Tag Archives: television

Anthony Bourdain on the best and worst of No Reservations »

November 2nd, 2012

This Monday marks the 140th and final episode of No Reservations to air on Travel Channel. On the one hand, I’m sad to see what is easily one of my most favorite shows go off the air, but on the other I realize that after doing something for so long it is good to shake the bag.

Bourdain recently wrote about some of the worst and best shows. It is no suprise that the shows he chose as the best were also the shows I would have chosen. Although I think I’d add in the most-recent Emilia Romagna and Burgundy episodes into the mix as well.

As our final episode of NO RESERVATIONS approaches, I’ve been asked to write a top ten list of personal favorites. That’s hard to do. It’s been a mixed bag—and deliberately so. Travel and food shows necessarily tell more or less the same story:  somebody goes someplace, eats and drinks a lot of stuff, comes to some kind of conclusion (rightly or wrongly) then goes home. My partners and I—a rotating band of cinematographers, producers, editors and post production people—have worked very hard over the years to mess with, expand, undermine and subvert that basic narrative and the conventions that go with it. Sometimes we succeeded.

Other travel shows set out to show you what is there. No Reservations set out to find out what was there. I think this was one of the reasons I most enjoyed the show.

Bourdain and his cohorts would usually base the way they’d shoot and edit the episodes based on their favorite movies that were shot in those regions of the world. This made each and every episode very different, though exactly the same, as the others. Otherwise it’d just be a guy eating in a new place each week.

I’m going to miss No Reservations but I think they are choosing to move on at exactly the right time. I look forward to the next rodeo.

Will apps be announced for the Apple TV next week?

June 5th, 2012

I’ve had an Apple TV for a while now and I love it. I use it all the time. And, I’m guessing, with Mountain Lion I’ll be using it a lot more. But I’ve got no reason to upgrade to the latest Apple TV (save the 1080p resolution) since the software updates come around for free.

However, if John Gruber is right – apps may be coming to the Apple TV next week (or at least announced then):

To me, this is what a preliminary WWDC conference schedule would look like if Apple were set to announce a new developer platform, like, say, apps for Apple TV.

I hope he is right. Because I’d love a new TV experience and to get even more usefulness from my Apple TV. But, Apple will likely get me to purchase two new Apple TVs (one for the living room, one for the in-house pub).

Why I like No Reservations

May 7th, 2012

Anthony Bourdain on the different types of people that like his show No Reservations:

Generally speaking, there are two distinct audiences for this show: people who like to look at images of food and are interested in where it comes from and how it got to the plate—and people who like to travel—or like the idea of travel—and enjoy watching images of faraway places and cultures. Oh—and there’s also a smaller group who apparently enjoy watching me get falling down drunk and stupid.

I happen to fit all three.

Everyone should own an Apple TV

March 13th, 2012

Shawn Blanc during his review of the iPad event:

For $99 I think anyone with a Mac and a television should own an Apple TV.

I’ll go one step further. I think anyone with an iPhone, iPad, or iPod should own an Apple TV. Nay, two steps further. Anyone with a TV should own an Apple TV.

This summer the Mac will be able to use AirPlay much more effectively and even allow full screen mirroring on the TV. Until then iOS devices have been much better supported by Apple TV than the Mac has been. Really, it is about time that the Mac joined the party.

But even if you don’t use AirPlay (which I do almost every single day) the Apple TV has easily the best Netflix experience of any Netflix-enabled device. Eliza and I rent movies via iTunes all the time. We stream videos to the TV. Look at vacation photos and videos. Etc. Etc. The reasons are piling up with every single software and hardware update.

In short, the Apple TV is now at a point where I’d consider it a must-have.

/via Nilai.

Diego’s Soul Patch

December 30th, 2011

You may remember that Jorge Garcia and his girlfriend Bethany Shady had a podcast for behind-the-scenes LOST stuff appropriately named Geronimo Jack’s Beard. Well, Garcia and Shady are back with a new podcast for behind-the-scenes stuff on Alcatraz, a new show coming in the spring, named Diego’s Soul Patch. Here is the iTunes feed.

I’ve seen the pilot for Alcatraz already (shh, don’t tell anyone) and I can say that the show looks like it is going to be really great.

Subscribed.

Will the next Apple TV be really inexpensive?

December 28th, 2011

Horace Dediu of Asymco thinks so. Him, on Twitter:

I’m starting to believe that if and when Apple TV is updated the hardware price will be surprisingly low.

