The TVFF Research Department turns up plenty of "hits" when it comes to covering the world of food television. Some of them are worth blogging about, some of them aren't and some of them just have the wrong person in mind (you wouldn't believe how much "Sandra Lee" news there is about people other than the one on TV). So, when I hear about something out of context, I'm never quite sure if we're talking about the right person.

Case in point: I came across this story in the Houston Chronicle about delays at LAX airport:

"People are getting a little stir crazy, feeling claustrophobic," said Chris Cognac, 39, who was returning with family and friends — including 10 children — from a week in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. The group had been sitting on the tarmac for five hours when he spoke by phone Saturday.

Passengers on his plane were in the aisles, holding their carry-on luggage, and ready to disembark when the flight crew asked them to return to their seats, Cognac said.

"Everybody's pretty angry with customs at the moment because they're not informing anyone of anything," Cognac said. "It's becoming a logistical issue with diapers."

Wait a second...that wouldn't be F-O-TVFF (that's "friend of TV Food Fan," in case you're wondering) Chris Cognac, would it?

Yeah that was me...it sucked.

What do you know?!? When he's not out canvassing the area for the best eats in out-of-the-way locales, he's apparently covering the travel beat for the Chronicle. In all seriousness, being stuck in an idle plane with ten kids is not a pleasant thought. Oh...and thanks for the mental image of the diapers, Chris.

In happier news, we did hear that Chris will be serving as a judge in an upcoming episode of Iron Chef America, which will be taping in New York next month. Hopefully, the secret ingredient will be a little more interesting than last night's farmer's market, which solicited a simultaneous "huh?" from both Mrs. TVFF and me. I'm all for supporting your local growers, but it was a little hard to buy the Chairman's excitement when he had to unveil that one.

Labels: Chris Cognac, Iron Chef America

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PETA's Lobster Protest Photo: Even Better Than I'd Hoped

Saturday, February 17, 2007 | posted by Mike

I wish I could run the photo of the lobster protest here in this post. I really, really, really do. I wasn't able to entice a member of the TVFF Army to spend a lunch break getting the pictures for me, so I'm just going to have to point to this post over at Gothamist, which features a user-submitted photo from the "protest."

I don't usually like to use scare quotes around a word like protest, mainly because I do think that people who take time out of their life to make their point known deserve some measure of respect. Frankly, most of us can't be bothered to tear ourselves away from our 24X7 Bald Brittany Spears coverage to protest anything.

But the big, goofy grin on Mr. Lobster may not convey the level of seriousness and gravity that the PETA folks had hoped.

We did do a bit of reading on the various message boards that covered this subject and I was glad to see that there was a particularly robust debate among the foodies on the topic of whether or not the incident constituted abuse.

Look...if you're going to eat any animal, you have to come to grips that the pig, cow, chicken or whatever meets a less-than-pleasant end. But chefs like Alton Brown point out that these are animals with feeling and that, since they are giving themselves to become our dinner, we owe them a certain amount of respect on how they are slaughtered. Where that line is -- what constitutes inhumane treatment -- is a legitimate question.

The fact is that Chef Bowles did something that is probably done by a thousand chefs in a thousand kitchens. But he did it on national cable, and that means it suddenly became an issue.

I don't know the "right" way to cook a lobster. I don't really think that anyone does. But I'm glad that Iron Chef America pushed the discussion to the forefront.

Labels: Iron Chef America

 

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All of a Sudden, I Could Go for a Filet-O-Fish

Tuesday, January 23, 2007 | posted by Mike

The always-great Genève of Genève's Kitchen checked in with us today with promises to be more active on her blog (sorry to put you on the spot, G!) and a link to the video which you can see below. It's from an episode of Iron Chef America and the clip has been making the rounds, as evidenced by the nearly 125,000 views of the clip on YouTube. Now is probably a good time to check it out if you haven't seen it.

There are a number of commenters on the YouTube post that are calling it a fake and some decrying the split-second McDonald's slide as a devious attempt by Mickey D's, the Food Network and the Illuminati to trick you into going out for some McNuggets. Most likely, someone somewhere bumped a button in a control room and what you're seeing is the result.

I'm decidedly not in the camp of the conspiracy theorists. For one thing, it's not really a subliminal message if you can clearly see the advertisement, which is the case with this spot. And, secondly, there has never been any evidence that it works, going all the way back to the "seminal" study in favor of it. I'm guessing that McDonald's, already sporting a bit of a bad reputation over the healthiness of its food, wouldn't chance something like that.

