Enjoy Your Weekend
Friday, November 30, 2007 | posted by Mike
Looking back at the posts from the past week, I was taking care of business (and working overtime) with plenty of news. And some of it was even correct!I kid, but I got nothing for you today. Unless you're interested in my ongoing Capogiro gelato adventures, in which case you'll be thrilled to know that today I had Lime and Cilantro sorbetto. Yum.
I'm not feeling guilty about slacking today because I will be up bright and early tomorrow to go into New York City. Regular readers may have an inkling of what that's all about. I'll also be stopping by another locale that will end up as a future post, so stay tuned.
Finally, I wanted to let you know about the Well Fed Network's annual food blog awards. They're accepting nominations via the comments in the various categories.
I was getting ready to put together a big "vote for me" post, but it just felt kind of phony. So check it out and nominate TVFF if you really want. Or, better yet, nominate another deserving food blog. Either way, get your noms in by December 5th.
However, I have no problem asking you, as I've done a bunch of times in the past, to take a moment to let your foodie friends know all about TVFF. I know that we have plenty of new readers thanks to some recent mentions on other sites, so here is your opportunity to help us out and, hopefully, give your friends a fun new way to waste some time.
Giada Behind the Scenes
Thursday, November 29, 2007 | posted by Mike
I'm sure you all remember TVFF New York Bureau Chief Jessica's eventful visit to the taping of Today. She managed to get some face time and some up-close-views of Giada De Laurentiis. Well, as promised, she sent along a couple of photos of Giada getting ready for the shoot. You can click them for the larger versions.
Jessica wanted me to let you know that she was actually there for a good cause. It's hard to tell from the image we posted at the time, but she was holding a sign promoting Inspired by Diabetes.
Children, people with diabetes and their family members and friends are encouraged to enter the contest. Health care professionals are also invited to enter. Grand prize winners will be selected for both the U.S. and global contests for each participant category (see below), with the winners (excluding health care professionals) receiving a trip to attend a media briefing and formal exhibition of the winning entries.
Participants from the United States will also have their submissions entered into a separate U.S. contest with a chance to win both the global and national competitions. U.S. grand prize winners will also receive tickets and backstage passes to attend an Elliott Yamin concert in 2008. The entry deadline for the contest is March 31, 2008. For all rules and regulations, go to www.inspiredbydiabetes.com
Labels: Giada De Laurentiis
Alton Brown Gets Cinematic
Wednesday, November 28, 2007 | posted by Mike
I realize this is a bit late, considering the whole thing actually happened a while ago, but Turner Classic Movies is running an event this month featuring "guest programmers" who choose the slate of films for the day and give a little interview about why the movies are among their favorites. Back on November 11th, Alton Brown was the featured programmer and his movies certainly fit the bill of a child of the Sixties who grew up to be a filmmaker.
What's Up, Tiger Lilly?
Closely Watched Trains
Point Blank
Blow-Up
Antonioni's Blow-Up, in particular, is a logical favorite for a highly-visual former cinematographer.
Alton's interview, which you can see on the TCM site (click on the calendar for the 11th and then on "Video Interview"), discusses his decision to go to culinary school and get into food TV. He also talks about his love of What's Up, Tiger Lilly?, the classic Woody Allen film.
Another food personality, Martha Stewart, will be running the ship this Friday. While Alton's films all came from the mid-to-late Sixties, Martha goes way back in the archives.
Labels: Alton Brown
Rachael Ray to Serve Up Dunkin Donuts for a Good Cause
Tuesday, November 27, 2007 | posted by Mike
There may not be a more miserable soul than an undercaffinated New Yorker trying to get across town to do his or her holiday shopping. Fortunately, this Saturday, that won't be a problem.
Rachael Ray will be appearing at the New York Waterway Terminal to greet shoppers, provide special holiday trolley service, give out samples of Dunkin Donuts products and, most importantly, announce a big donation to benefit those serving in the armed forces.
Rachael Ray will be at the New York Waterway Terminal on the Hudson River to greet holiday shoppers.
Here she’ll announce a one-ton donation of Dunkin’ Donuts coffee to Soldiers’ Angels, one of the nation’s largest volunteer-based nonprofit military support organizations providing aid and comfort to our nation’s deployed soldiers and their families. Rachael Ray will also greet armed services personnel and announce a national holiday card drive with Dunkin’ Donuts and Soldiers’ Angels.
