No more French Chefs?

[Chris Cognac]

I have said it once aand I will say it again, they know exactly what they are doing, Scrips is looking like the are pushing Fine Living network for the "higher end" type stuff and food is more generic....its a smart move if you ask me....they can really go after specific advertising money on each network...why have 2 of the same thing....they are creating "brands" and I think when you look at both networks when they go into full swing, they will cover most of the spectrum of what people are looking for....and for the record, Juan Cruz is Dominican and speaks fluent spanish....and he has 2 shows on Food TV....but I do see where you are coming from...My wife will be getting a good look at the whole thing this weekend as she is going to be on Juans show this Saturday.

[Kit]

hmm...no one said she is the anti christ or that Americans cannot cook French food as far as I can tell.

I'm sorry, I wasn't clear.

I read some of the comments as Rachel Ray = bad food. Perhaps I shouldn't have used such a charged word.

As for the Americans, the article was about getting rid of French *people* unless I read it wrong. It seemed like what was upsetting was getting rid of the people, and that the people equaled the food. You're right, I did say that if they don't replace these people with quality professionals (whatever thier nationality) they are dumbing down the food. They are. I just objected to what I saw as French chefs = good, American chefs = bad. I must have been mistaken.

[bourdain]

The question of what happened to the very fine--but never-aired episodes of My Country My Kitchen featuring Eric Ripert's return to Spain and Andorra--and Gordon Ramsay's return to Glasgow might be germane to this thread..

They "talk funny" perhaps?

Edited January 5, 2005 by bourdain (log)

[Neal J. Brown]

Hey, it’s not just the French they are getting rid of… they already got rid of the Mexicans (Sanchez), the black people(Aikens), and the Chinese (Tsai)…

They are basically targeting the “mid-west” demographic by making the network as culturally diverse as a KKK meeting.

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Easy there Oakland! Your way off base.

[Jinmyo]

The question of what happened to the very fine--but never-aired episodes of My Country My Kitchen featuring Eric Ripert's return to Spain and Andorra--and Gordon Ramsay's return to Glasgow might be germane to this thread..

They "talk funny" perhaps?

These aired on FN Canada.

Both were great episodes, perhaps the best.

[Pumpkin Lover]

I agree.  And people from places like New York City don't have any right to complain.  Most of them don't have anything that resembles a real kitchen - and their idea of cooking at home is reheating takeout Chinese food.  An overblown cliche?  Perhaps.  But no more overblown than a New Yorker's cliched view of the rest of the US.  Robyn

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Holy moles, when did this become a clichéd attack on New Yorkers?

[rancho_gordo]

QUOTE(carp @ Jan 4 2005, 01:40 PM)

Hey, it’s not just the French they are getting rid of… they already got rid of the Mexicans (Sanchez), the black people(Aikens), and the Chinese (Tsai)…

They are basically targeting the “mid-west” demographic by making the network as culturally diverse as a KKK meeting.

QUOTE(Neal J. Brown @ Jan 5 2005, 08:51 AM)

Easy there Oakland! Your way off base.

Well, where are the Mexicans beyond Emeril using a hal-i-pee-no pepper? Where are the blacks beyond Al Roker dressing up like a pilgrim? Where are the Asians beyond Rachel Ray exclaiming, "Oh wow! I wish you could smell this cilantro!"?

The KKK comment is a bit much but it is lilly white and as boring as watching a boil grow.

That Unwrapped is a hit is very disturbing to me. A show where the spotlight product is obviously paying to be featured and footage of how machines add a wrapper help explain American politics.

[JPW]

Don't forget what's-his-name (Bobby Rivers ?), that does the uber-annoying Top 5.

But seriously, last night as background noise while I perused last Sunday's NYTimes, I watched Cookin' in Brooklyn, the guy who grills on the back deck (have no idea what his name is, but his outdoor kitchen is da bomb), and Great Chefs before I realized that I had spent the whole night watching food shows and had never even thought about seeing what was on Food TV.

[carp]

QUOTE(carp @ Jan 4 2005, 01:40 PM)

Hey, it’s not just the French they are getting rid of… they already got rid of the Mexicans (Sanchez), the black people(Aikens), and the Chinese (Tsai)…

They are basically targeting the “mid-west” demographic by making the network as culturally diverse as a KKK meeting.

QUOTE(Neal J. Brown @ Jan 5 2005, 08:51 AM)

Easy there Oakland! Your way off base.

Well, where are the Mexicans beyond Emeril using a hal-i-pee-no pepper? Where are the blacks beyond Al Roker dressing up like a pilgrim? Where are the Asians beyond Rachel Ray exclaiming, "Oh wow! I wish you could smell this cilantro!"?

The KKK comment is a bit much but it is lilly white and as boring as watching a boil grow.

That Unwrapped is a hit is very disturbing to me. A show where the spotlight product is obviously paying to be featured and footage of how machines add a wrapper help explain American politics.

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Ok… the KKK think was over the top(way over), but I do feel that all the diversity is being washed out of the network.

Of course, some of the food is still there…(Emeril isn’t going to stop running our recipes into the ground just because FTV’s focus groups don’t like to see Mexicans on TV)... it’s just that we don’t get to cook it.

