Watch Marcela Valladolid Win A Car on 'The Price Is Right' in 2004

Back in 2004 (aired in 2005), Marcela Valladolid appeared on The Price Is Right and ended up winning a car on a game called 'That's Too Much.'  I asked Marcela back in January if video existed of the win, but at the time, I couldn't find any (I figured out the episode, but the video wasn't anywhere online).

Today, Marcela had a guest appearance on The Price Is Right, and the show released the video of her appearance almost 10 years ago.  If you were wondering about her chest after watching the video, Marcela said on her Facebook page, "excuse the pamela-anderson look but Fau was born just a few months prior"


The video of her appearance on the show is below:

Restaurant Impossible - Seven Update

Photo - NWI Times

Tonight on Restaurant Impossible, Robert Irvine and crew are going to La Porte, Indiana to makeover Seven.  An engaged couple Chad and Tonya named the restaurant Seven in honor of their combined seven children.  Chad purchased the restaurant, which is where Tonya used to work as a server.  The restaurant is suffering from bad food, lack of management, and bad decor.  Also, Tonya's 19 year old son is the main cook at the restaurant despite a lack of training and passion.  As I normally do with Restaurant: Impossible episodes, I searched around the Internet to read stories, comments and reviews about Seven restaurant 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):

Nigella Lawson Accused of Using Cocaine and Other Drugs For A Decade

Nigella Lawson and ex-husband Charles Saatchi's former personal assistants are currently on trial in England for spending money on credit cards that were meant for business purposes.  The assistants are sisters Francesca and Elisabetta Grillo, and are accused of spending $480,000 (£300,000) on personal expenses such as lavish vacations, designer clothes and first-class plane tickets.

As part of the sister's defense, they are claiming that the charges on the credit card were agreed upon by Nigella Lawson in exchange for keeping her use of drugs a secret.  They claim Nigella used cocaine, cannabis, and prescription drugs daily for about a decade.

Charles Saatchi was apparently unaware of the alleged drug abuse until after they were divorced.  When he heard about the defense the assistants were using, he sent an email to Nigella calling her 'Higella' and saying:

Giada De Laurentiis Annoys Many, Cuts Finger on Thanksgiving Live

Photo - Food Network

This weekend on Food Network was the two hour Thanksgiving Live special with Giada De Laurentiis, Bobby Flay, Alton Brown, and Ina Garten.  Judging by the comments on this site, as well as the Food Network Facebook page, Giada De Laurentiis ruined the special for many people.

The consensus among people commenting included things like:

• Giada being obnoxious and rude by talking over others and interrupting others throughout the episode
• Giada being 'childish' by her throwing food on the show. (She recently threw pies on another show) 
• People wanting Giada to not be on the show again next year
• People not liking her glasses and thinking she was being too 'flirtacious'

Food Network - Thanksgiving Live 2013

Photo - Food Network (Thanksgiving Live 2012)

Tomorrow at 12pm ET/PT on the Food Network is the Thanksgiving Live special, which is returning for its 3rd year.  It will be live for the East coast, but the show will be taped for the West coast as it will still air at noon.

The 1st year of Thanksgiving Live had Ted Allen, Alex Guarnaschelli, Rachael Ray, Anne Burrell, Sunny Anderson, Melissa d'Arabian and Bobby Flay with Alton Brown hosting.  The 2nd year of Thanksgiving Live had Sunny Anderson, Giada De Laurentiis, Ree Drummond, Bobby Flay, Rachael Ray, Alex Guarnaschelli, and Aarón Sanchez and was also hosted by Alton Brown.

This year they seemed to have trimmed the number of people down with the Food Network only advertising Bobby Flay, Giada De Laurentiis, and Ina Garten with Alton Brown hosting.  So, basically the Food Network Star judges plus Ina Garten.  Guy Fieri will be busy throwing his 'Trailer Park' Thanksgiving elsewhere.

