Guy's Grocery Games - General Discussion

[spiderpig]

I kind of wondered if Alex deliberately burned her peppers (didn't someone tell her off-cam not to burn her peppers?) so she wouldn't alienate more people by winning again?  Her dish concept appealed to me more than Rocco's, but since they're all playing for charity I'm happy with whoever wins.

I agree with others that Justin has become a favorite.  He's knowledgeable, talented, articulate and fun to watch.

[Psychobunny]

I'm just pissed that the money is going to a charity associated with that idiot Dr. Oz. I don't call him a charlatan because he is apparently an excellent cardiac surgeon but he has no apparent understanding of evidence based medicine and the money will likely go to some proponent of the latest woo that he is enamored of this week as opposed to where it could actually help someone. I'm also kind of glad that Alex lost so people will stop attributing any of her wins to producer manipulation rather than skill.

[jcbrown]

2 hours ago, Psychobunny said:

I'm just pissed that the money is going to a charity associated with that idiot Dr. Oz. I don't call him a charlatan because he is apparently an excellent cardiac surgeon but he has no apparent understanding of evidence based medicine and the money will likely go to some proponent of the latest woo that he is enamored of this week as opposed to where it could actually help someone. I'm also kind of glad that Alex lost so people will stop attributing any of her wins to producer manipulation rather than skill.

Dr Oz is  snake-oil salesman, plain and simple. He may be a good surgeon, but that is counter to the anti-science bullshit that he generally peddles.

Edited September 19, 2017 by jcbrown

[Jesse]

23 hours ago, Psychobunny said:

I'm just pissed that the money is going to a charity associated with that idiot Dr. Oz. I don't call him a charlatan because he is apparently an excellent cardiac surgeon but he has no apparent understanding of evidence based medicine and the money will likely go to some proponent of the latest woo that he is enamored of this week as opposed to where it could actually help someone. I'm also kind of glad that Alex lost so people will stop attributing any of her wins to producer manipulation rather than skill.

I agree with all of this, and am generally fascinated that Food Network apparently really lets them pick whatever charities they want -- Dr. Oz, rehab, Planned Parenthood?? I would have expected all animal shelters and pediatric cancer, you know? 

[CaptainCranky]

17 hours ago, Jesse said:

I agree with all of this, and am generally fascinated that Food Network apparently really lets them pick whatever charities they want -- Dr. Oz, rehab, Planned Parenthood?? I would have expected all animal shelters and pediatric cancer, you know? 

The appealing thing about the celebrity charities is you know they mean something to the people and not some vague FN deal.

[spiderpig]

Who didn't foresee the non-elimination of a superfan after Round One?  Anyone?

I didn't like entitled attitude of the guy who worked for Guy, and cocky kids really get on my nerves, so I guess out of the three the least annoying won.

Seeing the judges act as mentors was fun, though.

[spiderpig]

Although I was trick-or-treated out with Food Network by October 2, I rather enjoyed this episode of GGG.  It fit in with the general goofiness of the show.  I particularly enjoyed the wigged judges banging their gavels as the rounds ended.

I was rooting for David (deviled egg) because he was so happy and seemed like a fun guy, but was glad Abigail took home the prize at the end.

[HappyDancex2]

Some horrid lady with a lazy vocal fry is competing against....FNS winner cowboy Lenny!   How old is this episode???

I'm annoyed that all she can keep repeating is how she only cooks for rich people, no budgets, never made a cheap 8 dollar burger for her clients.....yeah we get it.  And she knows a crepe recipe like the back of her hand...wow...she's amazing!!!!!!  Eye roll.

[Jaded]

14 minutes ago, HappyDancex2 said:

Some horrid lady with a lazy vocal fry is competing against....FNS winner cowboy Lenny!   How old is this episode???

I'm annoyed that all she can keep repeating is how she only cooks for rich people, no budgets, never made a cheap 8 dollar burger for her clients.....yeah we get it.  And she knows a crepe recipe like the back of her hand...wow...she's amazing!!!!!!  Eye roll.

Google says it originally aired in 2013. After seeing a clip on the FN site it looks like it's from when they filmed the show in a real grocery store for the first season. I only started watching regularly over the Summer and read the wiki about it when I first saw an episode that looked different. I was also curious about what happened to all the food in the fake store when shows weren't being filmed.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/shows/guys-grocery-games/episodes/the-ol-switcheroo

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3176346/

[HappyDancex2]

That's weird.  I caught it midway and didn't even realize it was a real grocery store!!!  But Blais still looked normal and didn't have his "schtick" look he's cultivated now.  He looks like a kid in a tshirt...kind of refreshing really.

