S14.E04: Panic on the Panel

[Whimsy]

The finalists are judged on their progress so far, but they find out they must judge themselves for the first challenge. Then, they're thrown in the deep end when editor Jess Cagle splits them into two teams to judge and evaluate mentors Bobby Flay and Giada De Laurentiis on their own dishes. Ultimately, the bottom two on each panel will compete in a sudden death cook-off, and two finalists will be sent packing

[cooksdelight]

MARscapone ... Harrison, you’re now a dork. And I loved you in the beginning, but you committed the ultimate sin.

Vocal fry from Palak, I will never listen to her. Her voice, her expressions... no.

Adam/Amy... just go away. Forever. Neither of you should have been here.

Jess’s uglyass shoes with her leopard dress. Air Jordans or whatever they are, do not go with a dress. Her hair... no. I’m sorry to be judging on appearance, but I’m not going to watch her. Ever. Amy can join her. The look on her face when Adam was dismissed, they both thought they were going to be the finalists.

Katie will be sitting on a bale of HAAAAAAY if she ever gets on TV after this.

I do not like any of these people. I think producers may have to hang this show up and give it a funeral. No wonder Alton, Susie and Tush left the circus.

If I hear one more person say wheelhouse, I may shoot my TV.  

None of these people know how to teach anything about food. I’ll watch old reruns on PBS of Julia Child before I’d watch one of these nitwits.

The only happy moment was the vagina table being lit up!

[toodywoody]

Good lord Giada can get bitchy. I always knew it but damn. I know Harrison was asking a ton of questions but damn, Katie wouldn't stfu like she did with her other cohost the time before.

[rustyspigot]

Shut up, Adam. You aren't a food Jedi master. Though, this episode needed Admiral Akbar for the contestants "IT'S A TRAP!"

Lesson #1. Don't tell Giada how to cook pasta. (unless it's under cooked like she said she did).

This episode seemed most likely what the winner would be doing on the Network so I liked that aspect.

[AntManBee]

Color me surprised.  I thought Adam was the ringer.  I also can't help it, but I found the whole idea of the challenge fun.  I liked seeing B&G bait themselves for criticism and getting it elsewhere unexpectedly.

I also identify with Amy, probably way too much.  The self criticism and wine and cheese dinners sound like my average weeknight. 

[ivygirl]

9 minutes ago, toodywoody said:

Good lord Giada can get bitchy. I always knew it but damn. I know Harrison was asking a ton of questions but damn, Katie wouldn't stfu like she did with her other cohost the time before.

If I wasn’t already irritated by Giada, this would’ve put the nail in the coffin. WOW was she snotty.

5 minutes ago, rustyspigot said:

Lesson #1. Don't tell Giada how to cook pasta. (unless it's under cooked like she said she did).

I halfway expected her to snap at whoever pointed out the flaws in her food (even though she did them intentionally).

Speaking of Giada’s food: talk about uninspired. If the goal was to make me amazed by her culinary prowess, she’d need to level up from rigatoni and some spread on a bread. Yawn.

Edited July 2, 2018 by ivygirl

[Wings]

13 minutes ago, cooksdelight said:

The only happy moment was the vagina table being lit up!

Yes!! 

I like Christian and I am pretty sure he will win.  Everyone else, be gone. 

[cooksdelight]

How many times did Christian say he’s been a judge on Chopped?

[Wings]

3 minutes ago, cooksdelight said:

How many times did Christian say he’s been a judge on Chopped?

Bobby even mentioned he was a judge on his show!  

[cooksdelight]

See?? I don’t get this. Having him, Adam, Amy, who’ve already been through the process. Just give them a show already!!

I did hear them say the person would get a chance at a show on the Cooking Channel. So why still call this the Next Food Network Star?

[LexieLily]

25 minutes ago, toodywoody said:

Good lord Giada can get bitchy. I always knew it but damn. I know Harrison was asking a ton of questions but damn, Katie wouldn't stfu like she did with her other cohost the time before.

Speaking of Harrison and asking a lot of question, what was the point of that editor from People magazine and quizzing the contestant-judges on random food trivia questions?

[parrotfeathers]

I was surprised to find I liked this episode.   The new challenge of finding the cooking errors of B & G was a great addition.   I don't think Katie's off the shoulder blouse looked particularly fetching on her either.   Now G could have worn that for sure.

[rustyspigot]

13 minutes ago, LexieLily said:

Speaking of Harrison and asking a lot of question, what was the point of that editor from People magazine and quizzing the contestant-judges on random food trivia questions?

I guess he was playing the role of Alton?

