Foodies and fans of Anthony Bourdain's tell-all book "Kitchen Confidential" will want to catch him this weekend, when he appears at the Hippodrome with Le Bernardin chef Eric Ripert. My wife is a huge fan of the book, and refused to eat in a restaurant for years after reading about tales of the naughty chefs -- "cocaine in the kitchen, mid-service sex" as Bourdain describes it.

The Sun's Rob Kasper interviewed Bourdain and Ripert about their views, including criticism that has been leveled at the former for doing a TV show about Baltimore, and featuring Lake Trout and pit beef. Some folks thought it made us look like a chump town filled with folks who can't pronounce foie gras. Just think about the outrage if he had sampled hard fried crab!

Here's an excerpt from Kasper's article: Bourdain acknowledged that he has had an unhappy relationship with Baltimore, pointing to a short stint he had as a drug-addled cook in a Harborplace restaurant in the 1980s. But lately, he said, he has become a fan of the town. "I have been back a few times, and in my own quiet way have come to really like the town," he said. "I don't know if the feelings have been reciprocated, especially after the show."