S11.E01: Food Star Food Festival

[susannot]

I feel like with all of the Bobby and Giada gossip, I will be watching their interactions carefully.  

 

Really?  There is Bobby and Giada gossip?

[cooksdelight]

Really?  There is Bobby and Giada gossip?

Yes, and we have threads for that. :)

[smiley13]

I do not watch other competitive cooking shows so all of these people are new to me.

 

Did y'all know that one chick is Armenian??

[cooksdelight]

I have to wonder if part of the obnoxious "I'm this!" or "I've done that!" isn't part of the production team telling them to emphasize their POV and "bring it!" on camera? Maybe they'll parody this show on UnREAL one day and we'll find out. Because the ones who do drive us crazy with all of their posturing will undoubtedly be around for the long haul.

[Lamb18]

One thing re Matthew and Tyler Stone: I've noticed the similarity, too, but I think I prefer Tyler. He was obnoxious at the beginning, but he was brought back in as a helper to a finalist and did pretty well with the dish he made.  Plus he really wanted to help and not show off.  I liked Matthew OK on Cutthroat Kitchen, in fact, I thought he stood up well to the older contestants who were teasing him about his youth, but he's pretty bad on this show so far. I can't help wondering if he's pretending to be worse at presenting than he really is.

[Skyfall]

Thank you Little Big Head for having like half of the contestants be Italian...

 

...ALSO HIDE THOSE TEETH BEFORE YOU BLIND SOMEONE!

I swore I wasn't going to jump on LBH this season too.

[dmeets]

I liked Matthew OK on Cutthroat Kitchen, in fact, I thought he stood up well to the older contestants who were teasing him about his youth, but he's pretty bad on this show so far. I can't help wondering if he's pretending to be worse at presenting than he really is.

 

I never hated Matthew as much on Cutthroat Kitchen as it felt like the show wanted me to, and I didn't hate him too much here... until he busted out the "my mom raised a CHAMPION." Damn it, of course... he's a Special Snowflake. For his sake I hope he's pretending, and he might just be considering how many times they used him for the one-word first impression. But now I'm not so sure.

 

Armenian is the new Korean Debbie.

 

Annoying (and kind of scary with those glares) as Matthew was, and as camera-averse as Dom is, can't argue with who went home. "I shouldn't have to hone in, I love ALL food." Too bad she doesn't love flavor, apparently.

[Wings]

I was not surprised they kept Mathew.  Every reality show needs an ass. 

 

I like Alex but he isn't going to make it far in the culinary world doing only sandwiches. They are so easy to create yourself, you just don't need a "pro."  Jeff Mauro  belongs on that stupid show The Kitchen. I don't like the guy.  Alex is too good for that to be his fate.  

 

Love Eddie and see him going far along with Sita.  His video on cheat day was off the mark though! 

 

We don't need more Italian food on this network.  Ugh.   It is the least sophisticated food and only a slight step above Applebees.  There are exceptions, of course but they are rare.  

 

I am excited to see what Rue makes.  Her shrimp looked fabulous and was loved by all. 

 

I wanted to eat Arnold's food.  I may grow to tired of his personality but if he can cook he is a contender. 

 

I love Jay's personality and every one love his bite.  

Thank you Little Big Head for having like half of the contestants be Italian...

 

...ALSO HIDE THOSE TEETH BEFORE YOU BLIND SOMEONE!

I swore I wasn't going to jump on LBH this season too.

 

 

I love this!  Little Big Head.  How perfect!   

Edited June 9, 2015 by wings707

[ari333]

"Jah-dah's" teeth.

That is all.

[rab01]

Matthew has to be intentionally playing a character in the (very reasonable) hope that it keeps him on the air longer BUT I think he has to actually be an asshole to pick that character to play. My real question about him is whether he plans to drop the act and pretend to have been "humbled" to ride a redemption arc to victory or does he already know that he has no shot at this and just wants 5-7 episodes out of it.

 

That said, I don't think they were always just picking him to speak. I think all the contestants gave one word summaries and his were interesting more often than the others so they were shown on camera.

 

Sandwich guy could be shifted over slightly to international street food brought to your home and he could work.

 

Calling that one lady "Stepford", really was right on target. She even proved it when she didn't try to find a way to make a joke about it in her talking head.

