The Metropolitan Cooking & Entertaining shows have been announced.
West Palm Beach, FL - March 28 - 29, 2009
Guy Fieri is not listed as a presenter.
Atlanta, GA - April 18 - 19, 2009
Guy Fieri (profile) is scheduled to present at The Celebrity Theater on Saturday, April 18, 2009 from noon to 1 p.m., and from 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. Purchase tickets. Ticket prices are $45-$74.50 advance and $50-$80 onsite; tickets include General Admission.
He is also scheduled to sign books on the show floor on Saturday, April 18, 2009 from 1:30 p.m. to 2;30 p.m., and from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Purchase tickets. You must purchase a ticket in order to reserve a space in line to have your book signed by Guy Fieri. Tickets are $10 advance and $12 onsite; there will be 250 tickets available. Anyone who purchases a ticket is guaranteed to have a book signed. Please limit one book per person.
Washington, DC - November 7 - 8, 2009
Tickets are now on sale for the DC show at The Washington Convention Center.
Guy Fieri (profile) is scheduled to present in the Celebrity Theater on Saturday, November 7, 2009 from 11:45 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. Purchase tickets. Ticket prices are $45 - $75 advance and include General Admission.
He is scheduled to sign books on the show floor on Saturday, November 7, 2009 from 1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m., and from 4:15 p.m. to 5:45 p.m. Purchase tickets. You must purchase a book signing ticket to reserve a space in line to have your book signed by Guy. Tickets are $15 advance and $17 onsite; there will be 250 tickets available. Anyone who purchases a ticket is guaranteed to have a book signed. Please limit one book per person.
NOTES:
They will have a limited number of pre-signed copies of Guy's cookbook on sale soon. You may also buy copies of his cook book on-site at the Show in the Tiny Kitchen booth.
If you planning on bringing a group of 20 or more to any the MCES events, contact Brion Gutierrez, Group Ticket Sales Manager, for group ticket pricing at brion@thetinykitchen.com or 703.321.4890.
Friday, March 13, 2009
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Shrimp Eating Contest on Guy's Big Night
So, what do you think?
Competitive food eaters everywhere think this is great!
Competitive food eaters everywhere think this is great!
Guy Fieri - on Saving Grocery Costs and Food Trends
Another interview from Canada today; mostly stuff we've heard before, but there were two interesting questions, I thought.
From FoodTV Cananda, by Elana Safronsky:
E.S.: On Guy’s Big Bite, your recipes are already fit for budget-watching – you cook in bulk and often with very affordable ingredients. Do you have any specific advice for the hard times these days, on how we can stretch our food dollar?
G.F.: That’s a great question! These things that we buy – convenience foods like sauces, chicken stock, beef stock, marinara sauce [see Guy's Marinara Sauce recipe below], Alfredo sauce – you can make all this stuff. I think that’s probably one of the most critical things people can come to realize. Chicken stock for example, think about the health factor, let alone the savings – the lack of sodium and how you can fortify it at home, beats anything you can buy.
Chili is one of my favorites; you get some dried beans – they cost nothing – soak them, and then make turkey chili, or chicken, whatever you want!
[Guy's Chili recipe here]
Instead of buying all the pre-processed, pasteurized cans of whatever – make it! I make ten gallons of tomato sauce at a time. I lay them flat in Ziploc bags, let them freeze and then you have a little catalog of sauces sitting there. Grab them, and within ten minutes of soaking them in some warm water you’ve got the best sauce that cost you one third of what it cost to buy it ready made.
E.S.: Any word on upcoming food trends?
G.F.: I think we’ll continue to move forward in this realm of healthy eating. People are becoming much more conscious to the reality of they are what they eat. With cancer on the rise and all these different things going wrong, I think we’re going to find more creative ways to get healthy food into people.
We’ve gone through our fads of taking pills and we’ve gone through fad diets, like drinking only salt water and lemon juice. It’s time now for true healthy practices like, for example, Heirlooms. I think we’re going to start seeing them produced on a larger scale, as opposed to just farmers' markets. People will start to recognize that these are wonderful specimens – I’m mean come on! We are talking about going back to the way it started! As opposed to what we’ve mass produced into this perfectly, genetically shaped Roma.
But I’ll tell you one thing: Food Network is definitely leading the way. We’re hot, and we right on the front lines of what’s going on. We are where it’s at!
