Alex Guarnaschelli Wins First Battle As An Iron Chef

Alex Guarnaschelli won her first battle as an Iron Chef against UK Iron Chef Judy Joo tonight on the Food Network.  The secret ingredient was Mortadella, and the format for the show was not the normal Iron Chef America format.

Both chefs had to present their first dish while they were still cooking, and this dish was also judged while they were cooking, with Alex receiving an 11 and Judy Joo receiving a 9.  There was also a 'culinary curveball' revealed during the competition, which was having to use an ebelskiver pan.

After the judges scored all of the dishes, Judy Joo received a total of 75 points (first dish, taste, culinary curveball, originality, plating), while Alex Guarnaschelli received 80 points.  I guess this means Alex Guarnaschelli can win battles without Geoffrey Zakarian as one of her judges.

Paliani's From Restaurant Impossible To Close

Photo - Food Network

This might not come as a surprise to many, but just 6 months after Restaurant Impossible visited Paliani's in Burton, MI, the restaurant will be closing at the end of the year. 

Paliani's was one of the more controversial episodes of Restaurant Impossible, and one of the most read posts on this site this year.  Most of the comments from the original post thought the owner Marina was the main problem and people were actually hoping the restaurant would fail because of her.  It seemed that she didn't change, and kept bringing her son to work with her, letting him run around the restaurant.

Alex Guarnaschelli Wins Next Iron Chef: Redemption

Alex Guarnaschelli was crowned the winner of The Next Iron Chef: Redemption tonight after beating Amanda Freitag in a head-to-head battle in kitchen stadium.  Alex Guarnaschelli will be going against UK Iron Chef Judy Joo next Sunday at 9pm on Iron Chef America.

The first challenge of the episode had the competitors cooking a meal for a last supper.  Nate Appleman got haddock (Simon's ingredient), Alex Guarnaschelli got sea urchin (Donatella's ingredient), and Amanda Freitag got chicken (Geoffrey's ingredient) as their ingredients.  Amanda Freitag was the clear winner of this challenge, and the judges decided to eliminate Nate Appleman from the competition due to the clams he added to his haddock dish.

Food Network January 2013 Programming Highlights

The Food Network has put out a press release detailing the programming in January on the channel and some of the highlights include:

• Series premiere of Bobby's Dinner Battle on Saturday, January 19th
• Season 2 of Chef Wanted with Anne Burrell begins Thursday January 31st.  Last season there were 6 episodes, and I am pretty sure 0 of the 6 chefs stuck around to work at the restaurant.  This season is 13 episodes, so hopefully it is more successful.
• Rachael vs. Guy Celebrity Cook-Off begins on Sunday, January 6th.

Guy Fieri Is Now A Doctor

Aaron Mayes / UNLV Photo Services

Yeah, you read that right.  Guy Fieri recently received an honorary doctorate from UNLV and gave a speech at the Fall commencement ceremony.  UNLV decided to give him the honorary doctorate "for his public service, for maintaining a strong connection with UNLV students, and for supporting hotel college fundraising efforts."

Guy said, “I’ve had some great things happen in my career, but this is at the top.”

My guess is it is much higher than the recent coverage and reviews of his Times Square restaurant.

UNLV News

Restaurant Impossible - Rising Sun Bistro Update

Tonight on Restaurant: Impossible, Robert Irvine is going to Rising Sun Bistro in Kalispell, Montana which recently moved locations from Whitefish, Montana.   The restaurant is facing many problems, such as: a chaotic kitchen, an uninspired decor, $500,000 worth of debt, and three owners that do not get along.  As I normally do with Restaurant: Impossible episodes, I searched around the internet to read stories, comments and reviews about Rising Sun Bistro to get an idea of how the restaurant is doing since Robert Irvine visited, and here is what I found (note - all reviews and comments are post Restaurant: Impossible):

Winner of Next Iron Chef Redemption - Poll

Photo - Food Network

With the 3 finalists for The Next Iron Chef Redemption set, who do you want to win the competition this Sunday?  The fan vote at Food Network, as of writing this, has 53% for Alex Guarnaschelli, 34% for Amanda Freitag, and 13% for Nate Appleman.  The vote for the Next Food Network Star on here was pretty accurate, but viewer votes actually counted for something in that competition.  As some people think the poll at the Food Network site is "rigged," we will do one here:


 Feel free to discuss who you are rooting for in the comments section.

