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Photo: Food Network.
Not 24 hours later, a "Saturday Night Live" skit portrayed the "Next Food Network Star" winner being pecked to death by birds.
So why are the cool kids picking on Guy?
I want to go to a party at Food TV superstar Guy Fieri's house. I imagine pyramids of glistening pork ribs and snow shovels full of hush puppies. I dream of patiently standing in line by the pool waiting for margaritas to be blasted into my open mouth by a fire hose while AC/DC blares over the loudspeaker.
You know what you're going to get with this dude. He's fun, entertaining and totally lacking in subtlety -- a one-man tailgate upon which nary a Michelin star shines. His contribution to the tired fusion trend was to awkwardly pair barbecue with sushi. He is who he is; now buy a book.
Yet plenty of critics despise him, and I'll admit, he's easy to hate on. A little too easy. Fieri is a loud, garish frat man who shills a cuisine based on five simple tastes: salty, crunchy, meaty, spicy and chocolatey. As a television personality, he's a cross between Billy Mays and Emeril Lagasse, drenched in nacho cheese. Oh and the hair bleach. The hair bleach! How it burns.
A recent Daily Beast essay likened Fieri to Glenn Beck, the partisan political talk show host famous for his divisive ranting. The epicurean world seems, according to this article, to be split into two camps: armchair gourmets against Guy and for gastronomic purity, and boorish gluttons. Foodies just love to beat up the poor galoot. The only people who give Guy any respect are his accountants.
To many, food is escapist entertainment. Guy Fieri is not Jean-Luc Godard; he's Michael Bay. His dishes explode with brash flavors and fill the belly. On "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives," he interviews hometown cooks who sling grub designed to immediately tickle the brain's pleasure centers. To his television viewers and visitors to his restaurant chain, Johnny Garlic's Pasta Grill, he sells a style of food that's the equivalent of the Fourth of July: nosh meant to draw a crowd, burst with colors and inspire applause.
For some self-proclaimed "foodies," though, dinner is a basis of self-definition -- and this sheds some light on their revulsion to Guy and all he represents. These gastro-groupies revere serious chefs who aren't satisfied with just stuffing faces, but who use haute techniques and obscure ingredients to transcend culinary expectations.
And like many lovers of high arts, these people are frequently humorless. At worst, they deride that which they fear. In Guy Fieri's case, the fear is that the vast majority of the population just doesn't think their sophisticated passion is really that important. Fieri is the living representation of the uber-American appetite, and sadly, it is not interested in molecular gastronomy or subversive deconstructions of classic dishes. Look on the bright side: more nitrogen ice cream, sous-vide quail and foams for fans.
I have never believed that high and low cuisine are mutually exclusive. Years ago, a close friend of mine, the very first foodie I ever met, introduced me to two things he loved dearly. The first was sushi, specifically, toro or tuna belly. I had never been particularly adventurous with food, and my Texas-born self resisted the whole notion of "raw fish." He patiently explained to me why I should love it and what I was supposed to expect. He counseled me to I focus on the buttery texture of the fish. I was hooked.
A few weeks later, he took me to have the sloppiest cheeseburger I had ever eaten. The disparity surprised me, as I had assumed that my friend was a connoisseur of fancy eats. It was possible to love dainty little slivers of expensive fish and a greasy beef puck? Here was a valuable lesson: never eat sushi when your heart's set on a cheeseburger. And vice versa.
I love Guy Fieri on his terms -- his deep-fried, calorie-laden, party-boy terms. I know what to expect from him, so I'm not disappointed. Nor am I angry that he has like, eleventy gazillion recipes for chicken wings. I mean, look at the guy.
John DeVore has written for Maxim Magazine, The New York Sun, Cracked.com, Comedycentral.com, Esquire.com, Playboy.com and for the award winning political parody Whitehouse.org. Follow him at twitter.com/johndevore and read his previous articles about The Top 10 Food Mascots of All Time and 10 Catchiest Food Jingles We Love to Hate.
