# I hate Alton Brown more than ever. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 16, 2012, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-alton-brown-more-than-ever/628412 "2012-07-16T14:35:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Kimballkid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b5a626/32.png) [@Kimballkid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimballkid)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2012, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-alton-brown-more-than-ever/628412/41 "2012-07-16T20:14:11Z")
> [@Ellen\_Cherry](#): > > women lusting for them. Well, there’s at least one woman on that show I lust after. As long as she doesn’t smile. :shudder: > [@grude](#): > > You know what would have even better ratings? HARD CORE PORN! With Giada!! ---
**Author:** ![obfusciatrist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/4af34b/32.png) [@obfusciatrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obfusciatrist)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2012, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-alton-brown-more-than-ever/628412/42 "2012-07-16T20:15:43Z")
> [@Sicks\_Ate](#): > > from a military setting and adapt it for…cooking? Can anybody with direct experience tell me when this practice (boot-camp style cookery, I mean) started? I have no way to know, but I _suspect_ that TV had something to do with it. Was curious about it. Google N-Gram essentially produces no result. Arnold Wesker’s 1957 play _[The Kitchen](http://books.google.com/books?id=aeM8AAAAIAAJ&q=%22yes,+chef%22&dq=%22yes,+chef%22&hl=en&sa=X&ei=VWkEUK78E8HamAWW5tylBg&ved=0CD4Q6AEwAQ)_ seems to use the phrase as under discussion. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2012, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-alton-brown-more-than-ever/628412/43 "2012-07-16T20:17:09Z")
> [@Sicks\_Ate](#): > > To take something _directly_ from a military setting and adapt it for…cooking? Can anybody with direct experience tell me when this practice (boot-camp style cookery, I mean) started? I have no way to know, but I _suspect_ that TV had something to do with it. If I remember correctly, it’s been around since the 1800s, since the term “chef de cuisine” and other terms were adopted in the French school. Somehow I doubt that television had something to do with it. ---
**Author:** ![Sicks\_Ate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/258eb7/32.png) [@Sicks\_Ate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sicks_Ate)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2012, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-alton-brown-more-than-ever/628412/44 "2012-07-16T20:21:41Z")
> [@Covered\_In\_Bees](#): > > **teela brown** , examples? > > EDIT: I too assumed it was so the head chef guy knew that he was heard and acknowledged. > [@simster](#): > > Yep - when I used to run a restaurant, we used “thank you” when orders were called out as a signal that they were acknowledged and done - sometimes we would also repeat back what was ordered to make sure there were no mistakes. > > Yeah, i know = more noise to make sure things are heard in a noisy environment - but it also makes sure that _everyone_ hears and that everyone is doing things - - helps more than hurts in the ‘team’ aspect of a busy kitchen. > [@obfusciatrist](#): > > Was curious about it. Google N-Gram essentially produces no result. > > Arnold Wesker’s 1957 play _[The Kitchen](http://books.google.com/books?id=aeM8AAAAIAAJ&q=%22yes,+chef%22&dq=%22yes,+chef%22&hl=en&sa=X&ei=VWkEUK78E8HamAWW5tylBg&ved=0CD4Q6AEwAQ)_ seems to use the phrase as under discussion. > [@Acsenray](#): > > If I remember correctly, it’s been around since the 1800s, since the term “chef de cuisine” and other terms were adopted in the French school. Somehow I doubt that television had something to do with it. Ok, I get what y’all are saying, and it makes sense. I guess I wasn’t clear as to the particular usage I was referring to. My bother isn’t with the use of the phrase ‘Yes, Chef’ as an acknowledgement of an order or request. Of course, it is more respectful than ‘Mkay’ or ‘Got it, sport!’ In the examples that rubbed me the wrong way, the ‘Yes, Chef’ was a barking, militarily subservient shout/tone that is usually reserved for settings like boot camp or military school. EDIT: But to say on topic: Damn your eyes, Alton Brown!! _shakes fist_ ---
**Author:** ![Ellen\_Cherry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellen_cherry/32/3600_2.png) [@Ellen\_Cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellen_Cherry)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2012, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-alton-brown-more-than-ever/628412/45 "2012-07-16T20:27:52Z")
It was a plot point in one of the crime scene/criminal minds shows … murder in the kitchen, asshole chef. I forget which one. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2012, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-alton-brown-more-than-ever/628412/46 "2012-07-16T20:28:14Z")
> [@Sicks\_Ate](#): > > In the examples that rubbed me the wrong way, the ‘Yes, Chef’ was a barking, militarily subservient shout/tone that is usually reserved for settings like boot camp or military school. That’s the way it was always said in Lenny Henry’s _[Chef!](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chef!)_ (1993-1996) and I don’t recall thinking that it was new at the time. Chefs have often traditionally been portrayed as Sergeant Carter-style, screaming martinets who demand exacting obedience from the staff. It’s not new. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2012, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-alton-brown-more-than-ever/628412/47 "2012-07-16T20:31:01Z")