UPDATE - Alex Guarnaschelli is your Next Iron Chef.

Marcel Vigneron Eliminated From The Next Iron Chef: Redemption

Marcel Vigneron was the latest chef eliminated from The Next Iron Chef: Redemption after failing to beat Alex Guarnaschelli in the Elimination Challenge.  That means Nate Appleman, Amanda Freitag, and Alex Guarnaschelli will be in the finals next week.  In the finale, one chef will be eliminated in the first challange, and the final two chefs will battle it out in Kitchen Stadium to determine the winner of The Next Iron Chef: Redemption.

Giada In Paradise: Thailand Just Filmed

 Giada De Laurentiis was in Thailand this past week filming Giada In Paradise: Thailand.  Earlier this year, she shot and episode of Giada In Paradise: Monaco, where Aunt Raffy was with her.  In the episode just filmed in Thailand, she is traveling with her sister Eloisa De Laurentiis.

It looks like Giada will be in a swimsuit once again, and her adventures include boat rides, riding elephants, yoga, massages, and a Thai Feast.
 

More pictures of her Thailand trip after the jump: 

Justin Warner Plans To Use Twitter On His New Show?



Photo - Justin's Twitter

Back in October, I let you know that Justin Warner's show would not be airing until next year, and that it would be some sort of traveling show.  Based on the comments in that post, it seemed more would want him in the kitchen in an instructional type of show. 

Earlier this week on Twitter, Justin revealed in a series of tweets(below) that he will begin filming his show in January and gave some hints as to what the show may be about.  We know from the my last post that the working title is Justin's Excellent Adventure, and instead of being an instructional show, it would feature Justin traveling across the country on an adventure.  Based on that information and the below tweets, it looks like he will be using fans from Twitter to help out with his "Adventure."

Get Ready For More Bobby Flay

Image Source - FoodNetwork.com

Bobby Flay is going to be starring in a digital series on FoodNetwork.com/fit, that will be called Bobby Flay Fit, and starts Monday, January 14th.  It will be a 7 episode digital series based on Bobby's philosophy that you need to eat in moderation and exercise.  Michael Symon and Katie Lee will be guests on the series.  As the Food Network tries to get more people to its website and increase its digital footprint, I have a feeling we will be seeing more of this type of show.

Other things you will be seeing Bobby Flay on coming up:

Jehangir Mehta Eliminated From The Next Iron Chef Redemption

Jehangir Mehta was the latest chef eliminated from The Next Iron Chef: Redemption after failing to beat Nate Appleman in the Elimination Challenge.

The Chairman's Challenge had the chefs fusing together ingredients that did not go together such as peanut butter and blue cheese, bone marrow and skittles, clams and strawberries, and calamari and marshmallows.  Marcel Vigneron got to pick his ingredient pair from winning last weeks challenge, and assign the other ingredient pairings to the remaining chefs. 

Restaurant Impossible - Bronk's Bar and Grill Update

Tonight on Restaurant: Impossible, Robert Irvine is going to Bronk's Bar and Grill in Lake City, Minnesota to help a restaurant in danger of closing after 11 years in business.  Some of the problems the owner's Erik and Tracy have are untrained staff, frozen food in the kitchen, and a generic design in the dining room.  Fans of the show who were hoping Taniya Nayak from HGTV would be back doing Restaurant: Impossible makeovers will be happy to see that she is back for this episode.  As I normally do with Restaurant: Impossible episodes, I searched around the internet to read stories, comments and reviews about Bronk's to get an idea of how the restaurant is doing since Robert Irvine visited, and here is what I found (note - all reviews and comments are post Restaurant: Impossible):

Sandra Lee's 'Horrifying' White Christmas Tree

Sandra Lee posted a picture Monday on Twitter of her bird with her Christmas tree in the background, which is shown to the right.  After looking at that picture, there was not much reaction to her Christmas tree.  However, Sandra Lee posted a picture last night of her tree lit up, which had people calling it 'horrifying' and 'the worst Christmas tree ever.'

The photo of the lit up tree is after the jump.  What do you think of it?

