The Real Reason Anthony Bourdain Hated Brunch
So you've reached that fateful chapter of Anthony Bourdain's Kitchen Confidential. When the groundbreaking-book made its debut 20 years ago, Bourdain spilled many kitchen scandals, travel adventures, and personal speculations that we still continue to ponder today. We still remember Bourdain's wise words when we watch some poor sap order their burger well-done: after all, kitchens sometimes save the old, lesser-quality meat for well-done meals. We hold our heads high, order medium-rare, and congratulate ourselves for being the wiser (via Vox).
Many of Bourdain's nuggets of advice make sense. Don't order chicken at a restaurant: it's boring and indecisive. Butter, and only the real stuff, is what adds flavor and richness to a meal. And if you're traveling, please, avoid restaurants filled with tourists and menus in English (via BBC).
Other words of advice from Bourdain are more confounding, like his immense hatred of brunch. And, forever the teacher, Bourdain advised us to avoid it as well.
Brunch is the bane of the cooking industry
Bourdain, who spent over four decades in the food industry, hated brunch because he saw how the sausage was made, figuratively and, well, literally. Brunch, Bourdain alleged, is a "horrible, cynical way of unloading leftovers and charging three times as much as you ordinarily charge for breakfast" (via The Oregonian). Maybe you're shaking your head in disbelief. But, come to think of it, those lemon-ricotta pancakes you ordered at your last brunch did cost $17.95, and they are mostly made with flour and milk.
Moreover, the brunch shift is reserved for cooks with less experience, according to Bourdain. It's often a starting shift for the prep cook who's readying himself for the more-complicated work he'll soon be doing on the line. And in most fields, beginners get stuck with the most undesirable shifts and tasks, right?
Like the poorly-paid intern who has to make coffee runs for the entire office, the "B-team" cooks are saddled with brunch as a "punishment block," according to Kitchen Confidential (via The Guardian). Bourdain knows from experience. As he told Fresh Air, "You know, I was a desperate man, often working under a pseudonym when I was cooking brunch. So I really hated it. And I also hated the whole concept of brunch."
Servers hate brunch, too especially on this day
Bourdain was definitely onto something with his hatred of brunch — sorry if you love it, but consider too that it's also a dreaded shift for servers, who cite the fact that they end up with lower tips, customers who stay far too long, and too many fruity cocktails and coffee concoctions to memorize (via The Kitchn).
And restaurant employees across the country confirm the holy grail of unholy brunch days: Mother's Day, when the usual brunch fallacies are combined with crowded dining rooms, longer wait times, and awkwardly "tense family dynamics" (via Huffington Post). Incidentally, diners are often also disappointed with the food.
So, it seems you may never look at brunch the same way after seeing it through Bourdain's eyes. Of course, if you still want to dine out between breakfast and lunch, we won't judge!