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Another FN disappointment! I was literally cringing on her behalf. It was probably directed by Susie Fogelson and Bob Tuschman!

I don't know if her "personality" will be a hit, the grunts and arm movements are somewhat distracting, but content wise she wasn't so bad. I usually judge TV chefs by whether I actually use their ideas or not, and although, I am not likely to make a sauce that takes 4 hours, I liked her tip on pureeing the carrots and celery and browning things in stages. My cooking could benefit from some of her secrets, and hopefully, viewers will not judge her too soon, as I imagine her TV personality will develop as she feels more comfortable in front of the camera and becomes more natural. I'm looking forward to more restaurant secrets, and see if there are some that I could really use as a home cook. Then I can make a better judgement.

Very disappointing.

As izatryt said upthread.... I cringed on her behalf. I had such high hopes.

Is she like that in real life?, first I don't like crud being part of food, I know one thing whoever directed that show should be fired imediatly, does look like the two individuals that judge next food star had a heavy hand in the direction of this show...find a new director and lets try this again....I guess we're kinda lucky when she was salting the food she didn't run around the kitchen like a retard yelling she's the spice fairy.....

I agree with the others, I had so looked forward to this show (even forgoing sleeping in late) and was cringing myself at her movements and language.

"Crud" does not appeal to me as something I want to eat.

I do hope she's just very nervous and calms down with her arms and makes the show more about the food, because I think her food looked awesome.

She definitely needs to take a chill pill, slow down, and get rid of many of her phrases because they sounded to me like she was trying way too hard to impress us, when I would've been more impressed if she cooked that meal and didn't utter a word!

I don't know if I would've liked it better in a restaurant kitchen, I had such problems with HER that I don't know if the setting would've mattered.

I fear another food network FAIL.

I think her first performance was a little on the nervous side which is understandable . I also sence what some others have said that some of the old guard producers and directors have over time become IMHO too obsessed with the entertainment value of the show and end up micromanaging the presentation to excess ! You guys really need to back off a little and let the new people develop their own personality in front of the camera ......no small feat to say the least..

I also think you may have lost a little of what you call having your finger on the pulse of the audience... News flash :Constant talking is annoying ....we as an audience don't mind a little silence once in a while....let the camera do some of the work ...! She doesn't have to be the end all of info during the process. I think that the producers should stop obsessing with chasing after the ratings and just put out a quality show and let the rarings come to them ..Contrary to popular belief us viewers do want to learn something too.

I think her show would benefit from being shot in a resaurant kitchen with a chef coat on being that is a big part of the title of the show itself. When you have a "TV Personality" those shows can be filmed in a studio setting where hers would be better in the resaurant...She does need to realize who she's talking to and who her audience is ....this will take time !
I think she doesn't have to worry about catch phrases like yummo and EVOO and "BAM" . Over time they will surface all by them selves...she doesn't have to be "Truck stop Millie".. If they let her be her self she will be fine ! Maybe Mario can stop by and give her a few pointers to smooth out some of the rough edges and a hug and a pat on the back....I say have enough patience to let her grow into the network star she has in her !! All the best to Anne ! Go get'm !!!

Oh and Anne don't be so rough with the garlic ! lol You end up with all the juices on the counter and not in the pot !

I'm with you, bassfour. I learned a lot, thought she was a kick, and for the first time in a long time, didn't feel like the host was talking down to me. She's on season pass for me. I love her.

I want to give her time. The "crud" was a bit much. She explains things so well she could easily have introduced "fond" to those who don't know the word, maybe even made a joke to click the word into newbies brains, or used a chalk board Alton-style.

Great brainstorm, Chiff! A restaurant kitchen would be a much better set. Anne is a strong physical person. My niece dated a chef for a while and he was once drug along to help me move. Let me tell you, chefs have muscles and speed and athletic moves. I wondered if those high arcing arm movements aren't what she does for real when reaching over huge pots.

Anne's reminder to all of us to be patient with browning was alone worth the time.

I kind of like her enthusiastic, rough-around-the-edges style, and I think her hair is a good trademark. Too bad the usual suspects coached her into emphasizing outrageous-ness.

If cooking the crap out of pureed vegetables and scraping meat cruddum off the bottom of the pan is how she really talks (and she doesn't repeat it ad nauseum like RR), it doesn't really bother me, as long as she points out that it is called fond. She did explain why, which is more important. Maybe "earl" for oil is an East Coast joke? I've heard it many times (even in my own home) and that didn't bother me either. I've done the bread, asparagus and eggs exactly like that, but the sauce was different - no canned tomatoes, only paste, water and wine. Thyme and bay? I've never seen an Italian tomato sauce that didn't have oregano or basil. Four hours didn't scare me at all. I'm anxious to try it, but really, really curious if anyone here has ever made their sauce the same way?

