The Food Network is a television channel which broadcasts a variety of cooking shows and competitions. There is also a Food Network app which is a great way to stream your favorite cooking shows on the go! Watching other people cook on television has evolved into a part of our normal everyday society which was far from the case a decade or two ago. With this evolution of entertainment, I decided to see if my personal favorites were as popular with the general population.
Diners Drive-ins and Dives
Hosted by none other than Guy Fieri, Triple D (as it is lovingly referred), is a show on the Food Network which follows Guy all around North America. He visits various establishments where he tastes some of the most unique, old school, and simply “off the chain” dishes as Guy would say. This is one of my personal favorite choices on the Food Network, and the feeling is shared with the majority of voters at Ranker.com who voted Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives as the number one show on this network.
Guy Fieri has actually filmed a few times in the Buffalo, New York area. One location is the Lake Effect Diner. This is a 50’s themed diner in the city of Buffalo. They squeeze fresh orange juice every day and have amazing milkshakes! I visited the Lake Effect Diner years ago, but Tina Fey dined there this summer!
The Blackthorn Restaurant and pub was featured on Triple D, as well. My husband and I tried this Irish Pub a few months back. We had to sit in the bar area and order from a very limited menu. The food was decent overall but the occasion was ruined for us as we were encircled by loud bar crawlers. If we decide to give Blackthorn another chance then we will surely try the Triple D platter made up of mini beef on weck sandwiches, mini crab cakes, and an order of tater tots with Irish beer soup. These menu items were tried and approved by Guy, himself.
Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives also filmed an episode at Sophia’s (an American Greek restaurant in Buffalo, NY) and Pizza Junction in North Tonawanda, NY (which has since closed its doors).
Chopped
Hosted by Ted Allen, Chopped is a cooking competition show on the Food Network. This competition is between four chefs who are put to the test with 3 courses made from secret basket ingredients. The ingredients can consist of just about anything from avocados to cow tongues. I am very fond of Chopped and I often watch it while I am cooking for my family. I find inspiration in the chefs’ abilities to make something incredible from seemingly mismatched ingredients. The voters on Ranker.com agree with me as they have rated Chopped as the second best (only beat by Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives) show on the Food Network.
Restaurant Impossible
Hosted by British Chef Robert Irvine, this Food Network favorite of mine explores restaurants around the United States that have taken a turn for the worse. Robert Irvine then creates a plan to reinvent the establishment and the owners with $10,000 and a stellar team of designers and carpenters. In most cases, Robert is able to turn their luck around and bring business back to the restaurant. However, there are some cases of restaurants still going under even after he works his magic. I find this show very inspiring and compelling, unfortunately the voters on Ranker.com slightly disagree and place Restaurant Impossible in the 24th bracket. Although they ranked more than 100 Food Network shows so, I suppose in the grand scheme of things the show fared okay.
Television and the way we absorb today’s entertainment has drastically changed over the last decade. 10 or 20 years ago, watching other people cook was less of a form of entertainment and more of a way to expand our cooking abilities. The Food Network, however, is a societal blessing to many of us and it seems to be here to stay!
