Guest Brian Report post Posted February 12, 2003 Are they sell-outs? This is becoming a big argument in the chef community. The argument for, which Tony Bourdain picks up in his second book, is money. Despite him being totally against it, he still goes there because his publisher realizes there's more money to get. The other side of that is most of the talented chefs in the world; the Riperts, Kellers, and Bryans end up not on. The only people even close to approaching the level of these two are Batali and Tsai, who are in two different spectrums (unless you consider Morimoto). But is what they're doing selling out? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Agent of Oblivion Report post Posted February 12, 2003 hmm. Since I'm no chef, I'll answer this based on my musical sell-out criteria. Are they totally forsaking, or drastically changing their cooking styles? If a chef makes his living cooking in a French restaurant, and gets his own show focusing on French cooking, I say it's all good. Besides, it gets the guy publicity for his restaurant that he had already. If a cook has spent his career in one restaurant, then up and sells the thing because he gets offered a job preparing Foie Gras on TV, and makes a chain of ridiculously overpriced restaurants based solely on his television notoriety, then yes, he's a sellout. interesting concept, though. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chunk 0 Report post Posted February 13, 2003 No I dont think its selling out at all. As long as you cook dishes that you believe are good, and dont change what you make to suit the makers of the TV program. I think its a good way to get positive press for your style of cooking, and could even be used to promote better nutrition. If someone sees a food program and decides to go out and buy ingredients to make their own meal, instead of just going to a take away, then that can only be good. Here in England, Delia Smith was single handedly responsible for the nation remembering that you could buy white eggs lol So yeah, I dont think its selling out. ChUnK! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest NoCalMike Report post Posted February 13, 2003 Ok will inapproriately use this thread to pimp....THE IRON CHEF~! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest treble charged Report post Posted February 13, 2003 I would mark the fuck out if a bunch of restaurant chefs went to a Food Network show and started an ECW-like 'You Sold Out!' chant. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Brian Report post Posted February 13, 2003 Iron chefs a different beast. I'm trying to talk more along the lines of guys like Flay and Emeril who pimp themselves for their catchphrases and their products. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Ace309 Report post Posted February 13, 2003 I dunno, you can kind of tell which chefs really know what their doing. Tsai's dishes are intelligent and make a lot of sense, whereas Emeril seems to have dartboards detailing various forms of pork fat and alcohol to add and ruin otherwise good dishes. I do love Alton Brown, though. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Brian Report post Posted February 13, 2003 Gotta love Alton Brown in that nerdy fashion. Tsai has a really good sense of French elegance and European style in his dishes. He really finds a way to meld stuff to bring out flavors, plus he knows the wine game which is always a sign of a really good chef. Batali has a certain Italian homestyle thing to his cooking that I really like and he's always really informative. But he's really trying to expand his realm and I'm afraid it'll water down his product (as it tends to do). Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest razazteca Report post Posted February 14, 2003 Good Eats! is a entertaining cooking show. But I do not see Alton Brown as a chef, but rather as a host for a cooking textbook or Cooking For Dummies, if you will. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest kkktookmybabyaway Report post Posted February 14, 2003 I don't think it's selling out -- I just think it's a case of envy... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Brian Report post Posted February 14, 2003 I don't see it that way at all. The cooking business has always been like the behind the scenes. It's for those who aren't always natural with the public and those who like to get their work done without messing with the public. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Agent of Oblivion Report post Posted February 14, 2003 I remember seeing this public access show we had around here a while back with these two hillbillies that did a cooking show. It was a fuckin' riot. I can't remember the name of the show for the life of me, but it involved the word Grillin'. Most dishes either involved venison, beef, or fish. Hardly gourmet, but the stuff looked damn good. Also, the two guys were always PLOWED when they did the show, so it made for some good mumbling. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Ace309 Report post Posted February 14, 2003 Grillin' and Chillin', with Jack McDavid and... Bobby Flay? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Brian Report post Posted February 14, 2003 Venison's getting to be pretty gourmet now. People are starting to mess around with it a lot more. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Vern Gagne Report post Posted February 16, 2003 Hey Brian are you a chef or studing to be one? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Brian Report post Posted February 16, 2003 I was at one point, and right now I'm unsure if I'll end up going that way, because it's a business that demands a lot out of you to be at the top. 10-14 hour days, six-seven days a week. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest phoenixrising Report post Posted February 17, 2003 I remember when I was younger, my mom used to watch this cooking show called (I think) The Galloping Gourmet, or something like that. The dude was always drinking and adding various alcoholic beverages into his dishes. Struck me as funny at the time. I've seen reruns on Food Network. But I'm no expert chef, so maybe the alcohol was just necessary in all his dishes. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest T®ITEC Report post Posted February 17, 2003 My dad always used to watch his show. From what he's told me, that guy was an alcoholic. F'sure. As my dad would say, he'd used a little bit of wine in a dish, then drink the rest of the bottle. EDIT: His name is Graham Kerr, and he *really* was an alcoholic. Here's a page on his show (from "JumpTheShark.Com")... And here is his website. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest phoenixrising Report post Posted February 17, 2003 My dad always used to watch his show. From what he's told me, that guy was an alcoholic. F'sure. As my dad would say, he'd used a little bit of wine in a dish, then drink the rest of the bottle. EDIT: His name is Graham Kerr, and he *really* was an alcoholic. Here's a page on his show (from "JumpTheShark.Com")... And here is his website. Thanks for the links man...really jogged my memory...I now remember him chugging the wine right after he poured some in the recipe also. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Karnage Report post Posted February 18, 2003 Soo..umm theres going to be like Bobby Flay cutting boards with his footprints on it? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest T®ITEC Report post Posted February 18, 2003 I wouldn't want a cutting board with the imprints of someone's freakin' feet! EDIT: Grammaer. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Brian Report post Posted February 18, 2003 It's a joke from the first Flay/Morimoto battle where Boby Flay put on a public display of disgrace. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest T®ITEC Report post Posted February 18, 2003 Oh. I totally forgot about that. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest starvenger Report post Posted February 18, 2003 Here in England, Delia Smith was single handedly responsible for the nation remembering that you could buy white eggs lol I suppose that means that Nigella Lawson is responsible for making abestos hands sexy? Tsai has a really good sense of French elegance and European style in his dishes. He really finds a way to meld stuff to bring out flavors, plus he knows the wine game which is always a sign of a really good chef. Emeril's holding down Ming Tsai. I have no real proof of this, but when Emeril had a show on Chinese cooking, he brought in Martin Yan as a guest chef. Nothing against Yan, but wouldn't it be better to have a little corporate synergy? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest MarvinisaLunatic Report post Posted February 26, 2003 I personally can't stand Bobby Flay, but maybe thats just me. I seem to be the exception to the rule that says culinary professionals (although right now Im just sorta jobless, but at some point I'll put my degree in Culinary Arts to good use) have to hate Emeril and like Bobby Flay. I just laughed when Flay was jumping on the cutting board on the Iron Chef episode... Oh, and more people know Martin Yan (If yan can cook, you can too!) than Ming Tsai, even people who watch Food TV. Comes from the fact that he had a TV show long before the TV Food Network was around. AH...PBS Cooking shows! (Frugal Gormet, the mustached guy on We're Cookin Now, and Justin Wilson..(RIP)) BTW, even though I like Emeril... Justin Wilson > Emeril Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest starvenger Report post Posted February 26, 2003 Oh, and more people know Martin Yan (If yan can cook, you can too!) than Ming Tsai, even people who watch Food TV. Comes from the fact that he had a TV show long before the TV Food Network was around. AH...PBS Cooking shows! (Frugal Gormet, the mustached guy on We're Cookin Now, and Justin Wilson..(RIP)) I know that, but my problem was with the fact that Emeril should be "giving the rub", so to speak, to the other guys at the network that pays his salary. In Canada you had a funny-weird situation because you had Martin Yan's show, "Yan Can Cook" on PBS, and there was "Wok With Yan" with Stephen Yan on CBC. Fortunately they looked nothing alike and had entirely different cooking styles, but it'd be like having 2 guys surnamed Battali doing shows on Italian cooking on different networks... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest JangoFett4Hire Report post Posted February 26, 2003 emeril had a short lived shitcom, right? sellout... ps emeril and hank the dead dwarf are from the same town... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest KanadianKrusty Report post Posted February 26, 2003 WHAT?, Emeril in a FRIGGIN' SITCOM, please, tell me that's not true. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Brian Report post Posted February 27, 2003 Very, very horrible. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest TheArchiteck Report post Posted February 27, 2003 I remember seeing them advertising it.......but haven't seen it since. I like Emeril...but who wants to see a sitcom of him?! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
