S12.E11: A New Food Network Star

[txvoodoo]

The final three watch their pilots with Giada and Bobby. Finale!

[susannot]

If their jobs on the Food Network will be traveling around and critiquing restaurants, why do they need to show that they can cook?  Why not call it "Next Food Critic?"  I'm so done with this how.

[magenta]

Rather watch Tyler in the food trucks at least they cook

[txvoodoo]

What. The hell. Is Giada wearing? 

I am no prude but FFS, I don't think that much skin is appropriate for Food Network, unless it's skin on a chicken or fish. It's distracting as hell. 

I have the same deep fryer as that baker. And I want to make those deep fried brioche now.

zomg, "On Fleek Eats" - I may hurl now. 

Extra fleeky. GO AWAY NOW. (This means she's going to win, right? Because I literally would go out of my way to avoid this show?)

Parmesan isn't nutty. Stop using nutty to describe anything that isn't sweet, salty or sour.

Lime jello. IDEK. Did they pick the most basic people to interview?

I have fast-forwarded through ALL the reunion crap. I don't think I lost anything.

Ugh. Well, at least she's not Lenny.  

[TDT]

NOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!

[NYGirl]

Ugh ugh ugh...go away Tregaye... I will NEVER watch anything she is in..she joins D'Arabian  and Fieri on my list of people I hate.

[whinewithwine]

What NYGirl said....x 10.

[HappyDancex2]

did anyone else howl with laughter when they showed tregaye's clip of Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaas and the blood sauce?  gold.

[susannot]

I like Tregaye slightly but will never watch her hypothetical show,which will never happen.  She will show up as a sad has been judge on Guy's Grocery Games.

[txvoodoo]

Wait, she's going to be co-hosting "The Kitchen Sink" this fall?

1. when did it get renamed from "The Kitchen"?
2. Which one of the hosts already there is leaving?

[HappyDancex2]

thought that any of the people on GGG that they showed before this finale that had Guy's season 2 contestants on it would have been better, more natural choices to be a FNS.

Just now, txvoodoo said:

Wait, she's going to be co-hosting "The Kitchen Sink" this fall?

1. when did it get renamed from "The Kitchen"?
2. Which one of the hosts already there is leaving?

i was wondering this myself.  maybe the kitchen - sink is the even shittier version of the show with even more annoying hosts?

[SSAHotchner]

It was so obvious who they were going to choose. Anyone who has watched this program has already tired of her schtick. I couldn't sit through any more of it. Also, any time they asked her a direct question, she hemmed and hawed around and couldn't give a clear, cohesive response. But then, there wasn't much of a choice this season. Damiano is difficult to understand and Jernard was often over the top with his act as well. 

I will say that the restaurants they featured looked great and definitely worth a try. But I really don't see Tregaye's show becoming a success and I can't say the others would have been all that great either. I don't think I'll watch any future seasons, if there are any, of Food Network Star. 

[txvoodoo]

I found this - the page says it isn't currently airing. I don't remember it ever having aired.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/shows/the-kitchen-sink.html 

[LexieLily]

Tregaye's On Fleek Eats? Really, Food Network? Really? I would have paid money for, when Giada asked Ana what she thought of Tregaye's pilot, to have Ana say that she still thought Tregaye was playing a shtick and she didn't know what on fleek and poppin' food meant.

Damiano was my favorite of the pilots and probably the only one of the three I would maybe watch at least one episode, so he gets third. Of course.

[HappyDancex2]

I would be horrified working the Giada all day.  In the first 3 minutes of this show they showed her magna-tooth smile a bunch of times and each time I recoiled.

[MerBearHou]

I am a faithful "The Kitchen" watcher -- have grown to really enjoy the 5 hosts (Marcella the least) -- so if Tregaye joins that show, it will be ruined for me.  Horrible decision if that turns out to be what FN does.

Edited August 1, 2016 by MerBearHou

[HappyDancex2]

Poora Damiano.  In the enda, he was a the only person with a real ah talenta.

[Lillybee]

Thank you all for taking one for the team, I think I can safely skip this one.

[howmanywords]

I'm pretty sure The Kitchen Sink is like a web only version of the Kitchen and a separate thing. It started a few weeks back. The couple of episodes I watched (they werent even full episodes it seemed) had hosts of the Kitchen but not all 5 on at once.

