Look for food celebrity Bourdain to pop up around town in March

Noted "gonzo gastronome" Anthony Bourdain entertained an eager audience at the Paramount Theatre last week with good friend and world-class chef Eric Ripert. Those who did not have a ticket to the sold-out event might not have to wait long to get their own glimpse of the beloved Travel Channel raconteur. Bourdain is slated to appear on a South by Southwest Interactive panel, and he told the crowd at the Paramount that he would be filming an episode of his show in Austin in the coming weeks. One would imagine the taping and the madhouse that is SXSW will coincide. Maybe Bourdain will be 2012's Bill Murray, popping up at bars and restaurants all over town and setting the Twitterverse ablaze.

More highlights from last week (read the full report @austin360.com/relishaustin):

* Ripert is no fan of Gordon Ramsay's TV show, saying that the celebrity chef from the U.K. should be "full of shame" for the violence and abuse shown in the kitchens. The Le Bernardin chef said that while he used to be nasty in the kitchen, about 16 years ago he realized that his practices were making him unhappy, so he changed.

* Ripert lauded Cesar Ramirez and says he thinks the future of fine dining will be less baroque and echo the style of Japanese culture. Ripert says he thinks beef is going to have a resurgence, with chefs focusing on cheap cuts, and that Asian ingredients will become popular in America.

* Bourdain says some of the best and least-appreciated food in the world is coming out of Baja Mexico and calls the cuisine in that area his dark horse for becoming a major culinary influencer.

* As for guilty food pleasures, Ripert says, "Whatever I eat, there is no guilt."