Katie should have been in the bottom four. Her repeating Harrison was like a bad SNL skit. I guess you could say that about the whole show.

[Denver Hoosier]

Giada sure is a mean girl.  Can you imagine working for her?  I wouldn't last a day.

Guess Adam was the fall guy instead of the ringer. Perfectly fine with me.  He never should have been in the lineup for this show to begin.  I wonder if they grabbed him at the last minute to replace someone who pulled out or got disqualified.  It just seemed like such a misstep to have him there.

Could Harrison have stuck his foot any further into his mouth tonight?  How do you not stop talking when Giada Borgia bites your head off?

[Wings]

34 minutes ago, cooksdelight said:

See?? I don’t get this. Having him, Adam, Amy, who’ve already been through the process. Just give them a show already!!

I did hear them say the person would get a chance at a show on the Cooking Channel. So why still call this the Next Food Network Star?

Drink water and breathe through your nose.  Everything is going to be Okay.  LOL  love you!

[cooksdelight]

Love you back! This show gets my blood pressure up.

[Wings]

3 minutes ago, cooksdelight said:

Love you back! This show gets my blood pressure up.

No shit!  :>)

[J-Man]

So does Amy feed her kids wine and cheese on weeknights too? 

And don't forget that we're not really rid of Adam or anyone else yet-- Star Salvation began tonight!

[Wings]

Yes and here it is now!

 

https://www.foodnetwork.com/shows/food-network-star/star-salvation

Edited July 2, 2018 by Wings

[J-Man]

I guess I spoke too soon because ...

Spoiler

... Adam is not on Star Salvation! I wonder how that happened. Was it his choice (which would seem like sour grapes) or the network's?

[Sew Sumi]

5 minutes ago, Wings said:

Yes and here it is now!

 

https://www.foodnetwork.com/shows/food-network-star/star-salvation

There's a thread for that noise. ?

[Wings]

14 minutes ago, J-Man said:

I guess I spoke too soon because ...

  Hide contents

... Adam is not on Star Salvation! I wonder how that happened. Was it his choice (which would seem like sour grapes) or the network's?

I didn't notice.  That is a good guess.  If I were in his position I would back out too.  Not sour grapes but more, I have exhausted this avenue so onward to a different approach.  

[Maya]

1 hour ago, AntManBee said:

Color me surprised.  I thought Adam was the ringer.  I also can't help it, but I found the whole idea of the challenge fun.  I liked seeing B&G bait themselves for criticism and getting it elsewhere unexpectedly.

I also identify with Amy, probably way too much.  The self criticism and wine and cheese dinners sound like my average weeknight. 

I think Amy is still trying to cash in on the “Bad Moms” craze. Too bad she seems so angry and miserable about it. 

[AntManBee]

2 minutes ago, Maya said:

I think Amy is still trying to cash in on the “Bad Moms” craze. Too bad she seems so angry and miserable about it. 

As a male non-mom, I can still identify with her hangups on self-critique, the snark, and the need for wine and cheese on the daily.

[mlp]

Well, darn.  I thought they were finally going to get rid of Amy.  Her personality is off-putting, her cooking is nothing special and her hair is always a mess like she really doesn't care about all this.  Katie can go too.  She's highly annoying and not nearly as cute as she thinks she is.  Harrison isn't either.  He didn't bother me quite as much but I can't say I was sorry to see him leave.

I don't usually think in terms of conspiracy theories but I can't help wonder if Adam came back to fill a spot and knew all along he'd be eliminated.  He's so much better in all respects than Amy that I'm suspicious.

I like Christian and Manny best.  Manny started out a bit manic and hard to understand but he's fine now that he's calmed down and he seems to know his stuff.  Christian is already an established chef.  I don't understand why he even wanted to be on this show.  He already has personality and skills but I'm afraid he's going to be this season's big, sloppy guy.  They always have one and he never wins.

[LillyB]

God help me, but I like Manny.

[Wings]

7 minutes ago, mlp said:

I like Christian and Manny best.  Manny started out a bit manic and hard to understand but he's fine now that he's calmed down and he seems to know his stuff.  Christian is already an established chef.  I don't understand why he even wanted to be on this show.  He already has personality and skills but I'm afraid he's going to be this season's big, sloppy guy.  They always have one and he never wins.

Short answer, money.  Long answer, recognition and money.  Really long answer, fame. 

10 minutes ago, LillyB said:

God help me, but I like Manny.

Help is on the way, sit tight. 

[dgpolo]

15 minutes ago, LillyB said:

God help me, but I like Manny.

I like him too, I can even imagine a show with him called Firehouse Chef. He could travel around to different Firehouses and either taste a couple of their favorite recipes and/or show them a recipe they could use.

