'The Next Food Network Star': Let's Paarti!

Sister, that was close.

Overcoming self-doubts that continued to nag her until the very end, Los Angeles food blogger Aarti Sequeira was crowned the Season 6 winner of "The Next Food Network Star." More remarkable, she beat out Herb Mesa and Tom Pizzica, competitors who stumbled badly at the start but ultimately delivered cooking concepts that were hits with test groups.

Mesa finally nailed down a clever POV. -- "Cooking con Sabor" -- that underscored his Latin roots and allowed him to slim down his culture's fattening dishes in flavorful fashion. Although he found himself on the chopping block several times this season, he ultimately made peace with a sometimes unhappy childhood as an obese kid. Tom, meanwhile, was almost booted early on for a lazy demeanor that had the judges wondering whether he even wanted to be part of the competition. He turned that into the "Big Chef," bringing big, bold flavors into the kitchen.

Frankly, the judges could have picked any of the three.

But Herb and Tom just couldn't outshine Aarti's sparkle. From the beginning, she had a relaxed, humorous style, and it certainly doesn't hurt that she still manages to be sexy in a way that won't turn off viewers. (Brianna, take note.)

 

 

 

'Next Food Network Star': Your final three

She's back!

The judges pummeled Aarti last week, wondering aloud whether she was too needy, to insecure to be their next star. But our hometown girl battled back this week to prove that she's not an entourage-needed diva -- but she does need to learn the fine art of acting like an expert, without acting like a know-it-all, especially when she doesn't know it all

This week's challenge was arguably the hardest one of the season: Cook like an Iron Chef, for the Food Network's Iron Chefs, including Cat Cora, Michael Symon and Morimoto, as well as the judges. They went two at a time. The first team up was Aarti and Herb, and their secret ingredient was shrimp. Their styles could not be more different: Herb was like a Tasmanian devil tearing up the kitchen with energy to spare, and Aarti was puttering about, at one point literally losing her gazpacho, and wandering here and there to look for it. But the results on the plate were what mattered, and both shined. Aria and Tom pulled bacon, and their dishes were a disaster, proving that bacon does not always make everything better. Aria appeared to have missed the point of the challenge completely: She made bacon the side dish, not the star. Tom took it too far in the other direction, making a bacon cake, and a bacon steak, but neither wowed the judges. The bacon steak was so tough that judge Susie Fogelson was practically calling for a Sawzall. 

'The Next Food Network Star': Be careful what you swap for

What is more joyful than the man you love proving himself to be a lout who leaves you and your son to fend for yourselves?

That's Aria's world!

The "Next Food Network Star" hopefuls had to cook to an emotion. Aria ended up with "melancholy." Tough for someone with a megawatt smile, but it would have forced her to stretch and grow, which is what the judges clearly wanted. But Aria wanted the easy way out. So she swapped with Herb, who had "joy." But then, instead of delivering a JOY-ful meal to the judges at Beso -- including the restaurant's chef, Todd English, and owner and actress Eva Longoria -- Aria delivered one that almost moved them to tears. It was a story about how she and the man in her life hit a rough patch and broke up, he left her to care for their son, and how he finally returned to tell her that he would do "anything to rebuild our family." And one of those steps is getting together each Sunday for a family dinner.

Now, technically, you could have totally turned that into a joyful story, right? But she didn't. And that just might be the biggest misstep of the season so far: If Aria had stuck with "melancholy," and explained to the judges why her dish represented that bitter sweet emotion, I think she would have won the week. Her show concept is "family style," and how wonderful would it be to have that conceit embodied by a woman fighting for her family's life. Talk about real. Oooh, what a missed opportunity.

'Next Food Network Star': Oh, you did not just say that to Bobby Flay

Paul, as a comedian, you must be familiar with the first rule of comedy: Know your audience. In other words, don't mouth off to the very people who are deciding your fate. And don't mouth off to the very people who are deciding your fate when they are trying to help you!

I was stunned when Paul gave lip to Bobby Flay, who has been actually pulling for Paul, trying to give him a chance, giving him some tips, encouraging him to use his quick comedic timing to connect with the audience instead of repelling them. But Paul was determined to offend to the end. I think Bobby was giving him one last chance to describe his culinary point of view, to finesse the "blue collar on a dollar" theme -- which actually could have legs -- but Paul couldn't do it. When Bobby pressed him to describe what he would cook for a potential audience, Paul amped up the 'tude and responded: "Food." Worse, he acted like it was Bobby who had the problem. I thought Bobby handled it perfectly: The Flay-man was seething, controlled fury. You could feel the blood drain out of Paul as he realized what he had done.

Farewell, Paul!

As we got down to the Final 7, I was struck at what a solid group it was -- and just how dramatically fortunes have changed.

'Next Food Network Star': Haven't you seen this show before?

This is Season 6 of the Food Network's talent search. And if you'd ever seen even one episode from a past season, you know that having a razor sharp "culinary POV" is what it's all about. In other words: Doreen, haven't you seen this show before?

If you have the raw talent, "The Next Food Network Star" can probably teach you all the camera tricks that you need to know -- such as how to talk and cook at the same time. But they can't supply you with a point of view. Doreen had to know this, yet she struggled again and again -- and seemed a bit hostile -- when the selection committee tried to get her to narrow her focus.

It's what ultimately did her in. The poorly done pulled-pork didn't help, either. Which is a shame because Doreen held some promise, and I'm not just saying that because she's a hometown girl: She had a streetwise edge to her and worldliness about food. Why she couldn't find a way to play up that angle is beyond me. How about "The World on Your Plate"?