[cpcathy]

Wait, whatever happened to cowboy Lenny? Did he get a show at all?

[chessiegal]

3 hours ago, cpcathy said:

Wait, whatever happened to cowboy Lenny? Did he get a show at all?

Nope - once FN got wind of some of his salacious on-line antics they tried to erase his history. Talk about bad vetting.

[RealityCheck]

Guy Fieri Cooks BBQ For Evacuees Of California Wildfires
 

Quote

 

Fieri and his workers assembled a mobile kitchen at the Santa Rosa Veterans Memorial Building’s parking lot to set up camp, KTVU reported.  Fieri said he and his team would be cooking lunch and dinner for evacuees until Saturday.

Fieri was whipping up pulled pork, roasted chicken and macaroni and cheese.

Captain Mark Cyr of the Salvation Army said Fieri’s cuisine was helping bring up people’s spirits.

 

[spiderpig]

23 hours ago, RealityCheck said:

Guy Fieri Cooks BBQ For Evacuees Of California Wildfires
 

I have to say "good for him".  I live 20 minutes from Napa, and the destruction and loss of life in such a beautiful area is devastating.  They are shipping in face masks because the air is so toxic from burning hazmat.  The thing with this disaster is that there was no warning.  If you look at the fatalities, almost all were over 70.  They were asleep when the fires broke out and everything spread so quickly they were unable to escape.

They evacuated to whole town of Calistoga, and the residents were told they had seven minutes to get out.

I give Guy kudos for offering a much-needed service and reaching out in a human way to the victims of this horrible situation.  All they want to do is go home, knowing that it may not even exist anymore.

[mlp]

I'm pretty sure that the set for GGG is in Santa Rosa.  I wonder if it has survived.  Guy grew up in northern California so I'm sure he has a special affinity for the affected areas.  The pictures of the devastation are beyond awful.  I don't like his shtick but I think he's a good person at heart and I do admire him for actually doing something instead of just writing a check.

[chessiegal]

Guy has a restaurant in Santa Rosa.

[Wings]

He also lives in Santa Rosa. 

[spiderpig]

OK, I've just finished the first round of the Spice Challenge and had to pause to ask why the hell Tregaye is even there as a judge.  (Not that I'm complaining.)

They flip back and forth between Jet and Aarti for commentary while Tregaye sits there like a doorstop.  The only comment she made was about eating spicy food and sweating into her onesie, making Jet and Aarti exclaim "Ewwww!  TMI!  TMI!"

Jazz, the Thai chef is an absolute hoot though.

[mlp]

I enjoyed this episode and was glad the Thai woman won.  I also enjoyed watching Jet Tila translate for her at the end.  I often wonder why FN hasn't given him a show.  He's a doll and he'd bring something new to the network.  I often watch the podcast he does off and on on FB.  He does it from his own kitchen at home and his wife does the camera part.  She's really cute and they're great together.  I'd love a show with both of them.

[spiderpig]

9 minutes ago, mlp said:

I enjoyed this episode and was glad the Thai woman won.  I also enjoyed watching Jet Tila translate for her at the end.  I often wonder why FN hasn't given him a show.  He's a doll and he'd bring something new to the network.  I often watch the podcast he does off and on on FB.  He does it from his own kitchen at home and his wife does the camera part.  She's really cute and they're great together.  I'd love a show with both of them.

Yeah, I love Jet.  He never let Alton get to him on Cutthroat, and when he's critical of a dish he's judging, he's never mean-spirited.

[Jesse]

I'm finally watching this episode, and I kind of love that they couldn't get a white person to judge the spicy challenge!

[jcbrown]

Again, with Tregaye as a judge? Ack.

[mlp]

Quote

Again, with Tregaye as a judge?

Tregaye is not qualified to judge anyone and her grammar is atrocious.  Ack indeed.

I didn't understand why they let that last woman standing get away with a pizza that was basically all packaged ingredients that she just assembled.  The guy's might not have been great but he at least cooked his from scratch.

[spiderpig]

I was kind of underwhelmed by the pizza episode, but fascinated by them tossing the crust.   Do any of you do it at home?  It doesn't seem worth scraping all that dough off the kitchen floor.

[mlp]

4 hours ago, spiderpig said:

I was kind of underwhelmed by the pizza episode, but fascinated by them tossing the crust.   Do any of you do it at home? 

