The Kitchen - General Discussion

[Gramto6]

1 hour ago, Yeah No said:

I'm not just concerned about Alex's daughter's health - I feel for her because it has to be hard to be an obese kid in Manhattan.  Knowing the place the way I do I can only imagine how rough that is, especially when your mom is famous and you appear on TV.  It may not bother her so much yet but give it a year or two.  Alex benefits from being able to hide her weight on TV because most of it is below the waist, but her daughter is just the opposite and it's not a good look.

Regarding Alex's fiancé, I just don't see them together at all and now knowing that the age difference is as big as I thought it was doesn't help.  When I saw that he's one of those baseball cap backwards/plaid shirt guys I couldn't believe it.  Alex is in her late 40s and acts like someone's mother, and if he's a late 30's hipster type, ugh, the dynamics are all wrong as far as I'm concerned.  He doesn't seem like the kind of guy that really wants to be with his mama mia.  There's a world of difference between being born in '72 and being born in '82.

May be true but my late DH was born in 1928 I was born in 1949 and we had 14 wonderful years before he passed in late 1997. Every relationship is different and unique, you can't judge by age alone.

[Yeah No]

23 hours ago, Gramto6 said:

May be true but my late DH was born in 1928 I was born in 1949 and we had 14 wonderful years before he passed in late 1997. Every relationship is different and unique, you can't judge by age alone.

But my opinion about their relationship wasn't based on age alone.  It was based on my perception of their specific dynamics.  Rarely do I feel that two people don't seem like they belong together and they work out. 

Regarding their age difference, it was more about their generational differences than it was about age.  It is arguable that there are fewer generation-related differences between people born in 1928 and those born in 1949 and Millennials and any generation before them.  Part of that is because of the big change in the way kids grew up after Gen X.  I used to tell my Dad (who was born in 1927) that he and I were far more similar in outlook despite our 31 year age difference than I was with anyone 31 years younger than me (I'm 62).  I know a lot of Gen X people that feel a big generation gap between them and Millennials and have similar opinions about them in general as people far older than them.  So that is why I felt that some of the differences between Alex and her fiancé had something to do with age.  He's on the old end of the Millennial generation but the way he presents himself makes me feel that he is squarely in that generation.

Edited July 29, 2020 by Yeah No

[Gramto6]

I still believe that every relationship is different  and one can't apply generalizations based on what generation they are from. My late DH was a Hungarian refugee from WWII via relocation in Australia...totally different life experience from me yet we meshed and had a great life. Why can't Alex and her betrothed have the same thing?

Edited July 29, 2020 by Gramto6

[Yeah No]

14 minutes ago, Gramto6 said:

I still believe that every relationship is different  and one can't apply generalizations based on what generation they are from. My late DH was a Hungarian refugee from WWII via relocation in Australia...totally different life experience from me yet we meshed and had a great life. Why can't Alex and her betrothed have the same thing?

Sure they could, but my intuition says "no" and that assessment wasn't based on age or anything related to their backgrounds.  It was based on nothing other than my gut reaction to their specific personal dyanmics as I said above.  Read my original post.  It was about their dynamics.  I didn't even know their age difference at that point.  Finding out the generational difference after I formed my opinion about them only put the icing on it for me.

Edited July 29, 2020 by Yeah No

[cameron]

5 hours ago, Gramto6 said:

I still believe that every relationship is different  and one can't apply generalizations based on what generation they are from. My late DH was a Hungarian refugee from WWII via relocation in Australia...totally different life experience from me yet we meshed and had a great life. Why can't Alex and her betrothed have the same thing?

In your case it was your husband that was older, not you.  Big difference in Alex's case is she is the older one.

[Brookside]

 

On 7/19/2020 at 7:19 AM, Ashforth said:

Plus, a Greek salad with no feta? No pepperoncini? Did it even have Kalamata olives? I don't remember seeing them on the show, so I checked the recipe on FN's website and it does call for them. I did appreciate the pickled red onions instead of raw, but would it kill them to tell viewers how to make those, much less how to "can them properly"? 

