PORTLAND — Culinary arts will take center stage with renowned chefs Anthony Bourdain and Eric Ripert serving up frank and provocative insight into what really goes on behind kitchen doors.

“Good vs. Evil: An Evening with Anthony Bourdain & Eric Ripert” will be presented at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 3, at Merrill Auditorium.

The outspoken and opinionated Bourdain is author of “Medium Raw” and “Kitchen Confidential” and host of The Travel Channel’s “No Reservations.” The reserved Ripert is chef of New York’s Le Bernardin, author and regular guest on Bravo’s “Top Chef.”

The two will share tales and muse on the place of food in our personal, community and global lives

Bourdain tells it like it is and holds nothing back when talking about food, celebrity chefs, music and more. His books “Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly,” “A Cook’s Tour” and “The Nasty Bits” were New York Times best sellers.

A refined television personality, Ripert is the polar opposite of Bourdain. He has made several appearances on Bravo’s “Top Chef,” has played himself in the HBO series “Treme” and recently won a Daytime Entertainment Emmy Award in the “Outstanding Culinary Program” category for his PBS series “Avec Eric.”

Tickets, ranging from $45 to $55, may be purchased by calling PortTix at 842-0800, visiting the box office window at Merrill Auditorium or logging on to www.portlandovations.org.