are a weird food eating fool, but I love ya. It was once my desire to do what you are doing right now, but a disabling accident, along with a great wife and 6 kids keeps me home for now, but as soon as the last one is in college, WE ARE GONE !!! Anyhow, love your show, keep up the good eating, DJMraz

I have a couple questions for Andrew - 1. Have you gotten sick from any of these foods and which one? 2. Do you have to take TUMS or a RX for your stomach? 3. What makes someone WANT to eat all of these different foods? 4. Do you cook unusual foods at home?
I think you're a great host, very entertaining to watch! Thank you for taking on a job I would never want to do.....

I just have a quick question for you, Andrew... Why can you not stomach durian fruit but you can eat bugs and rotting meat???

Hi Andrew,

I know a select few foods you've tried are eaten in the United States (angulas, for example), but which food(s) do you think would most easily crossover into the N. American culture? You know, that we currently do not chow on...

Thanks!

This has got to be the most disturbing show on TV!! how can you possibly enjoy a show that promotes the slaughtering of innocent animals & find it enjoying? Sheep eyes! guinea pigs! cats! dogs!! monkeys! Good lord!! aren't there enough atrocities going on in the world without watching the wholesale torture of animals for entertainment!!?? Sick, sick, sick!!

I absolutely LOVE the show. I am a fat Jew from Miami, with food going back on both sides, one grandfather was a butcher the other was a deli owner, and am willing to try anything once (except dog, for moral reasons). I’d love to go to some of the places you have and try some of those foods. I have some questions for you: from the episodes from Asia, what was your favorite bit of gitumono (gross out) food? Was the best bit of Chinese food? Was it difficult being American and Jewish and filming in Morocco? I can’t image salted lemons being any good, were they? Would you ever consider going to Eastern Europe and Russia and trying some of those foods, such as duck blood soup and jellied pigs feet (my grandmother used to make them and they are as good as they are scary)?

Lastly, in a little bit of Schadenfreude, I do love your expression when you bit into that rotten meat omelet in Morocco. That killed me.

I really like the show. You do a great job describing the food. It looks like a lot of fun to travel and eat all the stuff you're eating, but do you ever worry about parasites? Do you do anything to protect yourself or is it really even an issue?

quote:

Originally posted by pwehula:
This has got to be the most disturbing show on TV!! how can you possibly enjoy a show that promotes the slaughtering of innocent animals & find it enjoying? Sheep eyes! guinea pigs! cats! dogs!! monkeys! Good lord!! aren't there enough atrocities going on in the world without watching the wholesale torture of animals for entertainment!!?? Sick, sick, sick!!

I would have to assume that you are a vegetarian by your post? I can totally understand your feelings toward those of us who eat meat, but man/woman has been a meat eater since time began. How each society handles the way they kill the animals that they choose to eat has also been happening for thousands of years. Andrew is just there to experience this and to show us the customs/cultures of the different countries. We in the USA can not go out to other places and say, " Hey, the way you kill your food is unethical so now you have to stop!" Hey, eating monkeys, dogs, guinea pigs,etc. just doesn't fit into the all American diet so you can't do that either." No, these are the animals available in abundance to these indigenous peoples like the guinea pigs in the Philippines; easy and fast to breed. If I wanted to I could get Biblical but I won't as that will open a whole can of worms here, but I think that most people are meat eaters (at least those who are fans). Human teeth are made to chew meat. Our digestive systems are designed to digest meat. Personally, I'm very thankful for the show so that I can see how other cultures live and what they do for food.

quote:

Originally posted by kibblesnbits:
No, these are the animals available in abundance to these indigenous peoples like the guinea pigs in the Philippines; easy and fast to breed.

uh, just to clarify, we don't eat guinea pigs (or Dagang Costas, as we call them) in the Philippines. I had several of them as pets growing up and they ended their lives out of the frying pan. I think you were referring to Ecuador?

Now, I will admit that the guinea pig eating bit also disturbed me a lot, but I have to agree with you in saying we can't pass judgment on another country's culture - and not just because my own country of birth has several of what you might consider gross-out food. So like what a lot of people have already said about this show, enjoy it for its educational value and be open-minded enough to appreciate cultures other than your own.

quote:

Originally posted by emzr_pt:

quote:

Originally posted by kibblesnbits:
No, these are the animals available in abundance to these indigenous peoples like the guinea pigs in the Philippines; easy and fast to breed.

uh, just to clarify, we don't eat guinea pigs (or Dagang Costas, as we call them) in the Philippines. I had several of them as pets growing up and they ended their lives out of the frying pan. I think you were referring to Ecuador?