Chef Elizabeth Falkner's Elimination From Next Iron Chef Angers Fans

Last night on the latest episode of The Next Iron Chef: Redemption, Elizabeth Falkner was the chef eliminated after losing to Nate Appleman in the Secret Ingredient Showdown.  Chef Falkner, by winning a challenge the previous week, earned the right to judge all of the contestants, and got to pick who to send to the Secret Ingredient Challenge for this week.  Obviously, she chose Nate Appleman and the judges sent her into the elimination challenge against him after she served them inedible fish scales.  The secret ingredient in the elimination challenge was anchovies, and Chef Falkner was eliminated due to the fact that her dish had too much saffron in it. 

Save Card Available In Next Iron Chef: Redemption?

Photo - Food Network

The past episode of Next Iron Chef: Redemption had Spike Mendelsohn and Marcel Vigneron going against each other in the elimination round where the chefs decided to plate their dishes together on the same plate.  This made the judges and some of the competitors angry as they thought it was disrespectful.  Some fans of the show on the other hand were quite split on whether it was disrespectful, or done in good spirits, while others thought the judges were taking things a bit too seriously for a reality competition.

Now we may know the reason why Spike and Marcel decided to plate together after a recent interview that Spike did.  At the beginning of the show, they were told there could be a 'Save Card' used by the judges or Alton Brown to save both competitors if their dishes were too close to call.  Here is the quote from Spike in the Braiser Interview:

Restaurant Impossible - Rohrer's Tavern Updade

Tonight on Restaurant: Impossible, Robert Irvine is going to Rohrer's Tavern in North Bend, OH to try to turn around the restaurant that has been there for over 60 years.  The current owner Lisa has said that the regulars keep coming back, but the restaurant is having trouble attracting new customers and is close to shutting down.  As I normally do with Restaurant: Impossible episodes, I searched around the internet to read stories, comments and reviews about Rohrer's to get an idea of how the restaurant is doing since Robert Irvine visited, and here is what I found (note - all reviews and comments are post Restaurant: Impossible):

Rachael Vs. Guy: Celebrity Cook-Off Season 2 - Teams Revealed

While it was announced back in October who was going to be on the second season of Rachael Vs. Guy: Celebrity Cook-Off, it has now been revealed who will be on each team:

Team Rachael

• Gilbert Gottfried (actor, comedian)
• Kathy Najimy (actress, Sister Act)
• Hines Ward (Former NFL player, Super Bowl champion and MVP)
• Carnie Wilson (Singer, Wilson Phillips)

Food Network December 2012 Programming Highlights

The Food Network has put out a press release detailing the programming in December on the channel and some of the highlights include:

• The final four episodes of the The Next Iron Chef Redemption, with the finale and winner being crowned on December 26th.  The last 3 episodes are in Las Vegas and Iron Chefs Morimoto, Flay and Symon are guest judges in the finale.
• New Episodes of Chopped, Restaurant Impossible, and Restaurant Stakeout.
• Holiday Themed shows for pretty much every show on the channel.
• Ina Garten and her husband Jeffrey take a day trip to Brooklyn.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Courtesy of someecards.com

Restaurant Impossible - Poco's On The Boulevard Update

Tonight is the season 5 premiere of Restaurant: Impossible, and has Robert Irvine going to the Poco's On The Boulevard in Kansas City, Missouri to save a restaurant that was taken over by the original owner's daughters.  The 2 daughters, Claudia and Dana, have been struggling with food quality and profits ever since the death of their mother Poco who was chef/owner.  As I normally do with Restaurant: Impossible episodes, I searched around the internet to read stories, comments and reviews about Poco's to get an idea of how the restaurant is doing since Robert Irvine visited, and here is what I found (note - all reviews and comments are post Restaurant: Impossible):

Watch The Guy Fieri Weekend Update SNL Sketch

Bobby Moynihan, who has done his Guy Fieri impression in the past on Saturday Night Live, was back this week to do the impression once again.  Although the scene didn't air on Saturday's broadcast, it has been released online for everyones viewing pleasure.  The fake Guy Fieri reads the Pete Wells New York Times review after getting his reading glasses from the back of his head, where his sunglasses usually are.  Video after the jump:

