Twitter
Facebook
RSS FeedNot officially, but. Over at Dr. Vino’s blog, it seems we may have something as close as we’ll get. Dr. Vino does not wish to reveal his source, but from my dealings with Food Network executives, this response seems exactly in sync with everything I know and exactly what I would have guessed their response would be: “Interestingly, [the Bourdain critique] is not a big deal at the Network at all. They are a media company first and they try to appeal to the masses as much as possible. It’s part of the business model if you will and a byproduct of being available in over 90 million homes.” Full post here.
Long live the Muzak.
-
Welcome to Ruhlman.com where I write about food, cooking, recipes and technique, because the world is better when we cook for ourselves. Thanks for visiting — hope you’ll join the conversation.
This part of Dr. Vino’s insider info was even more interesting to me:
[The Food Network] is very unlikely to ever have a show on wine or even organic foods on the air. They don’t want to alienate any of the non-drinking viewers or preach to anyone about the wonders of organic foods, especially if they can’t afford the extra cost or find them easily.
This point again raises that ugly question of who can afford organic foods and has access to them.
I know that the very poor often don’t have that access. But the FN fans are people who feel they can afford CABLE. Is this an example of how agribusiness and industry work together–consciously or not–in ways that increase the appetite for their cheap, readily available products?
Why not “promote” organic foods? The FN is ALL ABOUT promotion. Is the problem “alienating” viewers, or is it that “organic” companies don’t pony up enough as sponsors?
My only active experience with the food industry was raising chickens as a 4-H project in fourth grade, so please disabuse me if my theories are totally off base . . . .
Thanks, Mr. R., for more interesting stuff to help me procrastinate . . .
I love the discussion Bourdain’s post has spawned. The number of comments on these posts is an indication of just how passionately people are about both food and food television. It’s actually rather heartening.
I’m not surprised by the FN response. They are a business, and they are trying to make money. Like it or not, that means catering to the lowest common denominator in most cases.
The situation is a little more interesting here in Canada, where FN Canada shows a wide variety of FN USA shlock (weekends often seem filled with endless reruns of Unwrapped) mixed in with some (largely) vapid Canadian productions.
One of the Canadian shows is (was?) Manic Organic, which follows an organic farmer in southern Ontario. The show is an interesting look into the world of organics, but I do believe its short-lived run is now over. Perhaps this proves Dr. Vino’s point, or perhaps the fact that it aired at all in Canada reflects demographic differences between the audiences of both countries, or differences in philosophy between the US and Canadian networks, or both. I don’t know.
On the whole, Canadian shows seem to be following the US lead — dumbed down programming featuring attractive hosts — though I’d venture the food is of a slightly better quality than the pre-packaged confection of Sandra Lee (which, thank God, does not taint our airwaves).
For me, the great irony in all of this is that, rather than heightening people’s food awareness and appreciation, the Food Network has instead become a mirror reflecting how little most people really care about what they eat.
This should surprise no one.
People, don’t let up on FN! We have a movement going here.
Kidding aside, yesterday Sandra Lee hit another home run with her “takeout-takein party” theme, whatever the hell that means. She heavily promoted her “very own, very favorite invention”, the Beer Margherita. I think she must have been sloshed on a pitcher of these before taping started since she couldn’t remember whether she grew up in Wisconsin or Washington. Apparently she didn’t remember that she had already deep-fried the store-bought won ton wrappers stuffed with canned La Choy veggies, because she also stuck them in the oven to bake, resulting in a greasy, burnt pile of faux pot stickers. Delightedly, she proclaimed how professionally-made they looked and how “unbelievably yummy they are if served with mustard and duck sauce”.
Her second chef d’ouevre: carboardy store-bought pizza shell topped with the included packet of sauce and gobs of feta cheese, adding that, “I grew up in Wisconsin, so I like cheese. Today we’re going upscale, so I’m topping it with prosciutto”.