Now, I will admit that the guinea pig eating bit also disturbed me a lot, but I have to agree with you in saying we can't pass judgment on another country's culture - and not just because my own country of birth has several of what you might consider gross-out food. So like what a lot of people have already said about this show, enjoy it for its educational value and be open-minded enough to appreciate cultures other than your own.

Thank you for the clarification and my apology for my error to the Philippine peoples.I had recorded both episodes and watched both the same evening, hence my mix up.

dearest andrew, i think your very cute but even then if you took me out to some place and started to eat funny things.. i'd sit there but you'ed eat alone sweety...honey its not going to happen!!! i love your show ( with a ewew factor for me)i'm use to eating my food from a supermarket.. even thou as a kid in puerto rico they use to kill there own chickens and some people use to eat bull balls ( EWEW) not for me sweety, i'll take a burger and fries, bye nene

My question is, the food Klia? i think, the meat cooked in the lard. I know its not one of your favorites but i was wondering, when you eat meat that has been sitting in the sun for days, do you worry about getting sick? Food poisoning? I'm curious to know since its a daily food in that country is what their ER stats are. The people must not get sick since they eat it every day? Very fascinating to me. I really enjoy watching the show although there are times when i cannot watch!! You have a gut of iron!! Thank you!

I have one simple question and it's from tonights Spain show. I have NEVER EVER met anyone who does not like HORCHATA!!! Considering all the things that you eat, you would be the last person I expect to not like it. What was so bad about it?

Great great shows! Keep going. There are abundant of foods in the US and the values and feelings for animals are different from other countries. People in other countries are either don't have affordable foods or don't have the same views as the US. To them and me, animals were created for people to eat.

You should watch the shows to understand what's going on around the world and cultures of different countries.

When I found out that you (Mr. Zimmern) was the host of this new television show I was estatic.
I'm a twenty year old Middle-Tennesean whole loves to taste new and innovative foods. There's only one problem.
Where I live currently is a college town that doesn't have much demand for "weird" foods. Most of the really intresting things are of poor quality and are found easiest by going to your neighborhood chinese all-you-can-eat buffet.(i.e. fried chicken feet, tripe, and squid) Also, the foods you can find that are of good quality are ridiculously expensive. I'm on a college kid budget, and my father won't let me cook the cool stuff in the house because the smells linger sometimes.

Anyway, I'm always hungry after I see your show, much to the disgust of my family.

If you ever need a side-kick that can relate to the younger, less educated (in a culinary sense) and experienced crowd, you should hit me up. Not everyone can relate to an older esteemed chef that has years of culinary experience. Plus, My freinds get a huge kick out of watching you get the pretty young females to try new things. Especially when you gotta chase them down, like in the Spain episode with the fried crickets.

For the majority of my life I have believed that it's not what is cooking, but the quality and preperation of what is in the pot that is the deciding factor on whether I should eat it.

You are just a super guy and I adore your show, keep it up!

My questions are;

Do you need a day off sometimes?

Do you need a side-kick?

And, Do you know of any places near Nashville that have good quality weird eats that are decently priced?

P.S. You should get a MySpace page!

Could you have a contest or something, so you could take a guest along? From here on the forum?

I have a question for Andrew. Will you have a show that is based on Cultural foods that are prepared in US cities. Such as China Town, or little Italy's in Metro Areas. I love your show man, greatest diet ever. I watch when I get home, and cant eat because some of the things you eat are nasty...but I love it...

quote:

Originally posted by surfinnorcal77:
Will you have a show that is based on Cultural foods that are prepared in US cities.

The website says the "Gulf Coast" is next (Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana). Having grown up in South Mississippi, I can't wait to see this!

Jeff

1) What bizarre foods have you most looked forward to eating?
2) What bizarre foods have you least looked forward to eating?
3) What bizarre food are you still dying to try?
4) What bizarre food would you NOT eat?

Jeff

1. Did you feel "better" before, or after, the Shaman was breathing fire on you and rubbing you with a poisonous plant?

2. What toothpaste do you use?

Truly love the show and like many who have asked, does your stomach ever act bizarre after eating bizarre foods? Also, what bizarre remedy do you take to calm your bizarre stomach? hehe. :-)

Just a short note: I was in my hotel in Asheville, NC ready to check out when I happened to turn the TV and it was on Travel Channel - Bizarre Food and I fell in love with the show. Very entertaining and educational. It was the beginning of your Philippine trip.
I stayed until the show was finished, almost missed my check out time. Guess what, I am going to apply for a cable TV. Never liked cable TV before but because of this show, I am hooked. Keep up the good work...

I see lots of question but no answers. Where are the answers?

quote:

Originally posted by mod_ben:
Do you have something you would like to ask about the show? If you would like to ask Andrew a question, this is the place to post it...