Guy's Marinara Sauce:
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 yellow onion, minced
4 medium garlic cloves, smashed
6 cups canned San Marzano tomatoes
1 tablespoon roughly chopped fresh basil leaves
1/2 tablespoon roughly chopped fresh oregano leaves
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
In medium saucepan, heat olive oil, add onions and cook over medium to low heat until onions are transparent. Add garlic and cook until almost brown and then add tomatoes. Cook for 1/2 hour over low to medium heat, then add basil and oregano and continue to cook for 30 minutes longer. In a food mill or a blender, puree into a sauce. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
Yield: 3 cups
From FoodTV Cananda, by Elana Safronsky:
E.S.: On Guy’s Big Bite, your recipes are already fit for budget-watching – you cook in bulk and often with very affordable ingredients. Do you have any specific advice for the hard times these days, on how we can stretch our food dollar?
G.F.: That’s a great question! These things that we buy – convenience foods like sauces, chicken stock, beef stock, marinara sauce [see Guy's Marinara Sauce recipe below], Alfredo sauce – you can make all this stuff. I think that’s probably one of the most critical things people can come to realize. Chicken stock for example, think about the health factor, let alone the savings – the lack of sodium and how you can fortify it at home, beats anything you can buy.
Chili is one of my favorites; you get some dried beans – they cost nothing – soak them, and then make turkey chili, or chicken, whatever you want!
[Guy's Chili recipe here]
Instead of buying all the pre-processed, pasteurized cans of whatever – make it! I make ten gallons of tomato sauce at a time. I lay them flat in Ziploc bags, let them freeze and then you have a little catalog of sauces sitting there. Grab them, and within ten minutes of soaking them in some warm water you’ve got the best sauce that cost you one third of what it cost to buy it ready made.
E.S.: Any word on upcoming food trends?
G.F.: I think we’ll continue to move forward in this realm of healthy eating. People are becoming much more conscious to the reality of they are what they eat. With cancer on the rise and all these different things going wrong, I think we’re going to find more creative ways to get healthy food into people.
We’ve gone through our fads of taking pills and we’ve gone through fad diets, like drinking only salt water and lemon juice. It’s time now for true healthy practices like, for example, Heirlooms. I think we’re going to start seeing them produced on a larger scale, as opposed to just farmers' markets. People will start to recognize that these are wonderful specimens – I’m mean come on! We are talking about going back to the way it started! As opposed to what we’ve mass produced into this perfectly, genetically shaped Roma.
But I’ll tell you one thing: Food Network is definitely leading the way. We’re hot, and we right on the front lines of what’s going on. We are where it’s at!
Guy's Marinara Sauce:
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 yellow onion, minced
4 medium garlic cloves, smashed
6 cups canned San Marzano tomatoes
1 tablespoon roughly chopped fresh basil leaves
1/2 tablespoon roughly chopped fresh oregano leaves
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
In medium saucepan, heat olive oil, add onions and cook over medium to low heat until onions are transparent. Add garlic and cook until almost brown and then add tomatoes. Cook for 1/2 hour over low to medium heat, then add basil and oregano and continue to cook for 30 minutes longer. In a food mill or a blender, puree into a sauce. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
Yield: 3 cups
Monday, March 9, 2009
Guy Fieri - on URS, DDD and Life on the Road
The Appetizer, part of Canada's National Post, asked Guy a few questions about Ultimate Recipe Showdown, Diners Drive-ins and Dives and just life in general. Canada is premiering Ultimate Recipe Showdown starting on Wednesday, March 11.
Guy said that URS is good TV. "As a chef, as a restaurant owner, as a food TV guy, for me to see everyday cooks get a chance to win $25,000 for their favorite mac 'n' cheese comfort food, I think that's awesome. If you're a fan of food and a fan of people, it's killer."
Many people ask if the car Guy drives on DDD is his or does it belong to the show. He answered that question, "That's not my car in the show." But he does have seven cars. He says his favorite is a '71 Chevelle, but he does not allow anyone to eat in the car. No Drive-Ins for Hunter, I guess! He said in an earlier interview, "I'm not a big eater in the car. I have two little kids, and they make enough of a mess."
"That said, one of my favorite places is called the Bar-B-Q-King in Charlotte, N.C. I can park and eat barbecue in the flatbed of my truck all afternoon."
Guy Fieri, on having 20 pairs of one-of-a-kind skateboard tennis shoes by Globe: "Yep, my wife hates it. I have more shoes than Imelda Marcos." And as for his signature look and clothing choices, "More often than not, I just wear whatever shorts I walk in with. I'm not trying to make a statement, it's just what I wear. It's fun. I like to be comfortable. Right now, I've been wearing more T-shirts."
And the spiked hair? He says he doesn't own a comb! "It's how I wake up, really. It's funny. I was on a shoot once and this woman came up to me and gave me this half-used tub of hair stuff and said, I love your hair, you've got to try this. I stuffed it in my bag and then when I ran out of hair product on the road and needed something, I pulled it out and tried it. Now I get this stuff by the case, it's killer stuff." J Beverly Hills Clear Waxx. Apparently this is a common question. He told Express Night Out, "I was in an airport, and a woman just walked up and gave me some. It's the best stuff in the world."