It is neat to watch.  I've gathered that the secret is to use the backs of your hands so your fingers don't poke holes in the dough.  I've never even tried to make pizza myself.  I just call Domino's.  :)

[jcbrown]

18 hours ago, spiderpig said:

I was kind of underwhelmed by the pizza episode, but fascinated by them tossing the crust.   Do any of you do it at home?  It doesn't seem worth scraping all that dough off the kitchen floor.

Tossing dough isn't so hard once you  get the hang of it. I worked pizza in college. We taught newbies how to toss the dough using a moist wrung-out dishtowel. That allows you to practice the technique with no risk of ruining dough.

I was underwhelmed by the ending of the pizza episode. I was very glad when the Brooklyn stereotype guy went home after the second round. He may be perfectly nice but his schtick set my teeth on edge.

[spiderpig]

1 hour ago, jcbrown said:

Tossing dough isn't so hard once you  get the hang of it. I worked pizza in college. We taught newbies how to toss the dough using a moist wrung-out dishtowel. That allows you to practice the technique with no risk of ruining dough.

Funny you mention that.  A cook working eggs-to-order at a breakfast bar told me she learned to flip eggs by practicing with a piece of toast.  It works!

[spiderpig]

So I'm watching this heart-warming Thanksgiving episode about deserving young chefs where everyone's a winner, and Darth Kitty, my Demon Cat from Hell runs around at the final judging knocking everything off the desk - laptop, desktop keyboard, two mice - and most important - my glass of wine.  Judges are clapping and crying.  Me - &*(_(*^^%*()))))^%%&&).

[Wings]

9 hours ago, spiderpig said:

So I'm watching this heart-warming Thanksgiving episode about deserving young chefs where everyone's a winner, and Darth Kitty, my Demon Cat from Hell runs around at the final judging knocking everything off the desk - laptop, desktop keyboard, two mice - and most important - my glass of wine.  Judges are clapping and crying.  Me - &*(_(*^^%*()))))^%%&&).

Love the name!  I was thrilled the single dad won.  One of the judges mentioned how hard it was being a single parent.  Did they know mom was not involved or did she assume?  My guess is the child lives with mom at least half the time but my guess more than that.  

I adore Damaris but knew they would not win when her guy told her what he wanted to do in the first round.  She really should have given him more guidance on how to step that up.  Then she didn't learn from that and didn't help step it up in the next two.  I get it that she wanted it to be his choice so if he lost he wouldn't blame her and wish he hadn't listened.  They were adorable together.  

[spiderpig]

I'm all fahrklempt after the holiday episode where the winner split his winnings with the other chefs.  It was hilarious watching the three big lugs running around while Guy hollered out the clues followed by "Aisle Eight, you idiots!!!".

[Wings]

I am done with all the cooking shows doing Thanksgiving dinner.  I am sick of the meal and I haven't even eaten it yet.  Iron Chef whatever, did leftovers and Flay won, of course.  He was up against a newbie though.  How many wins can that man have doing south western food?  That is all he does.  He even to puts chilies in a French dish.  

I digress.  Apologies to the mod.  

[spiderpig]

Thank you Santa!  Melissa D and her chipmunk self are gone.  (No offense to actual chipmunks.)

Justin Warner has become one of my favorite FN personalities.

[Wings]

3 hours ago, spiderpig said:

Thank you Santa!  Melissa D and her chipmunk self are gone.  (No offense to actual chipmunks.)

Justin Warner has become one of my favorite FN personalities.

I loved Carl saying "I love that little nerd" referring to Justin.  I feel the same way, he has become a favorite of mine, too.  

I agree with you on the little rodent.  I would have loved to taste that cake though.  Everyone seemed to love it. 

[Wings]

I adore Carl.  "Soy milk is the  yoga pants of dairy."  

[penbrat]

5 hours ago, wings707 said:

I adore Carl.  "Soy milk is the  yoga pants of dairy."  

I love Carl too.  He and Greenie are my favorites for this tournament.   It's funny, because I LOATHE DDD and Guy on that show but really enjoy GGG and Guy on this show.

[roughing it]

11 hours ago, spiderpig said:

Melissa D and her chipmunk self are gone.

Yeah, I don't even like her judging.  I think Melissa is by far the weakest link in all of FN, whether cooking or judging.  She is awkward.  And I just don't like her.

[RealityCheck]

Tregaye has managed to supplant Melissa for the top spot on my list of people I would prefer not to see cook/judge on the FN shows. 