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11-25-2009 @5:22PM mredwebb said... PS It's just sad they don't give him a chance to actually cook. Great host, but a waste of cooking skills. Funny Chang trashed Fieri for his clothes and not his cooking. I mean, there's shallow and there's.... that.
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11-25-2009 @6:28PM Walter said... How could he even think of retaliating...he knows it's all true...he's a doosh.
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11-27-2009 @7:20PM Jay said... How come this guy doesn't weigh 800 pounds with all the food that he consumes?
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11-27-2009 @7:23PM Jay said... Don't care what any of you all say, this guy, Guy ROX.
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11-28-2009 @11:03AM cathy hauer said... Guy is the cool person you want at a part, Bourdan is the guy you want to leave off your list. He is a depressed clod who eats bugs!
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11-28-2009 @2:39PM Ann Ponzi said... Great article about this dude and his style. Butmissing: Where is his restaurant? Is it a franchise yet? Where do I go to dine at his restaurant?
ANN
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12-02-2009 @3:33PM Jay said... Sacramento CA.
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12-04-2009 @2:30AM Anne said... Sorry, haters. I love DDD. I love Guy Fieri and his enthusiasm for real-life food joints. The owners of these diners love cooking for their customers and giving them great home-cooked meals at reasonable prices. I only wish I could eat that stuff (high cholesterol & 2 heart attacks). All I can do is watch and dream.
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12-04-2009 @9:54PM JOAN W. said... I saw Guy last night,Dec.3rd at the Rosemont Theatre here in Chicago. What a show!! I love the man anyway, but now simply adore him. Love Triple D, watch Guy's Big Bite, too. The man is so charismatic! If he gets tired of being a chef, he very well could be a stand up comic! The aroma's flooded the theatre. Wonderful!!! Who cares who says what, I'll still LOVE GUY FIERI !!!!!!!!
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12-05-2009 @8:26AM jimmyp24588 said... His hair really looks stupid.
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12-05-2009 @1:26PM Kathy J said... There will always be that 5% that think they are so much smarter and better than the rest of us. I have never seen a show about Bourdain or Chang that shows how they are thankful and keep giving back over and over again. People love Guy because he is what you see. He's a happy man who truly enjoys what he is doing and can't believe how his whole career has just exploded. He is devoted to his family and includes them whenever he can. You don't have to mute the TV for fear of what language he will use next (Bourdain and Chang's discussion above proves my point). I love DD&D and it is about everyday folks (many whom are really excellant "chefs") finding their own passion and sharing it with people who are looking for good eats. It's a shame "Hooty" & "Snooty" are missing out on what the majority of us enjoy. No worry, that leaves more for us. You go Guy and hope to see you some day :)
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1-20-2010 @10:22PM Tom Scott said... Can anyone tell me what the name of the restaurent is and where it is located that Guy interviewed about Tamales. The cook was a young women using her mother's mothers recipe for Tamales. I seasrched for past shows but couldn't find them.
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11-26-2010 @11:43AM Jim Morrissey said... What is all this smoke regarding Guy...I can't believe what I have read. Bottom line is "your watching", otherwise you could not comment on it...and I'll bet your still watching, or at the least you get someone to watch the show with you so you could voice your dislikes about whatever he does and try to get them to agree with you...and usually you do...yet the both of you continue to watch saying, "see I told you he does this or that..etc, getting your reaffirmations that you both are right"...Frankly, you are making a SOAP OPERA out of a cooking show...However, you are still watching, to which I say thanks, because I want to see him on for a very long time...Keep up the good work. On a personal note I would like to say that I have been to several of the places he recommended on his show and I can tell you this....His opinions and recommendations are all MONEY!
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8-19-2011 @6:17PM gg said... Fieri seems irresponsible to me in a time where our country is deep into an obesity epidemic and when insurance rates are astronomical. Glorifying overeating and foods high in saturated fat is pretty downright evil. As to cooking, it doesn't take much talent to make butter, bacon and salt and sugar taste good, show me someone that can make whole grains, fresh fruits and vegetables irresistable .
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