TV Chefs (or Cooks) - Favorite and Most Hated

RedWolf

RedWolf

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Seeing that so many people here love to cook, and are highly influenced by the latest generation of cooks on TV, it made me start thinking about who is your favorite and who do you hate, and why?

Grew up watching Great Chefs series. I worked for some pretty serious chefs in my life 1/2 star Michelin. The reason why I stayed this is my view is kind of skewed and very hardcore. I hate that everybody calls everybody else Chef. There is only one Chef in the kitchen the rest are cooks.

Favorite? Anthony Bourdain. Real deal, old school, no BS. Knows his shit.

Hated? A few, but Gordon Ramsey takes the cake. Kind of personal reasons (he truly fucked over my buddy Marco Pierre White) but I also detest his online persona. He is also well educated but an arrogant prick.

PS...Guy Fieri needs to learn how to use silverware. Watch him eat sometime. Pushing food with your fingers onto your fork? Instead of using your knife? Dude c'mon. Terrible table manners
 
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I’ll add a subsection, favorite cooking YouTubers:

Stephen Cusato- Not Another Cooking Show

Paquale Sciarappa- OrsaraRecipes
 
Chris said:
I’ll add a subsection, favorite cooking YouTubers:

Stephen Cusato- Not Another Cooking Show

Paquale Sciarappa- OrsaraRecipes
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You like both? Who do you dislike?
 
You ever watch The Bear?? Any reality to its? Or all created drama.
 
Favorite TV shows for me and wifey:
-Top Chef (Richard Blais and the twin brothers Bryan and Michael Voltaggio were the best, and I thought the show peaked at that time. It hasn't been as entertaining to me since then.
-BBQ Brawl (Sunny can be annoying at times but I love the "three teams enter, 1 team leaves" format.
-No Reservations (Probably number 1 for me)

Favorite Chef's:
-Anthony
-Emeril
-Bobby

Favorite YouTubers:
-Jean-Pierre (extremely knowledgeable, tons of fantastic videos, and best personality) -
-LifebyMikeG (got my Teriyaki sauce from this guy. This video is his 10 basic tips in the kitchen) -
-HowToBBQRight (Malcom Reed is my BBQ go to guy. I bought his rubs and sauces when I was starting out) -
 
HOF44 said:
You ever watch The Bear?? Any reality to its? Or all created drama.
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I think the first year. I remember there was a lot of pressure in the kitchen which is typical. I hated the fact that everybody called everybody chef. I would have to watch more to respond more accurately. Being an Executive Chef is a pressure cooker 24/7. I used to have dreams of being overrun with orders and not being able to turn them out fast enough. LOL
 
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Ashburn Dave I think I went to Brian's restaurant in Frederick I think it was called Volt. Food was fine no problems. I went up to talk with him after the meal and after service had slowed down. He was at the main desk with the Maitre D. I introduced myself to him and tried to get him to converse a little bit since I was also a chef at one point in my life. All the dude could do was count the receipts and the money. Little to no engagement with his clientele. Never went back to that restaurant again. It was not the guy that you see on FoodTV network
 
This is a great thread!!! I'm addicted to cooking shows..but here are a few...there are too many to list....but prefer old-school. A few were before my time, but I love Julia Child...The French Chef, Jacques Pepin...Everyday Cooking....Graham Kerr..the Galloping Gourmet Justin Wilson, Cookin' Cajun'', Martin Yan... Yan Can Cook.... Jeff Smith...The Frugal Gourmet.....and early Emeril....the Essence of Emeril......one show that my wife and I absolutely loved was a little known cooking show on BBC...Two Fat Ladies. Jamie Oliver...the Naked Chef is a good one too. Lidia Bastianich is fun to watch too...she reminds me of my Italian grandma. Good Eats is entertaining, but a little over the top with technique. Food shows are cheapened these days because it seems like every celebrity out there has a cooking show and it seems like a good bit of the show is "fill in the celebrity name here" eating with their friends or little kids...it's annoying. I like Recipe TV a lot. The European shows are worth it, just because the kitchens and tools that they use are so kick-ass....I love the pots, pans, crockery, stoves, refrigerators....pretty much all of it. I use to like Edward Delling-Williams....French Bistro...but his overuse of the word "perfect" annoys me. If you played a "French Bistro" drinking game and took a shot every time he used the work "perfect" to describe anything, you'd be shit-faced in 10 minutes :LOL:
 