New York City holiday shoppers will be urged to fill out holiday cards that will be sent to service men and women stationed outside the U.S. Shoppers can then hop on the Gingerbread Express, a trolley service offering free rides to top Manhattan shopping destinations.
The event will be taking place on Saturday, December 1, 2007 from 8:00 AM – 6:00 PM, and Rachael will be there around 10:00 AM. The Terminal is on the Hudson river at West 39th Street.
Labels: Rachael Ray
Bourdain Appearing at Free Library of Philadelphia this Saturday
It takes a lot to get me motivated on a Saturday. This just might do it -- Anthony Bourdain appearing at the Free Library of Philadelphia.
Author of the New York Times bestsellers The Nasty Bits and Kitchen Confidential, culinary bad boy Anthony Bourdain is the host of the Travel Channel’s No Reservations and chef-at-large of Les Halles Brasseries with locations in New York City, Washington, D.C., and Miami. No Reservations: Around the World on an Empty Stomach is Bourdain’s fully illustrated, outrageously commentated journal of his far-flung and gastronomically adventurous travels.
Bourdain will be appearing at the Central Library, only a few blocks from TVFF Philadelphia Branch Office in Center City, at 2:00pm. There is no cost to attend.
Normally, I'd be there...no brainer. However, the next week or two will feature a couple of "field trips" for TV Food Fan (more on that later), so I'm hedging a bit. If any of you Philly readers are planning on going, drop me a note at mike@tvfoodfan.com and let me know.
Update: Not going to the Philly event, but I'm hoping to catch Bourdain at another event soon. I'd love to get a report/photos if someone goes.
Labels: Anthony Bourdain
Update for Feed Subscribers
Monday, November 26, 2007 | posted by Mike
For those of you who follow the site via a feed-reader, be sure to check out the update to the Emeril story from earlier this morning. Short version: Emeril ain't going nowhere.Labels: Emeril Lagasse
Updated: "Emeril Live" Done Filming - Emeril Still with Food Network
SEE UPDATE AT END OF POSTMedia Bistro (via Grub Street) is reporting that talks have fallen through with Emeril Lagasse and that the last Emeril Live will be filmed on December 11. And so, the man who was once front-and-center on all things Food Network will scale things back considerably...funny, since I just last week mentioned my belief that Alton was now the "face of the network." Emeril will "continue to be a part of the Food Network family," according to a quote from FN's Carrie Welch.
Those of you who have been following closely will know that the quote more likely means Emeril will enter the "Land of Batali," which exists somewhere between having a show in production and actually "leaving" the Network.
Heck, even if you really do "leave" (Jamie Oliver), there's always a chance to come back at a later date.
Besides, there are so many episodes already in the can that your grandkids will be watching Emeril Live reruns.
Updated: Got an e-mail from the Carrie Welch at Food Network that clarified things with regard to Emeril. Specifically, she wanted to point out that Media Bistro's characterization (which we passed along in the post above) of Emeril as "leaving" the Network is incorrect. Ms. Welch also pointed out that production episodes of Essence of Emeril will continue, as will various upcoming specials.
'Emeril Live' has been an incredible journey and a great collaboration between Emeril Lagasse and Food Network for over ten years. Emeril has been the cornerstone of Food Network's success and helped pave the way for chefs on TV. The show has hit numerous television milestones. Lagasse was the first chef to have food consumed in space when he created recipes for the astronauts at International Space Station, he redesigned and invigorated the cafeteria at Children's Storefront in Harlem, cooked for the troops on military bases, firemen at firehouses, and more.Media Bistro has updated their post to reflect the actual facts of the matter, although their headline hasn't changed.
Food Network and Emeril look forward to continuing our long partnership and Emeril remains an integral part of the Food Network family.
Update to the Update: Media Bistro has a new post up with a full clarification.
OK...party's over, folks. Move along...
Labels: Emeril Lagasse
An Iron Chef America Holiday Extravaganza!
'Tis the season, apparently.
I really hope you had a chance to tune in for the big holiday-themed desert battle on Iron Chef America. It was, in all likelihood, the funniest thing that I've ever seen on the Food Network. And I'm pretty sure that at least half of that humor was intentional...
I mean, Martial Arts Santa (see the remarkably accurate approximation at left) and the Elfin Sous Chef were certainly there to elicit a chuckle. The histrionics and maniacal cackling of Paula Deen? Well, I'm guessing that was just an unexpected bonus!
