Having little to do by way of physical activity post-turkey this Thanksgiving holiday, I decided to step away from the computer for a bit and flip on the TV. Like any good travel fan, I immediately found my way to the Travel Channel with the hopes of catching up on all the travel-related television programming that I normally miss out on due to my sole exposure to basic cable (read: TV antenna) back home.

However, I quickly found, there’s a limit to the amount of exposure one man can take of shows dating back to 1996 on the top ten fast food restaurants in America, the top ten train rides in the Canadian Rockies, or how to survive in Orlando on $40 a day. Where was the edgy, interesting, though-provoking programming I’d come to expect from queuing up Bourdain on Netflix? When did travel shows all of a sudden become solely about food (or the amount one can eat of it)? Why do I suddenly get a sense I’m watching a never-ending string of corporate training videos?

(Disclaimer: Travel Channel, if you’re reading this, please disregard this last paragraph. Actually, please disregard this entire post. Anyway, “Hi”, and, yes, thanks for asking, I am a huge fan and, yes, I would like to accept your offer for a 12-episode series featuring yours truly trekking around the world, offering up my insight, humor, and congeniality for the American public viewing audience. Yes, I did hear you are owned by the same company that owns the Food Network. Yes, I would be amendable to making guest appearances with Rachael Ray — I love her buoyancy — and, yes, I would stop bad-mouthing your network and sister stations in the public sphere.) (more…)

You got sick on your trip, you lost your passport, your flight got canceled, etc. . . . These are all good yarns for when you get back home, but how many people can say they have had a war break out in the country while they were visiting? Tony can, but let’s be honest, those odds are little higher when you spend most of the year traveling.

Tonight, “No Reservations” heads back to Beirut, Lebanon, to start off where they began three years ago when Israeli missiles starting dropping all around them and they had to skip town on an American warship. Restaurants included in tonight’s episode include Le Chef Restaurant (where they went last time), Chez Maguy in the town of Batroun (just north of Beirut), and Massaya Vineyard where it appears Tony shares a bottle of vino with, naturally, some hipster Lebanese (although, if you’re going to go to a vineyard, a yellow fedora does make sense, doesn’t it?).

Ahh, isn’t alliteration so fun? Remember that most famous of “No Reservations” — the one where Tony and crew get caught in the crosshairs of a little squabble between Lebanon and Israel back in the summer of 2006, in what turned out to be the beginning of the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah War, and what also turned out to be one of the series’ most infamous episodes (and the one, in my humble opinion, with some of the best writing we’ve seen on the show, including this great send-off we discussed a little way back).

Four years have past, bygones have become bygones (as they tend to do, every notice that?), and “No Reservations” has returned to Beirut for this latest season. Tony recently sat down with CNN and discussed his feelings on returning to the city, where he went, and, most importanly, what he ate.

First order of business, we went back to Le Chef. We made a point of going back with the exact same camera crew and producer, who were stuck with me in 2006. And we met with largely the same people, even went to the places we didn’t get the opportunity to visit last time, and we met with people from the previous episode.

Met with Kamal [Mouzawak], the guy who runs Souk el Tayeb [Beirut’s first farmer’s market], went to the restaurant that showcases regional produce and specialties [Tawlet]. We had a meal at his [Kamal’s] house. Ate seafood along the coast, falafel at a famous place run by two brothers who don’t talk to one another [Falafel Sahyoun].

Had sfiha [meat pies] near Baalbeck, went to a vineyard where they make traditional arak [a clear, aniseed flavored alcoholic beverage] and wine. Try to eat around high and low. Had traditional Armenian food at a restaurant in the Armenian district.

Anthony Bourdain recently sat down with Eater for a two-part interview ahead of the release of his new book, Medium Raw: Medium Raw: A Bloody Valentine to the World of Food and the People Who Cook.

Amongst the mostly culinary-centric conversation, Tony was asked about what’s in store for No Reservations.

I know you’re leaving to film an episode in Paris this afternoon. What are your future plans with No Reservations?

The challenge is always to mix it up and to undermine whatever expectations people had. So we’re just pushing it and pushing it. Moving forward, assuming we continue to make shows beyond this year, we’re looking at shows with a less food-centric, that are barely about food at all. I want to do a show about the Congo.

Ever notice how dour he always is about the prospect of another season. What’s going over there at The Travel Channel that puts him in such doubt year after year? Or is it just his unyielding disbelief that he basically has the best job in the world, and this couldn’t possibly go on forever?

