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Chef, author and Emmy-winning television personality Anthony Bourdain is now a CNN contributor. He will travel around the globe to places such as Myanmar, Israel and the Congo as host of a new CNN show premiering this April. Follow him on Twitter @bourdain. When you’re a small, independently owned and operated restaurant in New York City, the perishable inventory you just had to throw out of your warm refrigerators as a result of Superstorm Sandy may have been valued at, say, $2000 (to pick a completely arbitrary and optimistic number). And that’s what, in a perfect world, you might presumably, hopefully, eventually get back from the insurance company. If you’re lucky. But the real value of that food was at least three times that amount from the second it entered the door. That’s the number you were counting on generating once that food was prepared and served. More likely, that’s the amount you needed to generate to cover the expenses of operating your restaurant. So, already, you’re in trouble. That’s even before you fully come to terms with the direct costs of cleaning out your place, replacing destroyed equipment and furnishings, getting up and running again. Just by being closed for a week, you've tumbled down that slippery slope. If you’re a waiter, busboy, bartender, you live on tips. No work? No tips. No one will be making up that money for you. If you’re a line cook, a dishwasher, a porter? Chances are, you’re paid by the hour. Even if your employer wanted to pay you for sick days and vacations, chances are, he can’t. If you’re anything like I was during my 28 years in the business, you’re already living paycheck to paycheck. You’re already struggling to make rent. Any unplanned cash flow interruption is going to cause some serious problems. Restaurant people are good people. They’ve chosen to do a very hard thing, with a very limited statistical probability of ever making any real money: serving food to people. They are not just in the “pleasure business” of making people happy, but in the nurturing business. At the end of the day, the restaurant’s job is to feed people. And that’s something they have done throughout every crisis. Whether you’re talking New Orleans or New York, it seems it’s always the chefs and the cooks and the restaurant people who are out there early and often, giving what they can. Whether it’s food, money or time, restaurants and chefs have always been generous to charities, causes and their communities. So, let’s do what we can. Just cause a little DIY place has got its power back on, doesn’t mean the bleeding has stopped. While there is no doubt that there are still people with direct, immediate, emergency needs, it would be a great help if those who can afford to do it would eat in the most seriously afflicted areas as early and as often as they can, patronizing local businesses in areas that were clearly hit hardest. Tip heavily. And maybe send a $20 back to the dishwasher. That’s not charity. It’s just neighborly.
Outside NYC and want to help? CNN's Impact Your World has a great list of resources that could use your time and money. Thinking about coming to New York to eat? Follow the Twitter hashtag #dineoutNYC to see the latest charity efforts and open restaurants and don't forget to #EatDownTipUp. |
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Anthony, since you make so much money and seem to have a cast-iron stomach, how about YOU round up all your rich friends, constantly eat out everywhere in NYC you can find, and tip BIG. Perhaps not you, but us ordinary folk are a little fearful of living with lifetime gifts of H. Pylorii, GERD, arteriosclerosis and financial insolvency.
Hurricane Sandy and people starving
Obama: kthxbai, I'm off to myanmar for some fun
Across the river in Jersey the problem is there are too many places charging too much for mediocre food and service.
Hoboken is at the top of the list.
I'll gladly cross the river and have a bite of the Big Apple since it's easy to find better value for my money.
Unsure how an article on helping people that were devastated by a natural disaster turns into an all out screaming match on Christianity and Obama. One thing wrong with us as Americans is not many people have any regard for other's beliefs. What ever happened to being respectful and just a little nice?
Agreed. I've often wondered what the heck has happened to civility in this country.
Totally agree , our civil society has reached a decadent point
And hey don't forget to drink all the booze you can and eat those 850 MG hot dogs,hey have 5 at a time and 4 bagels loaded with cream cheese and butter...Live it up so The helth industries make Billions.Just NO SMOKING ALLOWED,OH I'm sorry BOOZE,POT,And Drugs are Ok
Who can afford to eat out now that Obama is king again?
Meeeeeeee!
Modest Needs Foundation just launched a new and innovative program that can help low-income workers in the food/service industry who have lost wages as a result of the storm, which made it impossible for them to return to work for a period of time. For hourly workers that one paycheck is a lifeline and they may not be eligible for any other form of gov't assistance such as FEMA or even Unemployment. We are offering help with the one biggest expense that they have on their plate – their RENT (up to $1,500) amongst other things.
https://www.modestneeds.org/
To Donate: https://www.modestneeds.org/donation/donate-now-online.asp
More info About Program: https://www.modestneeds.org/donation/Hurricane-Sandy-Relief-Program.asp
To Apply: https://www.modestneeds.org/for-applicants/grant-types-hurricane-relief.asp
Anthony has hit the nail on the head. This is a real problem and a real way to help real people. Modest Needs Foundation has already raised more than $150K. Please let know anyone who may qualify know about the program.
So, Sonya, you're saying that among all the places in the free world that there are to live, there are people who choose to live in one of the most expensive places in the world, work slinging hash to six-figure yuppies for less than the federal minimum before tips and pay $1,500 a month to live in an 800 square foot roach motel three at a time?? I don't want to seem mean, but if you decided to live such an insular life that you have nothing beyond this, you brought it on yourself. My blue-collar parents worked two jobs each and lived like paupers for 12 years so they could BREAK OUT OF NYC, buy a nice house and open a small business of their own in Puerto Rico, and they were no Rhodes scholars. At any one time they had enough money in the bank to tide them over in an emergency or "live like a New Yawwka", but they decided to live thrifty and go for the big prize. NYC is no place to be unless you're a fat cat, or just there to make money.
Jorge you're a Schmuck, if you don't like hashing food for those yuppies do something about go back to school, or stay with a restaurant that allows you to grow into a better job at least here you have the freedom to do both apparently your parents did and you didn't learn from it. All your whining about NY and picking on Bourdain the only guy i know that is honest about the food scene and how its guys like us from south of the Border that keep that industry going with very little recognition and yet the man has the cojones to be honest enough to say that he himself is a miscreant and whore of the system created by the industry where food is now more about entertainment than a meal with family or friends and enjoying a good time. Let me see Booby Flay or Battalli give the staff in the back from El Salvador, Mexico, Nicaragua their spot on the lime light as they pay them minimum wage, haven't seen any of those guys on Iron chef lately have you. Sorry Mr Chairman Juan was a little heavy handed with the "Cumin" Say what you must about Tony but the one thing he is is Honest shows his faults and his true self and not ashamed of it. Pick on Flay, Batally and the rest of the Iron Schmucks on TV and let Bourdain keep being who he is with all his faults and honesty, can you say the same.
While Bourdain is an insufferable, pompous, burned-out a-hole, on this, I actually agree with him.
DC Buck – -And here I was thought I was the only person who knew what a total loser Bourdain is – -
he's actually the one that tells it like it is and he's sexy in a cool sort of way – so ..... there, I said it......oh well, don't agree or agree..it's OK...called freedom and speech and secret love
DCBuck: While Bourdain is an insufferable, pompous, burned-out a-hole, on this, I actually agree with him.
November 6, 2012 at 10:04 am
@DCBuck: ...and those are his good points! I have never and will never watch any of Bourdain's shows because he skeeves me out. So does the other tw*t, Zimmern. Ugh. Never did care for either of them. And they both have so (too) much airtime. Note to Travel Channel: these clowns are overdone – time to pull the turkeys out of the oven.
CNN, you need to cough up for a moderator. If you don't know any, I can recommend some. Your commenters shouldn't be having to deal with trolls, spammers, and random vandals.
I don't know what kind of system you think you have in place, but if it can't recognize "ROMNEY 2012 OR WE ALL FAIL" as context-free political spam, or "Valerie" as an obvious and thoroughly worthless troll, it's crap. Software filters can block most spam, but real moderation needs live human beings who have experience doing it.
You've got interesting and genuinely engaged readers donating their time and attention here. You should treat that like it's valuable by making your site a better place for them to comment.
Thanks so much for the feedback - we're trying. There are only two of us who work on Eatocracy and we try to look in on the comments as much as we can to keep the discussion relevant. It's a work in progress.
Hey There! i would be more than willing to help you guys out! You can check me out taneeshathediva.com
First.., I like Anthony Bourdain, including his heavy beer drinking of any kind. As for this well written article and story, the first part did not make sense. Once your into the story and understand, how Anthony Bourdain writes, the story begins to make sense. Well.., some parts of the story. Anthony Bourdain tried his best to articulate, what superstorm 'Sandy' may have done to some business owners' and employees', including the customer base. Or the 'fact' that running a restaurant business is very hard and sometimes, impossible to do. Overhead and bad food, including a restaurant owner, that has no clue on how to run a business, can 'close' their doors in months, if not sooner. I feel sorry for fast food chain restaurant employees', because their hourly wage and no tokes or tips, can barely live or pay rent. What Anthony Bourdain taught me, within this article or story, is that even in fancy high cost restaurants, the same thing goes on with their employees', lack of money and a tip goes a long way, if provided.. As for giving to good causes, I learned that, from watching too many reality shows.. Overall.., a very good article or story from Anthony Bourdain. Would I read him again, the answer is "Yes.".. Mike in Montana
i'd rather not save nyc.
Agreed.
I am always curious where people live that make ignorant statements like this.
They live in the Red Welfare States that consistently vote Republican.
Ooh-rah!
Table for two immediately available in the STFU cafe.
I'm sorry to hear that. For those of us who make our homes here, it's not so optional.
Remind me where you live, so I can skip sending money or aid in event of a natural disaster. Thanks!
New York is a great city....for me to poop on!
So glad to see people FINALLY talking about this issue. An organization I love, Modest Needs Foundation, is offering direct assistance to low-income workers who were forced into temporary unemployment due to the storm and now can't afford to pay their most important monthly expenses: their rent and mortgage payments. These grants are being made immediately and paid directly to landlords / mortgage lenders on a first-come, first served basis, and the program itself is supported by $150K in matching money. If you know people in the service industry or elsewhere who've lost income due to the storm, please encourage them to apply for this help. It's real, and it's available now. Details are here: https://www.modestneeds.org/for-applicants/grant-types-hurricane-relief.asp
New York City was bailed out in 1975, yet the city didn't learn from its mistake... Get the mafia and the drug dealers and the rappers to bail the city out this time. They own it! Maybe if Governor Christie would slow down on his appetite, New Jersey wouldn't have a problem feeding their people. C'mon New York! Thought you were tough.
Hey AB! I have to say I've seen all of your episodes!!! And PERU and OSAKA! in my opinion were BY_FAR the BEST!!! Realism no fancy BS just a taste of culture and no holds bared, jump into culture and heritage!!! In Lebanon or Jordan, I can't remember, but you looked FKn stressed, so the episode actually SckD big time! No offense!!!! And Whoever took the photos for this article Scks, looks worse than Junior College Photography class!!! No Offense!! But come on lets get real, like AB! Good luck with the CNN boss!!! Best, O LA
Sounds like you are referring to the episode in Lebanon. Certainly not the best, given the situation.
first, great post. yes, yes, yes, we need to support any and all people that were out there and trying to help during the storm,
secondly, i saw one food-related travesty in that first week and i was hoping you could use your clout to do something. a few famous famiglia pizza's were open downtown, and were able to do brisk business–a first for that garbage food, i'm sure. a few locations were doing things like selling cold slices for $6 a pop a cold pies for $40, to people willing to wait on line forever, desperate for food. we need to petition their management or start a boycott or something. that dreck was bad enough, passing itself off as NY pizza when times were good...but for franchise owners or whoever, to turn on their own neighbors like that in a time of struggle and desperation, is inexcusable.
Go to the back of the class. You dont understand econ101. By raising their prices to adjust to demand they maximized their profit yes. And that is good. But they also ensured thereby that people would buy only what they needed, so that there would be more needs met with their limited supply.
There are over 10 million people in the NYC area itself, let alone all the neighboring cities/states affected by this disaster, do all the haters in these comments seriously think that all of these people are rich snobs that don't need help? Reality check, the vast majority of these people are middle-class or poor, just like the rest of America, so the more we help, the better off all these victims will be.
It's really sad to see so many people with so much hatred for one's fellow man, and there's really not much logic going on. The "snobs" make up maybe 1% of the population, at best, and NYC and the surrounding area is no different. If you actually read what Anthony is saying, he's suggesting that those of us who can AFFORD it go out and spend a little to help these people. Btw, he's appealing to those who are visiting or living in that area, it should be beyond obvious he's not talking about restaurants in other parts of the country, that wouldn't make any sense.
What makes our country great is our ability to help those in need, it's not necessarily the Christian (insert religion) thing to do, it's the right, kind and compassionate thing to do. If you don't afford it, don't live in the NYC area, then you have nothing to worry about, but for those who do, it's a decent, considerate suggestion by Bourdain. The ones who are hating on him and New Yorkers show far more about how horrible they are then any negative character traits of Bourdain or the imaginary majority of rich snobs who live in the hurricane disaster zone. Think before you speak.
I didn't see very many New Yorkers or East Coast magnates come to New Orleans when Katrina came through... I didn't see anyone from the north-east help out when BP brought the seafood industry to a halt... You're tough New York. Walk it off!
I don't know the answer to that, but millions donated money to Katrina from all across the country. It's ridiculous to speculate which state gave or helped the most, the point is to forget petty differences and help each other as fellow Americans, as fellow human beings. With that kind of pessimistic attitude the status quo will devolve. Hard to believe there are so many malcontents out there unwilling to help one another, it's really sad. Forget about yourself for a moment and think about doing something good for someone else for a change, enough with the pessimism and self-pity, who knows you may feel better about yourself if you help another person by making a positive difference in their life.
