Well we’re smack dab in the middle of summer TV and I’m freakin’ starving! Between Hell’s Kitchen, The Next Food Network Star, and Top Chef: Miami, my stomach is in a perpetual state of growling. Here’s a quick review of each to wet your appetites.
Hell’s Kitchen- Mondays 8pm CST, FOX
Season 3 of “Gordon Ramsey’s 60 Minutes of Yelling”, or “Hell’s Kitchen” as the network would like you to call it, is off to a slow start. In previous seasons, it seemed you could pick out the potential winners after the first 30 minutes of TV. This time…not so much. While in the past the eventual winners have struggled this cast has collectively struggled all together and straight from the starting gate. The show itself is beginning to show its age as well. Gordon’s yelling is nothing new and honestly the man seems to have a relatively limited pallet for a world renowned chef. His lack of interest in anything spicy or peppery strikes me as downright perverse. Still the food looks good and the challenges are fun. Plus, this season features the breakout reality star of the summer: Aaron the fat Asian Cowboy who cries. Seriously if you watch 3 minutes of the show you’ll see this guy either faint or breakdown or both and somehow he’s managed to stay through 2 weeks.
The Next Food Network Star- Sundays 8pm CST, Food Network
One of the highlights of my trip to New York last weekend was strolling past Iron Chef Morimoto’s restaurant as well as Mario Batalli’s new place, on my way to the Chelsea Market. The market is home to butcher shops, food stores, and many of the bakeries that supply the New York restaurant scene. It’s also home to the Food Network and as I walked through I couldn’t help but picture Emeril, Giada, Paula, Alton, Mario, Giada, Rachel, Guy, Bobby, and Giada, all making their way through the storefronts. It’s the accessibility of their stars that has made the Food Network such a success and that appeal also translates into a feeling that the audience can do it too. That’s the premise behind The Next Food Network Star also now in it’s 3rd edition. The show features some of the best food challenges on TV and of course a heaping helping of celebrity chefs. Did I mention Giada stopped by in the latest episode? The contestants come from kitchens in both restaurants and homes and all seem to have an interesting take. The only complaint is that the show tends to focus too much on the TV and not enough on the food which is a problem that often occurs on the network itself. Still its more food then entertainment unlike Hell’s Kitchen.
Top Chef: Miami- Wednesdays 9pm CST, Bravo!
Another food show entering its 3rd season is Bravo’s Top Chef. A food version of Project Runway, the show has grown out of its parent’s shadow and has become the most entertaining food competition show on TV. This season the show has added Ted Allen. who gained fame as one of the Queer Eye guys and frequently has been a judge on Iron Chef America, as a permanent judge joining host Padma, the Food & Wine editor, and of course Chef Tom Colicchio. More so then any other reality show, these judges have deliberations that truly discuss the merit of each contestant or in this case meal. The challenges are decent and the cast of season’s past have produced many a character and no lack of reali-drama. Last night’s premiere episode continued to show how this series has hit its stride. Allen was absent from the premiere but instead we were treated to the crazy ranting of Anthony Bourdain. The elimination challenge was right up his alley as the chefs had to create a surf and turf meal with some rather unique ingredients. Rattlesnake and gooey duck anyone? Whenever a show like this starts its tough to keep up with the large number (15) of contestants but so far Hung who has ties season 2 bad boy Marcel looks to be a stand out both cooking and drama wise. Between the challenges, judges, and contestants, this is the summer food show to binge on.
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