‘Bizarre Foods’ TV host Andrew Zimmern apologises for mocking ‘horses**t’ Chinese restaurants in US Midwest
- Andrew Zimmern admits he sounds arrogant as he describes plans to open his own Chinese restaurant in Minnesota
- He wants to introduce diners to the ‘greatness of Chinese and Chinese-American cuisines’
The host of the Travel Channel’s Bizarre Foods, chef Andrew Zimmern, is apologising for his comments about Chinese restaurants in the US after he was criticised as culturally insensitive.
Zimmern just opened his own Chinese restaurant, Lucky Cricket, in Minnesota, which he hopes to turn into a nationwide chain.
Last week, Fast Company posted an interview from the summer in which Zimmern said he was saving the souls of people who dine at “horses**t restaurants masquerading as Chinese food” in the Midwest. Zimmern, 57, is based in Minneapolis.
The Eater website said his remarks represented cultural elitism. The Washington Post called them insulting.
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In a statement, Zimmern admitted that his comments sounded arrogant. He took responsibility and attempted to clarify, saying many diners in the Twin Cities area of Minneapolis and St Paul ate Chinese food in malls, and he hoped to expose them to the “greatness of Chinese and Chinese-American cuisines.”