Considering the enormous popularity of ethnic food in America, it is interesting that with the Food Network the diversity stops when it comes to hiring the on-camera talent.

[robyn]

I agree.  And people from places like New York City don't have any right to complain.  Most of them don't have anything that resembles a real kitchen - and their idea of cooking at home is reheating takeout Chinese food.  An overblown cliche?  Perhaps.  But no more overblown than a New Yorker's cliched view of the rest of the US.  Robyn

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Holy moles, when did this become a clichéd attack on New Yorkers?

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I was making a joke - kind of. I'm not sure when shows that purport to appeal to people who live in the midwest became an object of vilification. By the way - I don't live in the midwest - and I have no idea what appeals to people in the midwest - except dreaming about places like Hawaii in January .

Anyway - my main point was let's leave cultural stereotypes about people who live in various places out of this discussion. The KKK too (only time I ever saw a KKK rally was in Lake City, Florida - and the people participating in the rally were all from Pennsylvania - presumably on their way to their winter vacation destination - the Florida locals just sat there rolling their eyes - and counting the money they were spending on overtime for the local police). Robyn

[SiseFromm]

that's why my new favorite food shows are on Discovery Home channel.

No doubt. The Best and Cooking with Heart and Soul are better than anything on FoodTV. The Food Network has basically gone completely to the toilet. There isn't a single cooking show on that channel (other than Molto Mario) that has found its way into my Tivo. Meanwhile, cooking shows on Discovery Home as well as Gordon Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares on BBC enjoy plenty of play.

[Farns]

She's just someone trying to make the American public cook. Anything. Isn't it better that someone is showing audiences how to cook simple things quick?

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Problem is she sometimes misinforms or doesn't inform at all.

Example: When she was making her "beef with Burgundy" she said you could use "any Burgundy at all" as she was opening a bottle of wine from California?!!

Not only did she not explain what a Burgundy wine is, but she used a wine that is NOT a Burgundy.

[Elizabeth Clauser]

I think that most disturbing show on FTV at this point has to be Semi-HomeCooking. This show encourages people to think that using pre-packaged foods and adding a couple of frills somehow qualifies as cooking. It reminds me of all the recipes you see out the 1950s, not to mention my mom's cooking - she is a firm believer that the best food you can have starts with a can of condensed mushroom soup

[Gifted Gourmet]

not to mention my mom's cooking - she is a firm believer that the best food you can have starts with a can of condensed mushroom soup

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You mean to tell me that it isn't??

I think that many a novice cook might well believe that easy is better when they first begin ... only after gaining confidence with the ingredients, might they begin to explore and experiment ...

Of course, it also stands to reason that if there is truly nothing available on food-related television, what is there to excite and energize the uninitiated?

[Mabelline]

OK, the FNW used to show us good s***. It came from everywhere. There was Padha Laskmi, all the Latinos and caribes, the diverse cultures, the explanations of where the pitiful American traditions came from.

So what is there now? A commercial asking if YOU, a totally unschooled idiot out in FNW land, is the next food PHENOM--read bucks? I rest my case. I no longer take the Food Network seriously. PHEAUH!!

[Mabelline]

OK, the FNW used to show us good s***. It came from everywhere. There was Padha Laskmi, all the Latinos and caribes, the diverse cultures, the explanations of where the pitiful American traditions came from.

So what is there now? A commercial asking if YOU, a totally unschooled idiot out in FNW land, is the next food PHENOM--read bucks? I rest my case. I no longer take the Food Network seriously. PHEAUH!!

[Lady T]

Bloody all! Did the numbwits at the FN ever consider that one of the reasons there's such a large Midwestern market for food programs might possibly be that we like to explore other cuisines beyond the ones commonly available to us every day? Has the possibility ever entered their teensy l'il money-driven minds that many of us in the Midwest do in fact speak and read languages other than Central Kansas American, and that the "foreign accents" they want to discard may sound just like home to a whole lot of us? Why on earth would I want to spend my infrequent TV-watching time looking at someone who looks just like me (prettier than I and made up for the camera, of course) and (in Rachael Ray's case, IMHO) doesn't even cook as well as I do? Feh!

Midwesterner that I am, I take exception, yet again and still, to the condescending insult to Midwestern intelligence and taste implied by this decision.

*Sigh* Rant over.

Edited January 6, 2005 by Lady T (log)

[SiseFromm]

Tony Bourdain said at a book signing re his discussion with Food Network about a possible third season of A Cook's Tour (which he opted not to do) that FN had said "we don't want to hear any foreign accents." The audience gasped.

I wonder if I was at the same signing? Book Soup at South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa? In any case, he mentioned the same thing when I saw him. The Food Network wanted to know if he would be interested in doing something with barbecue, or a "Dude Ranch" type show. Of course, his answer was a big screw you.

I can't wait until his Travel Channel show starts airing. It will be yet another food-related program NOT on Food Network that I'll be watching.

[Busboy]

Maybe I'm cynical, but did you really expect FN to present cutting-edge cooking shows? Do you expect Fox to give you cutting-edge drama? Or MTV to present cutting edge music?

