Josh and I finally got around to watching the “Obsessed” episode of Anthony Bourdain’s show, No Reservations. We DVRed it when it aired but I’ve been avoiding watching it because I had read that he comes down hard on food bloggers. Being a food blogger myself, I was afraid that he would say something that would make me really dislike him, which I didn’t want to happen because we’re fans and enjoy reading his books. I also didn’t want to hear anything that would make me second-guess my choice to become a food blogger.
When we finally did sit down and watch the episode, I was surprised that the episode really didn’t focus all that much on food blogging, and Bourdain didn’t bash bloggers as much as I thought he did when I first read some articles describing the episode. One of the bloggers he intereviewed was Jason Perlow, a founder of the eGullet website who now has his own blog that I read called Off the Broiler.
I first found Off the Broiler when I was looking for restaurant recommendations in NJ. Since Josh and I spend a lot of time shuttling back and forth between the city and NJ, I’m always on the lookout for restaurants to try when we’re home with our parents. The blog features many restaurants that are close to where our parents live, and I’ve found it to be a good resource.
In the No Reservations episode, Bourdain meets up with Jason Perlow at White Manna in Hackensack, a burger stand that Josh and I love. Due to health issues, however, Jason is no longer allowed to eat burgers, and instead snacked on a Greek salad while Bourdain devoured two doubles right in front of him. Dude’s got willpower! I would never be able to sit inside White Manna, where the smell of cooking beef and caramelized onions permeates everywhere in the tiny shop, and not have a burger. That would be like torture for me.
Even now during Lent, when I abstain from meat on Fridays, I refuse to go to any restaurant that would tempt me to eat meat. I rigidly dictate exactly where I’m willing to go, and even bars are off limits because I’d be too tempted to eat a burger. I always try to persuade Josh to order something with fish, because if he’s eating meat, I get food envy and become very cranky.
But going back to the No Reservations episode, despite the fact that Jason abstains from eating a burger, he still whips out his camera to take pictures of Bourdain’s burgers and is immediately rebuked for doing so. This is when I started to take issue with Bourdain’s stance, and this is what many other bloggers have complained about as well. Bourdain basically equates taking pictures of food with keeping a diary during sex. Well with that mentality, if food bloggers are writers of pornographic novels, then Bourdain is a porn star, and a huge one at that. His entire show is based on someone following him around with a video camera, taking money shots of food being prepared and presented, and focuses in on him consuming the food and making noises about how good it is. No one watches this show to hear him speak; they watch it for the food.
Would my dining experiences be better and more relaxed if I didn’t take pictures? Sure, but I think our blog would suffer greatly without pictures. It’s not enough for me to comment on how lovely a dish is; it’s more convincing if I can show you a beautiful picture of the dish as well. But I don’t have a production team following me around everywhere taking video and stills of everything I eat, nor do I have someone paying me to travel around the world and eat. But if anyone is offering that, we would definitely take them up on it! In the meantime, however, we’re on our own to document our meals and share our experiences with our readers.
Am I obsessed with blogging? Yes and no. I love having this blog and writing posts for it, but I also know when I need to step back and take a break. I don’t blog for the sake of blogging, putting up random and meaningless posts just so I’ll have something published each day. I do put a lot of thought and work into the pieces that I write. I also don’t blog about or take pictures of every single meal that we have. Is it nice to be able to have a meal and not worry about taking pictures and notes on everything? Of course. But if I know an experience is going to be special, and something that I would want to share with everyone, then it’s also a pleasure to be able to document it and know that I’m going to have something of substance to write about, with supporting evidence.
All of the bloggers Bourdain interviewed mentioned something about food filling in something that is lacking in their lives. And I find that true for myself as well. Food is a way for me to escape the stresses of every day life, as is this blog. When I’ve had a bad day at work, I immediately think about what I can eat or cook that will cheer me up. I find methodically chopping vegetables into tiny pieces to be very soothing, and a juicy, well-seasoned burger with crispy fries, washed down with a cold, flavorful beer is my ultimate comfort food. That is why I’m not ready or willing to make food a career choice. Why turn something that I love into something that could be potentially stressful?
But as for taking pictures of food, we will continue to do so. This is a practice I started long before Two Fat Bellies, to document some of the exotic food we eat when we go on vacation, and it’s something that I’ll keep doing long after. Most people dining with us know they’ll have to wait and extra minute or two before diving into their food, but it’s a just a minor inconvenience that they graciously abide by. I don’t think taking pictures of food detracts in any way from my enjoyment of it, and the pictures only enhance my ability to convey my experiences.
Tags: Rant
I watched that show and I really didn’t know that other people took pics of their food and made money for their opinion. I actually felt better about my food porn after watching the show! I thought I was alone. Bourdain is a comedian so he’s got to be a smarty pants sometimes. Keep doing what you’re doing. I hope you get your own food porn show!