It's that time of year when Food Network is close to anointing someone (maybe) to be the next Food Network Star.
The "maybe" has become an important proviso since two of the last three winners never got their promised series; season 8 winner, Brooklyn restauranteur Justin Warner, turned up on a one-hour special and has appeared sporadically as a guest judge on Food Network series, but season 10's "chuckwagon chef" Lenny McNab disappeared down a black hole after his win. (Several news sources reported McNab had made homophobic, racist, and misogynistic comments on a private blog, which probably led to his banishment, but Food Network has never confirmed why McNab was not given a series.)
Interestingly, for the first time, the final five competitors on this season of Food Network Star are all men. (There is still one female contestant competing on the web series Star Salvation who might get a second chance to enter the competition.) Before we handicap this season's finalists though, let's take a look at what Food Network has been up to lately.
Just has MTV turned to reality programming when viewers tired of 24-hour videos, Food Network has had to adapt, and most of its primetime schedule is now devoted to either cooking competitions (like Chopped) or cooking competitions turned into silly game shows (Cutthroat Kitchen, which wastes the talents of the great Alton Brown, or Guy's Grocery Games, which features the ubiquitous Guy Fieri.)
There's also Fieri's Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives, which is broadcast on what seems like a continuous loop (over 100 times a week!,) and several new shows that ape its formula (one with Paula Deen's sons and another with Iron Chef Michael Symon traveling around the country sampling classic recipes, burgers, and BBQ.) There are also a handful of reality series in which a so-called expert helps a struggling restaurant or barby hiding cameras and spying on the employees. And then there are the Bobby Flay shows, too numerous to mention, in which he either recreates his Iron Chef heroics or barbecues or makes brunch.
Weekend mornings remain the last stronghold of Food Network's traditional "chop-and-drop" cooking programs. (These programs are repeated endlessly weekdays but new programming is relegated to Saturday and Sunday mornings.) This is the kind of show that Food Network Star promises its winners, but let's be honest, the network has shown little interest in hiring anyone but white female home-cooks lately. From "Pioneer Woman" Ree Drummond to farm cook Nancy Fuller to country/western star Trisha Yearwood to FNS Season Nine winner Damaris Phillips, all of Food Network's cooking shows that remain in production look very much alike. They've joined legacy stars Ina Garten, Giada deLaurentis, Sandra Lee, and Rachael Ray as Food Network's "ladies of the afternoon."
But when it comes to hiring new stars, Food Network clearly knows what it wants. If you include Food Network's sister network The Cooking Channel, you'll find mom, blogger, and standup comic Daphne Brogdon, Minnesotan farm-to-table cook Amy Thielen, "Hungry Girl" Lisa Lillien, and a gaggle of Hollywood has-beens (Tiffani Amber-Thiessen, Debi Mazar, Hayley Duff) inviting us into their living rooms for dinner or desert. All women, all white, predominantly rural, and all home cooks.
There was a time when Food Network hired professional chefs to host its cooking shows, but Ann Burrell and Alex Guarnaschelli's shows failed to find an audience, and clearly Food Network's target demographic has decreed it wants to watch relatable moms in the kitchen and nothing else.
How does that bode then for the all-male finalists of Food Network Star? Will any of the dudes still in the competition have a chance to break through the Velvet Apron of Food Network female hegemony? That remains to be seen, but in the meantime, here are your finalists:
Alex McCoy -- At age 31, he looks 25 and brings a boyish, youthful enthusiasm to the show. Pros: Alex is a real-life professional restauranteur but comes off as the lovable boy next door. Cons: His "point of view" is sandwiches, and Food Network already has a "Sandwich King," FNS season 7 winner Jeff Mauro. Odds: 5-1
Eddie Jackson - A good-looking former professional athlete, Eddie sailed through the opening rounds of the competition but has faltered lately with both his camera presence and his cooking. FNS season 4 winner Eddie McCargo Jr. was one of Food Network's very few black on-air personalities (BBQ cooks Pat and Gina Neely and Sunny Anderson are the only other ones I can think of,) but of course race isn't supposed to enter into a competition like this. If you take that out of the equation, Eddie's probably still a front runner but fading fast. Odds: 3-1
Jay Ducote - This big bearded friendly guy wants to teach the world Louisiana cooking. I like his personality, I like his point of view, and he's been as consistent as anyone else on this season of FNS. Then again, season 9's Rodney Henry (the "Pie Man") seemed like a shoe-in but Food Network decided it didn't want a fat white guy on its schedule and went with the much blander (but prettier and more accessible) Damaris Phillips. Odds: 3-1
Dominic Tesoriero - Yes, Dom was eliminated in last Sunday's episode but he's still alive on Star Salvation. This Staten Island native has a decidedly New York personality (Food Network likes that,) runs a mac-and-cheese food truck (how's that for relatable?) and the Italian dishes he's made have shown him to be the season's best cook, hands down. He's been a trainwreck on camera but his next-to-last challenge showed promise. If he can figure it out in time, watch for Dom to win Star Salvation and come back to win the whole thing.
Then he just needs Food Network to put him on the air.
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