This Deliciously Bougie Dish Was Anthony Bourdain's Ideal Last Meal

Soho, London. 1992. A former architect with no formal training as a chef opened a dining room above the French House pub with his wife. Two years later, he left to open a restaurant in Smithfield, a district in central London famous for its iconic meat market. When he did, he invented a dish, one that has remained on his menu for 30 years and was infamously Anthony Bourdain's ideal last meal.

The bone marrow toast with parsley salad has become the signature dish of that restaurant, St. John, and of its founder, Fergus Henderson. It's a simple plate of food, but like most of Henderson's cooking, it's that simplicity and (in this case, literal) bare-bones nature that give it its character. Bourdain described the dish to My Last Supper in an interview: "Roast bone marrow with parsley and caper salad, with a few toasted slices of baguette and some good sea salt." 

The original version uses sourdough (made in-house, of course) rather than baguette, but the principle remains the same: high-quality ingredients, big flavors, almost overwhelming richness (but never too much), and salt — lots and lots of salt. It's no surprise Bourdain loved (and praised) it so much. Henderson is a real chef's chef, and this dish is — and Bourdain said this himself, per The Guardian — one of the most influential in Western food of the last 30 years.

While there are many variations on the bone marrow on toast concept found on menus throughout the world, the original dish remains a firm favorite for a number of reasons. For one, St. John is no run-of-the-mill restaurant — it earned a Michelin star in 2009 (one that was, in the eyes of many within the London culinary scene, long overdue) and has retained it ever since. The establishment is known for its commitment to the best ingredients that Britain, and the world, have to offer, and for a dish of such simplicity, that quality is crucial. So, what made this meal one of Anthony Bourdain's all-time favorite dishes?

It begins with the bones — specifically, marrow taken from the veal shank, which has a delicate taste due to the younger age of the animal. You can use regular beef marrow bones, too, but they'll give you a much darker, heartier flavor. These are simply salted and roasted (for about 20 minutes, according to Fergus Henderson's "The Book of St. John") until the marrow inside has turned all soft and wobbly — perfect for spreading over some sourdough toast, taken quite far so as to give it an adequate amount of crunch. Then comes the salad, which is made of roughly torn or "lightly chopped" parsley (as Henderson refers to it,) capers, and finely sliced shallots. Finish with some coarse sea salt, and you've got yourself one of the most delicious bites on planet earth.

If you've never eaten bone marrow before, you might be thinking, "This all sounds well and good, but what does it actually taste like?" In a word: Divine. You'll sometimes hear bone marrow referred to by chefs as "the butter of the gods." It's unctuous, rich, and fatty without being overbearing and has a deep, beefy flavor to it. Like the best bits of a great steak but with a clean finish that leaves your palate coated in a deliciously subtle savory aftertaste. You'll be reminiscing for the next few minutes about just how delicious that bite was. While it's great on its own, bone marrow is super versatile, whether that's in a nourishing bone broth or blended into a flavorful compound butter.

All that fat needs contrast — Fergus Henderson understands this and delivers. The parsley salad is fresh and bitter, with the capers providing a sharpness and the shallots bringing that unmistakable allium aroma and a hint of sweetness. On its own, the salad is almost overly cutting, but with the crunch and starch of the bread and the immense richness of the marrow, the whole dish comes together to satisfy every single part of the palate in perfect balance. If it sounds like we're gushing, it's because we are: This is, truly, one of the world's great dishes. And if it's good enough for Anthony Bourdain, then it's probably good enough for you, too. Rather wonderfully, bone marrow is also incredibly simple to cook the right way, so even if you're not in London and able to try the original, you can get pretty darn close in your own kitchen.