For dessert, she featured a variation of her grandma’s Napoleon that she “used to adore when growing up in Washington” (or was it West Virginia?). Her version: pile great big dollops of Cool Whip on top of deep-fried store-bought won ton wrappers. She slurred, “this really fits the bill!”.
The final clue in my suspicion that she was inebriated was when she suggested, “for some real fun, why not serve your guests the won tons in Chinese take-out cartons, and the pizza in a box?”.
Are the execs at FN gradually turning the Food Network into the Food Comedy Network?
I don’t have the contacts. I don’t have the money. I don’t know anything about this stuff. But ruhlman, bourdain, batali, maybe even scott b. could make it happen, man! a network (funded even by muzak network) that focuses on everybody that is so adamant about good food, wine, organics, local food, all the things these readers know and love. 90 million homes is great, but this channel, the better food network, would IMMEDIATELY be ordered by at least 20 or 30 million. i would watch it! you would too!
Ruhlman,
Don’t you love how Bourdain swoops in, dumps a load, and then drags you right down with him?
You need new friends, LOL.
Didn’t FN have a show called “The Thirsty Traveler” that was more or less just a guy drinking his way across Europe? I suppose it’s possible that there was a letter-writing backlash that both caused the show to get pulled and caused a change in FN’s policy……
Plus, any time that Cat Cora is on ICA, she and her assistants slam a shot at the close of the competition. Why is doing shots on camera OK but not talking about wine?
Someone last week was spot on about Paula Deen. Maybe she’s not a “nice old lady” after all. Watching her bend over and lick the chocolate fountain was a clue to her incipient dementia. But watching her chase a cameraman with a spatula after he snatched one of her fried oysters convinces me she’s got a bat in the belfry!
Has anyone noticed that Sandra Lee changes her kitchen to match her outfit – even when she was outside grilling? I think that’s what creeps me out the most about her. Who has that much free time?
How can a network about food leave out liquor, wine and beer? Shoot, even Rachel Ray has cocktails with her “sweetie” on her travel shows. I think that FN doesn’t worry about drinking so much as ailienating people with “wine snobs” telling them they have no taste.
Far be it from them to help educate people – I grew up in a farm town of 500 people and I am not intimidated by wine. People can change, and FN sells (us) them short by assuming they know what America wants. If I wanted the same old crap I wouldn’t be watching FN for new ideas. (I’m a grad student in chemistry and my ideas are growing about food. It’s a place to start for me.)
If FN feels the need to actually say something, then that’s a sign that someone’s listening to the criticisms, right?
Right now the best “ T.V. food show” is Gourmet’s Diary of a Foodie. It’s informative, creative and
international. Even their web site is practical and illustrative. I now consider No Reservations not
food T.V but , Off-the-Beaten-Track Global Traveller. I’ll also include Iron Chef America, especially with all our great Chicago Chefs participating recently.
Non-drinking audience? Do they watch their own shows? Sandra Lee has Koktail Time on every show–usually consisting of several hard liquors all mixed with tooth-chipping “gernishes.” The stuff barely rises to the level of frat party jungle juice. And she makes sure she shimmies for Koktail Time even if it’s a kids party, tea party (w/ no tea btw), whenever…
Idiots. Part of “the masses” include a huge group of people who are really waking up to the horrors of factory farming, giant agri-business, etc. I recently joined a paid diet & exercise site and formed a new group thread about healthy and local eating and you wouldn’t believe the responses I’ve had that go something like this: “Hi – I’m not sure if I belong in this group or not but I’d like to learn more about healthy ways to feed my family while supporting local businesses or at least how to afford shopping more organically. I know what we’re eating is bad for us but I’m overwhelmed with not knowing what to do to start to fix things.” Then, the people on the board ask that person some questions and within a day are able to point to several tips that can help the person, including, usually, a CSA or farmer’s market in their area that they NEVER KNEW EXISTED and this is from people who don’t even live in the same state. These people are the masses too.