Restaurant Impossible - Georgia Boy Cafe Update

Photo - Food Network

Tonight on Restaurant Impossible, Robert Irvine and crew are going to Hagerstown, Maryland to makeover the Georgia Boy Cafe.  Chuck and Montez, who are the owners of the restaurant, once had a loving relationship, but the restaurant has ruined that.   They also scream at each other in front of the customers.  Robert has to get the owners back on speaking terms and also deal with the 'health hazards' in the restaurant.  As I normally do with Restaurant: Impossible episodes, I searched around the Internet to read stories, comments and reviews about the Georgia Boy 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):

The Oleander Bar & Grill From Restaurant Impossible Has Closed

Photo - Food Network

The Oleander Bar & Grill in Olean, NY, which was featured on Season 4 (2012) of Restaurant Impossible, has closed as of November 17th, 2013.  They posted a message on their Facebook Page that said:

"We would like to thank everyone for their support these last few years. Today, is The Oleander Bar & Grill's last day of business. Come in one more time for specials on beer and food. Cheers, See you there!"

The Oleander Bar & Grill didn't have too many reviews, but the reviews that existed were average to below average.  They recently added a Tex-Mex menu to their exiting menu in August according to a post on their Facebook Page.  No word on what they plan to do with the property or if Abby still lives above the restaurant.  This is the 5th restaurant from Season 4 of Restaurant Impossible that has closed, and the Restaurant Impossible Update Page has been updated to show this closing.

Giada De Laurentiis Promotes Her Children's Books By Cursing and Throwing Pies

Giada De Laurentiis was on Big Morning Buzz Live today on VH1 in a very weird segment.  Giada comes and tastes Morning Buzz Co-Host Jason Dundas' baking and spits out the bite she takes.  She then throws the remaining desserts at him yelling that each of them sucks, and curses at one point, which is bleeped out.  I can't tell what she said, but it seems like an F-bomb to me.

Then after this little segment, the other Morning Buzz Co-Host holds up Giada's two children's books to plug them.  You would think after a segment like that, they would at least push her new cookbook rather than her children's books.

Video of the segment is after the jump.  Let me know if you can figure out the curse word.

The Kitchen @ Food Network - New Daytime Talk Show

Photo - Instagram

Last month, it was revealed that the Food Network would be producing a daytime talk show with Geoffrey Zakarian, Jeff Mauro, Sunny Anderson, Katie Lee, and Marcela Valladolid being hosts.  At the time, the show was going to be called The Scoop, but a press release that came out today now has the show called The Kitchen @ Food Network.

The show will be an hour long and air on Saturday mornings starting in early January.  To drum up interest for the new talk show, the Food Network will be doing a Thanksgiving leftover themed Google Hangout with Jeff Mauro, Sunny Anderson, Katie Lee, and Marcela Valladolid at 2pm ET this weekend.  This will start immediately after the Thanksgiving Live special airs (12-2pm).  You can participate in the Google Hangout and submit questions by going to foodnetwork.com/ThanksgivingHangout (there is an error at that link now, but it should be up shortly).

UPDATE - For upcoming episode descriptions of The Kitchen - See a later post here.

UPDATE 2/2014 - The Kitchen has been renewed for a 2nd season.

On The Rocks - Lock & Key Speakeasy (Oxford Inn)

Photo - Royal Oak Patch

Tonight at 10pm is the series premiere of On The Rocks on the Food Network.  On The Rocks is a bar makeover show where bar expert John Green tries to turn around struggling bars.  It seems to be Food Network's attempt at the concept of Spike TV's Bar Rescue, but instead of having Jon Taffer, they are using John Green.  Or you could say it is a Restaurant Impossible for bars, but instead of Robert Irvine, it is John Green.

The Food Network decided to put On The Rocks in the exact same time slot as new episodes of Bar Rescue on Spike TV, which I don't think was very smart.  I am not sure if this was done on purpose, or it happened to just be a coincidence, but many viewers of Bar Rescue would probably be interested in On The Rocks if it was in a different time slot.

The first episode of On The Rocks is at the Oxford Inn in Royal Oak, Michigan.  Here is some background information of the Oxford Inn for this episode:

Paula Deen Foods Store To Open In February 2014

The next stop in the Paula Deen comeback tour?  Upstate, New York.  It was announced that Paula Deen will be opening a Paula Deen Foods store in Clarence, NY, which is a suburb of Buffalo.  The store is scheduled to open on February 8, 2014, and to help open the store, Paula Deen will be doing a live cooking show ($60 for general admission, $250 for VIP).

