The Next Iron Chef 2009

Has anyone been watching this (Sunday nights, FoodNetwork at 8pm CDT)? They are down to 6 chefs now (started with 10) and this coming Sunday is a double elimination. Jose Garces from Mercat is still in the running.

I don't go out of my way to watch it, yet I have somehow seen all of the episodes thus far. It is interesting that Chef Garces is still in it, but I'd have to say that the Persian-Indian pastry chef, Chef Mehta, is the favorite at this point. I'm fairly certain he's won more challenges than any of the other chefs by a decent margin, and just seems more consistent at turning out food the judges enjoy.

I am rooting for Garces or Mullen for the win. Mehta may be the judges favorite, but he certainly isn't mine.

I didn't like that he took the grape leaves as a garnish/bed when another chef needed them for his assignment to make dolmas. Mullen seems to be fair and doesn't play dirty in order to secure a win. Garces seems to be the most respected chef in the group based on his dishes (they voted as a group Garces dishes to be the best twice--not the judges).

Maybe James and I are the only ones here that are watching TNIC...so it is my duty to provide you with a quick recap.

Semi-Chicagoian and Chef at Mercat a la Planxa, Jose Garces, is in the final 3 and is considered to be the biggest threat by the remaining 2 chefs.

Just thought that those that like Mercat may want to know. If Check Please causes a backup at local places, I imagine trying to get a table at Mercat these days (and in the future if Garces indeed becomes TNIC) may become problematic.

Edited to add...scratch that. He is now in the final two!

Heh, I am indeed still watching this. There was that other new poster who threw up a thread titled "MAD" or something like that, and raged at the final three being comprised purely of "snakes"

In any event, I'm pleased to see it come down to Chef Garces and Chef Mehta. My wife was a bit conflicted as she has quite enjoyed Mercat and never eaten anywhere connected to Chef Mehta, but in the end Indian solidarity takes precedence apparently and she has demanded I root for him as well, heh. And I'll admit that while both are cocky, Chef Garces' attitude seems just a bit more in-your-face to a degree that I find a mild turnoff, so I find myself pulling a bit more for Chef Mehta regardless.

Well, I hope that Jose Garces wins. Right now the cooking is done, and Chef Mehta is serving...

It can go either way, but I hope Chef Garces is the winner.

It is gonna be close....

Jose Garces is THE NEXT IRON CHEF!!!!!!

Thank you. I fell asleep before the end.

I am glad that Garces won...and curious...did Jeffrey Steingarten say that Chef Garces pork dish wasn't really representative of Chicago bc there isn't a large German population there (here)? I dont have a DVR and I couldn't figure out what he was saying or trying to say.

It seemed like the food critics either (1)weren't sure about Garces--at least the 2 female judges or (2)just simply didn't want Garces to win--Jeffrey. Also, I thought it was a little surprising that Jeffrey went at the current ICs stating that they wanted Garces to win, when I heard little to nothing from them at that point about who the favored and why. But JS was right bc the ICs didn't disagree with him.

So...did we miss something in the editing? I guess it doesn't matter that much...but IMO, Jeffrey is an ass.

My take on JS's comments were not that he didn't think there were Germans, but rather more along the lines of the existence of Germans didn't justify serving German food. So I think it was the fact that the German food wasn't wildly high-end or immensely exotic. I generally find him amusing, though primarily when I'm reading him, rather than listening to him -- but found him quite annoying for the NIC judging. His comments were unnecessarily adversarial.

What a dud of a show, though I am certainly happy for chef Garces. And I feel bad for Michael Symon, whose victory in the previous 'Next Iron Chef' competition seems to have been seriously devalued via this competition. I'm not sure what cache the Iron Chef America brand ever had, but it appears to be on a decidedly downward spiral. Does anyone who actually follows this show know why yet another Iron Chef was added? Was it just to create some buzz or is someone who is leaving the show being replaced?

I also have to say that the Chairman is completely useless. He adds zero to this show, which would be so much more enjoyable if he weren't a part of it. The pre-programmed, try-too-hard camp is tiresome and cheapens the entire affair. The disparity in tone between a ne'er-do-well actor whose every moment is accompanied by a sound effect and earnest chefs who are working hard at their craft is a major distraction. Maybe someday Alton Brown will stab him to death with a fork.

I don't watch Iron Chef America unless a chef with whom I am familiar is competing. Nothing I saw during this competition is likely to change that.

=R=

I had read online (rumor...not fact) that Mario Batali was retiring from IC, which would make sense why they were looking for the Next Iron Chef.

Batali's show was cancelled on FN, and overall he hasn't had much of a presence on the FN. Although during the finale, they were promoting a SuperIC death match somethingorother (3FN chefs + the White House Chef) Flay and Comerford versus Batali and Lagasse.

ronnie_suburban wrote:whose every moment is accompanied by a sound effect and earnest chefs who are working hard at their craft is a major distraction.

Ron, Ron, Ron,.........(~shaking head~)

The Chairman, in addition to being Chairman Kaga's nephew, is a past master 9th degree blackbelt, kung fu champion and most likely a ninja thus his every movement, including a simple turn of the head or wave of the hand, is so powerful it creates the sound of rushing wind.