I, for one, hope Aunt Sandy never goes off the air, because (other than “Extras” on HBO) there are no other comedies on television right now that are better viewing than Snads showing up drunk every Saturday morning mixing faux-jitos for her fauxmily whilst making kakes and konkoktions that have offended nearly every culture around the globe. I don’t know when I’ve laughed harder than watching her pour 2 cups of a liquid and saying it’s one cup, because she was too drunk to realize she was using a 2-cup measuring cup. Oh wait… I laughed harder when she decorated a Christmas tree with glasses from her bar. That was fucking priceless. Long live Snads…
Anyone else besides me notice the resemblence between Sandra Lee and transvestite Brini Maxwell from the Style Network.
Oh well …
I love that the Food Network name drops Bobby, Mario, Emeril, Morimoto, etc. whenever anyone criticizes them. But yet, are any of the above-named chefs actually involved in creating content for the network, or are they just pretty faces (or not-so-pretty faces) who merely perform? And frankly, Mario and Morimoto are really just on Iron Chef, which is more about spectacle than about food, and Bobby’s new series is also more about entertainment than actually teaching anything about food or cooking.
Maybe I’m a snob … but I miss shows that were educational, shows where the on-air talent were real chefs who had years of experience and knowledge … not pretty faces (with big chests) who are hired to look good while they present recipes and techniques from the Food Network kitchen staff. Hell, why not put on the Food Network Kitchen staff? They’d be more educational!
It’s great when you see a show with a real chef who LOVES what they do, LOVES the food, and really conveys the WHY and HOW of cooking, and their enthusiasm rubs off on you. Now we’re just being presented cooking from people who weren’t necessarily hired for their cooking skills.
It’s like watching porn because you want to see good acting … it just feels empty. And it seems that as soon as any of these smiling-like-the Joker idiots get fame, we’re immediately seeing their cookware, their knives, their own spices, own olive oils, etc. out there. After a while, you wonder if it’s more important that they’re on TV so they can shill for the tie-in products than being on TV because they have something to say, or something to share.
I do miss the early days of Food Network, when they were often flying by the seat of their pants and willing to take risks. Now it’s become completely dumbed down, aiming for the lowest common denominator and lower. I’m sure every single “personality” (that’s a misnomer if there ever was one) who goes on the network has to be vetted by endless panels of consultants and experts, to appeal to the broadest audience as possible and to not really have any real personality that’s easily ascertainable.
It’s like TV news anchors … you know they’re not hired for their hard-hitting journalism skills or years in the trenches … it’s because they have good hair and good smiles. Walter Cronkheit would NEVER be hired today, he’s too ugly. And in the same vein, we’ll rarely see good, REAL chefs anymore on Food Network … because real chefs just often aren’t pretty enough.
And frankly, we’re beating on a dead horse. The Evil Empire only cares about revenue, they don’t care if people actually watch their shows. As long as they can fill their commercials and have all sorts of expensive little spin offs and product placement, they don’t give a rat’s ass (even ones Bourdain hasn’t eaten) about what you think, what I think, what Tony thinks, or what Michael thinks.
And I’m still SHOCKED that no one brings up the fact that the personalities on Food Network are OVERWHELMINGLY white. We’ve got the “Sugar Rush” guy, Morimoto, Bobby Rivers (oh wait, he’s not a chef at all …), Al Roker (ditto), and … and ….
How about that as a topic, Michael and Tony? When I go to a restaurant nowadays, even here in Cleveland, most of the folks I see working back in the kitchen aren’t pasty white folk like you see helming the shows of nearly EVERYTHING on the Food Network. Why aren’t we seeing more chefs from different ethnic backgrounds on the Food Network? Does anyone else care about this issue?
