Interviews

Chatting with the Runner-Up of 'The Next Iron Chef'

by Michael D. Ayers, Posted Nov 24th 2010 @ 1:00PM

Iron Chef runner up Marco Canora Photo: Marco Canora / Food Network

Though he didn't win The Next Iron Chef, Marco Canora – one of our Kitchen Daily experts – made more than a solid run at the coveted title. Of all the Iron Chef hopefuls, chef Canora won the most battles, utilizing his simple-speaks-volumes methodology. The owner of New York City's Hearth and Terrior wine bar, Canora has made a name for himself not only in New York, but in Tuscany as well, where he retreats each summer to give hands-on classes.

Slashfood spoke with Canora about what we didn't see on the final episode of The Next Iron Chef and about his vision for his next cookbook.

You didn't become the next Iron Chef, but you did seem happy for Marc.

MC: I was. I was happy for him. We all got along well. There was no animosity, everyone was rooting for each other. Even though it was a competition, we knew nine people were going to go home and one guy was going to be left standing. That's just the nature of the beast. I'm very happy for the guy. Good for him, you know?

Filed under: Television/Film, Chefs, Interviews

Chatting with 'Top Chef Just Desserts' Runner-Up Danielle Keene

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by Michael D. Ayers, Posted Nov 23rd 2010 @ 3:00PM

Top Chef Just Desserts Danielle Keene Photo: Scott Schafer / Bravo

Though she didn't display the bells and whistles of her fellow competitors, Pasadena, California's Danielle Keene waded through the Top Chef Just Desserts battlefield by honing in on one thing: nostalgia. Whereas other chefs were concerned with flash-in-the-pan techniques, Danielle quietly did her thing, only taking time out to tell the more annoying cheftestants to shut their pie holes. A graduate of the Los Angeles Culinary Institute, Danielle currently owns and operates Bittersweet Treats, a pastry company that provides the Los Angeles area, as well as Internet customers, with homemade cakes, candy and ice cream.

Slashfood spoke with Danielle about her time spent on Top Chef Just Desserts, her homemade root beer and the one thing everyone is asking about.

Considering the contestants you were surrounded by, how did you not commit any violent crimes in that house?

DK: [laughs]. It was close. Very, very close. When I came back to the house, I had two things: pool and a puzzle. I'd just sit there and do my puzzle and tune everybody out. Then I'd go back to my room -- luckily I'd remembered to bring pictures with me, so I'd look at people out there who loved me.

Filed under: Television/Film, Interviews

Jamie Oliver Warns L.A. He's On His Way

COMMENTS 1

by Allen Salkin, Posted Nov 23rd 2010 @ 1:00PM

Photo: Slashfood

Watch out, Los Angeles school officials! You may become next season's prime-time TV villains.

Jamie Oliver, the English chef who won an Emmy for his show "Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution" (which portrayed some school-lunch bureaucrats in West Virginia as ensuring that children are given meals sure to make them obese and short-lived), is bringing the show to L.A. for season 2.

When producers wrote to officials at the Los Angeles Unified School District, asking for permission to film in the schools, it was denied.

"Our feeling was that his time would be better spent or invested in other communities," an L.A. school official told the Los Angeles Times.

In part two of Oliver's exclusive three-part interview with Slashfood, he lays down a warning to the district.

Filed under: Television/Film, Interviews, Behind the Apron

Chatting with the Winner of 'The Next Iron Chef'

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by Michael D. Ayers, Posted Nov 23rd 2010 @ 11:00AM

Food Network The Next Iron Chef Photo Courtesy Food Network

It came down to Marc Forgione and Marco Canora duking it out for the privilege of joining one of the most coveted cooking fraternities in television, that of the Iron Chef. The final contest on The Next Iron Chef -- "Battle Honor" or "Battle Thanksgiving" -- was held in the famed Kitchen Stadium. The task at hand, to create a five-course Thanksgiving meal. Chef Forgione took that idea of honor and brushed aside the traditional turkey-and-dressing component in favor of stuffed venison. The son of "the godfather of American cuisine," Larry Forgione, Marc Forgione stated from the outset that he wanted to be known for his own work, not merely as his father's son. We're confident that being an Iron Chef will put any feelings of dwelling in the shadows to rest.

This Sunday, chef Forgione steps into Kitchen Stadium for the first time as an Iron Chef, where he faces Washington D.C.'s R.J. Cooper.

Slashfood spoke with chef Forgione about his nerves going into "Battle Honor,' his inspiration behind his Thanksgiving course and which Iron Chef dishes are in store for patrons of his Manhattan hot spot, Restaurant Marc Forgione.

As an Iron Chef, are you supposed to introduce yourself as a doctor does?

MF: [laughs]. I don't know. I guess so, right? Like I should put an "I.C." at the end of my name.

In the final episode, "Battle Honor," were you nervous going in?

MF: At that point I wasn't nervous anymore. It was more ... I can't even describe the adrenaline, the anxiety ... I felt like I was fighting for my life, literally. When you're standing there and he's about to pull that curtain down, if you didn't see your face, you might as well have been told you were going to jail for the rest of your life. It was that intense, at least for me.

