'The Next Food Network Star' Season 5 Premiere
The fifth season of The Next Food Network Star premiered tonight with ten mostly amateur chefs all competing for a television show slot on Food Network. It was a little tough to judge who we'd grow to love and who'd make us cringe, but there were some definite favorites (cough, Michael). The contestants were thrown into a house Real World-style, but there was no time for hot tub introductions. The gang was immediately split up into two teams at Butter restaurant in Manhattan, cooking for 75 guests at Food Network's Sweet Sixteen bash. The invite list mostly included food hotshots (Giada de Laurentiis, Bobby Flay, Iron Chef Morimoto) and for some reason, Nancy O'Dell from Access Hollywood. After the jump, meet the contestants, see what they cooked and some favorite quotes from the episode.
[Warning, spoilers ahead.]
Jen Isham
Sales associate
Orlando, Florida
Dish: Ouch, not good. Green beans with toasted walnuts and grape tomatoes
Judges' reaction: "This green bean you can buy around the corner at the grocery," Morimoto commented. All the judges agreed—Jen's beans kind of sucked.
Best quote: "I'm house wife version 2.0."
Jamika Pessoa
Personal chef
Atlanta, Georgia
Dish: Floribbean Shrimp cocktail with mango-jicama slaw
Judges' reaction: "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times," Bob Tuschman said in reaction to the slaw (the best) and the shrimp (worst). "I thought the shrimp was a gate of badness," said Alton Brown.
Best quote: "You have the sweetest smile," Nancy O'Dell told her at dinner. Aw, there was something pretty lovely about Jamika.
Teddy Folkman
Co-owner of Granville Moore's gastropub in Washington, D.C.
Alexandria, Virginia
Dish: Herb and truffle-infused potato gratin
Judges' reaction:: If the potatoes were cooked, it could have been a winner. Usually cooking stuff helps your odds in a cooking show.
Best quote: "It's a little intense, I'm a little intense."
Katie Cavuto
Dietitian
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Dish: Salad with orange, pomegranate, goat cheese, and red chard
Judges' reaction: It was a very safe piling of a lot of ingredients. Bobby Flay went as far to call it "a throwaway dish."
Best quote: "Digestive health, digestive motility to be exact," in response to Alton Brown asking her why he should eat her dish. Mmm, motility!
Brett August
Executive sous chef at Doral Arrowwood Hotel in Rye Brook
New York, New York
Dish: Roasted filet mignon in a red wine mushroom sauce
Judges' reaction: Eek. They felt like they were in jail or the army eating it. Giada De Laurentiis compared the mushrooms to snails.
Best quote: "I think I just poot my pants," the Green Team captain said when Butter chef Alex Guarnaschelli accused him of dissing her kitchen.
Michael Proietti
Executive chef of Radisson Hotel in New Rochelle
City Island, New York
Dish: Five spice filet mignon with pickled veggies
Judges' reaction: All smiles. It was Susie Fogelson's favorite, and she's a tough cookie.
Best quote: "It's global a-go-go, hunny. I bring you everywhere from Bed-Stuy to Bangkok." (Priceless. There's no way he's going home anytime soon.)
Eddie Gilbert
Talent agent/kitchen apprentice
Manhattan Beach, California
Dish: "BLAST Bowl," a bite-sized BLT
Judges' reaction: The avocado, tomato (and Eddie's personality) had no flavor.
Best quote: "Recipes are a foundation that you have to allow your hands to create a symphony," he said when presenting his dish. Uhh, is this a brand management meeting with a Powerpoint presentation? Falling asleep here.
Melissa d’Arabian
Stay-at-home mom
Keller, Texas
Dish: Apple tart with caramel, inspired by her daughters
Judges' reaction: Big fans. It was Bobby Flay's favorite. Anne Burell might have liked it, but said if she had to watch a whole show of Melissa, she might get twitchy.
Best quote: "Good evening and happy SAW-eet 16!!!!" Melissa had more energy than a wind turbine. Definitely some shades of Kelsey from last season here.
Debbie Lee
Restaurant consultant
Los Angeles, California
Dish: Crab cake with spicy mayo
Judges' reaction: They thought the Red Team captain's spicy mayo was bangin' (potentially the highest compliment for a spicy mayo) even if she screwed up the angel food cake dessert.
Best quote: "I grew up on fried chicken...my mom didn't know how to make kimchi and I don't speak Korean."
