Favorite/Least Favorite Food "Celebrities" (Part 2)

[sjemac]

[Host's note:  To avoid an excessive load on our servers this topic has been split.  The discussion continues from here]

 

 

Favorites:

Brown

Bourdain

Batali

Ramsey (too over the top on the Yank version of Kitchen Nightmares though)

Meh!:

Nigella (her "quick n' easy" show turned me off)

Oliver (getting too gimmicky)

Dislike:

Giada (too much of that grimace/smile/gaping maw)

Paula Dean (she's just so folksy you wanna puke and her cooking kind of nauseates me to look at)

Emeril (that ship has long sailed)

That Guy Guy from the diners show.

Want to shoot the TV:

Rachel Ray (I cheer for her to cut herself)

Edited December 28, 2015 by lesliec
Added host's note (log)

[D. B. Brown]

I guess I'm the only one here that really enjoys the Hippy Gourmet.

It's a nice little segment, and everything he prepares looks tasty, well-seasoned and simple.

Edited December 14, 2008 by D. B. Brown (log)

[Peter the eater]

I just watched the first episode of The French Chef -- Julia Child's television debut! She made Boeuf bourguignon.

Considering the show's in black & white, it's 1962, and there wasn't really a precedent . . . it's a fine demo for making the famous peasant stew. Julia is in her early 50's and quite charming, and she looks a little bit nervous.

[Shel_B]

I guess I'm the only one here that really enjoys the Hippy Gourmet.

It's a nice little segment, and everything he prepares looks tasty, well-seasoned and simple.

←

I like the Hippy Gourmet as well.

[teagal]

Not so much:

I think if Sandra Lee spent less time on her 'tablescapes', (I can NOT stand that word) she would have more time for her food / cooking.

[zeph74]

I'm all for taking shortcuts when cooking, but Sandra Lee uses too much processed food. Canned soups, cake mixes, etc etc. Semi-crapola.

[gfweb]

Not so much:

I think if Sandra Lee spent less time on her 'tablescapes', (I can NOT stand that word) she would have more time for her food / cooking.

←

As I understand it, she took up cooking to allow her to fool with her decorating stuff on TV. This would seem to fit.

[judiu]

If only the network had not called it "Semi-Home Made" and gone with something like "Gussied Up Food" it might be more acceptable? My mom was a great one for gussey-ing up food that she'd bought; fresh strawberries (home grown) over Sara Lee pound cake, Chili powder in the jar of spaghetti sauce, a little real molasses in the canned baked beans... It works for me!

[Mano]

While flipping through the channels I stopped to watch a woman with wonderful bosoms who pretended to cook. I'd never heard of Sandra Lee before. After a few minutes the show ended, but it was okay. I'd had enough.

[cbread]

While I happily read Cooks Illustrated magazine, watching Chris Kimball on TV makes me want to have my mouth surgically removed. I can pass his dippy "editorials" in the mag but the TV is a killer.

[grumpy7]

Favorites:

Julia Child (in a class by herself)

Anthony Bourdain

Alton Brown - TV persona

Padma Lakshmi (for obvious shallow reasons)

Eric Ripert

Mario Batali

Ming Tsai

Alice Waters

Michael Pollan

Not so favorite:

Sandra Lee

Guy Fieri

Alton Brown - real life persona

Jamie Oliver

Emeril Lagasse

Bobby Flay

[bloosquirrel]

i am surprised at the negative votes for emeril

he is one of my favorites-i miss his high profile rotation on the foodnetwork

[Pierogi]

i am surprised at the negative votes for emeril

he is one of my favorites-i miss his high profile rotation on the foodnetwork

I, for one, hated, just hated his mugging to the audience for his "Live" shows and his, for lack of a better term........."schtick" that he used on those shows.

That said, I always respected him as a chef, and as a culinary talent, and liked, not loved, but liked, his "Essence" shows. But I avoided his live shows like the plague. My respect for him has multiplied exponentially after Katrina and his committment to New Orleans and his employees there. He really walked the walk there, and he is to be commended.

I very much like his shows on Planet Green, and have gotten a lot of ideas and recipes from them. He's much more low-key and restrained, and very enjoyable.

But I still avoid any replays of his "Live" shows like I would avoid a hot poker to the eye.

[billieboy]

Would like to have a beer with:

Mario Batali

Morimoto

Would like to have a midnight snack with

Nigella Lawson

Would like to kill!!!

Those idiots on Food Jammers

The sureal ass

Edited for spelink

Edited January 8, 2009 by billieboy (log)

[Special K]

Likes (in no particular order):

Early Alton Brown, not so much the motorcycle persona and I don't much like the new longer hair (but he didn't ask me). I liked Geeky Alton a lot better.

Early Emeril Legasse, without the audience (but I do agree that he is to be commended for his response to Katrina, and I do like Emeril Green). He seems like a nice guy, and I'm worried about his health. Poor guy looks like a walking heart attack these days.

Jamie Oliver, especially now that the camera work is so wonderful, as opposed to the Naked Chef, where the constant jumping around made me dizzy. The show and Jamie seem to have calmed down quite a bit, and I'm glad.

Mario Batali, especially Molto Mario, not so much the Iron Chef shows - I'm just not into watching chefs compete - I think cooking should be an act of creation, of giving, not of trying to beat out someone else. I know this is Food Network's way of bringing in new, younger, male audience members, but I don't like it.

Sara Moulton, love her.

Ina Garten, love her too.

Nigella Lawson, in small doses.

Early Michael Chiarello, not so much the current show on FLN where he rants - I don't want to see him rant, I want nice, easygoing smiling Michael, not frowny, griping Michael.

Tyler Florence. I want to adopt him.

