- was an incredible chef and writer beloved by so many
- very open about his struggles with drug use and abuse as well as depression, and in testimonials from fans used to encourage people he met in their struggles to get clean
- an outspoken and passionate advocate for the “me too” movement, to the point where he penned an essay highlighting the horrible treatment of women in the food industry and his own failings and regrets in that regard for not speaking out against it sooner
- frequently challenged western views on the countries and places he visited; one of the clearest examples i can think of was an episode of parts unknown set in iran where the highlight was the normalcy of the lives of people who live there - he went bowling with them, for example, and spent an hour calling out the bizarre westernized views of iran and it’s people as tragic, war-torn and oppressed.
- spent so much time focusing on the people in the places he visited. he ate at their homes, in their backyards, anywhere they would like him to, as much (if not more) as he did at fine dining restaurants. he was generous and kind, and the show was never about “poverty porn” but rather about showing that these are real people, with real lives just like ours, and treated them with respect and graciousness.
- was an outspoken trump-hater particularly when it came to immigration rights, discussing the impact that mexican immigrants had on his love of cooking and his desire to be a chef.
- someone asked what tony would cook for trump & kim jong un if he was asked to cater their meeting and he said “hemlock”.
- a friend of obama’s, having dined with him many times before; when someone asked if he would do the same with trump tony said: “Absolutely f—ing not. I’ve been a New Yorker most of my life… I would give the same answer that I would have given 10 years ago, when he was just as loathsome.”
in short he was a beautiful and inspirational person and i sincerely hope this side of him is remembered just as much as the tragedy of his passing.
yousharknotpass
gummygunk