Oh and you completely missed my point btw of the "magnates" making up less than 1% of New Yorkers/east coast people, in what fantasy world are all New Yorkers and New Englanders industry magnate fat cats? This whole mentality lacks a foundation of facts/logic. The vast majority, once again, of the people affected by this natural disaster are average joes, because guess what, that's the majority of the US population. Sandy didn't magically target billionaires which somehow prompted them to cry out for help. Wow, just wow, the fallacies of online posters in general never ceases to astound me.
Rich or poor, you northerners lack civility, and you're as pompous and arrogant as you are rude.
What is wrong with people. All Tony was doing was suggesting ways people could help those hurt by Sandy. A few years ago people would have not condemned him but offer more ways to help. This has to end.
Hey Jim... America was there when 9-11 happened... America paid the price. But when Americans were out of work, forced from their homes and starving on the streets, no one came forward to offer a hand unless they were holding a hammer in the other. WE'RE AMERICANS! We don't need handouts or celebrities speaking for us, because THEY CAN'T FEEL OUT PAIN!
Exactly. I wasn't really that choked up in 2001, and would probably change the channel if it happened again. I H* NY.
^^^ Don't feed the troll, don't even respond,. This should be the only response he gets. DON'T FEED THE TROLL!!
You know, I come from a tiny village in rural New Hampshire. Our house was on a dirt road, and our neighbors were farmers. I went to New York city the first time when I was nine. I'd never seen a taxi, or ridden on a metropolitan bus, or a subway. When I was 17, I went with a college class, and wandered around by myself. Kind strangers told me how to take busses and the subway from Broadway to the Cloisters. Kind food servers in restaurants told me other affordable restaurants I should try, because I wanted to try Greek and Polish and what I referred to as "real" Chinese food.
I've been back several times since as someone who is visually disabled and have had kind strangers give me directions, tell me which train to take, suggest book stores and bars and restaurants.
And often, helpful enthusiastic people who loved New York were the wait staff or bus boys at restaurants or people with food trucks.
I'll absolutely be trying to send cash to the East coast, but especially to those hard working under paid and very necessary people who work in food service and retail and transportation, and schools.
I remember about 7 years back when I was served by a happy face at KFC. Last night I was served again by a pleasant person at MCD. I have been to all sorts of restaurants and it is always a jaded look and pressure for high tips (I tip at least 20%) and fast food places are even worse. I no longer eat out, the food in bad, ingredients are poor, attitude is bad. I have no money to blow on eating out. I will rather eat healthy at home, save money and donate what I save.
Bourdain brings forth some valid points. We do need to help those effected by this terrible storm. Best to all of you up there who have been negatively effected by this.
I'd love to eat out but Nanny Bloomturd won't let me buy a large coke in NYC.
Yea because thats what NYC cuisine is all about...fountain soda.
I'm not sure then that this article is for you. McDonalds and Wendy's doesn't require you to tip.
I love what Bourdain has to say. Very knowledgeable.
I like Bordain too, but, I think the heroin addiction, *CONTINUED ALCOHOLISM*, and methadone addiction for 20 years has RAVAGED his body, sadly.
He's ending his T.V. career now–I'm beginning to wonder if he simply has cancer, because he's GOT that "cachexic" (i.e. starving), lanky look of somebody "on-their-way-out."
I hope he's okay, but I wouldn't put money on it.
You're too used to seeing fat people. AB looks to be at a healthy weight.
Hey AB! I have to say I've seen all of your episodes!!! And PERU and OSAKA! in my opinion were BY_FAR the BEST!!! Realism no fancy BS just a taste of culture and no holds bared, jump into culture and heritage!!! In Lebanon or Jordan, I can't remember, but you looked FKn stressed, so the episode actually SckD big time! No offense!!!! And Whoever took the photos for this article Scks, looks worse than Junior College Photography class!!! No Offense!! But come on lets get real, like AB! Good luck with the CNN boss!!! Best, O LA
"it seems it’s always the chefs and the cooks and the restaurant people who are out there early and often"
Yeah, whereas the cops, firefighters, doctors, bus drivers, school teachers, etc. are sipping margaritas until noon.
Get over yourself and your little slice of the universe. It ain't that important.
Indeed. Anthony Bourdain is the same fellow that has repeatedly scolded Americans for being lazy, while he spends his life flying around the world and eating fine cuisine. His hypocrisy and frank stupidity is too much. I would much prefer to spend my money where it will do true good. We don't need fine cuisine. We do need schools, teachers, police officers, firemen, etc.
Let the busboy get an education. We do have pell grants, loans, and scholarships available. They might want to avail themselves to the opportunities.
Most restaurant workers are doing those jobs so they can work "up the ladder". You may not realize this but many of them are college educated. I worked at pizza shop with a dishwasher/porter who had TWO master's degrees...there are TOO MANY college graduates and not enough COLLEGE jobs. There's no shame in working in the food industry, and most people with any kind of steady job have a high level of intelligence. Also sometimes people snap their bootstraps when they are trying to pick themselves up by them. I'm a "conservative" but this kind of talk really chaps my @$$
By any chance were one of those Masters in English Lit ? There are enough jobs for people who get degrees in critical thinking and in the actual act of creation. The reason I know this is because I can't hire enough good engineers, heck I can't even hire enough low or mid level engineers.
Exactly, JB. Too many fools are procuring degrees in Liberal Arts, English, and Poli Sci, etc. I just moved to Miami, from Cleveland. Packed up and quit my job of 13 years without having a job to go to in Miami. I was confident that I would get the job that I wanted, when I wanted it. Sure enough, I had a job within three weeks, making more than I did in Ohio. Simply because I have a viable degree and experience in Network Engineering. I practically told them that they NEEDED to hire me.
'Nice' attitude
The idea that we should patronize restaurants out of sympathy is laughable. Restaurant people are not all good people – a lot of them are mean spirits. You refer to a responsibility to feed people. I guess you'd be refering to the people who are too lazy to go to the grocery store and buy some meat and vegetables and learn how to cook them properly and who like to throw their money away. Let them starve, for all I care.
Hey cblogz,
One of the points is the fact that many were left without facilities to cook up a meal after the storm, even if they had the raw ingredients. During the last power blackout 6yrs ago, I had food but could not cook because my kitchen was electric at the time. I now have a gas range and was even able to feed some of my neighbours.
Chef Sun
Thanks Anthony for supporting the people who make NYC the best city in the world, next to Paris. Lived there for many years and miss the energy, the heart & soul of real people, who could yell, curse, argue and then sit down for a drink or dinner. I know in my heart that NY and the surrounding areas will struggle for a bit but they WILL COME BACK BETTER THAN BEFORE. Thanks for encouraging and supporting the lifeline and people who make a difference.
Love Anthony Bourdain
Aww, look at all the butthurt Republicans!
Sad that Barack is getting for more years, aren't you?
I can't wait til you fat miserable bastards eat yourselves to death.
YOU, OUT OF THE GENE POOL!
Beautiful!
One, two, three, for?
Funny. Simple Math can't spell the word "four". Must be from the ghetto.
Are you serious?? I'm not a republican but you, sir, need to take a look in the mirror. Comments like this make me believe in censorship.
I don't care about New York City, or the snobs of the North. I seem to remember them scolding New Orleans, calling it a "fish bowl". They stated that they shouldn't have put a city there, and that it was their obligation to live in safer areas. Ditto for y'all New Yorkers! I hope Sandy teaches you a ripe lesson!
As for Bourdain and his nonsense, it's not our obligation to tip the dishwasher, or the busboy. That's the obligation of the employer. And frankly, most folks don't have the money to go out and spend on this nonsense. Better to save the money and cook at home.
Oh, and please have a heart attack, Mr. Bourdain.
Are there no Christians left outside of NYC?
The irony itself is overwhelming, Mark. Give the character and attitudes of New Yorkers. Snobbish, rude, self-interested, and arrogant. These are among the wealthiest people in the nation, yet they whine like petulant children. You don't remember the folks of Joplin whining because they had to pick up the pieces and move on. No, their town is still largely destroyed, and they deal with it in the most stoic manner.
There are far better people in the world to help before ever sending money to New York. A hedonistic and vile bunch of people with little morality and sense of obligation. They believe they're better than the rest of the nation. That's fine. Now, let them get on without the rest of our help. New Yorkers are renowned for their terrible behavior and their lack of hospitality.
You get back what you put in.
please don't give any money to those who lost their homes in NYC, but don't be so silly to paint all 10 million people with your judgmental brush. it seems you saw a few movies on nyc and somehow got the idea that you understood the city.
i donated to joplin and gave again to nyc...of course you have the option to keep your money, but try to get some perspective.
Mark, it is the obligation of the wealthy New Yorkers to take care of their own. It is not the obligation of the working class Arkansan, or any other community within America. Y'all are among the wealthiest people in the entire world. You get some perspective. New Yorkers obviously didn't do enough, Joplin is still a mess. New Yorkers have no sense of community, of obligation, of moral duty. Oh, and please don't bring up Christianity. That's a joke. We know the manner in which New Yorkers behave.
Check out the gentrification of the city, and how New Yorkers truly treat their own poor. We know how y'all truly are. We know your character well enough. If you have money, all is well and good, if not – leave. Well, New York is for the wealthy, and I'm pretty darn sure it's the obligation of the wealthy to take care of their own – noblesse oblige.
Phil you are embarrassing yourself. There are poor all over America, including the worst poverty in Arkansas. Based on a movie you saw once you are sure all New Yorkers are terrible people.
Who is it you have seen going on about how all of the country must donate to NYC? Like any disaster people can give or not give. NYC gives more to charity each year than any other city in America...I guess there must be a few good people amongst the millions.
Indeed, there are poor all over America. Yet, I've never met an Arkansan that whines in manner that the New York aristocrats do. If you give out the most aid in America, it may be due to the fact that the wealth is concentrated in New York, and it may mean that it's the obligation of New Yorkers to use their wealth to rebuild their communities. If that's too much to ask, maybe you need to start asking questions about your own people. Regardless, tipping the busboy is not what is going to help. It is the obligation of the employer to pay his workers, and reflects just how much the employer is concerned for his or her welfare, when the employer seeks to rid him\herself of that duty.
When you're among the wealthiest in the world, it tends to make people sick when they her you whining about how bad you have it. What, you have to be without heat and fuel for a couple weeks? Give me a break. Welcome to most of the world.
There are poor all over America. Yet, I've never met an Arkansan that whines in manner that the New York aristocrats do. If you give out the most aid in America, it may be due to the fact that the wealth is concentrated in New York, and it may mean that it's the obligation of New Yorkers to use their wealth to rebuild their communities. If that's too much to ask, maybe you need to start asking questions about your own people. Regardless, tipping the busboy is not what is going to help. It is the obligation of the employer to pay his workers, and reflects just how much the employer is concerned for his or her welfare, when the employer seeks to rid him\herself of that duty.
When you're among the wealthiest in the world, it tends to make people sick when they her you whining about how bad you have it. What, you have to be without heat and fuel for a couple weeks? Give me a break. Welcome to most of the world.
the article is silly mark, and again, nobody wants you money.
try to have some appreciation that there are people different than you, but that doesn't make them evil. god bless.
Your comments are riddled with generalities.
You're obviously a very bitter person. What kind of person wishes someone a heart attack?
Have a nice day.
I remember seeing a photo on Facebook at the End of July, with people wrapped around the block for "Chik-Fil-A Appreciation Day". The caption said: You'd never see this many Christians lining up to help the poor or assist in homeless shelters, and those were things Jesus actually said to do.
Most people love to espouse the values but never live them. It's pretty sad. I would prefer to live the values and help others rather than espouse the crazy dogma and doctrine, but that's just me.
Loved your comment.
what a generality. my family and i are christians. i volunteer as an advocate for abused & neglected children, my sister founded a non-profit that raises money for cancer research, my mother tutors children in a failing school district & was a hospice volunteer...i could go on and on.
Wow....way to cite a photo you probably found on facebook. That's good....I shall now base my opinion of entire peoples within a religion based on a myspace blog.
For the record, I am pro gay marriage, yet still support Chick-Fil-A. I am also not Christian by any means. Dang...guess facebook photos can't be trusted anymore. What a world!
Anything that world-class prick Anthony Bourdain says means I do the exact opposite. He's always been a douchebag. He always will be.
http://www.theatlanticwire.com/national/2012/11/sorrow-and-hope-visit-staten-island-after-sandy/58713/
I don't see snobbiness of any sort on display here. I see people suffering and in need. Does it matter where they are from?
I'm not sure where you're getting your ideas about New Yorkers from, but I think a lot of people mistake us for the representations they see on TV. We're human, just like you - and we've seen tremendous loss, especially over the past 11 years.
The people who got hit the worst weren't these snobby, rich New Yorkers that people here seem to be railing against (and again - who may be a figment of TV and movies, because I don't know these people). They're firefighters and fishermen and teachers and construction workers and CHILDREN and if they weren't - why should it matter? They're humans who need help.
Please take care of one another.
Bourdain is a humanist in chef's clothing. He is, sure, in this instance, telling you to go eat, and tip like you're showing off your generosity to a date you hope to pamper – but it's not just about the apple, and it's not just about food. got a mom and pop with ten tables beyond the bridges and tunnels? sit down, let them choose the dishes, make them feel special – tip like you own your own restaurant, like you'd want to be treated for an hour of bowing and scraping. don't eat out? if you're lucky, or lucky enough, how about upping that dollar you give at the offramp or subway entrance from a dollar to a ten. buy somebody a meal. don't want it to go to drugs? bring them a meal, a blanket, a twenty – not every day, just often enough so that it hurts a little. like Billy Rose said, "I didn't make money to keep it>"
Dernation
Remarks on threads like these make you realize what sad & angry people make up a good portion of our society. After 9/11, we had the opportunity to somewhat come together & unite around those in our country that were suffering. People suck
+1 ... I agree. What a bunch of ignorant and angry people. Embarrassingly stupid people who just don't get out very much.
