Worst Cooks In America Season 5 Finale - Winner Gets $25,000

Photos - Food Network

The Worst Cooks In America finale is tonight at 9pm on the Food Network with Amber Brauner representing Team Bobby and Jamie Thomas representing Team Anne. They both have to create three course meals in a professional kitchen, and the contestant that does a better job will take home $25,000 and bragging rights for their mentor.

Here are their Contestant Bio's from the press release before the season started:

Amber Brauner (Redlands, CA): For single mom Amber, the kitchen is an emotional place because it brings back memories of her late mother. She and her mother had children very young, and Amber often gets mistaken for her daughter’s sister. All of her dishes are either bland or burnt, and her friends have even called her cooking worse than prison food. She is discouraged and would rather ink it up at the tattoo parlor where she works as a tattoo artist than stink it up in the kitchen. Amber has four kids and while they handle the cooking for themselves, they are worried that if Amber doesn’t learn to cook, she will never find a husband and end up alone when the kids move out.

Jamie Thomas (New York): Jamie has a sophisticated palate and loves good food, but he knows nothing about making it. His career as a flight attendant has exposed him to authentic cuisines from around the world, but Jamie was once turned down for a position because he couldn’t make a simple omelette. His husband and family are skilled home cooks, and Jamie knows he needs to expand his culinary repertoire beyond sticks of butter, cold cereal and the microwave. He looks forward to one day hosting fabulous dinner parties with his husband in their New York apartment.

Regarding Amber having children young, and article in a local article has Amber being 36 years old, with her children's ages Brianne, 22, Zoi, 18 (she was the one who nominated her for the show and was on the last episode), Ashton, 17, and Avery, 13.  That means Amber had her first child at 14 years old.

Amber also models for a group she calls the "Crazy Ladyz" and acts, including some appearances as an extra on Sons of Anarchy.  Many of her modeling pictures are on her Instagram account if you are interested.  There are a lot of pictures of her without her clothes on to show off tattoos, like this one, so beware if you are looking at work (Instagram is safe for work, but just a warning).  Her daughter Zoi, who was on the show last week, also models with her mom, and here is her Instagram account.

There wasn't much more information on Jamie out there, so his bio as a flight attendant looking to improve his cooking skills to someday host dinner parties will suffice.


As of writing this, the Food Network fan vote has 65% of the people rooting for Jamie/Team Anne with 35% rooting for Amber/Team Bobby.  There are also people complaining about Amber's nails and Jamie's sexual preference.  It's just a reality show for entertainment, so no need to take things so seriously.


I will update this post after the episode airs to reveal the winner of season 5 of Worst Cooks In America.

The winner is now listed after the break:

Food Network's April 2014 Programming Highlights

Photo - Food Network

Here are some of the highlights of the Food Network programming scheduled to air on the channel in April:

• The premiere of Kitchen Casino on Monday, April 7th at 9pm
• The premiere of America's Best Cook on Sunday, April 19th at 9pm
• The premiere of Rewrapped on Monday, April 21st at 8pm
• The Chopped Tournament of Stars finale on Sunday, April 6th at 9pm
• New primetime episodes of Restaurant Impossible, Chopped, Chopped Canada, Beat Bobby Flay, Cutthroat Kitchen, Mystery Diners, Save My Bakery, and Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives.
• New daytime episodes of Southern at Heart, Pioneer Woman, Rachael Ray's 3 Week In A Day, Giada at Home, Guy's Big Bite, Heartland Table, and The Kitchen
• The new season of Farmhouse Rules on April 19th

The Press Release with episode descriptions and air dates is below:

Food Network Shows No Longer Available On Amazon Prime

Last year, Scripps Interactive agreed on a deal with Amazon.com to have shows from the Food Network, Cooking Channel, etc. available on Amazon Prime for free.  Now that the year is up on that deal, Amazon has dropped Scripps from the Amazon Prime lineup, and Amazon Prime members can no longer stream Food Network shows for free.  The Food Network shows are still available on Amazon, but you need to purchase them for $1.99 or $2.99 per episode.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Scripps programming disappeared from Amazon last week after renewal talks fell apart.  An article in the Boston Herald said "Scripps stood to earn $11 million in 2014 licensing revenue from Amazon, according to Sanford Bernstein senior analyst Todd Juenger. Scripps has about $0.04 earnings per share in jeopardy, out of a projected EPS of $3.95, unless the programmer can reach a deal with another SVOD service like Netflix or Hulu."