And his construction was all wrong. If you are serving immediately, you lightly toss the lettuce with dressing, then you can do your "fancy" laying on of the other ingredients and drizzling the remaining dressing. 

Traditional Greek salad has neither pepperoncini nor lettuce.

 

Edited July 29, 2020 by Brookside

[Yeah No]

2 hours ago, cameron said:

In your case it was your husband that was older, not you.  Big difference in Alex's case is she is the older one.

Good point!  And that is an unusual role reversal situation that I would not expect a man with this guy's personality to enjoy for the long haul.  Alex has a dominant personality.  He doesn't seem to be obsequious enough not to clash with that after a while despite functioning as her devoted little helper in these episodes.  My parents had a traditional role reversal relationship.  My mother was the dominant one and my father was the more deferring one, plus my mother was 3 years older than my father (which was not the norm for their time at all).  If not for my father's relatively obsequious personality, they never would have worked out.

[Ashforth]

21 hours ago, Brookside said:

Traditional Greek salad has neither pepperoncini nor lettuce.

Fair enough! For what it's worth, the shrimp looked delicious.

Edited July 30, 2020 by Ashforth

[Irlandesa]

11 hours ago, Yeah No said:

It is arguable that there are fewer generation-related differences between people born in 1928 and those born in 1949 and Millennials and any generation before them. 

Someone born in 1928 lived through the Great Depression and WWII--two highly significant world events which impacted how someone grew up and was raised.  There is nothing that significant between 1972 and 1982.  I find the Gen X, Gen Y, Millennials notion to be mostly an artificial construct.  It can add some cultural context but ultimately, there are too many other variables that go into creating values, a worldview, professional attitudes, where someone grew up, religious upbringing....etc. 

They've been together four years.  I'd hope they could judge their compatibility. Heck, he proposed after three or so months in quarantine together.

And they both like boiled hotdogs?  I mean, that's a huge hurdle they cleared already.

5 hours ago, cameron said:

In your case it was your husband that was older, not you.  Big difference in Alex's case is she is the older one.

That's also a good point.  With men, I don't think people start questioning their relationships with younger women until the age difference is around 25 years (unless the woman is 20 or so--in that case it might drop to 15 years difference).  But with women, if she's like five years older, the jokes about the man being with an "older woman" begin.

But again, it's a weird societal concept that no one bats an eye when the genders are reversed.

Anyway, I wish them well.  From the 30 seconds or so we see of them on The Kitchen, they seem happy. 

Quote

I feel for her because it has to be hard to be an obese kid in Manhattan. 

Are they in Manhattan?  I think if her daughter wants to be on TV, she should be on TV.  If she gets teased, I doubt being on TV will matter one way or the other.  But being overweight isn't a character flaw.  It doesn't mean her daughter doesn't get to enjoy or experience things in life.  And if she wants to have the same experiences as the other The Kitchen kids are getting, then I think she should.  If she doesn't, then I'd hope Alex would let her bow out.

Edited July 29, 2020 by Irlandesa

[cameron]

3 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

Someone born in 1928 lived through the Great Depression and WWII--two highly significant world events which impacted how someone grew up and was raised.  There is nothing that significant between 1972 and 1982.  I find the Gen X, Gen Y, Millennials notion to be mostly an artificial construct.  It can add some cultural context but ultimately, there are too many other variables that go into creating values, a worldview, professional attitudes, where someone grew up, religious upbringing....etc. 

They've been together four years.  I'd hope they could judge their compatibility. Heck, he proposed after three or so months in quarantine together.

And they both like boiled hotdogs?  I mean, that's a huge hurdle they cleared already.

That's also a good point.  With men, I don't think people start questioning their relationships with younger women until the age difference is around 25 years (unless the woman is 20 or so--in that case it might drop to 15 years difference).  But with women, if she's like five years older, the jokes about the man being with an "older woman" begin.

But again, it's a weird societal concept that no one bats an eye when the genders are reversed.

Anyway, I wish them well.  From the 30 seconds or so we see of them on The Kitchen, they seem happy. 

