The new A24 biopic "Tony," which delves into the formative years of the late chef, author, and television personality Anthony Bourdain, has garnered praise from his friends and colleagues for its authentic portrayal of his character.
Tracy Westmoreland, owner of the New York City bar Siberia, where Bourdain was a regular, told The Post that the film "nailed the way Tony was." Westmoreland, who was among the first to encourage Bourdain to write about his experiences as a chef, noted that people still frequently ask about Bourdain, who died by suicide in 2018 at age 61.
"He was way f—ing cooler" than people might imagine, Westmoreland said. He recalled Bourdain's early days, when he was writing crime novels. "I’m gonna bar you if you don’t write about anything about food," Westmoreland told Bourdain, eventually leading to the chef's breakout book, "Kitchen Confidential."
Initially skeptical about the film, Westmoreland was impressed by the performance of actor Dominic Sessa, who plays Bourdain. "I thought the guy (Sessa) nailed the essence of him," Westmoreland stated, though he added that Nancy Bourdain, the chef's actual wife, was prettier than the actress who portrayed her.
John Tesar, a fellow chef who worked with Bourdain in the 1980s and is referenced in "Kitchen Confidential," echoed these sentiments. Tesar described Bourdain as "very charismatic, but also kind of naive in some way and sophisticated in others." He felt Sessa did a good job of portraying Bourdain's "sensitive, vulnerable and sometimes full-of-shit aspects."
Tesar highlighted the film's focus on Bourdain before his rise to fame. "He was a very complex individual before fame," Tesar said. "What I loved about the movie is that it shows you who he was before everybody and anything."
Michael Ruhlman, another close friend and collaborator, characterized Bourdain as "a Jersey wisecracker who turned it into an art." Ruhlman, a food writer, noted Bourdain's unique ability to be "forthright and outspoken" with humor and intelligence, which helped him connect with a wide range of people.
Ruhlman recounted an anecdote where Bourdain, after getting too drunk to write a review of a sushi bar for Men's Health, had to return with Ruhlman and chef Eric Ripert, leading to another night of heavy drinking.
"He was just so forthright and outspoken, and said what was on his mind with a humor and intelligence nobody could imitate or duplicate," Ruhlman told The Post. "He crossed all kinds of religious and political divides, and was this kind of unifier, connecting us all and I think people really took to that."
Ruhlman also reflected on Bourdain's enduring legacy, citing the numerous posthumous projects, including the companion book "Happier, Stupider Times: Anthony Bourdain’s Provincetown Years," "The Anthony Bourdain Reader," the documentary "Roadrunner," and "World Travel: An Irreverent Guide."
"Now he’s Saint Tony," Ruhlman remarked. "Strangers are still wishing me sympathies, and to have that level of empathy for not the person, but his friends, showed me the sheer reach of his popularity."