Guy Fieri Responds To NY Times Review And Others Also Weigh In

Guy Fieri was on the Today show this morning after taking a red-eye flight, so he could respond to the New York Times review that had the internet abuzz yesterday.  He cited the review as being 'ridiculous' and 'overboard' which is kind of ironic as Guy has made his living being ridiculous and overboard.  The video is after the jump, but here are some of the quotes from Guy regarding the review:

• "I just thought it was ridiculous. I mean, I read reviews. You know, there's good and bad in the restaurant business, but that to me went so overboard it really seemed like there was another agenda."
• "The tone, the sarcasm, the question style. I mean, I think we all know what's going on here.  He came in with a different agenda.  Four times to a restaurant that's been open two months, that's tough times.  Especially this size of a restaurant."

Guy Fieri's NY Restaurant Gets Horrible Rating in The New York Times Review

When Guy Fieri's restaurant opened back in September, I wrote about its obnoxious menu, and ever since then, new bad reviews and bad press seem to be coming in daily about Guy's American Kitchen and Bar.  It currently has 2.5 stars on Yelp, Anthony Bourdain has ripped his restaurant multiple times, and the NY Post gave it a terrible review back in October.

The latest review from Pete Wells in The New York Times really lays into Guy and his Times Square restaurant.  Pete seems to have taken some pointers from Ina Garten, and wrote the whole review using countless rhetorical questions.  Some of them include:

• "Did panic grip your soul as you stared into the whirling hypno wheel of the menu, where adjectives and nouns spin in a crazy vortex?"
• "Hey, did you try that blue drink, the one that glows like nuclear waste? The watermelon margarita? Any idea why it tastes like some combination of radiator fluid and formaldehyde?"

Jill Kelley From Petraeus Scandal Was On Food Network in 2003

Jill Kelly - Photo -AP / Chris O'Meara

Unless you are living under a rock, I am sure you have heard about the Petraeus scandal.  In case you haven't, Gawker has a pretty good flowchart to give you the cliff notes version of what is going on.  Jill Kelley is one of the women involved in the scandal, and an interesting fact about Jill is that she had previously been on the Food Network with her twin sister Natalie Khawam on a show called Food Fight.  Her sister Natalie is somewhat involved in the scandal as well.  Their episode was filmed in 2003 in Tampa and first aired on 10/11/2003.  The idea of the show is that 2 teams each got a secret ingredient and $20 and had to make a dish, in which judges would pick a winner.  Here is the episode description of the episode Jill Kelley and Natalie Khawam were on:

Current Food Network Contests And Sweepstakes Information

There are currently some Food Network contests and sweepstakes that are taking place and the details, links to enter, and prizes are described below:

Cook with Sunny Sweepstakes - Link to Contest
How to Enter - Fill out a simple form with your name and address. One entry allowed per day.
End Date - November 19th, 2012
Prize -  The one (1) Grand Prize Winner will receive a trip to New York City for Grand Prize winner and a guest which includes: (i) round trip coach class air transportation for Grand Prize Winner and guest between the major U.S. commercial airport in the lower 48 United States or D.C. nearest Grand Prize Winner’s residence and New York City; (ii) first class hotel accommodations (as determined by Sponsor) for three days and two nights (one double occupancy room, room rate and tax only); (iii) Grand Prize Winner and guest will get to cook and eat with Sunny Anderson in the Food Network kitchens; (iv) $500 cash for Grand Prize Winner; (v) round-trip airport transfers in New York City; and (vi) all taxes related to accommodations and airfare. Approximate retail value of the Grand Prize: $3,240.00.

The Next Iron Chef Redemption Starts Tomorrow - Web Series Winner Revealed

The Next Iron Chef: Redemption is starting tomorrow at 9pm, and as stated before, the cast for this season is:

• Nate Appleman, Jehangir Mehta, and Eric Greenspan from The Next Iron Chef Season 2
• Chef Amanda Freitag from The Next Iron Chef Season 2 and a Chopped Judge
• Elizabeth Falkner, Alex Guarnaschelli, Spike Mendelsohn from  Season 4 of The Next Iron Chef - Superchefs
• Marcel Vigneron from Season 2 of Top Chef and
  
• Chef Tim Love from Top Chef Masters

Also, the 10th competitor on the show was decided by an online web series competition between chefs Duskie Estes, Robert Trevino(who have previously competed on The Next Iron Chef),  Lee Anne Wong and Madison Cowan. 