 

I like this group and if the network brass doesn't disappear from the show, I could be in for the season. I don't particularly like Tuschman and Fogelson as TV personalities but I like that the heads of the network are personally devoting several hours to this process. Also, since they have to protect the brand, they are invested in asking real questions, calling bullshit occasionally, and preventing useless jerks from winning the entire thing.

Edited June 8, 2015 by rab01

[Skyfall]

Alex, Jay, and Sita are my early favorites.

 

Also I want a JPG of Matthew's face after she said "No one knows what a hashtag tastes like!" It had me rolling!

[backformore]

Matthew has to be intentionally playing a character in the (very reasonable) hope that it keeps him on the air longer BUT I think he has to actually be an asshole to pick that character to play. My real question about him is whether he plans to drop the act and pretend to have been "humbled" to ride a redemption arc to victory or does he already know that he has no shot at this and just wants 5-7 episodes out of it.

 

Well, he was a "teen chef"  and was on TV, I think he's young enough that he is always told he "accomplished so much at such a young age!"  He's never done anything where he didn't play that role.  When you're lauded for being SO smart, SO accomplished, and SO young, it can go to your head.    I think he was given the role of young, media-savvy, #chefmatt, who will draw in all the "millenials" whoever they are, with his knowledge of social media.  He as given the role, told to play it up, and he went too far in making it his "brand".   Because, really, those of us who are over 30,40,50, even 60, can figure out how to tweet.  It's not that complicated that we CAN'T do it - we just don't feel like putting every thought, feeling, meal, on the internet.  

 

The fact that someone has a twitter account and knows how to use it does not impress me.  

Edited June 8, 2015 by backformore

[Snarklepuss]

Well, he was a "teen chef"  and was on TV, I think he's young enough that he is always told he "accomplished so much at such a young age!"  He's never done anything where he didn't play that role.  When you're lauded for being SO smart, SO accomplished, and SO young, it can go to your head.    I think he was given the role of young, media-savvy, #chefmatt, who will draw in all the "millenials" whoever they are, with his knowledge of social media.  He as given the role, told to play it up, and he went too far in making it his "brand".   Because, really, those of us who are over 30,40,50, even 60, can figure out how to tweet.  It's not that complicated that we CAN'T do it - we just don't feel like putting every thought, feeling, meal, on the internet.  

 

The fact that someone has a twitter account and knows how to use it does not impress me.  

 

Same here, especially because he has like zero people skills.  What use is all that cyber-communication if you alienate everyone anyway?

 

I really hate that people go all gaga over social media like it's this fantastic phenomenon that only young people can understand.  Sorry, so not true.  Perhaps it's just that the rest of us have what we think are more important things on our minds than to be twittering our lives away.  Perhaps if he didn't pay so much attention to that stuff he might not be such a Bozo.

[cooksdelight]

Relying totally on social media to get his point across may (hopefully) be Matthew's downfall. I started a thread about it since a lot of these people depend on it as a way to get their message out, outside of the show.

[joanne3482]

No more Italian and no more "Southern"! Are these the only two foods there are? I think it was Sita who in the ads for the show said she was passionate about teaching children to cook. I wish that's where she went instead of Italian Soul food or whatever. I don't watch the end show anyway so I guess I don't care what their cooking POV is.

[needschocolate]

I liked how Matthew thought his presentation was great and the judges, and everyone else, hated it.  It is always fun when the obnoxious guy is so clueless that he looks like an idiot.  

 

I am certainly not qualified to make any sort of diagnosis, but Matthew's behavior reminded of adults I know with ADHD,  Not the rude/obnoxious comments, but the way his presentation was all over the place and how he had trouble staying in one place, physically and verbally.  

 

They really need to add a "makeover" episode to this show.  The lady who went home had extremely long hair which she wore lose and hanging in the front - some people (well, most.people, actually, almost everyone on the planet) are turned off by the thought of hair in their food.  Armenian woman had long flowing hair too.  The sandwich guy's hair style gives the impression that his hair is greasy/dirty, even if it is clean. The tall woman, the one Arnold teased about being a cross-dresser, needs a different haircut - she has a long face and her cut made her face look longer, and, more importantly, her hair looked like it had been cut with a butcher knife.    Normally, I don't get hung up over looks, but these people want to be cooking on national tv, they should at least look clean and like they could handle a knife, or at least a pair of scissors.  

 

I hate it when people eating food say they're confused by what they're eating.  I'm confused by that comment.  What the heck does that even mean?

