By now, Anthony Bourdain has indeed become a legend. His rise from the professional kitchens of New York City to becoming a household name is indeed the truest of success stories. But all that success didn’t come from thin air. The man worked incredibly hard on his rise, taking rejection along with all the other turmoil of a fast life on the professional cooking line.

After many years of cooking at some of New York’s hottest spots like The Rainbow Room and of course Brasserie Les Halles, Anthony skyrocketed to fame with the publication of his first hit book: Kitchen Confidential, in which he dished on the business, the scene and the quality of food in a fantastic book that got rave reviews; many describing it as horrific but honest and readers were finally happy to have a voice of authority telling them the truth about the food industry and not just another wannabe TV chef trying to gain favor.

For years Bourdain wrote, both fiction and non-fiction and Kitchen Confidential would prove to be the vehicle that would transcend him to his next station in life and that was that of a television host and worldwide traveler on such shows as No Reservations, The Layover and of course, Parts Unknown, a show he was still working on until his passing.

Join us in this special look at the foods he loved, but moreover, the foods he detested and wouldn’t touch with the old proverbial ten foot pole. You’ll be surprised at what made the list.

29 LOVED: AUTHENTIC THAI CHICKEN NOODLE SOUP

Perhaps nothing thrilled Anthony Bourdain more than sitting among locals, feeling the environment, truly, as he would sit to have a meal. As could have been seen in many episodes of his countless shows, Anthony marveled at the culture behind the food as much as he did at the preparation and delivery of the countless recipes he tasted over the years as he traveled the world over.

When traveling to beautiful Bangkok, Thailand, perhaps nothing pleased the scholar and culinarian more than a very good, authentic, steaming bowl of Thai soup, marveling at the sweet and subtle taste it offered, blending sweet spice with citrus, all the while providing that epic chicken/noodle taste.

28 LOVED: SUSHI

Not all of us are privileged enough to walk into an authentic Japanese restaurant and eat the freshest Sushi available (and not just any Japanese restaurant, but the restaurant where Iron Chef Morimoto acts as Sushi Chef), being able to watch as the chef prepares some of the most beautiful dishes of Sushi known to one and all.

Anthony knew this and as he showed us the wonders that were the many dishes he got to sample, he didn't do so with an air of privilege, but of a big brother who escorted us through his many culinary adventures and as we watched, we almost tasted the food with him.

Sushi, in general, was one of his most favorite dishes, and even when he was Stateside.

27 WOULDN'T TOUCH: AIRLINE FOOD

To say that Anthony Bourdain traveled more than anybody would be a terrible understatement. In fact, Anthony can be quoted as saying he was blessed to have lived two lives. One as a chef and sedentary citizen who traveled very little, to one that was able to suddenly travel the world many times over.

Indeed, and as such a traveler, he was always on planes, obviously. And being such a connoisseur of the airplane experience, the man had a simple rule about riding in them:

Don't touch plane food! Ever!

According to cheatsheet.com, he stated that if he was famished, the only thing he'd dare touch would be cheese and wine.

26 WOULDN'T TOUCH: CHICKEN NUGGETS

Well, despite the fact that most of the world is indeed "loving it," --this writer included, Anthony was not very enthused about McDonald's Restaurants in general, but particularly, he absolutely detested the Chicken Nuggets sold at the many establishments strewn about the world.

Granted there is something "unnatural" about the food at McDonald's, but at the same time, their nuggets seem to take the cake when it comes to the whole "What the heck did I just eat?" department.

Apparently, Anthony once said that the worst thing he ever ate would have to be the chicken nugget at McDonald's.

25 LOVED: NEW YORK CITY HOT DOGS

Being a New Yorker himself, there was nothing at all like street food. Good old, authentic street food.

No matter how far away you travel and how many worldly dishes you sample, even the ones prepared by some of the most skilled chefs, there's just something about the food you grew up with when you were a kid, and the same went for Anthony Bourdain.

For Anthony, there was nothing like eating a hot dog from a New York vendor right out there on the street, and yeah, even a dirty water hot dog, as they're called.

24 LOVED: CHARCUTERIE

Perhaps nothing makes a chef, any chef happier than a simple meal. We covered this concept with Anthony's love of Asian Stir fry, particularly Thai Stir fry, but if we can go a tad deeper, we'll further thrust the point home.

Simple food is easy to prepare. It's that simple. And the simpler it is to prepare, the more it appeals to the men and women that have been cooking for long hours and shifts that can number close to 15 to 17 hours a day.