Yeah, I have to say I was pretty much right on with my guess a few weeks back. Paula wasn't really doing anything you or I couldn't do, so I'm hoping Cat got paid overtime for putting in all the extra work.
I'm not sure when it's on again, but do yourself a favor and check it out if you can.
Another thing: Have you seen those new promos for the holiday season with the various personalities as pseudo-Rankin/Bass characters? Am I the only person who thinks they didn't do Giada any favors by making her body so small? I mean, people already make fun of her for having a big head. But they got the smile spot on.
Labels: Cat Cora, Giada De Laurentiis, Iron Chef America, Paula Deen
"I Find Your Lack of Fondant Disturbing"
Friday, November 23, 2007 | posted by Mike
Duff Goldman is a year or two older than me, so that means he undoubtedly grew up as a fan of Star Wars.
Let me rephrase that, because there is no such thing as a early-to-mid-thirties male Star Wars "fan." Those three movies (let's leave out the recent ones, OK?) were nothing short of an obsession for people of that age, as evidenced by the many, many action figures that I owned.
And so it's no surprise that Duff has converted a couple of iconic Star Wars objects into cake form. The cakes depict the Death Star and an Imperial Star Destroyer. (Which looks like this, but then all of you Star Wars geeks out there knew exactly what the Star Destroyer was, didn't you?) They were made for a fan of the movies, and the folks at the official Star Wars Web site interviewed Duff about the cakes, his career and his SW fandom.
The second page of the interview has images of both cakes link to a slideshow of the Star Destroyer, which is extremely well-done and which apparently came with a complimentary Imperial Shuttle and member of the Emperor's Guard.
OK. I feel like such a dork now.
Labels: Duff Goldman
Reasons I'm Thankful for Food TV
Wednesday, November 21, 2007 | posted by Mike
You know, there's a fine line between "blog post idea" and "4th grade essay topic."
And so I'm going to channel my inner schoolchild and present to you a short list (in no particular order) of items for which I'm particularly "thankful" this holiday season. If you want to join in the fun, you know where to click and leave you comments.
- The fact that, over the past year or two, Alton Brown has become the de facto face of Food Network.
- The taste-testing sessions with Christopher Kimball on America's Test Kitchen.
- Goeffrey Manthorne's deadpan wit.
- The restauranteurs who are willing to face humiliation for a shot a fame on Kitchen Nightmares.
- The Food Network's growing OnDemand offerings.
- Cooperative public relations/publicity folks, supportive fellow-bloggers and, of course, all of our loyal readers!
Because Nothing Says "French Revolution" Like a Sequined Cape
Tuesday, November 20, 2007 | posted by Mike
So, I was talking to the Official Father of TVFF the other day on the phone and he was recounting a funny thing that he saw on television.
While flipping through the channels this past weekend, however, Dad came across a show on PBS that commemorated some anniversary of the musical Les Miserables and which featured performers from around the world on stage together. Well, one of the performers looked kinda familiar to him and, when they went back to the studio after the piece was over, the host pointed out that "you might recognize one of the performers" because he was none other than the Chairman himself, Takeshi Kaga!
Now, I think we've always known that Takeshi Kaga -- better known as "Chairman Kaga" of the original Iron Chef -- was a well-respected actor. Apparently, he also has no problems hamming it up by biting into a bell pepper, too.
See, that's the funny thing about Japan. Over there, big stars appear in commercials, something which may be seen as "beneath" big stars over here in the U. S. of A. If you've ever seen Lost in Translation or visited the site Japander.com, you'll also know that even some American actors don't seem to have much problem with doing those kinds of things...if the money's right and the commercial won't be showing up here in the States.
And, sure enough, someone out there in Interwebland was good enough to upload the performance to YouTube, and now you can find it below. Kaga comes in around the 35 second mark.
Labels: Iron Chef
Three Photos
Monday, November 19, 2007 | posted by Mike
I was checking out the debut of Michael Symon on this Sunday's Iron Chef America when I noted there were three Iron Chef photos hanging up in the background.Bobby, Cat and Michael. Mario...not so much.
First he's gone. Then he's not gone. It's all so very, very confusing.
I can't deal with this on the Monday of a holiday week.
Sigh.