[Christina]

I tried to follow the live tweets for this episode, but gave up after a few minutes because anyone who said they didn't like Tregaye's fleeking, popping, boo comments was labeled a racist, and people kept insisting that FNS had to have a black winner this year because apparently Eddie and someone named Aaron are white. I didn't watch the season Aaron was on, so I just took that from the tweets. 

Anyhow, the first five minutes were full of people commenting on Giada's clothing, with most of them negative. There is a place and time to wear lingerie, and the general feeling is that it is not when hosting a cooking show. Then it dissolved into the racist tweets and I stopped reading them. However, the consensus seemed to be the same as here with  people thinking Damiano traveling to bakeries would be a good show but he needs to slow down his speaking, and that both Tregaye and Jernard need to rein it in a bit. It seems to me that Giada and Bobby did a great disservice to all of these contestants by encouraging the behavior that most people seemed to take exception to and hopefully The Kitchen Sink people will rein in Tregaye. If she was supposed to bring in a younger crowd, I don't think it worked from reading Twitter, and she alienated the older crowd.

I did see that the Food Network poll on who should win was Damiano 49%, Jernard 29% and Tregaye 22% after 1700+ votes so it doesn't seem that the show has any pulse on what the viewers want. Bobby and Giada certainly don't. Oh well, thank goodness it's over.

Edited August 1, 2016 by Christina
Corrected percentages

[cooksdelight]

I've been to the restaurant/diner Tregaye was filming in, it's da bomb. 

With that said.... none of these three people cooked anything, except maybe Jennard when he was helping and explaining why butterflying the shrimp made it easier to cook the shrimp evenly. I didn't know that. The only thing that I learned in this lame hour. 

I kept thinking about Fabio Viviani (Top Chef, Top Chef All Stars), who opened his first restaurant in Simi Valley after being in this country for only 3 years. Damiano has been here 7 and still doesn't speak English as well as Fabio does. He was the one I'd watch the least of those three. 

I feel bad for Jennard, as he not only got in the kitchen and helped cook, but he taught me something I didn't know and I think he'd be a good cooking show host. Without fleeking.

[parrotfeathers]

I recorded this episode due to church revival and fast forwarded to the end to see who won, thinking I could go back and watch the whole thing after that.  

The best thing about the whole 10 weeks was the bloopers of Bobby and Giada.  Other than that, I am speechless.

[Sew Sumi]

*sigh* So predictable. Didn't I call the fix like 6 weeks ago? FN is not NOT on fleek and neither is that dated expression, which just shows how out of touch the PTB at The Network are. 

[insert massive eyeroll here]

Edited August 1, 2016 by Sew Sumi

[parrotfeathers]

32 minutes ago, txvoodoo said:

Wait, she's going to be co-hosting "The Kitchen Sink" this fall?

1. when did it get renamed from "The Kitchen"?
2. Which one of the hosts already there is leaving?

Maybe she is the dishwasher.

[lavenderblue]

I'm not entirely sure "The Network" that Bobby kept referring to wasn't just a random social media intern or janitor whose opinion he and Giada asked.
 

[howmanywords]

BTW speaking of The Kitchen.  Jeff Mauro is now the second highest FNS winner with the most longevity (behind Guy Fieeedddi obviously), IIRC its been 5 years since he's won and has been consistently hosting shows since. Sadly I think the days of them finding anymore legit stars are long gone.

[BW Manilowe]

31 minutes ago, txvoodoo said:

I found this - the page says it isn't currently airing. I don't remember it ever having aired.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/shows/the-kitchen-sink.html 

I saw what looks like it was Ep 4 (of 6) this season a few weekends ago, I think on a Sunday around late AM/early PM. It seems to be an offshoot of The Kitchen, perhaps originally airing online only, with various pairings/groupings of hosts from that hosting each episode (but not all 5 in the same show here, just 2 or 3 at a time). The ep I saw involved Jeff Mauro & Marcela Valladolid debating whether pie or cake was better, & making recipes to prove why each was the better choice.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/shows/the-kitchen-sink/episodes.html

[Wings]

15 minutes ago, Christina said:

people kept insisting that FNS had to have a black winner this year because apparently Eddie and someone named Aaron are white. I didn't watch the season Aaron was on, so I just took that from the tweets. 

