The Next Food Network Star

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Sunday 9:00 PM on Food Network
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Show Summary

  • Returning Series
Have you ever thought you could host your own show? Food Network tests that belief in this competition that focuses on both cooking proficiency and camera skills. Season seven is the biggest ever. Fifteen contestants, and Giada has moved from mentor to a full-time judge. Los Angeles returns as the backdrop for the first part of the competition, and the producers don't hesitate to use its every advantage to enhance the contest—Hollywood, film studios, restaurants, and more. All this along with the usual tough challenges, painful camera demonstrations and personality conflicts in order that the Selection Committee can choose the best person for his or her own six-episode show, a feature in Food Network Magazine, and participate in the Food Network Star book tour (new this season). Join the fun as the brightest stars from the network and select special guest judges coach these hopefuls toward their dream.''''Broadcast History:''Season One – Eight Finalists (one team of two); Hosted by Marc Summers; Committee: Bob Tuschman, Susie Fogelson, and Gordon Elliott; Aired at 9:00 pm E/P.''Season Two – Eight Finalists; Hosted by Marc Summers; Committee: Bob Tuschman, Susie Fogelson, and Bobby Flay; Aired at 9:00 pm E/P.''Season Three – 11 finalists; Hosted by a Different Food Network Personality Each Week; Committee: Bob Tuschman, Susie Fogelson, and Each Week's Host; Aired at 9:00 pm E/P.''Season Four – 10 finalists; Hosted by Bobby Flay; Committee: Bob Tuschman, Susie Fogelson, and Bobby Flay; Aired at 10:00 PM E/P.''Season Five – 10 finalists; Hosted by Bobby Flay; Committee: Bob Tuschman, Susie Fogelson, and Bobby Flay; Aired at 9:00 PM E/P.''Season Six – 12 finalists; Hosted by Bobby Flay; Committee: Bob Tuschman, Susie Fogelson, and Bobby Flay; Aired at 9:00 PM E/P.''Season Seven – 15 finalists; Hosted by Bobby Flay; Committee: Bob Tuschman, Susie Fogelson, Bobby Flay and Giada De Laurentiis; Aired at 9:00 PM E/P.moreless
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Episode Guide

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S 7 :  Ep 11 Aired 8/14/11
S 7 :  Ep 11 Aired 8/14/11
S 7 :  Ep 10 Aired 8/7/11
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S 7 :  Ep 9 Aired 7/31/11
S 7 :  Ep 8 Aired 7/24/11
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Fan Reviews (15)

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  • It's no wonder they don't let the audience decide!!! The finale was a farce.

    1.1
    "Abysmal"
    By wendykc666, Jun 17, 2011 Report Abuse
    I like cooking shows, and I didn't watch reality shows until the cooking ones came along. I think Food Network is a great channel, but the finale this season was ridiculous.

    I liked Lisa because she was polished and focused, plus, she's a Texas girl, so I had to root for the home team. I'm not a big fan of pearls and high heels in the kitchen- but to each ones own. She definitely had a point of view, and the knowledge to back it up.

    Aaron. Hmmm. What I found strange was that he was so personable when he was "off camera," but every time the challengers had to demonstrate on set-he froze, or flubbed, or just didn't seem comfortable.

    Adam was a charmer, and even though I feel like a traitor to Lisa, I was really rooting for Adam. He had a built in gimmick for his show. He made the audience laugh, and he was pretty consistent in looking good on camera. I did wince a little when he sang to Martha Stewart, but I appreciated the fact that he just went for it. Because he didn't hold anything back, what could have been a train wreck actually turned in to a rather cute moment.

    I would have been happy if either Lisa or Adam had won, and once I realized that-I knew that they would pick Aaron, so I can't say that I was very shocked when they announced. Just terribly disappointed.

    What I think is very telling is the fact that they made it a point to say that the new show would air in one week. They've obviously learned from their past mistakes. The girl from last season-the one who wanted to bring French cuisine into the home? (remember? I barely do) I watched and watched for her, and somewhere around 6 months after she won, they put her show on at, I think, 8:30 in the morning. Some unholy hour, like that. I taped the first episode (yawn) and as far as I can recall, they only aired about 4 or 5 more, and then she was gone, gone, gone.

    I like this show because natural cooks are as welcome as trained cooks, and I'll keep watching the show. But sometimes the network executives are not as in touch with their viewers as they could be.
    I hope Bob reads the boards. Maybe next year we'll actually get a winner who deserves it.moreless

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    0 1

  • Food Network doesn't care what the audience thinks.