Are they in Manhattan?  I think if her daughter wants to be on TV, she should be on TV.  If she gets teased, I doubt being on TV will matter one way or the other.  But being overweight isn't a character flaw.  It doesn't mean her daughter doesn't get to enjoy or experience things in life.  And if she wants to have the same experiences as the other The Kitchen kids are getting, then I think she should.  If she doesn't, then I'd hope Alex would let her bow out.

Personally, I don't think any of these kids should be getting tv time.  It could give  them an inflated sense of ego.

Edited July 29, 2020 by cameron

[Ashforth]

1 hour ago, Irlandesa said:

And they both like boiled hotdogs?  I mean, that's a huge hurdle they cleared already.

Hahaha Alex told the story of her dad getting her boiled dogs from hot dog carts on the way home from school but didn't *exactly* endorse the boiled dog now - she deferred to the fiance's preference IIRC. But yes, that's the give and take of a good relationship. Plus, you can always boil some and grill some (it's actually good to boil before you grill, imo).

[Brookside]

2 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

Someone born in 1928 lived through the Great Depression and WWII--two highly significant world events which impacted how someone grew up and was raised.  There is nothing that significant between 1972 and 1982.  I find the Gen X, Gen Y, Millennials notion to be mostly an artificial construct.  It can add some cultural context but ultimately, there are too many other variables that go into creating values, a worldview, professional attitudes, where someone grew up, religious upbringing....etc. 

They've been together four years.  I'd hope they could judge their compatibility. Heck, he proposed after three or so months in quarantine together.

And they both like boiled hotdogs?  I mean, that's a huge hurdle they cleared already.

That's also a good point.  With men, I don't think people start questioning their relationships with younger women until the age difference is around 25 years (unless the woman is 20 or so--in that case it might drop to 15 years difference).  But with women, if she's like five years older, the jokes about the man being with an "older woman" begin.

But again, it's a weird societal concept that no one bats an eye when the genders are reversed.

Anyway, I wish them well.  From the 30 seconds or so we see of them on The Kitchen, they seem happy. 

Are they in Manhattan?  I think if her daughter wants to be on TV, she should be on TV.  If she gets teased, I doubt being on TV will matter one way or the other.  But being overweight isn't a character flaw.  It doesn't mean her daughter doesn't get to enjoy or experience things in life.  And if she wants to have the same experiences as the other The Kitchen kids are getting, then I think she should.  If she doesn't, then I'd hope Alex would let her bow out.

Thank you for this.  I tried to respond to all these posts similarly but kept getting so irritated and snarky I ended up deleting everything.  You are much more reasoned and articulate than I could manage!

[cameron]

Just because Alex and her current intended have been together for four years does not make them necessarily permanently compatible.  A lot of famous couples have lived together for a long time, have children together and after getting married they don't make it.

[Yeah No]

13 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

Someone born in 1928 lived through the Great Depression and WWII--two highly significant world events which impacted how someone grew up and was raised.  There is nothing that significant between 1972 and 1982.  I find the Gen X, Gen Y, Millennials notion to be mostly an artificial construct.  It can add some cultural context but ultimately, there are too many other variables that go into creating values, a worldview, professional attitudes, where someone grew up, religious upbringing....etc. 

Alex seems to "motherly" for him.  He seems like a young guy that is attracted to that but who will rebel eventually when he feels that she is too controlling for him.  Or she might find him tedious after a while because he never actually grows up enough for her in the big picture.

I know people born in the early '70s that rant on about people barely ten years younger than them like they were old codgers.  A LOT of them, especially online.  You'd think they were born 40 years before Millennials, not 10-15 years!  Obviously something significant happened in those years.  And many social scientists talk about it so I don't think it's without some validity.  YMMV.

13 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

Are they in Manhattan?  I think if her daughter wants to be on TV, she should be on TV.  If she gets teased, I doubt being on TV will matter one way or the other.  But being overweight isn't a character flaw.  It doesn't mean her daughter doesn't get to enjoy or experience things in life.  And if she wants to have the same experiences as the other The Kitchen kids are getting, then I think she should.  If she doesn't, then I'd hope Alex would let her bow out.

