"Chef at Home" is on a Set

[Sugarella]

....executive are not going to give 100k per episode ....

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Seeing as it only costs about $5-$10000 to produce one of these episodes before they pay the talent, I doubt FTV actually pays another $90000 to the chef. Not in Canada, anyways.

[Chris Cognac]

....executive are not going to give 100k per episode ....

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Seeing as it only costs about $5-$10000 to produce one of these episodes before they pay the talent, I doubt FTV actually pays another $90000 to the chef. Not in Canada, anyways.

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You have to figure in editing, music etc....it might not be 100k but I imagine at least 40-50k...100k is for stuff like the travel shows and food network challenge etc...

I am positive that the chef is actually making a paultry sum....

[Sugarella]

Having worked in film and television production is my previous life, I can assure you cooking shows can be done for peanuts, and most are.

Generally (or at least a little over a decade ago) specialty channels in Canada would pay about $25000 for a completed 1/2 hour show (home decor, gardening shows, anything) ....so any production company would have to assume they could only sell a show to one network, and would have to see a profit if they did...well, you do the math.

Maybe one day if I ever get fed up with pastry I'll go back to production and do some good cooking shows without porn music and flashy zooms......

[Spiro]

I seem to be late to the party, but...

I always suspected that CaH wasn't shot in Smith's actual home. Each episode, I notice that the ingredients relevant to what he's making are the ones most visible in the pantry and fridge. I don't mind this, really, since it's consistent with the show's premise. (And it's still more realistic than 30-minute meals, where the necessary ingredients are the _only_ ones visible.)

The only time it falls apart, IMO, is when he says something like "Nah, change of plans; I think I'll do this instead of that." And, of course, it all magically falls into place for him. To me, it's obvious the the end result is what was planned all along. Not that I'd expect otherwise, but for me the suspension of disbelief is gone at that point.

On a related note, we're going to the Inn at Bay Fortune for the July long weekend, which is where Michael got what TV chops he has filming "Inn Chef".

[rgruby]

I'm ok with both Smith and Rainford - they both cook stuff that you or I might on any given day, and most of the time it looks pretty decent. And Smith, I think, is doing a decent job teaching to the FN audience - ie those interested in food and wanting to explore some more but maybe not having a great deal of confidence to do so. It's not restaurant food, but it looks to me like (mostly) good cooking that people might actually try to do themselves - unlike most of what Emeril, for example, is doing. (I'd put Nigella in that category too. I mean with Michael, not Emeril). I'm not sure why Smith grates less for me than Rachel R, who is doing a similar thing, albeit on an obvious set, but, er, did I mention I'm a Canuck? (Go Oilers!)

Anywho, that last sentence had a lot of commas. Oh, back to the CaH set - do you think Smith has a vent hood at his actual home? Makes sense to have the cooktop out in the open with no hood for a show set, but always struck me as odd. Now that I know it's not his actual house, makes a lot more sense.

Cheers,

Geoff Ruby

[kellycolorado]

It does kinda bug me, I always thought it was his home, even if he was way too tall for it.  My spouse loves his pantry, all those mason jars filled with everything you could possibly want.  And, he's right on the water too.

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I just "discovered" this on the Discovery Home channel a few months ago and have been recording all the episodes along with Kylie Kwong's shows.

Wow, I was totally taken- I figured it was his actual house.... no big deal though.

I loved that pantry idea so much that a couple weeks ago I took all my plastic baggies of bulk grains and spices and transferred them to all the old glass mason jars I'd been saving.

Rachel's spiel totally drives me insane but he doesn't bother me at all. I love the "no recipe" approach. It's a lot like the way I really cook.

-Kelly

[Metallic_Blueberry]

The thing is, if I was a chef planning to do a cooking show as an average person or parent that cooks more.. well... realistic food as compared to the rest of the the cooking shows on food network, I would really not want to make my own kitchen as the set of my show just like the rest of the celebrity chefs. Also, the premise of the show isn't really affected by the fact that it isn't really his house, since the essential premise of the show is home cooking. It's not like he has surreal ingredients or meals in his shows.. It's all the same things we have in our kitchen or is very accessible in supermarkets like superstore etc etc. The only thing surreal in his show, is that pantry.. That pantry is like the supermodel of all pantries... lol

[heidih]

The only thing surreal in his show, is that pantry.. That pantry is like the supermodel of all pantries... lol

If we are talking about the same show I LOVE all the glass jars and endless shelves

[ScoopKW]

Maybe one day if I ever get fed up with pastry I'll go back to production and do some good cooking shows without porn music and flashy zooms......

I think it would be even better to go completely over the top with the porn music. Add whip-pans of the chef throwing things into a pot. Use the "24" multiple video streams of various things happening at once -- AND, do it with a smirk, knowing that they're lampooning every show on FoodTV.