Toting a beer in one hand while strutting onto the stage of the Progress Energy Center with his signature cowboy boots, chef/author/television host Anthony Bourdain made an appearance to Raleigh’s foodie community on Saturday.

Bourdain, who entered stardom a decade ago upon publishing his crude and personal memoir Kitchen Confidential, currently hosts Travel Channel show No Reservations. Between filming episodes he travels across the country talking to fans about his obscure and interesting job as a food critic, recounting tales from his 28 years of restaurant experience and discussing the sources of inspiration from his handful of books.

His first book, Kitchen Confidential (2000), put him on the foodie radar and since then he has published a dozen books, written countless essays and produced over 100 television programs.

The Saturday program resembled stand-up comedy more than an actual talk. As he paced back and forth across the stage, Bourdain spoke for the first half hour of the show about his ire for the Food Network, which recently bought up his own network, the Travel Channel.

“What happened to all the chefs? Where did they go?” Bourdain asked the audience. “I made my career making fun of Emeril Lagasse. I miss him now. He’s a chef, a businessman — he made his bones in the industry… so why do I still care? Why do I still yell at the TV when I see Sandra Lee make something so horrific like ‘Kwanza Cake?’ Honestly, because food is important.”

Bourdain recently published a collection of essays and short stories entitled Medium Raw, and his question segued into the beef of his talk and the theme of the book—the importance of cuisine regarding culture.

“What drives me nuts is when people mistreat good, simple food,” Bourdain said. “Driving past a Chili’s is really tough for me.”

Bourdain is a stickler for authenticity and throughout his work he has pursued the true cuisine of the local culture wherever his visits. The Travel Channel program No Reservations features him traveling across the world sharing food with local chefs, farmers and cooks.

Bourdain explained that throughout his decade of eating street food from some of the least sanitary places in the world, from the perspective of a Westerner, he has only been sick twice. The premises of his food-poisoning logic do have validity.

How could the owner of a taquería in Mexico expect to stay in business if he gives his neighbors food poisoning? Bourdain encouraged the audience to take precaution eating at the restaurants of large hotels in foreign countries, the places where he has gotten sick.

“Do you think the native of Jakarta really cares about the pasta Bolognese that is completely foreign to him? Is he going to go out with his buddies after work to get some pasta Bolognese? No,” Bourdain said.

Moreover, Bourdain returned to a recurrent theme in his books and show: appreciation for food. Bourdain spends the majority of his television program on the streets in foreign countries (more often than not, poor countries) and frequently families will invite him to their homes to share a meal.

The chef passionately argued to never say no in these situations, explaining that this is an intimate exchange in which the person offering food is trying to explain, “This is who I am, this is where I’m from, this is why I am proud of my culture and this is why I want to share.”

“I do watch his show on occasion and I am drawn in by the new cultures, food and witty banter,” Kyle Jones, a sophomore in nutrition, said. “The best part about Bourdain’s job is that not only is he getting to eat regional food, but he is doing it in those regions where the ingredients are the freshest.”

Despite his popularity, Bourdain said he is still in disbelief, considering the job he currently has. Throughout the 1980s and into the 1990s, the chef dealt with an addiction to cocaine and heroin. Upon straitening his act up and finishing his first book, he was quickly thrown into the spotlight, which he reluctantly accepted at first.

“I have the best job in the world,” Bourdain admitted to the audience, between sips of beer provided by Big Boss local brewery. “I went from being in the kitchen 11 hours a day to the best job in the world. I was lucky to be alive at age 44 when I was head chef at Les Halles. I was double lucky to land this great job now. I’m grateful.”

Bourdain’s visit to Raleigh did not only attract the attention of local chefs and foodies — many N.C. State students were enthusiastic about his visit.

Moreover, the display of appreciation for foreign cuisine is not exclusive to the pros on the Travel Channel. Last Wednesday, the IRC hosted a Culinary World Tour in the Brickyard Bubble, which attracted many students to try food from eight different countries.

“Cuisine is the center of culture, it’s what you do,” Alyssa Poulin, a sophomore in international studies, said. “You eat three times a day. Trying different food is a way to get a feel for the lifestyle of other countries.”

Amy Roderer, a sophomore in history, said she is a fan of Bourdain and was glad he spoke in Raleigh.

“Food is important to many people and they’re proud to share it,” Roderer said.