As a life long resident of Sheepshead Bay I want to thank you for showcasing Randazzo's, Roll N'Roaster, & Jay and Lloyd's on your show. Seeing my neighborhood devastated but more importantly homes of hard working honest New Yorkers & Americans trying to live their lives and raise a family. Those who lost their homes in Breezy Point were often the same brave soles (first responders) who risked so much on 9/11. The article does not advocate tipping or spending more money at Per Se or even Blanca, but the Randazzos of the world, the Jay & Lloyds, your neighborhood pizza joint, and my fav. Sunny's Bar of Red Hook hard working individuals who pour their heart and sole into the maintaining their business their sustenance, their pride and joy. I strongly urge all fellow New Yorkers or willing tourists take the train to Broad Channel, Rockaway, Staten Island, Sheepshead Bay go & see the true unwavering backbone of New York especially when we need it the most.
Not sad. Not angry. Well educated and well traveled. I simply hate most of New England. You can thank shows like Jersey Shore, and nanny Mayors such as Michael Bloomberg. I am a Northerner, that moved South. I can now understand why the native southerners pick out the accents of New Yorkers, Bostonites, etc., and direct such hate towards them.
Actually, a bunch of people in the rest of the country laughed when you guys got whacked on 9/11.
Perhaps people should detach from their "need" to live in New York. It's quickly becoming irrelevant with all of the hipsters. Sandy is a wake up call SCREAMING that there are WAY to many people living in too small an area.
irrelevant to whom? you? should everyone leave the mid west to avoid the twisters? of course all out of california to avoid earthquakes. everyone to wyoming?
Wyoming has landslides and forest fires. And blizzards and avalanches. The only place that seems to avoid most of these natural disasters is the area around Kentucky, Tennessee, and so on. But they're full of Republicans, so perhaps that's even worse.
I don't live in NYC and therefore I don't care about any of this.
well, please do drop by any time, would be a treat to have you.
Pompous anti-American (based on his show) cheese eating surrender monkey. NY is a filthy dirty city, I would rather eat fast food than a rat filled NY restaurant .
food here definitely no match for kansas city's clean offerings.
Chance of $20 tip actually making it back to the dishwasher – zero.
If it were not for restaraunt people, none of you would have a nice place to go eat.
The nasty comments here are by nasty people that are cheap and rude.
Great article Anthony and way to lend a hand to those who dont make much and wait on these rude individuals.
NYC Restaruant Worker Fund would be an excelent thing to start.
Loved NO Reservations and look forward to your articles.
Some of us have wives who are excellent cooks, why would I want to overspend when I can eat in comfort at home ?
Good to know you like your wife barefoot and pregnant in the kitchen, congratulations on your great success.
Aww, Chris. Are you stuck with fish sticks again while your wife is out drinking with friends?
Way to generalize a guy complimenting his wife's cooking. Enjoy your gluten free tartar sauce and diet V-8
You will get the tip amount, if any, which I feel you are deemed deserving of. I don't care if you are in a city which suffered a disaster. You see I go to countries to vacation which are hit by disasters every two years on average. And those people throw sex in with the meal.
So if you think I'm tipping you just because you filled my wine glass and felt you deserved my money, you can go suck it.
Wow, didn't realize Anthony Bourdain passed a law through congress ordering 50 percent gratuity. Oh wait, it was an idea, which you are perfectly free to abstain from, in silence preferably.
"Restaurant people are good people. They’ve chosen to do a very hard thing, with a very limited statistical probability of ever making any real money: serving food to people."
So what you're saying is, let's all chip in with a handout because people that "choose" to make little money, shockingly, don't have enough money to help themselves. At least you admit it. The sooner people realize that low income is a choice, the sooner we can remove them from the 50% Tax Dodger Club and force them to have some skin in the game.
I just don't know why anyone woudl want to eat at a nasty New York restaurant in the first place. Next time you are in one, tell the manager that you want to see the kitchen. That will happen as soon as hell freezes. No way wiill you be allowed to see the disgusting filth, garbage everywhere, flies, roaches, nasty hands, greasy hair, etc.
Not True Georgey, if something happens to that customer inside hell talk to his jew lawyer and sue the restaurant for everything they got; many places work very hard everyday to keep it bug free and clean as possible.
You are what's wrong with this world, go die.
Great sentiment
I hope all the folks who have seen raises year after year, seen their wealth compound in double digits for a decade and more get out of their latest trendy you have to be seen there and you have to get the $400 bottle of wine Phil had last week, and frequent these struggling eateries. Though why they'd be seen dead in them, can't imagine. Cheap thrills slumming it?
The rest of us, about 90% of us, who haven't seen our salaries keep up with inflation, before they started dropping recently, many of whom have been fired from their jobs, and hired to do the same work, hourly, at half wages, with no benefits, no vaction, no holidays, no sick time, well, the best we can do is treat ourselves to that egg on a roll with our coffee on the way to whatever work we scraped up.
I love you guy, but, you're as out of touch as everyone else with a bunch of money, safe job (and don't tell me how you slaved for that job, so did I, for a lot less along the way and nothing in the end).
Oh, as to "struggling" businesses that can't afford to pay sick, vacation, holidays, or a week during a disaster (you could even ask the time to made up, us workers are dumb enough to thank you for the opportunity), well, if you're struggling so much that you have to abuse the people making your dream come true – close up and make room for someone who might be able to treat workers like humans. You say that's not possible, nope, not with every tom dick and jane ready to prostitute themselves so the well heeled, the well paid can live cheap, on our sweat, blood and tears. Wise up, save up until you can afford that business, partner with others to get the money, or lower costs through "purchasing power"(yes that means compromising, it's actually a good thing, our country became the most powerful and admired in the world when we as a people compromised with each other, our age of dogma, follow your dream, what do you really want to do has led to our current ecomonic ruin).
I seriously doubt that my choosing to "eat out" in somewhere around the Portland OR area is going to affect the outcome of anyone in the path of Sandy, regardless of the size of my tip. This headline means nothing to 90% of the population.
I have no clue who this supposedly "cook" this Anthony character is......Hey you burgerchef wannabe, you talk about helping the restaurant business in NYC.....I have a question....what about other business's? ...your article is lame and so are you to only care about the food industry...this is the first and LAST time I read any articles about you...from you...etc!
Ah, you must be a downtown portlander, Washington Heights perhaps? Near the Japanese garden? People leaving their Bentley Continental GTs on the side of the street rather than in the garage to flaunt their wealth? Just as arrogant and pretentious as most portlanders.
Why should we tip on the percentage of the cost anyway? That has nothing to do with how much work the server did.
That is exactly right. Why should the serevr at the Mom & Pop restaurant get small money due to the reasonably priced food and the server at the outrageously overpriced restaurant who sure does less actual work get a tip far higher?
The size of your bill is indicative to the amount of money you have. It's just a social standard that's part of distributing the wealth. Tipping is a tax, plain and simple.
It's a ripoff, plain and simple, by the restaurant owner who gets to pay a lot less hourly rate.
Bourdain makes me NOT want to help NYC. I can't stand that snob.
If any of them had half a brain, they'd get out of NYC, and have a better life.
amazing that so many have left their homes to come to nyc and stay. almost makes a thinking man wonder if the city might have something to offer. you should ask one sometime.
Like a really want to help NYC.
Like New Yorkers have ever helped anyone else !!!!
right! oh, except subsidizing the nation with our taxes! other than that...what have we done?!
Nope. They laugh at us unsophisticated rubes in "flyover country" and say we cling to our guns and our religion and that we're greedy and don't pay enough taxes.
New Yorkers love big government so much, let big government help 'em. They're not getting one thin dime out of me voluntarily. Not even a penny. Let their precious government save them. It's doing so well so far.
What? So you don't live in NYC? They are not recommending you fly in here to do this, they are talking to residents
It's funny that the "flyover states" are now the ones lifting them back up with money, food, water, shelter, fuel, clothes, and countless other provisions. Don't worry, once they dry off and get their bailout everyone else will be back to being useless scum not worthy of living under the same flag as mighty NYC.
I also got a kick out of "tip heavily. And maybe send a $20 back to the dishwasher." These celebrities crack me up. It's so easy for these guys, isn't it?
I thought it was funny that anyone would think that the $20 bills would ever make it back to the dishwasher anyway. That $20 bill would be pocketed by the server in a "New York minute."
Only a religious, gun-living hick like you would point something like that out.
And that's exactly why, due to the poor and pathetic attitudes of absolutely zero camaraderie amongst the people of your own nation, do us new yorkers hold unpleasant views about the set of population you described yourself to be a part of. Walter, three words for you man...SHAME ON YOU
typical. when you need help its all about "where's the comraderie" but after its all over your noses are back up. "rednecks" and "conservitards" are donating millions but you refuse to even act civil. at least you're up front about it instead of hanging your head while you stick your hand out, ill give you that.
i'm pretty sure you've never been to staten island...noses are seldom up there. believe it or not there are a lot of 'working class' folks here in nyc, and it is mainly hard working people will low incomes who low incomes who lost the most.
Wow you sound like such a good person. A ray of light in this dark world. Seriously you sound like the arses you're talking about and frankly come off as a snob. Rather hang out with a snooty New Yorker than a know-it-all better than you rube.
bitter local yokel.
What is funny is how flyover country and the south are serious net payees ... if all taxes and aid stopped, the flyover states would effectively die
I consider myself a caring person, who is compassionate and helpful. But, I am tired of hearing New Yorkers cry about this storm. I know I'm not alone. Just pull yourselves off the mat and get on with your damn lives. You don't hear all the midwesterners whining every time a tornado decimates their town (and they didn't have 2 weeks advanced notice).
Gee, I can't believe my house was washed away by the storm. It seemed like such a safe place for it on that sandbar.
dude, anyone who just had their house washed away is going to be a little upset. that includes salt of the earth joplin folks. there is just a lot more media attention on NYC, so you hear it more.
many of those interviewed have been quite stoic and grateful, despite the setbacks.
Wow. A lot of negative attitude stomping around out there.
The man made a suggestion. If you are able to do so eat out at one of the neighborhood joints that can use the business. That's not too hard is it?
Take care of your neighbors.
If someone walks by and sees you eating they may think "This guy has reopened, I'll stop here".
All the people in that area need help. They don't need some cynic crapping on somebody that is trying to help.
"Lead, Follow, or Get Out of the Way"
Oh right, like New Yorkers have taken care of themsleves or anyone else in their lifetimes !!!
There is some of that negative attitude I mentioned.
Didn't your mother ever teach you "If you can't say anything nice no say anything at all".
Lighten up.
When my mom would say that to me, my response always was "Shut up, mom!"
All kidding aside, I agree with you Larry. The fact that this idea of supporting local restaurants, and leaving bigger tips so that all employees can benefit, is not that terrible of an idea. The sad part that it has spawned "Repubs vs Dems" and "1 percenters" shows more about us as a society, as opposed to Mr. Bourdain
Foodies live on another planet
It must be URANUS cause they all smell so bad!
I think a lot of the comments here missed a key quote " it would be a great help if those who can afford to do it".
But most of the people here are illiterate and cant read! Thats why we always vote for the wacko do-nothing power-hungry dipwads!
Eating out and tipping big in New York City is a little bit outside most people's budget, foodie toff.
No, that would be you, do*che bag.
No wonder you smell like a month old flounder. You of all people need to douche.
F this clown. I'll leave L.A. and go to New York and eat OUT, tip big when this stuck up, self loathing, French souffle chef steps OUT of the closet. Another self absorbed 1%er telling the 99% what to do.
Phil is jealous of success. A lot of people display this attitude when coming up against a better person.
"a better person"? Oh, THAT is funny !!!! Your standards are so low.
J'ai des taches de rousseur sur mon sein et je dors avec mon chien qui est muet comme Anthony
A szeplők a mellem, én alszom a skum bagie kutyám aki buta mint Antal
Why should we care about the poor? These are the people we remember in high school goofing off, getting high, staying drunk. They played stupid and never got the decent jobs cause they are uneducated. They have random sex and get diseases and crack babies so any paycheck they get goes to drugs and liquor. Obama needs to stop making excises for these degenerates and stop giving them more welfare and unemployment. They made every decision willingly cause they wanted to play while making fun of us for doing what is right! Castrate the poor and we'll be just dandy in two generations! Let Anthony Bourdain stay the drunk he is but stop telling us how to spend our money. Go back to France – you weiner!
Kids this is what a troll looks like. Just don't feed it. It wants attention and will do anything to get it.
Please, oh please, just let the Occutard movement die already. Anthony Bourdain is a "1 percenter?" Seriously? I am going to guess that anyone, who for whatever reason has more money then you, must not have earned it, they are just an evil one percenter. Right?
Occupy Eatocracy!!!!!!!
Wow! There's a lot of bullishit to wade through in there. My favorite part was: "In a business where margins are so slim, even in a “successful” restaurant, any interruption of business can be disastrous."
Successful restaurants and their owners aren't "just barely making it." Like any business they are in it to make money, which they are due. And if they are successful they stay in business. But cut the shit, Anthony, about restaurateurs doing it for 'love' and little else and as though they are a charity. I was a server at a successful chain for three years and I easily took home $120-$160 a night in tips... plus my $2/hour. That was the norm amongst all servers; some did better. So, you do the math.
Dontcha just love these rich pompous snobs telling us how to spend our money! He needs to go home to Romania or wherever the eff he is from. These illegal foreigners are mucking it up for the rest of us!