I don't know if they live in Manhattan but anywhere in NYC a size 12 is considered a "plus size".  I know what that culture is like so I feel for the kid.  I don't know what she really feels about it but it can't be a piece of cake (Ooooooh, bad pun, LOL) to be a young overweight woman in a city as thin-obsessed as NY.

Edited July 30, 2020 by Yeah No

[Irlandesa]

31 minutes ago, Yeah No said:

I know people born in the early '70s that rant on about people barely ten years younger than them like they were old codgers.  A LOT of them, especially online.  You'd think they were born 40 years before Millennials, not 10-15 years!  Obviously something significant happened in those years.  And many social scientists talk about it so I don't think it's without some validity. 

The idea of generational differences sells books and gets clicks; however studies that have looked at cohorts since the 70s regarding things like loneliness, happiness, cynicism...etc. or job attitudes haven't found statistically significant changes between them. But it is a cottage industry and makes money so there's that.  I just think people are more willing to attribute differences in perspective to generational differences when there's an age difference and call it simply a difference in opinion when someone is their own age. 

But even where there are differences (like opinions towards some social issues), it's not 100%/0%.  There will be a lot of shared points of view and any gap will narrow the closer they are to one another. 

From what I've seen of them on The Kitchen, I haven't seen her mother him. 

11 hours ago, cameron said:

Just because Alex and her current intended have been together for four years does not make them necessarily permanently compatible.  A lot of famous couples have lived together for a long time, have children together and after getting married they don't make it.

That's not just famous people. It's true of all people.  And I'm not arguing they'll be together forever and ever and ever, all I'm saying is that I don't think the fact that she's older than he is will be what dooms them should they end up doomed.

 

[Yeah No]

5 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

The idea of generational differences sells books and gets clicks; however studies that have looked at cohorts since the 70s regarding things like loneliness, happiness, cynicism...etc. or job attitudes haven't found statistically significant changes between them. But it is a cottage industry and makes money so there's that.  I just think people are more willing to attribute differences in perspective to generational differences when there's an age difference and call it simply a difference in opinion when someone is their own age. 

But even where there are differences (like opinions towards some social issues), it's not 100%/0%.  There will be a lot of shared points of view and any gap will narrow the closer they are to one another. 

From what I've seen of them on The Kitchen, I haven't seen her mother him. 

That's not just famous people. It's true of all people.  And I'm not arguing they'll be together forever and ever and ever, all I'm saying is that I don't think the fact that she's older than he is will be what dooms them should they end up doomed.

 

I have repeatedly said in this thread that my original post and opinion on their relationship had to do with my perception of them as individuals - their dynamics does play a part as does age but those aren't even the main things at all.  It's more about their personalities independent of each other as I have witnessed them, my knowledge and experience with such personalities combined with my intuition about what makes a good match.  And that's as valid as any other means of deciding whether two people will work together as anything else - at least for me.  If other people think that's not enough and need more information, that's their opinion.  I can think of several celebrity couples over the years that I knew wouldn't work out based on the same criteria and pretty much all of them didn't.  Some took a few years before they crashed and burned and others did so much sooner.  I don't think I need to defend my ability in this area but here I am again feeling defensive.

Edited July 30, 2020 by Yeah No

[Yeah No]

5 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

The idea of generational differences sells books and gets clicks; however studies that have looked at cohorts since the 70s regarding things like loneliness, happiness, cynicism...etc. or job attitudes haven't found statistically significant changes between them. But it is a cottage industry and makes money so there's that.  I just think people are more willing to attribute differences in perspective to generational differences when there's an age difference and call it simply a difference in opinion when someone is their own age.

I don't know about that.  A lot of studies I've read about show that Millennials show themselves to be very different in terms of values, general outlook and job attitudes than pretty much any other generation compared with each other.  I agree with you that there is a lot of hype about generational differences and that a lot of it is bunk, but I think there is some truth to be found in it somewhere.

[Aethera]

Folks, we are wandering a bit from the subject here, which is The Kitchen. Please stick directly to the show in this thread. If you'd like to discuss general topics, our Everything Else forum has lots of threads that might be useful!

