We weren't loving Episode 2 of the Next Food Network Star. It all felt rather rote, but things sure got spicy in the last few minutes. Were you watching?
Spoiler alert: We want to talk about details of the show, so if you haven't seen it yet, stop reading now.
We want to focus on the last few minutes of the show. The judges told Nipa her lamb kabobs were too spicy and needed salt. Then they questioned if she really had a passion for winning her own Food Network program. Nipa broke down and walked away in the middle of the judge's feedback session.
Commenters over at the Food Network blog don't have much love for Nipa. They criticize her for being rude and hot headed.
"BTW: I hate how [Nipa] keeps bringing up her background story!!! I really don’t want to be mean but Grrr….coming [from India] to America at the age of 5 and growing up in Mid-West is hardly challenging," said commenter Orchid over on a Food Network blog.
When Nipa said "Just look at me" and ran out of the room at the end of the show, we really didn't see anger or arrogance. She looked scared but proud to us. What did you think?
We were surprised by the level of insensitivity fellow NFNS contestants and commenters show towards Nipa and were glad to see Food Network's give Nipa another chance to win a spot in their line up. We've always been interested in this idea of cooking (and living) in a post-melting-pot America where each individual can stand up for their culture and cuisine. We're looking forward to following Nipa's story and we're rooting for her now. Anyone else?
(image: Food Network)
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The contestant who gets a show has to be able to balance on-air personality and interesting cooking. Fortunately, we have several episodes to go so we can see how the contestants evolve.
So far, Nipa has not been successful with her dishes and has come across as arrogant. That isn't going to win her a show unless she takes the constructive criticism to heart and makes some real changes in how she presents herself.
At the moment, I'm most impressed with Aaron. He's made good food in both episodes and comes across as interesting and likeable.
My criterion for a winner is someone I'd like to sit down with at the kitchen table and talk about cooking. So far, Aaron, Kelsy, and Shane are the ones I'd most like to do that with.
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This show is bad. Not on the level of Hell's Kitchen bad, but definitely no where near the level of Top Chef.
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