Ming Tsai, although my enjoyment was somewhat ruined by a report from a local food writer that he was inexplicably very rude to her when she interviewed him. I've never glimpsed any sign of rudeness on his shows, but I can't stop thinking about it when I see him.

Anthony Bourdain, loveable bad boy.

Not so much:

Bobby Flay (the competition thing again). And I don't think playing tricks on people is nice.

Rachel Ray, although I have to say I know lots of young people who started cooking with her, and anything that gets young 'uns in the kitchen is good. Her voice always bothered me, but it turns out she just had throat surgery for a nodule or something.

Sandra Lee. Skin-crawling aversion to the woman for reasons I can't really define. I can't turn the channel fast enough when her show comes on. But I do want her kitchen.

Paula Deen. Now, I'm a Southerner myself, and I just don't buy it. I think it's all an act. Plus, it seems obvious to me that she's trying to kill us all.

Martha Stewart. Now that she's come down off her pedestal I think I understand why everyone hated her before. Still, I feel sorry for her about the "Whatever, Martha" show, although I've read that it was her idea. I actually liked her more when she was perfect. I didn't believe it, but for some reason I liked it. I guess we want our teachers to be paragons (or I do).

Really Dislike:

The whole crop of new shows on Food Network which have replaced the educational, informative ethic with testosterone.

[jess mebane]

Really Dislike:

The whole crop of new shows on Food Network which have replaced the educational, informative ethic with testosterone.

←

Amen, brother. I sorta stopped watching that channel all together about a year or so ago, but didn't realize why.

I like Lidia B., and find myself rooting for her millionairess endeavors while fervently hoping she'll consider hair plugs at the same time...Special treat when her mom guest-stars.

Also enjoy listening to Eric Rippert's caramel frog accent, but does he have his own show yet? I just catch him on the odd Bravo or Regis and Kelly Lee segment....yum!

[GwennP]

Favorite:

Julia and Jacques

Michael Chiarello

Tony Bourdain

Mario

Lydia

Ina Garten

The Worst:

Bobby Flay

Sandra Lee

Rachel Ray

Giada

Pretty much anyone on food network!!

[TimmDavis]

Favorite:

Julia and Jacques

Michael Chiarello

Tony  Bourdain

Mario

Lydia

Ina Garten

The Worst:

Bobby Flay

Sandra Lee

Rachel Ray

Giada

Pretty much anyone on food network!!

←

Ok, so by your admission of "pretty much anyone one on the food network", your even likes list should be under the worst: Ina Garten, Mario, Chiarello....all of them have or had shows on Food network.

[jess mebane]

ease up on the snark, luvvy, they're just sayin'........tsK!

[TimmDavis]

ease up on the snark, luvvy, they're just sayin'........tsK!

←

Didn't have enough coffee in my system at that point, and my snark meter was set to high...

[Marigene]

Like:

Ina Garten

Giada

Michael Chiarello

Anthony Bourdain

Ann Burrell (minus her growls and flying hands)

Can't stand:

The Neelys

Paula Deen

Bobby Flay

Rachel Ray

Sandra Lee

The rest are in between.

[emmalish]

There are a lot of hated celebrities that I've never had the chance to see on Food Network Canada. I'm dying to see Sandra Lee to find out for myself if all the horror stories are true.

I just caught the Neelys for the first time. Oh urgh. How. Annoying. I can't decide which of them is worse, but the two of them in combination makes me want to smack them both.

I can't decide how I feel about Michael Smith's Chef at Home or Laura Calder's French Food at Home. I enjoy both shows for the ideas and techniques, but... well, Michael always comes across as condescending – I feel like he thinks he's explaining things to a really slow child. And Laura is just too too precious.

[Pierogi]

There are a lot of hated celebrities that I've never had the chance to see on Food Network Canada. I'm dying to see Sandra Lee to find out for myself if all the horror stories are true.

I just caught the Neelys for the first time. Oh urgh. How. Annoying. I can't decide which of them is worse, but the two of them in combination makes me want to smack them both.

I can't decide how I feel about Michael Smith's Chef at Home or Laura Calder's French Food at Home. I enjoy both shows for the ideas and techniques, but... well, Michael always comes across as condescending – I feel like he thinks he's explaining things to a really slow child. And Laura is just too too precious.

The Neelys are worthy of an Emmy, a Peabody AND a Pulitzer, and they could instruct at Le Cordon Bleu AND CIA, simultaneously, in comparison to Aunt Sandy. *THAT'S* how awful she is. They are Julia and Jacques together again in comparison to her.

And totally agreed about Michael Smth. We used to get him down here on I think TLC. He totally got on my last nerve. But not nearly as bad as Sandra Lee does. At least HE actually cooks.

[GwennP]

Favorite:

Julia and Jacques

Michael Chiarello

Tony  Bourdain

Mario

Lydia

Ina Garten

The Worst:

Bobby Flay

Sandra Lee

Rachel Ray

Giada

Pretty much anyone on food network!!

←

Ok, so by your admission of "pretty much anyone one on the food network", your even likes list should be under the worst: Ina Garten, Mario, Chiarello....all of them have or had shows on Food network.

←

Yes, Ina is on food network now but Michael only has reruns now. I guess I should have been more specific - I'm new!

[GwennP]

Favorite:

Julia and Jacques

Michael Chiarello

Tony  Bourdain

Mario

Lydia

Ina Garten

The Worst:

Bobby Flay

Sandra Lee

Rachel Ray

Giada

Pretty much anyone on food network!!

←

Ok, so by your admission of "pretty much anyone one on the food network", your even likes list should be under the worst: Ina Garten, Mario, Chiarello....all of them have or had shows on Food network.

←

Tony Bourdain

Mario

Lydia

Ina Garten

The Worst:

Bobby Flay

Sandra Lee

Rachel Ray

Giada

Pretty much anyone ELSE on food network!!