So, if you have an Amazon Prime account and watch Food Network shows on there, you will no longer be able to watch them for free.  There are already people complaining to Amazon on their forums about this, but I don't think this will cause anything to change.

Restaurant Impossible - Mama Della's Update

Photo - Food Network

Tonight on Restaurant Impossible, Robert Irvine and crew are in Baton Rouge, Louisiana to makeover Mama Della's NY City Pizzeria.  The food is actually good at Mama Della's, but the owner Barry is the biggest obstacle to the restaurants success.  Robert Irvine will try to change Barry's "my way or the highway" approach to running his restaurant, which is scaring away customers.  As I normally do with Restaurant: Impossible episodes, I searched around the Internet to read stories, comments and reviews about Mama Della's NY City Pizzeria 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 Trying To Get Eight Shows Nominated for Primetime Emmy Awards

The Food Network is hosting a "deliciously entertaining evening" for Emmy voters at the Television Academy Theatre on Wednesday night in hopes of getting nominated for some Primetime Emmy Awards.  Guy Fieri and Bob Tuschman will be the ones in attendance to try to sway the voters for nominations.


The shows the Food Network is trying to get nominated and the categories are below.  Most shows are being entered into multiple categories.

• "Beat Bobby Flay" - Reality Competition and Host for a Structured Reality or Reality Competition Program
• "Chopped" - Reality Competition and Host for a Structured Reality or Reality Competition Program
• "Cutthroat Kitchen" - Reality Competition and Host for a Structured Reality or Reality Competition Program
• "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives" - Structured Reality and Host for a Reality or Reality Competition Program
• "Food Network Star" - Reality Competition and Host for a Structured Reality or Reality Competition Program
• "Guys' Grocery Games" – Reality Competition
• "Rachel vs. Guy: Celebrity Cook-Off" - Host for a Structured Reality or Reality Competition Program
• "Restaurant: Impossible" - Structured Reality and Host for a Reality or Reality Competition Program

The hosts on many of these shows are being submitted for nominations, so that means the following hosts could have nominations: Bobby Flay (Beat Bobby Flay, Food Network Star), Ted Allen (Chopped), Alton Brown (Cutthroat Kitchen, Food Network Star), Giada De Laurentiis (Food Network Star) Guy Fieri (Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, Rachael vs. Guy), Rachael Ray (Rachael vs Guy), and Robert Irvine (Restaurant Impossible).

With pretty much all of the primetime shows on the Food Network being reality shows and competition shows, all of the entries are in these categories.   Last year, Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives was the only Food Network show nominated for a Primetime Emmy, but it did not win.

The Primetime Emmy nominations will be announced on July 10th, 2014, and the actual award ceremony will be on August 25, 2014.

(Gold Derby)

Rising Sun Bistro From Restaurant Impossible Has Closed

Photo - Food Network

Rising Sun Bistro in Kalispell Montana, which was featured on season 5 (2012-2013) of Restaurant Impossible has closed.  The restaurant was put up for sale last year for $499,000 and it is still for sale right now, but the owners have now decided to close.  Sally has retired and the other owners of the restaurant have moved on.

A message from the restaurant's answering machine states:

"Bonjour! And thank you for calling the Rising Sun Bistro.  We would like to thank you for being a part of Flathead Valley dining for over eight years and we have closed.  Sally finally retired and the other owners have moved on.  Thank you for so many great memories and we will have many to remember forever.  We also actually have an opportunity for a restauranteur to come in and take over.  It's a win-win situation.  It's a great location, beautiful surroundings, and an entire restaurant that is ready to go.  You can call 260-5595 if you have um any questions or would like more information.  Thanks again."

The restaurant website pretty much says the same thing and it sounds like Sally plans to go to France.

This is the sixth restaurant from season 5 of Restaurant Impossible that has closed, and the Restaurant Impossible Update page has been updated to show this.

Viet Pham Assaulted Outside NYC Strip Club

Photo - Food Network

Viet Pham, who was a contestant on Food Network Star season 9, Extreme Chef season 2, and has beat Bobby Flay in an Iron Chef battle, was punched in the face outside of Scores Strip Club in New York City early Monday morning according to the NYPD.

He was standing outside of the strip club when a man punched him in the face, knocking his glasses to the ground and breaking them.  The man, who was described as 35 years old, 5 ft. 9 in. and 200 pounds, then fled in a vehicle.