He says his favorite Food Network moment was when he won the Next Food Network Star. "I never thought in a million years that I'd win. I was just stoked to be on the show." And he doesn't have a least favorite moment, "... it's more about being away from my family. I'm on the road a lot. I love what I do, driving around, introducing people to new food and being a food dude, but it's hard being away from my wife and my two boys."
"I love what I do. I think that's got to be at the core of it. I'm recognized in an industry that, frankly, could use a lot of help right now. If I can go around and point out these great independent mom and pop joints to people, that's great. And the stories that people tell me and the letters I get from the places I've featured on the show, I mean, I start crying. I'm a giver, I'm an Aquarius, I come from a family where giving means a lot more than getting. So, when your only real pain is being away from your family at times, then I guess I've got it pretty good."
And his "showcase dish" for friends and family? "Everything. There's no rhyme or reason; it's whatever wild idea I get. This is so sad; I'll wake up in the morning and ask my wife, 'what do you want to have for dinner tonight?' And she'll be like, 'Will you give me a minute, I haven't even had my coffee yet.' But I'd have to say, I like a good, beefy taco salad."
Guy said that URS is good TV. "As a chef, as a restaurant owner, as a food TV guy, for me to see everyday cooks get a chance to win $25,000 for their favorite mac 'n' cheese comfort food, I think that's awesome. If you're a fan of food and a fan of people, it's killer."Many people ask if the car Guy drives on DDD is his or does it belong to the show. He answered that question, "That's not my car in the show." But he does have seven cars. He says his favorite is a '71 Chevelle, but he does not allow anyone to eat in the car. No Drive-Ins for Hunter, I guess! He said in an earlier interview, "I'm not a big eater in the car. I have two little kids, and they make enough of a mess."
"That said, one of my favorite places is called the Bar-B-Q-King in Charlotte, N.C. I can park and eat barbecue in the flatbed of my truck all afternoon."
Guy Fieri, on having 20 pairs of one-of-a-kind skateboard tennis shoes by Globe: "Yep, my wife hates it. I have more shoes than Imelda Marcos." And as for his signature look and clothing choices, "More often than not, I just wear whatever shorts I walk in with. I'm not trying to make a statement, it's just what I wear. It's fun. I like to be comfortable. Right now, I've been wearing more T-shirts."
And the spiked hair? He says he doesn't own a comb! "It's how I wake up, really. It's funny. I was on a shoot once and this woman came up to me and gave me this half-used tub of hair stuff and said, I love your hair, you've got to try this. I stuffed it in my bag and then when I ran out of hair product on the road and needed something, I pulled it out and tried it. Now I get this stuff by the case, it's killer stuff." J Beverly Hills Clear Waxx. Apparently this is a common question. He told Express Night Out, "I was in an airport, and a woman just walked up and gave me some. It's the best stuff in the world."
He says his favorite Food Network moment was when he won the Next Food Network Star. "I never thought in a million years that I'd win. I was just stoked to be on the show." And he doesn't have a least favorite moment, "... it's more about being away from my family. I'm on the road a lot. I love what I do, driving around, introducing people to new food and being a food dude, but it's hard being away from my wife and my two boys.""I love what I do. I think that's got to be at the core of it. I'm recognized in an industry that, frankly, could use a lot of help right now. If I can go around and point out these great independent mom and pop joints to people, that's great. And the stories that people tell me and the letters I get from the places I've featured on the show, I mean, I start crying. I'm a giver, I'm an Aquarius, I come from a family where giving means a lot more than getting. So, when your only real pain is being away from your family at times, then I guess I've got it pretty good."
And his "showcase dish" for friends and family? "Everything. There's no rhyme or reason; it's whatever wild idea I get. This is so sad; I'll wake up in the morning and ask my wife, 'what do you want to have for dinner tonight?' And she'll be like, 'Will you give me a minute, I haven't even had my coffee yet.' But I'd have to say, I like a good, beefy taco salad."
Saturday, March 7, 2009
Guy Fieri - recipe for February 2009
Ok, let's start this easy.
HALIBUT VERACRUZ
from GuyFieri.com
3 Tablespoons vegetable oil
1 cup yellow onion, sliced thin
3 cloves garlic, sliced thin
1 medium jalapeno, sliced thin
2 cups tomato, diced
1 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup Spanish olives, cut in thin rounds
2 medium avocados, peeled and diced
2 Tablespoons lime juice
2 Tablespoons cilantro, chopped
2 Tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon kosher salt
4 (8oz portions)fresh Halibut
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Heat vegetable oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add onion and garlic, cook until lightly colored. Add tomato, jalapeno and white wine. Cook for 5 to 7 minutes until wine is reduced by 2/3.