However, if anyone over at Food Network would like too clear his or her conscience and admit to placing the subliminal spot, being on the "Grassy Knoll" or placing coded messages in famous paintings, you know where to find me.

Labels: Iron Chef America

 

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Iron Chef: De Laurentiis vs. Food Processor

Friday, December 01, 2006 | posted by Mike

It's may be Friday around here, but I'd say it looks like Giada "has a case of the Mondays."

By the way, if you're still hanging in there, check back in a little while for one more post before I hang it up for the weekend.

Labels: Bobby Flay, Giada De Laurentiis, Iron Chef America

 

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"Giada vs. Rachael" Provides Huge Numbers for Food Network...and TVFoodFan.com.

Wednesday, November 15, 2006 | posted by Mike

A big congratulations go out to the guys and gals at Food Network for a record-breaking night with Sunday’s Iron Chef America featuring Batali & Ray vs. Flay & De Laurentiis. Variety brings us word that the special presentation tallied an all-time high rating for FN of 5.8 million viewers. The numbers were better than anything else on cable and even topped broadcast network The CW.

It was also an impressive performer in FN’s target demographic:

Showing ranks as the most-watched telecast ever among Food's target adults 25-54 demo. Among adults 18-49, 9 p.m. episode delivered a big 2.6 million.

Does this mean that we’ll see more match-ups like this in the future? I wouldn’t be surprised. Television networks are never bashful about running with something that works…remember five nights per week of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? So maybe we’ll see Paula and Emeril and Ina and Tyler and so on and so forth until the idea runs out of steam and we get to witness what will become Food Network’s lowest rated show of all time:

Marc Summers vs. Jim O’Conner in Battle: Microwave Popcorn

Not coincidentally, TVFF.com also had a banner day on Monday, with plenty of people coming to the site for info on the match-up, giving us a new one-day traffic record by a large margin. We hope that many of you first-timers decide to stick around for a little while and make yourselves at home.

Labels: Food Network, Iron Chef America

 

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Apparently, It’s the New "Black"

Tuesday, October 31, 2006 | posted by Mike

The Village Voice is the official arbiter of what is trendy, hip and cosmopolitan (at least we assume that, we don’t read it). So, when they weigh in with a headline like “Being Nice to Rachael Ray is so Trendy,” maybe there is something there!

Actually, not so much. The post is just a rehash of a couple of recent articles, one in Slate and one in The New York Times cutting Rachael some slack for being, by her own admission, “not a gourmet chef.”

So, why the post? Because it gives me an excuse to bring up the fact that they’ve been running spots on the Food Network for the Rachael & Mario vs. Giada & Bobby tag-team match up on Iron Chef America! The showdown is set for November 12th and it looks like all of the participants are having a grand old time in the commercials. If nothing else, it will be fun to watch Mario stare blankly at Rachael when she asks him to pass the EVOO.

One quibble. Bobby, Mario and Giada are all sporting the silk jackets, but Rachael is in some sort of black get-up. What’s the deal? I know she’s “not a gourmet chef,” but you would have thought they would have given her something that doesn’t scream “I’m the one who didn’t attend culinary school!”

Hey…could be worse, she could have worn the outfit pictured in the Village Voice post.

Labels: Bobby Flay, Giada De Laurentiis, Iron Chef America, Mario Batali, Rachael Ray

 

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Goodbye, Ruby Tuesday, Who Could Hang a Name on You?

Well, apparently the name that we can hang on them is “sponsor of Iron Chef America.”

Broadcast Newsroom is reporting that the casual dining chain has entered into an agreement with Scripps to sponsor two series, ICA on the Food Network and Design Star on Home & Garden Television.

"We welcome Ruby Tuesday as a new sponsor on our networks and look forward to working with the company to get its message out to our audiences, which are ideal for Ruby Tuesday," said Steve Gigliotti, executive vice president of ad sales for Scripps Networks.

This is interesting news, especially on the heels of the Tyler Florence/Applebee’s alliance that has been heavily promoted by that restaurant in the past few months. Again, we see a casual dining outlet looking to align itself with foodie television.

This is a bit of an odd pairing, however, particularly when you think about the Tyler arrangement. Applebee’s menu is a little bit of this and a little bit of that, much like Tyler’s dishes on his shows. Ruby Tuesday’s menu hits many of the same burgers/ribs/chicken notes, so it will be interesting to see how that fits in with the classically trained chefs, fancy preparations and plating and out-of-the-ordinary ingredients used on ICA.

