He donned a special outfit for the occasion, too.
Anthony Bourdain kept busy in Louisiana while filming a new episode of his globetrotting show, Parts Unknown.
The TV personality visited several towns known for their Cajun cuisine and culture and was hosted by a few local restaurants, some of which are likely to appear in the future episode. He also participated in another Louisiana activity that one can only hope will make it into the show: drunken chicken chasing.
A photo posted to his Instagram Wednesday shows Bourdain in a Southern-Louisiana town called Mamou donning an extravagant costume with the caption “The Quest for Chicken.” According to local ABC affiliate KATC, the chef was taking part in Mamou's Courir de Mardi Gras, or “Fat Tuesday Run.”
The Cajun tradition contrasts with the Mardi Gras customs practiced several hours to the east in New Orleans. Rather than receiving gifts, revelers become “beggars,” as NPR reports, and run around town in costumes “dancing, drinking and collecting ingredients for a big pot of gumbo.” A live chicken is one of the most coveted prizes in this quite literal chase.
Ray Brassieur, a professor of anthropology at the University of Louisiana Lafayette told NPR that hosts sometimes throw the chicken into a crowd from a roof. "Sometimes they give a guinea hen… and those sure can be hard to catch. They run fast, might even fly up in a tree," he added.
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It seems fitting that Bourdain would be in Louisiana on Fat Tuesday, the last day of Mardi Gras to feast before Lent, but fans will have to wait to find out if a chicken chase makes it onto TV when Parts Unknown returns for a new season.