While sauce is reducing, heat butter in a separate skillet over medium heat. Season fish with kosher salt. When butter is melted and warm add seasoned halibut filets to the butter pan. Cook for two minutes and then transfer halibut pan to oven.
Remove sauce from heat when reduced appropriately. Stir in olives, avocado, lime juice and cilantro. Remove halibut pan from oven after 10 minutes (or when filets are fully cooked). Divide sauce equally among four dinner plates. Flip halibut and place one portion (caramelized side up) in the center of each plate.
Yield: 4 servings
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Ease of preparation: intermediate
Ok, so the picture doesn't exactly go along with Guy's plating suggestion, but the idea is there, and the two recipes are virtually identical. I'd love for there to be recipes on his that aren't already on the Food Network.
I tried this recipe with boneless skinless chicken breasts and it went over swimmingly! I also changed it up a bit, by adding the lime juice in at the same time as the white wine, allowing the lime juice to reduce with the wine sauce. I think I got a bolder flavor that way which suited the chicken.
I see a reviewer on FoodNetwork.com has tried this recipe with tilapia, but the fish fell apart and it "appeared to be more 'goulash' style, but was a good dish regardless!" So lesson learned, stick with a heartier protein.
HALIBUT VERACRUZ
from GuyFieri.com
3 Tablespoons vegetable oil
1 cup yellow onion, sliced thin
3 cloves garlic, sliced thin
1 medium jalapeno, sliced thin
2 cups tomato, diced
1 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup Spanish olives, cut in thin rounds
2 medium avocados, peeled and diced
2 Tablespoons lime juice
2 Tablespoons cilantro, chopped
2 Tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon kosher salt
4 (8oz portions)fresh Halibut
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Heat vegetable oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add onion and garlic, cook until lightly colored. Add tomato, jalapeno and white wine. Cook for 5 to 7 minutes until wine is reduced by 2/3.
While sauce is reducing, heat butter in a separate skillet over medium heat. Season fish with kosher salt. When butter is melted and warm add seasoned halibut filets to the butter pan. Cook for two minutes and then transfer halibut pan to oven.
Remove sauce from heat when reduced appropriately. Stir in olives, avocado, lime juice and cilantro. Remove halibut pan from oven after 10 minutes (or when filets are fully cooked). Divide sauce equally among four dinner plates. Flip halibut and place one portion (caramelized side up) in the center of each plate.
Yield: 4 servings
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Ease of preparation: intermediate
Ok, so the picture doesn't exactly go along with Guy's plating suggestion, but the idea is there, and the two recipes are virtually identical. I'd love for there to be recipes on his that aren't already on the Food Network.
I tried this recipe with boneless skinless chicken breasts and it went over swimmingly! I also changed it up a bit, by adding the lime juice in at the same time as the white wine, allowing the lime juice to reduce with the wine sauce. I think I got a bolder flavor that way which suited the chicken.
I see a reviewer on FoodNetwork.com has tried this recipe with tilapia, but the fish fell apart and it "appeared to be more 'goulash' style, but was a good dish regardless!" So lesson learned, stick with a heartier protein.
Friday, March 6, 2009
Guest Blog
Here is a response that I think I was looking for, a letter sent to me by the friend of whom I spoke. In her own words .... ~D
Dear Dora,
First of all, thank you for your kind words about me and your considerate loyalty. I am humbled by it. Secondly, I think you've done a really nice job with this blog / fan site. Looks like you learned a lot, eh? *laughing* Kudos to you! And I do hope you take it back up again. There's an obvious passion here, always the first and best ingredient in a fan site or in any endeavor for that matter. And third, thank you for the opportunity to guest blog.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Dear readers,
I didn't know about this blog until Guy told me about it last week. After our now three (granted, rather uncomfortable) meetings, I respect him and his work very much.
[Article about their first meeting here.
Video from that meeting here. ~D]
I think what this all boils down to is impressions - first impressions - that devastatingly brief period of time when we assess what another person is all about, based on little to no information.
I only started watching the Food Network some three months before I met Guy and had seen all of 10 or maybe 15 episodes of his shows. I didn't even know his name until maybe six weeks before I met him. In the three weeks between finding out I was to have dinner with him and our trip to NY, I did a ton of research so I wouldn't sound like a complete dolt.
And like a commentator below, my first impressions of Guy were that he is genuine and a kind-hearted person. So I walked into dinner as my completely unguarded, bawdy and sometimes raucous self. I mean, of any Food Network star, isn't Guy the one you'd most likely be raucous with? No? Ok, maybe Paula Deen. (that was a joke, y'all!)
