Food Network's December 2017 Programming Highlights

Photo - Food Network

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

• The series premiere of Cajun Aces premiering Saturday, December 2nd at 8pm.
• Jay Baron's Teeny Tiny Christmas on Sunday, December 3rd at 10:30pm.
• The season finale of Guy’s Big Project on Sunday, December 10th at 9pm. 
• The season finale of Holiday Baking Championship at 9pm on Monday, December 18th, followed by the season finale of Christmas Cookie Challenge at 10pm.
• A special episode of Holiday Baking Championship when runners-up compete for redemption and a chance to win the $10,000 grand prize on Monday, December 25th at 9pm. 
• New primetime episodes of Beat Bobby Flay, Chopped, Iron Chef: Behind the Battle, Iron Chef Showdown, Vegas Cakes, Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, and Guy’s Grocery Games: Last Judge Standing, many of which have holiday themes.
• New daytime episodes of The Bobby and Damaris Show, Giada’s Holiday Handbook, Guy’s Ranch Kitchen, The Kitchen, The Pioneer Woman, Trisha’s Southern Kitchen and Valerie’s Home Cooking, many of which have holiday themes. 

Press release with episode descriptions and air dates is below.

Alton Brown Reaches Deal To Stay With Food Network

Last week in the Food Network related news, one of the topics was Alton Brown's Food Network contract coming to an end.  He posted the following message on social media (also pictured right), "With the end of the tour rapidly approaching and my food network contract ending, I spend a lot of time pondering my next move."

Variety.com is now reporting that Alton Brown has reached a multi-year deal to continue hosting and creating content for Food Network and Cooking Channel.  Alton is also expected to "develop new TV series and digital content in tandem with executives at both networks."  Alton's deals in the past have been three years at a time, so this one is most likely for three years as well.

In the Variety article, Alton also release a statement which said, "Food Network has provided me with a fertile creative home for nearly two decades and now I feel we’re in an even better position to explore the ever-expanding frontiers of culinary storytelling."

Alton Brown has already announced the return of Good Eats for next year, so who knows if his contract was ever in jeopardy of not being renewed.  Perhaps he used his social media post above as a bargaining tool or to gain leverage in negotiations. 

Food Network Related News and Links

Sorry for not posting in a bit, but here are some Food Network related news items from the past few weeks:

• Chef John Besh, who frequently appears on Food Network, was the subject of an 8-month long investigation by The Time-Picayune where 25 women claimed they were victims of sexual harassment at his restaurants.  The full story is here and is quite long,  with women describing  "a company where several male co-workers and bosses touched female employees without consent, made suggestive comments about their appearance and – in a few cases – tried to leverage positions of authority for sex."  John Besh was also involved in a sexual relationship with an employee.  
• After these allegations came out, he stepped down from his position in his restaurant group.  He released an apology (full quotes here), stating, "two years ago, I deeply hurt those I love by thoughtlessly engaging in a consensual relationship with one member of my team. Since then I have been seeking to rebuild my marriage and come to terms with my reckless actions given the profound love I have for my wife, my boys and my Catholic faith. I also regret any harm this may have caused to my second family at the restaurant group, and sincerely apologize to anyone past and present who has worked for me who found my behavior as unacceptable as I do"
• John Besh recently appeared on the first episode of Iron Chef Showdown, which angered some fans as it was after all of this came out.  PBS pulled his shows from their network. (Link)
• When the Harvey Weinstein allegations were coming out, Sunny Anderson sent out a series of tweets where she was accused of "victim blaming" for saying the women coming out were late and not brave.  She received backlash for this and later took down the tweets. (Link)
• If you were a fan of Ginormous Foods, that show is now on Travel Channel and new episodes air Mondays at 11pm. (Link)
• Jason Smith will be appearing on an upcoming episode of Best Thing I Ever Ate on Cooking Channel. (Link)
• Cajun Aces is a new show on Food Network that will begin on December 2nd and will follow chefs Cody and Sam Carrol as they explore Cajun cuisine and culture.  "Each week, viewers can tune in to see the chefs as they take the freshest ingredients from their family farm in Batchelor, LA and create brand new dishes at both of their restaurants." (Link)
• Bobby Flay will be opening his first airport location for Bobby's Burger Palace inside Atlanta's airport. (Link)
• Guy Fieri's new show Guy's Big Project has had low ratings for its first few episodes.  Sunday night shows usually have good ratings on Food Network and the numbers for Guy's Big Project are well below the normal. (Link)
• Alton Brown recently posted this on social media, "With the end of the tour rapidly approaching and my food network contract ending, I spend a lot of time pondering my next move."  It appears his Food Network contract will end soon, but who knows if he is renegotiating a new one. (Link)