As I posted earlier, calm down Chef Anne, no need to babble on and on, and show us your tricks of the trade. We're hungry for what you know, so feed us!!!

I only saw about 20 minutes of the show as we were getting dressed and leaving. My verdict? I'm keeping the season pass I set for this show last week.

Yes, she certainly has a (really) big personality, but for whatever reason it didn't annoy me nearly as much as those saccharine-cheerleader-sweet & perky "regular" FN personalities. That said, I do think that at least some of it was due to the nervousness and hope that she calms down. I also know that she made me laugh (in a good way, not that Sandy-induced "I can't believe this crap!" kind of laugh), and I mentioned to my husband that this show is more cooking for real than Cooking for Real. The actual content of this eppy was truly good (at no time did I exclaim in great frustration and disbelief, "How is it even a recipe?!!:-)). One may argue that there is no perfect delivery that would appeal to everybody - I hear so many people call Sara Moulton and Ina Garten boring (for the record - I like them both. Yes, I know - and I still liked Anne Burrell, go figure).

@chiff - great analysis! I agree, she certainly would benefit from a restaurant kitchen setting (I kept getting the feeling that she needed more room), and it would be significantly more appropriate considering the show title as well.

I have to admit some of her noises were a tad distracting, but I can honestly say I enjoyed her debut, not necessarily as a cooking show, although some of her tips were interesting, but I havent lauged that much in a long time, calling oil earl was hysterical and the jacuzzi for the eggs was too funny. I like Anne Berrell but i really hope those jitters settle down pretty quick.

Just for the record, I don't like the idea of using a restaurant kitchen for a set. She's trying to present tips from a restaurant chef to home cooks, so a home-kitchen set is more appropriate. When I see a restaurant kitchen, I get intimidated, because I always assume that the equipment works better than mine at home, there's more of it, there are tools I don't have, and so on. If she can do restaurant-style food in a home kitchen, that's encouraging to a relative novice like me!

From the original post:
"I'm sorry, but either she is extremely bipolar and off her medication, or NEEDS it badly."

I didn't take issue with anything you quoted from the show, nor, in fact, any of your description of the show itself.

@boscompb - your comment "I'm sorry, but either she is extremely bipolar and off her medication, or NEEDS it badly." - you call this "simply telling it like it is"?? no, it's offensive and unnecessary.

you know, some people thought Julia Child came across as drunk on her show when she first started because of her voice an uncoordinated movements.

@ccbweb and feeedme.......Having employed several people who are bipolar and very familiar with their behaviors, nuances, etc., I was making a statement based on past experience. Furthermore, I am not going to engage in a heated conversation with people who hide in the darkness of anonymity.

Yikes... who knew we had such brilliant people here?!?!?! I mean... to be able to diagnose bipolar-ism simply from watching a television show? And this is based upon what medical degree? Oh, that's right? None. You've just employed people you 'think' were bipolar and that makes you an expert. For goodness sakes, people, take a chill pill. I think she was adorable. A little over the top, maybe but I'd rather have someone who knows her stuff and calls fond 'crud' than Auntie Sandy any day.

I should think that having worked with Batali for so many years she developed a larger than life personality to match his. Mazaltov to you, Anne!! I will keep watching and look forward to the leg of lamb episode!

chiff - heehee, you have no idea - i never cook meat anything!! that bolognese though - that looked like something i COULD make. and feed a bunch of friends. just looked fun and super-easy.

It could have been worse. For his debut, Batali tore up his hand on the cheese grater proceeded to crush tomatoes with blood oozing into the bowl before getting a bandage during the commercial break. Would the bloggers have given him a pass back than?

The show was a bit all over the place though as she tended to work on multiple recipes simultaneously.

Damn, got beat to the follow up question. Anyways, I know I was looking forward to the show, but those hand movements, and voices and references. At least she didn't call oil "evoo" but "earl" isn't cute either. First time jitteriness aside, she got across her cooking points well, she just needs to tone done the TV persona a bit.

I can't speak for the recipe, because I haven't tried it- but I am willing to give her the benefit of the doubt and assume that it was super-tasty, because she is Anne Burrell and regularly makes amazing food.

However- I couldn't help but feel like I was watching a crazy person making Muppet voices. I can't imagine she is normally like that, so maybe it was nervousness/bad direction? Also, something tells me that she doesn't normally keep a "thanks for coming" bowl- it just seemed a little too RR-contrite to me.

it WAS a bit over the top but very enjoyable, i think. (i'm sorry but Ina Garten almost put me to sleep - totally different pace, didn't hold my attention.)

i assume the next few shows are already taped but i hope she gets to do more and they take all these comments into consideration... balance it more on the learning side and it can be truly fab. there is a lot of potential there, imo

Even though she's been on Iron Chef with Batali and probably been interviewed a few times, this may be the first time she was alone in front of the camera. Of course she's not comfortable yet.

