Help Choose From So Many Food TV Shows

[weinoo]

It appears as if there are a few world TV premiers tonight. Unsurprisingly, some of them have to do with food.

It also appears as if some of these might be cringe-worthy; sort of like rubbernecking at a highway crash.

First, we have the premier of Bravo's Eat, Drink, Love.

As the NY Times describes it:

9 P.M. (Bravo) EAT, DRINK, LOVE Five single women — Kat Odell, the editor of Eater LA; Waylynn Lucas, a pastry chef; Brenda Urban, a publicist; Nina Clemente, a private chef; and Jessica Miller, a marketing specialist — search for love and success on the male-dominated Los Angeles food scene.

I can hardly wait for that one (especially the bikini scenes). Of course, competing with that at 9 is the finale of Food Network Star.

Which leads into the Food Network's brand new competition series, Cutthroat Kitchen! This gives you an idea:

10 P.M. (Food Network) CUTTHROAT KITCHEN Chefs try to sabotage their opponents in this new competition series, in which four contestants per episode are each given $25,000 to bid on obstacles, like the exclusive use of salt or not allowing others to taste their dishes. The last one standing receives the money left over in his or her bank. A winner is chosen on the “Food Network Star” finale at 9.

My real hope is that at some point, Food Network just gives a bunch of cooks knives...and may the best man or woman win. But that's just a fantasy.

Anyway, which of these stellar pieces of art will getting your viewership? And...why?

[heidih]

None? Cutthroat Kitchen and the love one don;t even seem like they would be mildly amusing. But honestly I have caught bits of the Next Food Network Star so will have it on in the background

[annabelle]

I gave up on FN when they announced their upcoming season and Alton Brown's boney visage was shown mugging as the host . . . AGAIN.

I've been watching the BBC's cooking shows, especially their version of Master Chef. It's so refreshing to have competent judges (with 2 Michelin stars, so actually cred), competitors without attitude, weird hairstyles or sleeves of tattoos, who actually listen to the criticism/praise of the judges without getting a case of the ass about it and pronouncing the judges to be wrong to the camera in the Confessionals.

[weinoo]

I gave up on FN when they announced their upcoming season and Alton Brown's boney visage was shown mugging as the host . . . AGAIN.

Yeah - he seems to be the de facto host of every bad show on that network.

[lochaven]

I'm with heidih on this. There is a better cooking show of sortsi premiering tonight on it's last season -- Breaking Bad! Just kidding, but looking forward to it.

[Tri2Cook]

Anyway, which of these stellar pieces of art will getting your viewership? And...why?

None of them. I won't watch Shows That Suck™ just because they are ostensibly food-themed.

[hsm]

None of the above here, too. Alton's new show sounds like enough to cancel out any good thing he ever did on Good Eats.

And from my peek at last week's TNFN"Star", there's an obnoxious pie guy (everything is "pah styahl"), an obnoxious "sin" guy (more fat!) and a seemingly pleasant young woman who concentrates on southern food (buh-bye, Paula) but got roped into a help-others-win-love-through-making-southern-food pilot idea. Non grazie.

[rotuts]

Well

BBC is outstanding.

FN has very little to do with Cooking

consider :

The Food Truck NZ

one might need to Internet 'competent'

http://tvnz.co.nz/the-food-truck/index-group-4174185

Rx's

http://tvnz.co.nz/the-food-truck/recipes-group-4174247

love this show. a NZ Chef goes out in his Food Truck and tries to create a lower fat Item for a few crowds.

made this myself:

its 50 % veg.

http://tvnz.co.nz/the-food-truck/ep-7-big-mike-s-beef-and-veggie-burgers-4184690

[Lisa Shock]

Agreed with none of the above. I'm with lochaven, tonight I'll be watching the adventures of Walt & Jesse cooking up 'Blue Sky.'

The BBC shows are waaaay better, and Bravo has Top Chef Masters in a new season right now -just not tonight.

