If there were a ‘food flag’ representing the world’s culinary, it would be at half-mast today as Anthony Bourdain is no more.

The celebrated food critic and chef, who travelled the world savoring cuisines and introducing them to the uninitiated, reportedly took his life on Friday.
Bourdain single-handedly traversed the food trail from Machu Pichu in Peru to lush green fields of Punjab to bring the best of the world’s culinary on to our television sets.

His culinary map, which spread around 80 countries, over the course of 15 years and four travel shows brought him to India as well, about which he famously said: “Indian food won’t kill you”.

In an interview with American CNN’s TV host Anderson Hays Cooper, Bourdain in his unmistakable wit, which he made something of his own language, told the interviewer that while travelling in Punjab, he enjoyed eating vegetarian food and the street food and added that “Indian food won’t kill you”.

In an interview to Vox, Bourdain had said: “I’ve made much fun of vegetarians over the years and have even said, frequently, to “hate” them. This is not true. But I am dismissive and (sometimes) contemptuous of food that is made with a narrow world view as its first priority. This is not the case in India, one of the few places on earth, where eating vegetarian is not a burden. In Punjab, wildly varying textures, huge selections, thrilling blends of spices and assertive, delicious flavours are always accompanied by wonderful, freshly-made breads”.

Bourdain had hosted another culinary show for Discovery Channel titled Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations from 2005 to 2012. In 2006, Bourdain visited Udaipur in Rajasthan where he ate a vegetarian thali and later attended a dinner and lavish party hosted by the Maharana of Udaipur. He had also visited a local chef for a home-cooked meal.

In 2006, his food trail also included his trips to Kolkata and Mumbai.

In the year 2010, for an episode of the show, he had visited Kerala to it’s unique cuisine, where he travelled to Alappuzha and Kuttanad.

On the show, Bourdain said, “I am also very impressed with the high standard of food in Kerala, especially the street food here”. During his trip, he also enjoyed home-cooked food with Malayalam actor Mammootty, whom he met at the location of his film shoot.