I can do the math. Let's say you take home an average of $150 in tips + $16 daily wages. Mulitply times 5, that's $830 per week. Multiply by 52, that's $43,160 per year – assuming you work every day of the year. More likely, you miss some days, maybe you make about $40,000 per year.
That's better than starvation wages – but a long ways from making the big bucks. AND that's at a well established chain, by an experienced waiter.
Be more wrong. Go on. Try. I'll wait.
Remarks on threads like these make you realize what sad & angry people make up a good portion of our society. After 9/11, we had the opportunity to somewhat come together & unite around those in our country that were suffering. People suck.... I much prefer dogs.
Open restaurants bring a sense of normalcy to an area after tragedy. They feed and they provide a hearth to those who have home damage. They are important. Tip when it's deserved. Waiters deliver good and bad service.
All the discussion about what servers say they put in the food sure makes one want to eat out, right?
Eat at home, and support your family. Let Bloomberg and the profanity chef eat out and tip large.
So quick to call Tony snobbish. Did you even read the last paragraph in which he said, "...it would be a great help if those who can afford to do it..."? I see no condescension or snobbish attitude whatsoever. Try reading the article in its entirety before sounding off like the rest of the increasing uneducated populace (aka: idiocracy) in this country who do so every day because they get their information...errr...education from sound bites and fear mongerers instead of facts and who vote accordingly. Sorry, forgot to include reality tv viewers and idolization of Hollywood celebrities. Sadly, we are circling the bowl.
betcha' the "Profanity Chef" is doing more for the victims than you are. Shut your pie hole if you can't contribute
Ok, i'll take your bet, I suspect he will do nothing for the people of NYC. In fact if he does anything , it will because his PR manager said to. On the other hand, the real hero's are the neighbours and strangers that offer acts of kindness. In fact if the government does anything, they will just raise your tax to pay for it. Again, when a stranger helps, often there is no reward other than the human connection and satisfaction. .... so with regard to your rude comment... go ..... yourself! :),,,,, have a nice day!.
Yeah falling down drunk on the sidewalk and taking up space. What an embarassment to us New Yorkers. Let him go back to Munich or Hong Kong and drink him self silly – that puss vetching vermin Democrat.
Ricos son groseros y estúpida como Anthony Bourdain tengo pecas en mi pecho y me acuesto con mi perro que es tonto como Anthony
Most of us "poor" can't afford to eat out and "tip big"......
FOLKS, you all need to do a little math and see that a server handling only 4-5 tables is making a HUGE hourly wage and sharing very little with the other staff and only claiming a fraction of the tips to the IRS and paying therefore a fraction of what he/she is supposed to pay in taxes. Most servers make far, far,. far more than the average Amercian per year. Think about what you have been tipping for an hour of time at that table and multiple it by 4-5 and see what the server is making per hour. Now the servers will just throw a fit about that being discussed.
Hey George, if I were a waiter at your table the meal might land on your lap. Spit in your food, nope I'm above that.
Truth hurts, doesn't it? What goes on in the kitchen is a whole other story of food dropped on the floor, nasty hands, nasty hair, a fly every two feet, roaches, etc., etc.
You're an idiot to a degree I can't even fathom. Enjoy being that stupid, it'll be with you the rest of your life, sadly.
Is that a fahrenheit degree or a centigrade degree, because you are not making sense, you piece of perverted mucous!
Georege is living in a fantasy if he thinks that waiters get a "HUGE" hourly wage. Does that make you feel better when are cheap and tip poorly?
Hey Georege, You think you know what you are talking about. Servers have to report all income to the owner and they then take out the appropriate tax out of the measily hourly rate they pay the server. Since most people use credit/debit cards to pay and include tip on them, the owner (and government) know exactly what the servers get. There is no fudging those numbers. Yes some people still tip cash, why blame the servers for fudging those numbers and taking the tax refund they normally would get in April and using it now. I always tip 10% on the card and the rest of what I will tip in cash.
And just who is strip searching the servers to find out how much they really made in tips ? They make far, far, far more than most people realize and don't report a fraction of it and therefore don't pay the correct taxes either. They make far more than the average American, especially at the ridiculously overpriced restaurants.
George, you are greatly, greatly mistaken. A server makes no where near minimum wage. And if low class trash who can't afford a decent tip are their customers all night, they have to tip on a certain percentages of what they sell regardless of what they receive in tips. Waiting tables and learning how to deal with the public is one of the hardest jobs out there; it's grueling, back-breaking work (try carrying 40lb trays of food up too flights of stairs 35 times a night with no a/c and people screaming at you). It's also one of the most honest professions: your skill should affect how much you make. So yeah – if you work your dupah off, you can make some good money – and you have EARNED it. I worked harder as a server than I do sitting on my dupah at my desk making 3xs the money; and I probably learned more (about dealing with people) too. Sounds, George, like you should do everybody a favor and eat at home.
I agree George. It's a pretty easy, mindless job and they can avoid taxes.
I think that most servers made less then the average wage, which is about 44K per year.
ugh, Ok you can't afford eating out so, we don't care. What's your point of your post?
And "we don't care" if you make a good tip or not. Now tell me all about what you are going to put in the food.
And we know from the movies that Brad Pitts spooges off into the food!
You have made the point that waitstaff only care about the $ on your forehead. Mother cares.
A lot of rude replies for a thoughtful suggestion to support local restaurants if one is able. His suggestion for the restaurant industry should also be applied to other local shops. Fortunately, given of what I've seen of Mr. Bourdain's show, I'm pretty sure he can handle the rude criticism and then some...
Anthony Bourdain is a class act. His Travel show "No Reservations" is fun and interesting to watch. He is absolutely right on how to help NYC recover. Those in the Northeast who still are dealing with problems I hope everything works out for the best.
Bore Dane was fun for some years, but the chronic profanity became a massive turn-off.
The "rudeness" sure is there about what servers say they put in the food. Now THAT is rude !!!!
I'll give NY a tip...you live on the coast, on what amounts to very small islands, on the coast...Hurricanes will happen. Not a question of if, but rather when.
really funny. and helpful. troll.
It is nice to see New York get just a tiny taste of the hurricane dance the south has experienced for decades with little sympathy coming from the Big Apple. What else would anyone expect of a New Yorker? Sandy is just the beginning of a new era for the upper north eastern states. Say hello to you new friend; Global Warming!
It's not nice to see ANYONE go through this. You need some serious help. God doesn't like ugly!
NYers who move to Florida are arrogant, braggarts, and loud-mouths. Nothing to like about that.
I'm sorry, but my mind is simply reeling here. As someone who'd been through a hurricane, I'd have thought you would have MORE sympathy for people dealing with loss and tragedy.
As a New Yorker who's lived here since 1996, it would never in ten billion years occur to wish what my city has been through on anyone else in the world. Please have some compassion.
I'm with you on this one! Wow, just wow. I can never understand someone who could wish ill will towards others, especially if they have experienced it. I guess I've we seen a new low here today. Sad, very very sad.
No, I did not think about human suffering caused by Sandy even though I had two aunts and two siblings riding out the storm in Upper Eastern Jersey who are now here, enjoying an extended visit. I was just thinking about property loss and not human tragedy. I was thinking how come no news about Hatai, and its nice that storm didn’t hook in and pummel New Orleans and the Gulf Coast AGAIN. Everyone cries when a summer beach fun place gets washed out like sand castles in the tide – I was selfish when I thought I’m glad my favorite pizza joint is only in three feet of water and is not washed out again and my friend’s yard has only 18 inches of standing water and only the storage area was flooded. I was glad this storm didn’t hit landfall earlier when it was stronger and could have literally destroyed a city like Philly or Baltimore. I also noted the hurricane landfall was a hundred miles south of New York City and not aimed right at it. New York City really dodged that bullet. As far as the scope of the projected landing areas of Sandy were predicted, it landed in the best spot for everyone. Atlantic City, Sandy’s Bull’s eye, how much news coverage have you seen of that city? Ocean City, Hatteras and other coastal towns suffered damage as much as some of New York beaches; how much coverage have they received in local and national news? Another batch of houses falling into the surf is normal... not big news, seriously. Had NY City not been affected, Sandy and its damage would have been just a small blip on the news radar screen.
The damage to New York City angers me. New York City holds the U.S. record as being the most costliest city in damages from hurricane and tropical storms. Both Cuomo and Bloomberg has been discussing, for TEN years, tidal and storm surge protection for New York City. It has been estimated that had it been in place, 80% of the flood damage from Sandy would not have occurred. Bloomberg’s attitude about the project is summarized by his approximate quote: “We’ll see if New York needs this type of protection”. It is estimated that damages from Sandy will be between 30 and 50 billion dollars. Yes that makes me angry. Thankfully only 3 tenths of one percent of the New York Citys' population has been left homeless.
Read more about the storm surge protection plan for NY City here:
http://www.fastcoexist.com/1680833/how-can-new-york-prepare-for-the-next-hurricane-sandy
Had I paused for a minute before I posted my original remark I would have reeled my flippant remark in. You inferred a malice in my statement because that is how you project me to be.
The south could have done what New York is doing... eat and tip your way out. And you wonder why you get no sympathy.
Dik
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/From_the_Big_Apple_to_the_Big_Easy
suj, many of the responses to this column I've found disturbingly compassionless, but yours shows by far the most unwarranted anger and ill will. If misery loves company, i honestly wish you a better day.
there is no such thing as global warming
We should help anyone who needs help. No question about that.
But I don't buy the part where chef's and restaurant owners are there to primarily serve food. They are there to make money. Just like other occupations. Everyone needs help after Sandy. But I think daily wagers, street vendors and other people who are below chefs and busboys in the social hierarchy, need it more.
Tony riecht wie Urin und isst wie ein Affe und kocht wie ein Dummkopf.
Yes, he puts urine in the dumplings.
I will tip if the service is good.
tony, we all can't be rich like you, you blowhard.
tony's just a bloated drunk sniffing little boys
He worked at Penn state, no? si vous plez
Non, pooie fouie.
Sigh. Bet you think Obama is the Muslim antichrist too. There's no reasoning with idiots.
why would you say that? kenyans are christians.
Not just no, HELL NO!!!
My dearest Anthony,
It's Pete, your stalker. I was hoping more pics of you in this artical to add to my "wall" of YOU. Whenever Im in the kitchen I don't wear anything except the apron you left here one night long ago. I can't wait to see your last show, although I will be so very sad. You're so flippin sexy I just can't take it anymore. Im gonna go whip up a soufle in your honor. I love you Tony.
Isnt he french? He's a FOREIGNER and should go home where he can get drunk in the gutter. No wonder he's so rude ! Off with his head! And his peenis too!
No.
Let me ask you this Tony. What if you are a hard working person, living paycheck to paycheck yourself but you want a good meal once in while but can't afford to leave that extra $20 for the busboy in the back kitchen. Should I then choose not to eat out at all, and have the establishment not make any of that money simply because I should not have to feel obligated to overtip?
I don't think that's what he's suggesting either.
More of a neighborly consideration of the hardships the workers have endured....and (most likely)...do what you can to help
Thank you
Tony riecht wie Urin und isst wie ein Affe und kocht wie ein Dummkopf.
Tim, did you miss the part where he says, "the people that can afford to...". The chip on your shoulder is clouding your judgement.
Tiffany people like Ding are civilized and willing to have debate without attacks. You're just as B
I apologize, I shouldn't have wrote that last remark :) Peace
NO! He said to do it anyway – and let your illegitimate baby starve. You crack ho.
In Europe leaving a tip is a rarity. Why in the rich US of A does the diner have to augment the wages of a restaurant employee? It is because his employer is able to get away with paying her/him to little to subsist on. In essence a tip is a invisible tax on the consumer.
Go live in Europe if it's such a better system. Know something before you say something.
THE ONLY GOOD NEWS IS THAT TV POLITICAL ADS STOP TOMORROW. WHOEVER WINS – WE ALL LOSE. Can't tell the fools apart – they both lie. LEAVE ME THE EFF ALONE FROM THESE GANGSTERS AND CROOKS.
Amen. But grandma, you should retire from the View. You look like your always about to fall asleep from your meds. Do you even own a computer grandma?
Nonsense. Mandatory tipping is the biggest ripoff ever invented. The wait staff should be paid a living wage, so they don't have to depend on the generosity of strangers. And the customers deserve a single clearly stated price for what they buy, not multiple mandatory components that are simply designed to confuse the customer, create the impression of a lower price, and benefit the owner.
Zzzzzzzz.
Take Sominex tonight and sleep sleep sleep.
You mean kind of like Sales Tax.
Okay, the manu says it costs 18.95, but I'm going to have to add 8.75% sales tax onto that as well, but they don't tax on my $13 martini...at least, I don't think.
Really, after all that, you're still complaining of the "confusion" of mandatory tipping?
Maybe you should try McDonald's....in England.
So what your saying is you would rather pay 50% more for the food your getting at resteraunts to pay for that living wage. As soon as that happens you'll be complaining that resteraunt food is too expensive.
I'll tell you what wrong with this country, its full of whiney little bit@hes. You don't want to pay a tip then cook your own food at home.
You're a nut bag. Let the restaurants charge a FAIR price in the first place. They can charge more and make a profit without opening restaurants all over the country and do tv shows or write books. If they stayed at work, they wouldnt have 5 asst chefs jacking up prices. No more tipping and YOU stay home and STARVE you rancid disease of a person!
Why eat out? Its common knowledge they spit and snot in the food all the time for fun. Why do you think every meal is served in some mucus sauce? The portions are small but can still hide the boogers
you cr#tch sniffer
"..The Constitution only guarantees the American people the right to pursue happiness. You have to catch it yourself.." - Benjamin Franklin
"...I am for doing good to the poor, but...I think the best way of doing good to the poor, is not making them easy in poverty, but leading or driving them out of it. I observed...that the more public provisions were made for the poor, the less they provided for themselves, and of course became poorer. And, on the contrary, the less was done for them, the more they did for themselves, and became richer..."