 

I have no idea what the people on the show meant, but I can see how someone could be confused by the food their were eating.  I would be confused if I ordered a hamburger at a fast food joint and the bun was a chocolate chip cookie, or if my sundae had turkey gravy instead of hot fudge - Is it an entree or a dessert?

 

Michelle even played the child birth card in her opening remarks. I don't even think Melissa d'Arabian pulled that one. Seriously, every season there's at least one contestant who acts as if she's the only female who the world who has ever procreated, and that the special status of being a "mom" is reason enough that we should consider her a food authority. No doubt we will hear on every show "I make this for my kids and they love it." As if that means something.

 

Well. before I had children, I couldn't boil water without burning it, but right after giving birth I was able to prepare a perfect Beef Wellington with a Baked Alaska for dessert - #sarcasm 

 

And, really, the fact that your kids love something you cooked doesn't men a thing.  Kids love mixing all the soda options at the self serve beverage counter, they tend to like food that is very simple taste-wise and dislike mixing textures, and some of them also enjoy eating things like paste and dog kibble.  Not really the qualities you go for in a food critic.

[riverheightsnancy]

Seriously, after the DEBACLE of Lenny last year, I am shocked that they rolled out Matthew / serial killer eyes. Geez, he has got more crazy-killer eyes than the actor playing Manson on Aquarius! Hell, Manson (the actor playing the character on the TV show) is more charming than this guy! I knew that Eddie was a retread. How many shows can these people be on? Is Food Star supposed to be amateurs or not? That Eddie guy, was he on Bar Rescue too? I feel like he was on an exercise show as well. Food truck show? He has been on several shows. Seems not fair in some respect. Of course, he will be better in front of camera, he has had practice and seems familiar. Familiarity=+ feelings (generally speaking).  I didn't even remember Arnold from Top Chef and I have watched every season. he must have gone out early, because I do not remember him at all.

 

Personally, I think the NOLO guy is a ringer for the win. He is a substitute for Lenny. There are too many Italian cooks, they will bleed votes from each other. The NOLO guy seems like a "regular" average guy, who can cook, and is very rustic American. I think that is exactly what they are looking for.  I hate to say it but Emilia is delusional about what she believes she is doing during her presentations. She is so bland and delusional that is very off-putting. 

[Calamity Jane]

Seriously, after the DEBACLE of Lenny last year, I am shocked that they rolled out Matthew / serial killer eyes. Geez, he has got more crazy-killer eyes than the actor playing Manson on Aquarius!

His eyes had me seriously frightened for the judges there at the end.  They had the coldest/deadest look I've seen outside of Discovery ID.  I told my daughter my one-word summary for his original presentation would be "meth," but she said his patter is a little slow for that (she works in a jail, she knows).  ADHD might be the best guess.  Well, he will certainly get a lot of attention. 

[SFoster21]

needschocolate, ITA that a makeover is needed. Nearly everyone had ill fitting or wrinkled clothing as well.

[Lamb18]

I think Dom might be the rehabilitation/redemption guy.  It's a good story arc: the nice Italian boy who's a good cook but awful on camera. With practice and perseverance and sound mentoring from Giada, he overcomes his camera fear and is a finale contender! (maybe)

 

I hope Rue stays around for a long time.  It seems like Africans get cut early (I'm thinking of Project Runway) and I'd like to learn about about southern African food.  I've been reading about African and other countries and I'm curious about typical foods such as cassava (not sure if that's southern African but it's in a lot of other African countries).

[riverheightsnancy]

I think Dom might be the rehabilitation/redemption guy.  It's a good story arc: the nice Italian boy who's a good cook but awful on camera. With practice and perseverance and sound mentoring from Giada, he overcomes his camera fear and is a finale contender! (maybe)

 

I hope Rue stays around for a long time.  It seems like Africans get cut early (I'm thinking of Project Runway) and I'd like to learn about about southern African food.  I've been reading about African and other countries and I'm curious about typical foods such as cassava (not sure if that's southern African but it's in a lot of other African countries).

Agree on both points. I love curry and what she was making got me very curious about the cuisine. I think that there could be an audience for what she cooks. 