Viet was in New York to celebrate Josh Skenes' bachelor party according to his Twitter page.

In other recent Viet Pham news, he is also teaming up with Ty Burrell (Phil Dunphy from Modern Family) to open a beer/brat bar in Salt Lake city.

(DNAinfo)

Restaurant Impossible - Pasion Latin Fusion Update

Photo - Facebook

Tonight on Restaurant Impossible, Robert Irvine and crew in Albuquerque, New Mexico to makeover Pasion Latin Fusion.  Owners Monica and Elvis are married and opened the restaurant a few years ago.  There is tension between Monica and Elvis's brother, who is an investor in the restaurant.  Also, the menu at the restaurant is supposedly leaving the customers of the restaurant confused and frustrated.  As I normally do with Restaurant: Impossible episodes, I searched around the Internet to read stories, comments and reviews about Pasion Latin Fusion 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):

Farmhouse Rules Renewed For 2nd Season

Photo - Food Network

Nancy Fuller's show Farmhouse Rules has been renewed for a 2nd season, which will premiere on Saturday, April 19th at 10:30am.

This is the third series that started last year which has been renewed for a second season, joining Amy Thielen's Heartland Table (premiered 3/8), and Damaris Phillips' Southern at Heart (starting 3/16).

Here is the press release about Farmhouse Rules season 2:

Food Network to Premiere New Season of FARMHOUSE RULES, 4/19

The lively and always charming Nancy Fuller welcomes viewers back into her kitchen with new recipes and hometown adventures in an all-new season of Farmhouse Rules premiering Saturday, April 19th at 10:30am ET/PT on Food Network. Honoring her farmer roots, Nancy continues to serve up hearty and wholesome family recipes that satisfy any hungry crowd. From preparing the perfect date night meal for her husband David to serving up a cookout for her grandkids, Nancy is always finding new ways to celebrate food with the ones she loves.

Throughout the new season, Nancy introduces new recipes and embarks on new escapades around her hometown in New York's Hudson Valley. In one episode Nancy hosts a "Welcome Home" party for her nephew and his service buddies who have just returned from performing combat rescue operations in Afghanistan. Nancy cooks up an All-American meal of Fried Pork Chops, Braised Kale and Tomatoes, Apple Pie with Cheddar Cheese Crust and Beer Ginger Shandy. In another episode, Nancy meets some friends down at the community center for Bingo night and it's her Turn to bring the food. She stops by her local greenhouse to get some fresh veggies from her friend Tom to make a light and delicious Farro Salad with Radishes, Arugula, and Feta to go along with Honey Glazed Ham Sandwiches on Homemade Honey Buns and Corn Chowder. Nancy's Braided Strawberry Tart is the perfect dessert for a night of fun and games with friends.

For delicious recipes, photos and more on Nancy, visit www.FoodNetwork.com/farmhouserules.

Nancy Fuller lives in an authentic 17th-century farmhouse on beautiful, rolling land in New York's Hudson Valley region. Being on a farm, Nancy's food and recipes represent her surroundings and her philosophy of feeding others with delicious, simple meals from the heart. Nancy is a warm, loving mother of six and grandmother to 13, she owns and operates her Ginsberg's Foods business with her husband David.

Farmhouse Rules is produced by Follow Productions.

FOOD NETWORK (www.foodnetwork.com) is a unique lifestyle network, website and magazine that connects viewers to the power and joy of food. The network strives to be viewers' best friend in food and is committed to leading by teaching, inspiring, empowering and entertaining through its talent and expertise. Food Network is distributed to more than 100 million U.S. households and averages more than 9.9 million unique web users monthly. Since launching in 2009, Food Network Magazine's rate base has grown tenfold and is now the second largest monthly magazine on the newsstand, with over 11.6 million readers. Headquartered in New York, Food Network has a growing international presence with programming in more than 150 countries, including 24-hour networks in the United Kingdom, Asia, and the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region. Scripps Networks Interactive (NYSE: SNI), which also owns and operates Cooking Channel (www.cookingchanneltv.com), HGTV (www.hgtv.com), DIY Network (www.diynetwork.com), Travel Channel (www.travelchannel.com) and Great American Country (www.gactv.com), is the manager and general partner.