[jmthrd]

bobby and giada were actually good mentors tonight, and i think the show leaning into the star-to-judge pipeline helped with that. since it's midterms, thoughts and placements on everyone:

adam - adam would clean sweep "the next travel channel star" but he's never going to win this. it was his time to go

amy - i like amy in confessionals but not in the competition.  i'd watch amy's show faster than anyone else's, but only if it were confessional amy. tonight on the judging panel i realized that we'd get competition amy and that's not enough for me. fifth place

christian - good rhythm with bobby and giada on the self-critique! a shame i don't remember anything about him in the critiques. runner up

harrison - i don't think harrison realized the skills you need to judge a food network show are different than the skills you need to win a challenge on food network star. you don't need to give out tips for the viewer at home and you don't need to have a take on the dish being prepared; nobody watches iron chef to figure out what's for dinner tomorrow night. he should have caught himself and stopped when giada kept escalating, but his performance tonight was as much of a failure on the show as it was for him for teaching the wrong lessons.

jess - jess is going to win - she'd be the best judge of anyone here, her POV played to an interesting dimension tonight, and "food novelist" is just the kind of title the network is going to want to have. special thanks for splitting the panels for the giada/bobby challenge into a realistic panel with this season's likely top 3 plus adam, and a cringe panel with everyone else. i got to have both worlds tonight!

katie - katie is not going to win but i want her to go far so she can continue to be a bad team player and whine over ingredients other people got to get first. sixth place

manny - +1 for liking manny but i think he's still rushing himself. it happened when he was critiquing bobby's bearnaise as well as his video package-- i think it's what he does when he's nervous. it's gonna come up again and it'll be too tight of a competition to make up for it. fourth place and an invite for comeback kitchen 2019

palak - i like watching palak and she has a level of cooking authority nobody else holds a candle to. but i don't see her judging a show and being good at it. second place

--

sidebar: why does giada not have a competition show? every year it's a new spin on the daytime format but i want her to read primetimers to filth for even suggesting they make a baked pasta

[LillyB]

I really hope that Katie goes soon, since FN has another Katie with an annoying voice and we don't need another one.

[DebbieM4]

4 hours ago, toodywoody said:

Good lord Giada can get bitchy. I always knew it but damn. I know Harrison was asking a ton of questions but damn, Katie wouldn't stfu like she did with her other cohost the time before.

She really was bitchy.  I always knew she was too, but I was surprised she let it show so obviously.   It just came across as unnecessarily mean and really unprofessional in this kind of format.  I guess she couldn't hide her true colors, but she should have been able to.

And yes, Katie was so annoying.  She was obviously latching on to Harrison's thoughts and words.  I hope she goes soon.

[GaT]

So glad Harrison is finally gone, he thought waaay too much of himself.

4 hours ago, cooksdelight said:

The only happy moment was the vagina table being lit up!

I can't believe that table is still on this show, they have to be trolling us with it at this point.

4 hours ago, AntManBee said:

Color me surprised.  I thought Adam was the ringer. 

Me too, I thought he was a lock for the win.

[biakbiak]

Harrison’s inability to read the room when he kept suggesting changes to her dish was ridiculous. I didn’t like how both he and Adam felt it necessary to suggest changes to her dish because their suggestions were stupid.

I think Manny, Christian and Jess all realized that they had messed up intentionally. Jess was so sweet when she pointed out that Giada’s ciabatta was burnt. I thought it was funny that Bobby’s fish wasn’t actually ruined and his crispy skin did hold up to the sauce.

[cameron]

Well, it was very obvious that Giada doesn't take criticism very well even though that was the theme of this challenge.

[Maya]

30 minutes ago, cameron said:

Well, it was very obvious that Giada doesn't take criticism very well even though that was the theme of this challenge.

She was scary! She was ready for them to mention the things she messed up on purpose, but when they started criticizing other aspects that she wasn’t expecting - watch out!!

[Mocking Bird]

Giada is a mean, vain, ugly woman. I can't stand her.

Is Manny an actual fireman or does he just cook for them? He's woefully out of shape compared to the fire fighters I've seen and moves like a bull in a china shop.

Chris is so sloppy and unkempt. His wrinkled shirt and too short shorts looked like they came from the dirty clothes pile. Being a heavy-set person is no excuse to dress like a slob. His weird, patchy hairline (or lack thereof) really bugs me, although there isn't much he can do about it except shave his head clean and that wouldn't be in keeping with his total disregard for his personal appearance. Amy is in that category too. I'll be glad to see her awful, lazy hairdon'ts and Target outfits off my screen.

