by Benn Ray
Allow me to introduce a new word into our regional lexicon: Baltimoaner
Instead of being proud, for example, that the city is the setting (and even a character, really) for 2 of the greatest TV shows of all time, they complain that the city is shown in these shows as crime-laden and in decay (while being completely ignorant of Baltimore's long and rich history of crime lit - Dashiell Hammett, Edgar Allen Poe up through David Simon, Laura Lippman) . And instead of actually trying to do anything to make the city better, they simply whine and complain whenever Baltimore is portrayed in a light they don't like.
For example, here is a selection of Baltimoaner comments from the No Reservations Facebook page:
Seriously? You came to Baltimore and ate @ these places? Thanks for showing the TV world that Baltimore has terrible food! Of all of the places to dine, you really aired those places? Makes me glad I don't live in Baltimore and live in the country. Lake trout? Born and raised and still live in MD and never heard of it. I love the show, but am deeply saddened by what was chosen for this particluar episode :( -Rebecca K.
Great show, but I hope the world doesn't think Baltimore is just about crack heads and lake trout. I've been here for 25 years and never had either. I think a visit to Lexington Market, then out for old bay seasoned steamed crabs and a few Natty-Bohs, then to Little Italy for desert would have been more appropriate. -Steve W.
TERRIBLE representation of BALTIMORE!!
I was born and raised here-going on 39. I love MD and Baltimore City. Yes-there is a lot of Lake Trout in one little area of the city but there is so much more! It looks like you got a good crab cake but geeez-Pit Beef??? That does not say Baltimore! And thanks for making us look so scary and dreadful. ... Read MoreYes, we have a high crime/shooting rate but those typically happen in isolated areas where tourists or food critics would never be hanging out.-why couldn't you go to Hampden, Cross St. Market or Fell's Point, how about a little Duckpin bowling-you went feather bowling for god's sake in Detroit! How about Lexington Market-I know you know all about these places Mr. Bourdain....what were you thinking? You may have lost one of your biggest fans. I could make an exception if you come back and tell it like it really is. Not Happy!! -Karen M.
aweful portayal of Baltimore. Made me sad that Anthony overlooked the greatness that Bmore has to offer. Show made Baltimore look like boarded-up city filled with crack. Any east coast city could be made to look like this. -Henry B.
So disappointed in how Baltimore was portrayed. The city is alive and thriving. So many culinary treasures that were overlooked. We have great chefs here doing wonderful things using local products. You missed Cross Street Market, the farmers marked under 83, Birches, the Helmand, Woodbury Kitchen, the list goes on and on. I challenge Tony to come ... Read Moreback here and show the other side of Baltimore. It's not all boarded up row homes and crack babies. See http://www.baltimoresun.com/features/bal-fo.farmers20jul20,0,7090570.story -Kathy G.
What happened to Fell's Point? -David A.
Very disappointed in the choices for Baltimore. Those are probably three of the worst spots in the city. Baltimore isn't the bombed out shell it was made out to be in the show, as a huge fan of Tony I woulda thought he would have showed both sides of the coin. Also, as a fellow lover of meat in tube form, I can't believe he didn't go to Pollock Johnnies, Ostrowskis, one of the many markets in the city, etc. Lake Trout and Mo's? C'mon! -Chris B.
Glad you did Pit Beef. Lake Trout, well, I guess that's a Baltimore thing, but it's not that great...not for TV. Snoop and Mo's were huge disappointments. She's an ex-ganster. Not the best ambassador for our city. And that weird noise she made when she laughed was absolutely repulsive. Mo's is junk compared to what we have here. Kind of ... Read Moreembarassing. It was like inviting a guest to your home that insists on using your dirty, basement toilet. Geesh. Baltimore is awesome! Please come back and give it another whirl. -Jeanet P.
And Baltimore isn't very blue collar anymore. Ever hear of a really big employer, Johns Hopkins University and a little place named Best Hospital in the US for the 19th year in a row, Johns Hopkins Medicine? And then there's University of Maryland Medical Center, Sinai, and a few other. Everyone here isn't a stupid, out of work longshore man! -Melanie Z.
