Customer Reviews

Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations - Collection 1

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I have watched "No Reservations" since it premiered on the Travel Channel. I have also read all of Bourdain's nonfiction books, and I recommend both this series and his books to anyone serious about different cultures and the foods they eat.

It is no surprise, then, that overall I give the material on this DVD set five stars, but have to take away a star for a couple of reasons. The first and most obvious problem with this set is that it isn't complete, as has been noted by others. It would certainly have been better (even if it was somewhat pricier) if it was complete; likewise some extras (outtakes, commentary, etc.) would have been a welcome, though not strictly necessary, addition. I do have a cautionary tale about my set specifically: mine came without the Iceland and Vietnam DVD, which happen to be, in my opinion, the best two shows of the series. In its place I got an additional copy of the Sicily and Las Vegas DVD, which is the weakest of the four discs in my opinion. Fortunately I had bought the Vietnam and Iceland episodes as separate (and much more expensive) single show DVD's, but it is an annoyance nonetheless.

Without question this is my favorite travel show. I think Bourdain better than other hosts goes out of his way to unearth the fundamental nature of the places he visits (most notably in the excellent Malaysia episode) and truly values and respects the people he meets, despite his acerbic and sarcastic nature. While there are views where we differ, I know that Tony Bourdain and the "No Reservations" staff are fundamentally straight shooters who excel off the beaten path of cuisine and culture. While there are things I would obviously change about this set, it is an excellent value, and any reservations I have are in no way related to the actual content of these four DVD's.

I truly recommend this set with no reservations.

since we aren't blessed enough to get DVD releases of Gordon Ramsay over here in the States, at least we have local bad boy foody Tony Bourdain! i absolutely LOVE this guy! i could go on and on and gush like a giddy schoolgirl, but i won't ;)
what i will go on about is why they aren't releasing the COMPLETE SEASON!? i've contacted Image Entertainment, and no answer... so this really sucks! also, i wonder if we (in the U.S.) will get the uncensored EXTENDED Euro-versions? i'm already not going to buy this set because it's NOT complete, but if we don't get the extended versions, i'll be really annoyed, as i know for a fact there is extra footage shown in Europe that doesn't make it over here. i record the Travel Channel episodes to a set-top Digital Video Recorder (harddrive) and i have ALL seasons 1, 2 and now starting 3 burned to DVDR, so unless they are releasing EXTENDED VERSIONS, with COMMENTARIES, EXTRA INTERVIEWS, OUTTAKES, etc. i'm happy to just watch my DVDRs of the broadcast versions if there's nothing EXTRA for spending money.
anyway, let's hope there will be a EUROPEAN DVD release of the complete season 1.

oh, and whoever owns the rights to "A Cook's Tour" -- PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE release those Season sets!!!

This is such a great show which can be watched over and over again. Why not release the whole seasons? The individual dvds are way too expensive. I tried the unbox and I think this is a temporary comprimise, but I like having extras.
Tony B. has great wit and makes even the most ordinary experience seem great. His descriptions are many times better than what is happening on screen. This isn't just about eating weird foods, but also about appreciating the everyday cuisine.

The first time I sat and watched No Reservations with Tony Bourdain, it was because I'd stumbled upon the Paris episode while channel surfing one bored summer afternoon. Paris has long been a dream destination of mine, so I checked it out. From the get-go, my expectations were challenged and my interest piqued. The Eiffel Tower? Notre Dame? The Louvre? Not on this show. How about an absinthe bar followed by a hallucinogenic night back in the same hotel room where Oscar Wilde died instead? Or a visit to a wine cellar that leads to an eerie stumble through catacombs and sewers? Or the central market where we see a decapitated reindeer and hear our narrator apologize to children awaiting Christmas presents because "Santa cut Rudolph's f-ing head off?" I quickly realized that this wasn't some tired, formulaic, and superficial travelogue or some half-baked Fear Factor retread with the host trying to make the viewer squirm. This was intellectual and thoughtful, spiced with Bourdain's jaded attitude, searing sarcasm and caustic sense of humor. Furthermore, I liked that he sought out the understated, sublime, local favorites instead of the popular tourist stops and that he preferred the seedy and debauched over the posh and staid. This was a guy who was visiting Paris like I would like to do. This was an anti-tourist show hosted by an anti-hero. I was immediately a fan.
This dvd collection features eight episodes and, as many have already noted, it is an incomplete collection. According to Amazon's offerings, there are 13 episodes in the first season available for individual purchase, so why there are only eight here is hard to fathom. It seems likely that a more comprehensive and accurate compilation will eventually come around, so keep this in mind when contemplating purchasing this set. Also, these are edited with profanities (and there are many) bleeped out and there are no frills at all. It is episodes only, no commentary, behind the scenes, interviews, or anything. Again this leads me to think that a better release might be in order with Bourdain's predictably derisive commentary, the missing scenes available on the channel's website, and perhaps some other goodies. He has already amended his books, so it seems possible that the dvds will get a new look as well. The show and the fans deserve it. My four star rating is based on the content, however, and not the problems outside of the material contained herein. Whether you wish to spend twenty bucks on an incomplete collection that is badly in need of an upgrade is up to you. It is the nature of entertainment corporations to re-release popular items to force serious fans to re-purchase something that should have been done right the first time. Greed...don't ya love it?
The best episodes? A visit to his roots in New Jersey that demonstrates things aren't nearly so bad here in the states if you apply the same open-mind and tolerance to your countrymen that you do to your foreign country hosts, the aforementioned "French Don't Suck" visit to Paris, the humbling and life-threatening journey to New Zealand, his James Bond inspired trip to North Vietnam, and the harrowing yet introspective excursion to Malaysia.
The lesser ones are the Sicily, Iceland, and Las Vegas installments. Sicily was hokey and out of character. It felt forced, insincere, and uninspired. Iceland is like the Sweden episode from a future season; there is little of interest outside of Viking references, cold temperatures, and questionable food. He doesn't carry himself with passion in these spots as he does in those locales where his soul seems enriched by the experience. For Las Vegas, he tries hard to bring in a Fear and Loathing vibe, but let's face it; every other show on The Travel Network or The Food Channel seems to take place in that city and I'm just sick of Las Vegas already. Las Vegas is nothing if not THE most overrated city in the country, if not the world, and one more person's take on Adult Disneyland is one less I need to see. If only what happened in Vegas truly stayed there, I wouldn't be subjected to it every time I turned on the boob tube. That personal gripe aside, even the three sub-par ones are still worth viewing just to see these places and watch Bourdain struggle at times to find humor in the occasional ridiculousness of travel television.
Season one is a good beginning to what has become regular tv viewing for me. This is smart, engrossing, and fun television. Now if they can just get the true and complete collection together...