As you may very well know Eliza and I use our Apple TV a lot. We don’t use all of the features but we use it daily. For $99 (its current price) I think it a steal. I can’t imagine what would happen if, say, a new Apple TV was priced at $29 (my guess at what “surprisingly low” could be).

This, of course, is besides the notion that Apple will, at some point in the future, debut a brand-new television-related product. Perhaps a TV of their own. Or, perhaps, a really inexpensive Apple TV in addition to a TV of their own. Who knows?

But I can say this… I highly, highly recommend anyone with an iPhone, iPod, iPad or Macintosh to consider the Apple TV a must-have accessory. A must-have accessory. And if a new one is priced lower than today’s models than my recommendation would only be stronger.

The top 5 things people really do while watching The Biggest Loser

September 21st, 2010

Professional comedy writers Colin & Eliza Devroe, authors of The Misguided Twitter Guide and The Misguided Facebook Guide, are back to tell you the truth. Many people think that The Biggest Loser, a TV show about people exercising 8 hours a day for 6 days a week, eating healthy and losing incredible amounts of weight in a short period of time is changing the world. It isn’t. Here is the truth. Here are the top five things that people really do while watching The Biggest Loser.

  1. Well, they are watching TV. – Lets face it, people are just sitting on the couch watching other people work out. This isn’t a work out tape. This isn’t Richard Simmons and definitely no Tony Horton. This is a TV show and people are sitting there, watching it, doing nothing.
  2. Eating junk food! People eat a lot while watching The Biggest Loser. And, it isn’t like they are eating a sensible meal either. This dude eats pie. Someone else cake.
  3. Drinking alcohol. Jillian recommends almost no drinking of alcohol while dieting. But I guess champagne is ok?
  4. Cry. The journey for the contestants isn’t only physical, it is also emotional. I guess it is emotional for the viewers too. Every time.
  5. Make fun of The Biggest Loser. If you can’t beat ‘em, make fun of ‘em. This guy says he is going to get some cookies and this chick is going to get some donuts for tonight’s premier.

The authors of this list are big fans of The Biggest Loser and are probably as guilty as anyone of doing one or all of them while watching the show.

Enjoy the premier!

Live chat – No Reservations – Food Porn 2.

April 19th, 2010

Tonight’s episode of No Reservations, Food Porn 2, will be the first episode in many episodes that I will be watching “Live”. I figured I might as well take the opportunity to do something fun. A live chat. I’ll be using FriendFeed, yes that FriendFeed, to make this dead simple to update.

There is no need to refresh the page, it will update automatically. Just leave the page open and watch the show.

If you want to participate you can by joining the room on Friendfeed for this post or simply comment below.

The Boxee Box.

January 6th, 2010

The Boxee Box

The Boxee Box, a mini-square-ish computer with the sole purpose of running Boxee on a television, is becoming more compelling with every press release. Made by D-Link this little box is being reported to hit the market at under $200 and to have one heckuva remote control.

At that size, with that design, that price point and with a remote control that sports a QWERTY keyboard on the back I see no reason not to get a Boxee Box. I’m still looking forward to details on the way it integrates with the home network though.

I blame Crocodile Dundee

July 21st, 2009

Make no mistake. No Reservations is a show primarily about food. That doesn’t mean that every episode is only about food or that the entire length of the program is centered around food. Sometimes an episode focuses more on the people, culture, history, geography, or various other aspects of a location – instead of only the food.

No Reservations Australia was about food. Not necessarily Australian food either. More like food that happened to be made in Australia. Like so many other places on this planet, globalization is in full effect in Melbourne, Australia. The food is heavily influenced, if not outright made and served by, people from other cultures around the world. This episode, rather than focusing on the Australia we all think we know (shrimp on a barbie, Aborigines eating bats in the outback, and kangaroos) it focused on the side of Australia we probably never knew was there. I blame Crocodile Dundee for my skewed view of Australia.

I suppose Tony’s little black book being chocked full of amazing chefs all over the world helps – since we undoubtedly saw a side of Melbourne cuisine that most of us probably couldn’t afford. But I’m ok with that. No Reservations is the world through Tony’s eyes – not mine. Through Tony’s contacts, budget, and experience – not mine. And every single week I look forward to that… whether or not it depicts an experience that I could ever have or not.

