Bourdain on Bourdain

I am, however, rooting for Ruth Bourdain to win in the new humor category. Because I’m pleasantly surprised to find the Beardies even discovering the existence of a sense of humor. Because it will be interesting to hear how the mysterious hermaphroditic on-line parody of Ruth Reichl and yours truly will accept the award if she/he wins. And because, apparently, some in the food writing “community” are said to be peeved that such an unserious, unidentified, uncontrollable–and well, funny, candidate might be honored by the purported “Oscars of Food”.

Chef Eric Ripert on the Identity of Ruth Bourdain

SI: Okay, probably you get asked this question a lot, but who do you think [famously anonymous Twitter mashup] Ruth Bourdain is?

ER: Ah. I think I have an idea, but I don’t want to say because I don’t want to kill it. But I think I know who it is. I would love to be wrong.

SI: Do you know this person?

ER: I think I do. [Laughs.] I think I do. But I cannot say more than that, and I’m probably wrong because I discussed it with Anthony Bourdain. I said, Anthony what do you think, and he said, No, it’s not possible. I studied the pattern of the tweets and the other person’s tweets and the style of writing and so on. It’s definitely a writer.

SI: Yeah, a non-writer wouldn’t come up with something like this.

ER: Of course it’s a writer. But Anthony doesn’t think I’m right, so. But it’s not him. Well, he says it’s not him, but I don’t know. I believe him because he’s my friend, but he may lie to me too. But he can’t, because sometimes he’s with me and we see it appearing.

SI: Well, that’s good to know. Don’t think it’s Ruth Reichl either.

ER: No, no, it’s not Ruth, that’s for sure. Ruth, no way.

Q & A With Eric Ripert, Part 2: Celebrity Chefs, Spago’s Spies + The Identity of Ruth Bourdain [LA Weekly]