For Anthony, nothing was better than the simplicities of charcuterie, fresh bread, cheese and cured meats served with fresh fruit and perhaps a little Pastis De Marseilles. His love for this food really came through in the episode of Parts Unknown in which he and close friend Eric Ripert travel to Marseilles, France.

23 LOVED: STIR FRY

Who doesn't love a good stir fry?

Having been a good chef himself, he was very experienced with going home at the end of a shift and being so exhausted that he had little time to cook anything at all. But at the same time, he'd want some good food, and when he couldn't stop at a local place after work, he knew the importance of a quick meal.

Stir fry is indeed quite quick and if you throw in some cooked noodles or cooked rice, they are done before you can say: "Pass the sake."

According to thedailybeast.com, when in Thailand with chef and writer, Andy Ricker, he enjoyed a particular brand of stir fry that goes particularly well after an evening of throwing back a few cold ones.

22 WOULDN'T TOUCH: ANYTHING GLUTEN FREE

This too was another lifestyle or diet that offended him to his very core. And not because of food options, or even for the sufferers of the celiac disease in which gluten is forbidden, but rather for those who would turn to the diet for reasons of losing weight.

This bothered him greatly. According to cheatsheet.com, nothing disturbed him more than a patron who gave the chef in the back a hard time because the pasta he /she was served wasn't gluten free, claiming to have celiac disease, but never once having gotten a doctor's opinion.

21 LOVED: NIGERIAN Food

When we travel, there are foods we can't wait to try. Foods and cuisines we dreamed of eating all our lives. We'd dream of what these foods tasted like and when we set sail for these destinations of our dreams we couldn't wait until we were sitting at these foreign tables.

Anthony was the one who traveled to the other destinations that no one really spent their time dreaming of, like Lagos, Nigeria, and he went to sample the food that no one really took the time to think about or be curious about.

If there is indeed an interest in foreign food, we need to seriously think of how much of a responsibility Anthony Bourdain has for spreading that interest. After all, the work he did in his 18 years or so of fame played a large part in that interest.

20 LOVED: SHELLFISH

If the smile on his handsome face doesn't tell you just how much he loved shellfish, then I don't know what to tell you, friends.

He loved all food, in general, with the exception of a few items as we've been delving into here, but shellfish was indeed an item he loved immensely.

He especially loved traveling to the Southern United States, particularly Texas many times and he enjoyed the likes of Crawfish, Clam Bakes, and all the goodness those recipes came with. For Anthony, there was nothing like eating some boiled shellfish, potatoes and corn outdoors with friends and loved ones, washing it all down with a cold ale.

19 WOULDN'T TOUCH: EXTRA HOT CHICKEN

No one can say that Anthony Bourdain wasn't an adventurous eater. No way! If you've watched his multitude of television shows or even read any of his essays and articles, you will know full well that Anthony was hard-pressed to try anything at least once--at least in the food department that is.

But as for another food that Anthony has decided to stay clear from, extra hot chicken wings.

Why? Well, according to thecheatsheet.com, why bother? Why does chicken need to be that spicy and lead to such discomforts?

18 LOVED: AUTHENTIC FRENCH CUISINE

Is it any wonder really? Anthony's masters, or thesis statement was written on Classic French Cuisine. Of course students aren't required to write a thesis in culinary school, but we were going for the metaphor, here.

All kidding aside, he was a master at French cuisine, it was his principle course of study and to say he was indeed an expert on the recipes would be putting it mildly.

He cooked a plethora of dishes at Les Halles that mirrored a brasserie in France and the authenticity of his dishes was bar none while he was heading the line at Les Halles in New York City.

17 LOVED: ST-VIATEUR BAGELS / MONTREAL, QUEBEC

Anthony had been in Montreal many, many times and incidentally it wasn't only for episodes of his many shows. He loved the city and for many reasons, and not just the food. Okay, the food played a big part, like say Wilensky's fried bologna sandwiches, the incredibly heavy morsels of pork at Au Pied Du Cochon, and the smoked meat at Schwartz's and of course the bagels at St-Viateur Bagel.

But it was his friends that he enjoyed being with, the people that he enjoyed eating and drinking with, talking about the food, their loves their problems, and yes, existentialism. His more famous friends in the city, the chef/owners of Joe Beef, a particularly epic restaurant in the city, David McMillan and Frédéric Morin.

