And the next Food Network Star is…
Holy crap, I did not expect that!
But you know both of them are under contract. Susie will show up mid-winter on The Cooking Channel doing Mexican Cooking For Everybody, and I’ll watch every episode.
On a side note, why did they ship Juba and Katy back to the studio when they didn’t say a word at either the reunion show or the focus group evaluation?
Penny still needs to be eaten by rabid wolverines.
I’d rather watch Susie. If I make braciole I’m not going to put it in a fricking sandwich.
I wanted both of them to win. I agree that Susie will get a show, and I’ll being looking for Vic’s too.
They bring everybody back IIRC. Juba and Katy showed exactly why they were eliminated. They had the onscreen presence of limp broccoli.
Penny needs to be roasted on a spit and chopped up shwarma-style. No show for her!
I forgot how much I disliked Chris. Who do I bribe at Food Network to never again record the image or sounds of this buffoon?
The reunion surprised me a few times, but also confirmed some things I’d suspected. The animosity between Penny and everyone else was already well established, but I was surprised there were hard feelings between Mary Beth and Jeff, and that MB would be so singularly graceless in speaking about it. I was not surprised that Justin B. does not think highly of Chris, and got a weak snicker over Chris’ idea that he’d do well in any sort of “throwdown” with that chef.
I wasn’t surprised that Jeff was given the show, as he was pretty obviously favored down the stretch. I’ll give Sandwich King a shot, but I think FN is nuts if Susie J. isn’t in front of a camera by next Spring.
Last, am I the only one exasperated by the “it’s a game show and you should be cutthroat” meme that everyone just sort of accepted during the reunion discussions? I did appreciate Susie J.'s comment that (paraphrased) “the best person will win, so ease up on the strategizing and do your best.” The show really is a chance to show what you’re made of, and it sure aint sugar and spice with Penny.
No, you’re not. Next Food Network Star is basically a really, really long audition process that’s supposed to illustrate why you’d be a good cooking show host. Playing cutthroat makes sense in something like Top Chef, where the winner takes their prize money and we don’t have to listen to them anymore. It doesn’t make sense on FNS, where you’re supposed to be showing us why we want to watch you every week.
In one of the other FNS threads someone said something along the lines of “I’d eat Penny’s restaurant where I wouldn’t have to listen to her, but no way I’d watch her every week.” That’s basically how I felt about her all along.
I missed the MB/Jeff part. Can anyone summarize?
I’d have to watch again, but when MB was asked if she’d watch Jeff’s show if he won, she worked her jaw silently for long enough that Justin B. quipped “OK, awkward silence; that’s awesome!” or something close to that. She said it would be hard to separate the show from “the personality”, and pointedly spoke about how good Susie J.'s cooking is. Then Bobby asked where the animosity between her and Jeff came from.
They showed a clip of MB’s elimination including some footage not shown at the time of Jeff trying to hug her and being turned away by MB. That in itself doesn’t necessarily mean anything (my wife for instance doesn’t like being touched by anyone who isn’t me or her immediate family), but they both sort of confirmed that there were hard feelings between them. Kind of mysterious because other than the one clip they showed no reason for that.
I think MB may have ruined a shot at some sort of job at the Food Network with that weirdness.
I was glad Jeff won. His show was the only one I would want to watch and he seemed funny and charming.
They made the right decision.
Suzie was nice and all, I could see her doing the camera-pointed-at-kitchen show. I wouldn’t watch that show, I don’t watch those types of shows much. Jeff has a charisma Suzie lacks. I’ll watch his show, but I’ve been disappointed by the pedestrian production values on winners’ shows before. So far, only Guy has been able to grab the opportunity by its haunches and hump it into submission (that’s the only way).
I like both of the finale people (though I would have wanted Vic to win), but I think there’s not a lot separating Susie’s show from like half the shows out there. I like the concept of a Sandwich King, and if you make something that’s sandwich-able, then there’s a lot of variety you can do to it that you might not be able to do with, say, a spicy Mexican dish
What Penny seemed to miss was that being unlikable is the absolute kiss of death for NFNS. The only strategy that works is being the kind of person people like and want to watch, and cut-throat is not appropriate for the Food Network “Family”. I can’t believe the network ever thought she had a chance–she was put in purely for drama, IMHO.
I’m more inclined to watch Jeff than Susie. Only because I’m not a fan of Spanish food.
How about Mexican? Cause that’s what she cooks.
I was reasonably happy with Jeff’s winning. Last year, Aarti deserved to win, but I knew I wouldn’t really be interested in her show. The year before that, I thought Jeffrey deserved it over Melissa D’Arabian. This year. . .well, I liked Justin B., but I’m totally cool with Jeff. Mostly because I freaking love sandwiches. Plus, you know, he’s so clearly from Chicago. 
When I said Spanish I meant Mexican. Though, IMO it’s the same thing.
I would have been happy with either Jeff or Susie winning, but I think I will like The Sandwich King better.
What I got from his pilot is how to cook a <goes upthread to look up the dish’s name> “braciole”, and then use up the leftovers in a sandwich. I think someone spoke about that on the reunion show.
I always have leftovers from almost any recipe. There’s only three of us, and recipes are usually for 4 servings.
It’s really not. And I say this as a person who enjoys Spanish food, and doesn’t like most Mexican food.
From Wiki answers:
Spanish versus Mexican food
It would be far easier to list the similarities, as they are few. Although quite varied, Spanish cuisine tends toward traditional Mediterranean fare, with emphasis on shellfish-based dishes. Mexican dishes are dominated by chili peppers and tortillas.
Read more: How does Spanish food differ from Mexican food? - Answers
That sounds right (didn’t read link) I doubt you can get paella in Mexico, or quesadillas in Spain.
I caught up on the last three episodes last night. On the Iron Chef one, I kept wanting a commentator to call Alton, “Fukui-San.”