Labels: Iron Chef America, Mario Batali
Close Encounters of the Giada Kind
Friday, November 16, 2007 | posted by Mike
Hey, remember Jessica? She was the one who bumped into Bobby Flay on the streets of New York and who spotted the plane carrying the advertisement over Central New Jersey. We love running Jessica's scoops, but she demands a promotion every time she gives us something. Usually, we'd drive a hard bargain with her, but the fact that she now has a day job that brings her into the Big Apple on a daly basis, we're happy to announce that Jessica is now officially the TVFF New York Bureau Chief.
And what could she possibly do to warrant such a promotion? Well, she decided to show a bit of initiative. No longer content to just wander the streets of Gotham hoping to bump into a food celebrity, she has now taken it upon herself to seek them out. Have a good look at the photo below, taken from an episode of Today featuring Giada De Laurentiis.
See the woman in the background directly between Giada and the guest? The one "smiling like a fool?" (Her words, not mine.) That's Jessica!
Unfortunately, the video of the piece seems to have disappeared from the site. It's a shame, becuse seeing her hold up her sign and smile each time the camera started filming her added so much to the experience. I do feel confident, however, that this video capture manages to do justice to the whole appearance.
Actually, she wasn't there on officail TVFF business. She was there to help promote some product or service, which was advertised on the sign. We'd tell you what it was, but (a) we can't remember what she told us -- I was drinking at the time...sorry -- and (b) TVFF doesn't give away free advertising! You can e-mail me for reasonable rates...
There are apparently some additional photos, but we haven't received them yet. We'll be sure to run them if and when we do.
Labels: Giada De Laurentiis
Like/Don’t Like: Online Video
Thursday, November 15, 2007 | posted by Mike
First off, let me thank everyone who sent along D.C. dining recommendations, either in the comments or via e-mail. I will undoubtedly be making a number of trips down there, so I’ll get around to all of your ideas at some point. I ended up at Ben’s Chili Bowl. A chili-dog with smoky, spicy chili and a nicely crisped skin – it was very, very good.
The conference itself (related to the day job) was interesting enough. During the continental breakfast, I was drinking my coffee and looking out the eighth-floor window at the driving rain falling on the Potomac and the Kennedy Center when two things occurred to me:
- Walking to the nearest Metro station without an umbrella is going to really suck.
- It’s time for another installment of Like/Don’t Like.
Considering our experience on TVFF and in the day job, we like to think that we know a little bit about the InterGoogle and the myriad ways that it can be used to repackage, reuse and optimize the value of content that companies, media outlets and other organizations are creating. And one of the things we’ve always loved is on-demand replays of programs on network Web sites…a service that (along with Netflix) got me all caught up on Heroes. You may have heard a thing or two about this kind of service in the news lately. It’s one of the reasons you haven’t had a new episode of The Daily Show in the past two weeks.
Like: Despite this unfortunate byproduct, we very much like the fact that the Food Network has begun making episodes of some of their shows available online. Full episodes and select bonus clips of The Next Iron Chef were the first to go up, a fantastic idea when you consider how a person could easily get caught up if they were either late joining the party or if they happened to miss an episode or two. And, of course, this is only going to become a better resource as more and more programs become available.
Don’t Like: But we’d be remiss if we didn’t point out that we don’t like the interface for the player. These days, you can’t be online for more than a few minutes before coming across a Flash-based video player (e.g. YouTube or the episode viewer on NBC.com). They’re very user-friendly and work well with their surrounding Web pages, even if embedded on a third-party site. The main issues with the Food Network version are that accidentally mousing-over the dropdown menu above the player causes a disconnection that puts you back at the beginning of the chapter. Normally, this wouldn’t be too big a problem because you could use the little slider to “fast forward” to the spot you left off. Except…there’s no slider.
Labels: Food Network
Jamie Oliver Coming Back to Food Network
Wednesday, November 14, 2007 | posted by Mike
Well, I suppose this answers that question:
This January, popular British Chef Jamie Oliver returns to Food Network with the debut of his brand new series Jamie At Home. Premiering Saturday, January 12 at 9:30am ET/PT. the half-hour series joins Food Network’s “In the Kitchen” daytime line-up and follows Oliver around his home, as he prepares delicious meals from produce that has been grown in his country garden.
“Jamie Oliver has always been a Food Network fan-favorite and we are so excited to have a new series that showcases his easily accessible cooking style and his exuberant personality,” said Bob Tuschman, Senior Vice President, Programming for Food Network. “His new show focuses on recipes that are quick, fresh, inventive and easy to recreate at home.”
