Thursday, May 26, 2005
Cooking Under Fire
We’re totally hooked on Cooking Under Fire, a PBS reality show in which the winner gets to be a chef in a Todd English restaurant in New York. We’ve started being sure to catch it each Thursday, though it also airs Wednesday on some stations, and you can be spoiled by visiting the web site once it airs the first night.
I was sad to see Russell go this week, though I knew it had to be him as soon as I saw the grease fire and criticism of his cooking area. Reading his journal entry after the previous episode, he struck me as not only a great guy, but particularly literate.
But then I was also sad to see Mike go last week. Can’t win ‘em all. There are more abrasive contestants I’d rather see cast off, but they are getting it done, or at least squeaking through.
I feel like a complete amateur compared to the finalists on the show. Which is as it should be; the least of them has training, experience and knowledge I’ve never come close to achieving.
It might be kind of weird starting to watch as of the 6th episode, but not as much as some shows. I highly recommend it, even if you don’t care for traditional cooking shows. It’s sort of like Iron Chef meets American Idol. Or something like that. With all the judges more like Simon and less like Paula.