— Benjamin Franklin, 1766
While I think these quotes hold true for those collecting welfare, etc., I believe these quotes have NOTHING to do with people recovering from such a horrific tragedy.
Wahhhhhhhhhhhh Wahhhhhhhhhhhhh its so hard being a waiter, Any person can come up with a story to explain why their job is the hardest in the world so why should I care about this?
It's not about the harshness of the job, but more the fact that these people couldn't work last week and could use all the support that they can get. Sure, it's not necessary, but it's nice...
Thats why the socialist dems give away free welfare to the po folk who be lazy.
It's putting up with jerks for customers like you that makes the job hard.
Who is going to bring that food to your table, fill you drink glass and listen to you berate them for otherwise insignificant complaints?
None of which services is worth ANYTHING LIKE what they expect you to tip them.
AMEN !!!
Get over yourself. I'm not your customer and never will be.
Not interested in the whole pretentious consumption game or you sucking up for my tip. Much happier cooking better meals at home with friends and with better wine to go with it.
Congratulations, you self-loathing, pretentious pr!kk, you've alienated all the normal decent people who actually care about other people... now you're stuck serving only needy, whiny, arrogant rich dorks that look down their noses at you.
All I can say is WOW! Who would of thought the most polarizing article would be a simple food story related to current events and timed with the author's final episode of a tv program and additionally promoting his new "job" at CNN. While I enjoyed reading such anger and pent-up frustration contained in the comments...I'm not sure how to take them in. What exactly do you want Tony to write about? Weather? Traffic? Of course it's gonna be a flipping food story. It's tipping. Believe it or not, the food industry, for those of us who have actually traveled to NYC, is a "culture" there. Its where people meet, discuss, etc. The large part of what makes it a culture is privately owned eateries providing that unique dining experience. Finally, there are successful folks in NYC who would contribute to this recovery by tipping at there favorite places; it probably would not affect most of those who have voiced their anger here and opined on the history of tipping, the moral and ethical struggle of tipping for themselves, etc. Tip or dont tip...got it move on. Tony's and accomplished chef and respected within his area of expertise. Just for comparison I went over and read some comments for the world story section covering Iran issues, Election, etc, and there are more vile comments here and less discussion there. Very sad. If you dont tip...consider helping in relief effort in any way possible-possible, that magic word that means if you can do it if you can't it's cool.
All I can say is WOW! You manage to be condescending, rude, arrogant, and sanctimonious all at once!
As well as right....
Tony's only accomplishment is being a successful alcoholic getting drunk around the world and lucky enough to get paid for it. He has no sense of taste or smell from his hash days and usually doesnt know what country he's in at the moment. I bet his cholesterol is 500 and he is about to go into cardiac shock. His departure would be unrecognized. Hail to booze and drugs sayeth he!
Tony riecht wie Urin und isst wie ein Affe und kocht wie ein Dummkopf.
Why should restaurant workers get tips? Other personal services businesses do not.
I don't tip my Ferrari mechanic.
I don't tip my investment advisor.
I don't tip my tailor.
And I certainly don't tip even restaurant workers when I am at my European homes – it would be an insult to them
Because restaurant workers in most states do not make minimum wage. Tips are how they get paid.
I don't like it. I wish it were changed (like in Cali, they get minimum wage at least). But that's the system we have.
Change it, or accept it. If you eat out, understand you must tip. If you don't like it, don't eat out.
No more tipping. Let these celebrity judges get the eff off television and back to work where they can pay fair wages. Eat fast food and dont tip a soul. You tip the priest after a sermon? U effin liberal do gooders telling everyone else how to behave while you got monica under your desk giving you a hummer. But thats another loser story.
Actually, yes. You do tip after a sermon. It's called tithing, you freakin' moron.
Mr. Romney is that you?
Because restaurant workers (servers at least) typically make below minimum wage. Their wage is set with the fact in mind that our system is built on tipping.
Oh, and I've had very few servers anywhere in Europe who deserved much of a tip.
I have been to NYC and worked as wait staff years ago. If you can afford it I agree with Mr. Bourdain. I'm sure there are plenty that are struggling just to feed their family at home. Having been to NYC the restaurants are expensive, even the small ones, but they were always full!
Good luck NYC...
Don't assume that all the negative comments are from Republicans and that Democrats hold the moral high ground writing all the supportive comments. There is plenty of ignorance and arrogance from both sides represented in the comments being posted.
All you liberal leftist socialists love to spend MY money. YOU can tip big to these illegal alien workers and you can support teen tramps with fatherless babies. Leave it to drunken Boredain to tell me what to do. Ef him. Abolish tipping and let restaurants pay fair wages. If Bama wins, we all lose and the national debt will bury us. Welcome to west china – u demo fools.
Every single person posting something negative in these comments needs to take a hard look at themselves. Bashing Bourdain for anything other than occasionally being a bad rolemodel (which only adds to his entertainment value) is just ignorant. The guy has done tons for charity and the one time I met him seemed like a really nice guy.
This was a positive article encouraging people that can to be charitable to their neighbours, anyone who disagrees is quite frankly part of the problem.
Charitable to neighbors? Well, that tip mostly goes, if not entirely, to the server, who is so stringy that little, if any, goes to the people who work behind the scenes at restaurants and who do the really hard work. Also, those that work behind the scenes at restaurants have to pay taxes on all their pay. You can bet that servers don't pay a fraction of the taxes they are supposed to pay.
You clearly are ignorant to how the restaurant industry works. Food servers generally "tip-out" 2% of their total food SALES – not tips – to bussers, hostesses and others. So if guest tipped exactly 15% that night, the server has to fork over 2% to the other "behind the scenes" workers.
Then, the IRS requires food servers to claim a minimum of 8% of their food SALES – again not tips – as taxable income. Most restaurants, per IRS regulations, have systems in place to prevent a food server from claiming anything less than 8%. And with most customers paying with debit/credit cards these days, most of their tips are claimed as taxable income.
Reply to Rev. You know as well as I do that the tips servers receive is far, far, far above 8% of their food sales and they sure as hell don't state at the end of their shift all their tips, just enough to satisfy the IRS 8% rule. Also, any restaurant person who works behind the scenes knows full well that the servers reveal only a fraction of their tips amounts and therefore only give the real worker a tiny amount of their real tips.
My Republican-leaning butt absolutely agrees with you. We need to be helping our fellow Americans out.
Most of the detractors in this comment thread I'll bet have never worked in a restaurant. It's hard, back-breaking, underpaid labor. That tatooed, socially maladjusted busboy that you condescendingly sneer at works harder than most of you ever will. There are no sick or personal days or paid vacation that you can just take whenever you want. Grandma died? Put her in the ground on your day off. Usually the vacation is the 2 weeks you get when the owner closes down right before board of health comes in to inspect the place and they do maintenance on all the equipment. There is no air conditioning for the employees, just the customers. Most employees can't afford to eat the food that they serve. You can't pee when you want to. I'ts go-go-go from when you punch in to when you clear down. Other than that, it's busting hump to feed nitwits like Jim38 who thinks that America is Europe and all costs are put in the bill. With all it's hardships, it's probably the last true meritocracy left on this planet. You don't succeed unless you truly earn it.
Jim38 needs to put in one week as a prep monkey or dishwasher and he'll change his tune. Guaranteed.
There is a solution to all bad stuff you complain about, ya know. QUIT !!!!
That solution leaves us without waiters.
The REAL solution is more obvious – TIP.
No it doesn't because few would quit because the great money they make and the little taxes they pay on their real income. I made a bundle when I worked as a server during college and the unspoken rule was to always SAY you didn't make squat and pay little taxes.
I plan on just sending a big check to restaurant owners and hope it 'trickles down' to the servers.
LOL
Silly Republicans
I am shocked John why people are whacking at you.
So what I am hearing is, we the customer has to pay/tip the waiter for their service to compensate the low wages the owner of the restaurant is paying them.
If the restaurant is making money based on the good service provided by the staff, increase their wages, why put that burden on the customer.
Lot of hipsters posting on this forum pretending to be all socially conscious. Everyone who works in any form of business is doing some sort of service to someone. So why are waiters so different.
To answer your question, "margins" is the reason the owner can't increase wages. That is the nature of the restaurant business, and any other business for that matter.
I think people are forgetting it is not businesses just being cheap when they pay their servers/bartenders 2.13 an hour. The minimum wage laws specifically exclude these individuals because these are jobs that are based on tips. At the end of a shift, bartender/servers clock out and enter what they made in tips. If they are not making minimum wage in tips, the employer is required to make up the difference.
At least that's how it worked when I waited tables, as recently as 2008.
Guy writes a friendly article about helping your fellow man and all the freaks
come out and attack him. You need to think about giving a helping hand once
in a while and maybe you might get one in return someday.
I believe it's safe to say that the negative comments are coming from Repubs/Romney supporters. Nothing new there.
Kevin- you are a prime cut of a horse's hindquarter. I worst tips I get are from Obama supports- it is easy to tell.
Wow, easy to tell by reading the postings who has never been to NYC, who has never worked in a restaurant, who is just another angry white rightwing male, who does not appreciate good food and good living, who cannot comprehend what it is they have just read and who is jealous of the successes of someone who worked hard to get to where they are now......I am glad Bourdain has fun on the job because it sure beats the hell out of being miserable like some of you are......GROW UP.
Tony, I agree with you 100%. But let me tell you this, I am from DC and some of the waiters of well know restaurants in the city have stollen the idendities of customers by purchasing big tickets items using their credit card numbers. However, not all waiters are bad people. They all rely on tips to pay their rents or help their families. I always tip well. I love your show and your character and humour. You are now a multimillionair due to you hard work and talent. Congrad!
Hey, the waiters are just spreading the wealth. What's wrong with that? Even our president is an advocate of wealth spreading. So the patrons aren't signing up for it? They'll never miss it. They're winners of life's lottery.
Usually , Anthony is way over the top but he is 100% right on this one !
.
Repost: I'm a successful conservative independent, but that's irrelevant here. My wife and I were impacted by Katrina and understand that when something like this happens, your whole world is shaken to the core. All anyone in New York is looking for is a little empathy and understanding.
For those of you who are spouting the "save for a rainy day" rule that applies to ordinary circumstances, this is anything but. Please keep your heartless comments to yourself. And make sure to let us know who you are so that if you're hit by a fire, hurricant, earthquake, tornado, or any other natural disaster, we won't waste our time coming to help you since you, quite obviously, have it all figured out.
Screw the overpaid waiters and fat restaurant owners.
Comprehension not your strength, eh, smooth-brain?
Few are overpaid or rich.
I completely agree with Tony.....but in watching his television shows I find him to be quite condescending and extremely creepy.
The food is the only thing I like about NYC. I came from a small town and the restaurants were good. They served only local style, but NYC has the diversity to make it interesting. It would be a shame to loose the small restaurants that define the culture of NYC.
Bourdain is an obnoxious jerk and I'm glad his final episode is fainally here. I wish they would take his insulting show off the air completely. FOAH!
Uhh, you know you're allowed to change the channel...don't you?
...I realize that everyone has different taste in entertainment, but in what world is his show insulting? Yes, he has a somewhat gruff personality, but he always makes a point to go beyond the Frommers guide to where the real people are, and he does it with respect. In my humble opinion, there isn't any other travel show that comes close to doing that.
Please enjoy his new program on PBS (starting this Friday) as well as the one he will be doing for CNN.
Have a NICE day!
tony is nowadays the most interesting men in the world and you are boring.
How about cut govt and slice back union wages; wow not that is a novel idea; please do not tell others to sacrifice unless govt will sacrifice first
Cutting back on wages is not the answer. So, you expect everyone to work for low wages?
Yeah, let's go back to the Gilded Age!
Bad news. We're already there.
I never tip. It is not my job to pay employees of a restaurant. I pay my bill and I expect all my costs to be included in that bill. I have been to many other countries where I have gotten excellent service from wait staff and they don't expect any tips in return. Tipping is a hidden tax and I am not willing to pay. I am against of any tax increases of any type
Do you have regular restaurants you go to where you don't tip? Do you continue to receive good service?
In order to receive good service I drop hints about the wait person receiving a big tip . That always gets them motivated.
motivated to get a tip that they don't receive?
Restaurant workers are not exactly rocket scientists. Sometimes they need to be given a little push to them going
ahhh...you're so sneaky for them to have not figured you out yet.
"Restaurant workers are not exactly rocket scientists."
Jim38, are you kidding? Some restaurant workers are putting themselves through college to avoid having a massive debt afterwards. That was my story–I'm now working on my dissertation for a Ph.D. in mathematics. You sound like a jerk.
- jim38 – "Restaurant workers are not exactly rocket scientists."
Seriously? You're a smug, sanctamonious S-O-B aren't you. I put myself through school working front and back of the house for years. Though its true – I'm not a rocket scientist – Instead I have an MS, an MBA, a JD and an MD. Ignorant twit.
Dear Jim
Just a word of free advice
Don't do that in NYC...no one will be responsible for whatever it is in your food.
And you can take THAT to the BANK
Nasty, rude and deceptive. Many of us worked our way through university as front and back of house personnel and tips are what made the difference.
You moron. Other countries don't accept tips because they pay their workers a normal hourly wage. Waiters here get $2 an hour. I like so many students worked as a server during college. You don't want to know what we did to your type of customer's food. And we always remembered who you were. If you can't afford a couple bucks for a tip, STAY HOME you lazy pig. If you don't like that restaurants don't pay their waiters a normal hourly wage and thus it's expected that you tip the waiters, move to a different country and stay out of our restaurants! I'm happy to no longer be a server, I have a great career now. But I always remember how difficult it was and always tip well, unless service was awful, which it rarely is. Your kind makes me sick. And I can guarantee, if you keep doing what you're doing, you'll be getting sick too! From what the waiters do to your food, hahaha
I do know for a fact that you are lying. Restaurants are required to pay the difference in wages + tips if it is less than the minimum wage. Most of the time these entitled wait people expect to make more than that. I am fine with that but that is the job of the people who own the restaurant not me.
Wow your stupidity is actually shocking! I knew there were a lot of dumb people in this country, but you certainly shattered my expectations! The restaurant does not pay you the difference! And what difference are you talking about? If you are not tipping, that waiter makes $2 an hour. With no tips, you get just that! Where are you getting your "information" from? Oh sure, let's see, as someone who actually was a waiter, as well as any other waiter you can ever ask, why would I have any idea what I'm talking about? Why would I have any idea how much waiters make, considering the fact that I received checks for $2 an hour, and most of the time I didn't even receive that because when you claim your tips at the end of the night (from the normal public, unlike you, who do tip) if that amount is over a certain number, you don't get that $2 an hour anyway. Not like you miss that anyhow. Jim, in the words of the principal in Billy Madison, this quote says it the best. This is all I have left to say to your moronic stupid waste of life:
"what you've just said is one of the most insanely idiotic things I have ever heard. At no point in your rambling, incoherent response were you even close to anything that could be considered a rational thought. Everyone in this room is now dumber for having listened to it. I award you no points, and may God have mercy on your soul. "
"AllYourBase' Type "make up the difference if not tipped enough" into Google and read some of the articles. I believe that is what Jim is referring to, i.e. " If an employee does not make enough in tips to bring the wage up to the minimum wage, the employer is required to make up the difference."
Ding, there were several times where there were storms and no one came in to the restaurant. I can tell you that my restaurant never paid any of us the difference when we made nothing in tips that day. You can read whatever you like online, but experience proves what is really happening out there. And if there are restaurants that do this, it still does not excuse the deplorable comments and behavior of someone like Jim, and I'm shocked there's another person on the planet who would stand up for someone like him and what he is doing.
AllYourBase,
I'm sure you've heard this before, buy you're way off base here. If you read my comments, I am in no way supporting Jim attitude towards tipping. However, I am agreeing that his statement about making up for the loss in tips is what is supposed to happen. If it does not actually happen, that doesn't change the fact that it is actually required. If you had known this at the time, maybe you could of brought it up (and either gotten the extra cash...or laughed at).
AllYourBase is a clear example of the statement I made earlier about waiters not being rocket scientists. His employer is cheating him and he does not even know it
So, servers put bad stuff in the food of people they don't like ? Well, THAT news is going to help servers get more tips I am sure. Just wait til one of their "buddies" spills the beans to a customer and the dear server has to spend a little time in jail.
Jim, my employer is not a restaurant. If you had even eighth grade reading comprehension skills you would have noticed I said that was in college. I have a career now and I make lots of money. Jim, you can't weasel your way out of your sick comments. Someone who is proud to be a cheap bastard. Wow. Most cheap people try to hide it! Haha, you are a total joke, and a dumb one at that. Case in point: "I never seen a restaurant .." Hahaha. I never seen? You might want to try using the word "have" in that sentence. You sound like an 8-year old kid. Actually, I know some 8-year olds who are smarter and more considerate people than you.
Jim, my employer is not a restaurant. If you had even eighth grade reading comprehension skills you would have noticed I said that was in college. I have a career now and I make lots of money. Jim, you can't weasel your way out of your sick comments. Someone who is proud to be a cheap moron. Wow. Most cheap people try to hide it! Haha, you are a total joke, and a dumb one at that. Case in point: "I never seen a restaurant .." Hahaha. I never seen? You might want to try using the word "have" in that sentence. You sound like an 8-year old kid. Actually, I know some 8-year olds who are smarter and more considerate people than you.
And to the guy being shocked that servers put stuff in your food if you don't tip, are you really that naive that you didn't hear about this before? (As a side note I never did this, but I definitely saw some pretty nasty things being done by other servers in the kitchen when they had a nasty customer to deal with)
You are still dumb enough to get screwed over by your employer lol.
Jim, I believe you mean, "WERE dumb enough"
Lol. Is that all you got? What's next, "I know you are but what am I?"
You are the definition of dumb, cheap, and classless. Being proud to not tip. Do you also club baby seals on the side? Well I can see this will go nowhere, so I'll just rest assured that you'll enjoy several bouts of stomach illnesses from your habit of not tipping.
Ding: My bad, by the way. I misinterpreted your comment before. Point taken.
No, it is "are" because stupidity does not go away.
AYB, if Jim is serious, my guess is that every negative thing you've said about him is true. I'm hoping he's just trolling at this point looking for a reaction...
You are perhaps the biggest jerk to post heer, ever. Maybe some of your regular wait staff are adding "something special" to your food before they serve it you. One can only hope so...
Jim- you are another prime cut of a horse's hindquarter. Most Europeans don't tip since they pay the wait staff a living wage, but the people of Europe are used to paying a lot more for food then Americans. I hope you enjoy your "extra seasoning" if you ever show up where I work again after not tipping. Especially after saying your going to leave a large tip and leave nothing.
Stay out of restaurants if you are too cheap to tip.
I never seen a restaurant that has a clear sign that states tipping is required. If I see that I will stay out of that restaurant.
So jim, you are ignorant and clueless, and plead such, as well as cheap.
Do you not give money to museums who ask for voluntary donations as an entry fee either? Or do you say, "well, it's not required, so I'm keeping my money!"
I do stay out out of "full service" restaurants.But not because I am too cheap.Because I was able to retire early and have no desire to return to the slavery of a "job".I am certain that I am all the healthier and wealthier for this decision.I have heard enough about how absolutely nothing is wasted back in the kitchen.
@Jim38
Rest assured the people who work in the restaurants you frequent are well aware of who you are and most assuredly are putting your needs at the back of the line (I dare say I might spit in your food if you were a regular customer of mine).
Don't tip???? Please cook and serve yourself when you are in the USA.
I hope you're not a regular customer anywhere. If so, guaranteed you're getting a lunger hocked into your entree every time. No charge.
Problem with tips is that the workers behind the scenes do most of the work and see very little, if any, of the tip. Also, most servers make very good money and pay little, if any, taxes on those tips.
I wonder how many servers have spit in your food that you do not know about? Real "smart" move dude!...
Stay home and cook and serve your own food then. Get it.....serve= service which is a benefit to you.
Love Anthony Bourdain and his show. But, restaurants, like people, shouldn't be living paycheck to paycheck. Unless you just opened, you should maintain savings to weather events like this. I worked in the food industry for 7 years and the reason many people work paycheck to paycheck is because they spend their tips on things at night after work (me included at the time), when they should instead save what money they can and go home. Granted, this is not the case for everyone, but from my experiences, more people than are willing to admit do this. Restaurant owners need to properly evaluate risk and prepare for it or not open a business at all.
What kind of fantasy land of rainbows and unicorns do you live in?
the good kind
I know – what a fantasy land. Where people make responsible decisions and think before they do things. How dare someone save money.
Where are the wall street bankers. It's time for them to repay for the mortgage fraud.
uhh yeah...makes sense....So we are suppose to eat out and tip big to save NYC??? Won't people eating out need their money also??? are only restaurants important? do you really think they will give anything to NYC??? think again. What about their business?
sorry I meant what about their business savings ? They don't look out for themselves and we are suppose to forfeit our money to bail them out??
Nice way to blame the restaurateur for losses incurred during a hurricane that caused lengthy electrical failure, and to demonize an author who merely suggested going out and supporting local businesses in their time of need. There's also a built-in presumption, which you evidently did not see, that the suggestion only applies to those who have money to eat out, and isn't asking anyone who is strapped to fork over their last twenty to the bus boy.
Debbie is probably one of those folks who also responded this way when Katrina hit New Orleans. There are times to argue about welfare and whatever else. But in the case of a natural disaster, we should come together to help our fellow citizens. And if tipping more will help folks keep their jobs, then we should help any way we can.
Debbie,
Swing and a miss, the comment you posted missed his point completely. I wish I had the 20 seconds of my life back I wasted reading your comments. We are all collectively dumber from reading your misguided comment
He is speaking from experience about the types of people in the restaurant industry and offering a way to lend a helping hand for those who can afford to. Not everyone was impacted by this storm and even of those who were, many were mearly inconvenienced compared to those who have suffered a total loss.
He is suggesting that if you have the means to eat out, then do so which will help those who are most likely living pay check to pay check and seeing a decline in income in impacted areas. This is one of many ways to help everyone get back on their feet in te areas that were impacted
Go back to creating a butt groove on your couch, watching the View, and stuffing your pie hole with cheese doodles. No one is counting on you for help anyway.
hey billy buttcrack--
what I am trying to say is that I am sure people in NYC have much more important and pressing things to spend their money on then eating out ... but you would haveto pull head from ass to understand that. and thanks very much I helped refugees from Katrina in MY HOME...so SCREW YOU
WOW. Tony makes a friendly, neighborly suggestion, something that use to be called the "Christian thing to do" and he gets this backlash from the conservative, non-christian, capitalist right-wing nuts. I thing we have gone too far. Politics aside, but is this really how you feel about your neighbors?
you're weird. Anthony's a French gentleman.
Barbara – what the hell are you talking about?
how weird American men are now!
Like you!
No he is not. Pretty sure he is American. Try a simple Google search before you post something next time.
He's from Jersey...
religion aside, I agree. It was merely a suggested way of helping those who have been affected as well. If you can't afford to do so, don't do it.
Jesus was a capitalist, apparently.
I bet some of the people who didn't evacuate probably didn't have the financial means to do so. Either they had no money to help them get out, or had no money for them to find a place to stay outside of the NY\NJ. So asking people to eat out and TIP BIG, wow, good in theory but not in reallity.
I'm surprised Romney hasn't gotten on TV and told everyone who lost their cars to flooding to just call for limo service like he would.
I still haven't heard any talk about people being prepared. Nobody ever tells people to build up a nest egg. Put away some money EVERY time you count your sales in case of big problems. Sure, you can't prepare for a national emergency, but you can definitely be prepared to support yourself in case of one. But, those mom and pops shops would rather make sure they own a new car, can go do their hair every week, etc. instead of living a little less posh.
Do you look in the mirror much? Can't imagine you'd like what you see. When people go through a difficult time the only appropriate response is compassion, lending a hand or, if you have the conscience of a troll, just stay out of the way and be quiet. Do you really not get that millions of your fellow citizens live a tenuous existence and they aren't all being irresponsible?
Take a peek at reality: not everyone has the means to even build up a nest egg. It's all many people can do just to pay the rent from month to month. Even a nice restaurant, can only survive so long after a devastating loss. Individual restaurateurs will vary, but not all are in the same position to keep a month or two of operating expenses in the bank for when catastrophe strikes.
I'm a successful conservative independent, but that's irrelevant here. My wife and I were impacted by Katrina and understand that when something like this happens, your whole world is shaken to the core. All anyone in New York is looking for is a little empathy and understanding.
For those of you who are spouting the "save for a rainy day" rule that applies to ordinary circumstances, this is anything but. Please keep your heartless comments to yourself. And make sure to let us know who you are so that if you're hit by a fire, hurricant, earthquake, tornado, or any other natural disaster, we won't waste our time coming to help you since you, quite obviously, have it all figured out.
I like to watch Tony's shows and I have nothing against New York restaurants. It's been a while sine I was last there, but I remember well how one restaurant was charging 12.75 for a lunch entrée and, for the EXACT same item in the night hours, charged 21.75. Fact is, New York restaurants, as yummy as their food can be, have been overcharging for years as a matter of course on their items. It is expected and accepted. Sadly, it means a more limited audience of patrons available to support the restaurants when hard times hit. Tony, hon- most of us simply do not have the budget to eat at these restaurants, much less over-tip to the tune of the cost of the meal. Sorry.
Ahhh...supply and demand
You need to understand these people need to live in or around the city ... that is not cheap, and therefore prices are going to be higher. Common sense?
I am sure it is not cheap to live in New York. People's income does not stretch far enough to go to these struggling restaurants that overcharge for their items. My point is they are bringing the financial woes on themselves and need to change their business models before they go under. The restaurant industry needs to rethink how they pay (or do NOT pay) their wait staff, how they use a lot of undocumented workers to cut costs, how they charge astronomical prices for simply prepared, cheap items... how customers do not feel they have gotten their money's worth after their "dining experience."
Many restaurants everywhere in the US have lunch offerings that are charged at lower prices than during dinner time.
Supply and demand, sir.
Indeed. No argument from me. And, this is why the restaurants in New York which overcharge more than the rest of the country are not doing so well financially. I hope tony has some deep pockets for his huge neighborly tips...
so you mean restaurants in NY do the same thing as most restaurants across the country by having a lunch and a dinner menu!?!? Absurd!
Yes, restaurants do have lunch and dinner menus. However, my point was the extreme difference in price for the SAME item.. Not a larger portion, no additional veggies– the exact same thing. New York really does charge more in their eating establishments than other major cities. Whatever their reasons, it does not particularly endear them to tourists to their fine city. I might visit New York, but I'd rather dine in New Jersey where you can get much better value for your dollar. (And I do not live in either locale..)
Again...it's a question of "supply and demand". More demand at dinnertime, price can go up. Same kind of thing with cover charges at certain bars/clubs...get there early at night when demand is low, no cost. When it's late and demand is high, you have to pay.
And it's not just NYC and it's not every restaurant in NYC. So, not fair to stereotype NYC (among the many others) for something that not every restaurant does. That's like...well, we know what that's like.