Rock on DinerGirl! This should keep your blood boiling: during the Beer Margherita show, Lee also whipped up a “Kahlua Tiramisu”. After soaking stale lady fingers in Kahlua, Lee scraped pre-made vanilla pudding out of plastic containers into a bowl containing mis-pronounced “MARScapone” cheese (once and for all, it’s MASCARpone). More Kahlua, mix together, plop into serving glasses, stick in the soggy Kahlua lady fingers, and dump mounds of Cool Whip on top. In a Kahlua-soaked voice that sounded like a cross between Minnie Mouse and Elaine Stritch, Lee proclaims, “this is perfection!”.
Ending the show, she has a Kahlua chaser to wash down the Beer Margherita.
So, please, people, put to rest the claim that FN doesn’t want to shock tee-totalers.
The load of crap Bourdain reportedly dropped in your bathroom is nothing to the crap that FN is dropping by dint it’s no organic food or wine programming “logic”. Too expensive? Too high end? Excuse me, but have I not seen Emeril prepare recipes with truffles in them? Hasn’t Morimoto beguiled us all with Wagyu beef, in the past? They assume – what? 90 million homes, and we ALL go for the Hamburger Helper? Talk about condescending. The only thing worse than being thought of as a gastrosnob is being thought of someone whose nightly repetoire involves a can opener and just adding water.
Please – someone start a network on which Mario can air his own kind of show – uncut, natch – and get some real chefs and foodies how are serious about food on it. And if it had the occasional “special” on it in which drops in with whatever combination of his fellow chefly miscreants, that would be even better. I’d rather watch you, Tony and Mario round up various members of the far-flung Bourdain Rat Pack and just jaw about an issue – uncut, no bleeps – than see Sandra Lee pass out, face-first and covered in her own vodka-marinated vomit, into one of her peach pies-from-a-can nightmares. Man, no wonder I virtually stopped watching FN after Cook’s Tour and Iron Chef went off.
LaurenChemist,
Grad student in chemistry? Neat! Were all of your ochem profs cheerful miscreants? Because it seems like all of mine were pyros, dehorners, and similarly inclined nuts. BTW, you know of any cheap supply warehousers for new glassware?
Allison de Witt,
Cool Whip? In tiramisu? No creme anglaise? Not even whipped cream from a can? I’m sorry, I can’t even emagine eating Cool Whip. I got sucked into the ad campaign when I was a kid and begged my parents to buy a tub, and when they relented, no one wanted to eat it unless it was frozen because of the nasty oily texture and flavor. I don’t get how anyone eats that stuff?
I love that, Tess, that you spoke of chemistry students and Cool Whip in the same post. Perfect.
That stuff should be used as paint thinner.
The reason FN would like to see organics go away is because their agribusiness sponsor overlords want to see it go away (or at least remain invisible to most viewers).
Once people realize how bad processed foods are, they start reading books like Pollan’s, especially those in the treasured younger demographic. So keep poking the beast.
Also, I believe Mars Capone is Al’s great-grandson, named after Forrest Mars.
In all fairness to the Food Network, Andrea Immer has been a guest on Emeril Live several times, discussing pairing wine with food. She also hosts a couple of shows on the Fine Living Network which, like the Food Network, is owned by Scrips.
You guys are as soft as puppy shit! It has come to my attention that someone named Rachel Ray has a show and it sucks. And this Sandra Lee chick is half in the bag. Ask Tony if he was drunk when Bigfoot was requesting the Salmon yields from butchering or if he wishes he was drunk. What do these two twits have to do with the larger scope of cooking. We should be talking about how a woman just gained three michelin stars. What matters to you people, real food or pretend food? Lets get off this dialogue of nothingness and start talking about something real! I’m done!! For now!
Actually, Chris, Tony’s spoken several times about the overwhelming honkiness of high-profile culinary people. I believe that was part of his disgust with the Beard Awards. It’s a terrific point and one that gets glossed over way too often.