Man, he made Baltimore look like a big dump, not true not true! (Loved seeing Snoop though) -April M.
Boo for bashing Baltimore, Tony! You painted a terrible picture... I've always been a Bourdain fan but am hugely disappointed in your depiction of my city! - Jenny E.
WOW, what a let down... Tony did nothing but took one slice of baltimore. kinda ruined how i feel about the series... almost like you had an agenda about what you showed... truly the shine is off the apple... shame on you tony! - David W.
Bad job on Bmore- so sad how they were represented :( -Michelle B.
Bmore can be ghetto, but there's also an awesome side to it. Don't like how it was totally one sided. Shame shame - Liz L.
Okay, with regard to No Reservations, Baltimore was filmed in a specific way to fit a particular narrative. Obviously. And while that narrative wasn't completely accurate, it isn't completely inaccurate either.
In the show No Reservations, Bourdain tends to focus on several things: working class food, bizarre regional cuisines and customs and cutting edge culinary innovations.
Let's be perfectly honest here, Baltimore is severely lacking in the culinary innovations department. Sure we have a handful of decent chefs in town, but their styles are generally derivative and they are hardly doing anything so original that it warrants national attention. We really don't have bizarre regional food. Sorry, but french fries and gravy and scrapple is not all that strange. So that leaves working class food which, in Baltimore is, outside of chain restaurants, either pit beef or lake trout.
And while years ago oysters and crabs were a blue collar staple, due to over-fishing and rampant Bay pollution, they are now expensive delicacies for those who can afford them. And honestly, as a Baltimore resident, how often do you go out for crabcakes when you don't have an out-of-town guest with you?
Bourdain has an admirable and strong distaste for tourist areas, so that is going to knock the Inner Harbor (which is hardly a culinary mecca), Fells Point and Federal Hill off the list of places to visit. And honestly, these days, it would knock Little Italy off the list too.
And while Baltimore does have more going on than Detroit and Buffalo (honestly, we're closer to Pittsburgh than either of those two cities), the renovations and upscaling of the city isn't really for the people living and working here. It's to bring in tourists, businesses and wealthy new residents.
So folks, really, stop being Baltimoaners every time you see a representation of Baltimore that doesn't match up to the image you have - it's a big damn town, and your Baltimore isn't everyone's either. And your moaning and complaining is far more damaging and embarrassing than any TV show or movie.
Instead of moaning about it, maybe take a moment to try some lake trout at The Roost (although it too is a chain) or reconsider Mo's.
may I retort? Ben, it's not about moaning.
First, I would like to say that I’m never watching the show again. My grrl used to love this show but not anymore.
That being said, I would like to address a few things about last night’s ep.that a few commenter's on other blogs are missing.
This was not about the “great social divide” This was about a New York man who was here in the 80s and had a horrible time and this was his get back. B-more has a THRIVING black culinary community that includes establishments like Darker that Blue (on Greenmount), the soul food joint on 25th and Calvert (GR8 if you haven’t been there!) and Milton’s BBQ on charles, not to mention Lexington Market and Tyrone’s Chicken. As a matter of fact, I would have WELCOMED a show specifically on black culinary culture. Imagine hitting up a family reunion in Druid Hill park in the summer! Or an after church dinner on a spring Sunday.
Instead, we get the Travel Channel version of some kind of erstaz Frontline episode. This is not acceptable. The Travel Channel should be ashamed of itself for this segment. I was under the impression that TC was created to entice people to travel.
If they want to to make a social statement, do something on woman trafficking, opium abuse or Tong based crime in all of those exotic cities they send their porn face professional eaters to cover.
Bourdian is so full of sh**. He did a disservice to this city by turning his back on our black, Jewish, Polish, German, Latino, Italian culinary culture as a whole.
Commentors will say, “well 19 people were shot on Saturday” and I say watch PBS or CNN. It’s TERRIBLE that crime stats in certain neighborhoods are high, but that is not indicative of the entire city and certainly not appropriate for a show or network that’s supposed to encourage travel. If 19 people were shot on a fine English sunday, in Moss Side, would you think twice about visiting London? I think not. And the Travel Channel would certainly not focus on it.
n short, FU Bourdain! You’ve lost a bunch of viewers and quite a few fans. Do you care? Probably not, but in a time when viewers are being sought after like nuggets of airwave gold, this show has caused a few more eyes to turn away from the channel as a whole.