NYC has the highest rent and highest concentration of wealth in the country, not to mention the most varied, thorough, and influential food scene. I love paying cheap prices to go out to eat when I visit Podunk, but that's not feasible in NYC. It's a tourist mentality to not take into account the rent and cost of living that is just part of NYC (and is incorporated into salaries, for the most part).
So what that's what you're in business for. Suck it up
Amen! Whine and cry. Northeasters are good at that.
burying your head in the sand and just being a d-bag when you could help fellow Americans. You are all the same.
Locally owned restaurants are an important cog in the wheel of any local economy and there are multiple people/organizations who depend on their success to ensure their own, from employees to small suppliers. However, it's important while you're rallying around these restaurants to remain mindful of the people in Brooklyn, Staten Island and NJ who don't even have a roof over their head at the moment – if you peruse the #DineOutNYC hashtag, it was basically a brag stream about the fact their $30 entrees were amazing. When you go to tweet about table-side truffle service, ask yourself if that's really necessary when there are people who literally have nothing right now. I'd love to see some acknowledgement by the restaurants that while their success is important, they're also thinking of those who suffered irreparable damage; even if it's something as simple as a collection bin for canned food and water at the door.
Waitress handles 4 tables with three parties each through dinner – 12 $100 meals . 15% = $180
if restaurant employees don't earn much and have no benefits -UNIONIZE
Unionize?!??!! are you completely retarded. Not only would you 12 meals @ $100 , be 4 meals at $150, but there would be a lot less people eating out. You idiots and your union talk. Look the F around dude, all the jobs are going overseas because union mafias think they should be paid $50 an hour for turning a screw. Meanwhile someone in China will do it for $2 a day. Wake up.
typical right winger – foul mouthed and not too bright - how are we sending waitress jobs to china Unions are great and executives are scum
you are seriously an idiot if you think the unions are the reason jobs are going overseas....jobs are going over seas because they pay slave wages over there....the unions have been crippled in the last 30 years starting with the republicans own version of Stalin, Ronald Reagan...
Greg – Jobs are not going overseas because of unions. They're going overseas because companies don't even want to pay the American minimum wage to their workers. It's not that companies don't want to pay $ 25 to a union worker, they don't even want to pay $ 8 an hour to their employees because they can go overseas and pay $ 8 a DAY for the same labor.
Say what you want about unions, but I think this country has been brainwashed by corporate America to be anti-union. If you look at what union workers make in most jobs, it's a decent wage and decent benefits for honest work. Do some people game the system? Of course, but that happens everywhere. For the most part, union workers are not overpaid in relation to the job they do. They are only overpaid in comparison to non-union workers doing the same job. That is not because of unions. That is because corporations have shown time and time again that they will pay their workers as little as they can, and I don't fault the union workers who stood up for themselves and demanded a reasonable salary for their work.
Financial tidings from another empty-headed Liberal telling struggling Americans how to spend their money.
Great trolling!
Of course, if you were serious you'd have to be dumber than an Oklahoma mule. Spending money is now "liberal?" Deciding to perform a charitable act is now "liberal?" Son, you've got things backwards. It's "liberal" to expect to government to do these things for us. It's CONSERVATIVE to do them ourselves. It's CONSERVATIVE to suggest that people go out and spend their money and help others.
It's what the adults around here call "society." And if it offends you, well, some folks aren't fit to live in one, I suppose.
Not to put words in Mr. Bourdains mouth but I doubt he is referring to those who cannot afford to. There are plenty of well to do people in NY that can afford it and may as a result of this article. Instead of being a debbie downer how about you try to look at the up side and spread change and the giving spirit as Anthony has.
Its always the liberal that spends other peoples money. Tax someone else and help the poor who are typically shiftless and lazy. If theyre not handicapped they should learn a trade. Clinton sent all our jobs to Asia! Whatever happened to the work ethic? Now we hand out benefits with no responsibility. That drunk Bored-Dane can give out as much money to illegal alien dishwashers he wants. He has no business telling me how to tip! The liberal northeast is doomed by heaven. Sandy was but a warning from above!
Romney sent out jobs to Asia GW Bush cut taxes for Britney Spears Lindsey Lohan and Paris Hilton
GW Bush cut taxes for everyone, so what's your point??
Tell 'em SteveDave!
Wow, reality check, dude.......many of the "poor" in the United States are WORKING POOR and they are far from shiftless and lazy. I sincerely hope something tragic happens to you, that wipes out all of your savings and renders you indebted or homeless.....maybe then you would be singing a different tune. Jerk.
We can all see the maturity of your argument by the inclusion of elementary-level name calling. My goodness...
Let them eat cake.
Funny, I thought helping thy fellow man was a Christian principle. Apparently human decency is now a liberal trait as well.
Tony: you may have to taste as part of your job, but to be intoxicated on your TV shows reveals a problem. Get help. Also, kitchen help should be paid a decent wage and not be illegal immigrants restaurantuers can take advantage of.
Amen, His glorification of being a drunkard is getting old! He needs to sober up and get a real job. No wonder they chased him out of the kitchen. He'd have cut off at least two fingers by now!
both of you are idiots...He's basically on a vacation review the culture and have fun....and getting paid to do it. Don't be jelous
Jealous of a lush who is a personality for the sake of being a has-been? Your the idiot for idolizing a drunk. Get a life and do some good – and stop promoting $100 meals with $2 worth of food just to be called "trendy" or "cool." Food is food. Its all poop in 2 hours anyway. He doesnt even promote healthy food habits. He's a toxic role model. I agree with these guys!
some people enjoy eating out and it has nothing to do with being cool? If that's all you see it as, then maybe that's why you don't do it. And to some the $100 isn't just for $2 of food, it's for the entire experience...being out, taste, most often company, etc...
Actually, I've been to a number of the restaurants that his show has promoted, more than once. And the far marjority have been everything he said they were, repeatedly.
This includes high end expensive restaurants and mid and lower end cost wise places.
Doesn't matter. Most of you won't visit the city or eat in any of their restuarants, but feel free to snark about them all the same online.
Your loss.
Wow! You poop within two hours of eating a meal? Unbelievable. You must eat a lot of good, crunchy green stuff. I would imagine you probably have to wear diapers too, with such an active bowel. Ya win some. Ya lose some...literally.
being intoxicated on the job is the sign of a serious health problem
He is right....but id rather someone a bit less snide was making this point.
When I've made my millions writing silly books and get a network to pay me to be filmed while getting drunk around the world, then I too shall send $20 back to the dishwasher. Restaurant service gets worse and worse while more and more unidentified objects can be seen in my food. Happy retirement Bourdain!
Right on!
This is not an article saying "in order to help, do this and not this", it's merely suggesting that if you're the type of person to eat out and you go to one of these restaurants that were closed, keep the servers and workers in mind and do what you can to help.
How is any article (or author of such an article) suggesting help people who might be in need bashed?
Three cheers for you Tony! May your idea be followed by as many people as possible. You're a good guy no matter what people say ;)
Now let him support hiring US citizens and not illegal aliens. Then the owner must pay a fair wage and tips wouldnt be necessary to make up the difference. And tell this guy to stop promoting endless drinking binges around the world. He's not funny when he's sloshed in a foreign bar. And stop promoting the high fat unhealthy eating lifestyle. When's your next heart attack scheduled?
has he had even one yet?
Tipping should be abolished. Its the employer's job to make sure employees are paid enough to DO THEIR JOB. Why dont we tip everyone then, starting from the dentist to the store checkout clerk? Its cultural stupidity that needs to end.
As for helping NYC, there are much better ways to help than to leave large tips for waiters and waitresses. This guy is just giving this advice because he has a TV show that involves eating out.
Sorry to see you feel that way, John.
Sounds like you are a cheapskate! Tip is appreciation of thier service. There is no law saying you have to tip.
Listen SUNG, use your head and answer my questions: Why do we not tip the dentist and the store checkout clerk? There you go, there's no logical answer to that. Therefore tipping is a stupid outdated concept.
Like I said: Its the EMPLOYER'S job to make sure the employee is paid sufficiently.
100% agree with you. Tipping is not required by law but if you don't think you are called a cheapo. What logic is that.
So John, let me get this right. You suggest we abolish tipping for the food service indrustry? Well what about that individual who goes above and beyond to provide you with fantastic service? They should be paid the same as that lazy waiter who couldn't even get your order right? Tipping is not just a way to help the people in the food service industry, it also ensures you get better service because of the incentive of said tip.
Learn what "service sector" means. Tips = "To Insure Prompt Service" If I don't get it, they don't get one. Dentist and check out clerks don't get one because they are not "IN THE SERVICE INDUSTRY " moron. Back in the day we tipped our grocery delivery person but not the clerk because the delivery person was doing a service for the customer. The clerk is doing a service for the employer. This is EXACTLY why so many American s have been duped by the term "job creator".
While we're on the subject of definitions, try "myth", "urban legend", etc...
Tips does not mean "to insure prompt service", but again, its merely a suggested way of helping the employees who have suffered as well. It's not a mandatory thing to do, i.e. if you can, please do.
Jake, by providing an acceptable level of service, they are not doing a favor on us,they are doing their JOB.
D-FILER, you're the moron. Look up "service industries" on Wikipedia. It mentions Banking, Insurance, Real estate, Construction, Telecommunication, Government and so on. Why do people from these other areas not get any tip?
Further more, who said that people in "service" industries should be getting a tip?
Thirdly, you're a fking idiot to think "Tips = "To Insure Prompt Service". Providing prompt service is their JOB, get it?
Tip my dentist? You are such an ass. My dentist makes gobs of money. If you had ever WORKED in a restaurant, you would have a different view entirely. It's a hard life, no matter what your job is. Shame on you.
J,
Alright, forget the dentist. Lets do Dental Assistant, or store checkout clerk, or Teacher. Why aren't Teachers and Store checkout clerks tipped? There you go, you cant use your head here because you don't have one. As for a job being hard, everyone has a hard job. Do something else if you don't like it or if you're not being paid enough.
Tipping does need to be abolished in order to provide fair, steady wages for waiters and waitresses. But you not tipping doesn't solve that, it only takes money away from someone doing their job. They're not gaining any great insight and their manager or owner probably doesn't care – you're just the jerk that didn't tip like you know you're supposed to.
It's his view and input on a specific area of service, and how people can help in that area. As for tipping dentists, I'm thinking they're doing alright.
I was a waitress from 2003-2009 (now I'm an academic). I never met a server who wanted to abolish the tipping system. It's actually better for everyone: the servers make more money than the restaurant could afford to pay them, then the restaurant can staff enough people to give tables good service, and the customer has a server who is invested in their satisfaction. If there were no tipping, your bill would go up.
Plus the nature of the work really depends on how busy the restaurant is. There were times I felt like I would explode from the stress, but it always meant a big payday. Other times there wasn't much to do other than fold napkins. Tipping ensures that servers are paid in a way that reflects how hard they worked.
The tips are extra cash for servers. The system should be paying them atleast the minimum wage and if its not, the system needs to be fixed. Dont ask me for cash because the employer isnt giving you the minimum wage. That's not my job.
I don't tip my dental assistant. She provides me with a service too. Why not? Any logical response to that?
Another question: Why is tipping of US government employees illegal? Why should tipping waiters be legal? There are no expectations of tips in China, Japan (where its considered offensive), Singapore, South Korea, Australia (minimum wage is standard for all professions), Belgium, France, Finland, Denmark.
So once again, your employer has to be forced to provide you with sufficient wages. Would food prices go higher? Why would they? The tip belongs to the waiter, not the establishment.
As for "Tipping ensures that servers are paid in a way that reflects how hard they worked." - again,this should apply to other jobs as well.
We're all paid the same every month whether there's a busy day today or not. That's how it should be. So that's a lame excuse.
Once again, JUST like for all other professions in the World, it is the job of your EMPLOYER to make sure you are paid enough.
It would be better if everyone was paid a LIVING WAGE as restaurant workers in Europe are, but until then, tip generously to help those who live on a minimum wage!
I as the customer am not responsible for making sure the employees are paid a living wage. As I said, its the employer's job to do that. If the wages are too low, then prove that they are (they actually get paid quite well and are paid more than the minimum wage). And then raise the wages if they're too low.
But AGAIN, they are already paid equal to or more than the minimum wage so that argument is false and ignorant.
I don't know whether you are getting your information, but this just isn't true. Minimum wage for waiters is below the federal minimum wage.
Good company is nice, but eating out is almost never worth the expense.
That's what she said.
Zorn you are one of the few in the asylum here that make sense.And I'll but you have some money in the bank to show for it.Congratulations !
Maybe in this economy you should be encouraging people to "brown bag" instead of blowing their money eating outside. Yeah big tips are fine but that should also coming with big service.
Excellent service = excellent tips.
Money doesn't grow on tress. Everyone is having a tough time. So yes, cook and eat at home. Dining outside is reserved for special occasions.
When trying to get people to go out and support local eateries, it would be pretty silly to encourage people to "brown bag", wouldnt it???
And, growing your own vegetables is cheaper and better for you than buying them, but most people don't have gardens.
And, riding a bike is cheaper and better for you than driving a car, but most people drive to work.
And, drinking water is cheaper and better for you than drinking soft drinks, but Pepsi and Coca-Cola are doing fine.
And, and, and...
We all make trade-offs for a variety of reasons. My family eats out more than some families. I have a hefty commute which means I don't get a lot of time in the evenings to cook, but I make a higher salary than I would get at a local job. My trade-off is, as much as I enjoy cooking, I'd rather spend that time at the table with my family. I believe the money is well-spent and, since I earned it, that decision is ultimately mine to make. If brown bagging and avoiding restaurants is your prerogative, by all means, go for it. Just don't profess that you know the solution for everyone.
