MONDAY NOVEMBER 4, 2013, 11:15 AM
BY ELISA UNG


BIZARRE FOODS AMERICA

9 tonight, Travel Channel

So it turns out that Andrew Zimmern, the bug-eating, blood-drinking host of "Bizarre Foods America," has long had Taylor ham delivered to his Minnesota home.

"I'm obsessed with it," says the New York native, whose in-laws hail from South Jersey. So when it came to taping the Travel Channel's season premiere in the Garden State, he made sure that the quintessential Jersey breakfast meat was on the menu ? along with a collection of lesser-known eats that might fascinate even the most longtime resident.

In tonight's episode, Zimmern tours a Teterboro ramen factory, eats balut (a fertilized duck egg) at a Philippine grocery store in Jersey City, watches oysters grow at the New Jersey Aquaculture Innovation Center in Cape May, and celebrates Hungarian culture in New Brunswick.

" 'Bizarre Foods' is not about me putting strange edibles into my mouth," he said in a phone interview. " 'Bizarre Foods' is about telling stories about cultures through food. And Jersey has very definable cultures."

Among Zimmern's favorite examples is his visit to Bergen County's well-known Sun Noodle ramen factory, where he examined the levels of precision involved in customizing noodles for celebrity chefs all over the country. "The ramen explosion across the United States and Europe is being fueled by one family business in an office park in Teterboro," Zimmern announces during the episode.

He said he was "amazed at the perfectionist attitude, at the sophistication of the equipment, at the almost fetishy level of appreciation that this group has for producing such great products ? and I love the fact that they're located in a sort of an anonymous part of the town."

Kenshiro Uki, Sun Noodle's general manager and the son of its founder, said he was "blown away" by the depth of knowledge that Zimmern displayed during his visit. "He was the nicest guy, very passionate about what he does," Uki said.

Zimmern said he also relished spending time at Thirty Acres, the celebrated Jersey City restaurant run by Kevin and Alex Pemoulie. "There's an energy in that city that is just fantastic to be a part of, and I was so impressed by what they're doing there, foodwise, but even more so in terms of growing their community," Zimmern said.