They are both black!  

I wonder if Damiano's accent did him in,  which brings me to, was he pushing that too far?  He has been here 7 years.  Certainly you get it that you don't end almost every word with ahhhh.   His brother did not say one word and I don't think he was that shy.  They run a business together so there is a lot of familiarity there that would have fostered something! 

I don't know how Jernard even got this far.  

I love Ana! 

[Commando Cody]

I think the show is all wrapped up before they take any polls and ask the viewers who they think will win. 

Big fleeking surprise. Tregaye was all ready with the fake winning response. She knew she had it in the bag. Her face wasn't even wet when they did a close up. I noticed that they edited her finished film so she was a little more low key. 

This came out as one of the most lack-luster seasons ever. I didn't like anyone. I did kind of like Ana. I'm not into Cuban food though. 

I was watching Jernard's audition and I didn't know how got this far either. 

[Albino]

You guys are really mean.  :(

Winning FNS would change Tregaye's life.  Did you not hear her say that?  On every single epispde? And not just hers...but her boo's, her little boys, her parents and her brothers and sisters.  It would change their lives, people!  As opposed to all the other contestants whose lives would NOT be changed by winning.  This is what makes Tregaye so special!  No one deserves that deee-luxe apartment in the sky more than she.

Damiano finally said something funny - intentional or not - when he was complaining about how he couldn't understand a word Rob was saying.

Oddly enough, I didn't even notice Giada's dress.  I was too fixed on Tregaye's dress, and how it showcased the many rolls of fat on her body.  Lovely.

And wasn't it great to see Martita again? 

Edited August 1, 2016 by Albino

[xaxat]

Alex's "dowdy" comment was my favorite moment of the season. 

It looked like Jernard was uncomfortable watching his antics during his "highlight" tape. He threw away his dignity and didn't get the prize.

Giada should ask Monterey where she got her dress. I really like her fashion style.

Thanksgiving every day might be that one restaurant's hook, but describing a turkey dinner is about as boring as you can get. No matter how good it is.

See you guys when the food trucks start rolling!

[catrice2]

Oh wow...even though we knew it was coming it still seems unbelievable.  I have to admit, I did not watch. I fast forwarded to the end just now and then came here to read the comments. Doesn't sound like I missed anything.  I just cannot imagine her having a decent store, and I still cannot believe she is only 31. 

[Christina]

22 minutes ago, wings707 said:

They are both black!

Facts have no business on Twitter. If you didn't like Tregaye or Jernard, you are racist. If you wanted Tregaye or Jernard to win, it's because FNS had to finally have a black winner. If you wanted Damiano to win, it's because he was attractive. Not to me, but it's been clear since day one that I am not the target viewer. It couldn't possibly be that you didn't want to watch any of them for any other reason. It was maddening and I had to look away.

[Wings]

11 minutes ago, catrice2 said:

Oh wow...even though we knew it was coming it still seems unbelievable.  I have to admit, I did not watch. I fast forwarded to the end just now and then came here to read the comments. Doesn't sound like I missed anything.  I just cannot imagine her having a decent store, and I still cannot believe she is only 31. 

It is worth watching, probably the best episode all season.  Some cute outtakes and the entire cast was there.  I enjoyed it.  I knew Tregue was going to win so that was not an issue for me.  I accepted that long ago!  

Now I remember why Tregue hated Ana, I had forgotten.  It was in the first episode.   

[grisgris]

Like others, I kept trying to figure out what Giada was wearing. I hope that was illusion netting and not her bare skin showing through the barely-there black. Talk about being overdressed. That was more appropriate for opening night at a high rolling casino (or brothel.)

I noticed her remark about "cheating with Damiano." I jest? Do spill.

I just groaned when I saw the title of Tregaye's pilot.  I still contend that the playing field wasn't level as Tregaye didn't have to go into the kitchen and interact with the chef and the food.

Damiano was just too hard to understand, but his pilot was pretty good. But I think Jenard had to do the most actual work in his and was the most interesting. (Not that I'd watch a full-run series by either one of them.)

Loved Ana having to stretch to come up with something positive to say about Tregaye. BWAH!!! 

