Anthony Bourdain’s Parts Unknown hits Hong Kong as celebrity chef feeds his jiu-jitsu addiction
American swaps rolling the camera reels for rolling on the mats every chance he gets, indulging his passion while filming latest episode of hit show
Anthony Bourdain may have been busy filming the sights, sounds and tastes of Hong Kong for his latest episode of Parts Unknown, which airs this weekend, but the American celebrity chef made sure he found time to indulge his second passion while in the city.
When the cameras stopped rolling during his January trip, Bourdain could be found rolling around on the training mats at Hong Kong Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu studio The Hurt Locker, which is owned and operated by Hong Kong’s first male black belt Viking Wong.
Watch: Anthony Bourdain trains in Hong Kong
The Tsim Sha Tsui studio hosts daily two-hour invitation-only classes held by Wong, and Bourdain stopped by twice in breaks from filming.
“Anthony is a lot taller in-person than on TV and his grip strength is unreal,” said Tesa Ho, Hong Kong’s first female black belt. “He definitely has the Renzo Gracie style with solid fundamentals and a great no-gi leg attack game.
Bourdain is a confessed jiu-jitsu addict. Every day he is home in New York, he takes an hour long class with his principal instructor Igor Gracie, before another hour of working on techniques and drilling, and then sparring, at the Renzo Gracie Academy in Manhattan.