[Snarklepuss]

Oh, I forgot to  mention this jaw dropping moment - When Giada told Rosa that she needed to talk more about the food she liked to cook because people may not know that much about Southern Italian cooking.  Seriously?  Like every town in America doesn't have a family run pizza/pasta/lasagna joint in it and people are totally clueless about Southern Italian cooking?  What world is Giada living in?  Definitely not this one.  Mr. Snarklepuss lived up to his name when he said that she lives in the tiny little Northern Italian food world you'd expect from someone related to Dino DeLaurentis.

[Snarklepuss]

I think Dom might be the rehabilitation/redemption guy.  It's a good story arc: the nice Italian boy who's a good cook but awful on camera. With practice and perseverance and sound mentoring from Giada, he overcomes his camera fear and is a finale contender! (maybe)

 

I just realized which contestant he's a direct replacement for - That guy "Vic Vegas" aka "Mama's Boy".  OMG, I hope they don't pump him up and then send him home like they did with that poor schlep.

[bluepiano]

And, really, the fact that your kids love something you cooked doesn't mean a thing. 

 

Kids like what their mother cooks because that's all they know. My ex-wife's mother was English, and she grew up eating everything stewed until it was mush, and thought that's how food was supposed to be cooked.

 

Maybe the sandwich guy can switch to wraps and become The Wrap King. A healthier version of the Sandwich King. Now that would be original. As others have commented, I can't believe that he's gotten even this far with a concept regurgitated from a former winner. Whose sandwich show was just cancelled. And there's something about the guy I find phony and unappealing. In addition to his horrible hair cut.

 

I expect Matthew to be in it for the long haul, as there's a lack of personality among many of the contestants, and the reality TV rule is that a negative personality is better than no personality.

 

It's occurred to me that Dom freezing up on camera might be an act. Otherwise, I don't see why someone who has severe stage fright would audition for a TV show. Or why the producers would put him on.

Edited June 8, 2015 by bluepiano

[6 MeowMeowBeenz]

Oh that guy's the Sandwich KING. I'm the Sandwich WIZARD."

 

NOBODY beats the Wizard. NOBODY

[Rick Kitchen]

 

And while Matthew is obnoxious, I would've reacted exactly the same way to a woman who didn't know me from Adam saying, "let me tell you something as a Mother." I can't imagine a co-worker, even one I'd known for years, presuming to act like my surrogate mother and offering me unsolicited advice. Her line before that, "what did you learn from the judges,"  was also really condescending, like she was a kindergarten or Sunday school teacher. To his credit, Matthew actually did give her a straight answer.

 

How is "my mother raised a champion" a straight answer?  It was just more douchitude.

[rab01]

They really need to add a "makeover" episode to this show.  The lady who went home had extremely long hair which she wore lose and hanging in the front - some people (well, most.people, actually, almost everyone on the planet) are turned off by the thought of hair in their food.  Armenian woman had long flowing hair too.  The sandwich guy's hair style gives the impression that his hair is greasy/dirty, even if it is clean. The tall woman, the one Arnold teased about being a cross-dresser, needs a different haircut - she has a long face and her cut made her face look longer, and, more importantly, her hair looked like it had been cut with a butcher knife.    Normally, I don't get hung up over looks, but these people want to be cooking on national tv, they should at least look clean and like they could handle a knife, or at least a pair of scissors. 

I think a makeover episode is a great idea but they would totally botch it.  It would end up being just a focus for commenting on how the women look and whether Giada has the hots for any of the men (yuch),  

 

It's odd though that you picked those four because, other than the pro athlete, they are the prettiest/handsomest people in the competition to me. (Actually, I'm just kinda guessing about the guys but the woman they eliminated and the tall brunette Italian chef are both strikingly pretty to me and I wasn't bothered by their hair.) I guess taste is really idiosyncratic. No, I don't want hair in my food but if they keep it off the plate, I don't need them to wear hair nets.

[leighdear]

Damaris was a bit of a nightmare on camera at the beginning, complete with nervous giggling and inappropriate babble.  But she worked on it, won, and frankly I really enjoy watching her show. 

 

I'm a big Jeff Mauro fan and he absolutely broke ground with his concept.  That means no wannabe is going to eclipse him and he needs to just come up with a new concept, no matter that the sandwich show has been cancelled. 

[Kathcart]

Hey, lady: anyone who describes themselves as "edgy" is automatically not.

 

"I know you already have a Sandwich King but I don't care."  Really, what comment needs to be made?

 

On the positive side: So far, nobody has invoked a dead relative.

