I got my episode off of iTunes since my local cable provider does not carry the Travel Channel (or Food Network for that matter, we got 3 MTV channels but no Travel or Food). Anyway, as I was watching the episode cut off in the middle of Ted Nugent talking at the BBQ place, no credits or anything. It seemed really abrupt so I just wanted to see if that was how it's supposed to end. It clocks in at 42 minutes, 15 seconds which was a good minute shorter than any other episodes.

All in all I enjoyed it though. I thought Ted was a great. The stuff they cut out that appeared in the NR podcast was better than either interview that aired with Ted and Alice.

Two Detroit-born Rockers = One great Show

Loved loved loved the show...Especially Ted Nugent. How can you not love Ted. The contrast to Tony's New York liberalism was sensational!!! Not that Tony is ever political...

i lived in the southwest for many years, and i can safely consider myself an expert on sw food.

i thought the show was ok. the visit to hatch was cool. the atmosphere of the show felt like the sw. doing the show from a car on the road is truly sw (bmw??? how lame--what about a vintage el dorado????? and you call yourself a rock'n'roll chef!!!!!)

the problem....this show captured virtually NONE of the great places to eat in the sw. was it a "fun" show? maybe for some. but food wise, pretty much a non effort from the production staff.

hopefully there'll be some good shows this season. but i'm writing this after the spain show, and i'm truly shocked how uninteresting this season has been so far. i'll hang in there a little longer.

Mr. Bourdain, I find your comments (and Nugent's) concerning obesity to be of poor taste.

quote:

"Bourdain says he likes the idea of a 'fat' tax and charging someone who uses up an additional airplane or subway seat."

And I'd like the idea of an ectomorph tax, for all those unsightly, malnourished-looking skinny people that I think need "help" or at the least to be made fun of. I'm probably flapping to the wind here, since I doubt you even know this discussion group exists. Anyway, I was a tremendous fan, watched ALL of your shows and was really into No Reservations, but your comment was really hurtful. You've never had to try and lose weight in your life, because you can't even gain weight, let alone have a problem with losing it. That makes it okay to bash fat people for complying to their endomorphic body type. What a hypocrite. And a 'fat tax' makes me want to vomit. Do we need more taxes? Hell no, we have too d*mn many as it is. I'm sick of paying taxes to Uncle Israel. I bet [Malto] Mario doesn't know that you would like him to either lose weight or pay a higher tax for being fat. Maybe we can find other people that we don't like and try to force them to pay a tax for being autistic, unattractive, short or whatever. Take our freedoms and away they go, Tony boy. Good job.

As a long-time Bourdain reader and fellow lover of foods of the world, I've always enjoyed Tony's takes on things American. During the sixties I also cooked on Cape Cod, went to design school, and now find myself as an artist, photographer and chronicler of the American road (especially old U.S. routes) and the decline of regional food that corresponds with the development of the Interstate system and resulting corporate dining chains.

During long road trips in the 80s and 90s one could still find coffee shops and small town restaurants with great American food - but those are disappearing as the moms and pops retire or are forced out to make way for the profusion of Quik Stops, Circle Ks and 7/11s. There are some great regional restaurants that draw from local specialties - Kent Rathbun's Jasper's restaurants in Texas are terrific - but more and more the Applebee's and Chili's are the only "sit-down" dinner experience.

Thanks, Tony for going "On The Road" and finding the treasures that are left.

I like this show but.... COOPERSTOWN!?????!?!?!
seriously, as a valley resident, there are no places in Phoenix and the surrounding valley WORSE than Cooperstown. Nick nacky Kitsche atmosphere, crap-ass food, unnatentive emo teens getting off on the face paint. Gimme a break, i'm seriously pained that Tony would spend all of 2 minutes in phoenix and go to COOPERSTOWN!? I know he's not going to read this, but for anyone who does, PLEASE don't judge the valley on this Applebees-esque monstrosity. UGH, i think i'm going to throw up.

I thought that this show was done very well. I know a few folks complained about the BMW. Don't knock the BMW till you have drove one. I enjoy the show for more than Tony eating at only the finest artsy places. It is a blast to see Tony go to places because he wants to and to see what happens when he goes places he doesn't want to. I beleive the show is just about the experience. Thanks for all the shows guys.

Hi Claudiamambos - I too am an El Pasoan (living in the Gila Wilderness area now) and I agree with you - NR left the Southwest out of their Southwest episode! El Paso, Albuquerque, New Mexico (Hatch is great, but just Hatch?) And with all of our unique cultural and political climes - the border, White Sands, NASA, the base, swaps, markets, mercados, great food, the strong agricultural way of life in an industrialized area, the rich history of how this area was built (when men were men and women were twice that). Hell, across the street from El Paso High is the southernmost tip of the Rockies! People actually start at that point and hike the mountain chain to Canada! And if you don't feel that ambitious, then you're almost downtown, so why not stop by The Tap? There's nothing like a 4.99 T-Bone at 8.00 a.m. with a couple of vampiros to wash it down.
Mr. Bourdain - if you or your producers are reading, please know that whomever advised you on the southwest trip did not know enough about the southwest. It is not Alice Cooper hawking "Units" or Ted Nugent shooting animals. It is a mosaic of peoples and cultures who, layer by layer, have come together in a harsh and beautiful corner of the world - we have the first established Wilderness area in the United States. Beautiful missions with histories of repression, bloodshed, and yet also faith and the slow weaving of cultures (and food) together. Ghost towns and old mining towns are abundant, some occupied by those who prefer to live on the fringe. Remnants of ancient civilizations are protected and available to view, small towns of a few hundred people still exist, and yet new and innovative ideas in food continue to thrive amidst the timeless comforting pairings of rice and beans, handmade tortillas and families caring for each other and their communities.
You seem so interested and enthusiastic about your other destinations...if you felt like the southwest didn't have that much to offer, you should have just left it alone. I continue to be a big fan - I just thought NR dropped the ball on this one.
Thanks for letting me put my two bucks in (darn inflation).