The nearly full house at Anthony Bourdain’s Guts & Glory show at the Orpheum Friday night was made up of many, many hardcore fans — folks who most certainly know Bourdain’s No Reservations TV show and his books Kitchen Confidential and Medium Raw chapter and verse.
Indeed, the show Bourdain dished out could be viewed as reheated leftovers. Or, it could be seen as something of a greatest hits: chapters from Medium Raw reproduced just about intact, clips from No Reservations, and barbs flung at familiar targets (Paula Deen, vegetarians, Olive Garden, etc.).
But the energy from the crowd was high, and Bourdain met expectations with a sharp, often bawdy approach. Among the highlights: the bit about how to do drugs on television and the one about being a gracious guest (that means eating a poop- and hair-covered warthog’s anus).
In a word, it was fun.
The real unknown of the evening came with the audience and the concluding Q&A session.