Food Channel versus The Travel Channel for food shows?

[Chip]

Some great food shows on TV as of late.

Which channel gets your nod for the best food shows ... and of course share what your fave food shows are?

Talking about food and food shows! Sounds like a fun topic.

[geeber1]

That's a hard one, I like shows on both channels.

On Food Network: The Next Food Network Star; Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives; Good Eats; some Dinner: Impossible episodes; The Best Thing I Ever Ate; Paula Deen, and probably some others I'm forgetting.

On Travel Channel: Anthony Bourdain; Man vs. Food, and a lot of the specials. I can't stand to watch Bizarre Foods, though!

[JBaymore]

Had to go with "other". It is not by "channel", but by the exact particular show for me. Both networks have some good content at times. But it is very hit or miss for both.

I often watch the Japanese "Iron Chef" and love it...... but not the one in English... I get NHK out of Japan on my satellite service (to help keep my language skills alive). It is interesting to know enough Japanese to know that the translations used on the English version of the show are not always accurate to what is actually being said.

Have to say that "Man versus Food" is really offensive to me. With a huge portion of the people in the world in a continual state of either hunger or outright starvation...... that show is inexcusable in it's depiction of blatant excess. Since shows like this (and all the celebrity gossip crap too) get seen internationally.... it is easy to see why people get certain "less than positive" impressions about Americans.

"Bizzare Foods" is also is not on my "top ten". Programmed for total "shock value"....... it is like the police car chase video shows; voyeristic people are wating for the carnage and gore and "uuuuugggghhhhhhhhhh" moments. Americans are very removed from their actual food sources....... and verty "picky" about what they will eat. It comes from having the luxury of an abundance of food and a lot of wealth. Much of the rest of the world is not so fortunate. They eat what they have, and figure out how to use it as well as possible.

best,

.................john

[Chip]

Yeah John, the original (though dubbed and subtitled for gringos) Iron Chef is the best of the best! Iron Chef America really sucked at first, but it is much better ... however cannot replace the original!

I like the Travel Channel offerings due to the travel aspect! I really disliked Anthony Bourdain until I was able to get over the man ... but kept watching because of the locations. Now I like the show and even him.

OK, I may be in the minority on Bizzarre Foods. I like the premise of the show and supposedly Andrew Zimmern's mantra, discovering cultures through their foods. I am not sure I could do what he does. But I like the show.

Throwdown with Bobby Flay ... why do I initially have an aversion to American food stars? Got over this aversion and like the show, like the competition, like that he loses most of the time ... like the ethnic and cultural aspect that is often brought into the show.

Maybe I have this aversion to these "Food Stars" because I want to be The Next Food Network Star?

Last one I can think of at the moment, Alton Brown's Good Eats, like his food geek quirkiness and the "food science" that is a part of the show. Though I am not a fan of him putting eggs into his electric kettle to hard boil!!!

Show that I love to hate, Man v Food. I hate it for the gluttony aspect. Is this guy just studip or suicidal? Just a bad show idea in this day and age. I could understand if the show aired 20-30 years ago. But today, it is completely and grossly irresponsible. IMHO.

[geeber1]

I have only watched Man vs. Food when he's in a place that I've been, I agree that it is a huge display of overindulgence.

The Japanese Iron Chef seems to be more creative on the secret ingredients they choose. The American version has pretty tame secret ingredients!

Anthony Bourdain can be a total jerk, but in a way that's part of his charm. He discovers more about the cultures that the food comes from and is humbled a bit by that.

[JBaymore]

I like the Travel Channel offerings due to the travel aspect!

I agree wholeheartedly!

best,

................john

[aya_s]

I too admit that I find places that offer mammoth, ridiculous portions unappealing. They took food and somehow made it into a punishment, or at best, a really silly challenge to one's machismo.

I understand that there are both people who love to savor the flavors/textures/quality of food, and those who love to eat and love large portions (I'm in the former category, and my father is in the latter.)

I feel the one-upmanship of ginormous portions and the spectacle that some places have made of food is distasteful. Food is joy! I'm really lucky to be able to afford food that I like to eat consistently. Growing up that wasn't always the case- I don't understand why you would want to eat food to the point of sickness or pain. Why take something so wonderful and make it into something bad?

Even my father, who has the largest appetite of pretty much anybody I know (we like eating at places together, because people marvel at the amount of food that vanishes into two normal-sized people,) wouldn't try those things.

That said, I do really enjoy a lot of food shows, just wanted to rant a little about Man vs. Food and other such sensationalist food displays.

[Chip]

Big +++ for Andrew Zimmern, he talks about umami in particularly Asian dishes all the time. Watching it now, Bankok is the setting, refers to umami in some savory mushrooms he is eating.

Yummm.

[Dresden]

I like both!

[p_funk]

My vote went to the food network. I enjoy learning how to make new things and watching the competition cooking shows. Some of my favorites shows are Good Eats, this is actually how i got interested in loose tea, DDD, Chopped. I enjoy the cooking competition shows, like Hell's Kitchen, Top Chef and Chopped, more than anything