Aunt Sandy Declares Cocktail Time During Hurricane Sandy

While many of us were bracing for Hurricane Sandy to make landfall on the East Coast, Sandra Lee has declared Cocktail Time!  Sandra Lee tweeted to her followers: "Be safe inside with family and friends. If you need a Hurricane cocktail recipe…here’s one to help you relax" with a link to a hurricane recipe.  Makes sense as the storm shared the same name as her and was hitting around her favorite holiday of Halloween.  If you set up a tablescape in your house, Hurricane Sandy will spare your house of any damage.  Good luck to everyone that will be impacted by this storm.

Justin Warner's Show Not To Premiere Until Next Year

Yumsugar had an interview with Alton Brown where he revealed some details about the show he is producing for Food Network Star winner Justin Warner.  When Justin won, it was stated that his show would air 'in the Fall.'  Well, Fall has arrived, and it now seems that his show will not air until next year 'in the Winter.'  Rather than being slotted in the normal Sunday morning slot of past Food Network Star winners, Justin's show will be a prime time show.

Watch Duff Goldman Attempt The Cinnamon Challenge

Duff Goldman recently uploaded a video of him attempting the Cinnamon Challenge multiple times.  If you do not know what the Cinnamon Challenge is, it is when a person tries to swallow a teaspoon full of ground cinnamon within 60 seconds and without the aid of any liquid.  Most people fail as it dries out the mouth so quickly, and there are thousands of Youtube videos of people attempting it.  In his video, Duff also gets former Top Chef winner Michael Voltaggio to attempt the Cinnamon Challenge with him.  Watch the video after the jump. 

Food Network November 2012 Programming Highlights

The Food Network has put out a press release detailing the programming in November on the channel and some of the highlights include:

• The Next Iron Chef: Redemption starts Sunday, November 4th at 9pm.
• Although the last season of Restaurant: Impossible just ended this week, a new season is already beginning Wednesday, November 21st at 9pm.
• Sugar Dome is premiering Sunday, November 25th at 8pm.
• There will be another Thanksgiving Live this year on Sunday, November 18th at 12pm.  It will be hosted by Alton Brown, and some of the chefs that will be on it include: Sunny Anderson, Giada De Laurentiis, Ree Drummond, Bobby Flay, Alex Guarnaschelli, Rachael Ray and Aarón Sanchez.

Restaurant Impossible - Oleander Bar & Grill Update

Tonight's Restaurant: Impossible has Robert Irvine going to the Oleander Bar & Grill in Olean, NY which is owned by a mother/daughter combination, Kelli and Abby.  The daughter Abby is 7 months pregnant, and the restaurant opened only 6 months ago and is already in trouble.  As I do every week, I searched around the internet to read stories, comments and reviews about the Oleander to get an idea of how the restaurant is doing since Robert Irvine visited.  There wasn't too much with this restaurant being new and in a small town, but here is what I found (note - all reviews and comments are post Restaurant: Impossible):

Rachael Vs. Guy: Celebrity Cook-Off Season 2 Cast Announced

The Food Network has put out a press release announcing the cast for season 2 of Rachael Vs. Guy: Celebrity Cook-Off, and the 8 person cast for this season is:

• Chilli (member of pop/R&B group TLC)
• Gilbert Gottfried (actor, comedian)
• Cornelia Guest (designer, author, philanthropist)
• Dean McDermott (actor, reality television star)
• Kathy Najimy (actress, Sister Act)
• Hines Ward (former NFL player; Super Bowl Champion and MVP)

New York City Wine & Food Festival Day 1 Highlights

Meatball Madness - Image Source Giada's Twitter

Last night was the first night of the New York City Wine & Food Festival and the big events of the night were the Meatball Madness event hosted by Giada De Laurentiis, and the Roast of Anthony Bourdain. 

The Meatball Madness event was judged by Anne Burrell and Geoffrey Zakarian, who chose the judges winner.  There was also a People's Choice award for the crowd's favorite meatball.  The People's Choice award ended up going to Donatella Arpaia, who you probably recognize as a frequent judge on Iron Chef America.  The judges award went to the restaurant L'Apicio, which is a restaurant that hasn't even opened, but is scheduled to open in several weeks. 