Probably the one saving grace for the sagging-breasted Lee is her love of drink, although I could never bring myself to actually taste one of her gross concoctions. Only inebriated could she possibly swoon over her Cool Whip delights. Only drunk could she choke down her Crock Pot bread pudding. Only plastered could she utter Lee-isms like, “I want you to toast your nuts”, and “normally you put dishes in the sink; I put garbage in it. My husband hates that!”, and “I have a little trick for browning meat: put a little oil in the pan”, and “the longer it sits in the refrigerator, the better”, and “to add more flavor to canned vegetable soup just add a can of beef broth; everything comes in a can, so that’s all you’ll need to do”.
Somebody should discover this comedy act and set her up in Vegas. By the way, take a good look at Paula Deen’s face and tell me she isn’t Sandra Lee fast-forwarded 20 years.
One thing that this discussion shows is that there IS an appetite for more “niche” (real?) food programming as rockandroller mentions above. Beyond the new network cuocomano suggests, maybe FN could wake up and smell the organic Kona and actually dedicate some scrap of time–a half-an-hour a week?–to edgy food news? Restaurant trends, organic food, wine…If they need to know where to find inspiration, they need look no further than that wild frontier of “the internets.”
The Food Network couldn’t care less about people who ALREADY KNOW HOW TO COOK. The network is for people who want to pretend they could be chefs for their occasional party. People watch, thinking “oh my god,I could make THAT. I bet being a chef isn’t so hard. It’s a fantasy for the non-professional. I find it hard to watch now that I actually know what I am doing.
Chris:
Great point about the tighty-whiteyness of FN!
Thinking about Mr. R’s earlier posts about Our Land of the White Meat: I have a completely undeveloped theory that I’m going fling out into cyberspace and ya’ll can deal with it because I’m having lunch with my mother in 15 minutes. The white middle class is a culture of fear: fear of losing status, fear of the unfamiliar–including unfamiliar food–fear of unfamiliar (not white) people and their strange food. Now, the proliferation of Chinese and Mexican restaurants in this country might well prove me wrong here–but the FN plays to the white middle class because they have the money and will spend it to keep up their status by throwing the right dinner party with just the right Kool Whip-filled won-tons with Cheez Wiz.
And now I’m gonna go eat at the mall with my mom.
I think the fact that Andrea Immer Robinson’s wine shows are on Fine Living and not the Food Network very telling. Likewise, Get Fresh with Sara Snow is on the fitness and Discovery Health channels. It is as if wine can only be in some exclusive realm and organic food and living is only for health freaks. We have to remember that anything that smacks of food snobbery is also being fed by the way the media dispneses programming.
So it is also no accident, then, that Diary of a Foodie and the new program, The Endless Feast, all about good food, organics, etc., are both on public television. And to many, public tv is for snobs too.
Is there any way to bridge the divide?
Interesting mix-up above. My post and the one by Tags were reversed as to who was writing what. We must have been posting at the same time.
FN sadly does have a point that organic food is outrageously expensive. Someone amusingly pointed out that the same people seem able to afford cable; but I would argue that buying organic every week would be twice as expensive as cable.
But FN is also ignoring the fact that, thanks to GMOs, more people than ever are developing food allergies.
Buying organic / local will become more popular as people’s mistrust of big buisness / pesticides / hormones / GMOS grows.
Maybe a whole new network is in order, with disgruntled FN chefs at the helm.
Not just that, Maya, but I would consider myself what Rachael Ray really could and should be doing that would do some good; I am an amateur, home chef. I don’t throw lavish dinner parties and my presentation is not fancy. I work full-time and my gym schedule takes as many hours as a part-time job so I need foods that are reasonable in preparation time (and also require a little thoughtful planning, but not much). But instead of relying on canned this and boxed that as my main diet staple, I cook from scratch the large, large percentage of the time. I buy local and organic when and where I can, availability and cost-wise, and don’t beat myself up if I can’t. I make bread when I can, and when I can’t I look for places that bake it the way I would (without throwing a bunch of corn syrup/sugar in it, for example) if I had the time. I am the perfect example of what a real, amateur home chef can be and would love to share this kind of thing with the masses. I think it’s nearly a crime what Ray is doing by teaching everyone that cooking means opening various boxes and cans of nearly-already-prepared stuff and mixing it together and calling it dinner.