I think Guy's first impressions of me were fine. He said I reminded him of a gal pal of his from High School, meant as a compliment or so was my impression. I also think he expected to walk in there and meet four fans. He didn't. Aside from the research I had done, only one of the remaining three of us is familiar with Food Network programming. The third gal had heard about it but not watched it, and the fourth doesn't even have cable television.
But at some point during the dinner, I think sometime between the salad course and the entree, I offended Guy. I don't know what it was that I said - I asked my girlfriends later what they thought it could have been, and they didn't know either. But at the end of the night, Guy was furious. ("Furious" was Ms. Mueller's word. And accurate.)
In hindsight, I can only assume there was a misunderstanding - one of those "message sent was NOT message received" kinds of scenarios. A gal does not fly across the country just to offend the very person she went there to meet. The important point here is not what I intended to say, but rather what impression I gave. Not unlike in restaurant management – one doesn’t intend to send out a bad plate or provide poor service, what counts is the impression with which the guest walks away.
Regardless, I'd obviously stuck my foot in my mouth and followed up on my faux pas with an apology note to his guestbook and with a personal hand-written note, hand-delivered a few days later.
[That yellow envelope contains the note. ~D]
I didn't apologize just because Guy is a "star." Star-status means very little to me. I did it because he's a nice person, and I'm a nice person, and that's what nice people do when they make mistakes. So at this point I'm thinking its all water under the dog, and let's just all move on.
Dora's account of my second meeting with Guy in Seattle is reasonably accurate in facts, albeit with the Drama Volume Knob turned up to 11 a la Nigel Tufnel's amplifier. (bless ya Dora, but you'll want to tone down emotive comments made in whirly-girly venting sessions)
~D
I could be wrong, but it's my belief that Guy was under the impression we sought out that get-together in Seattle. That's only partially true. We had heard he was a fan of Royal Bliss, and for a myriad of reasons I was eager to facilitate that meeting for both sides. I love hooking up cool people with cool people! And I love supporting good people doing good things.
To Guy's credit, he said last week that he was sorry he missed that meeting. He said that he loves the CD (duh, it totally rocks!), his assistant has the band's contact info and he'll try to make contact. One can not ask for more than that.
[Well I can ask for more than that! But this is your blog. So please continue. ~D]
----------------------------------------------------------------
Dear Guy Fieri, Guy's agent, publicists and Food Network exec's and employees everywhere,
My article is scheduled to be a feature in next Sunday's paper on March 15. I think you'll like it. Guy, thank you for agreeing to do the interview last week.
I've been very appreciative of every experience I've had with and surrounding the Food Network, particularly those people I met at the NY Wine & Food Festival, the multitude of people who put together that dinner that I didn't meet and especially the contributors to the FN Dish. "Stars in my book, the lot of ya!"
I write this as my 11 y.o. girl is baking a double-batch of chocolate chip cookies all by herself. She's blossomed from a quiet, withdrawn girl with almost no self-esteem to a talkative girl full of wit, charm, self-confidence and most importantly full of joy, in large part due to the time she and I spend in the kitchen.
[Look at that smile! ~D]
Guy, "Cook With Your Kids Day" isn't a day in our house. It's every day. And the side of our refrigerator is literally covered with printed recipes from the Food Network. And yes, quite a few of them are yours.
I can only hope that if and when we see each other next, my comments here will have alleviated any awkwardness. Fill up your shot glass with good Idaho potato vodka and cheers to you and yours,
Linda "Lana Banana" Alexander
p.s. Guy, you gotta get the new CD! The one I gave you is good, but the new one is somehow more of the same and better. :-)
--L
Dear Dora,
First of all, thank you for your kind words about me and your considerate loyalty. I am humbled by it. Secondly, I think you've done a really nice job with this blog / fan site. Looks like you learned a lot, eh? *laughing* Kudos to you! And I do hope you take it back up again. There's an obvious passion here, always the first and best ingredient in a fan site or in any endeavor for that matter. And third, thank you for the opportunity to guest blog.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Dear readers,
I didn't know about this blog until Guy told me about it last week. After our now three (granted, rather uncomfortable) meetings, I respect him and his work very much.
[Article about their first meeting here.
Video from that meeting here. ~D]
I think what this all boils down to is impressions - first impressions - that devastatingly brief period of time when we assess what another person is all about, based on little to no information.
I only started watching the Food Network some three months before I met Guy and had seen all of 10 or maybe 15 episodes of his shows. I didn't even know his name until maybe six weeks before I met him. In the three weeks between finding out I was to have dinner with him and our trip to NY, I did a ton of research so I wouldn't sound like a complete dolt.
