S01.E07: Comfort Food Cash-In

[Tara Ariano]

Gourmet comfort food is featured. Included: a mac-and-cheese startup from Los Angeles that features artisan cheeses and high-end ingredients; and a hand-crafted-doughnut restaurant in San Francisco.

[leighdear]

Well, that was certainly an eye opener for Brian & Reilly.  Both really nice boys, it was a shame they crashed so hard.

 

I did think it was a little unfair to drop them into a food truck when they'd never run one before.  From what I've seen on various shows, cooking in a food truck is a lot different than in a commercial kitchen.  Though it did give them "problem solving" situations, obviously the stress of it forced them to do the dough ahead, which they said they never do otherwise. 

 

Wayland really didn't have to be so unpleasant.  Not that she has to sugar-coat things, but she just always sounds so pissed off and bitter.  And if she's the "expert", why didn't she advise the boys to do something different with the logo?  Doesn't she always say that she's Joe & Tim's conduit and she KNOWS what they want?  Were the guys just supposed to read her mind? 

 

I would love to try their savory nuts.  I love Bao Buns, and since they compared them to those, I was really intrigued.  I hope they left with their ambitions intact and keep moving forward with their concept. 

 

I wonder if the Mac & cheese ladies are laughing at Tim & Joe, for choosing the boys.  I didn't care for them.  Too much singing & not enough food choices. 

[Josiah Bounderby]

7 Small (or Petty) Observations...

 

1. Joe and Tim have really settled into their personas. They've very much at home with this format.

 

2. I was so happy that I didn't have to listen to a lot of macaroni-related, self-indulgent singing. However, I wanted to see how the show would have handled "Mac & Cheese Woman #2" -- another "partner" who seemed more like an entry-level employee.

 

3. That food truck looked filthy and run-down.

 

4. Good point -- the food truck "experience" apparently made them make the dough early which sunk them.

 

5. Attractive as they were, it was hard for me to root for a duo whose hair was trying so hard.

 

6. I suspect that about 50% of the contestants who get on-show deals actually end up seeing some money.

 

7. I just realized that every time Wayland speaks, I stop listening. She's a one-note performer. A fairly inexpressive face? A thoroughly inexpressive voice! Also, the show hasn't figured out how to use her.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[cooksdelight]

Bespoke Doughnuts? And a milkman who looks like a gangster? Huh?

Logo, colors... bad.

I cannot watch someone using a caulking gun to fill my food and want to eat it.

1000% markup? Now that the world knows what their actual costs are, no one in their right mind will be paying $6 for a doughnut.

[leighdear]

The second the boys chose that wall color, I knew J & T would hate it.  They've said several times that blue shades are the worst for eateries.  And that was most definitely turquoise, not teal, as Reilly was calling it. 

 

And yep, that caulking gun was totally tacky.  They probably thought it was clever. The lever allows the nozzle to squeeze more filling into the doughnuts, but I would think the traditional disposable parchment cones would be more sanitary.  Especially with fillings that include dairy products and strong flavors.    

Edited August 21, 2014 by leighdear

[cooksdelight]

Speaking of sanitary, I saw not a single glove on either of their hands. You know they were getting sticky with the glaze, frosting, etc. Yuck

[LittleIggy]

It always bugs me how Waylynn says she is Joe and Tim's "consultant." I always say, "No, you are their lackey!"

[anonymiss]

Waylynn would be tolerable if it weren't for that face and the way she moves it when she speaks. I feel awfully superficial feeling this way but it is what it is. She has an earthy fawn-like prettiness but her heavy eyes with that nose and the wide thin mouth are just so hard to take seriously in a business context. She looks like she should be in a forest with the other fawns. 

[Josiah Bounderby]

"Bespoke Doughnuts" -- terrible name. Of the universe of people who might eat a doughnut in an upscale part of a big city, how many of them instantly know what "bespoke" means? How many of them are confident they know how to pronounce "bespoke" (in an American accent)?  How many of them have an unconcious association with bicycle spokes? Also -- bespoke is not a pretty-sounding word. Doesn't feel like a food word.

 

And, yea, the caulk gun is unappetizing! And if I were having to turn out doughnuts by the hundreds, I'd want a much smaller, lighter tool.

[LittleIggy]

The caulking gun might have worked if the shop had had an industrial theme.

[cooksdelight]

The caulking gun might have worked if the shop had had an industrial theme.

All stainless steel, lots of exposed pipes. Employees wearing hard hats, jeans, tight white t-shirts (being in good shape would be a pre-requisite for working there).

"Doughnut Towers – We're Stacked"

Oh, and they serve the doughnuts stacked on a churro type thing that's also edible.

Or they could call it "Doughnut Towers – We're Built" with the 3 doughnuts stacked in a triangle.

[ae2]

I assumed the caulking gun was less a gimmick and more a clever and affordable solution to the pains of filling doughnuts. On the episode of Masterchef where they made doughnuts, nearly everyone who made them filled seemed to fail at actually filling them. So maybe they get more pressure easier to squeeze in the filling? (Disclaimer: I've never made filled doughnuts before.)

 

If you're ordering $6 doughnuts, you're probably wearing a bespoke suit and know exactly what it means :-) I think the name is okay. If you don't know the meaning you probably assume it's someone's name. Their color choice and logo on the other hand...

 

Honestly, many of the branding suggestions that Joe & Tim give have seemed fairly naive to me. Their name has doughnut in it, how much more does the logo need to scream "we sell doughnuts!"

[zillabreeze]

The second the boys chose that wall color, I knew J & T would hate it.  They've said several times that blue shades are the worst for eateries.  And that was most definitely turquoise, not teal, as Reilly was calling it.

 

Leighdear-  I thought they should have their gay cards revoked.  I saw aqua, seafoam, & robin's egg - but nary a swatch of teal anywhere.

 

Damn, I need a life.

[Bretley]

I don't know how they can have a $.60 food cost on those donuts with all the toppings and fillings they were adding. Speaking of - it would have been nice if the show and demonstrated them prepping some of the other ingredients - the pulled pork for example. I get that the dough was the key to the whole thing, but still, there was a lot of other prep they would have had to do. Waylynn, as the founder of Fonuts, could have definitely been more helpful to them, such as suggesting they hire a baking consultant to help with a new dough recipe seeing as they had over 2 grand in their budget remaining.

 

The colors were horrific and they crashed and burned at their opening for sure, but I feel like they could have gotten a bit more support/guidance rather than everyone just standing back and watching them fail.

[Lesia]

Completely unprepared, and utterly overwhelmed.  Reminded me of I Love Lucy with the chocolate factory when the chocolates start coming faster and faster- Reilly was not keeping up at all with those stupid caulking guns.  What were they thinking?

I too was curious as to how they made the PULLED PORK- that has to cook forever! 

[cooksdelight]

They were never shown making the pork, I started to think that perhaps they bought it ready-made somewhere.

[zillabreeze]

Is it just me or wouldn't the show be more interesting if they gave both groups $7500.00 and let them duke it out and then make an offer to one?

Or would that it seem too much like "Hungry Investors"?