I think that’s what Bordain was speaking of in his article.
That people like you rockandroller who may be an amateur cook will expect too much of FN and that they are counting on an extremely lazy audience.
If 90 percent of the viewers, as Tony said, are sitting on their couches covered in Cheetoes trying to feel better about themselves by watching Rachel then FN has itself made.
Thus the suggestion of a new network that fellow amateur chefs would actually enjoy.
Why is everyone so obsessed with food network ? This is just one channel on cable. Thats it. Don’t like it, turn it off. Boycott it ! There are dozens of magazines out there, a hundred food blogs, a zillion internet sites devoted to food. Other networks have interesting shows and worthy content. I agree with Paul who posted earlier, this is turning into nothing more than a gossip blog. Better yet, this blog HAS turned into FN, just look at your content. It looks like people in this blog would rather discuss politics of food rather than food itself. Which is GREAT !!! Other blogs don’t do it. This is something new. So lets do it.
Great! interesting reading, celebrity holds water that’s easy to rid yourself of. Throw your television out the window. When it’s gone you will not miss it.
your voice is good reading.
“Why is everyone so obsessed with food network ? This is just one channel on cable. Thats it. Don’t like it, turn it off. Boycott it !”
Maybe you should take your own advice with regards to this blog?
Just a thought.
Maya,
I remember reading an interesting article a few years back about how a relatively hypoallergenic protein in one plant, when produced in a bean plant became a sort of super-irritant because the bean also produced a sort of sugar and binds to the protein during production and made it not just inedible, but downright toxic. How’s that for FDA approval?
WA WA I’M NOT A SHEEPLE! I HATE MUZAK!!!1
The following is the list of channels available on Muzak as of November 2006:
Body And Soul
Aura (New Age)
Breathe (World Eclectic)
The Light (Contemporary Christian)
Classics
Cashmere (Adult Contemporary)
Funkytown (Funk/Soul/Disco) **Available only in On-Premise line-up**
Expressions (Light Pop Standards)
Jukebox Gold (Rock ‘n Roll Classics)
Love Songs (Romantic Melodies)
Mo’ Soul (Classic Soul)
Reflections (Jazz/Pop/Soul)
Songbook (Singer/Songwriter)
Swing Kings (Big Band/Swing)
Unforgettable (Adult Favorites)
Country
Country Music One (Country Mix)
Nashville USA (Current Country Hits)
Rawhide (Country Classics)
Screen Door (Alternative Country)
Decades
’50’s & 60’s Hits
’70’s Hits
’80’s Hits
’90’s Hits
Electronica
Frequency (Club/Dance)
Groove Zone (Current Dance) **Available only in On-Premise line-up**
Metro (Indie Electronica)
NuJazz (Acid Jazz)
NuLounge (Lounge)
Strobe (Electro Pop)
Holiday [Only available during specific holiday]
Christmas (Non-Secular Holiday)
Cinco De Mayo
Halloween
Holiday (Secular Holiday)
Independence Day
Mardi Gras
Oktoberfest
St. Patrick’s Day
Summer Fun
Valentine’s Day
Instrumentals
Easy Instrumentals (Classic Instrumental)
Ensemble (Classical Ambiance)
Environmental (Easy Listening Instrumental)
Intermezzo (Light Classical)
Moodscapes (New Age Instrumental)
Piano & Guitar (Acoustic Instrumental)
Plaza (Contemporary Instrumental)
Uptown (Instrumental Jazz)
Jazz
City Lights (Smooth Jazz)
Impressions (Contemporary Jazz)
Jazz Traditions (Classic Jazz)
Latin