[albarino]

On 7/29/2020 at 9:58 AM, Irlandesa said:

Are they in Manhattan?  I think if her daughter wants to be on TV, she should be on TV.  If she gets teased, I doubt being on TV will matter one way or the other.  But being overweight isn't a character flaw.  It doesn't mean her daughter doesn't get to enjoy or experience things in life.  And if she wants to have the same experiences as the other The Kitchen kids are getting, then I think she should.  If she doesn't, then I'd hope Alex would let her bow out.

I think they live in Manhattan, Brooklyn, perhaps?  I don't exactly know.  Tom Wolfe wrote a book and described UES women as "social x-rays."  Daughter went to NYU so we visited several times; I saw those social x-rays.  Holy Cow!  I felt fat (5'9, 135 lbs)! Seriously!

Living in NYC with a wealthy and famous mom has its challenges, I'm sure.  She has the blessing of visiting all of the great things NYC has to offer.  We disagree on what being overweight means emotionally for a kid who is obese; I really do wish her the best until they figure it out.  I don't wish her any ill-will but her mom isn't making it any easier on her.  Okay, not saying anything else about it.

Back to Alex, I guess she is now a semi-regular on The Kitchen.  I like her and let's see how it all works out for us.  I have very, very clearly been watching too many of the Real Housewives but I hope she and GZ don't "out-superior" the others because I do enjoy them all and think they have a nice vibe.  I enjoy the rise of the food culture and Food Network very much and seeing their home kitchens has been quite a joy.

 

[Ashforth]

5 hours ago, albarino said:

Tom Wolfe wrote a book and described UES women as "social x-rays." 

I hope [Alex] and GZ don't "out-superior" the others because I do enjoy them all and think they have a nice vibe.  I enjoy the rise of the food culture and Food Network very much and seeing their home kitchens has been quite a joy.

Bonfire of the Vanities! A truly weird but strangely enjoyable novel. Wolfe pegged the pressure on women in the "high society" of NYC to be grotesquely thin.

I have found The Kitchen so much more enjoyable since they've been "working from home" and I think the hosts all seem happier and more relaxed. Their interactions don't seem as forced as the way they are in the studio shows. I think the show is designed to appeal to home cooks, so I'm not worried that Alex and Zakarian (I really hate the moniker "GZ" lol) will push out their co-hosts who may not be so fine dining oriented.

Side note: Why does GZ (there, I did it) always wear long sleeves while cooking? When I cook, I'm constantly handling my ingredients and washing my hands. If I had on a long-sleeved shirt or suit jacket, they would be wet to the elbows (ICK!).

[Irlandesa]

14 hours ago, albarino said:

I have very, very clearly been watching too many of the Real Housewives but I hope she and GZ don't "out-superior" the others because I do enjoy them all and think they have a nice vibe.  I enjoy the rise of the food culture and Food Network very much and seeing their home kitchens has been quite a joy.

I don't think they'll out-superior the others.  I don't think that's the role Alex is playing.  I think she's sort of the bridge between GZ and the others.  GZ's role is the ultra fine dining chef--only real ingredients, often an ingredient or two that you wouldn't necessarily have in your pantry...etc.  Alex is similar but has a more casual vibe.  I don't think she'd ever react to an ingredient like Kool-Whip or canned croissant rolls and be all "heavens to Betsy, what's this?" the way GZ is about some ingredients.

8 hours ago, Ashforth said:

Why does GZ (there, I did it) always wear long sleeves while cooking? When I cook, I'm constantly handling my ingredients and washing my hands.

Part of it is that wearing a suit is his thing.  But he's also probably used to it since chef jackets typically are long-sleeved.  Long sleeves protect arms from burns from splatter.  I think there's something related to the health code too.

 

[HyeChaps]

Alex is there for when Katie has the baby and will take time off.

[Gam2]

I, too, have wondered about GZ wearing suit jackets or sport coats when cooking. However, I wonder more about why they’re so tight. He looks like he’s wearing his 9 year old son’s clothing. I have no idea if he has a 9 year old son or not but that’s what it looks like to me. Size up, GZ!!!!!