And like a commentator below, my first impressions of Guy were that he is genuine and a kind-hearted person. So I walked into dinner as my completely unguarded, bawdy and sometimes raucous self. I mean, of any Food Network star, isn't Guy the one you'd most likely be raucous with? No? Ok, maybe Paula Deen. (that was a joke, y'all!)
I think Guy's first impressions of me were fine. He said I reminded him of a gal pal of his from High School, meant as a compliment or so was my impression. I also think he expected to walk in there and meet four fans. He didn't. Aside from the research I had done, only one of the remaining three of us is familiar with Food Network programming. The third gal had heard about it but not watched it, and the fourth doesn't even have cable television.
But at some point during the dinner, I think sometime between the salad course and the entree, I offended Guy. I don't know what it was that I said - I asked my girlfriends later what they thought it could have been, and they didn't know either. But at the end of the night, Guy was furious. ("Furious" was Ms. Mueller's word. And accurate.)
In hindsight, I can only assume there was a misunderstanding - one of those "message sent was NOT message received" kinds of scenarios. A gal does not fly across the country just to offend the very person she went there to meet. The important point here is not what I intended to say, but rather what impression I gave. Not unlike in restaurant management – one doesn’t intend to send out a bad plate or provide poor service, what counts is the impression with which the guest walks away.
Regardless, I'd obviously stuck my foot in my mouth and followed up on my faux pas with an apology note to his guestbook and with a personal hand-written note, hand-delivered a few days later.
[That yellow envelope contains the note. ~D]
I didn't apologize just because Guy is a "star." Star-status means very little to me. I did it because he's a nice person, and I'm a nice person, and that's what nice people do when they make mistakes. So at this point I'm thinking its all water under the dog, and let's just all move on.
Dora's account of my second meeting with Guy in Seattle is reasonably accurate in facts, albeit with the Drama Volume Knob turned up to 11 a la Nigel Tufnel's amplifier. (bless ya Dora, but you'll want to tone down emotive comments made in whirly-girly venting sessions)
~DI could be wrong, but it's my belief that Guy was under the impression we sought out that get-together in Seattle. That's only partially true. We had heard he was a fan of Royal Bliss, and for a myriad of reasons I was eager to facilitate that meeting for both sides. I love hooking up cool people with cool people! And I love supporting good people doing good things.
To Guy's credit, he said last week that he was sorry he missed that meeting. He said that he loves the CD (duh, it totally rocks!), his assistant has the band's contact info and he'll try to make contact. One can not ask for more than that.
[Well I can ask for more than that! But this is your blog. So please continue. ~D]
----------------------------------------------------------------
Dear Guy Fieri, Guy's agent, publicists and Food Network exec's and employees everywhere,
My article is scheduled to be a feature in next Sunday's paper on March 15. I think you'll like it. Guy, thank you for agreeing to do the interview last week.
I've been very appreciative of every experience I've had with and surrounding the Food Network, particularly those people I met at the NY Wine & Food Festival, the multitude of people who put together that dinner that I didn't meet and especially the contributors to the FN Dish. "Stars in my book, the lot of ya!"
I write this as my 11 y.o. girl is baking a double-batch of chocolate chip cookies all by herself. She's blossomed from a quiet, withdrawn girl with almost no self-esteem to a talkative girl full of wit, charm, self-confidence and most importantly full of joy, in large part due to the time she and I spend in the kitchen.
[Look at that smile! ~D]
Guy, "Cook With Your Kids Day" isn't a day in our house. It's every day. And the side of our refrigerator is literally covered with printed recipes from the Food Network. And yes, quite a few of them are yours.
I can only hope that if and when we see each other next, my comments here will have alleviated any awkwardness. Fill up your shot glass with good Idaho potato vodka and cheers to you and yours,
Linda "Lana Banana" Alexander
p.s. Guy, you gotta get the new CD! The one I gave you is good, but the new one is somehow more of the same and better. :-)
--L
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
If you want more ...
I can't restart this fan site until I get an explanation from Guy for his behavior. To do so would be counter to everything that I believe in.
Friends and family are The Most Important thing that we all have. And he acted abominably to my friend. It's not that she's my very dearest friend, but I admire her and her work very much. The quantity of time she puts in to helping others is enough to put 99% of us to shame. I'm proud of making my United Way contributions, but this woman spends every day in service towards others, every day - with her time, talents, resources ... even financially.
She donated 10% of her annual income to the Food Network's pet charity. Have you? Has Guy? I know I haven't.