That's fine.  Sending Tregaye immediately to the graveyard shift for whatever show that is, sounds like a good decision.  Maybe the "network" saw that pickin's were slim (nonexistent) so that was the best decision they could come up with.

[catrice2]

Too late...I already deleted the episode. Maybe I can catch  it On Demand or something, but I doubt I will.  The season bored me, so if it was a recap of that, what is the point? 

They telegraphed the winner a long time ago, and I wasn't enchanted with any of them. 

[Wings]

3 minutes ago, catrice2 said:

Too late...I already deleted the episode. Maybe I can catch  it On Demand or something, but I doubt I will.  The season bored me, so if it was a recap of that, what is the point? 

They telegraphed the winner a long time ago, and I wasn't enchanted with any of them. 

It will repeat on the cooking chanel for days to come!  LOL

[KHenry14]

Food Network is getting crushed on facebook for this decision. And frankly, they are right. Certainly, Tregaye can't host the type of show that was shown in her pilot. She was totally lost doing that show. So doing the Kitchen makes some sense I guess. Either way, I'm not watching her

[Psychobunny]

I've been meaning to write for awhile that the first time I heard the term "on fleek" was in an article talking about how it was passé, and that was more than a year ago. I am laughing that they aren't spending a penny on her show.  Not only does she not get an actual cooking show, she doesn't even get one like the pilot. She gets shoehorned into a second rate spin off of a talk show.

Did anyone else notice that skinny blonde was missing? I was wondering why she wasn't in Star Salvation, since the only other one not included was Martita and she was already on her third chance so it made sense not to have her on. I think something happened that made them get rid of skinny blonde and purge her as much as possible (although maybe she just had the good sense to refuse to come back).

[TDT]

9 minutes ago, Psychobunny said:

 

Did anyone else notice that skinny blonde was missing? I was wondering why she wasn't in Star Salvation, since the only other one not included was Martita and she was already on her third chance so it made sense not to have her on. I think something happened that made them get rid of skinny blonde and purge her as much as possible (although maybe she just had the good sense to refuse to come back).

Wasnt she having legal troubles with something..?

[SSAHotchner]

1 hour ago, Christina said:

I tried to follow the live tweets for this episode, but gave up after a few minutes because anyone who said they didn't like Tregaye's fleeking, popping, boo comments was labeled a racist, and people kept insisting that FNS had to have a black winner this year because apparently Eddie and someone named Aaron are white. I didn't watch the season Aaron was on, so I just took that from the tweets. 

Anyhow, the first five minutes were full of people commenting on Giada's clothing, with most of them negative. There is a place and time to wear lingerie, and the general feeling is that it is not when hosting a cooking show. Then it dissolved into the racist tweets and I stopped reading them. However, the consensus seemed to be the same as here with  people thinking Damiano traveling to bakeries would be a good show but he needs to slow down his speaking, and that both Tregaye and Jernard need to rein it in a bit. It seems to me that Giada and Bobby did a great disservice to all of these contestants by encouraging the behavior that most people seemed to take exception to and hopefully The Kitchen Sink people will rein in Tregaye. If she was supposed to bring in a younger crowd, I don't think it worked from reading Twitter, and she alienated the older crowd.

I did see that the Food Network poll on who should win was Damiano 49%, Jernard 29% and Tregaye 22% after 1700+ votes so it doesn't seem that the show has any pulse on what the viewers want. Bobby and Giada certainly don't. Oh well, thank goodness it's over.

I figured it was a race issue, maybe to make up for all the flack over the Paula Deen thing or maybe just to have more black hosts on Food Network. It would have been better for Damiano to have been eliminated before the pilots and have 3 black contestants competing against each other. Damiano could have been the best cook in the world, but no way was he winning this season. Not saying he was the best cook in the world, just that it wouldn't have mattered. The outcome had been predetermined. I don't know what the network's statistics are on audience demographics. I actually enjoy the baking competitions more than just watching someone cook something. 

What is it that  posters here have against Melissa d'Arabian? I remember wanting her to win her season. She seems like a normal person (not a restaurant chef) with some skills. As with many cooking shows, my taste preferences would keep me from making or eating a lot of what they cook, but I still enjoy seeing some new ideas and any hints about how to do things more easily, inexpensively, etc. Anyway, I prefer her calm, no nonsense style, to some of the more over the top contestants from this season like Tregaye or Erin. Sheesh that giggle was quite annoying. 