[HyeChaps]

Sliced berries?  Seriously?

[Spunkygal]

3 hours ago, HyeChaps said:

Sliced berries?  Seriously?

Yeah, as usual for this show, that was lame, but I covet the plates that Alex served it on. Pregnant Katie Lee is so beautiful. I am so happy for her.

[Gramto6]

I wish all the best for Katie Lee!

[buttersister]

Not to rag on people's looks, that is, the ones they're born with. But the ones they paid good money for? Or do to themselves? Sure. Alex, back off the makeup a bit. People are watching in HD.

Then stop with the passive-aggressive ideas. Not sure who you were sending a signal to, but slicing berries and laying them in concentric circles? I know this isn't Top Chef, but that's so 10 years ago.

[bichonblitz]

Mystery solved! Katie said in this episode she lives on Long Island. 

[Westiepeach]

N/M

Edited August 2, 2020 by Westiepeach

[StatisticalOutlier]

On 7/29/2020 at 9:58 AM, Irlandesa said:

With men, I don't think people start questioning their relationships with younger women until the age difference is around 25 years (unless the woman is 20 or so--in that case it might drop to 15 years difference).  But with women, if she's like five years older, the jokes about the man being with an "older woman" begin.

I'm living that.  I was born in 1957 and Mr. Outlier was born in 1967.  Huge generational difference (one of us completely missed the upheavals of the 1960s and has no memory of the Vietnam War; the other of us had a POW bracelet), plus the man is the younger one.  Oh well.

 

On 7/31/2020 at 12:13 AM, Ashforth said:

I have found The Kitchen so much more enjoyable since they've been "working from home"

Not me.  I'm on the verge of not watching it any more until they get back in a studio.  What I always liked about the show was their interactions and chit chat, and we don't get that in this format.

 

On 7/31/2020 at 12:13 AM, Ashforth said:

Side note: Why does GZ (there, I did it) always wear long sleeves while cooking? When I cook, I'm constantly handling my ingredients and washing my hands. If I had on a long-sleeved shirt or suit jacket, they would be wet to the elbows (ICK!).

What about Katie Lee and her bell sleeves that she has to hold back with one hand?  And the other day she had necklaces or something on, such that every time she bent over she had to use one arm to hold them back.  Why??

I'm also not a fan of her white maternity bra with a sundress look.  Everyone else managed to have sleeves, and she should have, too.

 

21 hours ago, Gam2 said:

I, too, have wondered about GZ wearing suit jackets or sport coats when cooking. However, I wonder more about why they’re so tight.

He works out.  Men with big muscles often favor tight clothes.  Add that to the trend for men's suits to be slimmer cut these days, and you get Zakarian's outfits.

[cameron]

On 7/30/2020 at 8:27 PM, albarino said:

I think they live in Manhattan, Brooklyn, perhaps?  I don't exactly know.  Tom Wolfe wrote a book and described UES women as "social x-rays."  Daughter went to NYU so we visited several times; I saw those social x-rays.  Holy Cow!  I felt fat (5'9, 135 lbs)! Seriously!

Living in NYC with a wealthy and famous mom has its challenges, I'm sure.  She has the blessing of visiting all of the great things NYC has to offer.  We disagree on what being overweight means emotionally for a kid who is obese; I really do wish her the best until they figure it out.  I don't wish her any ill-will but her mom isn't making it any easier on her.  Okay, not saying anything else about it.

Back to Alex, I guess she is now a semi-regular on The Kitchen.  I like her and let's see how it all works out for us.  I have very, very clearly been watching too many of the Real Housewives but I hope she and GZ don't "out-superior" the others because I do enjoy them all and think they have a nice vibe.  I enjoy the rise of the food culture and Food Network very much and seeing their home kitchens has been quite a joy.

 

Just watched Saturday's show and Alex's daughter looks larger than her.  That much weight is certainly not healthy.  You could tell by that segment that showed them eating that berry carpaccio that she certainly enjoys eating.