(BWWTV)

Taylor Swift Cooks With Ina Garten

Taylor Swift posted a picture on Instagram today with Ina Garten with the caption "A day of cooking in the Hamptons with my HERO. How bad can that be?"
 

Photo - Instagram

Ina Garten, who doesn't post too much on Twitter tweeted the same picture and said, "Just another day at the office - OMG cooking with Taylor Swift! Love her!!!"


Sounds like they have mutual love for each other, and Taylor Swift poked a little fun at Ina's rhetorical questions.  A new season of Barefoot Contessa starts next month, so Taylor may be a guest on an upcoming episode of the show.

Restaurant Impossible - Tootie's Texas BBQ Update

Photo - Facebook

Tonight on Restaurant Impossible, Robert Irvine and crew are going to Cathedral City, California to makeover Tootie's Texas BBQ.  Tootie's is supposedly weeks from closing and started to decline when the owner Eileen was battling cancer.  The restaurant is said to have tasteless BBQ, poor service, and is failing to bring in a lunch crowd.  This is the 2nd week in a row that the show has made over a California BBQ restaurant with 'tasteless' BBQ.  As I normally do with Restaurant: Impossible episodes, I searched around the Internet to read stories, comments and reviews about Tootie's Texas BBQ 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):

Justin Warner Raps About Wine

Food Network Star winner Justin Warner came out with a rap video today called Central Coastin'.  It is a rap video about Central Coast wines, more specifically Robert Mondavi Private Selection Wine.  There are plenty of videos out there of Justin Warner rapping, but this is his first "official" music video.



Video of Justin's Central Coastin' is after the break:

Food Network's Rewrapped To Premiere April 21st

Photo - Twitter

Back in January, I let you know about a new show called Rewrapped that would appear on the Food Network and was currently filming.  It is a competition show with Marc Summers as a lead judge, and with Joey Fatone hosting.  A press release was put out today that gives a few more details about the show, which has a premiere date of Monday, April 21st at 8pm.

There will be three competitors each episode, and they will compete in two rounds using snack foods (the type of foods found on Food Network's Unwrapped).  The first round they have to recreate a snack food as close to the original as possible.  In the 2nd round, they must create a entirely new dish using the snack food as an ingredient.  The winner will win a year's supply of the snack food used in the show.

There will be 13 episodes of Rewrapped in this season and the snack foods include: Hostess Twinkies and CupCakes, Pepperidge Farm Cheddar Goldfish Crackers and Mint Chocolate Milano Cookies, Entenmann's Rich Frosted Donuts and Original Recipe Chocolate Chip Cookies, SpaghettiOs with Meatballs, Tastykake Butterscotch Krimpets and Glazed Cherry Pies, Herr's Potato Chips, Utz Pretzel Rods, Wise Cheez Waffies, and the Outback Bloomin' Onion.

Looks like the winners will be packing on the pounds with a year's supply of these foods.  The press release about the show is below:

Food Network to Premiere New Culinary Competition REWRAPPED, 4/21

From Twinkies to Tastykakes, Goldfish Crackers to Pretzel Rods, and potato chips to donuts, viewers will experience all the fun and tastiness of these iconic snacks in new culinary competition Rewrapped, premiering Monday, April 21st at 8:00pm ET/PT. Hosted by Joey Fatone, this 13 episode series features some of the most beloved snack foods we grew up with, as three competitors battle it out each episode over two rounds to win the grand prize.

In the first round, all three competitors have to recreate their own snack food as close to the original as possible, but can they make the perfect Twinkie or Goldfish Cracker? For the second round, all three must take part in an innovative challenge, as the competitors must create an entirely new dish using the original snack food as an ingredient; whether a donut-burger or a Butterscotch Fish, there are no boundaries other than to make the most creative and tastiest dish possible. Each episode is judged by Food Network personality Marc Summers (Unwrapped), along with a rotating panel of guest judges, as they grade the creations over both rounds. The contestant with the overall highest score wins a year's supply of the tasty treat itself!

"Food can be a glimpse into our past, bringing up emotions of what we enjoyed and the way we grew up, " said Bob Tuschman, General Manager and Senior Vice President Programming, Food Network. "Viewers will get to relive their childhood with these classic brands, and see some pretty inventive and tasty ways to enjoy them along the way."