The Roast of Anthony Bourdain was probably the most anticipated event due to the amount of chefs and celebrities that were scheduled to be there, such as Rachael Ray and Guy Fieri.  Here are some of the more popular jokes from the event:

Restaurant Impossible - Valley Inn Update

Tonight's Restaurant: Impossible has Robert Irvine going to the Valley Inn in Palos Hills, Illinois which opened 40 years ago and is now being run by the original owners' sons. In doing research and reviews, it seemed as if many of the reviews before the show complained about the dirtiness and appearance of the Valley Inn.  As I do every week, I searched around the internet to read stories, comments and reviews about the Valley Inn to get an idea of how the restaurant is doing since Robert Irvine visited, and here is what I found (note - all reviews and comments are post Restaurant: Impossible):

New York City Wine & Food Festival Starts Tomorrow

The New York City Wine & Food Festival is scheduled to begin tomorrow and runs through Sunday, October 14th.  It is the 5th year of the festival and 100% of the proceeds from all of the events benefit the Food Bank For New York City and Share Our Strength, which is a non-profit to end childhood hunger.  Pretty much all of the Food Network personalities will be in attendance and although a lot of the events are sold-out, tickets are still available to others (List of all Events). 

Giada De Laurentiis Filming Giada In Paradise: Monaco

Giada De Laurentiis is currently in Monaco filming the next Giada In Paradise.  The previous Giada In Paradise specials have filmed in Santorini, Capri, and Bora Bora.  Pretty much Giada gets a free vacation, while the Food Network has an excuse to get Giada in a bikini such as the picture to the right.

It looks like Aunt Raffy is with Giada in Monaco, and Giada has been updating her Twitter with pictures of places she has been throughout the trip.  And of course, there is another Giada bikini picture before the episode even airs:

Restaurant Impossible - Whistle Stop Update

Tonight's Restaurant: Impossible has Robert Irvine going to Whistle Stop in Hot Springs, Arkansas to help a former employee of the restaurant who bought the restaurant when the previous owners said they were going to shut down..  To help keep the restaurant open, she has used inheritance money left by her late husband.  As I do every week, I searched around the internet to read stories and reviews about the Whistle Stop to get an idea of how the restaurant is doing since Robert Irvine visited, and here is what I found (note - all reviews are post Restaurant: Impossible):

Great Food Truck Race Finale - Winner Gets $50,000 And A Food Truck

With the Great Food Truck Race season 3 finale tonight, lets take a look at the eliminations that have happened so far and get to a preview of the finale.

The order of eliminations so far has been:

Episode 1 - Under the Crust
Episode 2 - Barbie Babes
Episode 3 - Pizza Mike's
Episode 4 - Coast of Atlanta
Episode 5 - Mama Grizzly's Grub
Episode 6 - Pop-A-Waffle

Preview of tonight's finale:

Chris Cosentino Wins Top Chef Masters

Earlier this week, Chris Cosentino won Bravo's Top Chef Masters, and won $141,000 for a charity of his choice, which was the Michael J. Fox Foundation.  You may recognize Chris from Food Network shows such as Iron Chef America, Chef vs. City, and The Best Thing I Ever Ate.  So congratulations to Chris!  I would say this is a bigger accomplishment for him than winning the train-wreck of a show, Time Machine Chefs earlier this year.  If you are looking for a good recap of the Top Chef Masters finale, this is a pretty good one.

Restaurant Impossible - Maple Tree Cafe Update

Tonight's Restaurant: Impossible has Robert Irvine going to the Maple Tree Cafe in Las Vegas, Nevada to try to help a 26 year-old owner, Ashley, who is new to the restaurant industry.  She has hired many of her family members, who are also inexperienced, to help run the restaurant.  As I do every week, I searched around the internet to read stories and reviews about the Maple Tree Cafe to get an idea of how the restaurant is doing since Robert Irvine visited, and here is what I found (note - all reviews are post Restaurant: Impossible):

Raunchy Paula Deen Blooper Reel Released

A Paula Deen Blooper Reel was released by the NY Post earlier today, which is filled with curse words, dirty talk, and Paula pretending to perform a sex act on an eclair.  Paula actually made the tape, which she wanted to use as an introduction to her live cooking events.  The event promoters did not want to use the tape, and a legal battle ensued with Deen finally settling out of court.