The only series I have watched on FN recently was a show that is currently in hiatus, Health Inspectors, where real health department inspectors helped people fix their restaurants. Even that was pretty overly dramatic and barely believable as a 'reality' show.

I'd also like to point out that my cable operator offers 'On Demand' so you can catch shows you missed later. If three things are on at once, I can just watch two of them 'On Demand' -or record one with my DVD recorder.

[annabelle]

I like that Health Inspectors show. It's even scarier than Robert Irvine's show "Restaurant Impossible" wherein he discovers people's disturbingly filthy restaurants and inadvertently makes an argument for chain restaurants if only for the sake of cleanliness and consistency.

Re: Food Network Stars. I kind of like the Pie Guy. He's obnoxious, but that seems to be their go to model on FN. I hope Southern Girl takes it, though. She's a doll. Mohawk Sin Guy is annoying and preachy. Hit the road, man.

[annabelle]

Yeah! Southern Girl, Damaris Phillips wins it!

[gfweb]

Yeah! Southern Girl, Damaris Phillips wins it!

The next Amy Finley.

[annabelle]

Let's hope not.

[hongda]

A vote for the Fabulous Baker Brothers<br /><br />

/><br />

[heidih]

Yeah! Southern Girl, Damaris Phillips wins it!

Well thanks for the spoiler - there went my Sunday night -

(just kidding!)

[rotuts]

Fabulous Baker Brothers

yep. have most of these

[HungryC]

Thank Gawd PBS still does food/cooking shows. I'm enjoying John Besh's new series, Family Table: http://www.wyes.org/john-besh-family-table/

[rotuts]

a fine show 'In Progress' is Raymond Blanc's How to Cook Well

a previous series of his was " Very Hungry Frenchman "

http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/programmes/b036zkh2

[David Ross]

I gave up on FN when they announced their upcoming season and Alton Brown's boney visage was shown mugging as the host . . . AGAIN.

I've been watching the BBC's cooking shows, especially their version of Master Chef. It's so refreshing to have competent judges (with 2 Michelin stars, so actually cred), competitors without attitude, weird hairstyles or sleeves of tattoos, who actually listen to the criticism/praise of the judges without getting a case of the ass about it and pronouncing the judges to be wrong to the camera in the Confessionals.

I agree. I can't tell you how thrilled I was a few weeks back when I turned on BBC America one morning and saw MasterChef Professional. I've been waiting a few years to see it back on American tv and voila, there it was. If anyone is serious about what is happening with young Chefs in Michelin-level kitchens, this is the show for you.

[David Ross]

I think this season of Top Chef Master's is woefully bad compared to previous seasons. I don't want to see Top Chef's compete against or with their Sous Chefs. I want to see Top Chef's create magnificent dishes. This season's derivation is about the best example of how ridiculous food challenges create bad tv.

[annabelle]

It is terrible, isn't it? I watched the chefs leaping out of an airplane and thought "Who indemnified this challenge? Those people are out of shape and untrained."

It's all fun and games until someone gets a spiral fracture.

[gfweb]

I tuned in briefly and caught that absolutely stupid and irrelevant attempt to inject excitement. Next they'll be playing spin the bottle or swapping car keys with the Real Housewives.

[furzzy]

Can't think I'll be watching anything on the Food Network. I used to like Top Chef, but agree with those who say they've gone too far into the "entertainment" aspect. Cooking Channel (spinoff from FN) has a few of the good old "how to" shows, mostly brought over from FN.

PBS remains the best bet.

[annabelle]

Ah, but Top Chef is on Bravo, furzzy. Making it even more cheesy, if possible.

[furzzy]

Ah, but Top Chef is on Bravo, furzzy. Making it even more cheesy, if possible.

It crossed my mind to wonder whether that would be easily misunderstood - thinking I meant Top Chef was on FN. So I guess I should have reworded it. LOL