I just saw her briefly this past weekend, and asked if she'd heard anything more from Guy. "Of course not," she said. Of course not. And why would he! There are hundreds of thousands of Guy Fieri fans out there. All of his shows and cooking demo's are sold out. Lines wrap around the building at his book signings, and his guestbook on GuyFieri.com is full of "I love you" notes from fans.
So what if one lady is over-sensitive to his remarks. Who cares about one lady who got stomped on by this egocentric self-proclaimed Chef / Food Dude?
I care.
So I wrote to Mr. Brandt Hoekenga and asked him to take my Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives map OFF Fieri's website. He did so immediately, and he forwarded my complaint on to Fieri's management. Haven't heard a word back.
So I wrote to the Food Network's publicity department for some guidance and advice. Haven't heard a word back.
So I wrote to info@guyfieri.com. Haven't heard a word back.
So I wrote to Mr. Fieri's website (the aforementioned guestbook). My complaint never posted, presumably deleted by Guy's mother, who moderates all posts there. And no, haven't heard a word back.
The real punchline to the whole scenario is that Guy said to this very same friend, "You of all people should know I'm not that shallow." And here he is, proving that he is, in fact, that shallow - a charm in front of the cameras, in public. Not so charming at the back doors of restaurants in the dark alleys of Seattle.
Guy just got back from the South Beach Wine and Food Festival. He will be on a CNN spot tomorrow, February 25, and Guy's Big Night will air on the Food Network. And yes, Guy is going to be on the Tonight Show mid-March. He is also going to New York to tape Guy's Big Bite at the end of March. April will be busy with a food show in Atlanta, followed by the Rock n Roll Fantasy Camp. Iraq and Disneyland in May ....
There's much to tell, with video and pictures to go along with it. And there's a part of me that would love to take this little blogging hobby back up again. But to do so would be to disrespect one of the women, one of the people, I respect the most.
If Guy is all he wants us all to believe he is, then he's got to man-up, clear this up, fix it up and do it right. If you want him to live up to what he says he is, then you can comment in his guestbook too. Not that it'll do any good, but at least you'll know you tried.
I know I did, and I got no results. Hence, I am done being ... a Fan of Guy Fieri
Friends and family are The Most Important thing that we all have. And he acted abominably to my friend. It's not that she's my very dearest friend, but I admire her and her work very much. The quantity of time she puts in to helping others is enough to put 99% of us to shame. I'm proud of making my United Way contributions, but this woman spends every day in service towards others, every day - with her time, talents, resources ... even financially.
She donated 10% of her annual income to the Food Network's pet charity. Have you? Has Guy? I know I haven't.
I just saw her briefly this past weekend, and asked if she'd heard anything more from Guy. "Of course not," she said. Of course not. And why would he! There are hundreds of thousands of Guy Fieri fans out there. All of his shows and cooking demo's are sold out. Lines wrap around the building at his book signings, and his guestbook on GuyFieri.com is full of "I love you" notes from fans.
So what if one lady is over-sensitive to his remarks. Who cares about one lady who got stomped on by this egocentric self-proclaimed Chef / Food Dude?
I care.
So I wrote to Mr. Brandt Hoekenga and asked him to take my Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives map OFF Fieri's website. He did so immediately, and he forwarded my complaint on to Fieri's management. Haven't heard a word back.
So I wrote to the Food Network's publicity department for some guidance and advice. Haven't heard a word back.
So I wrote to info@guyfieri.com. Haven't heard a word back.
So I wrote to Mr. Fieri's website (the aforementioned guestbook). My complaint never posted, presumably deleted by Guy's mother, who moderates all posts there. And no, haven't heard a word back.
The real punchline to the whole scenario is that Guy said to this very same friend, "You of all people should know I'm not that shallow." And here he is, proving that he is, in fact, that shallow - a charm in front of the cameras, in public. Not so charming at the back doors of restaurants in the dark alleys of Seattle.
Guy just got back from the South Beach Wine and Food Festival. He will be on a CNN spot tomorrow, February 25, and Guy's Big Night will air on the Food Network. And yes, Guy is going to be on the Tonight Show mid-March. He is also going to New York to tape Guy's Big Bite at the end of March. April will be busy with a food show in Atlanta, followed by the Rock n Roll Fantasy Camp. Iraq and Disneyland in May ....
There's much to tell, with video and pictures to go along with it. And there's a part of me that would love to take this little blogging hobby back up again. But to do so would be to disrespect one of the women, one of the people, I respect the most.
If Guy is all he wants us all to believe he is, then he's got to man-up, clear this up, fix it up and do it right. If you want him to live up to what he says he is, then you can comment in his guestbook too. Not that it'll do any good, but at least you'll know you tried.