[roseslg]

This is my first year watching this show.  Something to pass the time.  I remember Matthew's episode of CTK and thought he was annoying as all get-out,  I hope he goes soon.   A lot of the faces seem familiar...The highlight of the episode to me was Stepford's dress.   It's from Anthropolgie.  I was at a wedding last week and my friend's GF wore that exact same dress.   I don't know why that fascinated me, but for the first 40 minutes or so, I couldn't help but stare at her dress!  I guess that shows how appealing she is.  

[cooksdelight]

NOBODY beats the Wizard. NOBODY

Leighdear, he just needs a hook, as MeowMeowBeenz pointed out. :)

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=CjQKFoUdk4g

[ivygirl]

I've invested too much energy today in considering what the story arc of Alex McCoy, Pretender to the Sandwich Throne, will be. Either he's cannon fodder and will be gone in the next week or so (due to the fact that he's not all that interesting AND he's got an idea that's already used by a former FNS), or he's going to have his POV rewritten and he'll be, like, THE REAL MCCOY, serving up "authentic" cuisine of some sort or another. 

Edited June 8, 2015 by ivygirl

[TiffanyNichelle]

Still not sure of everyone's name so far besides Mama Sita who is in running neck and neck with the Armenian mother as the second most annoying contestants. Number one is of course hashtag douchebag. I knew he wasn't going home right away because DRAMA but he can go any time in the next two weeks.

[Snarklepuss]

They really need to add a "makeover" episode to this show.  The lady who went home had extremely long hair which she wore lose and hanging in the front - some people (well, most.people, actually, almost everyone on the planet) are turned off by the thought of hair in their food.  Armenian woman had long flowing hair too.  The sandwich guy's hair style gives the impression that his hair is greasy/dirty, even if it is clean. The tall woman, the one Arnold teased about being a cross-dresser, needs a different haircut - she has a long face and her cut made her face look longer, and, more importantly, her hair looked like it had been cut with a butcher knife.    Normally, I don't get hung up over looks, but these people want to be cooking on national tv, they should at least look clean and like they could handle a knife, or at least a pair of scissors. 

 

Yeah, I agree and I think the contestants on this show have been going downhill every year in terms of how pulled together they look in general.  Long haired lady who went home also needed an eyebrow intervention.  Big guy whose name escapes me looks sloppy like he's dressing to go to Chipotle on a Saturday afternoon.  Sandwich guy's hair is yes, greasy/dirty looking, etc.  There once was a time I enjoyed seeing how the women dressed on this show.  Now only a couple have any taste/style at all and the hair is a mess.  Remember that finalist some years back - Lisa Garza?  I still wish she had gotten a show.  I liked her but I'd have watched her for the fashion if nothing else.

[GaT]

Same here, especially because he has like zero people skills.  What use is all that cyber-communication if you alienate everyone anyway?

 

 

Slightly off topic, but this is a proven fact that people who have grown up using Twitter & Facebook, etc, have trouble communicating with other people in person. There was a study somewhere (which I can't find) showing teenagers pictures of people making different expression (mad, happy, scared, etc) & the teenagers all had trouble identifying the emotions. Matthew seems like the epitome of this problem to me, when you think your cooking show is based on "hashtag" instead of your food, you are not a people person.

[Surrealist]

Yeah, I didn't get that either.  And they all acted like they knew him already.  At first I wondered if he wasn't a comedian they hired to keep things funny this season.  Then finding out here that he was already on "Cutthroat Kitchen", it made sense.  They do already know him and they probably did hire him for comic relief/villain of the season.

 

Matthew was about as over-the-top on CT. I definitely think he's ramped it up A LOT more for FNS.

 

 

When Giada told Rosa that she needed to talk more about the food she liked to cook because people may not know that much about Southern Italian cooking.  Seriously?  Like every town in America doesn't have a family run pizza/pasta/lasagna joint in it and people are totally clueless about Southern Italian cooking?  What world is Giada living in?  Definitely not this one.

 

I like Italian cuisine. I do. However, much like Mexican/Tex Mex and Chinese cuisines, you can find one or more these options even in small towns. For me, they've lost their exoticism. Restaurants that serve one of the aforementioned cuisines are ubiquitous here in the States.

Edited June 8, 2015 by Surrealist

[gryphon]

#douchetag

 

Matthew's eyes scared me--seriously.  And, I am not a medical professional, but he does remind me of people I know before they were introduced to ritalin. 