New York City, Mid-West, Florida or right here in our Nation's Capital, the Gresham's Law of programming dictates that bad TV -- cheap, mass-produced pap that appeals to the lowest common denominator -- is going to drive out good TV. The more channels, the faster the race to the bottom. I guess people got their hopes up early, when there were some good shows on, so I can understand the consternation. But think about this: for every good restaurant that opens up in your area, how many Applebee's, Cheesecake Factories and Outbacks open up? If you're a network exec, who are you going to target -- the Outback people or the other group.

Until someone sees fit to produce a premium channel, or we can make the Internet work in real time for mass audiences, Rachel Ray and Emeril are in charge.

In the mean time, PBS runs some pretty good shows.

[robyn]

She's just someone trying to make the American public cook. Anything. Isn't it better that someone is showing audiences how to cook simple things quick?

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Problem is she sometimes misinforms or doesn't inform at all.

Example: When she was making her "beef with Burgundy" she said you could use "any Burgundy at all" as she was opening a bottle of wine from California?!!

Not only did she not explain what a Burgundy wine is, but she used a wine that is NOT a Burgundy.

←

Are you complaining about her not using a burgundy - or implying that she was using a burgundy when she wasn't? If the former - I'll note that she has plenty of good company in not using burgundy in a beef bourguignon. E.g., Julia Child in "The Way to Cook" uses a zinfandel but says that if you're out of zinfandel you can use another good young red wine. In the French Chef cookbook - she says to use a full bodied young red wine like a Macon, Burgundy or Mountain Red (whatever that is!). The New Professional Chef (CIA cookbook) doesn't call for wine per se - but a wine marinade which contains "red wine". Etc. Frankly - I never realized that a burgundy wine (i.e., a red wine from a specific part of France) was essential to a beef bourguignon (on my part - I like to cook with young reds from Chile). Robyn

[robyn]

Bloody all!  Did the numbwits at the FN ever consider that one of the reasons there's such a large Midwestern market for food programs might possibly be that we like to explore other cuisines beyond the ones commonly available to us every day? Has the possibility ever entered their teensy l'il money-driven minds that many of us in the Midwest do in fact speak and read languages other than Central Kansas American, and that the "foreign accents" they want to discard may sound just like home to a whole lot of us?  Why on earth would I want to spend my infrequent TV-watching time looking at someone who looks just like me (prettier than I and made up for the camera, of course) and (in Rachael Ray's case, IMHO) doesn't even cook as well as I do?  Feh!

Midwesterner that I am, I take exception, yet again and still, to the condescending insult to Midwestern intelligence and taste implied by this decision.

*Sigh*  Rant over.

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Apart from what I've read here - it never occurred to me that the station was pandering to allegedly moronic mid-westerners. So perhaps you're confusing what the station is actually doing with what people say it's doing.

And I'm not sure what people here are looking for in terms of ethnic diversity. Does it have to be X number of African Americans and Y number of Latinos? Some kind of quota system? Don't people like Jacques Torres, Wolfgang Puck and Jamie Oliver count as "non whitebread"? By the way - they sure didn't pick someone like Torres to do a show because his stuff is easy to make - or because his English is easy to understand. Robyn

[SiseFromm]

Maybe I'm cynical, but did you really expect FN to present cutting-edge cooking shows? Do you expect Fox to give you cutting-edge drama? Or MTV to present cutting edge music?

Interestingly, even comparisons between MTV and The Food Network can be made. Both started off with humble beginnings, became the premier source for the type of content they were offering, then evolved into showing mostly drivel that appeals to an under-informed audience.

MTV has diversified a bit by offering more MTV stations to choose from. MTV2 for example sprung up to take on the overflow of content from the original station. Maybe The Food Network will do the same with a sort of "etchnic" version of their station. I'd love to be able to switch to the more "obscure" programming to see chefs like Rob Feenie and Gordon Ramsay at work.

I can hope anyway.

[Mabelline]

Now there's an idea...a Classic FNW channel kind of like VH1CR. An assortment of all the old shows that are presumed, by the powers that be, not viewer-worthy anymore. I'll watch. I watch CR, as well.

Then they can bring back all the oldies we love so well. And we can quit griping at their crap programming, and have something to watch.

[Bux]

The pity is that cable TV was supposed to offer "narrowcasting" or many channels, each to appeal to a more limited group of viewers. Wait, there's the internet.

[Kevin72]

MTV has diversified a bit by offering more MTV stations to choose from.  MTV2 for example sprung up to take on the overflow of content from the original station.  Maybe The Food Network will do the same with a sort of "etchnic" version of their station.  I'd love to be able to switch to the more "obscure" programming to see chefs like Rob Feenie and Gordon Ramsay at work. 

I can hope anyway.

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The problem is that, much as Busboy was talking about above, if you watch MTV2 now, they still don't show music videos! When it started it was much more video-driven and showed a lot more cutting edge music, but now it's pretty much just runoff from MTV: recycling old shows from its past. So even if an FTV2 were to start it probably wouldn't be too long before it got swallowed up by the Scripps Marketing machine and turned into an all-Unwrapped channel.