So, why Buffalo and not somewhere in the south?

In June of 2012, Paula reached a deal with Nanco to produce foods such as tortilla chips, baking mixes, salad dressing, etc. with her name on it.  The Nanco Group is based out of Clarence, NY and the partnership has continued with the launch of the retail Paula Deen Foods store.  The store will include a showroom that is designed to look like Paula Deen's kitchen.

Food Network Website Getting A Makeover

The Food Network website, Foodnetwork.com, is going through a design change, and you can now preview what the new website will look like.

If you go to preview.foodnetwork.com you can take a look at the beta website and navigate around.  All of the links will work and you can search around the new website to see how each page looks.  The site navigation is pretty much the same, but there are a lot of different graphics.

I am sure people who are resistant to change will complain when the new website goes live, but that is usually the case when websites are updated.  What are your thoughts on the new website?

Restaurant Impossible - Coach Lamp Update

Photo - Facebook

Tonight on Restaurant Impossible, Robert Irvine and crew are going to Louisville, Kentucky to makeover the Coach Lamp Restaurant.  The Coach Lamp looks nice, has knowledgeable owners, and the food actually tastes good.  Robert has to sit down with them to try to figure out why the restaurant is failing and come up with unique plan to turn it around.  As I normally do with Restaurant: Impossible episodes, I searched around the Internet to read stories, comments and reviews about the Coach Lamp restaurant 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):

Food Network's 20th Birthday Special Tonight

Food Network's Original Logo

Just a reminder that tonight at 9pm ET/PT is the Food Network 20th Birthday special that will celebrate the 20th year that the Food Network has been on-air.  The special is hosted by Mo Rocca, who is the host of My Grandmother's Ravioli on the Cooking Channel, and has appeared as a judge on Iron Chef America and as a guest on Best Thing I Ever Ate.

The special is an hour long and will take a look back at the early days of the network and interview chefs and personalities from the Food Network both past and present.  It will be interesting to see who/what they focus on, and if they cover Paula Deen at all during the special.  So tune tonight if you are interested to see the how the past 20 years of the Food Network will be summed up in just a one hour special.

Restaurant Impossible - Windsor 75 Family Restaurant Update

Tonight on Restaurant Impossible, Robert Irvine and crew are going to Windsor, Connecticut to makeover the Windsor 75 Restaurant.  The Windsor 75 has an outdated decor, different menu's and and overworked staff.  The owner George is apparently stubborn and can't get out of his own way to fix anything.  As I normally do with Restaurant: Impossible episodes, I searched around the Internet to read stories, comments and reviews about the Windsor 75 Restaurant 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):

Giada De Laurentiis On Jimmy Fallon - Horrible at Catch Phrase

Giada was on Jimmy Fallon last night and played the game Catch Phrase with Jimmy Fallon, Lucy Lui, and Zachary Quinto.  She was pretty terrible at the game and couldn't get easy clues such as Donald Duck, and described Egyptians as wearing togas.  The video is below:



Giada also made a green drink for Jimmy Fallon, which he didn't seem to like, then he poked some fun at her cookbook.  The video of that is below:

Maple Tree Cafe From Restaurant Impossible Has Closed

The Maple Tree Cafe in Las Vegas, Nevada, which appeared on Season 4 of Restaurant Impossible, has closed as of last week.  A reader emailed me (thanks!) to notify me about the restaurant being closed with an orange sticker on the door, which can usually be a sign of a lockout by the building owner.  I tried calling the restaurant multiple days while during normal hours, but no one ever answered the phone. 

Yesterday I reached out to Ashley from the Maple Tree Cafe on Twitter to ask if they were closed.  She responded that they closed last week and said they got a 'large catering contract and have relocated to do that full time.'  No word on where that catering contract is or why they had to close due to getting a 'large catering contract.'