Okay, not having basic cable certainly precludes me from watching the Travel Channel much anyway, but their programming right now isn’t exactly making me want to rush out and order it either. Eater is reporting today that with the recent success of “Man v. Food” (apparently a show about a guy who eats alot of bad food in one sitting), the Travel Channel is adding a show called “Food Wars.” The premise of the show is that each week two local restaurants that specialize in the same dish are pitted against each other in a blind taste test judged by local patrons.

“What,” you say, “does an eating competition show have to do with travel anyway?” Great question. The answer? The same thing “Jersey Shore” has to do with music programming. Nothing!

As we reported back in November, Scripps — the owner of The Food Network and HGTV — took over the channel, and just as we kind of predicted (see my #2), the food-celebrity shows are on their way.

The sad part about this whole thing? Apparently these show are beating out our favorite travel show, “No Reservations,” in ratings on a weekly basis. Time for Tony to put away the Caipirinhas in Brazil and start digging into some 48-oz cuts of beef on live television? Let’s hope not.

Tony’s back with Season 6 of “No Reservations” on the recently-purchased Travel Channel. He kicked things off last week with an episode from Panama (where he helped set fire to six tons of cocaine), and one from Istanbul this week (see above). You can expect upcoming trips to Brittany, Prague, and the Hudson Valley (New York).

There’s still hope for the regular guy out there to someday get an outstanding gig with the Travel Channel and settle into arguably the greatest job on earth. I mean, if Samantha Brown can do it . . .

Jaunted did a piece, in which they attended a party co-hosted by our Travel Channel friends and “true power travelers,” Anthony Bourdain and Andrew Zimmerman. They asked them the question we’re all curious about, “Where do [you] travel when it’s not about working or showcasing a destination on the Travel Channel?”

Zimmerman’s answer was a bit surprising: “I’m a dad, so . . . we’re complete Disney World Geeks.”

Bourdain got specific: “I’m a father and I’m a little more high maintenance, now. I want to stay in one place, near a hospital . . . and yea, I kinda want room service and a beach chair.”

You see that? They’re family guys; all they really need is some time together, with as little stress as possible. I suppose, when your job consists of the occasional drinking of snake’s blood in Vietnam or putting down Samoan slug guts, a beach chair and a margarita wouldn’t sound too bad to you either.

As was reported in a surprise announcement last week, The Travel Channel was acquired by Cincinnati-based Scripps — owner of the Food Network and HGTV lifestyle television networks — in a deal valuing the channel at $1.1 billion. Other than a generous Christmas bonus for our man Anthony Bourdain, what exactly does this mean for viewers? Our take on three things that are going to change for the new Travel Channel. (Can you say “No Reservations: Cincinnati”?)

1. Samantha Brown: Passport To Unemployment

I saw Samantha speak at last year’s New York Times Travel Show, and I have to say, she comes across as probably the nicest semi-famous person I’ve ever met. She was bubbly, grateful, enthusiastic, but as I suspected, somewhat clueless when it comes to travel.

That’s not to say that she doesn’t have a following (her appearance completely dwarfed that of Andrew Zimmern), but as is so accurately described in this article over at Slate, Samantha is “a very nice lady — just the person to lead those 12-year-olds on a field trip. But she is also a painfully uncool person, as her chirping spunkiness makes gruelingly apparent . . . Brown is a tour guide who needs to get out more.” (We did learn that she does come to travel hosting by way of musical theater, so let’s give her a little slack here.)

I couldn’t agree more. Despite being undeniably likable, that only goes so far when you have to endure an entire hour spent with her locked within the confines of another cruise ship, or wandering the exotic backstreets of Epcot Center. Sorry Samantha, but my guess is that the new bosses are going to be looking for something a little more innovative to pump their bottom lines. (more…)

It finally happened. For the first time in over a year living in Asia, I got a bit homesick. Danggit, Anthony Bourdain, if you just weren’t so good at what you do!

The new episode of “No Reservations” on the Travel Channel visited Livingston, Montana aired not long ago. It’s a small town no more than one hundred miles of where I call home. As usual, Mr. Bourdain did a brilliant job of (would “tele-anthropology” be the correct term?) exploring the local culture and cuisine, spotlighting people and their inspirations, as well as the issues and pleasures of their postcard picture surroundings. The “wild west” seems to be gracefully evolving, with a continued sense of rugged character, which drew me there in the first place.

Please excuse my sentimentality; I think it’s time to go call my mom.

Anthony Bourdain’s “No Reservations” starts up its new season (#6 for those who are counting) this Monday, July 13th on the Travel Channel. Tony was in Argentina and Brazil in 2007, and it looks like he’s kicking off the new season by rounding off Southern South America with a trip to Chile, one of my favorite countries in the world.