> [@Ellen\_Cherry](#): > > It was a plot point in one of the crime scene/criminal minds shows … murder in the kitchen, asshole chef. I forget which one. “CSI: Las Vegas,” season five or six, I think. Back when it was still good. As I recall, each chef had a “thing” about his or her personal knives… ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2012, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-alton-brown-more-than-ever/628412/48 "2012-07-16T20:34:56Z")
I’ve disliked Alton Brown ever since I followed his advice and used apple jelly to make an apple pie: “It contains _pectin_, which will bind the apple slices together!” **B-S!** All it does is make one gawdawfully runny, almost liquid pie filling! ---
**Author:** ![Sicks\_Ate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/258eb7/32.png) [@Sicks\_Ate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sicks_Ate)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2012, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-alton-brown-more-than-ever/628412/49 "2012-07-16T20:37:55Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > That’s the way it was always said in Lenny Henry’s _[Chef!](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chef!)_ (1993-1996) and I don’t recall thinking that it was new at the time. Chefs have often traditionally been portrayed as Sergeant Carter-style, screaming martinets who demand exacting obedience from the staff. It’s not new. Very well then! It struck me as a bit over the top, but I guess if that’s the way it is… > [@terentii](#): > > I’ve disliked Alton Brown ever since I followed his advice and used apple jelly to make an apple pie: “It contains _pectin_, which will bind the apple slices together!” > > **B-S!** All it does is make one gawdawfully runny, almost liquid pie filling! Doesn’t pecting come from…um…apples in the first place? Saying that the apple pie will have pectin in it is a bit redundant, then, innit. Or does the pectin come from the peels… ---
**Author:** ![Kimballkid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b5a626/32.png) [@Kimballkid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimballkid)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2012, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-alton-brown-more-than-ever/628412/50 "2012-07-16T20:40:13Z")
You apparently didn’t buy Alton’s brand of uber-pectiny apple jelly especially for pie making available only on FoodNetwork dot com. Oh well, you probably can’t afford it anyway. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2012, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-alton-brown-more-than-ever/628412/51 "2012-07-16T20:49:49Z")
> [@Kimballkid](#): > > Well, there’s at least one woman on that show I lust after. As long as she doesn’t smile. :shudder: > > With Giada!! That would be the epitome of\* food porn\*… ---
**Author:** ![SpoilerVirgin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4491bb/32.png) [@SpoilerVirgin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpoilerVirgin)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2012, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-alton-brown-more-than-ever/628412/52 "2012-07-16T21:00:50Z")
There’s a great book called [The Perfectionist](http://www.amazon.com/The-Perfectionist-Death-Haute-Cuisine/dp/B000MGAHXM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1342472146&sr=8-1&keywords=The+perfectionist) that provides a lot of background on French haute cuisine and detailed descriptions of how the brigade de cuisine actually operates in top French restaurant kitchens. I don’t watch Food Network, but after reading that book, I believe that they are closer to reality than you might think. ---
**Author:** ![Morgenstern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Morgenstern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgenstern)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2012, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-alton-brown-more-than-ever/628412/53 "2012-07-16T21:09:28Z")
I think the hosts of the realty competition cooking shows are told to be buttnuggets. That Buddy guy from Cake Boss is a totally different person when he does his cake boss from the person he is when he hosts that baking competition show of his. ---
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2012, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-alton-brown-more-than-ever/628412/54 "2012-07-16T22:11:22Z")
I don’t think astrophysicists and virologists are often under the intense time sensitive environment as a busy kitchen. Not to say they don’t have bosses and deadlines, but those are usually measured by days and weeks rather than minutes and seconds, and those occupations don’t usually have to deal with angry customers. Having worked in a busy fast food kitchen before, I can say that it does get stressful and oftentimes you have to yell to be heard, and its just easier to bark acknowledgement rather than talk calmly. ---