Caliente Pop (Upbeat Latino/Anglo Pop) **Available only in Satellite line-up**
Estilos (Smooth Latin Music)
Fiesta Mexicana (Mexican Music)
La Musica (Latin Pop)
La Frontera (Tejano/Border) **Available only in Echostar line-up**
Mojito (Salsa/Merengue)
Viva Mariachi (Mariachi)
Pop
7890 (Classic Pop Hits)
Backpages (Adult Alternative)
FM1 (Classic Pop)
Hitline (Current Pop)
Hot FM (Pop Hits)
Poppers (Teen Pop) **Available only in On-Premise line-up**
Venus (Female Pop) **Available only in On-Premise line-up**
Rock
Half Pipe (Skate Punk/Hip-Hop) **Available only in On-Premise line-up**
Ink’d (Power Rock/Metal)
Feedback (Alternative Rock)
Perimeter (New Indie Rock)
Rock Show (Classic Rock)
Stylus (Underground Rock/Pop)
Varsity (Rock/Pop Hits)
Roots
Acoustic Crossroads (Contemporary Folk)
Lucille (Blues)
Roadhouse (Americana/Classic Rock)
Route 66 (American Roots) **Available only in On-Premise line-up**
Specialty
Gumbo (New Orleans Music)
KidTunes (Children’s Music)
Shag Beach (Carolina Beach Party)
The Circuit (High Energy Fitness)
Tropical Breezes (Caribbean Music)
Urban
Concrete Beats (Hip-Hop/Rap)
The Blvd. (Adult R&B)
World
Bellissimo (Contemporary Italian)
Destinations (Global Pop)
Hawaiian (Hawaiian Music) **Available only in On-Premise & Echostar line-ups**
Irish (Irish Traditional/Pop) **Available only in On-Premise line-up**
Kingston (Reggae)
Little Italy (Italian/American Standards)
Quebecois (French Canadian) **Available only in Satellite line-up**
World Travels (World Music) **Available only in On-Premise line-up**
To AcerbitasQueen – I don’t see you voicing your opinion on any subject matter here. When I see you say something smart, I will politely leave.
As I said before, FN doesn’t want us to know about organics, since these would subtract profits from their sponsors.
On the bright side, folks like the ones at Consumers Union are fighting the good fight to lift the wool off our eyes.
http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/food/organic-products-206/overview/index.htm
And no, I don’t mean Consumer’s Guide or Consumer’s Digest, who take money from advertisers.
I mean the good people who don’t take advertising money, the folks who put Consumer Reports out every month.
Claudia:
Coincidentally, my wife and I were watching an old episode of Molto Mario last night, where he referred back to his very first FN episode of that show in 1994. Apparently he had accidentally grated a bit of his finger off while shaving carrots, and managed to cover pretty well, but he was horribly embarassed.
Also, Mario was a lot thinner then.
By the way, in preparation for a dinner party I am planning for next Friday, I decided to experiment and see if I could duplicate a soup that I enjoyed as an amuse bouche at Viognier’s on my wife’s birthday. It turned out to be as good if not better. This was a soup from Scott Giambastini, protege of Gary Danko. (Scott now works as the exec chef at Google.)
To see the results, and the recipe, go here:
http://www.rluxemburg.com/archives/001104.html
Tess,
Thank you for that information. I was just diagnosed w/ a wheat allergy, and I’m still adjusting. I’m trying to understand what happened.
There’s an interesting movie starring Julianne Moore called “Safe” about modern-day allergies.
The FDA is just evil.
I am seeing our local Stop & Shop “Health food section” grow rapidly and I’m sure that’s because more people are paying attention.