    1.0
    "Abysmal"
    By ofcorsican, Aug 17, 2010 Report Abuse
    I've gotten the impression that The Next Food Network Chef results are a foregone conclusion before the competition even begins. Like most of the food competition shows on Food Network these days, the judges seem to consider themselves so superior to the viewers that they make their choices without considering what the rest of us think or what we want to watch. It's symptomatic of the "new" Food Network. I'm beginning to appreciate all the reruns on The Cooking Channel. Give me The Barefoot Contessa anytime over the dingy, giggly new Food Network personalities, and I'd much rather watch Behind the Bash or even the good old Door Knock Dinners rather than seeing chefs trying to create dishes with the awful ingredients that they're offered on Chopped. I agree with the previous poster who commented on Food Network's new direction; that direction is definitely down.moreless

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    0 0

  • Lousy contestants. The last two people: The woman did not qualify to be a contestant. The man was a disaster with the risotti. He knew it would be and he did it anyway; and he spent $317! I was not impressed with 99% of these challengers.moreless

    1.5
    "Abysmal"
    By lemonice20, Jul 27, 2009 Report Abuse
    Lousy contestants. The last two people:
    The woman did not qualify to be a contestant.
    The man was a disaster with the risotti. He knew it would be and he did it anyway; and he spent $317! I was not impressed with 99% of these challengers.
    The looks on the faces of the judges throughout the week told it all; not necessarily the words that came out of their mouths; just their facial expressions.
    I guess out of the last two, I would go for the man because he meets the criteria of the challenger.
    I could never see any of them becoming Flay.moreless

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    0 0

  • I've been disappointed the direction Food Network has been turning as they re-envision their charter, and I believe this show is a prime example of their problems.

    6.0
    "Fair"
    By layle1, Aug 01, 2008 Report Abuse
    I admit I have a softer spot in my heart for Top Chef because it was one of my first guides, but I don't believe that view radically skews my opinions of this show, although the gentle reader may grow weary of the comparison. These comments relate to the recently completed season four.

    While discussing the show with a friend, I said it was like watching Top Chef on Valium, but it's more accurately Top Chef on Valium and Prozac with a little Digoxin thrown in for good measure.

    The Show Overall: These episodes move so slowly, but you still feel unsatisfied at the end of the hour. The editing is choppy, leaving no coherent story arc (or whatever it's called in the reality genre). There's so much detritus footage that makes no difference to the episode resolution, but it's there every week. I want to see more of the selection committee, I want to see more cooking, I want to understand the decisions better. I want, I want, I want. I shouldn't end each week with this feeling.

    The Challenges: They devise ridiculous challenges that neither test the finalists' skills nor relate to any kind of studio work they'll film (The Digoxin part -- you know, psych drug, psych drug, cardiac drug. Which of these doesn't belong?). This season alone they had to cook on a moving train, a carrier at sea, perform different skills set demonstrations with no prep time, etc. None of that remotely represents what they'll find if they win the show, when culinary producers and crews create scripts, test recipes, basically eliminate the need for the cooking skills at all. Now I'll admit that Top Chef has had some stupid challenges, the gas station and vending machine ones come to mind, but they were at the QuickFire level (Mini-Challenge on NFNS), not the Elimination (Main Challenge on NFNS). What should have been a logical progression of introductory to proficient camera skills and basic to chef-level cooking technique demonstrations ended up a hodge-podge with no clear organization or rhythm.

    The Editing: All due respect to my sister: I know that editors are sometimes limited by the whim of the producers and/or clients. The thing is, someone should have stood back and realized that the product was milquetoast. Crisper editing with a view to the story for the episode would have made a world of difference. Getting rid of a quarter of the inane comments by the finalists -- some of which were obviously scripted -- would have breathed life into the franchise. There's only so much illumination that can be cast on a scene by an off-set remark. Only Adam actually fulfilled the typical role these usually take: a funny or sarcastic reflection on what happened. Skillful editing includes the expression on faces as things happen, so the subtext isn't needed to understand what's going on.

    The Finalists: A more boring batch of contestants I've yet to meet, with the exception of Kelsey who was the most annoying, plastic replicant ever to dull a show (Marcel from Top Chef is still no. 1, but Kelsey may edge out Richard Hatch for the no. 2 spot). I keep harping on the editing, but either no one had any personality, or any flares of realism were left on the hard drive (or cutting room floor, depending on your era). The weird thing is that Top Chef began with contestants like this their first season, but each year the talent pool gets better and higher up the culinary food chain. This is not a perfect analogy, because it's very clear that Food Network is no longer looking for skilled chefs, but that wouldn't prevent them from looking for more talented amateurs.

    My disappointment in this show is not that it's failing to become a Top Chef clone (believe it or not), but that they've watered down the competition and created such a bland product that it's boring. Whether through editing or elimination decisions, it was pretty clear from the beginning who was being groomed. It's hard to invest in a finalist if you know his or her days are numbered. Obscure judging also didn't help things. In this season's final episode, the criteria cited by Susie or Bob was that the winner had to be able to start filming the next day. This could mean one of two things (well, it could mean more, but these are the two I came up with): Either two of the finalists had family obligations or only one needed the least work to become camera-ready. If it's the former, what a stupid way to make a decision, if it's the latter, I do not see how they chose the winner they did. But how would we know? Not one decision was ever explained on camera either to the contestants or to the viewer.

    Even understanding that they are focusing on camera skills, rather than cooking ability -- a sad trend throughout the network -- I believe this show could be so much more than the rote entertainment it is.moreless

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    0 2

  • Love these cooking shows!

    10
    "Perfect"
    By JPPT1974, Jul 23, 2008 Report Abuse
    Really good show as it is very addicting. And that it is trying to find the next Food Network star. It is a tamer version of Top Chef and that it tries to be like that. Though it isn't like Top Chef and it is a good show both of them. They try to find stars with good cooking, charisma, personality, and working well with others. A lot of people became stars on here and that it is neat to see who will be the next star of their own show. Shows you they have to go through a lot and put up with a lot.moreless

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    0 0
 

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