Jeffrey Saad
Food consultant/recipe developer/chef
Los Angeles, California
Dish: Cumin-rubbed grilled zucchini with a ragu of citrus and red chili
Judges' reaction: Very earthy and tasty dish. I think they were into his hair too.
Best quote: "Is this a Greek god or a chef?" the other contestants wondered when Jeffrey first walked through the room.
The Results
Winners: Jeffrey Saad, Melissa d’Arabian, and Michael Proietti
Loser: Jen Isham
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29 Comments:
Brett is a misogynist idiot, did anyone else notice how uncomfortable he made everyone with lines like "My team is bunch of pretty girls..."?
Also, Eddie is a cheeseball. "Recipes are the foundation, but your hands make the symphony"!? Ridiculous!
Think Im for Jamika.
Ps. Top Chef Masters > FN Star
nikonratm at 2:20AM on 06/08/09
Something about Jeffrey that I love.
tonks442 at 6:08AM on 06/08/09
aarrrrgggghhh this show drives me nuts like the channel drives me nuts - I want it to be good so badly!!
early favorite, by a lot, is Jeffrey. he's a knowledgeable guy with presence on camera. debbie is good. a lot of clowns as usual, too.
z911empire at 7:36AM on 06/08/09
How about if you are a team captain get your act together before going shopping. OMG if I had 1200. to spend on 75 people it would be amazing.
WSLunch at 8:55AM on 06/08/09
I was surprised to like Jeffrey as much as I did. I didn't get a "he might win" feeling from the little early press stuff I read. I also think Debbie will go far. They painted her as a bad guy - about the budget stuff - a little too heavily, I thought. Figured Jen or Eddie would be the first to be out. Jen reminded me of the blonde from last season more than the Texas girl did.
mollykate678 at 8:58AM on 06/08/09
@nikonratm: i agree about brett making the girls uncomfortable. he was weirdly inappropriate. poor eddie though, what was that? i think it probably sounded better in his head before it came out of his mouth. lol. i also like jamika best thus far. definitely excited about the top chef masters. finally saw a rerun of the season where hung won this weekend. never saw the show before, but really enjoyed it.
gastronomeg at 10:14AM on 06/08/09
Early prediction for winners Michael or Jeffrey...
Personal favorite so far is Jeffrey...do not like Eddie, Debbie and Brett.
sammie at 10:53AM on 06/08/09
The only two I can imagine wanting to watch on TV are Jamika and Jeffrey. Jeffrey seems like an early favorite, he didn't seem to have too much of a problem re-imagining his food (and making something the judges liked) even after he didn't get the groceries he asked for. Michael's food looked good but he's kind of unwatchable. Of course, I think Guy Fieri is unwatchable and he won. Seems like Eddie and Katie are the most likely to go home next.
Buckethead at 11:38AM on 06/08/09
um...how can Anne Burrell complain of anyone making her twitchy? She's sooooo twitchy and all over the place on her own damn show!
_greenbean at 12:23PM on 06/08/09
seems like they always off young girls early on for "not showing authority" but then they say they want someone young to reach a young audience....they really need to have some clear expectations laid out and rules/points for judging, perhaps like a grading rubric or something. (can you tell i'm a teacher...i'd NEVER give an assignment without writing a rubric first, it makes no sense)
anyway, anyone will be better than aaron from last season...
gypsykid at 12:38PM on 06/08/09
I still say it is mostly Brylcreem gone awry. There is only one decent cook in this crowd, Jeffery Saad. Ms. D'Arabian might be a decent cook as well, we'll have to wait and see, but getting apple tarts right is a good sign. The rest of that bunch is basically just showboats and jawbones.
Grumpy Old Man at 1:10PM on 06/08/09
@_greenbean - I made that exact same comment to my husband last night. Funny!
mollykate678 at 1:23PM on 06/08/09
I'll skip this show on the assumption that the "next" Food Network "stars" are just as annoying, untalented, and uninspired as the current Food Network "stars".
Truff at 1:24PM on 06/08/09
Just got finished watching NFNS.
JEN: Correct choice for elimination. Way to represent Orlando! (not)
JAMIKA: One of my early favorites. Good personality.
TEDDY: meh. Uncooked potatoes seem to be a recurring theme on this show.