FN’s fate is in their own hands. The Travel Channel and public television is responding to market they are missing. I hope the Travel Channel continues to add additional food related series and shows. The FN will continue on “pleasing the masses” and others will hopefully fill the void with shows and series that will inspire and educate it’s serious food viewers. Not all of us need to cook in a hurry. There are many of us who like to learn how to make good tasting, out of the ordinary food that isn’t half processed from a can and cooked in the microwave. I do give props to Alton who does do a good show.
Maya,
Do not despair. I was diagnosed with a wheat allergy a few years ago and I eat better now than ever. The adjustment period for foodies is considerably shorter, I think, because we tend to eat less proccessed food. There are some things that I’ll always miss, like a piece of fresh baked artisan bread and freshly made ravioli but if giving up wheat is the price I have to pay to feel well, so be it.
RI I’m glad to hear that…I was blown away that the first word on all packaged food seemed to be “wheat”! How can that be real food if the first ingredient on every box is the same?
I miss pasta the most.
I’m hoping someone will invent an artificial semolina pill! (Says the anti-GMO blogger).
I agree though, once I learn how to diversify away from my current “rabbit diet” I will eventually be eating well.
Maya,
You could switch over to a diet that resembles more of the ones you find in South East Asia, with more rice and rice noodles because wheat just doesn’t grow well in the region. Or a much more traditional Mexican/South American diet of corn and masa-based meals.
Besides, couldn’t you eat more polenta or risotto, or switch to using flours made from mesquite or amaranth? You won’t get gluten formation that makes bread so chewy and tasty, but you could still make cookies with amaranth flour.
I wish I had the fine livng channel. They had a show on there entitled “Opening Soon” that I was addicted to and some other solid programming. I think it should be content-driven , not personality-driven but we Americans love worshipping our people.
I hadn’t heard about Mesquite and Amaranth, Tess! Thank you!
Literally the only bread-like food I’ve eaten has been corn-based Mexican-type foods. It is a great diet.
Several years ago, before I developed my allergy, I was lucky enough to have a housemate from India, he used to cook dinner for us every night for years.
Let me tell you, it was the best food I have ever eaten. I’ve heard that spicy food is addictive; I don’t know if that’s true but after 6 months I sure as heck felt addicted! I was eating the leftovers for breakfast, no kidding.
I should have gotten the recipies from him. It was the kind of food that was mostly wheat-free and I never got tired of it!
The ‘good’ shows are usually produced by interesting people, with a great concept. These presenters may do some quirky things like get trashed every second night, stumble around cracking jokes, making a fool of themself dancing around or getting punched in the face by a professional boxer etc, or just cooking damn fine food!
The ‘bad’ shows are produced by network execs using pre-fabricated, bubbly, idiotic presenters preparing pre-fabricated food, for the masses.
In order for the network to generate revenue, there needs to be a balance of the two, with the latter having the greater proportion of air time.
Solutions:
1. If you have a great concept, get out there and start recording! YOU could be the next cool version of RR!
2. Reduce the number of Knuckleheads that watch the moronic shows (not advised as this may result in incarceration)
3. Only watch the shows you like.
4. Offer your observations (bag the shit out of) the pre-fabricated presenters on blogs like this in order to let off steam.
Maya, There is a wheat-free pasta that can almost pass. The brand is BiAglut (clearly european; no US focus group would sign off on a name like that.) It’s available at health food stores and by mail order through the Gluten Free Trading Company http://www.food4celiacs.com
When you look at New World grains, don’t forget quinoa. Quinoa flakes are an excellent substitute for oatmeal and whole quinoa makes an awesome tabuleh salad–just cook it as you would bulgar wheat.
Ducasse vs. Robuchon on the same page as Rachel Ray, Sandra Lee and all those other stool monkeys-blasphemy
I’ve tried to contact the FN channel to make comments,but their site has no option to do so.
Anyone have info on how we can direct our comments and concerns?
Remember when MTV was just one channel…
Now there are several, including the VH1’s– and they ALL SUCK!
Does FN’s master plan call for an army of Sandra Lee’s??