Food Network Star Season 9 - Episode 1 Recap

Photo - Food Network

Season nine of Food Network Star has begun, and in the first episode we got to see all of this season's contestants make a 30-second pitch tape for Bob Tuschman and Susie Fogelson.  They were mentored by Bobby Flay, Alton Brown, and Giada De Laurentiis while filming it.  Let's take a look at the contestants and how they did:

• Nikki Dinki - Food blogger who did very well in her pitch.  Going with the vegetarian theme that we see year after year.
• Andres Guillama - The token contestant who has lost weight and will have Alton Brown on his side because of that.
• Rodney Henry - Has been on Chopped, Throwdown, Paula Deen, and Down Home with The Neely's.  We will have to deal with his hat all season and countless references to Pies.
• Chris Hodgson - Was on Great Food Truck Race and fared well in his pitch.
• Connie "Lovely" Jackson - Was on Hell's Kitchen, and we will hearing about "Glam" all season long.
• Russell Jackson - Recently competed on Iron Chef, and reminded me of a wrestler while talking to the camera.
• Danushka Lysek - Chef/Model who has been on Chopped and was definitely picked to be on the show to be the villain and stir up trouble.
• Daniela Perez-Reyes - Fills the token foreign contestant with an accent.  She is Peruvian and bombed her 30-second pitch and cried throughout.
• Viet Pham - Has been on Extreme Chef and Throwdown, in which he beat Bobby Flay.  Didn't seem comfortable on the camera in the first challenge.
• Damaris Phillips - Southern Belle who fills the token Southern contestant.  Seems way out there and a bit crazy.
• Stacey Poon-Kinney - Was on Restaurant Impossible, and is going with a Vintage theme. Similar to Emily Ellyn last year.
• Chad Rosenthal - BBQ guy from Philly who did very well in his pitch and was very comfortable.

The contestants then had to make a dish using potatoes, and had to present this dish to the judges. The judges and Bob and Susie watched the 30-second pitch they made earlier and tried the potato dishes.  They commented more on the pitches than on the quality of the potato dish.  Also, this season focus groups will be used, so there was a focus group judging the 30-second pitches at the same time as the judges.

After everyone was done, the contestants came to the elimination room.  The top 3 were then announced, which were Chad Rosenthal, Nikki Dinki, and Stacy Poon-Kinney.  The bottom three contestants that were up for elimination were Danushka Lysek, Daniela Perez-Reyes, and Russell Jackson.

Photo - Food Network

The judges decided that Daniela would be the person going home after just one episode.  Daniela is technically still alive with them being able to bring someone back this season.  However, I doubt they will bring back someone eliminated in the first week or within the first few weeks.

Who do you think has what it takes to win this season?

Here is the preview of the season with episode by episode descriptions of the entire season if you have not seen that yet.