Agree Brian...with the qualifier that you do have a job that you look forward to and not one that is slowly but surely sucking the life and health out of your body and mind.If you have THAT kind of job,you are indeed blessed and can do it until you are 85.So continue on your fortunate path,Brian.
As someone who has had to clear out her refrigerator and freezer too many times to count due to prolonged power outages (with no remuneration from the power company or insurance), and has many times been denied access to her home for a week at a time (again...no remuneration from insurance) due to evacuation orders, I don't have a lot of sympathy for restaurant owners. I still had to pay my mortgage, on top of my hotel bill, when evacuated. I still had to pay to eat out when I couldn't use my kitchen, and I had to resupplied my fridge to the tune of hundreds of dollars each time. Why consider restaurants a special case? Every small business in the area would have lost money for lack of customers, and may have lost merchandise to water damage or looting. Restaurants are, in fact, in a better position than most businesses to make a buck off a disaster like this. People gotta eat.
If you value having restaurants in your neighborhood and want to see them stay in business, then you care.
When you evacuated your home and ate at restaurants, I'm sure you were happy that they were there to serve you.
WORKED IN THE BUSINESS FOR 20 YEARS IF YOU CANT AFFORD TO TIP DO NOT WALK INTO THE RESTAURANT UNCLEFCR PERIOD DO NOT THINK OF IT AS A REWARD FOR GOOD SERVICE AT LEAST LEAVE 10% UNLESS THEY PHYSICALLY ATTACK YOU. iF YOU WANT TO LEAVE MORE OK BUT MOST RESTRUANT WORKERS STRUGLE TO MAKE MINIUM WAGE EVEN AND UNLESS YOU WANT TO BE PAYING 25$ FOR A BURGER START THINKING OF TIPS AS MANDATORY TO GET YOUR FOOD OUT OF THE KITCHEN
You are absolutely right. I wont go into a restaurant i cant afford. I'm a person that tips 20% of the bill. Im poor so its not that often that I eat out. when I do, its nowhere near an extravagant meal. i do it within my means. Now take a chill pill and and relax
You're attitude is childish at best!! I'll go out to eat and I'll pay the prices on the menu. If I WANT to VOLUNTARILY include a tip that's my choice and I would never make that a consideration of whether I should eat out or not. And I usually tip 20%, but that's MY decision not yours. This sense of entitlement that servers like yourself have that the patron is automatically supposed to subsidize your salary need to be wiped away. If your not getting paid enough to live on then find another job, don't take it out on the people who just want a meal out!
Shouldnt a tip be for above average service? Why should we be paying salary for a business we use? Why not tip the lady taking your electric bill payment? No difference. Let the restaurant pay a fair wage. They already charge for that over dry 3 ounce piece of rubbery chicken covered in some animal byproduct fat sauce. A 20 percent surcharge makes us limit going out. And will someone please stop promoting one baby carrot crossed over a tiny chicken leg and call it fancy gourmet and charge $100 for this crapp!!!
No, it is not the same at all. Most waiters earn a salary that is BELOW minimum wage (which is legal, by the way). So it would be very unexpected to tip the person who reads your electricity meter, since their wage expectations do not include tips from customers.
Whether we like it or not, tipping your food server is a part of our culture here in the U.S.
Waitress handles 4 tables with three parties each through dinner - 12 $100 meals . 15% = $180
if restaurant employees don't earn much and have no benefits -UNIONIZE
I thought hamburgers already cost twenty-five dollars in NYC. Isn't lunch about a hundred bucks at a good restaurant?
Love you Anthony Bourdain ... can't wait for your CNN debut – hope they don't cut your language!!
I worked in the food industry for years; Bourdain knows of what he speaks, he's not kidding, and he's anything but a "snobby gourmand," as described above...b!tch, please. I was a dishwasher and eventually became a roundsman (woman, to be accurate); it's tough, back-breaking, thankless, exhausting work, and yes, I lived paycheck to paycheck. I had zero insurance and no paid sick days. And while some restaurants can take a hit when they are forced to close and throw out food because the power goes out, most cannot. They can't afford to pay employees and still buy food to sell in order to recover from the loss of cashflow. I am sure more than one house will close down as a result of this recent disaster. Mr. Bourdain may be a sardonic, caustic SOB who curses too much, smokes too much, and is viewed by many as being overly-opinionated and a bit wack–the way I see it, all of these endearing qualities make him an expert in his field, and his advice on anything in the industry is golden. So when he tells you to patronize your local restaurants, particularly the "little guys," listen up folks, it would not hurt you to drop a buck or two to help them out. And yes, send a finn back to the dishwasher. I've been that dishwasher, and the good karma you spread would keep on spreading from a kind gesture such as that.
Seriously? It's FOOD, nothing to get all arrogant over. Only morons would do thankless back breaking work for a bunch of "customers"...it's not like you are Mother Theresa's out saving the world.you are SERVING people that have DISPOSABLE INCOME to throw away on restaurant food and overpriced alcohol. That is NOT NOBLE that is just STUPID. I don't feel sorry for these business owners...........go home and cook for yourselves people and you might loose a few pounds and look a whole lot better too.
Very harsh, Valerie. Restaurants are part of our culture. They are places for people to meet with friends and have a good time. And frankly, I can't cook all of Italian, Mexican, Thai, Indian, diner food, sushi, Ethiopian the way some restaurants can. People who go to plays and the ballet have disposable income, should we get rid of performing arts as well? Do you have any appreciation for the finer things in life?
Whatever. FOOD is NOT a fine art so HOW DARE YOU??? Do you know how long it takes to classically train to be a ballerina? Well I do and your STUPID comparison is LAUGHABLE! "Finer things".............oh that's right, you used to be a dishwasher, now you're an "academic"..whatever the hell THAT is supposed to mean! but thanks for the laugh anyway!!!
Valerie, if you reread my very calm, rational response, I didn't call food a "fine art," even though one could argue that it is. I also never said I was a dishwasher; I was a waitress. And by "academic," I am referring to the fact that I'm currently working on my dissertation for a Ph.D. in mathematics so that I can become a university professor and researcher.
Actually, Valerie, it was G2 who nobly attempted to defend me against your multi-capitalized, anger-laced response to what I wrote. Woah, name calling and all, I'm impressed... When was the last time you got laid? Not lately, I suspect...In truth, it takes years to become a classical chef, not unlike a classical ballarina, to whom you obviously give a lot more credit for what it takes to become one. I don't put down people for what they do, I salute all who are dedicated to their craft, including those in the food industry, about which clearly you know nothing. How dare I? You're the one who seems to be hell-bent on straightening everyone else out on this thread with whom you disagree. As to people who do thankless, back-breaking work for a living, you pass them every day, they repair your roads, when you actually venture out of your home to go out to eat, which apparently is never, but when you do, you have hard-working people wait on you...yes, some of the nicest people in the world have to wait on your angry a$$. And I can pretty much bet you stiff them. I'll refrain from using the "c" word, and leave you with this: Take your arrogant comments and shove them where the sun doesn't shine, which is probably where your brain is located, as well. Have a nice day.
Oh let me guess – your idea of a big night out is Golden Corral. NYC has a "dining out " culture, for company as well as great food.The variety of places to hang with friends and have a meal or drinks is one of the great things about the city. I'm sure a lot of New Yorkers care about the small restaurants in their neighborhoods, and an article reminding people how tough it is to be one of these businesses (especially now) can only be a good thing.
I think you missed the part about me- I have been a dancer for years, I DON'T EAT at Golden Corral or whatever it's called and I don't eat Cheetos. I have been to New York City- MANY times. In fact, I have danced all over the world. You people are amusing though, trying to "school" me.
Oh, Valerie, you're killing me here...you're shooting your mouth off about how we shouldn't help out small New York City restaurants, and you don't even effing live here? I LIVE HERE. I've lived here for twenty freaking years, and it's killing me to see what people are experiencing as a result of this disaster. So...you're a dancer...brava, madam, take a bow, you have just finished making a major jackass out of yourself. What a stuck up snob! I no longer work in the food industry, I work in a law firm, and I would never, ever, in a million bloody years, put down ANYONE who works in a restaurant, because I know what it takes to work in one. Every aspect of it, front and back of the house. Clearly, you are clueless. And when your tired dancer arse can no longer get paid for the craft you obviously think is so important, I hope you can find a way to make a living that doesn't involve restaurant work, because a) you are not cut out for it, you woud get canned before the lunch rush, and b) I wouldn't wish anyone to work alongside of someone like you.
food IS an art...you idiot....it takes years of hard work and training to prepare a dish in just the right way...im guessing you are someone who sits around and eats cheetos all day.
Wow! Valerie, ballerina huh? Takes years to master, right? Cooking at a professional leval does as well, many years of hands on experience coupled with plenty of text book knowledge. I wouldn't think demining the art of dance because before I switched professions, I studied music composition at berklee college of music. I dedicated 15 years of my life to music and most of my art friends have always had a passion for food as well. So your comments are quite striking to me, that you can't appreciate the time and effort that somebody puts into a plate of food. Some people might have the same opinion toward dancers like yourself, what a waste time people bouncing around one stage in tutus. But we know better, the sacrifices (mind, body and soul) one makes to try to attain a certain level of perfection.
Your quite foolish, to think that because you can cook at home, that its the samething as a professional chef. Just I can dance doesn't make a professional dancer either. By the way, cooking is a craft that at a high levals can be an art form.
By the way where's your passion lady for life, food is life, an expression of who we are as a culture. Just like music, dance, literature, drama and art is.
People hate what they don't understand and they obviously don't understand.
Interesting how for such an educated and worldly person you try to convince us you are, you are a completely arrogant and narcissistic bore. One would think the grace of dancing would be a natural part of your personality, but, thankfully, your true personality shines through here. Please do us the favor of letting us know who you are and from what dance troupe so that we can be sure to show you the same levels of grace and empathy.
Valerie,
Maybe it's time to leave your village and experience what's out in the big world.
You might find something better than pork rinds and gruel.
O sancta simplicitas! That sounds like something nice to do on a routine basis (assuming that $20 bill will actually find its way to its intended recipient). But as a response to Sandy, it only makes sense if the dishwasher happens to live in Breezy Point, or maybe Staten Island. A better gesture would be to eat at home (perhaps benefiting your local farmers' market) and donate the entire projected cost of a meal out at your favorite hip LES restaurant to a cost-effective relief effort.
Amen to that!
Good point - give money and time to the Red Cross and the many churches and other organizations that are helping the storm victims. I agree wholeheartedly with the general sentiment that you should get out and support your local businesses as much as possible when something like this happens. I just don't see why a small restaurant is any more needy than any other small, independent business.
Fiona – A. Bourdain is in the restaurant industry, so he is focusing on that industry in this article. I'm sure if he were "Tim the Tool Man," he would be plugging the hardware stores. This is just common sense (sheesh!).
Two more comments from selfish people sitting at their computer running anything good into the ground. Get out there yourselves and do something why don't you? Bourdain has written a great piece to remind anyone, not everyone, of a way to help and of those that might not get the first round of government assistance to stay in business. Those of you who pick apart each and every story to find something bad should just go back to your sad lives and stfu!
OK what "good" is he actually doing? If he were serious he would be doing something himself instead of asking others to do it for him. The guy is a pr1ck and is looking for attention....
Using "Me's" logic, it is only a good deed by someone with more money then "Me" if they write a check.
Occupy Eatocracy!!!!!
Totally agree–trolls are everywhere, trying to take something positive and smearing it with their bile. Sad little trolls. They do need to get a life, and also STFU if they can't say anything positive, which is a stretch, apparently.
Whatever you pompous dooche (sic). Put some of your money into it...
Eating out and tipping well is a hand up, not a hand out. Great advice, Mr Bourdain!
Neighborly? Hell yes. There is nothing better than leaving an establishment knowing you just help make someone's day better. It's not a "haves" vs "have nots" thing. It's a human thing.
I was wondering where Anthony was going to resurface after tonight's last episode of "No Reservations". Now I know. BTW, CNN can use your help!
How about you, Bourdain, and your fellow restaurant owners feed those who lost everything/almost everything in Staten Island, Queens, etc, for free for the next 3 months? Trump can write all of you a check for 5 Million to cover expenses instead of for unsealing the President's academic records.
Awww....is someone bitter that someone with more $$$ then them has thought of a way that everyone can help?
Occupy eatocracy!!!!!
Once again Tony has spoken truth...and thank you for it.
I'm a huge fan of this Anthony Bourdain and have seen every episode of No Reservations. I think his episode of with Portland Oregon made me appreciate the weirdness of my city more than I did before. I actually kept wondering when he would go to Israel so definitely curious to see this. But then again, New York is like a bigger, metropolitan version sometimes. Just saying...
Either way, I hope this show does well and I hope they'll me plenty of columns and articles from him. as well. My gf and I have all his books and love his writing.
Best of luck!!
Pretty lousy advice for Staten Island. Has this snobby gourmand been there lately?
You should probably take something for that PMS. Instead of trying to spread your gloomy outlook to the rest of the world.
great sentiment, but few of us have that extra $20 for the dishwasher. Hell, some of us might not even have the $ for the bill itself! Perhaps Mr Bourdain should organize a benefit for the industry he came from. I'm sure he rubs elbows with more " haves" then he used to. As for this "have not", I appreciate the insight into the lives of those in the food industry, I certainly know what its like to live on the cusp of financial disaster
He's part of a NYC group of chefs that make up city harvest, a non-profit that distributes food to food pantries, etc.
Well written and very informative article, Tony. I hope this insightful piece gives people enough thoughtfulness and conscientiousness to help the restaurant industry overcome such dire straits.