  • I grew up with "The Frugal Gourmet" with Fred Smith. Later found out he was involved in sexual abuse allegations, but that hadn't happened when I watched in the 1980's.
  • Emeril Live was revolutionary. BAM! I can't say I ever was a HUGE fan, but early Emeril was entertaining and very novel.
  • I loved "Throwdown with Bobby Flay." Which eventually morphed into "Beat Bobby Flay." In general, I like my TV personalities who cook, and not just comment. Bobby takes all comers and cooks against them. I've eaten at 3 Bobby Flay establishments, and they are all outstanding.
  • I loved watching the original Japanese Iron Chef. Man, that was good stuff. Iron Chef America was good, but Alton Brown is annoying and arrogant. Early Iron Chef America was better than later Iron Chef America.
  • I love Top Chef, though I prefer early Top Chef where they had more creative challenges. "Create a restaurant dish and use what you found in a vending machine" or "cook a meal to serve in an airplane" and things like that. The new challenges are all kindof similar "have a story and make a dish" My favorite cheftestants:
    • Brooke Williamson - she really got jobbed when Kristin Kish came back through the first Last Chance Kitchen and then nicked her in the finale. But she won Season 14.
    • Kristen Kish - If anybody was going to take down Brooke in season 10, it was Kristen. And now she's the host, and is very good at it.
    • Richard Blaze - openly admitted he choked in the finale of season 4, came back and won season 14.
    • Buddah Lo - might be the most talented cheftestant of all of them.
    • Stephanie Izard - Beat Richard Blaze in the finale of season 4, and has a restaurant called Girl and the Goat. And that's cool.
  • Guy Fiere is the worst thing to ever happen to food television. He's become the face of Food Network, and he's an annoying, screaming git. I liked Diners, Drive-ins and Dives, and when that was his thing, that was fine. Otherwise he can piss into the wind.
  • I was never a fan of Rachel Ray. My wife liked her. I never got it.
  • A special note on Gordon Ramsey. Early Hell's Kitchen was must watch TV. It was pure entertainment. However, over the years I think Gordon's gone soft and the show isn't as good. Also, I've had the pleasure of eating at several of his restaurants, and they are all absolutely top notch. Having said that, he can be grating and annoying. I think he's probably the most talented Chef/Actor of the lot. He plays a part, and he can clearly cook. And you can tell he can "act" because his on-screen persona is very different from Master Chef to Hells Kitchen.
 
My Maestro...from the Watergate Hotel in DC.
Jean Louis Palladin. GB him.

Cute story. When I was working there I took my very pregnant wife to his restaurant for our first anniversary. She was like 8 months pregnant and a vegetarian. We got the best seat in the house. Jean Louis would hand write his menu every night, it changed daily. We sat down at the table and we were not given menus. All of the drinks and food were coordinated by him. He brought out every plate to the table. I can't remember but I think it was like seven or nine courses with wine and drinks paired with it.

Absolutely great Chef and human being. But he was a great teacher, as well as a drill sergeant on the dinner line. He slept like 4 to 6 hours a night, drank heavy and smoked Gauloises.







Did I ever mention the Pastry Chef from the White House was my advanced pastry teacher and made my wedding cake? Gratis no charge. It was a piece of art, like you have never seen and tasted out of this world.

Roland Mesnier. A true master and gentleman. Never saw him get angry. He worked for 5 Presidents.

 
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Rachel Ray visited our tailgate for a Dallass game and was a little miffed because Pez wouldn't share his wing rub recipe. While she's somewhat annoying, she gets cool points for smacking the Dallass piñata at the aforementioned tailgate, with a baseball bat. There's a pic out there somewhere with one of the drunks staring at her ass😂
 
Hard not to love Anthony Bourdain... I felt real loss when he took his own life, such a waste. As a kid, one of my first cooking-related memories was watching the Galloping Gourmet while my mom worked around the house. I also enjoyed Jeff Smith but yeah, the pedophilia accusations make that a little harder. And although I know some think he's all self-hype, I do admire Bobby Flay... I first got exposed to him watching 'Hot off the grill' although I have to admit, I mostly watched because Jacqui Malouf his co-host was incredibly attractive.

And I'm sorry - but if Rachel Ray wants your wing rub recipe, you give it to her. Good lord.
 
Boone said:
Hard not to love Anthony Bourdain... I felt real loss when he took his own life, such a waste. As a kid, one of my first cooking-related memories was watching the Galloping Gourmet while my mom worked around the house. I also enjoyed Jeff Smith but yeah, the pedophilia accusations make that a little harder. And although I know some think he's all self-hype, I do admire Bobby Flay... I first got exposed to him watching 'Hot off the grill' although I have to admit, I mostly watched because Jacqui Malouf his co-host was incredibly attractive.

And I'm sorry - but if Rachel Ray wants your wing rub recipe, you give it to her. Good lord.
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How could I forget about Anthony Bourdain? He was a great one and gone too soon. Have you read "Kitchen Confidential?" If not, I can highly recommend it. As far as the chicken wing rub recipe, Pez will take it to his grave....
 
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