The WORST episodes of A Cook's Tour
Every episode of A Cook's Tour ever, ranked from worst to best by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The worst episodes of A Cook's Tour!
The #1 food writer and television host in the world, Anthony Bourdain reinvented the food travel genre. In his groundbreaking first series, Bourdain travels around the world indulging his taste for local cuisine and eccentric characters.
#1 - How to Be a Carioca
Season 2 - Episode 4 - Aired 3/14/2003
What is a Carioca? These natives of Rio are lovable scamps who somehow find ways to avoid work altogether, preferring the beach, flirting and hanging out at restaurants and bars. Tony, under the tutelage of an exemplary Carioca, gives the lifestyle a try, enjoying a savage tan, Brazilian barbecue and one too many caipirinhas!
#2 - The French Laundry Experience
Season 1 - Episode 18 - Aired 4/30/2002
Marooned in San Francisco, Tony tastes local shellfish and durian ice cream before embarking on a pilgrimage to experience the genius of Thomas Keller, chef and owner of The French Laundry.
#3 - MY Hometown Favorites
Season 1 - Episode 19 - Aired 4/23/2002
Passionate about his city, Tony gives us an intimate tour of the New York City foods he knows and loves-sturgeon and bagels, fluke ceviche, pan-seared foie gras, braised veal cheek, authentic cheese and, of course, a hotdog at Papaya King Frankfurters and Juices.
#4 - My Life As a Cook-NYC
Season 1 - Episode 20 - Aired 2/5/2002
Experience the formative moments of Tony's career as he revisits his first job, the culinary institute that taught him the basics, a normal workday at Les Halles Brasserie, and his mysterious mentor, Bigfoot.
#5 - Highland Grub
Season 1 - Episode 21 - Aired 7/12/2002
Adventuring to the outer reaches of the United Kingdom, Tony insists that Scotland is a place of extraordinary cuisine. Beginning in Glasgow, Tony experiences the heart-clogging glory of a deep fried pizza, deep fried mars bars, deep fried pickled eggs, and deed fried everything! Moving on to more traditional fare, Tony tastes a classic haggis and learns to hunt and fish for his food.
#6 - A Pleasing Palate
Season 1 - Episode 22 - Aired 4/20/2002
Tony lands in London on a mission to dispel the myth that all English food is disgusting and over-boiled. Trying Nose to Tail Eating, Tony enjoys a meal of kid liver salad, whole roasted pig head, grilled ox heart, and breaded pigtails. Tony also explores traditional fare at Pie and Mash Shoppes and then visits a predominantly Indian community and indulges in a home-cooked London Punjab meal.
#7 - Food Tastes Better with Sand Between Your Toes
Season 2 - Episode 1 - Aired 2/21/2003
In an attempt to escape the stress of city life, Tony visits the island of St. Martin. In this Caribbean paradise, Tony eats a healthy Rastafarian meal with a freedom fighter, helps prepare grub for a food caravan, discovers foodstuffs not available at American supermarkets and, finally, relaxes at a beach bar.
#8 - No Beads, No Babes, No Bourbon Street
Season 2 - Episode 2 - Aired 2/28/2003
In New Orleans, Tony catches a Bayou alligator, cools off with a world famous sno cone, gets in trouble with the law, eats jambalaya with a dancing chef and, finally, relaxes to some local jazz.
#9 - A Mystical World
Season 2 - Episode 3 - Aired 3/7/2003
Known as Brazil's capital of happiness, Salvador da Bahia offers fruitful local markets and rich Bahian cusine: fried shrimp, palm oil, chili peppers, and coconut. Here, Tony takes part in a traditional ceremony and experiences the culinary talents of the famous Bahian, Chef Dada.
#10 - Los Angeles, My Own Heart of Darkness
Season 1 - Episode 17 - Aired 2/26/2002
New York chef, Anthony Bourdain, descends into the culinary underbelly of his metropolitan nemesis, Los Angeles, where he experiences the trials of celebrity fame and the joys of West Coast cuisine.
#11 - Elements of a Great Bar
Season 2 - Episode 5 - Aired 3/21/2003
Join Tony on his quest to characterize the perfect bar. With him, discover the importance of a "maniacal bartender", the proper chemical makeup of drinks, the joys of seedy dive-bars and the need for late night snacks.
#12 - The Struggle for the Soul of America
Season 2 - Episode 6 - Aired 3/28/2003
Tony travels to the grain belt capitol, Minneapolis, to inspect the conflict between creative independent operators and generic franchises. Beginning in the food nightmare within the Mall of America, Tony vows to find good cuisine within the city.
#13 - The BBQ Triangle
Season 2 - Episode 7 - Aired 6/13/2003
Which style of BBQ reigns supreme-Kansas City, Houston or North Carolina? Tony journeys to all three, judging the secrets behind sauces, wood pits, and slow smokers.
