Claim:
A photograph authentically shows former U.S. President Barack Obama drinking beer in Southeast Asia with convicted sex offender Jeffery Epstein.
Rating:
Rating: Miscaptioned
Context:
The man in the photograph with Obama is late television host and chef Anthony Bourdain.
In July 2025, a photograph circulated online purportedly showing former U.S. President Barack Obama drinking beer with disgraced financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The picture was allegedly taken in a Southeast Asian country, according to numerous posts. One X user’s caption read: “It was buried by the press, but not only were Obama and Jeffrey Epstein friends, they traveled around Thailand together, in search of ‘the perfect spring roll’.”
(X user @baltic_dan)
However, the photo above does not show Obama drinking a beer with Epstein. The man drinking alongside the former president is the late chef and television personality Anthony Bourdain. As such, we have rated this picture as miscaptioned.
The authentic photo was taken while Bourdain was interviewing Obama in a small restaurant in Hanoi, Vietnam — not Thailand — for his show “Parts Unknown” in 2016 (archived). They had a dish called bún chả while drinking beer.
During the interview, Obama spoke about his past experiences in Southeast Asia, parenthood and reaching across political divides.
Bourdain died by suicide in 2018. On June 8 of that year, Obama posted the above photograph of the pair drinking beer in Hanoi with the caption: “‘Low plastic stool, cheap but delicious noodles, cold Hanoi beer.’ This is how I’ll remember Tony. He taught us about food — but more importantly, about its ability to bring us together. To make us a little less afraid of the unknown. We’ll miss him.”
While Bourdain and Epstein may have had some facial similarities, it is clear that they are two different men and that Epstein was not pictured in the above photo alongside Obama.
Snopes has investigated numerous claims regarding Bourdain and Obama. For example, we looked into whether the late chef said that people should have a drink with those they disagree with and whether the former president said that boys need gay mentors.
If you or someone you know is experiencing a mental health, suicide or substance use crisis or emotional distress, reach out 24/7 to the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline (formerly known as the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline) by dialing or texting 988 or using chat services at 988lifeline.org to connect to a trained crisis counselor.
Sources:
“Barack Obama & Anthony Bourdain Have Dinner | Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown.” YouTube, HBO Max, 25 Nov. 2023, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=efG56KcQj0Q. Accessed 29 July 2025.
‘Former Obama Adviser Ben Rhodes Remembers Anthony Bourdain’. Explore Parts Unknown, 25 Oct. 2018, https://explorepartsunknown.com/directors-cut/why-obama-wanted-to-sit-down-with-bourdain/.
‘Https://X.Com/Barackobama/Status/1005117568913412098′. X (Formerly Twitter), https://x.com/barackobama/status/1005117568913412098. Accessed 29 Jul. 2025.
Ibrahim, Nur. ‘Anthony Bourdain Said “Have a Drink” With People You Wouldn’t Agree With?’ Snopes, 3 Jul. 2024, https://www.snopes.com//fact-check/anthony-bourdain-drink-people/.
—. ‘Examining Claim Obama Said Boys Need Gay Mentors’. Snopes, 24 Jul. 2025, https://www.snopes.com//fact-check/boys-gay-mentors-obama/.
Instagram. https://www.instagram.com/accounts/login/?next=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.instagram.com%2Fanthonybourdain%2F&is_from_rle. Accessed 29 Jul. 2025.
Severson, Kim. “The Last, Painful Days of Anthony Bourdain.” The New York Times. 27 Sep. 2022. Available at: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/27/dining/anthony-bourdain-biography.html.
YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=efG56KcQj0Q. Accessed 29 Jul. 2025.