Jamie Oliver returns to Food Network with his new series "Jamie At Home." Jamie's back doing what he does best - cooking at home with simple, accessible ingredients, including fruits and vegetables that he recently started growing in his garden kitchen. In each episode, Jamie focuses on a specific ingredient and shows viewers several completely different recipes. Whether whipping up a delicious spicy pork goulash, foraging for mushrooms to create a wild mushroom and venison stroganoff or harvesting pumpkins for a mouth-watering, warm winter salad of roast duck and pumpkin, Jamie will show viewers that using fresh ingredients can be simple and oh so satisfying.
Good stuff! OK, I'm off to D.C.
Labels: Jamie Oliver
And the Emmy for Outstanding Achievement in Set Decoration Goes to...
Tuesday, November 13, 2007 | posted by Mike
The Production Assistant who put Jill Davie in the front row of the Next Iron Chef finale.
Yowser!
Labels: Jill Davie, The Next Iron Chef
Jamie?
Monday, November 12, 2007 | posted by Mike
Big television events bring big audiences, obviously. Big audiences means big opportunities to promote programming, obviously.
The promotions folks recognized this fact and took advantage of the Next Iron Chef finale to run a couple of spots promoting upcoming series. One spot gave a complete run down of upcoming shows, providing the names...and not much else. Kind of a teaser without a whole lot of detail.
OK, now let me take you back to this post from back in March about the 2008 South Beach food festival:
WARNING: WHAT FOLLOWS IS IDLE SPECULATION: So, we know who is the big sponsor for this event every year. We also know that Jamie Oliver hasn't had a new show on the Network for some time now. Wouldn't an appearance at South Beach be a great way to get some additional publicity for a new series?
Fast forward to Sunday evening, when the Food Network promo spot was serving up the titles of new programs in rapid-fire fashion. One of the "coming soon" shows was Jamie at Home. Now, that wouldn't happen to be the same Jamie at Home that is currently airing on Channel 4 in the UK, would it? Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm...
On another note:
I alluded to the fact that I'll be doing a little bit of traveling this week and I wanted to take advantage of the knowledge and experience of the TVFF readers. I'm going to be down in Washington D.C. on Wednesday evening and would gladly appreciate any advice you have for a place to get a bite to eat, particularly if its along the Metro or in the Foggy Bottom/Georgetown area. Not looking for anything too fancy, mostly because there's nothing more depressing than seeing someone eating alone at a nice restaurant. Thanks in advance!
Labels: Jamie Oliver
Symon Wins It: Michael Symon Crowned "The Next Iron Chef"
Sunday, November 11, 2007 | posted by Mike
Well, we officially have another addition to the pantheon of Iron Chefs.
Going with the "standard" Iron Chef America format for the finale seemed fitting. We're guessing that Alton Brown got out of that tuxedo as quickly as possible once the taping was over. Just a little too "high falutin'" for AB.
Flay, Cora and Morimoto were there to observe and, ultimately, to judge. Conspicuous by his absence as Mario, and they skirted the issue by saying something like "three of the Iron Chefs" instead of "all of the Iron Chefs." (What does this all mean? Dunno.)
The editors did a good job of keeping things up in the air, but it seemed pretty clear to me that Symon's dishes were wowing the chefs more during the initial tasting. Perhaps they tried to "even it up" a bit during the discussion after the tasting.
While the finale was all well and good, it was really the journey to get to this point that was the real treat. By all accounts, the short series has been a tremendous success. Hey, if Tony Bourdain can't come up with something bad to say about you, then you know you're doing something right. For all of the pedigree that Top Chef brings to the table, the quality of the participants, the high stakes created by the ultimate reward and commitment to winnowing down the participants using nothing but the merits of the competitors has made The Next Iron Chef perhaps the most compelling food reality show to date.
When it comes to the final results, I think you're dealing with professionals of such developed skills that both are more than qualified and able to do great things in Kitchen Stadium. The dynamic that Besh and Symon would bring, however, would have been vastly different. Besh brings more of the quiet professional feel, and would certainly fit the mold of the lofty and intimidating Iron Chef that we saw on the old Japanese version of the show, and which added to its campy fun. Symon has a puckishness, an obvious joy and fun that he communicates through his comments and body language while in the kitchen. Mario Batali is probably the most entertaining Iron Chef for the same reason...because of his obvious fun and the occasional dialogue with Alton.