[Snarklepuss]

14 hours ago, roughing it said:

Yeah, I don't even like her judging.  I think Melissa is by far the weakest link in all of FN, whether cooking or judging.  She is awkward.  And I just don't like her.

I actually feel sorry for her.  After all these years I've realized that she suffers from shyness and/or social anxiety, which she tries very hard to compensate for with a false persona, but it comes out awkward, strange and unlikable.  I also think she has a complex about it, which makes it even worse.  She's actually gotten worse rather than better over the yeas and she comes off as just strange, which she probably is to some degree because come on already!  It's no wonder she's mostly been replaced by Aarti on the judging panel, who is much smoother at presenting herself on TV.

ETA:  It could be made worse by going through perimenopause, which she's probably of the age to be going through right now.  I had wicked social anxiety back in those days myself.  But she was always awkward to some degree.

Edited November 28, 2017 by Snarklepuss

[Wings]

17 hours ago, penbrat said:

I love Carl too.  He and Greenie are my favorites for this tournament.   It's funny, because I LOATHE DDD and Guy on that show but really enjoy GGG and Guy on this show.

I have come to like Guy and it took awhile.  I love cooking competitions so I stuck it out on GGG.  He has changed over the years, too.

I prefer the shows where judges compete.  Aarti is another favorite of mine. 

[MerBearHou]

Not sure where this goes, but I'm LOVING the shows with Guy and his huge ranch kitchen with his chef buddies hanging out and cooking.  The camaraderie is great and my gosh, that kitchen setting is to die for.

[HyeChaps]

I agree. They must have seen how fun it was in his house outdoor kitchen when he had chef friends over (and that place is pretty big) and built this giant place accordingly to accommodate a bunch of extra cooks. 

[Jaded]

I hate that Justin always seems to get booted before making it to the end on these shows.

[spiderpig]

21 minutes ago, Jaded said:

I hate that Justin always seems to get booted before making it to the end on these shows.

I feel that way too.  He always piques my interest with his off-the-wall choices and his deadpan humor.  He seems game in these competitions, and I hope they throw him a bone soon before he becomes discouraged.

[Wings]

I love these big competitions with the TV chefs. 

I want to see Justin excel, too.  He is just not as good as the others. :-(  That shows up on the ranch show too.  I really like him and his relationship with Carl.  All of them seem to adore him. 

Damaris and whatsher name' $20 dish looked delicious even though faro and salmon are not on my short list. Having eaten fresh wild salmon on an AlaskIan cruise I am now spoiled. 

The nachos did not appeal to me.  Too bad Justin s zepoli was underdone. He would have had the best dish! 

[spiderpig]

Yeah - I don't want any of these chefs to "lose" because they are so incredibly talented (she said, popping her frozen crab cakes into the oven).  I kind of default to their chosen charities.  Even those are all worthy.

Edited December 4, 2017 by spiderpig
spelling - duh

[Koalagirl]

29 minutes ago, spiderpig said:

Yeah - I don't want any of these chefs to "lose" because they are so incredibly talented (she said, popping her frozen crab cakes into the oven).  I kind of default to their chosen charities.  Even those are all worthy.

That's so funny because I had frozen crab cakes for dinner last night as well and then watched GGG afterwards and admired their expertise!!!

[spiderpig]

28 minutes ago, Koalagirl said:

That's so funny because I had frozen crab cakes for dinner last night as well and then watched GGG afterwards and admired their expertise!!!

Here's to frozen crab cakes!!! (:toast:)

[HyeChaps]

Now I want some

[Snarklepuss]

18 hours ago, spiderpig said:

I feel that way too.  He always piques my interest with his off-the-wall choices and his deadpan humor.  He seems game in these competitions, and I hope they throw him a bone soon before he becomes discouraged.

I know he's won at least one of these Triple G star tournaments before and I remembered it because I was happy he won.  He's competed at least 4 or 5 times now but I don't remember his track record.  The older he gets the more I like him.

Yum, crab cakes!  I'm going to Costco tomorrow, now I'll have to pick up one of those tubs of Phillips lump crabmeat while I'm there.

[Crucial]

Good gosh I hope Carl goes home and doesn't win.  The guy is obnoxious and I don't find him all that great at all.  I find him a bud of Guy to wins these games.  Sorry.  His judging is off - always always salt and he loves to ge the higher end chefs and knock them down.  It's his pattern.  He should have gone home early is this latest competition because he didn't follow the rules..  I stopped watching the show for a while because of him.  I came back and here is again.  I honestly think he doesn't not have what it takes to beat these chefs here.  Or in any prior competition.