**Author:** ![lisiate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f05b48/32.png) [@lisiate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lisiate)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2012, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-alton-brown-more-than-ever/628412/55 "2012-07-16T22:52:38Z")
> [@zombywoof](#): > > [Brigade de Cuisine](http://escoffier.com/index.php/culinary-reference/124-the-brigade-de-cuisine) > [@Sicks\_Ate](#): > > Ok, I get what y’all are saying, and it makes sense. I guess I wasn’t clear as to the particular usage I was referring to. > > My bother isn’t with the use of the phrase ‘Yes, Chef’ as an acknowledgement of an order or request. Of course, it is more respectful than ‘Mkay’ or ‘Got it, sport!’ > > In the examples that rubbed me the wrong way, the ‘Yes, Chef’ was a barking, militarily subservient shout/tone that is usually reserved for settings like boot camp or military school. > > EDIT: But to say on topic: Damn your eyes, Alton Brown!! _shakes fist_ **zombywoof** ’s cite nails it - the whole brigade de cuisine system was largely the creation of [Auguste Escoffier](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Escoffier) the whole system was ‘militarised’ from the start. [QUOTE=zoombywoof’s source] Late in the 19th century, in London’s Savoy Hotel, Escoffier developed the modern brigade system from the structure he learned while serving in the French Army . He organized the kitchen into a hierarchy of authority, responsibility, and function. [/QUOTE] ---
**Author:** ![Swords\_to\_Plowshares](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b38774/32.png) [@Swords\_to\_Plowshares](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swords_to_Plowshares)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2012, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-alton-brown-more-than-ever/628412/56 "2012-07-16T23:05:34Z")
> [@gaffa](#): > > The Food Network has been on a long slide straight to Hell since the very first season. The less it is about food, and the more it is about “personalities” the less I want to watch it. > > Food Network, instead of nothing but infomercials all night long, could you possibly play some of your old, food-oriented shows like _Taste_? Try the Cooking Channel instead. ---
**Author:** ![sparky\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/77aa72/32.png) [@sparky\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sparky_1)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2012, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-alton-brown-more-than-ever/628412/57 "2012-07-16T23:32:55Z")
I miss Julia Child and her The French Chef. You know? Just her and a kitchen. No gimmicks. No bizare editing (Gordon Ramsay is unwatchable due to the lightning editing). ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2012, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-alton-brown-more-than-ever/628412/58 "2012-07-17T00:35:31Z")
> [@sparky\_1](#): > > I miss Julia Child and her The French Chef. You know? Just her and a kitchen. No gimmicks. No bizare editing (Gordon Ramsay is unwatchable due to the lightning editing). Julia was awesome. Have you tried Ramsay’s show “The F Word”? It’s much more… subdued. (On BBC America in the US, dunno how/if it’s carried elsewhere.) It’s a bit of celeb food chat, a small cooking competition with a 4-person team that he teaches, some “this is where your food comes from” demonstration, and teaching a couple recipes to a few regular people and the home audience. He’s very rarely shouty. ---
**Author:** ![sparky\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/77aa72/32.png) [@sparky\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sparky_1)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2012, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-alton-brown-more-than-ever/628412/59 "2012-07-17T01:05:12Z")
> [@Ferret\_Herder](#): > > Julia was awesome. > > Have you tried Ramsay’s show “The F Word”? It’s much more… subdued. (On BBC America in the US, dunno how/if it’s carried elsewhere.) It’s a bit of celeb food chat, a small cooking competition with a 4-person team that he teaches, some “this is where your food comes from” demonstration, and teaching a couple recipes to a few regular people and the home audience. He’s very rarely shouty. I haven’t. I just really miss the cooking shows where the person cooked, and there was no fake drama or competition. Like woodworking with the New Yankee Workshop: just Norm in the workshop building things, and the audience along for the show. Nowadays, there’s always some damn gimmick or fake drama. Alton seemed to forgo drama with his Good Eats, but at times the lecturing was a bit much. I seriously love to just see a good cook doing their thing. It really can be an art form of skilled use of time and honed skills. _sigh_ ---
**Author:** ![Ellen\_Cherry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellen_cherry/32/3600_2.png) [@Ellen\_Cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellen_Cherry)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2012, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-alton-brown-more-than-ever/628412/60 "2012-07-17T02:07:02Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > I’ve disliked Alton Brown ever since I followed his advice and used apple jelly to make an apple pie: “It contains _pectin_, which will bind the apple slices together!” > > **B-S!** All it does is make one gawdawfully runny, almost liquid pie filling! I add about a tablespoon to my apple pies and it seems to add some rich deliciousness. How much jelly did he say to put in? Also PBS is offering some French Chef classic episodes from the 1960s in August, in recognition of the 100th anniversary of Julia Child’s birth. We’re running one of them but I think the offer is three. I’ll post the dates tomorrow. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-alton-brown-more-than-ever/628412.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-alton-brown-more-than-ever/628412.md?page=4)