I promised myself when I started writing this column two years ago that I would limit how much I talk about the Food Network. I decided that this would not be a forum for me to ramble on about my likes (Ina Garten) and dislikes (Rachael freaking Ray) on a regular basis. When I wrote a column two weeks ago about my devastation over the Food Network not airing on Cablevision in January, I told myself that I had reached my quota for the semester.
If the Food Network was not getting on my nerves so much, maybe I would be able to keep my promise.
Scripps Networks, the Food Network's parent company, will be launching the Cooking Network, aka Food Network 2.0, on May 31. You would think that the prospect of a second 24−hour food channel would have me jumping for joy, but let me assure you that my feet are firmly planted on the ground.
I found out about FN 2.0 during my usual weekend routine of perusing various blogs and Web sites instead of doing work. As I surfed from The Huffington Post to The New York Times, I grew more and more annoyed with each click as I read about the new network.
Scripps originally announced plans to launch a second food channel last fall to replace its failing Fine Living Network. The company originally said that the network would focus entirely on kitchen−based programming, meaning the moniker the Cooking Channel would actually make sense. Now, however, Scripps is singing a completely different tune. The Cooking Channel will have actual cooking shows during the day and more competition and narrative shows at night.
Sound familiar? It is pretty much an exact copy of the Food Network's lineup.
I think that Scripps has seriously missed the mark with its Cooking Network programming by making it FN 2.0 and not a distinct channel. The lineup for the Cooking Network features more shows from Food Network personalities like Bobby Flay and Emeril Lagasse, but their shows are just re−hashed versions of their FN 1.0 programs. Flay, for example, will star in "Bobby Flay Brunch" on FN 2.0 — I really don't want to spend 30 minutes watching him make blue corn waffles or chili eggs benedict. I used to love watching Flay when "Boy Meets Grill" first started to air, but now, with his five shows on Food Network, his food is not exciting to me anymore. There will also be a host of new shows that are more specialized than any of the shows on Food Network, such as "French Food at Home" and "Chinese Food Made Easy."
Many of the new shows seem to feature more advanced, complicated recipes. This is what I think the essential problem with FN 2.0 will be: None of the shows are actually teaching people how to cook. I love the Food Network show "How to Boil Water," because it actually teaches people the basics of how to prepare a great meal in the kitchen, and host Tyler Florence starts from square one when explaining his recipes.
I hate to say it, but Rachael Ray is the only person who seems to be taking the Cooking Channel idea to heart. Her new hour−long show, "Rachael Ray's Week in a Day," will teach viewers how to cook a week's worth of meals by spending just one weekend day in the kitchen. The show is practical and educational, and will even feature Ray in the grocery store giving shopping tips.
Of course, I will undoubtedly tune in to the new network, and I will most likely find a way to rant and rave about it, but for right now, my feet are still going to remain firmly planted.
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Caryn Horowitz is a senior majoring in history. She can be reached at Caryn.Horowitz@tufts.edu.