Not sure what I make of the rest of the season. Thailand should be great, it’s kind of surprising he’s waited this long to go. New York Outer Boroughs will offer quite a few options, but his last New York episode mainly took place in the outer boroughs already, didn’t it? I’m Intrigued by the Rockies choice, my home region, who wants to take bets there are Rocky Mountain Oysters involved here?

• Chile (premieres July 13)
• Australia (premieres July 20)
• Rust Belt (premieres July 27)
• On the Street (premieres August 3)
• San Francisco (premieres August 10)
• Thailand (premieres August 17)
• Rockies (premieres August 24)
• Burning Questions (premieres August 31)
• New York Outer Boroughs (premieres September 7)
• Sardinia (premieres September 14)

Squid balls, pissing shrimp, and pig knuckles: all in a day’s work for Anthony as he stops in at Tung Po Seafood Restaurant, a non-descript, food court style haunt reached via escalator in the heart of Hong Kong. Though I wasn’t expecting it, this turned out to be one of my favorite episodes so far, check it out on Netflix (Season 3, Episode 13).

Because who else’s advice on where you should stuff your face as you travel the world than that of someone who’s not only a chef, but a celebrity as well? Here’s some interesting and surprising suggestions from the likes of Morimoto, Keller, and Pépin on where to eat in New York, Paris, Italy, India, etc . . .

I have to admit, I’ve been reading/watching a lot of Anthony Bourdain lately (specifically his latest book, The Nasty Bits), and he’s completely opening my eyes to the whole celebrity chef thing, phenomena, whatever you want to call it. Something I apparently missed out on during the last few years. And while I find it interesting, I have to say, I think it’s about time that the celebrity travel blogger thing also takes off too. Don’t you agree?

I’ve been catching up with “No Reservations” the last month or so via Netflix, starting from the beginning, and last night I finally saw the infamous episode in Beirut (Collection 2: Disc 3), and I’ve got to say, if you’re going to watch any travel show, see this one.

It starts off like normal, and Tony and the crew get about a day and a half into shooting, doing their normal shtick (meet up with a local, head to a local dive for traditional comfort fare, eat some street food on the way back from the bar — the somewhat formulaic routine of the show), when all of a sudden, actual shooting begins in the streets around them.

At first everyone doesn’t seem too worried and they attempt to continue on with the show, but as the hours pass, the violence begins to escalate until the airport runway gets bombed out and the crew is left scrambling for somewhere safe to stay until the government can finally boat them out (which finally happens a few days later after being holed up in a hilltop hotel).

Though little of Beirut is actually shown, and you’d be hard-pressed to find much footage that the Beirut Tourism Office would want to include in a promotional video, I think what makes this episode so great is the fact that the events that occurred while they were there forced them to drop their normal formula and create a true travel narrative, with all the drama, uncertainty and realism that occurs when experiencing the real world.

Forget state-sponsored guides and flashy dinners, for once Tony was able to get a rare, honest look at a culture, for better and for worse. He saw life how the Lebanese see life, and he saw the Lebanese living life under extreme duress, and all the good and bad that that can elicit.

Too often, travel shows tend to gloss over the ugly and highlight the pretty, creating the sort of packageable, palatable look at a culture that often results in a bland, forgettable experience (just the opposite of what a a travel show should be doing in my opinion). To me, I’d rather see both sides; it’s more interesting because if’s honest: Beauty is truth, truth beauty.

The best part of the show is Tony’s “Empire Strikes Back”-ish reflection on his travels since he began the show, and what, if anything, he’s learned. I’d like to think that his thoughts were the result of the traumatic experience he just had, and I hope that his doom and gloom has since been proven wrong and that it’s his third-from-last, and not the second-to-last paragraph that has since been proven true as his travels have continued. Here are his parting words:

In the few years since I’ve started to travel this world, I’ve found myself changing. The cramped cynical worldview of a man who’d only seen life through the narrow prism of the restaurant kitchen had altered. I’d been so many places, I’d met so many people from wildly divergent backgrounds, countries, and cultures.

Everywhere I’d been, I’d been, as in Beruit, treated so well. I’d been the recipient of so many random acts of kindness from strangers and I’d begun to think that no matter where I went or who I sat down with, that food and a few drinks seemed always to bring people together. That this planet was filled with basically good and decent people doing the best they could, if frequently under difficult circumstances. That the human animal was perhaps a better and nicer species than I had once thought.

I’d begun to believe that the dinner table was the great leveler, where people from opposite sides of the world could always sit down and talk and eat and drink and if not solve all the worlds problems, at least find, for a time, common ground.

Now, I’m not so sure. Maybe the world’s not like that at all. Maybe in the real world — the one without cameras and happy food and travel shows — everybody, the good and the bad together, are all crushed under some terrible wheel.

I hope, I really hope, that I’m wrong about that.