Next Iron Chef Roster Announced, Immediately Followed by a TVFF Panic Attack
JOSEGARCESOHMYGOD!OHMYGOD!OHMYGOD!OHMYGOD!OHMYGOD!
Jose Garces is going to be one of the competitors in the upcoming round of Next Iron Chef.
JOSEGARCESOHMYGOD!OHMYGOD!OHMYGOD!OHMYGOD!OHMYGOD!
I totally knew something was up. Have I mentioned that I completely love this guy?
Unfortunately, Food Network isn’t just going to crown him champ, so let’s look at the competitors:
The ten contestants include:
Nate Appleman (Chef/Butcher, New York, NY)
Dominique Crenn (Chef de Cuisine, Luce at InterContinental San Francisco, San Francisco, CA)
Brad Farmerie (Executive Chef, Double Crown, Madam Geneva, PUBLIC and The Monday Room, New York, NY)
Amanda Freitag (Executive Chef, The Harrison, New York, NY)
Jose Garces (Executive Chef & Owner, Amada, Tinto, Distrito, Chifa, Philadelphia, PA)
Eric Greenspan (Executive Chef & Owner, The Foundry on Melrose, Los Angeles, CA)
Jehangir Mehta (Executive Chef & Owner, Graffiti, New York, NY)
Seamus Mullen (Executive Chef & Partner, Boqueria Flatiron and Boqueria Soho, New York, NY)
Holly Smith (Chef & Owner, Cafe Juanita and Poco Carretto Gelato, Kirkland, WA)
Roberto Treviño (Executive Chef & Owner, Budatai, San Juan, PR)
The NYC-heavy roster features ten contestants, two more than the last edition of the show which produced winner Michael Symon, but which also resulted in exposure for Chris Cosentino Aarón Sanchez, who ended up with an upcoming show on Food Network. So the folks taking part may not come home with the title, but it’s a nice way to get your food (and your face) in front of a wider audience.
Sure, the show doesn’t quite have the pedigree or the cache of the currently running Top Chef Masters, but JOSE GARCESOHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGOD!
And dudes, have you all suddenly become Iron Chefs in the kitchen. ES thinks not. Send us your Friday Fuck Ups! STAT! info@endlesssimmer.com
Disappointed…not a single Chicago chef on the roster. Those smug New Yorkers should be ashamed of themselves. At least Top Chef Masters had the good sense to stack the roster with Chicagoans, two of which, I might add are in the Masters rounds. We don’t mess around in Chi-Town.
Does one think that the location of chefs might have something to do with the show being filmed in NYC, of course its great PR for the restaurant but it might come down to a matter of logistics. We are clearly hating on FN right now for their lack of geo-diversity but for all we know they may have approached other non-NYC chefs.
Just a thought.
Thank god this show is finally back. I could not understand why FN refused to reshow reruns of the first series. Definitely one of the best shows to watch on the channel.
A bit weak no DC chefs made the list though I must say
“Does one think that the location of chefs might have something to do with the show being filmed in NYC”
You’re right for the most part, but I think not so much because it will be filmed in NYC as much as the fact that Food Network HQ is in Chelsea, so the names of the chefs and restaurants are familiar to them and more likely to pick them to compete.
It’s true that most of the contestants are from NY but their styles are so diverse that the show is still definitely gonna rock! Technically speaking, Chef Dominique Crenn has a French background, Amanda Freitag has a German background, Jehangir Mehta has an Indian background etc etc… It’s a show after all. Each contestant has to have a different story behind their personas.
I really liked Jose Garces’ style too. He seems confident and relaxed. Not rushed like some of the other contestants. However, I’m a bit biased towards Chef Jehangir Mehta. Of all the contestants I have only visited Chef Jehangir Mehta’s restaurant Graffiti. It’s such a sweet place. Everything has a personal touch (Chef Mehta designed his own interiors apparently). His flavors are perfectly balanced and his preparations are ingenuous (try the mango paneer and pork buns). I had a lovely experience and I’m closely following Chef Mehta’s progress on the show. He’s such a nice guy! I really hope he wins. (I recently found out that Graffiti has a Zagat rating of 26. I had no idea I was eating at such a special place. Everyone there is so down to earth!)