KATIE: Next to go. If you want to present a healthy perspective it must be inspiring. I'm yawning as I type zzzzzzzzzz.
BRETT: Dude! Can someone show him a calendar. It's 2009 not 1969.
MICHAEL: Keeping an eye on him. Not completely turned off...yet. Seems talented. Not intimidated of the camera.
EDDIE: Oy!!! Bu- bye soon.
MELISSA: Take it down a notch. Could not imagine 30 minutes of hearing about her kids.
DEBBIE: Another to keep an eye on. She made some bad decisions, but I am willing to let them slide...for now.
JEFFREY: Another front runner. Did not think I would like him so much. When he first arrived I thought--Uh oh, asshole alert. Was pleasantly surprised.
finsbigfan at 1:59PM on 06/08/09
"um...how can Anne Burrell complain of anyone making her twitchy? She's sooooo twitchy and all over the place on her own damn show!"
@greenbean (and mollykate)- thank you! i thought that exact same thing myself!!!
gastronomeg at 2:50PM on 06/08/09
I felt bad for Jen. Maybe she just really likes green beans. I think her personality should have carried her (at least she didn't offend half the audience like Brett). I cringed when Bob said that her dish wasn't worthy to be served at their 16th dinner. That was plain snobbish and rude. And this is going to sound anti-feminist, but I suspect Susie was jealous of Jen. Oddly, she seemed to light up when they talked about Brett the misogynist.
Finally, I don't understand why Debbie wasn't eliminated if they really do value integrity. She completely tossed aside Eddie's beignet idea and then tried to pass it off like the pound cake was a group decision! Beignet dough is not that hard to make. Couldn't she have just picked up the ingredients?
Hrmph!
yayfood at 3:24PM on 06/08/09
We teach best what we most need to learn...
zeep at 6:08PM on 06/08/09
My Husband callled Michael a "Gay Guy" as in Guy Fieri. But definitely not as lame as Guy. Should be interesting to see what else he comes up with. I love Jamica's presence and would watch her on TV. Jeffery's "greek factor" makes me wanna watch him do just about anything. Brett gives me an "Adam" vibe from last season, so I immediately hated him.
Can't wait for Top Chef on Wednesday!
amiyrah18 at 6:16PM on 06/08/09
I am not a Brett fan either. I like Jamika. Be sure to check out the weekly exit interviews of each kicked off contestant- http://www.fancast.com/blogs/interviews/exit-interview-the-next-food-network-stars-jen-isham-first-to-get-cut/
meg4fancast at 4:16AM on 06/12/09
we all know Jamika will win this one
akajk at 6:28PM on 06/14/09
Guy is the best so far,and probably will be always.. Aaron,,,,give me a break,,,,you have some great shows,his is not one of them.
akajk at 6:36PM on 06/14/09
I liked Adam from last season,he was cheated
akajk at 6:37PM on 06/14/09
Jamika has a great smile and from the start is somebody that I could connect...
Katie, I like to cook healthy too but don't try too hard...
teaspot at 1:18PM on 06/15/09
My prediction is Debbie. No other network is more politically careful. Look at their past winners -- gay, black, and now they need an Asian.
AbuelaLinda at 3:39PM on 06/15/09
I like Michael so far - but haven't watched last nite yet.
Brett gives me the creeps and I don't like Debbie because she would not take the heat for her bad decisions until forced to do so.
flabookworm at 6:17PM on 06/15/09
I think Jeffery is by far the best suited for a show. However, I think that not only is Jamika the winner, but that the decision was made early. She has been all over the media already. She was featured in a commercial for the Art Institute during the premiere of Top Chef: Masters. Curious. Also consider that Jen was sent home the first week for making a side dish (gourmet green beans) and Jamika won the second week by making a side dish (spicy collard greens). Curiouser and curiouser.
WannabeTVchef at 8:19PM on 06/15/09
Call me thick .... Which past winner was gay?
And, I think either Jeffrey or Jamika. I like Debbie and Michael too. Can't stand Eddie or Brett! Glad Brett got booted.
duncan1205 at 9:50PM on 06/15/09
Season 1 Winners were the gay couple -- their show didn't do well and only aired 9 episodes I think. Here is the link.
http://www.foodnetwork.com/party-line-with-the-hearty-boys/index.html
AbuelaLinda at 1:01AM on 06/16/09
This show is so phony.
Jillbru at 11:06AM on 06/16/09