 

I do like Jay (?) the big guy with the Louisiana flavours.  He reminds me of a guy a few seasons ago that I wanted to pitch a show called, "The Munch Hour."  Catchphrase:  What time is it?  {It's 4:20} 

 

Ah, LBH is back...I still can't stand her over pronunciation--and anyone cooking her Italian food (other than the current guy she has a crush on) will be criticised harshly, no?

[I-Kare]

Damn! I loved Matthew...so I actually came on here to see if others agreed. Obviously I miscalculated. =D

 

That's okay though. I think he's trying too hard, but it's just the first episode and I'm willing to bet folks' opinions on a lot of contestants change over the course of the season. 

 

I hope he sticks around because he'll make the season more interesting for me and I can't wait to see if he grows. 

[Lamb18]

Adding to bluepiano's wrap king idea, maybe the guy could be the W/Rap king and do bad rap while making wraps.

 

But wraps is a good idea because there's also lettuce wraps and different cultures have different ways to wrap their food.

[CMH1981]

Wow...Matthew.  Just wow.

 

I think if they pumped some Ritalin in him he might be able to focus and get out what he has to say, that being said he really is a douche.  I wonder if they are saving Alton Brown to do the final take down of him, which I can't wait to see happen.

[cattykit]

One of these days they'll have the contestants (I can't call someone who apparently wants to cook a hashtag a cheftestant) do their presentations privately, so the folks who go later don't benefit from the mistakes and critiques of those who go earlier.  That being said, I still managed to be surprised that nobody volunteered to go first.  You're trying to show these people that you're a star and you try to hide and wait to be called on?  A star would have jumped up and yelled, "Let me show you bitches how it's done."  You're not prepared with a presentation (of course if you actually are, you get criticized for being prepared) that you can whip out on a moment's notice?  What show did you sign up for?

 

It occurs to me that since they've had almost nobody come out of this farm system a star, Guy Fiettttttti notwithstanding, they would think to shake things up a bit, with new judges and new competitions, but it looks like nothing about the formula has changed.  I do realize that for FN, the competition is more important than the outcome, but still.  Other than this crowd being heavy on the Italian side (which LBH will quickly mow down because there's only one queen of Italy on FN), they've got the usual ethnic stereotypes in place.

[Mmazeo]

Holy shit I want Matthew in a steel cage match at Wrestlemania, like tomorrow.

[bobbyjoe]

Then finding out here that he was already on "Cutthroat Kitchen", it made sense.  They do already know him and they probably did hire him for comic relief/villain of the season.

 

Yeah, I'm calling producer shenanigans on Matthew.  While he was snarky on Cutthroat Kitchen (as they get everybody to be on that show), his personality wasn't nearly as over-the-top or crazed as it is here.  Tonight it seemed like a mustache-twirling act (and not a very good one), and it wouldn't surprise me at all if they're paying him to play the "villain" this season, keeping him long enough until other storylines build, or if this group of contestants turns out to be lackluster, until close to the end.  I'm just going to consider him as one of the built-in obstacles the real contestants have to face, rather than an actual contestant.

[Maverick]

After the Justin Warner and Cowboy Lenny debacles, no way is Matthew is wining.  Ever.  Even FN isn't that dumb to deal with BS that would fly if they tried to make a show with him.  He's there until about top 5, maybe 4 to stir shit up.  I think Matthew really is a douchy jerk totally lacking in self awareness and is in no way playing character.  I do think think he's is playing it for the cameras, though, no doubt at the subtle prodding of some giddy producer wetting his pants at Penny 2.0.  And I didn't know Arnold was the drag queen, I would have suspected Matthew.  So of those diva looks/reaction shots he was giving were straight out of Dynasty circa 1983.

 

Mr. Not Ready for Anytime will make it until about halfway through the competition.  Each week they'll tell him he has something but he's got to pull it together...until he doesn't.

 

 The NFL guy will go far, maybe even top 3, but let's be real...he's the designated healthy food contestant this year--he ain't winning.

 

 I have Rue pegged as this year's Orion or Orchid:  put together out of the gate, well received. but ultimately she won't "grow" enough and they'll get tired of her and eliminate her around #6.

