What Anthony Bourdain Really Thought About His Famed Food Network Chef Colleagues
Anthony Bourdain was brutally honest about his fellow Food Network chefs.
June 5 2026, Published 5:15 p.m. ET
Famed chef Anthony Bourdain was known for his brutal honesty in his opinions and deep love for food and travel – but he didn't have the same affection for some of his fellow Food Network colleagues, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
The late television personality specifically voiced his disdain for Rachael Ray, Guy Fieri, Paula Deen and Sandra Lee over the years, prior to his 2018 death.
Anthony Bourdain Insisted Rachel Ray 'Can't Cook'
Anthony Bourdain criticized Rachel Ray's former brand deal with Dunkin' Donuts.
Back in 2007, while guest-blogging for Michael Ruhlman, Bourdain boldly claimed Ray "can't cook."
"She shrewdly tells us so. So what is she selling us — really? She’s selling satisfaction, the smug reassurance that mediocrity is good enough," he complained. "She's a friendly, familiar face who appears regularly on our screens to tell us that 'Even your dumb, lazy a-- can cook this!'"
He also slammed her once-upon-a-time partnership with Dunkin' Donuts.
"She’s not hurting for money. She’s hugely influential, particularly with children — and she’s endorsing Dunkin’ Donuts," he said at the time. "It’s like endorsing crack for kids!"
Anthony Bourdain Called Sandra Lee 'Evil'
Anthony Bourdain called Sandra Lee's food 'c--p.'
Two years later, Bourdain took a swipe at Lee, dubbing the host of Semi Homemade Cooking "pure evil."
"All you have to do is waddle into the kitchen, open a can of c--p and spread it on some other c--p that you bought at the supermarket," he once said. "And then you’ve done something really special."
Anthony Bourdain Calls Guy Fieri 'Silly'
Anthony Bourdain called Guy Fieri's American Kitchen a 'terror dome.'
Even the Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives host wasn't safe from Bourdain's critical comments.
"There’s some natural empathy for my fellow media tarts, even when they’re as silly as Guy Fieri. I look at that and think what a lot of people think: ridiculous and painful — even insulting," he said of Fieri.
He even called Guy's American Kitchen in Times Square – which was open from 2012 to 2018 – a "terror dome."
"All these poor b-----ds see him eating cheap food on TV, and they go in there and it’s, what, $18 for a hamburger and French fries are like $12," Bourdain said.
Anthony Bourdain Claimed Paula Deen's Food Isn't 'Traditional'
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Anthony Bourdain criticized the nutritional value of Paula Deen's food.
A frequent theme of Bourdain's criticism was the nutrition value of the types of the recipes chefs became famous for – and he definitely didn't go easy on Deen's calorie-packed treats.
"She’s proud of the fact that her food is unhealthy for you," he once said of Deen. "I would think twice before telling an already obese nation that it’s okay to eat food that is killing us. Plus, her food sucks."
On a Reddit Ask Me Anything thread from 2013, he also denied that her food could be described as traditional Southern cooking.
"The South is where the greatest American traditional food comes from. It's the cradle of American gastronomy. I reject the notion that what Paula was selling is traditional Southern food," he told his fans on Reddit as he fielded their questions on his life and career. "Cheeseburger on a Krispie Kreme bun? Nobody's grandma I ever heard of EVER made that s---."
