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Tuesday, November 13

Symon Says: I Win!


The Next Iron Chef (a limited series) has come to a close and Cleveland's Michael Symon is the big winner.

Congrats!

I wasn't able to catch the final episode on Sunday...was too busy trolling around NYC-- I mean, taking in the culture. And I didn't get back until after midnight last night.

Thankfully, I was sent this excellent commentary from Scott:

While I lament the fact that Besh lost to Symon in “The Next Iron Chef” it was a wonderful competition. Symon is a most deserving champion and a culinary technician of the first order. That being said, I believe Besh is more than worthy and should, at some point, rise to become an Iron Chef himself. Nothing against the ladies, but Besh can cook circles around Cat Cora and more than hold his own versus Flay and Batali. Promoting Besh, a Southerner, would have gone a long way toward adding some regional flair to the Iron Chef ranks, but it’s hard to take anything away from Chef Symon who dominated in a most convincing way.


Thanks so much for sending this in, Scott! Anyone else want to put in their two cents on the outcome?

From the few episodes I've seen, Symon definitely seems like a more viable TV commodity. It doesn't hurt that he can cook his ass off.

If one's ass could be cooked off, that is.

[Image courtesy Food Network]

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5 Comments:

At 11/13/2007 1:22 PM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

I really enjoyed the Next Iron Chef series, and thought the finale was exciting. There were times when I wasn't sure who had the upper hand, but I am pleased that Chef Symon won. He had a rocky start in the beginning of the series, but he has really been kicking some serious culinary ass. (I think he won the last five challenges?) Chef Besh struck me as way too cocky, and I really think his ill-executed swordfish dessert did him in. Still, I would gladly sample any food from either Besh or Symon. Yum.
Personally, I would have loved to have had Chris Cosentino in the finale. (He was eliminated in the Munich challenge. He usually wears glasses and a pinstripe apron.) I think he is really innovative in the kitchen (remember the razor clams with "shaving" cream sauce?) and he is so fun to watch. He has a very interesting blog about his obsession with offal. Those who want to check out his 5th-quarter menu and whole-animal philosophy should check out his blog. http://www.offalgood.com/site/

 
At 11/13/2007 4:30 PM , Blogger Mr Toad fan said...

I enjoyed this series, much better, at least for me, than the Next Foot Network TV star.

While I was rooting for Chef Besh, I have seen him before on another FTV show as a competitor. No worries. He'll show up somewhere on this network. If not PBS could use another great chef!

The reality of it came down to personality, innovation, and willingness to go for it, such as using cooking methods you are not accustom to using and being full of life and being able to show it on TV! In this case Chef Symon had to be the winner. To me Chef Besh, in the final, got caught up in trying to be too much of a "good ole boy" and staying true to his NOLA cuisine and back ground. Plus Chef Symon had won 5 of the tests with Chef Besh a close second.

One item I didn't like about the show was they didn't show the voting results! 3 judges, 3 Iron Chefs, 1 Alton Brown, why not show the results?

 
At 11/13/2007 5:18 PM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

I was saddened to see no women or minorities make it to the top level although I know that Morimoto is Asian and I believe Symon and Cora both Greek-American - because I thought all of the chef's were good, it was the Judges' palates I questioned. I liked Food Network Star a bit better because our votes (hopefully) made a difference and choosing The Bistro Next Door was a way of saying to FN "we want Amy because we want true cultural diversity and real cooking technique not hollywood drama and style." That being said, my opinion is it should have been Besh - Symon cooks well, yes, but he again has that Guy/Duff edginess that I guess might draw more 20'something males to the audience?? And no mention of Batali anymore as an Iron Chef - is it his space that is being filled (as if - he's the best)? His abdication from FN is a real loss I feel. Roberto desde Miami

 
At 11/13/2007 5:46 PM , Blogger Lester Hunt said...

I would have been happy with either of the two finalists. Besh does something more like the sort of cooking I like to do, but Symon is the more charming person. Both are excellent chefs, needless to say. The after-show squabbles on Michael Ruhlman's blog were fun too.

 
At 11/16/2007 9:27 PM , Blogger John said...

I was disappointed too to see no minorities or women go to that last round (I was hoping for Morou, who has a restaurant in Northern VA; anyway, thanks to this show, there is one more restaurant in Northern VA I need to go check out now). Still, it is good that a talented person did win. As for Batali, good riddance. The man has always struck me as arrogant and a bore. Many folks will miss him, but I probably won't.

 

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