[HappyDancex2]

I only saw about 15 minutes of it live...enough for opening remarks, Jernard yelling his way thru segment 1 and then at the end when Tregaye Yaaaaaased and won.  It's about to become background noise off DVR.

I felt a little cringey watching Bobby and Giada's outtakes since they were all handsey.   And glancey.  And googly eyed.  Dirty.  Toothy and Derrty.

What I really learned from this episode that Popeye's Beer Can Frickin Chicken has no beer in it...because why would you call something BEER CAN chicken when it has no beer in it?   Perfect sponsors for the next Food Network Buffoon.

[mlp]

Well, crap.  It's been obvious all along that Tregaye would win but I kept hoping for a big surprise.  I honestly thought that Damiano had the best pilot even though he is a bit hard to understand.  I'd watch him.  I'll never, ever watch Tregaye.  It's absolutely beyond me that anyone at FN finds her authentic or entertaining.  

Quote

What is it that  posters here have against Melissa d'Arabian?

I can speak for myself only but I can't stand her.  In fact, before Tregaye, she was my least favorite person on FN.  I now have to bump her up one notch.  The only times I ever see her are when she's acting as a judge on some show.   She comes across to me as a know-it-all who's very impressed with herself and she emotes like she's in a junior high school play.  

[LittleIggy]

That was expected but still disappointing. Glad that Ms. Fleek is only going to be on an online only program in the wee-wee hours of the morning. Fleek off!

[catrice2]

Ok, so Tregaye is not going to have a real show? It is going to be an online show?   What happened to the pilot ideas? Did Jenard dance or split his pants? 

[HappyDancex2]

I just saw Tregaye's pilot.  Did I watch something different?  That was so put on and annoying.  "they've been keepin it cute since 19XX" (the date of the old restaurant).  What the hell kind of description is that??????  I cannot believe that Ana was forced to say that Tregaye seemed authentic...that was ridiculous.  No wonder her mouth frowned and betrayed her.  

All she did was incorporate that finger fluttering, Yaaaaas, on fleek, poppin, keepin it cute into her forced speech for the show.  I.  Just.  Cannot.

Damiano's pilot was far better than I thought.  Hmph.  I cannot believe they made Damiano sit with those guys after he got eliminated.

[HappyDancex2]

OH and did Giada and Bobby think Jernard say "I wouldn't trade the experience for a big bag of nipples?" Instead of "nickels?"  Jernard was Damiano-ish in his pilot..the name of the restaurant was "Harold" and something and I thought he said "Hell and" whatever it was.  Anyway it was either nipples or knuckles.

[Aerobicidal]

I'm hoping they reconsider and name Tregaye's series Fleekshow. She can travel to different fairs and carnivals (I already know such a show exists, but it's not like fresh and novel are things FN cares about) with special guests like the bearded (lunch) lady and Sandra Lee wearing diaphanous sleeves while giving hand- and blowjobs to corndogs and traveling on rides that make her literally vertical.

Edited August 1, 2016 by Aerobicidal

[MerBearHou]

Are Bobby and Giada running Food Network now?  Where are the checks and balances and leadership at the FN?   Because none of this makes sense.  Who is there to tell Giada her wardrobe is a joke, embarrassing for her, ridiculous?  Who is there to tell Bobby and Giada that encouraging fleek, poppin', uncomfortable stereotypes are not what most of the public wants to support and watch?  And isn't this network supposed to draw in viewers rather than repel them?  I would think the advertisers would prefer that.  Bobby's personality is arrogant and off-putting.  Giada's personality is desperate and vain.  

Call me boring but I do prefer the calmer stand and stir shows like Ina and The Great British Bake-off over these manufactured caricature shows.  Those are the shows I watch (often as repeats) as comfort and to learn a thing or two.   Food Network, I don't know who you're listening to (and you probably don't read these boards), but in my opinion, you're going in the wrong direction.  Makes me sad.

Edited August 1, 2016 by MerBearHou

[HappyDancex2]

Damiano.  Will it....

Jernard.  Will it....

Tregaye.  It won't.