The Food Network has struck gold with Guy Fieri, who has four different shows and is about as ubiquitous on the network as misteltoe and egg nog this time of year. The guy is a workhorse and execs at the Food Network clearly love everything Fieri works on. And for good reason–he’s entertaining, knowledgeable and can grab the reins of any show and make it more interesting.
Fieri’s back again with Season 2 of “The Ultimate Recipe Showdown,” which begins airing January 4 at 9pm ET/8pm central. This season began with 12,000 recipes, which a panel of judges narrow down to 24, in categories of Comfort Food, Burgers, Hot and Spicy, Desserts, Cakes, and Hometown Favorites. Each week the winner takes home $25K and a chance to have their recipe featured on a T.G.I. Friday’s menu. Co-host Mark Summer is not helping Fieri this time, and while he claims to be bummed out about that, Fieri is ready for the challenge of hosting it alone. He’s also very excited and ready to rock.
“This second year is remarkable,” Fieri said yesterday during a conference call. “There is a real in-depth view of the contestants. It’s not just about the food on the plate and how it’s presented. Producer Art Edwards really got more of a compelling background piece on the show contestant’s giving the show much more depth.” He then adds, “The folks this year were a fantastic group and many of them had that one signature piece that just blew the judges away.”
Fieri, who was taking a break from filming his “Chefography” for the network at the time of the call, has possibly taken more air time away from his buddy and network darling Bobby Flay. Whether or not it’s too early to tell if that’s the case, the Food Network is definitely keeping Fieri busy. They shot the full season of “The Ultimate Recipe Showdown” in less than two weeks. “We shot a show a day along with bumps (ins and outs) but each show took about 10 hours to shoot,” said Fieri. “Each episode was shot back-to-back. It was a 12 day schedule for this year’s season.”
And while the show has already been taped, you’ll have to tune in each week to see who wins.
