(Credits: Far Out / YouTube Still)

When heading out on a holiday or adventure to a new country and seeking the finest cuisine it has to offer, then it’s always a good idea to consult the work and writing of the iconic late chef Anthony Bourdain, who travelled across the world to soak up the culture, food and drink of many global locations in Parts Unknown and a handful other TV shows.

While Bourdain’s love for Japan and Vietnam was well documented, in terms of North America, it didn’t get much better for him than Mexico, sitting just below his native United States. Bourdain visited Mexico City on two glorious occasions, once during the run of No Reservations and again during Parts Unknown, and both times saw him tuck into the genuine feast the Mexican cuisine provides, as did his visits to Baja, Oaxaca, Puebla and the many towns that sit on the Texas/Mexico borderline.

In No Reservations, at the Cantina La Mascota in Mexico City, Bourdain tucked into a plate of pork carnitas, a plate of Fava beans and cactus soup and some gorditas before washing it all down with a few shots of tequila. After continuing to gorge on tongue and tripe at a carrito in the Mexican capital, he finished his trip to the metropolis with a handful of tacos and then headed out to the surrounding areas for some locally-made pulque and anise liqueur.

Then, in Parts Unknown, Bourdain spent time with the boxer Jorge La Tierra and dined with him on a typical boxer’s meal comprised of eggs, beans and rice, shortly before experiencing the higher-end wonders of the Maximo Bistro, where he gorged on roasted serrano and another taco stuffed with confit suckling pig and delicious homemade salsa. Bourdain continued to feast on the more nuanced aspects of the country’s cuisine in the other parts of Mexico mentioned above.

The chef and writer’s experience in Mexico showed him how much he loved the country. He once wrote about how much Americans enjoy Mexican food, noting, “We consume nachos, tacos, burritos, tortas, enchiladas, tamales and anything resembling Mexican in enormous quantities. We love Mexican beverages, happily knocking back huge amounts of tequila, mezcal, and Mexican beer every year. We love Mexican people.”

Bourdain had also been hypercritical of the kind of social standing that many Mexican people have in America, mainly when they support the “entire service economy”. In addition, Bourdain said that Americans love “Mexican drugs” while having a hypocritical approach to believing that citizens of the country are “stealing” their jobs.

“Mexico. Our brother from another mother,” Bourdain had offered as a toast to the neighbouring country. “A country with whom, like it or not, we are inexorably, deeply involved, in a close but often uncomfortable embrace. Look at it. It’s beautiful.” What seemed to piss Bourdain off more than anything, though, was the misunderstanding of Mexican cuisine in American culture, which is not “simple or easy” but rather “deeply complex, refined, subtle, and sophisticated.”

Bourdain’s love for Mexico, which he felt “particularly attached to and grateful for”, was undoubted, and his experiences in the country always provided him with the top-up of admiration that he often needed, far away from the common misconceptions of his native United States citizens. In fact, after making an episode of his TV shows in Mexico, Bourdain and his crew often felt “happiest”.