Oscar-winning Crowe said on Twitter that he made the donation “on behalf of Anthony Bourdain” BEIRUT: Hollywood star Russell Crowe said Thursday that he donated funds to help rebuild a blast-hit Beirut restaurant on behalf of late food icon Anthony Bourdain, who loved its traditional dishes. The decades-old Le Chef restaurant, located in the heart of a trendy Beirut district, is a beloved neighborhood place renowned for its home-style cooking. It was blown to pieces by the August 4 explosion that killed 171 people, wounded at least 6,500 and ravaged swathes of Beirut. The Oscar-winning Crowe, best known for his role in the 2000 action film Gladiator, said on Twitter that he made the donation “on behalf of Anthony Bourdain.” https://t.co/VHYCJujJ6y Le Chef is where Bourdain had his first meal when he and his crew where trapped in Lebanon for a week in 2006 because of a month-long war with Israel. It is featured in the highly-praised Lebanon episode of his ‘No Reservations’ series. “Really good food, very traditional,” Bourdain says of the restaurant in the show, calling it a “nice mix” of old and new. It’s a “good first meal in Beirut.”