I love this show! I love how Andrew is not afraid to try anything! This is a man of heart and soul.. Now my question is this: Have you ever suffered nausea and vomiting after eating some of the exotic foods on the show? Not trying to be sick or grose about this, but I can only imagine the horrendus stench in which your colon ex-spells as well as when you evacuate.

quote:

Originally posted by lovehandlesxx2:
Hi Andrew, Great show! You are the perfect host for it. My question is,does your wife ever refuse to kiss you?

HAHAHAHAHAHA!!! Man, I eat some salmon and my girlfriend wont even kiss me.. You must have a patient wife!

I have a question for Andrew. Do you accept fan submitted recipes or do you just sample traditional world cuisine? If you want a suggestion on someplace exotic to go, may I recommend the Faeroe Islands? You can dine on pilot whale blubber, skerpikjøt (wind dried mutton), puffin eggs, and other things you can't find at the average American grocery store. Plus its close to Norway, where you can get the utterly disgusting lutefisk.

Anyway, I love the show. Keep it up!

Hello Andrew, keep some time(an hour) every week/day to reply to the questions. That way the forum will be very active and your show will go on. Thanks dude

quote:

Originally posted by mod_ben:
Do you have something you would like to ask about the show? If you would like to ask Andrew a question, this is the place to post it...

Ok, Andrew. What did you say a couple weeks ago about the Horchata (beverage made with almond milk and tiger nuts) you tried in Barcelona, Spain? Something about it REALLY tastes terrible, like the worst-tasting medicine you had to take as a little kid?

Am I thinking about the right thing or something else you talked about on the show?

:(

gwillis01@earthlink.net

I'm waiting for the daying anyone on TV tries a dog/cat dish.
would that be too contraversial? maybe...
but he's already tried guinea pig... why not?

FYI, dog meat, which i tried 3 times while visiting asia, is the most tender, juicy yet a bit fatty meat i ever tried.
told its very high in protein.

quote:

Originally posted by johnbeck:
I see lots of question but no answers. Where are the answers?

johnbeck - once Andrew is done filming our plan is to set up a live chat between him and you, the viewers. Were gathering questions now to get the live chat going once we do have it.

Thanks for posting.

Rani - Bizarre Foods Online Producer

Hello, all! I am glad you all are taking an interest in my show. I noticed that many of you have issues about how I maintain the happiness of my stomach and whether or not it gets upset from eating bizarre foods. I hope you don’t mind if I answer to all of these kinds of questions in this forum by simply stating that I’ve never gotten sick.
I don’t take any special precautions. Most of the foods I eat in the countries I visit are very popular and prepared often—this means that I’m eating very fresh food.
Also, I’ve been trying to lose 40 pounds for the last fifteen years so a small parasite would be most welcome.

I have to say, I'm not planning on eating any dog or cat soon.

quote:

Originally posted by thekingtutt:
My question for Andrew is.. how do you know about bizarre foods of each country & have you ever experienced stomach upset after trying these foods????.. Thank you

Many of the countries I’ve visited before and I have a very adventurous palate. But we also have a very large team behind the scenes that struggle tirelessly to try and uncover the most fun and funky foods and places we can. I also appreciate the recommendations of the Faeroe Islands, sounds like a great idea! And as for Eastern Europe and Russia, we are planning to do these places in season two.

quote:

Originally posted by furball_miller:
Love the show. My question to Andrew is...Out of all the bizarre foods you have tried around the world, which surprised you the most? Which tasted completely different than you thought?

I'd have to say the balut was the most surprising. I went in to it not sure about how I would react, but I ended up liking it! I was very surprised.

quote:

Originally posted by ilovesnails:
I LOVE Bizarre foods! My question to Andrew is, what is your absolute favorite bizarre food from any of your travels around the world?

One of the impossible I’ll-probably-never-be-able-to-eat-the-thing-again foods that was really good was the curried iguana in Tobago. Also there are some foods that are not strange to me (although they might be to other people) that are top of my list, like diving for my own octopus and then being served the octopus cooked in its own ink by the wife of the octopus hunter. These are the types of the meals and memories I miss the most. And of course, all the goodies I ate in Spain qualify—the risotto with rooster combs, or the pine cone sorbet that Ferran Adria cooked for me has to be right up there.

quote:

Originally posted by kibblesnbits:
I have a couple questions for Andrew - 1. Have you gotten sick from any of these foods and which one? 2. Do you have to take TUMS or a RX for your stomach? 3. What makes someone WANT to eat all of these different foods? 4. Do you cook unusual foods at home?
I think you're a great host, very entertaining to watch! Thank you for taking on a job I would never want to do.....

As I stated in my first post, I don't get sick so, alas, no Tums or prescriptions.