 

[Ashforth]

 

On 8/2/2020 at 12:35 AM, buttersister said:

Not to rag on people's looks, that is, the ones they're born with. But the ones they paid good money for? Or do to themselves? Sure. Alex, back off the makeup a bit. People are watching in HD.

Then stop with the passive-aggressive ideas. Not sure who you were sending a signal to, but slicing berries and laying them in concentric circles? I know this isn't Top Chef, but that's so 10 years ago.

Hahaha it's not Top Chef, she's an Iron Chef! ICAG, don't ya know. So yeah, slicing berries is high level cheffing! 

I can give her a pass for the terrible makeup, as I assume she is accustomed to having a professional do her makeup for TV, but I cannot forgive her declaration that "carpaccio" is now a verb, as in "I'm going to carpaccio these strawberries." No, ma'am. No. 

The plates were really lovely, though.

18 hours ago, cameron said:

Just watched Saturday's show and Alex's daughter looks larger than her.  That much weight is certainly not healthy.  You could tell by that segment that showed them eating that berry carpaccio that she certainly enjoys eating.

I've been uncomfortable with comments about Ava's weight, but damn, she looked bigger than ever on Saturday's show. She looks like she could have a heart attack at any moment. It makes me hurt for her. With that being said, she should enjoy eating, all of us should, but it's all in what you eat and how much. She sure as hell didn't get where she is by eating sliced fruit.

[cameron]

7 hours ago, Ashforth said:

 

Hahaha it's not Top Chef, she's an Iron Chef! ICAG, don't ya know. So yeah, slicing berries is high level cheffing! 

I can give her a pass for the terrible makeup, as I assume she is accustomed to having a professional do her makeup for TV, but I cannot forgive her declaration that "carpaccio" is now a verb, as in "I'm going to carpaccio these strawberries." No, ma'am. No. 

The plates were really lovely, though.

I've been uncomfortable with comments about Ava's weight, but damn, she looked bigger than ever on Saturday's show. She looks like she could have a heart attack at any moment. It makes me hurt for her. With that being said, she should enjoy eating, all of us should, but it's all in what you eat and how much. She sure as hell didn't get where she is by eating sliced fruit.

Unfortunately in her case, I think it's the amount of food that she eats.  She never put her fork down once during the segment where they showed them eating the berry dish.

[Yeah No]

27 minutes ago, cameron said:

Unfortunately in her case, I think it's the amount of food that she eats.  She never put her fork down once during the segment where they showed them eating the berry dish.

I pretty much could eat anything I wanted at her age and didn't even weigh 100 lbs. soaking wet.  I have to have my oldest friends remind me of what I used to eat on a regular basis, which used to include fast food plus my Italian-American mother and grandmother's FANTASTIC cooking, plus ginormous sundaes, cheese omelets and "cheeseburger deluxes" at the local diners and ice cream parlors.  Now at 62 I don't even eat one tenth of that and have a weight problem.  Looking at her mother, I vote for the problem being in the genes.

[annzeepark914]

I recently started watching this show & enjoying it because they're *not* all together!  I used to try to watch them and their constant yakking got on my last nerve.  Now that it's one at a time, I don't miss any instructions or comments about the dish each one is preparing. Even Katie's voice doesn't kill my ears now. I kept looking at Alex wondering why she looks so different. Didn't even realize it was Alex at first. 

[Gramto6]

I agree with @annzeepark914 I like them separately better too. It totally tones down Sunny who is so loud and basically obnoxious, does also tone down Katie too. I think in this latest show Alex way over did her make up or someone helped her/suggested she do it. I personally don't like the often juvenile "banter" on  the show when they are all together. I like each personality separately on his/her own w/out the "drama' organized for the show.

[rustyspigot]

The zucchini is the same color as my ENGAGEMENT RING from my FIANCE. We know Alex. And she fried everything except her ENGAGEMENT RING.

So Jeff has a buzzsaw in the background and Katie Lee has a jet flying over for a minute. Katie could have at least hit the pause button for a minute.

[cameron]

26 minutes ago, rustyspigot said:

The zucchini is the same color as my ENGAGEMENT RING from my FIANCE. We know Alex. And she fried everything except her ENGAGEMENT RING.