Shrimp over pasta

I decided to make something a little different for this episode. Yes, I made shrimp but I decided to add a little bit of an Italian flare (read: make my own basic tomato sauce and throw it over pasta). There was no indication that Italy has had any real effect on the food in Melbourne, Australia in this episode (although I’m sure it has)… but there was a lot of showing many other areas that obviously have had a huge impact. British, Lebanese, and Sichuan influences were highlighted the most. I need some Sichuan food at my next opportunity.

When No Reservations focuses on food everything else seems to fall into place.

Aren’t Mondays the greatest?

July 15th, 2009

Mondays are notoriously the least favorite day of the week. The end of the weekend. The beginning of the work week – no matter how you look at it, it isn’t good. Which is why I love that No Reservations is on Monday night.

What better way to cap off an otherwise crappy day? Tune into the Travel Channel and be whisked away by Anthony Bourdain to someplace you’ve probably never been, learn facts about that place that you’ve probably never known, and watch him experience peoples and foods that you’ve probably never experienced yourself.

No Reservations Chile

The opening few minutes of No Reservations – Chile, for me, weren’t that great. I’ve watched the episode twice now and I still think the beginning could have used a punch up in the first few minutes somehow. That being said, the rest of the episode was fantastic.

Empanadas

I don’t know about you, but every time I watch No Reservations I end up drooling, stomach making gurgling sounds, ever wanting a dish of whatever Tony is eating. Not this time. This time my lovely wife Eliza whipped up some empanadas for us to enjoy. We were both surprised when empanadas were not in this episode… but wait – they were. One of the missing scenes was mouthwatering empanadas. We had ours baked not fried as Tony does. I don’t know how Tony isn’t 300lbs.

Patagonia. I think the No Reservations crew are using some new lenses this year because, while Patagonia looks like one of the most beautiful coastal areas on the planet, it looked altogether real or three-dimensional on my HD TV. I could smell the seawater. Whatever lenses you’re using – keep it up. Chile is one of the most gorgeous episodes to date (Venice is high up on this list).

Twice during this episode Tony remarked how he could see himself somehow delegating the job of host to someone else. He jested that he’d just like to sit back, relax, and enjoy his food without “worrying about the cameras”. He has to be kidding right? Although I believe he’s a hard working man, a man that does his job well, puts a lot of effort into making what could be just a good show a great one – I also believe he really loves his job. But, if he wants to experiment a little – I’m available for a trip or two. There are several places on earth I’m dying to get to, to explore, to enjoy, to photograph, to eat.

I bet with Tony’s job I’d come to love Mondays.

Next up: Australia. Having had kangaroo I’m looking forward to Tony’s take on what I think is some of the best meat in the world.

No Reservations – Chile. Airs Monday July, 13

July 10th, 2009

To say that I’m excited, wouldn’t be enough. You all know where I will be on Monday. Sitting on my couch, mouth gaping, a warm pool of drool at my feet, staring at my television – listening to the snarkiest man alive – Anthony Bourdain – talk about meat, fat, butter, and probably cheese in Chile.

That’s an evening of entertainment friends.

Jennifer DiDonato interviews Pete Thomas

April 21st, 2009

Eliza and I are big fans of The Biggest Loser, a reality show about people trying to losing weight, and so when I saw that Jennifer DiDonato (Viddler member whom I interviewed on The Viddler Spotlight many months ago) interviewed the Season Two “at home” winner Pete Thomas I knew I just had to share this.

The interview is very laid back and provides some enlightening information about the show, what happens after the show is over, and some really great information about keeping yourself motivated to keep your weight and health maintained even after you’ve lost the weight.

Excellent job Jennifer & Co.

The Egyptian hieroglyphs from LOST episode “Some Like It Hoth”

April 16th, 2009

Since I’ve seen more than a few people reference the fact that Jack Shephard was erasing some Egyptian hieroglyphs and information from the chalk board in last night’s episode of LOST, which was brilliantly entitled “Some Like It Hoth”, I figured I would post some screenshots from that moment.

Jack and information on Egyptians

Hieroglyphs on chalkboard.

Something I hadn’t really noticed, which is mentioned on LOSTpedia, is that “When Jack is doing Roger’s work for him the chalk board is filled with material. In multiple shots afterward, the board is erased in random parts with previously erased parts reoccurring.”

If you have any better screenshots or find any online please link them up in the comments.

Side note: I think season five of LOST is shaping up to be the best season yet. We’ll see if it has a strong finish.