TVFF's Shakespearean allusion guide: Small Guy + Fun = Puckish (Symon). Big Guy + Fun = Falstaffian (Batali)
Did the "right man" win?
If it is true that we'll be getting less Batali in the future, Symon should do a fantastic job of filling is shoes (clogs?). His energy and inventiveness make him exactly the kind of person you want to see on a regular basis. Plus, he bested a fantastic set of competitors, so his chops are more than proven.
Labels: Michael Symon, The Next Iron Chef
Happy 500th Post to TVFF
We're very proud to let you know that this marks the 500th post since we started up TVFF about a year and a half ago. Gee, and it only feels like it's been 489.
Frankly, I'm just shocked that I managed to come up with 500 semi-coherent things to say about food TV. But you can rest assured that there are plenty more where they came from, so we'll be starting out the second 500 with just as much enthusiasm and fun as we had when we kicked this whole thing off.
Of course, I have to thank all of you readers out there who have
So, if the feeling moves you, take advantage of the nifty comments section below to leave congratulations, well-wishes, encouragement, gifts (money is always accepted...be sure to note your expiration date if you're sending along the credit card number!) or anything else.
Thanks,
Mike
TVFF
Working for the Weekend
Friday, November 09, 2007 | posted by Mike
I'm beat. Working a full-time job, commuting a considerable distance, writing for this site and drywalling a basement (not my own, mind you) in the evenings can take it out of you. So a restful weekend would be nice right now. Unfortunately, there is more drywall to be done on Saturday, so I'll have to settle for a restful Sunday. On the other hand, I get to look forward to the finale of Next Iron Chef, which has been an extremely pleasant surprise. I'm not sure how often they can trot out another one of these competitions, but I hope to see more of this sort of thing in the future.
Well, we struck out on our solicitation of stories and pictures from the recent personal appearances by Rachael Ray and Anthony Bourdain (ooooh, what I would have given for those appearance to have been together!). But all is not lost. Madeline over at Everything Rachael Ray has a recap of Rachael's appearance at a mall in Moorestown, NJ. She's got a link to the video, too.
I've been to that mall a million times. It was great...back in the 80's, they actually had a narrow "pool" that ran down the center of the main corridor that had ducks swimming around in it. Strange, I know. But this is New Jersey, where there are more malls than people, so I guess they had to do something to differentiate themselves.
Tony, meanwhile, was down in DC, and Washingtonian.com has a recap of the event. I wonder if he ever gets tired of dreaming up new and creative ways to describe the celebrity chefs that he despises.
On Sandra Lee: “Charles Manson and Betty Crocker’s love child. She gets that glassy Squeaky Fromme look when she’s talking about her tablescapes. I want to call security.”
Guess not.
He does talk a little bit about the DC food scene, which I'm quietly filing away for reference in the near future. More on that next week...
Also next week, we'll have a post about a close encounter between a member of the crack TVFoodFan Reporting Team and a certain TV food personality. It will be fun, I promise.
Labels: Anthony Bourdain, Gordon Ramsay, Sandra Lee
Chris Cognac Is Making Me Fat
Thursday, November 08, 2007 | posted by Mike
Giada De Laurentiis isn't the only one with an expanding waistline these days.
Zero trips to a gym in the past two months and easy access to plenty of food have resulted less-than-stellar weight-management habits by yours truly. And, since it's always easier to avoid accountability and blame someone else, I'm going to go ahead and say that it's Chris Cognac's fault.
OK, I can't really pin all of the blame on The Hungry Detective. But I'm thinking that he deserves at least a little bit of it because the gelato and sorbetto place that he profiled in the Philadelphia episode is only about three blocks from my office. Now, any Philly Foodie worth his salt knows about Capogiro, so I was bound to end up there sooner or later. Unfortunately, I have a couple of enabling coworkers who made sure that it was "sooner" rather than "later." And half way through my pine nut gelato, I knew why they were so eager to take me. I guess I should have known to head straight there, since I made a comment about Capogiro in my review of the Philly episode.
The best part about Capogiro (besides the amazing gelato, of course) is the fact that they allow -- nay, encourage -- you to sample a couple of flavors before deciding on one. I think it's perfectly acceptable to go through four or five before settling on a flavor. Of course, this has the added benefit of enticing you to come back again and try that one you sampled last time but didn't get. For me, that flavor is Thai Coconut Milk, although Lime with Cilantro is calling my name, too.