Filed under: Television/Film, Chefs, Interviews

Chatting with 'Top Chef Just Desserts' Runner-up Morgan Wilson

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by Michael D. Ayers, Posted Nov 22nd 2010 @ 4:00PM

Top Chef Just Desserts Morgan Wilson Photo: Scott Schafer / Bravo

Large and mostly in charge, Top Chef Just Desserts runner-up Morgan Wilson made a lot of people angry. Some might say he simply spoke the truth; others would say his arrogance overshadowed his tender moments, such as his constant references to his young son. Going into the finale, Morgan was certainly the favorite -- the judges heaped constant praise on his creations, while his fellow contestants heaped on constant criticism. Now the executive pastry chef at the Ritz-Carlton in Dallas, Morgan's culinary path has taken him from studies at Le Cordon Bleu, in Paris, to work alongside François Payard in São Paulo, Brazil.

Slashfood spoke with Morgan about his polarizing personality, the soufflé issues he experienced in the final challenge and the Dallas, Texas, pastry scene.

You were very polarizing on this show. How have people around Dallas reacted towards you?

MW: I don't know. I don't see a lot of people around town; the people I do see are my friends and they're on my side. They have definitely been extremely supportive and proud of my performance.

ar between.

Filed under: Television/Film, Interviews

Ryan Seacrest As Jamie Oliver 2 [Video]

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by Allen Salkin, Posted Nov 22nd 2010 @ 3:00PM

Photo: Slashfood

We can't imagine "Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution" without Jamie, but, if things had gone Oliver's way back in 2008, the show would have been hosted by "American Idol" star Ryan Seacrest.

In the first segment of an exclusive three-part Slashfood interview with Jamie Oliver (parts 2 and 3 run tomorrow and Wednesday), the English chef reveals that he didn't want to host the American version of the show he had launched in England, and asked Seacrest to take on the job. "I had heard he was into food politics," Oliver said.

Although Oliver had experienced success on American TV with his "Naked Chef" series, on Food Network, he had been trying to pitch a prime-time show here for six years, based on the television docs he'd made in England about trying to improve school lunches and the local diet in Rotherham, South Yorkshire. But he was doubtful that he was well-known enough in the States to pull off it off here. So he emailed Seacrest, who he didn't know at the time.

Seacrest expressed interest, but after Oliver sent him a full proposal, the American Idol host said 'It's not for me, but I'll help you do it,'" Oliver recalled.

Filed under: Television/Film, Celebrities, Chefs, Interviews

Chatting with the Winner of 'Top Chef Just Desserts'

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by Michael D. Ayers, Posted Nov 19th 2010 @ 11:00AM

Photo: Kelsey McNeal / Bravo

Continuing Slashfood's reality-tv cooking competition exit interviews, we present you a conversation with the winner of Top Chef Just Desserts. To avoid spoilers, click through to read the winner's final thoughts. On Monday, our interviews with the runners-up.

Filed under: Television/Film, Interviews

Chatting With the Latest Exiled 'Next Iron Chef'

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by Michael D. Ayers, Posted Nov 16th 2010 @ 10:00AM

Next Iron Chef Top 4 Contestants Photo: Food Network

The notion of a mellow Iron Chef seems to be a bit preposterous, but that's exactly how chef Celina Tio came across on this season of The Next Iron Chef. While some might be scrambling frantically for a spot of parchment, chef Tio demonstrated a steady calmness with a wide variety of cooking techniques, including a heat-by-proximity style of cooking fish and the willingness to accompany a chocolate ganache with grapefruit gel. As the owner of Kansas City's Julian and a graduate of Drexel University's Hotel and Restaurant management program, chef Tio has been hailed by Chef magazine as "chef of the year" in 2005 and in 2007, was recognized by the James Beard Foundation as the "Best Chef: Midwest."

Slashfood spoke with chef Tio about her underdog-inspired run to the final four, an undisclosed hindrance she carried with her throughout the season and which of her fellow chefs inspired her to place a new item on Julian's menu this fall.

You seemed really mellow over this season. Either you have an amazing poker face or you don't get stressed.

CT: I try not to get stressed, because it really doesn't help anything, it just hinders the process. I don't freak out, I'm just not that person. I can count on one hand how many times I've freaked out, ever. That's a week for some people.

Filed under: Television/Film, Interviews

Chatting with the Latest Exiled 'Top Chef Just Desserts' Contestant

COMMENTS 0

by Michael D. Ayers, Posted Nov 12th 2010 @ 12:00PM

Photos: Kelsey McNeal / Bravo

As the first season of Top Chef Just Desserts winds down, Slashfood is taking the time to talk with the final five contestants about their time spent on the show. In an effort to avoid spoilers, we've put our exit interview with the latest exiled cheftestant after the jump -- click through to read it.

Filed under: Television/Film, Interviews

Chatting with the Latest Exiled 'Next Iron Chef'

COMMENTS 1

by Michael D. Ayers, Posted Nov 9th 2010 @ 12:00PM

Photo Courtesy of Food Network

Once again, Slashfood takes the time to catch up with our favorite reality-TV chefs as they're asked to leave the national stage and return to their respective kitchens. As we've done in the past, we try to avoid spoilers, so click through to read our exit interview with the latest exiled 'Next Iron Chef.''