Anthony Bourdain Calls Vegans "Self-Indulgent," Praises Batali

Veganism is a first-world problem, according to Anthony Bourdain. The "No Reservations" host had this and much more to say in an interview for Playboy's November issue. Some of the more fascinating quotes:

On how men can impress women with their cooking: Learn how to cook a [redacted] omelet. I mean, what nicer thing can you do for somebody than make them breakfast? [...] The way you make an omelet reveals your character."

On vegetarians: "They make for bad travelers and bad guests. The notion that before you even set out to go to Thailand, you say, 'I'm not interested,' or you're unwilling to try things that people take so personally and are so proud of and so generous with, I don't understand that, and I think it's rude. You're at Grandma's house, you eat what Grandma serves you."

On vegans: "I don't have any understanding of it. Being a vegan is a first-world phenomenon, completely self-indulgent."

On the one thing he won't eat: "The only thing I won't eat is something that's rotten. But sometimes you've got to take one for the chief. If someone's serving you something and they're proud and they've worked to prepare it, to decline would be a worse offense."

On how to convince kids to eat healthy foods instead of McDonald's: "I'd scare the living [redacted] out of a kid. Come on, Ronald McDonald's a clown! He's already scary. You don't tell your kids to read Michael Pollan. They won't. Instead, you lie.

On Mario Batali: "He's a monster of rock and roll. He's done everything right from the beginning. Mario's managed to balance making a lot of money, opening a lot of restaurants, world domination and his personal happiness and quality of life in a remarkable way. He's the smartest chef there is. There is no chef smarter or funnier or faster."

There's lots more where that came from -- be sure to read the whole Playboy interview here.