Chopping Block

I caught all of the second episode last night and I was digging it. I like the fact that its not a cooking show. Its a show about running a restaurant. You get to see both sides of it which is nice.

Plus I love the fact that Marco does not interfere much with what the teams are trying to do. He does his best to impart a little bit of knowledge here and there. He ends up coming off very nonchalant and more of a facilitator. A nice change from the yelling and screaming from Mr.Ramsay.

The Chopping Block

Since I didn't DVR last nights premier of 'The Chopping Block' on NBC, I almost missed it. I only caught the last half of the show but I liked what I saw. I love that we are going to see the same cast of characters over the rest of the season. That way we really get to understand each contestant's food and abilities. I'll have to watch a few more episodes to really decide on the show but at least we've started on the right foot. Hopefully NBC can keep it fresh and have some nice twists in each episode.

With such a nice start, you have to wonder why they tried so hard to present themselves like 'Chopped'.

Chopped vs Chopping Block

I've been pretty confused recently by NBC's new show 'Chopping Block'. Especially since the initial commercials made it look very similar to Food Network's 'Chopped', especially with the color schemes of the promo's. Since Chef Marco was on the 'Today Show' this morning promoting it, it just sounds like restaurant wars from 'Top Chef'. Which is sort of funny, because when 'Chopped' came out people were clamoring that it was just a low-budget version of the quick fires from Bravo's show.

I see 'Chopped' as more of a toned down version of 'Iron Chef'. And even though it is still on my DVR list, I don't think I like it too much. Quite frankly, its a bit boring and the judges seem a bit pretentious and most of the chef's feel a bit weak. Mostly because we only get the chefs for at the most 3 courses and we don't to attach ourselves to favorites like we do on 'Top Chef' or 'Hell's Kitchen' and I don't think anything will get as crazy and fun as Kitchen Stadium. What it comes down to is that I want to see better quality food. Maybe they need to let the contestants know what's in the pantry beforehand.

As for 'Chopping Block'; I guess we'll all find out tonight if it shows any potential. There is a part of me that wishes it will fail miserably, just because its trying to rip off so many things from other shows.