All that said, how could the same selection committee choose to keep loony-tunes Dzintra over Doreen after the pair fell to the bottom this week?!! Do they really think more viewers would tune in for "I talk to myself, and about myself in the third person" Dzintra over Doreen? Doreen's scattered approach could have been dealt with in a blunt, 20-minute session with mentor Giada de Laurentiis, who, by the way, is doing a great job, delivering sound, constructive criticism. Dzintra, though, is another case entirely. She is just unwatchable: She makes my stomach seize up.

Even if you stack Doreen against Dzintra on the food front, I think Doreen would win out, too, which makes the selection committee's decision all the more perplexing. This week's challenge was a sweet one: Set on the Santa Monica Pier, the contest required the cheftestants to take a sugarly carnival treat and transform it into a savory bite for Duff "Ace of Cakes" Goldman and his friends.

Doreen's inspiration was a root beer float, and her root beer pulled pork was a clever retort. Unfortunately, she didn't have enough time to cook the pork until it became buttery soft, so it was just too tough. But Dzintra, whose inspiration was cotton candy, brought the crazy with a three-part dish that had some of the judges talking to themselves, too. I cringed when Food Network honcho Bob Tuschman had to tell  Dzintra -- repeatedly -- to get plating because the clock was ticking. I do think it was nice that the selection committee cut her some slack last week when she suffered an eye injury and went to the hospital, and they allowed her to stick around for another week even though she didn't cook much.

But enough. It was a bad call to let Dzintra slide a second week in a row.

What did you think? Am I being too tough on Dzintra? Did Doreen really deserve to go home before Dzintra?

A few random thoughts: So glad to see DAS bounce from bottom to top. He has a soft charm about him. Aarti needs to stop with the second-guessing. So unattractive. Fake it til you make it, Aarti. Tuschman hit it right on the head with Paul: He could be a dynamo if he could bring the funny, without the meanspiritedness. I like Herb's fitness foodie approach -- that could be a winning show on Food Network. I'm still undecided about Serena. I go from loving her to . . . not loving her. And I hope that Aria doesn't become this season's Jeffrey -- so good from the beginning that the committee dings her for not improving enough. And, boy, does Brianna hate to be criticized. Maybe she's never seen the show, either. 

--Rene Lynch
Twitter / renelynch

Photo: Doreen during the lasagna challenge. Credit: Food Network

RELATED:

Hollywood Dame recaps

Duff Goldman and carnival inspiration

Food Network Humor: Zoltar says...

Photo credit: Doreen during the lasagna challenge. Food Network

Alton Brown marks 10 years of 'Good Eats' with a show, a tome — and a bullet

"Good Eats" creator and host Alton Brown was supposed to be talking about his new book, "Good Eats: The Early Years," and the 10th anniversary of the show, which airs Saturday night on Food Network. 

But A.B. — every bit the multitasking pragmatist both inside and outside the kitchen — was already talking about The End.

As in The End of "Good Eats."

"I doubt 'Good Eats' will last that long beyond next year," Brown said during a telephone interview earlier this week.

Now, don't panic, A.B. fans. "I'm not going to kill it before its time," he cautioned. But he likened "Good Eats" to a beloved dog. And when your beloved dog gets too old and begins to suffer ... you have to do what is humane. "I will not jump the shark. When it comes time, I will know when to put it down. I'm getting too old for the youngsters. I'm 47. I'm contracted through the end of next year. You just can't ask an audience to stick with something that long. Fashions change, times change .... I've already got a bullet with a gun, and when [the show-chopping TV execs] come for us, I will lead us out to the pasture, and I'll put a bullet in it."

A.B. may be bracing himself for the inevitable, as any good pet owner would.

But neither A.B. nor "Good Eats" — a unique blend of cooking meets entertainment meets mad-cap science — seems to be getting long in the tooth:

'Chefs Vs. City' comes to L.A., turns the tables on Chef Aaron Sanchez

Does Chef Aaron Sanchez have an enemy at Food Network?

Sanchez stars in the new series "Chefs Vs. City" -- think "Amazing Race" for the food and travel set. Each week, Sanchez and his long-time friend Chris Constantino drop into cities all across the country to compete against a pair of local chefs in a series of food challenges that serve to show off a region's culinary and travel highlights.

Sounds all well and good. But so far this season, Sanchez has been sent charging across the blazing hot desert, force fed like a foi gras duck, cracked his elbow in a serious fall, subjected to sub-zero temperatures -- and berrated by sidekick Constantino at every turn. Friday night's show finds the pair in L.A., and while we cannot give anything away, we can say that Sanchez does battle with some chili peppers -- and doesn't necessarily get the better of them.

"I'm telling you, I have been put through the ringer, sometimes I'm like "Is someone out to get me?'" Sanchez joked during a recent telephone interview. "Chris and I didn't necessarily know what we were signing up for. But I am really enjoying this."

It's a starkly different side of Sanchez than the one that Food Network fans normally see.

If you watch "Chopped!" -- and if you don't, you should -- you'll recall Sanchez as

Food Network's 'Chopped': TiVo worthy?

 

It's a TV cooking competition with a knife for a logo. A celebrity host. Guest judges. Mystery ingredients. A sleek industrialized kitchen. Men and women in chef's jackets racing to plate their dishes. A cash prize for the winner. And, of course, a somber parting line for those who didn't make the cut: "You've been chopped."

What? You were expecting "Please pack your knives and go"?

Long before "Chopped" premiered Tuesday night on Food Network, the blogosphere had summarily labeled it a ripoff of Bravo's Emmy-winning TV show and pop culture phenomenon, "Top Chef." Exhibit A? Ted Allen, a popular guest judge on "Top Chef," is the host of "Chopped."

In fact, viewers who give "Chopped" a chance may be pleasantly surprised to find that its stripped-down style relates to the everyday cook in a way that other cooking competitions don't.

Read more here.

Photo credit: Food Network