The Maple Tree had opened 2 additional locations at Lucky's Tavern after their Restaurant Impossible makeover (Link to original update with info).  Those locations have been closed for a little bit, but now the actual Maple Tree Cafe made over by the show is closed as well.  This is the 4th restaurant to close from Season 4 (2012) of Restaurant Impossible, and the 3rd restaurant from the show to close in a week.  The Restaurant Impossible Update Page has been updated to show that this restaurant has closed.

Giada De Laurentiis New Cookbook Released - Plus Book Tour and TV Appearances

Giada De Laurentiis released another cookbook today titled Giada's Feel Good Food: My Healthy Recipes and Secrets.  This cookbook focuses on healthy recipes and how Giada stays thin.  The recipes include breakfasts, lunches, dinners, snacks and many are gluten-free, dairy-free, vegetarian or vegan.  You can preview much of the book and recipes with the link above and the "Look Inside" feature.

As is normally the case with cookbook releases, Giada will be going on a book tour and be appearing on TV to promote the book.  It is a pretty packed schedule that spans both coast and includes appearances on the Today Show, Jimmy Fallon, The View, and Watch What Happens: Live.  To see the dates of the book signings and TV appearances, continue reading:

Mamma D's From Restaurant Impossible Has Closed

Mamma D's in Pipersville, PA, which appeared on Season 2 of Restaurant Impossible, has closed as of last week.  I was notified by a reader about the closing and was able to verify it through Facebook.  While the restaurant hasn't posted anything about the closing on their Facebook page or website, there are some posts by customers, such as this one that suggest the restaurant closed on October 26th.

Also, on Chef Louie Desiato's Facebook page, there are a lot of posts to Louie thanking him for the memories, and wishing him the best of luck in the future that refer to the restaurant closing.

The Mamma D's episode originally aired in September of 2011.   An article a year after the episode aired stated that the restaurant didn't stick with Robert Irvine's menu, and that while business was up a bit, it was still a struggle due to the economy.  This is the 9th restaurant to close from Season 2 (2011-2012) of Restaurant Impossible, which means more restaurants have closed than remain open from that season.  The Restaurant Impossible Update Page has been updated to show this closing.

Restaurant Express Contestants - Preview

Bianca Rose - Food Network

The premiere of Robert Irvine's Restaurant Express is tonight, although the first episode has been available On Demand for a few weeks.  As is usually the case with reality shows, many of the contestants have already been on reality TV before.  For Restaurant Express, three of the nine chefs have already appeared on TV on cooking related shows. 

The three chefs that have appeared on TV before are:

• Seonkyoung Longest - Appeared on Fox's Masterchef 4
• Bianca Rose - Competed on Chef Race: U.K. vs U.S., which was on the BBC and hosted by Claire Robinson.
• Adam Goldgell - Competed on Chopped in Season 4 and was eliminated after the dessert round

Below I have listed a little information about each of the contestants and their restaurant concepts they pitched during the first episode.

Food Network Stars and Their Halloween Costumes

A lot of Food Network chefs/stars were dressed up for Halloween yesterday, and a popular theme was to dress up like a different Food Network chef/star.  Let's take a look at some of the costumes that everyone decided to wear for Halloween:

Rocco DiSpirito dressed up as half Giada De Laurentiis and half Guy Fieri on New York Live to promote his new show Restaurant Divided:

Photo - Twitter

Bronk's Bar and Grill From Restaurant Impossible To Close

Bronk's Bar and Grill in Lake City, Minnesota, which was on Season 5 of Restaurant Impossible will be closing for good effective November 4th.  A few of the readers here notified me about a sign at the restaurant which said they were closing, and the restaurant recently put up a post on their Facebook page which stated:

"Due to many unfavorable circumstances over the past couple of years, we have decided to close our doors for good effective November 4, 2013. We will be running specials all week long on food, beer, and alcohol. Deals will be good while supplies last. It's been one heck of a 12 1/2 year run! So come on down this week one more time and celebrate with us as we say goodbye!"

The Bronk's episode originally aired in December of 2012, so the restaurant closed less than a year after being on the Food Network.  This is the 3rd restaurant to close from Season 5 (2012-2013) of Restaurant Impossible and the Restaurant Impossible Update Page has been updated to show this closing.