 

 Stepford wife needs to go.  It's a toss up for whether it should be her or mommy blogger first (since Matthew has a hidden immunity idol good until the final 4).  I'm leaning toward mommy blogger though because she's got the double whammy of Melissa D's 'I'm a mom so YOU MUST LISTEN TO ME!" and Debbie's "I'm [insert nationality her] in case you forgot!"   

 

 Where the hell did they cast this season?  Halftime at a football gamer parking lot?  At least half the cast seems to be a food truck owner...with a tailgater thrown in for good measure.  The rest appear to be food bloggers.  Apparently when they cancelled that awful foo truck show hosted by a football player they just threw the leftover contestants at this show and called it a day.  If only the could have gotten a few never-rans from Game of Cones and Sugar Dome they could have called this season Food Network Star: Leftovers 

[JenMcSnark]

And while Matthew is obnoxious, I would've reacted exactly the same way to a woman who didn't know me from Adam saying, "let me tell you something as a Mother." I can't imagine a co-worker, even one I'd known for years, presuming to act like my surrogate mother and offering me unsolicited advice. Her line before that, "what did you learn from the judges,"  was also really condescending, like she was a kindergarten or Sunday school teacher. To his credit, Matthew actually did give her a straight answer

 

I'm cool with him not wanting to listen to her and maybe even interrupting her to tell her so.  But did he really need to be such an asshole?  I guess this is where I admit my age, but I do believe in not being disrespectful to people older than you unless they are completely disrespecting you...which she wasn't.

 

Like others have said, I'm sure he'll be kept around for the "entertainment" value.  I honestly don't know if I can watch the show if he continues to act that way.  Pretty much everything he did made me want to bitch slap him.  

[J-Man]

 

With practice and perseverance and sound mentoring from Giada,

Mentoring? Is that what they're calling it now?

[Surrealist]

Matthew going home would have been a perfect ending to the episode, but it was too much to hope for.  I am pretty sure he was on Chopped one time

 

I think you're right. My brain is running through Chopped episodes and I vaguely remember seeing Matthew on one of them.

[cooksdelight]

My eyes are bleeding from scrolling through the previous Chopped episode contestants and I couldn't find his name anywhere. He claimed in his goofy bio for the CIA that he would be appearing in early 2013 on Chopped... if he did, it was under another name.

[Madding crowd]

Lots of food truck owners and bloggers, plus some recycled contestants from other shows; in other words nothing new. Couldn't stand Matthew on CTK and can't stand him on this show. And his stupid hashtag idea should have got him the boot. So he is going to make a dish and then hashtag it each episode? Then what? He thinks millions of people will care enough to retweet it and that means something?

 

I liked Eddie on Masterchef, but hate people who are entering yet another competition. The sandwich guy seemed ok but I wasn't thrilled with anyone else. Nothing could be worse though, then last year's Lenny. i hated him with a passion and could not believe he actually won. No one hear seems quite than bad.

[Snarklepuss]

Maybe the sandwich guy can switch to wraps and become The Wrap King. A healthier version of the Sandwich King. Now that would be original. As others have commented, I can't believe that he's gotten even this far with a concept regurgitated from a former winner. Whose sandwich show was just cancelled. And there's something about the guy I find phony and unappealing. In addition to his horrible hair cut.

 

Awww damn, I just checked and it seems that Jeff Mauro did many a wrap on his now defunct TV show, because (wait for it) - a wrap is get this - a kind of sandwich!  Who knew?  But that's OK, because now that Jeff's show is gone and he's branched out from sandwiches to everything else, there's room for another Sandwich King on Food Network!  Right? ;)

 

Slightly off topic, but this is a proven fact that people who have grown up using Twitter & Facebook, etc, have trouble communicating with other people in person. There was a study somewhere (which I can't find) showing teenagers pictures of people making different expression (mad, happy, scared, etc) & the teenagers all had trouble identifying the emotions. Matthew seems like the epitome of this problem to me, when you think your cooking show is based on "hashtag" instead of your food, you are not a people person.

 

Yes!  I've actually read a few articles on that study, which I also can't find now.

 

Gah, I just read that Emilia is a Beauty Pageant veteran.  So she occupies two former contestant slots - Pageant Girl from last year and Ice Queen, of which they seem to have one every season.  She'll be the one Tusch and Susie will tisk at as they send her home for lack of warmth.  I can just see those "dials of doom" now!

 

Speaking of Tusch and Susie, I hope they are more present on screen this season.  I haven't liked how absent they've been the past few seasons.