I've been an Anthony Bourdain fan for years, both his recipes and his literature and of course this travel show. (his restaurant, Les Halles, is also one of my favorites). This is the best deal obviously of the A. B. DVD's out there. You get 8 shows for $18.99. Why they would market each individual show when you have a pack like this I have no idea. I hope they continue to pack these together like this as I'll keep purchasing them. I would also hope that they would provide the uncensored, European versions also. Funny how we Americans allow ourselves less freedom than the European countries we primarily came from initially...

I love Tony Bourdain. I love his attitude--he's a great street smart guy who "says it like it is." Also, I love his flagship restaurant in NYC.
Since I don't have the opportunity to see his shows on a regular basis, this set of places traveled was extremely entertaining. One episode, in particular, New Jersey--Tony's roots--was enjoyable. I wish that I could have been at the market in Edgewater when he filmed that episode--since I shop there quite frequently. If you're a Tony B. fan, this is definitely one to add to the collection.

As a Chef myself and read most of his books this man is a genius and after purchasing season 1, I am hooked like a damm crack addict and wanting season 2 to give me my fix, anyone contemplating weather to buy this stop reading and place your order NOW!!! Also commend Amazon on there shipping times as I received it on the day they said, Awesome Anthony keep it up mate.

Anthony Bourdain is sarcastic food entertainment at it's finest. He is bold, brash and brazen with the things he does on the show. He will try *anything* and it is high comedy to watch it and squirm while you try not to peel your eyes away from the TV in disgust. Tony rocks!

Anthony Bourdain is a real cook's cook and his wit really shines through in his TV series- No Reservations. The series is outstanding and there is nothing detracts from his show.

This first collection/season on DVD is fantastic but the thing that really "bites" (pun intended) is that the Uzbekistan episode is missing. Hence this is a "collection" of No Reservation instead of a "season". Was something so objectionable to that episode that it cannot be included in that set?! Everyone buys DVDs for extras and you would expect, well- extras. In this case, there are no extras. I would hope there would be out-takes, deleted scenes, additional commentary or behind the scenes but that is not the case. One feature that would be VERY nice would be the uncensored audio track in addition to the censored "bleeped" audio track that you could select as an alternative. Who wouldn't want to hear what Tony was REALLY thinking? :)

If you really like the series and don't already have a DVD-R, Tivo or digital copy, this is the best alternative. The production is first rate on this DVD series and the case design is outstanding. It's too funny that the Discovery Channel store doesn't carry this series at all. I can see a grey market for the missing DVD episodes from each of the seasons forming already...

I've been a pretty big fan of Bourdain's food-centric travelogues since Food Network debuted the A Cook's Tour show and the accompanying book (A Cook's Tour: Global Adventures in Extreme Cuisines). From his auto-bio/expose on the restaurant business Kitchen Confidential Updated Ed: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly (P.S.), to his unrestricted palette of taste, through to his no nonsense style of writing food inspired crime fiction, Bourdain has cut an interesting niche in the foodie world. With No Reservations, he's left behind the insanity of the Food Network and taken his travels in search of good food and culture to the Travel Channel.

What I find interesting about this new show is the balance he's seemingly struck between his own tendencies and the requirements of filming a network driven travel show. On A Cook's tour it came across as butting heads with the network and producers resulting in a lackluster second season filled with excursions to ridiculous destinations like the Mall of America, content that felt forced and sad. No Reservations, though occasionally still succumbing to these depths (Iceland anyone?), frees Bourdain up to getting to the heart of the matter which is examining true local culture and the food that sustains and elevates it. It combines the point of view of a 70s punk rebel with a soul searching existentialist, while also ditching most of the pretension and being generally entertaining TV which is pretty darn rare.

If you're looking for the insanity of A Cook's Tour (the swallowing of still beating cobra hearts, etc.) than you might be a bit disappointed, but if the first thought when entering a new city or country is locating a good genuine meal that speaks to the local culture than this is the show for you. It's not a how-to for finding the tourist traps of the world, but a how to avoid these and eat like a local. This is probably the weakest collection, though there are some gems like Anthony's trips to Vietnam, New Jersey and Malaysia.

There are currently 3 other seasons available: Anthony Bourdain - No Reservations Collection 2, Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations - Collection 3, and Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations - Collection Four.