[CaptainCranky]

Can't believe FN still has this horrible show on the schedule and people actually watch it. The comments are 100 x better than the actual show (which I haven't watched for several seasons).

[AAEBoiler]

This show has the worst contestants and I wouldn't watch any of them on a regular basis. Guy Fieri's "Guy's Big Project" in 1 season showed how this concept should be done. It had an actual focus on what they were looking for (finding a host for a travel show) and actually gave lessons that led up to their selection. FNS has devolved into a bunch of stupid challenges with no guidance on how it develops someone to front their own show. If it gets any ratings at all it's just people hate-watching it so they can bitch about it on the boards. Hey, that's what I'm doing! :-)

[cooksdelight]

I think it would have been more interesting to watch them when the cameras were off. 

[bioprof]

How in the world do you get to be a contestant on this show and not know the basic cuts of meat or....wait for it....not even know what clarified butter is!!!!  I would bet just about all of the commentators here know what clarified butter is. And I'm supposed to watch a show hosted by know nothing Amy???????  Give me a break.  Even the "lady parts" table can't save this show for me.....

[Simon47]

Is Barefoot Contessa still on? After I get done watching this pathetic group, I can calm down by watching the lovable chef cook.

So glad Adam is gone, he did not need to be there because he has already been given shows on the FN. I can tell it comes as unfair.

Who I need to go:

 - Palak: her voice is annoying me, and I don’t even know what vocal fry is!

 - Katie: Keeps bossing people and getting them in trouble!

[Wings]

9 hours ago, dgpolo said:

I like him too, I can even imagine a show with him called Firehouse Chef. He could travel around to different Firehouses and either taste a couple of their favorite recipes and/or show them a recipe they could use.

Not a bad idea.  He would have to slow down and use full sentences.  He starts one, thinks he got his point across and delivers another where he will interrupt himself again!  He speaks in fragments. 

[PamelaMaeSnap]

12 hours ago, LillyB said:

God help me, but I like Manny.

Scootch on over so I can sit next to you! I like him more each episode. Not sure if he's consciously improving and getting more comfortable or the others are 50 shades of detestable or a combination. I LOVED how when he commented on the broken up sauce (did I get that right?) and was worried Bobby would be insulted, you could see a little Bobby smirk. 

ETA Re: whoever asked if he was an actual fireman or a chef at the firehouse, how I'm wondering and will look it up ... I assumed he was a fireman because from the way-too-many fire station series I watch, it seems like there are often several great cooks there because they need to have good, hearty meals for hard-working guys 24/7.

ETAA: Found this to confirm he is indeed a Miami firefighter who loves to cook! AND he tap dances. I wish he'd break that out!

https://www.foodnetwork.com/star-talk/food-network-star/2018/5/star-a-day-manny-washington

Also, while I can see there are those who feel he is not as "ready for his TV closeup" as some of the other more polished  cheftestants, I find myself drawn to him because he just seems nice and modest AND HE SAVES LIVES. It doesn't hurt that the rest of this season's cheftestants are a surprisingly unlikeable bunch ...

BUT I also think that the idea of a FN show based around "firehouse chefs" around the country (because it is a thing) could be pretty fantastic TV, especially at a time when we need some REAL heroes. Manny wouldn't even have to be the main "talker" ... he could be the conduit into each firehouse and just kind of "set it up" and introduce us to each crew. I'd watch that!

Edited July 2, 2018 by PamelaMaeSnap

[TomCorps]

Man Alive!  Who pissed in Giada's corn flakes?!

I think what disturbed me most about Giada's aggressive response to Harrison is that she was in fact responding to his rhetoric, not his judgment about food.  Granted, he didn't parse his thoughts well.  When he was asking, "Could you add ricotta (mascarpone, etc.)?" he wasn't actually asking, "Could one do this?"  I think he was trying to suggest that if she had added any of these things, it would have improved the dish for him.  In other words, he was attempting to give a kind of "judgment," but was so intimidated by the bitch that he delivered it in a way that was misleading.  Anyway, Giada's epically bitchy, "Yes, Harrison, you can make anything you want!" betrays her inability to understand even the first thing about this dynamic, let alone her inability to accept anyone else's thoughts on how to prepare pasta.  It's as if she would have us all go about endlessly repeating the mantra, "WWGD?"  If you consider that both Harrison and Adam got an ass-whooping for failing to do just that, it's hard to excuse.

[Wings]

1 hour ago, AAEBoiler said:

This show has the worst contestants and I wouldn't watch any of them on a regular basis. Guy Fieri's "Guy's Big Project" in 1 season showed how this concept should be done. It had an actual focus on what they were looking for (finding a host for a travel show) and actually gave lessons that led up to their selection.

