Reservations Suggested: A Taste of Southeast Asia

A Response to Anthony Bourdain's “No Reservations”

For this assignment I chose to watch an episode of Anthony Bourdain, No Reservations. I am somewhat interested in the area of South East Asia. The episode I watched was specifically about Vietnam. I think this captured my attention because it was once a war zone not much different than the Middle East. Now, Vietnam is a marketable vacation getaway with a mixture of the modern luxuries we are accustomed too as well as small tastes of the indigenous culture and varied past. Anthony Bourdain is a 21st century celebrity chef/travel hound who enjoys a weekly hour long cultural spotlight on the Travel Channel. He is famous for touting the value of tradition in culture as well as the role that food has to play in describing cultural evolution.

As the first part of the show progresses, the host explains the French influence dating back before the Vietnam War era. Many of the buildings, food, and customs are leftovers from the French. Although the French influence remains in the Saigon's center and fashion mecca's such as Dolce & Gabbana flourish in the tourist areas, just off the beaten path, perhaps just around the corner, classic Vietnamese food stalls fill any available nook and cranny and the smells of food and recipes, apparently perfected for generations, waft unchecked through the streets. This close combination of new and classic, both maintaining their individual characteristics, reminds one of a salad bowl where each ingredient maintains its own flavor but only adds to the whole.

It's funny, even the French baguette, bread made famous by the french survives as a foundation for the staple of the sandwich, only the ingredients it contains have been customized to fit the local indigenous palette. This is a perfect example of the culture maintaining its identity while evolving to allow the modern. Further outside the city rice paddies still dominate the landscape and houses become much less modern. The “country life” is simple, farm based, and sometimes almost primitive. Mansions exist but it seems only to cater to western ideals of living.

Further up the road, Tony joins a farming family for dinner. The fields here are still plowed by oxen, the paddies harvested by hand. This community is just south of the former demilitarize zone. The entire family lives together, works together and to no surprise eat together. The family was actually split during the Vietnam War. One brother fought for the North while the other fought for the South. The family is now reunited and it seems life goes on beyond the “hiccup” of war.

Obviously the culture is forever changed by the split of war but, it seems the basis for Vietnamese culture remains. It seems that the passage of knowledge from one generation to the other is the standard whether it be through food, farming, or family. Those three things seem unchangeable in the Vietnamese culture. While modern shops and tourist friendly improvements continue to grow it's nice to know that the foundation on which these “improvements” stays the same. There will always be food vendors and generational constants. Which means the flavor of Vietnam and its culture can only continue to be perfected and will remain forever special.

By: Hadley Bryans