"Food Network" news and stories

You can almost hear the "Hootie Hoo!" call-and-response now. Former "Top Chef All-Stars" cheftestant Carla Hall is going to be a host on ABC's new food show, "The Chew," debuting in September 2011. Hall will be among a rotating team of hosts such as Mario Batali, Michael Symon ("Iron Chef"), and nutrition expert Daphne Oz (The Dorm Room Diet) to create a show that covers "food from EVERY angle -- as a source of joy, health, family ritual, friendship, breaking news, dating, fitness, weight loss, travel adventures and life's moments," notes an ABC press release. In other words, "The View" comes to the kitchen.

Also on deck at ABC, "The Revolution," premiering in January 2012, a lifestyle show focusing on taking the weight off and changing your life. Hosted by fashion guru Tim Gunn ("Project Runway"), and produced by "Biggest Loser" alum J.D. Roth, "The Revolution," says ABC, features "a unique concept: each week one woman's five-month weight-loss journey will unfold in just five days, with daily results and a final transformational reveal on Friday."

Meanwhile, over at The Cooking Channel and Food Network, there's a slew of new shows coming up.

You can run from Guy Fieri, Rachel Ray, and the rest of the Food Network gang, but you can't hide -- not even at the ballpark. The network is launching Food Network branded sandwiches at eight baseball stadiums this season, complete with the networks perky red logo, according to CNBC. The highlighted offering is the Red, White & Blue Steak Sandwich with Maytag blue cheese and sweet and spicy Peppadew-pepper mayonnaise on a French demi baguette, but word is they'll also be serving up steak sandwiches topped with local ingredients. (The Milwaukee "sammie," as Rachel Ray would call it, will have beer cheese over the steak, while Baltimore's version will get a dose of Old Bay-spiced steak sauce.) Happily, no talk yet of branded peanuts or Cracker Jack.

Read the whole story at CNBC.

"Chopped," Food Network's reality series that pits four chefs against each other in a battle for supremacy, has always had a great gimmick: Each contestant has to create dishes using all of the ingredients provided in a "mystery basket." Squid, gummy bears, Nutella -- you name it, these chefs have seen it. But now the series has a new trick up its sleeve: Chopped All-Stars. For a limited five-episode run starting Sunday, March 13th, at 7 p.m. EST, the series will feature Food Network personalities competing head-to-head for a $50,000 cash prize for charity. Our own Sarah DeHeer caught up with host Ted Allen and judge Alex Guarnaschelli at the Food Network kitchens in Manhattan to find out more.

"Diners Drive-Ins and Dives." "Guy's Big Bite." "Minute to Win It." There's no hiding from Guy Fieri these days. The California-based restaurateur burst onto the scene in 2006 after winning the second season of "The Next Food Network Star," and it seems like America can't get enough of his spiky blond hair, chunky jewelry and over-the-top enthusiasm. We defended his frat-boy charm last year, but the debate still rages: Is he worth the hype? Dan Hopper of Best Week Ever examines the issue, asking himself whether Fieri is harmless -- or truly terrible.

Read the whole arguement over at Best Week Ever.

How'd you like Robert Irvine to makeover your restaurant? The muscle man behind the Food Network's Worst Cooks in America and Dinner Impossible, where he recently succeeded in catering a Six Flags banquet with upcycled park food (think: turkey-leg osso bucco and sage cotton candy), will now be taking on floundering restaurants across America.

Restaurant Impossible premiers on the Food Network on Wednesday January 19 at 10pm and will execute complete turnarounds in two days, with $10,000. Like any proper makeover show, Day One on RI starts with a consultation. In this case, a close examination of the business during its heaviest hours of service in order to determine its weaknesses and flawed employees. Day Two entails a menu-and-staff revamp and ends with a packed grand opening, courtesy Irvine's recruiting of townspeople. Sounds like a PG-rated Kitchen Nightmares to us.

The show is currently in deep casting-call mode, so any interested restauranteurs in the U.S. can apply on the Food Network web site. NOLA.com reports that producers do plan on doing a few makeovers in New Orleans, which will be scheduled once restaurants are chosen and will air "perhaps in February or March."