#14 - Mad Tony: The Food Warrior
Season 2 - Episode 8 - Aired 4/4/2003
Chef Tony Bourdain embarks on a pilgrimage through Australia so he can indulge in a meal made by one of the world's best chefs, Tetsuya Wakuda. When Tony's car breaks down in the outback, he is found wandering about by a veteran of the bush who feeds him a slap-up meal of bush tucker, including kangaroo and wattleseed-bush tomato. Days, miles and many Australian meal later, Tony finds himself unable to describe Tetsuya's delicious and well-earned meal.
#15 - Down Under: The Wild West of Cooking
Season 2 - Episode 9 - Aired 5/2/2003
Melbourne boasts a bunch of hard-living, good-natured and eccentric food-lovers-Tony's kind of people. In search of the outlaws of food, Tony explores a pasteurization-free cheese factory and an old-world cured jamon workshop. Alas, no trip to Australia is complete without an authentic "barbie", so Tony settles down with new found friends for an afternoon meal of surf n' turf.
#16 - Let's Get Lost
Season 2 - Episode 11 - Aired 5/16/2003
Jumping into a Thai tuk tuk taxi, Tony attempts to soak up Thai culture and get lost in the cuisine of Chiang Mai. From spicy soups and noodles in the busy city marketplace to the hospitality and delicate salads of the countryside, Tony learns to appreciate all things Thai.
#17 - My Friend Linh
Season 2 - Episode 12 - Aired 5/30/2003
Tony returns to his beloved Vietnam to visit his friend, Linh, for the Vietnamese lunar New Year holiday, Tet. Together, the friends enjoy the holiday and indulge in all the exotic delicacies Vietnamese culture offers.
#18 - Thailand: One Night in Bangkok
Season 2 - Episode 13 - Aired 6/27/2003
A spontaneous layover in Bangkok leads Tony into the city, where he tries strange meals of deep fried frog skins and pla rah-a fish paste that has fermented for three months to a year.
#19 - Puebla, Where the Good Cooks Are From
Season 1 - Episode 16 - Aired 2/12/2002
According to Tony, the best line cooks in NYC come from Mexico, and with this in mind, he travels to the Puebla, the heartland of Mexican cuisine, and enjoys numerous mole sauces, toasted ant eggs, fried worms, and the legendary pulque (a slightly hallucinogenic drink made from cactus sap).
#20 - Cobra Heart-Food That Makes You Manly
Season 1 - Episode 3 - Aired 3/19/2002
After taking a cyclo ride through Ho Chi Minh City and trying various foods from roadside vendors and markets, Tony enjoys a unique dining atmosphere where sizzling hot rice cakes fly overhead. Later, Tony tests his might with a few shots of snake wine and a live cobra heart.
#21 - Eating on the Edge of Nowhere
Season 1 - Episode 6 - Aired 3/26/2002
Taking his obsession with the film Apocalypse Now a little too seriously, Tony sets out of Pailin-reputed to be one of the most dangerous towns on earth. On his journey, Tony experiences nameless waterways, landmine infested roads, unwelcomed guests, and road side delicacies. Arriving in Pailin, Tony realizes the city may be much different than he imagines. After completing his journey in Cambodia, Tony returns to Japan to reacquaint himself with civilization.
#22 - Cod Crazy
Season 1 - Episode 7 - Aired 6/17/2002
Portuguese cuisine holds a dear place in Tony's culinary heart. Not only is it the first type of food he learned to love as a young chef, but his boss, Jose Meirelles, hails from Portugal. With Jose, Tony travels to Porto, home of the famous Port wine, where he is immediately exposed to the codfish and the almost mythical place it holds in Portuguese cuisine and culture.
#23 - Childhood Flavors
Season 1 - Episode 9 - Aired 1/29/2002
Arcachon, the birthplace of Tony's father, is where Bourdain first learned to love food as a child. Returning for a trip down memory lane, Tony enjoys childhood staples, including steak frites, gaufres (waffles), soupe de pecheur (fisherman's soup) and fresh oysters. Tony's sentimental journey ends with French bread and garlic sausage-a simple tribute to his father.
#24 - Desert Feast
Season 1 - Episode 11 - Aired 3/5/2002
Chef Tony Bourdain arrives in Morocco with a mission: to eat a roasted sheep in the desert. As Tony journeys through the Sahara, he observes the slaughtering of a sheep, eats meat pies with blue-robed Berber men, rides a camel and, finally, experiences the flavors of mud-oven-roasted sheep.
#25 - Traditional Tastes
Season 1 - Episode 12 - Aired 5/7/2002
Tony is invited to experience the culinary heart and distinct walled medinas (districts) of the Moroccan city Fes. Tony's meals revolve around the family's home kitchen, where the cooks show Tony the preparation of the region's most beloved dishes such as pigeon bastilla, cous-cous with steamed vegetables, and a variety of exquisite salads.