Anthony Bourdain Loved Cooking These Dishes With His Daughter
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Anthony Bourdain tragically took his own life more than three years ago, but the host of CNN's "Parts Unknown" left quite the mark on the culinary world. Per Vanity Fair, Bourdain's former assistant, Laurie Woolever, is attempting to shed some light on the complexity of her late boss through interviews with his family and friends, offering a glimpse into just how human Bourdain was. Woolever recently published these intimate conversations in her new book, "Bourdain: The Definitive Oral Biography." In the book, Woolever speaks to Bourdain's daughter Ariane, whom he shared with his second wife, Ottavia Busia-Bourdain, and it truly tugs at the heartstrings.
Vanity Fair published an exerpt from the book, and this particular portion offers readers insight into what Bourdain was like as a father. Ariane revealed that her dad played silly games with her, including one called "the Weirdo Club." Ariane said, "We had this little thing called the Weirdo Club. And I don't really know what it was about, it was just us being weird. And I really liked it." She continued, "He encouraged weirdness. He pretty much encouraged every single thing I wanted to do in my life, and gave me the information to back it up." But that's not all Ariane shared. Ariane also discussed cooking with her dad and the dishes the father-daughter duo liked to cook together.
Anthony Bourdain made cooking fun
Per Vanity Fair, Ariane told Woolever that Anthony Bourdain was always cooking with her, and the foods they cooked together are so relatable. Ariane said, "We'd always cook ratatouille, from the movie 'Ratatouille,' and we made it exactly like they made it." This makes Bourdain's previous comments about the Pixar movie even more moving, as he once told Entertainment Weekly, "I really thought it captured a passionate love of food in a way that very few other films have." How sweet of him to share that love with his daughter.
Ariane went on to detail how she made schnitzel, omelets, and pancakes with her dad. She said, "We'd cook schnitzel; he'd make little stations: one of them has the breading, one has the flour, one has the eggs, and my dad put it in the pan. He'd cook omelets for me all the time, and I'd help him flip it. He would let me sprinkle chocolate chips or blueberries into pancakes, and then he'd let me flip the pancake a little. When we were in the Hamptons, he'd cook dinner, cook breakfast, so that's when he really cooked for me."
It makes sense they would make omelets together given how her dad felt the way this dish was made showed the depth to which a person cared, as well as the character of an individual.
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