So Jeff has a buzzsaw in the background and Katie Lee has a jet flying over for a minute. Katie could have at least hit the pause button for a minute.

Whoever is doing Alex's makeup certainly isn't helping her.  Makes her look really hard and old.

[StatisticalOutlier]

8 hours ago, rustyspigot said:

So Jeff has a buzzsaw in the background and Katie Lee has a jet flying over for a minute. Katie could have at least hit the pause button for a minute.

I couldn't hear what she was saying because of the jet noise.  I like my TV shows to have production values.  There's plenty of this type of amateur run-it-till-it-stops stuff on youtube.

[Lady J]

7 hours ago, StatisticalOutlier said:

I couldn't hear what she was saying because of the jet noise.  I like my TV shows to have production values.  There's plenty of this type of amateur run-it-till-it-stops stuff on youtube.

Not hearing that voice of hers is a plus for me .

[Ashforth]

13 hours ago, Leilani said:

I enjoy the quarantine edition so much better then the studio version, I hope they just keep at it.

Every time I see Jeff grilling in his backyard with his neighbors house right next to his  I wonder what his salary is at the FN not that there's anything wrong with living in a middle class neighborhood when you're a Food Network Star.

I loved how his drumstick pops turned out too and want to try it.

I don't know, in my city there are plenty of pretty upscale neighborhoods in which the houses are close together.  Judging by Jeff's indoor kitchen and his awesome backyard kitchen, his home seems fancy enough to me. I imagine that he makes a good living from FN, but I wouldn't expect him to live in a mansion.

I was intrigued by the drumstick pops as well! Especially that he cooked them "standing up." They looked good.

[rustyspigot]

Yeah, Chicago is pretty expensive to live in. I don't know where Jeff is but Lincoln Park has those skinny/longish lots that are very expensive.

[annzeepark914]

Maybe Jeff & Katie (& FN) left the background noise in cause it gave their videos a bit of urbane realism?  I still like these individual presentations. It's as though they each have their own mini shows. It's seeing them relaxed. Nice!

[cameron]

2 hours ago, rustyspigot said:

Yeah, Chicago is pretty expensive to live in. I don't know where Jeff is but Lincoln Park has those skinny/longish lots that are very expensive.

Think he is in the area around Midway Airport.

[buttersister]

WiKi has Jeff in Elmwood Park, NW of the city with a large Italian-American population. Prices below those in Lincoln Park, by a lot. Don’t know when he sunk the $$$ into creating that outdoor kitchen, but seems like he can write off some of it at least while it’s being used for the show.

I'm +1 liking them separated. Cuts way back on the forced whatever that is.

[rustyspigot]

And there is always the possibility of Sunny getting attacked by the bear.

[WritinMan]

Just watched Katie make arugula lemonade.

Again...no! The producers need to stop her.

[cameron]

1 hour ago, buttersister said:

WiKi has Jeff in Elmwood Park, NW of the city with a large Italian-American population. Prices below those in Lincoln Park, by a lot. Don’t know when he sunk the $$$ into creating that outdoor kitchen, but seems like he can write off some of it at least while it’s being used for the show.

I'm +1 liking them separated. Cuts way back on the forced whatever that is.

They sold Elmwood Park in 2017.  Now elsewhere.

[annzeepark914]

On 8/9/2020 at 1:58 PM, WritinMan said:

Just watched Katie make arugula lemonade.

Again...no! The producers need to stop her.

I just read an article online re: people complaining about Katie's odd foods (e.g., carrot hot dogs). Some of the comments were about her not being a good cook, wondering how/why she's on Food Network.  I have one of her cookbooks and the recipes are good...so I wonder what she's doing.

[jlc]

6 minutes ago, annzeepark914 said:

I just read an article online re: people complaining about Katie's odd foods (e.g., carrot hot dogs). Some of the comments were about her not being a good cook, wondering how/why she's on Food Network.  I have one of her cookbooks and the recipes are good...so I wonder what she's doing.

I have always thought she could not cook, but she is a very good friend of Bobby Flay and that is how she got on Food Network.