Chef Eric Ripert, who was a longtime friend of Anthony Bourdain‘s and was with him during his final days, is speaking out about their friendship and Bourdain’s philosophies.
“Anthony was very curious by nature. Very respectful of cultures and he wanted to share with the public, his discoveries. The idea was do not be scared of traveling and do not be scared going to other countries and do not stay at the resort, do not stay at the hotel and eat the normal menu. Just go out, go in the street and engage with people,” Ripert told “CBS This Morning” on Friday.
“Try the food and learn the culture from that experience, and I think he did really well in breaking walls, right, in between us and other countries that we sometimes are a bit scared or nervous to visit and that was really a great part of his legacy.”
Ripert, who co-owns New York City’s famous Le Bernardin restaurant, appeared on Bourdain’s TV shows numerous times. Though they had a tremendous amount of respect for each other, they had no problems teasing.
“We used to play pranks on each other and we used to have a lot of fun,” Ripert shared, “but he never criticized my food, which was nice.”
(Excerpt) Read more in: Page Six