I know I did, and I got no results. Hence, I am done being ... a Fan of Guy Fieri
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Comfort Replay (GI0503H)
Guy's Big Bite - Comfort Replay - Aired 02/22/09
Guy Fieri never wants to grow up, and in some ways he never has to, like with this comforting meal with favorites from his childhood. Sophisticated twists, like herbed crust around his chicken pot pie, and a cherry dessert you set on fire, keeps the adult in you satisfied, too.
Bird in a Pie - recipe
no photo available
Kitchen Sink Salad - recipe
no photo available
Red Lion Flambe Cherries Jubilee - recipe
Keywords:
chicken, pancetta, pine nuts, baby salad greens, Gorgonzola, Bing cherries, Kirsch liqueur, Triple Sec, ice cream
Related Guy Fieri Recipes
Main dishes with chicken
Salads
Desserts
-> more on Guy's Big Bite <-
Guy Fieri never wants to grow up, and in some ways he never has to, like with this comforting meal with favorites from his childhood. Sophisticated twists, like herbed crust around his chicken pot pie, and a cherry dessert you set on fire, keeps the adult in you satisfied, too.
Bird in a Pie - recipe
no photo available
Kitchen Sink Salad - recipe
no photo available
Red Lion Flambe Cherries Jubilee - recipe
Keywords:
chicken, pancetta, pine nuts, baby salad greens, Gorgonzola, Bing cherries, Kirsch liqueur, Triple Sec, ice cream
Related Guy Fieri Recipes
Main dishes with chicken
Salads
Desserts
-> more on Guy's Big Bite <-
Sunday, February 8, 2009
Cruisin' to Vera Cruz (GI0505H)
Guy's Big Bite - Cruisin' to Vera Cruz - Aired: 2/8/09
After a trip south of the border, Guy Fieri had a hankerin' for fresh Latin flavors. Grab your sunglasses and hop on board for a taste of these bold bites.
Halibut Veracruz - recipe
a fan favorite
Beer-battered Asparagus with Garlic Aioli - recipe
German Chocolate Cake - cocktail recipe
Keywords:
tomato, jalapeno, white wine, halibut, olives, avocados, asparagus, beer, Garlic Aioli, citrus vodka, Frangelico
Related Guy Fieri Recipes:
Main dishes with fish
Side dishes with vegetables
Cocktails with vodka
-> more on Guy's Big Bite <-
After a trip south of the border, Guy Fieri had a hankerin' for fresh Latin flavors. Grab your sunglasses and hop on board for a taste of these bold bites.
Halibut Veracruz - recipe
a fan favorite
Beer-battered Asparagus with Garlic Aioli - recipe
German Chocolate Cake - cocktail recipe
Keywords:
tomato, jalapeno, white wine, halibut, olives, avocados, asparagus, beer, Garlic Aioli, citrus vodka, Frangelico
Related Guy Fieri Recipes:
Main dishes with fish
Side dishes with vegetables
Cocktails with vodka
-> more on Guy's Big Bite <-
Sunday, February 1, 2009
Fuel the Fieri (GI0514H)
Guy's Big Bite - Fuel the Fieri - Aired: 2/1/09
Guy Fieri is feulin' up with his famous beef chili. It's hearty, laced with smoky heat and perfect eaten over, under or around crispy french cut fries. A Dragon's Breath Chiller will keep his friends going through the last play of the game!
Dragon's Breath Chili - recipe - Nutrition analysis (B+)
*I've made this; it's an excellent chili recipe. If you like your chili a little thicker, consider adding crushed corn tortilla chips, corn meal or masa corn flour and allow to simmer during the last hour.*
Double-Fried French Fries - recipe
Dragon's Breath Chiller - recipe
Keywords:
peppers, chiles, beef chuck, Italian sausage, potatoes, Pisco, Grand Marnier, blood oranges
Related Guy Fieri Recipes:
Main dishes with beef
Side dishes with potatoes
Cocktails with liqueurs
-> more on Guy's Big Bite <-
Guy Fieri is feulin' up with his famous beef chili. It's hearty, laced with smoky heat and perfect eaten over, under or around crispy french cut fries. A Dragon's Breath Chiller will keep his friends going through the last play of the game!
Dragon's Breath Chili - recipe - Nutrition analysis (B+)
*I've made this; it's an excellent chili recipe. If you like your chili a little thicker, consider adding crushed corn tortilla chips, corn meal or masa corn flour and allow to simmer during the last hour.*
Double-Fried French Fries - recipe
Dragon's Breath Chiller - recipe
Keywords:
peppers, chiles, beef chuck, Italian sausage, potatoes, Pisco, Grand Marnier, blood oranges
Related Guy Fieri Recipes:
Main dishes with beef
Side dishes with potatoes
Cocktails with liqueurs
-> more on Guy's Big Bite <-
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