16 WOULDN'T TOUCH: TRUFFLE OIL

Here's another go-to of many chefs around the world. Especially chefs that are trying desperately to win some points with foodies of a rather particularly fancy crowd.

Cooking with truffles is in fact divine, especially rich meats and risotto.

No doubt that the rich taste will bring the dish being served that much more to that level of excellence, but according to many, including Anthony, Truffle Oil is that unnatural thing that many chefs are willing to drizzle over their food, but all it adds is a level of pretension and not good taste.

We'd have to agree with his wise words.

15 WOULDN'T TOUCH: RANCH DRESSING

We promised that we'd fill you in on why Anthony liked to push the envelope with food, being rather courageous and fearless when it came to sampling food, and as promised, here it is.

According to his own book, Kitchen Confidential, Anthony and his brother went on a trip to France with their parents when Anthony was but a small boy. He and his brother were in fact bored and hated the food. Well seeing that they didn't appreciate the food, their parents forced them to wait in the car one night while going into a restaurant and Anthony claimed it was the worst experience of his life.

He made a vow to try everything and enjoy it the rest of the trip, and that's exactly what he did.

Looks like the conviction to prove his parents wrong stuck, but he still has many items that he won't touch, no matter how courageous he is, Ranch dressing being one.

14 WOULDN'T TOUCH: BRUNCH FOODS IN GENERAL

You can see it now. Maybe you're in Vegas and the line down the escalator is still pretty long. You can't imagine what the fuss is all about and then you look down at your watch and realize that it's about 11AM. Too late for breakfast and too early for lunch, but just in time for, you guessed it, brunch!

Mounds and mounds of fried potatoes, sausages, bacon, croissants and so many variations of muffins, your head will spin.

Many love brunch, especially in the all you can eat capacity, but Anthony detested the combination of food in general and the concept of brunch.

13 WOULDN'T TOUCH: BEEF WELL DONE

All chefs are trained how to tell if a piece of meat is well done or not. Anthony too, especially since he went to the Culinary Institute of America, or the CIA, as it's referred to in most culinary circles. He had one of the best educations as far as the food industry are concerned, but perhaps he learned just as much if not more about food on the line.

The typical grey color beef has on the interior is the perfect way to tell if a piece of beef is well done, and of course if you can't slice a steak open to check, which is more than understandable at a restaurant, there are ways to check depending on firmness.

Anthony knew very well how to tell, and any technique he used to deduce the doneness of his steak, led him always to reject a piece of steak that looked grey on the interior and was hard enough to break a window if thrown.

12 WOULDN'T TOUCH: CLUB SANDWICHES

Everybody loves a club sandwich, right? They're filling, they are tasty and they contain bacon of all things, and well, doesn't everything taste better with bacon?

Well, according to Anthony, club sandwiches weren't the greatest thing since sliced bread.

In fact, they revolted him, and for one very good reason, the third slice of bread.

Pretty funny reason, but according to cheatsheet.com, Anthony claimed that he felt that third slice so unnecessary, as the sandwich would have been just fine without the extra slice.

Pretty weird for such a bar-hopper like him, as the club sandwich is on every bar menu around, but hey, who are we to argue?

11 WOULDN'T TOUCH: HOLLANDAISE SAUCE

You know, some of the reasons why Anthony detested a certain type of food may seem awkward to you, but he sure had his reasons, and he sure didn't mind explaining them.

But you ask: why should we have listened to him? Fair question, but only if you've been living under a rock since 2000, when his novel, Kitchen Confidential was released. That book, if nothing else, proved what an authority he was in the art of cuisine.

As far as Hollandaise sauce is concerned, his expertise said that Hollandaise was a hotbed of bacteria and why anyone would put it on their food was beyond him.

10 WOULDN'T TOUCH: SWORDFISH

Furthermore, a chef knows the ins and outs of all food, produce and how food is shipped and treated. That being said, a chef will know the inner workings of the food industry beyond the professional kitchen, like at the farm, or even in the sea. Essentially, chefs are paid to know about these things, or at least they should be.

Thankfully, Anthony always was, and we remember him fondly for it, as he always thought of his patrons, his readers and his viewers.

As far as Swordfish is concerned, he always warned from eating it, despite its popularity in the fine dining milieu, because the fish is born with a bacteria, an inherent bacteria that all species of swordfish are born with; a parasite if you will, and whether you get sick or not depends on the skill of the chef when he's filleting the fish. If he misses just a bit of the parasite, you'll be spending a very uncomfortable night in the ER.