One of the world's most famous celebrity chefs has died at the age of 61.

CNN has reported that Anthony Bourdain was found dead in a hotel room in France, where he was filming an episode of his TV show Parts Unknown.

The network cited suicide as the cause of death.

"His talents never ceased to amaze us and we will miss him very much," CNN said in a statement. "Our thoughts and prayers are with his daughter and family at this incredibly difficult time."

Bourdain was no stranger to Vancouver, having come here to film with such local chefs as Pino Posteraro, Vikram Vij, and Hidekazu Tojo.

He also dropped by Japadog, as you can see in the video below.

Bourdain was born in New York City and was a chain-smoking, drug-using chef before becoming a celebrity with the release of his book Kitchen Confidential, which blew the lid off how cooks coped with pressure by using hard drugs.

In his hit show Parts Unknown, he travelled the world, introducing viewers to unusual dishes in a wide variety of locales.

It was as much a travelogue as a food show, often focusing just as much attention on the culture and public issues faced in different countries as on the cuisine.

Among his episodes were one in which he taught Barack Obama how to slurp noodles in Vietnam.

https://twitter.com/ObamaHitsBack/status/1005049996520157184

In another show, Bourdain explored how life became far more difficult for farmers in Punjab as a result of the partition of India and Pakistan.

Another episode featured him speaking to a man in Laos whose limbs were blown off by an American bomb.

Bourdain's wit and writing set him apart from many in the field of celebrity chefs. However, his willingness to kill animals on TV for meat and his sometimes politically incorrect observations didn't endear him to all audiences.

Just over a week ago, Bourdain told CNN's Anderson Cooper that a recent trip to Hong Kong was the professional highlight of his career.

https://twitter.com/AC360/status/1002739859570561024