And in her own restaurant, she may be a little over the top now and then to get the point across. All of the mannerisms are probably normal for her as punctuation to her instructions, but in her nervousness on TV she went overboard with the punctuation. I think she'll settle down after a while. Either that, or they'll find another way for her to showcase what she does. If she had another person there interacting with her, she might have been a little less dramatic. Not everyone is comfortable talking to a camera.

A week or so ago, there was an old Good Eats episode on, and I was wondering, "why is he talking so funny?" He didn't have quite the personality, or the comfort he has now. I've seen clips of early Giada shows, and she looks like she wants to crawl under the counter and hide. Old versions of Essense of Emeril are almost comical in the way he reads from the prompter at the beginning of the show. When he's cooking, he's more comfortable, but when it's him and the camera, it's not always so good.

Hopefully they haven't shot too many episodes of this show, so she can have some time to see what it looks like and adjust.

My biggest problem is she didn't impart any "restaurant secrets". The whole point of taking the time to cook the mirepoix was that it will not get anymore tender after you add the other ingredients. The poached egg secret for coming up to service was accurate, but the eggs she produced would not be edible or even. She dion't bother to create the "gentle river" and many people trying this recipe will screw it up without this importmant tidbit of information.

For some reason it didn't air in my area and I was quite displeased. I was looking forward to a FN show with a real, as Bourdain would say, "Hardcore Grill Bitch" rather than some fluffed up barbie-doll housewife as so many new generation FN hosts seem to be. I wanted an advanced level show for people who can cook but want to cook better. No flippin "semi" anything.

FN has helped thousands of people get interested in cooking but after they get to the Rachel Ray level, I'll call that Cooking 102, they really don't get you any farther. Well Jamie Oliver's new show is pretty cool but it's still simple cooking though done very well.

I hope that they keep Anne and let her be herself. She really knows what she's doing and isn't going to go too far. Her show should focus on things that are advanced, call it Cooking 202. Beyond that you should be in school or an externship/job for the hands on stuff that you can't learn by simply watching.

Oh and if home cooks freak that Anne uses salt liberally, they might learn how to season their food on par with their favorite restaurant - something that has seemed to elude them all these years.

I definitely think the viewing audience could have handled the concept of "fond" versus "crud". She has the content that has been so lacking on FN in recent times - she just needs to calm down and not burn the toast. That part should have been a "do-over".

She's a funny, vibrant person with a great big personality who loves to laugh and LOVES to cook -- I though she was perfectly engaging and I hope TVFN will pick her up for another round or twelve ... a welcome breath of humanity and actual cooking for TVFN.

@laurie woolever---Amen to that!

The show was a bit all over the place though as she tended to work on multiple recipes simultaneously.
Is that not how most of us cook in our own kitchens? And don't we consider it a feat to pull everything together perfectly in time? It felt so real compared to the staged "I MUST make three dishes" formula of every other show on Food Network. I also attribute the chatter and stranger moments to editing. Overall, I loved the show and thought that Anne was a breath of fresh air.

I'll take Annie over Rachel and Sandra any day of the week. A 4 hour bolognese beats 30 minute meals or semi-homemade. Instead of drooling over Giada's cleavage, i'd rather drool over poached eggs over grilled asparagus. Burrell kicks the "crap" out of the non-chef chefs on the FN.

Y'know, there's a reason why I love watching Ming Tsai and Jacque Pepin on WLIW over the weekends:

THEY SHUT UP once in a while and let you focus on what they're doing.

Just sayin'.

And Food Network has gone downhill even faster than I suspected it would. I mean, I never thought I would MISS Jamie Oliver. The Rachel Ray Overkill is even making me miss EMERIL.

Anyone who thinks that performing for a camera is easy has never tried to do it themselves. It takes time and practice to become comfortable. Cut her some slack.

Note to FN: You should immediately fire the stylist and the set decorator. Both looked cheap and cheesy. Put her in a proper kitchen with a chef's coat and watch her comfort level rise.

"Secrets" were what we were hoping for and I think she missed two great opportunities. In the first show, she could have shown how to drop the eggs in the poaching water, which is critical, taking a few minutes to speak about the movement of the eggs in the water, (keeping the camera on the eggs) actually timing them, and then watching her remove them. Breaking to a commercial and coming back to all those perfectly poached eggs annoyed me. On the recent show, she has an "already de-boned' leg of lamb when she could easily have taken the time to 'teach' the home cook how to do it. Also, I don't know if anyone noticed, but she said she was putting the lamb in the oven for 20 minutes and then she took it out after 20 minutes and turned it over and put it back in the oven. The next time we see the lamb it is perfectly cooked and is being sliced, but god knows how long it was actually in the oven. I agree that Bob and Susie are absolutely clueless about the needs of their public, and all one has to do is take a look at the new crop of " Next Network Food Star" ..OMG . where and how do they find these people? Couldn't they find anyone else to appear on Rachel Ray's show?