Apologies for the somewhat chastising tone, but for a man who knows the insides and out of the culinary world such as yourself to not be conversant with Chairman Dacascos bio is puzzling.

Regards,
Gary 'reality, enjoy it for what it is' Wiviott

The Chairman lost a few notches in my eyes when he appeared as a contestant on Dancing with the Stars. He wasn't too bad of a dancer but he seemed very vulnerable and very un-Chairman like. As far as who is leaving, I thought I read that Cat Cora was because of her increasing role with Disney's Culinary Institute.

CM2772 wrote:I had read online (rumor...not fact) that Mario Batali was retiring from IC, which would make sense why they were looking for the Next Iron Chef.

Batali's show was cancelled on FN, and overall he hasn't had much of a presence on the FN. Although during the finale, they were promoting a SuperIC death match somethingorother (3FN chefs + the White House Chef) Flay and Comerford versus Batali and Lagasse.

That rumor is from the last NICA, not this one, and Batali never left. Morimoto's battle against Vie's Paul Virant was his last, though, so Jose Garces will be replacing him.

LikestoEatout wrote:The Chairman lost a few notches in my eyes when he appeared as a contestant on Dancing with the Stars. He wasn't too bad of a dancer but he seemed very vulnerable and very un-Chairman like. As far as who is leaving, I thought I read that Cat Cora was because of her increasing role with Disney's Culinary Institute.

We all know that the Chairman is an actor from Hawaii with no relation to the actor who played the chairman on the original Japanese show, right? He also appeared in an episode of the tragically underappreciated show "The Middleman" in an even less chairman-like role.

gleam wrote:

LikestoEatout wrote:The Chairman lost a few notches in my eyes when he appeared as a contestant on Dancing with the Stars. He wasn't too bad of a dancer but he seemed very vulnerable and very un-Chairman like. As far as who is leaving, I thought I read that Cat Cora was because of her increasing role with Disney's Culinary Institute.

We all know that the Chairman is an actor from Hawaii with no relation to the actor who played the chairman on the original Japanese show, right? He also appeared in an episode of the tragically underappreciated show "The Middleman" in an even less chairman-like role.

The chairman's greatest role was in the French film Brotherhood of the Wolf, as Mani, the Native American traveling companion to the most ass-kicking French taxidermist in the history of cinema.

Sadly, the chairman's worst role is about a 40-way tie between straight to video and made-for-cable sci-fi and action flicks.

Of course I know the Chairman is an actor, it's just that he is so seriously corny as the Chairman that came off with such a different personality as a dancer.

Oh come on, now, people -- have you not seen the Chairman's excellent guest starring spots on Stargate Atlantis?

Incredible pathos and true method performance!!!!!

And I, for one, found his Dancing with the Stars work very intriguing. Toe Tapping, even.

I'm sure he's just happy to get some dang work.

I just wish that there was a swooshing sound every time I moved...

I had read online (rumor...not fact) that Mario Batali was retiring from IC, which would make sense why they were looking for the Next Iron Chef.

Batali's show was cancelled on FN, and overall he hasn't had much of a presence on the FN. Although during the finale, they were promoting a SuperIC death match somethingorother (3FN chefs + the White House Chef) Flay and Comerford versus Batali and Lagasse.

Supposedly, Batali took a one year sabbatical from IC for business reasons - maybe if his Spanish show with Paltrow did better he wouldn't be coming back. The White House show is actually the premiere for next season, so you get the impression that he is going to be on next year.

gleam wrote:We all know that the Chairman is an actor from Hawaii with no relation to the actor who played the chairman on the original Japanese show, right?

Ed,

I don't know that, and you are simply incorrect. Chairman Dacascos is the nephew of Chairman Kaga, of the original Japanese version, and a past master of multiple fighting arts.

How can you doubt this, don't you watch the first few minutes of American Iron Chef where they say he is the nephew of Kaga?

Regards,
Gary 'my life, my reality' Wiviott

First, congratulations to Chef Garces.

Second, this show is a shining example of the incompetence of Food Network. It feels like a knockoff of Top Chef, which it is, but the prize is far greater than anything Bravo could muster.

Becoming an Iron Chef is a million dollar gig. Instantly, the winner becomes one of the most famous chefs in the country. Chef Garces may have been a celebrity chef in Philadelphia, but now he will be recognized from coast to coast. Look at what becoming an Iron Chef did for Michael Symon's career and profile.

This series, however, has not been very well thought out. Some of the challenges were ridiculous (Indian food?! Really?!) and the battle for proteins is often unbecoming.

I'm not sure why a new Iron Chef was even necessary, except to produce this show. I knew Mario Batali had a falling out with FN, but they seem to have patched things up, to an extent. I had not heard the rumors regarding Cora and Morimoto until I read this thread. However, I would like to see a hundred Iron Chefs if it means we won't see Bobby Flay on every other episode of Iron Chef America.

Finally, the best thing this show has going for it is that it's not The Next Food Network Star. At least Chef Garces won't disappear after a few months.