Posted by: JMG | July 28, 2009 at 01:31 PM
Thank you for saying what I was thinking, although I have been feeling it more from the backlash then from the actual show. Was I saddened by parts of the show? Sure. It's awful that the events that transpired (and continue to happen) to inspire Homicide, The Corner, The Wire, happened. They happen other places too- we just got them documented in a way that captured the public's attention. It's a blessing and a curse. But to outsiders coming in Baltimore CAN be scary. AAA used to tell people to take Rt. 40 to come in from west of the city & personally know one person who was from NW PA, coming in for a job interview, and never even made it after what he saw. You can't deny what is there.
Secondly, Bourdain said nothing bad about Baltimore that he didn't say about Detroit and Buffalo so the whole idea that he was "getting back" is utter nonsense to me. He seemed genuinely appreciative of the city and its people. I've seen other shows where he talked about an area's struggles, too- including Vietnam and Columbia. And he has always eaten the food of the "local" and the "poor"- ours just happens to be in a more urban setting. And why would Tyrone's chicken be better or worse than The Roost? I have also had a GREAT meal at Mo's. And the pit beef is something I think of as Baltimore as well.
I also feel an undertone of racism and classicism in many of these comments and the ones I saw on the Travel Channel site (ducks in anticipation of being flamed). Baltimore is a majority black, majority lower income city. Are people upset because he didn't go to where the mostly white, mostly upper-class people eat? (BTW I am white but by no means upper-class.) I've never eaten at Charleston or a lot of those "Top Restaurants" because I simply cannot afford it and I would venture to say that's the case with most of the city's residents.
There are a lot of good/great restaurants in Baltimore but what truly unique and interesting ones would you send him to here? As said above, that is not what this show was about. If you really think we have another show worth of interesting and unique stories, get the info to the Travel Channel.
Posted by: baltimoregal | July 28, 2009 at 02:11 PM
I agree with baltimoregal on one point: I think, in some comments, there is an undertone of racism and classism. It's not a crime that he didn't go to Fells Point or other gentrified places of the city. I'm glad they didn't chow at one of the "nice" places in town.
But in an effort to be "real" about Baltimore, he goes to Mo's Crab and Pasta Factory?! An overpriced tourist trap of a restaurant!? JMG is right: Go to Tyrone's. go to Darker Than Blue. (DON'T go to the soul food spot on 25th. They don't even make real tea.)
OR, if he wanted real Baltimore, go to Lexington Market, where you see the true flavor of Baltimore: Sometimes run-down, sometimes deliciously diverse, always real.
I don't have an issue with him focusing on the problems with drugs and crime in Baltimore -- it is part of our city. But it isn't the only part. It just seems weird to me that in an attempt to show real Baltimore, they showed a caricature instead.
Posted by: maryann | July 28, 2009 at 02:56 PM
People should also read what Bourdain posted about Baltimore on his blog, maybe it will open their eyes a bit:
http://anthony-bourdain-blog.travelchannel.com/read/tony-n-zamirs-excellent-adventure
I have no problems at all with what he showed, it was Baltimore afterall.
Posted by: Geoff | July 28, 2009 at 04:50 PM
Here is the URL again where Bourdain talks about Baltimore on his blog...this time linked:
http://anthony-bourdain-blog.travelchannel.com/read/tony-n-zamirs-excellent-adventure
Posted by: Geoff | July 28, 2009 at 04:51 PM
Look--I love Baltimore more than just about anybody, but I know of no place as cool-looking as Cadieux, nor do I know of a grouping of restaurants as excellent as the Arab ones in Dearborn. Our charms--such as they are--are difficult to capture.
PS: Bourdain has done several soul food shows, and has done them well.
Posted by: Bill | July 28, 2009 at 09:09 PM
Never had Lake Trout? Hie thee up to Greenmount Avenue and watch out for the bones! Um, yum, and pass the hot sauce.
Posted by: molly | July 28, 2009 at 09:32 PM