I’m sure we’ll hear a bit of rumbling about this, and I suppose that giving a “sponsorship” status to a company in the food business opens one up to that. But in a day and age where every college football bowl game has a corporate sponsor, this sort of thing has become a fait accompli. And if we start putting “taste” requirements on the food products that buy space on FN, I have a feeling that would take a considerable chunk out of their advertising roster. (The word “Velveeta” comes to mind.)

But, let’s not a have next season’s competition taking place in the “Ruby Tuesday’s Kitchen Stadium,” OK?

Labels: Iron Chef America, Tyler Florence

 

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A Good Samaritan at the Food Network?

Sunday, October 29, 2006 | posted by Mike

Obviously, we love doing big things like show reviews and interviews here at TVFF.com, but we still get a kick out of finding some of the random things that we often come across on the Internet.

One of the great things about the web is that it gives anyone a platform to reach out to people. Of course, you’ve always been able to sit down and write a letter or call an 800 number, but the Internet allows you to put it out there for everyone to see. You’re able to do it in a public forum that increases your chances of finding someone that might be able to help you out.

A few days ago, we came across a post from Karl Smith, who posts as “Captain Obvious” on the PhillyBurbs.com site. (Seriously, though, we promise we aren’t turning into an all-Philly-all-the-time site!) In the post, Karl includes an open letter to the Food Network wherein he outlines his son’s love of the Network in general and of Iron Chef America in particular.

But of all the shows he loves to watch, one reigns supreme - Iron Chef America. He loves it. I know you have hardcore fanatics across the country who watch the show and simulate its environment. I’ve read all about them on your Web site and have seen the commercials highlighting their fanaticism. That being said, there’s something about a 9-year-old being wide-eyed about the show that is, I think, particularly endearing.

Karl tried to get tickets for himself, his son and his son’s friend to a taping of ICA, but was “disappointed to learn that the general public was not allowed to attend, only guests of the Iron Chefs and challengers.”

Like I said, the nice thing about the ‘net is that you always have a chance, and it looks like someone involved with the Network stumbled across the entry. Below the main post was a comment:

I work at the Food Network....and I sent this along to one of our producers. While I can't get you tickets for the round we are taping now, we can try for the next round of taping in August/Sept. Contact me, and I'll fwd your information to the right person.

I have no idea if Karl’s quest will be successful, but it’s nice to see that there’s someone trying to help him out.

Labels: Food Network, Iron Chef America

 

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Hands Down: Jeffrey Steingarten is Our Favorite Iron Chef Judge

Monday, August 14, 2006 | posted by Mike

You might think that the food and the chefs are the stars of Iron Chef America. Heavens, no! Any regular viewer can tell you that, for all the culinary wizardry taking place in Kitchen Stadium, the real show begins when everyone’s favorite cranky judge, Jeffrey Steingarten, bestows upon us his opinions on the night’s meal.

In fact, the only thing better than hearing Jeffrey’s thoughts on the dish before him is when he decides to turn his criticism on one of his fellow judges. Invariably, they manage to put some morning show host or Broadway actress on the judging panel and then, LOOK OUT! Apparently, in Jeffrey’s mind, non-James-Beard-finalists need not apply.

The snarkiness reached new heights last night as Jeffrey got into to a bit of a tiff with Queer Eye for the Straight Guy food expert Ted Allen over his lack of enthusiasm (or maybe his lack of vocabulary, depending on who you believe) towards one dish. He also took a moment to rip the aforementioned morning show host next to him. Jeffrey is nothing if not fair in doling out his abuse.

Needless to say, the fellows in post-production knew that they hit the jackpot and managed to cross-cut the video throughout the judging process as Jeffrey and Ted took verbal shots at one another and repeatedly made faces at one another’s comments. I highly recommend you just tune in for the judging segment of this battle (puff pastry…for a competition between two Greek chefs…way to think outside the box, Chairman!).

We’ll have some more things to say about Iron Chef America soon, but Jeffrey is one aspect of the show that I think they really nailed. It seems like every reality/competition show has a judge that drives people batty (Simon Cowell, Janice Dickinson), and Jeffrey is the perfect food snob that you can love to hate.

So, stay tuned for future episodes of our new feature: The Jeffrey Steingarten Condescension Watch.

Labels: Iron Chef America

 

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