During the course of the season competing chefs are challenged with recreating and inventing a variety of snacks, including, Hostess Twinkies and CupCakes, Pepperidge Farm Cheddar Goldfish Crackers and Mint Chocolate Milano Cookies, Entenmann's Rich Frosted Donuts and Original Recipe Chocolate Chip Cookies, SpaghettiOs with Meatballs, Tastykake Butterscotch Krimpets and Glazed Cherry Pies, Herr's Potato Chips, Utz Pretzel Rods, Wise Cheez Waffies, and the Outback Bloomin' Onion. Don't' miss as all the delicious action unfolds each episode, and be prepared to be Rewrapped!

Former *NSYNC star Joey Fatone is a natural entertainer, having appeared in film, stage and screen. Fatone previously competed on Food Network in Rachael vs. Guy: Celebrity Cook-Off and Chopped All-Stars, and has appeared on Dancing with the Stars. Fatone has also served as host of NBC's international series The Singing Bee, and in late 2007 hosted the Australian version of the successful series.Fatone grew up in a family of performers and was always performing, with his first acting gig coming at age seven, starring with Robert DeNiro in the feature film Once Upon a Time in America. Other film credits include The Cooler, alongside Alec Baldwin and William H. Macy, and My Big Fat Greek Wedding, which became the fifth-highest grossing film of 2002 in North America. In 2004, Fatone starred as Seymour in the Broadway musical "Little Shop of Horrors."

Very few people can lay claim to having hosted literally dozens of TV shows. Marc Summers can state that lofty achievement as fact. In addition to his prominence in front of the camera, Marc has also been successful in his career as a stand-up comedian, an author, and an executive producer, working on Food Network's: Dinner: Impossible, and Restaurant: Impossible. A native of Indianapolis, Marc Summers moved to Los Angeles during the golden era of stand-up comedy. Marc's career shot into high gear in 1986, when Nickelodeon hired him as the host of Double Dare, helping to firmly establish Marc as a popular TV personality. Marc previously hosted the long term Food Network show Unwrapped, that each week uncovers behind-the-scenes details on classic American food, from peanut butter and chocolate syrup to French fries and bubblegum.

Rewrapped is produced by BSTV Entertainment.

FOOD NETWORK (www.foodnetwork.com) is a unique lifestyle network, website and magazine that connects viewers to the power and joy of food. The network strives to be viewers' best friend in food and is committed to leading by teaching, inspiring, empowering and entertaining through its talent and expertise. Food Network is distributed to more than 100 million U.S. households and averages more than 9.9 million unique web users monthly. Since launching in 2009, Food Network Magazine's rate base has grown tenfold and is now the second largest monthly magazine on the newsstand, with over 11.6 million readers. Headquartered in New York, Food Network has a growing international presence with programming in more than 150 countries, including 24-hour networks in the United Kingdom, Asia, and the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region. Scripps Networks Interactive (NYSE: SNI), which also owns and operates Cooking Channel (www.cookingchanneltv.com), HGTV (www.hgtv.com), DIY Network (www.diynetwork.com), Travel Channel (www.travelchannel.com) and Great American Country (www.gactv.com), is the manager and general partner.

(BWWTV)

Rachael Vs. Guy: Kids Cook-Off Season 2 Now Casting

Rachael Vs. Guy: Kids Cook-Off will be back for a second season and the show is now casting kids ages 8 to 13 years old "who dream of being on the Food Network."

The application is pretty simple, with the only question being:

 "What makes your child one of the most talented kid chefs in the country? Please list any notable experience."  

All other information is contact information, a photo of the child, a photo of the parent/guardian, and any video links (if applicable).  Here is a link to the application on the casting site.

I actually got a lot of emails from parents asking how to get their kids on the show when the first season was airing last year.  So now, here is your chance.  The deadline to apply is April 18th, 2014.

There is no information about the prize, but last year, it was a web series on the Food Network site for the winner.  Last year's winner, Brandon filmed 3 web episodes, which most people probably didn't see.  Hopefully they change the prize and offer some scholarship money or something. 

Look for the second season to air some time during the summer.

America's Best Cook To Premiere in April on Food Network

Photo - Food Network

The competition shows keep on coming... America's Best Cook, which was casting back in October, will premiere April 13th on the Food Network.  Home cooks from across the country will be paired with Food Network chefs and be mentored by them for a chance at a $50,000 cash prize.  Cat Cora will mentor the South, Michael Symon the North, Alex Guarnaschelli the East, and Tyler Florence the West, and the show will be hosted by Ted Allen.