Yes!  I had forgotten about that show.  It was done well and made sense.  The contestants had more promise for the most part, if I recall.  The winner, who I have forgotten, isn't doing anything, right?  I will have to google. 

[ruffy666]

No disrespect but you guys who like Manny, what the #$)!& are you smoking... :)  He seems like a good guy but he does not know how to string together a coherent sentence.  Listening to him go around and around in circles and try to complete a thought without actually saying anything at all is painful.  PAINFUL. 

It's wild to see someone who can be super charming in interviews turn into such a mess on camera (for example, I could really get into Amy's self-deprecating snark but when she's on camera it's just plain uncomfortable!)

Christian emerged relatively unscathed this episode.  I ended up liking Jess .37% more because she is able to describe food well.  Everyone else can pack it up.

[cooksdelight]

16 minutes ago, TomCorps said:

Man Alive!  Who pissed in Giada's corn flakes?!

I think what disturbed me most about Giada's aggressive response to Harrison is that she was in fact responding to his rhetoric, not his judgment about food.  Granted, he didn't parse his thoughts well.  When he was asking, "Could you add ricotta (mascarpone, etc.)?" he wasn't actually asking, "Could one do this?"  I think he was trying to suggest that if she had added any of these things, it would have improved the dish for him.  In other words, he was attempting to give a kind of "judgment," but was so intimidated by the bitch that he delivered it in a way that was misleading.  Anyway, Giada's epically bitchy, "Yes, Harrison, you can make anything you want!" betrays her inability to understand even the first thing about this dynamic, let alone her inability to accept anyone else's thoughts on how to prepare pasta.  It's as if she would have us all go about endlessly repeating the mantra, "WWGD?"  If you consider that both Harrison and Adam got an ass-whooping for failing to do just that, it's hard to excuse.

Maybe this will be her last season. Hell, this entire show should be cancelled. I was checking FN’s Facebook page to see what people were saying, and someone asked “Where is Jason Smith’s show?” I had to look him up because I totally forgot he won last year. He’s a baking judge. 

Christian reminds me of a very messy Guy Fieri so he’s probably got this in the bag.

[Gregg247]

NO!  Not Adam!  He was my favorite.  I really did think it was odd that they put him back on this show, ten years after his last time here.  Since then, he's become a professional TV host (a good one, too) and I guess he's continued cooking, too.  Putting him back in the competition was kind of a no-win scenario for him; if he loses, he looks really REALLY bad, and if he wins, he looks like a ringer.  I'm not sure what the deal was here.  At the end of the episode he made it sound like that was it for him with TFN.  This may have been his last chance.

I don't like Giada, but I didn't mind her going off on Harrison.  he just kept hammering her with "what if" after "what if", to the point where she just threw up her hands and said, 'Yeah, what if I'd made a completely different dish?!?"  She was right.  "Giada, I really liked your dish, but what if you'd replaced the pasta with a steak and the the creamy sauce with a baked potato?"  "Giada, this pasta dinner is fantastic, but I wish you'd added some flour, sugar, and eggs, baked it in a tall pan, and covered it with chocolate frosting.  Oh, and written  Happy Birthday Harrison on the top.  That would have been great, too."

[Surrealist]

2 hours ago, CaptainCranky said:

Can't believe FN still has this horrible show on the schedule and people actually watch it. The comments are 100 x better than the actual show (which I haven't watched for several seasons).

This is the only reason I watch the show. In fact, I don't always watch it live, but still come here first to read the comments.

And damn, Giada was pissed. 

The ones I like so far are Jess, Manny, and Palak.

Edited July 2, 2018 by Surrealist

[AAEBoiler]

51 minutes ago, Gregg247 said:

I don't like Giada, but I didn't mind her going off on Harrison.  he just kept hammering her with "what if" after "what if", to the point where she just threw up her hands and said, 'Yeah, what if I'd made a completely different dish?!?"  She was right.  "Giada, I really liked your dish, but what if you'd replaced the pasta with a steak and the the creamy sauce with a baked potato?"  "Giada, this pasta dinner is fantastic, but I wish you'd added some flour, sugar, and eggs, baked it in a tall pan, and covered it with chocolate frosting.  Oh, and written  Happy Birthday Harrison on the top.  That would have been great, too."

I agree. I didn't think she was necessarily bitchy at all. I thought that Harrison was way too "mansplainy" on how to make a better dish instead of just judging the dish as he ate it.

Edited July 2, 2018 by AAEBoiler