Why would I want to eat these foods? I do what I do not necessarily for the bizarre aspect. I love eating food around the world and most important to me is exploring the cultures and traditions of which these foods are a part of. For instance, its not that haggis is something that I wish was served at my local coffee shop, but that I can try a food that is a national dish,a subject of epic poems and yearly festivals, and has become representative of a people is a powerful intoxicant for me. And to be able to eat this food in the city that berthed it with the guy who makes the best haggis in the country is icing on the cake. Food is a way to celebrate culture and the two go hand in hand for me.

quote:

Originally posted by fayyeeyee:
I just have a quick question for you, Andrew... Why can you not stomach durian fruit but you can eat bugs and rotting meat???

Simple answer, why do people like chocolate ice cream and others like vanilla?

quote:

Originally posted by skinnydippin:
Hi Andrew,

I know a select few foods you've tried are eaten in the United States (angulas, for example), but which food(s) do you think would most easily crossover into the N. American culture? You know, that we currently do not chow on...

Thanks!

Plenty of bizarre foods already exist in this country—try explaining a supermarket hot dog to a French food snob. Try explaining American cheese singles to a Kalahari tribesman. Or go down to the Smoky Mountains and try squirrel stew at the next family get together and you’ll see what I’m talking about.

quote:

Originally posted by fuerstjd:
I have some questions for you: from the episodes from Asia, what was your favorite bit of gitumono (gross out) food? Was the best bit of Chinese food? Was it difficult being American and Jewish and filming in Morocco? I can’t image salted lemons being any good, were they? Would you ever consider going to Eastern Europe and Russia and trying some of those foods, such as duck blood soup and jellied pigs feet (my grandmother used to make them and they are as good as they are scary)?

My favorite gitumono was the little grilled salamanders. The frog sashimi was spectacular. But the very best thing that I ate in Japan in a gitumono bar was the small welks simmered in the shell with a sweet soy sauce—it was incredible.

The best bit of Chinese food? China is such an incredible country for food. It is one of my favorite places to spend time. I would just assume eat dumplings on the streets in Xian than eat anywhere in the world. There’s a restaurant in Beijing called the Red Capital Club that my wife and I are particularly fond of.

As for filming in Morocco, it was only difficult on the day that Zarqawi was killed in Iraq. We were in a fundamentalist Islamic neighborhood in the back alleys of a small northern Moroccan town and had to go running towards the van because teachers from the midrasa were chasing us down the street. That’s as scared as I’ve been on any shoot.

And believe it or not, the salted lemons were fabulous.

Eastern Europe and Russia? I'm on my way there in season two, you'll have to check it out!

quote:

Originally posted by nwadel:
My question is, the food Klia? i think, the meat cooked in the lard. I know its not one of your favorites but i was wondering, when you eat meat that has been sitting in the sun for days, do you worry about getting sick? Food poisoning? I'm curious to know since its a daily food in that country is what their ER stats are. The people must not get sick since they eat it every day? Very fascinating to me. I really enjoy watching the show although there are times when i cannot watch!! You have a gut of iron!! Thank you!

The meat is actually okay to eat. They salt it, dry it, cook it slowly in its own fat and then store it in its own fat. There is some spoilage of the meat itself, but through the cooking process and the aging process the bad bacteria dies. You still have the flavor of spoiled meat with very few of the health implications.

quote:

Originally posted by sluuug:
I have one simple question and it's from tonights Spain show. I have NEVER EVER met anyone who does not like HORCHATA!!! Considering all the things that you eat, you would be the last person I expect to not like it. What was so bad about it?

I see a couple of you are mystified by my dislike of horchata. All I can say is that the milky nutty aftertaste didn’t sit well with me.

quote:

Originally posted by lovehandlesxx2:
Hi Andrew, Great show! You are the perfect host for it. My question is,does your wife ever refuse to kiss you?

Ha! Actually, my wife has a rule, I have to home for at least 48 hours so she makes sure that I’m completely detoxed and all bacteria is out of my system!

quote:

Originally posted by skipper_ables:

My questions are;

Do you need a day off sometimes?

Do you need a side-kick?

And, Do you know of any places near Nashville that have good quality weird eats that are decently priced?

I need many days off and the side kick sign up sheet is getting very long. To answer yours and a few other commentor's question, perhaps the Travel Channel will sponsor a contest in the second season when a lucky web chatter could go on a Bizarre Foods quest with me. Who knows?

And I don't know of any places near Nashville off hand, but I’m heading down there in about five months to shoot some stuff so I’ll post on the web when I get back.

quote:

Originally posted by surfinnorcal77:
I have a question for Andrew. Will you have a show that is based on Cultural foods that are prepared in US cities. Such as China Town, or little Italy's in Metro Areas. I love your show man, greatest diet ever. I watch when I get home, and cant eat because some of the things you eat are nasty...but I love it...

We are definitely going to hit these places up. Look for them in the future.