Eat at a local restaurant tonight. Get the cream sauce. Have a cold pint at 4 o’clock in a mostly empty bar. Go somewhere you’ve never been. Listen to someone you think may have nothing in common with you. Order the steak rare. Eat an oyster. Have a negroni. Have two. Be open to a world where you may not understand or agree with the person next to you, but have a drink with them anyways. Eat slowly. Tip your server. Check in on your friends. Check in on yourself. Enjoy the ride.
Anthony Bourdain absolutely felt that eating and drinking with people, and sitting down to “break bread” was one of our key reasons for being, a way to learn about people and the world around you. This monologue expresses it in his usual eloquent and flowing style.
Anthony died in June 2018. I was fortunate to meet him a few years before, and he was always, whether in person, in writing or on his many TV shows, someone who was, as I wrote: “Anthony Bourdain: Be Open, Be Curious“.
“listen to someone you think you may have nothing in common with you”
This is a key learning for me and one I teach and share often in different ways, including the idea that “everyone is interesting if you choose to be interested”.
Oh, and I agree, do have a Negroni (have two!), and always, always have your steak rare, or even (as I do) “blue”.
Be open.