Highlights from the NY Post Article below:

Food Network News For The Week - 9/21/2012

Here are some updates for the week in Food Network news:

• Today is Anne Burrell's birthday, and she turns 43, so Happy Birthday to her!
 
• Last night, Tyler Florence cooked dinner for Barack Obama and some guests for a $20,000 per plate fundraiser dinner in Florida.  Dishes included: squash and quail egg ravioli, chicken fried quail, crispy pork belly, corn pudding and coconut shortbread.  The Braiser has the story along with pictures of the meal taken from Twitter.
 

Restaurant Impossible - Michele's Restaurant Update

Tonight's Restaurant: Impossible has Robert Irvine going to Michele's in Corry, Pennsylvania to try to help new owners Michele and Andy, who purchased the restaurant at an auction despite no restaurant experience.  As I do every week, I searched around the internet to read stories and reviews about Michele's, to get an idea of how the restaurant is doing since Robert Irvine visited.

Extreme Chef Season 2 Finale Tonight - Winner To Get $50,000

The Extreme Chef season 2 finale is tonight, with the 3 remaining chefs competing to win the $50,000 prize.  "After working with elephants and a native hill tribe, the finalists race up hundreds of stairs to create the perfect bite in front of a Buddhist temple."  The season began just last month, but with only 7 chefs to start the show, it has already reached its finale.  The eliminations so far were: Lance Knowling during episode 1, Susanne Dillingham during episode 2, Scott Brandolini during episode 3, and Isadora Sarto during episode 4.

That brings us to the final 3:

Restaurant Impossible - Paliani's Restaurant & Pizzeria Update

Tonight's Restaurant: Impossible has Robert Irvine going to Paliani's Restaurant & Pizzeria in Burton, Michigan to try to help a single mother, Marina, revive her struggling restaurant.  Paliani's has been in open since 1965, and was recently bought by Marina in 2007.  When visiting, Robert Irvine was quoted as saying it was the "worst Italian food I've ever had in my life." I again searched around the internet to read stories and reviews about Paliani's, so you do not have to and here is what I found (note - all reviews are post Restaurant: Impossible):

3 Days to Open with Bobby Flay Not Returning After Six Episodes

3 Days To Open With Bobby Flay will not come back for another season after finishing its first season of six episodes.

In an interview with Jerseybites, Bobby is quoted as saying, “It proved to be so difficult. When I open a restaurant, I have six key people who work on different facets of the restaurant.  In ‘Three Days To Open’ I’m basically doing everything to get these people, who have never done this before, to open…and ultimately it was so physically and emotionally exhausting that I decided I couldn’t do it anymore.”

Guy Fieri's NY Restaurant Opens This Weekend, Has An Obnoxious Menu

Guy Fieri's Times Square restaurant Guy Fieri's American Kitchen and Bar is scheduled to open this weekend in New York City.  The dress code is sleeves optional, and sunglasses inside required.  Grubstreet has a copy of the restaurant menu on their site, and it is full of way too many adjectives and Guy Fieri slang.  Lets take a look at some of the dishes and descriptions:

Restaurant Impossible - Frankie's Update

Tonight's Restaurant: Impossible has Robert Irvine going to Frankie's in Three Rivers, Michigan, which is also referred to as Frankie's By the Tracks.  Frankie's has been around for over 25 years and it looks like it is under new ownership that hasn't been keeping it up to the previous standards, which is why Restaurant Impossible had to be called in.  I again searched around the internet to read stories and reviews about Frankie's, so you do not have to and here is what I found:

Home Made In America With Sunny Anderson to Premiere October 6

Sunny Anderson will have a new show airing on Food Network that is called Home Made in America With Sunny Anderson and will premiere Saturday, October 6th at 9:30am.  The show description says "Sunny travels across the country to discover the inspirational stories of the people behind the recipes while learning a few tips and tricks of her own."  It is a six-episode series and Sunny will travel to North Carolina, Oklahoma, New York, Texas, Louisiana, and Massachusetts.

The Press release from Food Network with the full description of the show: