Check out Bourdain in Egypt tonight at 10PM ET and then come let us know what you thought.

Egypt show was great. Interesting the way they spiced the goat. The Sahara looked mysterios, fascinating. I understand what Anthony was saying/reflecting..... Middle Eastern and Greek food/Mediteranian are of the tastiest in the world. Antony was cool as always.

Question: What sunglasses was Anthony wearing? They looked extremely cool. Please Anthony tell us i'll buy a pair.

Regards
Chris

Having spent some time in Egypt(2 med cruises in the Navy)...I hope Tony has a valuble cure for the s***s I know he got from that food..I saw the view from another perspective....at the pyrimids w/ a cloud of smog from Cairo shining through the skyline at 2:00....you did the right thing by not going to the "Tourist traps " it was an illusion that I don't care to remember....dysentary is all I remember

Long time fan, first time forum poster. The Egypt episode tonight was fantastic. However, what really left me floored was the segment towards the end of the episode where Bourdain goes camping in the desert. I was in Egypt a few years ago and had the pleasure of camping out with my family and some family friends in the desert and Makmood (sp?) from the episode tonight was actually the guide/driver/chef. He made an absolutely fantastic meat dish and when asked as to the origins of said meat, he merely grunted "meat" in response. Seeing him, albeit briefly, on one of the few great television shows I watch regularly truly made my night.

Egypt was coolish...

Does anyone know the name of the song that is playing when Tony is lying in the sand and talking about loving the desert towards the end of the show? Thanks.

What was the name of the restaurant where Tony and the other guy had the bib platter of meats?
Slaf

The Egypt show was the secong worst show of Bourdain's career next to Saudi Arabia. I was surprised to see that he has turned into a such a snob. Who goes to Egypt and snubs the whole reason for the trip??? Instead he chose to play in the sand dunes for the third time and take yet another boat ride. I think in the end the lack of alcohol on this trip had inpaired his judgement. As a long time viewer and fan of No Reservation we have come to trust Anthony's insight into new and foreign cities and his ability to show us a different side of things. So Bourdain valet park your high horse and get back to the reason you have a show. Show us cities and great food....If not maybe you need to return to the Food Network co-hosting for Rachael Ray

Last night I watch this show for the first time
I was so disappointed this guy goes around Egypt
doesn't want to see pyrimaids. Eats and drinks anything off the Site I am a travel agent I hve traveled all over the World The one thing you do no I repeat do not do is eat off of Street Carts unless you want to be on the Toliet for the rest of your trip This guy sends a bad message to untraveled people. What the hell is he thinking . Plus he is just annoying to listen to.

While it may be true that Cairo is where the British came up with the term, “Gyppy Tummy” for what we in the States call “Montezuma’s Revenge,” believe me, the dangers of street food are highly overrated. Home cooking, on the other hand, may not be as benign as one might think. There’s some Namibian home cooking stuff that’s pretty dubious.

I agree that this show was up there with London, Saudi, and Paris as the worst I have seen so far. Very dissapointing after Spain. When he ignores the obviously interesting we are usually left with something obviously obscure and boring. The eating goat on sand dunes segment was up there with him recording spoken word over trip hop in London. My lasting impression of that disaster is below. be sure to read it with the sounds of high hats being hit too quickly and misplaced bass occasionally chiming in.

"the waitress cleans,
slowly,
she works on tired feet,
tirelessly,
she knows not why she is,
she only knows why she does,
we all know why,
we all know why,"

The pyramids and Sphinx would have been much more interesting.

I watched the Egypt show last night. Anthony, you were right when you said that the pyramids are just a bad tourist trap these days.
Although, no video can compare to the actual sight. They truly are a wonder of the world. Why you decided not to bog us down with the same pictures of the pyramids, that is your decision! I for one, am actually glad that you didn't. The entire show was a joy to watch. No Reservations is one of the only programs that I truly love. Please, keep up the great work. No Reservations is worth waiting up for!

quote:

Originally posted by gonzali:
The Egypt show was the secong worst show of Bourdain's career next to Saudi Arabia. I was surprised to see that he has turned into a such a snob. Who goes to Egypt and snubs the whole reason for the trip??? Instead he chose to play in the sand dunes for the third time and take yet another boat ride. I think in the end the lack of alcohol on this trip had inpaired his judgement. As a long time viewer and fan of No Reservation we have come to trust Anthony's insight into new and foreign cities and his ability to show us a different side of things. So Bourdain valet park your high horse and get back to the reason you have a show. Show us cities and great food....If not maybe you need to return to the Food Network co-hosting for Rachael Ray

snob,eh???!!!! why, bec he ate street food in Cairo?!

last week he was equally lambasted for dining at michelin restaurants in spain?!

GEE MAKE UP YOUR MINDS! CAN'T HAVE IT BOTH WAYS.

so he snubs the whole reason for this trip?!

so what was his reason for this trip-- pls enlighten us.. you seem to know more than him..

FOR YOUR INFORMATION... WHAT YOU DISMISS AS THE SAND DUNES-- JUST HAPPENS TO BE THE SAHARA DESERT-- THAT'S RIGHT-- THE SAHARA.. TALK ABOUT ANCIENT.( in fact, evolution turned it into a desert-- there was great vegetation there until a major drought totally changed it's landscape to this day) & how many of you ever gotten the bedouin tribe to prepare a fresh goat for any of you?! ( I for one wouldn't have minded tucking in with them & eating that goat,too)

now, is there a restaurant at the sphinx or Pyraminds--we haven't heard of?! Maybe some of you should just rent-- DEATH ON THE NILE..

SINCE WHEN DID HE EVER CO-HOST A SHOW WITH RACHAEL RAY ANYWAY?! gee, perish the thought!

finally bourdain has returned to form!!! i was very disappointed with some of the previous shows (particularly spain--which i see as more of an essay than a no reservations episode), but this was classic and just about perfect.

and you guys complaining about no pyramids??? i've learned there are two types of viewers who watch this show: those who want a run-of-the-mill travel show, and those who want to see the food of the culture. pyramids are cool, but this is a food show, so whether he shows them or not is beside the point.

and harlemcracker said "The eating goat on sand dunes segment was up there with him recording spoken word over trip hop in London." He/she also complained this episode was "obscure and boring." how is slow-cooked meat coated with spices for hours until juicy and tender boring??? how is this obscure??? every dish was amazing and anyone with a working mouth would love them all. the pigeon (which is simply a dove, nothing dirty like people think) stuffed with aromatic rice seasoned with cardamom, cinnamon, and bay leaf, then flash fried, looked crispy, juicy, and full of phenomenal flavor!! and the home cooked meal with duck and home-made cheese looked absurdly good.

these meals are the food of the culture, and they are neither "obscure" examples, nor are they offensive to our western palettes. bourdain and crew did a damn-near perfect job of balancing the exoticism of this very different culture with the picky, critical taste buds of his american viewers. this is what was missing in some of the shows so far this season, and this is where bourdain redeemed himself in the hearts of viewers like me who were getting worried that the show had changed into a giddy travel commercial.

and if you don't like this episode, then, good. you shouldn't be traveling to egypt, or any other place interesting and unique, anyway.

righto,yeaheveryone.. well said.. agree with your every word-- now, we see 'eye' to eye''

hmm.. almost forgot that pigeon. & that spice souk.. what's more--all that grilled meats-- yum!!

I am not trying to dismiss the Sahara as merely sand dunes or imply for one second that having the Bedoiun(sp?) cook me dinner wouldn't be awesome. Of course it would. and the goat looked seriously juiced up on spice and real tasty. I just think they could have handled that whole segment in about a minute instead of making it the last 1/4 of the show. I guess it was really just the lack of food he ate in this episode that i didn't like. The breakfast thing, although traditional and historic was boring to watch. The fast food joint was like the same thing as breakfast, traditional, historic, timeless and boring to watch. The inclusion of the boat segment was questionable at best. My friend owns a cement factory in Cairo, he could have gone there for 5 minutes and that would have been just as interesting.
I am not trying to hate on Tony, but maybe I am trying to hate on his producer now that i think about it.

so he' was having his T.E Lawrence moment with the Bedouin..

all I say is-- give me some of that goat.. lamb( as in Morocco w/ the Berbers)

if you just wAnt him eating more? then the Big T should just return to VIETNAM.. his own words-- he just wants to shove everything he sees down his gullet.

You know, I've watched the show and have been a fan of Tony's as he seems like a cool guy, about my age, likes the Voidoids and Iggy,likes food, but I'm going to stop watching because I can't take the animal slaughter sequences which seem to be so much a part of the motif. It's the way the animal is inevitably trotted out before the camera before it's slaughtered accompanied by some sarcasm about it's impending end from Mr. Bourdain, usually surrounded by a small group of drunk men, that is so distasteful. My grandmother killed chickens and pidgeons from the coop for the table but there was always a little sadness about it, and it was performed with a somber and sober respect. The objectivization of the animal by a TV crew and jokes is utterly heartless and hard to stomach.

i see what you're saying harlemcracker. my response would be that making a show like this is very tough. it does take a lot of planning and scheduling and editing, so it's easy for us to find things to complain about. occasionally a show will truly offend us or flat out piss us off, but i felt like the spirit of the show was alive and well in this episode, so i was happy. maybe he could've found some better food and the editing could have been different/tighter, but overall it was consistent with the premise of the show. and i was genuinely excited by the food in this episod.

i somewhat understand about the animal slaughter scene complaint. there is a gruesomeness to it, but, in the egypt episode it was both extra respectful and extra graphic. this is how i look at being a meat eater, rather than a vegetarian: killing an animal for food is a gruesome thing. it is not gross, mean, cruel, sadistic, or unfair, but it is gruesome. but the way i see it, life itself is somewhat gruesome. it's painful and in lots of ways pretty rough. we spend lots of time and money trying to smooth it out and remove the gruesomeness, but at its heart, it's a part of life. i don't like hunting for sport because I think it's sadistic, and i don't like foie gras because i think it's cruel. so each person has their own line of what they accept and what they don't accept. vegetarians have a stricter line than meat eaters, but i like to know where my line is, and to be honest about it. but yeah, it's not "fun" to watch and it can be a downer. i think if they want to show it then that's fine, but personally i could do without it.

I love the show in Egypt, I was wondering why Tony never had a cocktail? He usually enjoys his drink.