Sixteen home cooks will be divided into groups of four, and in the first episode, each of the chefs will pick two of the cooks to represent their team/region after tasting their dishes.  The show is described as follows:

"In each episode, the hand-picked cooks compete in a Group Challenge to prove they have what it takes to compete another day and to make their Food Network chef mentors proud. With direction and counsel from their mentors the cooks must raise the bar in every facet of their cooking. From elevating every day, tired dishes to restaurant quality cuisine to transforming savory ingredients into amazingly sweet desserts, these cooks must give it their all to impress the rotating guest judge and avoid the elimination round. The bottom four cooks dig deep for redemption as they face-off in the intense Pressure Cooker round where their final dishes are judged again by the guest judge who then determines who is safe for another week and who goes home. The finale puts the four remaining home cooks through three grueling, single elimination rounds until one cook along with their chef mentor is left standing as America's Best Cook. Special guests include Anne Burrell, Bobby Flay, Ron Ben-Israel, Marcel Vigneron and Geoffrey Zakarian."

This means this show will only be six episodes long with the first show getting the sixteen cooks down to eight.  In each of the following four episodes, one more person will be eliminated, and the final episode will have four cooks competing for the $50,000 prize.

My guess is that the eliminations will make it that there is one chef representing each region/mentor in the final challenge, which may make eliminations predictable.  Cat Cora hasn't been on the network in some time, so it is interesting that she is one of the mentors.

(BWWTV)

Restaurant Impossible - Mill Creek BBQ Update

Photo - Facebook

Tonight on the season 8 premiere of Restaurant Impossible, Robert Irvine and crew are going to Redlands, California to makeover Mill Creek Cattle Company.  Mill Creek is a BBQ restaurant that supposedly has tasteless BBQ and inefficient management.  The owners Lisette and Steve bought the restaurant and modeled it after her father's restaurant in a nearby town that goes by the same name.   As I normally do with Restaurant: Impossible episodes, I searched around the Internet to read stories, comments and reviews about Mill Creek Cattle Company 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):

'Restaurant Express' Winner Seonkyoung Longest No Longer At Jayde Fuzion

Photo - Food Network

Eater Las Vegas is reporting that Restaurant Express winner Seonkyoung Longest is no longer the executive chef at Jayde Fuzion, less than 3 months after opening.  Jayde Fuzion was the restaurant she helped open as part of winning Restaurant Express.

A press release from M Resort (the hotel that the restaurant is in) stated:

"Following much success in opening Jayde Fuzion, executive chef Seonkyoung Longest will be moving on to pursue additional opportunities in the culinary industry."

The restaurant will remain open and will keep the name Jayde Fuzion.

Seonkyoung posted a status on Facebook on February 24th which may be referring to her departure, that said:

"It never has been about money, it has been all about people and food. One day, the truth will speak out by itself. All I want is be happy and make people happy with what I've got. That's all. It's that simple."

I reached out to Robert Irvine and Seonkyoung Longest to see if there was a reason for her departure, but I have yet to hear back.  I will update this post if I do hear anything.

You may remember before the season started, I was skeptical about the prize of the show.  I guess my skepticism was on target.

(Eater Las Vegas)

Kitchen Casino - New Food Network Show To Premiere In April

Photo - Multivu

Time to add another competition show to the Food Network lineup... A new series called Kitchen Casino will premiere on the Food Network on Monday, April 7th at 9pm.  The show is hosted by Bill Rancic, and rotating judges include Michael Chernow, Madison Cowan, Danyelle Freeman, Gavin Kaysen, Aliya Leekong and Kristin Sollenne.

Each episode will have four chefs who will compete in a 'high-stakes game of chance that requires skill, speed and adaptability.'  They need to 'out-smart their competition during three casino-themed cooking challeneges - slots, poker, and roulette - for a chance to win the $30,00 jackpot.'  A competitor will be eliminated after each challenge.

The description of an episode from the press release says:

"In each episode, the competing chefs must hold their own as they navigate through three grueling rounds of the casino-style, culinary competition. Round one features the Kitchen Casino Slot Machine. The chefs take a spin and reveal three categories – cuisine, ingredient and theme – which must inspire their dish for the 30 minute round. In round two, remaining three contestants have 40 minutes to prepare a dish using the same assigned protein from the previous round – but with a game changing twist. During this round the kitchen stations spin like a roulette wheel leaving the chefs in front of a new station to continue cooking. The wheel turns unexpectedly and the chefs are judged by the dish that ends up in front of them at the end of the round. The final round is a game of Chef Poker. The remaining two contestants try their hand at incorporating an ingredient into their dish depending on the card they are dealt. Will they hold their hand or take a gamble? Their decision could make or break their dish and their chance at winning the jackpot."