This makes two trips to Cognac-approved locales (the other was Bleecker Street Pizza in NYC ) and two home runs, so if he stopped by your city, you might want to check out one of his recommendations.
Labels: Chris Cognac
Crumbs - 11/7/07
Wednesday, November 07, 2007 | posted by Mike
Hey, did you ear that Giada is having a baby?
Yes, although it may seem like it's THE BIGGEST STORY IN THE HISTORY OF FOREVER, there are other things going on in the food TV universe.
For example, there is an appearance by Anthony Bourdain this Friday at the Smithsonian. Don't have tickets?!?! Well, then you're out of luck, it seems.
If anyone happens to make it to Bourdain in Washington or Rachael at the Moorestown Mall in NJ, be sure to send me a recap (mike@tvfoodfan.com).
- Gordon Ramsay is not a fan of the food critic. My favorite line: "So food critics? Love 'em. I'll happily agree at my cost to do all the canapés at their funerals free of charge."
- And Gordon's shows are part of the network's insurance against the Writers Guild strike.
- Projectile vomiting at Mario Batali's Babbo. I'm not sure what's more disturbing...the story or the image they use of Mario.
- Katie Holmes wasn't the only celebrity to run the New York City marathon. Bobby did it again this year.
- It's been a frustrating season for Scarlet Knight fans, but at least they can be proud that Rachael Ray featured a Rutgers tailgate party.
- A charity is auctioning off a trip the the set of America's Test Kitchen.
Giada Baby Watch - Day 2: Food Metaphor Edition
Tuesday, November 06, 2007 | posted by Mike
OK. I know I've kinda made fun of the Celebrity Baby Blog (here, here and here, for example) from time to time. But, as you would expect, they're all over the Giada situation.Their post includes a bunch of quotes that have been popping up all over the net, including this one, where she describes her sonograms:
When I had my first one, it looked like a little lima bean. The second, I think looked a little bit like a lemon. But today -- fingers and toes; I saw ears and lips. It brings tears to your eyes.Hmmm...I appreciate the food-themed comparisons, but somehow I thought Giada would have gone for cannellini instead of lima beans.
Labels: Giada De Laurentiis
Giada Pregnancy Video
Monday, November 05, 2007 | posted by Mike
Adam over at GiadaFan has tracked down the video and was good enough to pass along the link to us.Here you go.
(h/t GiadaFan)
Labels: Giada De Laurentiis
Giada De Laurentiis Pregnant - Baby Due in April
First off, let me extend a warm welcome to all of the new folks who are dropping by for the first time. If you're a fan of food TV, you found the right spot. Check out our home page, take a look around and please bookmark us or subscribe to our feed...you'll want to come back often!If you've been watching NBC or any of the NBC/Universal channels, you know that they're "going green" for the week. I guess the morning sickness would have Giada a bit green, too. Way to get in the spirit!
She's a very busy lady (not Rachael-busy, mind you), so expect things to slow down a little bit. Also, expect the obligatory "follow the pregnancy" features on Today that they seem to do for every pregnant news personality.
People has the official announcement.
Ed. Note: Title changed after I remembered how much I hate the word "preggers."
Labels: Giada De Laurentiis
Sandra Lee's Memoir: The Early Reviews Are In...
Sunday, November 04, 2007 | posted by Mike
Like I said...I ain't reading it.Fortunately, we have TVFF regular Spooneroonie, who sent along this message:
Mike--
I have finished reading the Sandra Lee Epic, and my brain hurts. The best thing for me to do is to tell you to go here. Seven full pages of snark for your entertainment.
I have to go lie down, now.
Thanks to everyone over there for this valuable service...it's like a wise-ass Cliff's Notes.
Labels: Sandra Lee
Meryl Streep as Julia Child?
Thursday, November 01, 2007 | posted by Mike
Dan at The Hungover Gourmet has been a constant source of story ideas of late, and this post is no exception. He has a piece up that links to a Variety report saying that the 47-time (approximately) Oscar nominee will be playing the grande dame of food TV.
Variety is reporting that Meryl Streep (!) will play Child in a film adaptation of the book "Julie & Julia" with Amy Adams as a mastercook wannabe.
Hmmm...Meryl is a good actress and all, but does anyone really think she can pull off the accent?
Ba-dum-BUM!
Labels: Julia Child