The full press release about the show is below:

FOOD NETWORK UPS THE ANTE IN NEW SERIES KITCHEN CASINO HOSTED BY BILL RANCIC

Premieres Monday, April 7th at 9pm ET/PT on Food Network

NEW YORK – March 3, 2014 / PRNewswire / — Food Network’s new competition series Kitchen Casino hosted by Bill Rancic and premiering on Monday, April 7th at 9pm ET/PT brings together four talented chefs in a high-stakes game of chance that requires skill, speed and adaptability. In each episode, four competitors would be wise to keep one eye on the ticking clock while they attempt to out-cook and out-smart their competition during three casino-themed cooking challenges – slots, poker and roulette – for a chance to win the $30,000 jackpot. The chefs must be at the top of their game throughout the three rounds to handle whatever Lady Luck deals them, and they must double-down on their skills or risk being 86’d. Each episode features a panel of rotating judges including Michael Chernow, Madison Cowan, Danyelle Freedman, Gavin Kaysen, Aliya Leekong and Kristin Sollenne. 

 

“These competing chefs need strong culinary talents and cunning strategy to win these high-stakes challenges, making Kitchen Casino exhilarating to watch,” said Bob Tuschman, General Manager and Senior Vice President, Food Network. “On Kitchen Casino anything can happen when amazing chefs roll the dice.”

In each episode, the competing chefs must hold their own as they navigate through three grueling rounds of the casino-style, culinary competition. Round one features the Kitchen Casino Slot Machine. The chefs take a spin and reveal three categories – cuisine, ingredient and theme – which must inspire their dish for the 30 minute round. In round two, remaining three contestants have 40 minutes to prepare a dish using the same assigned protein from the previous round – but with a game changing twist. During this round the kitchen stations spin like a roulette wheel leaving the chefs in front of a new station to continue cooking. The wheel turns unexpectedly and the chefs are judged by the dish that ends up in front of them at the end of the round. The final round is a game of Chef Poker. The remaining two contestants try their hand at incorporating an ingredient into their dish depending on the card they are dealt. Will they hold their hand or take a gamble? Their decision could make or break their dish and their chance at winning the jackpot.

Bill Rancic originally burst onto the public scene as the first-ever winner of NBC’s The Apprentice. Ten years later, this successful entrepreneur wears many hats as a television producer, best-selling author, television personality and restaurateur of the popular restaurant RPM-Italian chain. Rancic is co-executive producer and star with his wife Giuliana Rancic on their reality show, Guiliana & Bill.  He also co-hosts the successful nationally syndicated television show, America Now, which recently celebrated its 500th episode and is currently in its fourth season. Rancic is the author of New York Times bestsellers You’re Hired: How to Succeed in Business and Life and Beyond The Lemonade Stand.  Rancic and wife Giuliana co-authored the best-seller I Do…Now What?, in which the couple share their secrets to everlasting love and understanding.

Visit FoodNetwork.com/KitchenCasino for behind-the-scenes photos, interviews and more insider coverage.

Kitchen Casino is produced by Jane Street Productions.

# # #

FOOD NETWORK (www.foodnetwork.com) is a unique lifestyle network, website and magazine that connects viewers to the power and joy of food. The network strives to be viewers' best friend in food and is committed to leading by teaching, inspiring, empowering and entertaining through its talent and expertise. Food Network is distributed to more than 100 million U.S. households and averages more than 9.9 million unique web users monthly. Since launching in 2009, Food Network Magazine's rate base has grown tenfold and is now the second largest monthly magazine on the newsstand, with over 11.6 million readers. Headquartered in New York, Food Network has a growing international presence with programming in more than 150 countries, including 24-hour networks in the United Kingdom, Asia, and the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region. Scripps Networks Interactive (NYSE: SNI), which also owns and operates Cooking Channel (www.cookingchanneltv.com), HGTV (www.hgtv.com), DIY Network (www.diynetwork.com), Travel Channel (www.travelchannel.com) and Great American Country (www.gactv.com), is the manager and general partner. 

(Multivu)