The six week competition features recipes in the following categories: Burgers, Cakes, Comfort Food, Desserts, Hot and Spicy, or Hometown Favorites. The top recipes chosen for each category compete each week for top honors, a prize of $25,000 and the chance to have his or her recipe on the menu nationwide at T.G.I. Friday’s® restaurants.

The home cook contestants must recreate their recipe each week for a particular category, with a final winner from that week’s group deemed the winner. Home cooks have a cooking station with all ingredients they need to recreate their recipe. The home cooks face challenging each other by cooking the best dish then face the judges before finding out which of them wins the category and prize. Host Fieri talks with the contestants as they cook their recipe, providing encouragement and tips. In the end, if he’s lucky, Fieri gets a chance to taste the final dishes to judge for himself. Once the contestants finish their recipe, each contestant must face the three professional culinary judges who then give them a critique of their dish. Imagine how difficult it is for professional chefs to receive criticism from professional culinary judges in other Food Network shows like Iron Chef, Chopped and Food Network Challenges, much less home cooks receiving criticism about their cherished home recipes.

Ultimate Recipe Showdown is hosted by chef and popular Food Network personality Guy Fieri (Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives; Guy’s Big Bite; Guy Off the Hook). Fieri’s winning personality and culinary chops are featured as host of this series geared to showcase home cooks from across the nation.

Ultimate Recipe Showdown season 3 premieres on Food Network March 14 at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT.

Food Network interviews famous chefs from all over the country as well as Food Network chefs and personalities hosting Food Network shows as to their top choices for a variety of foods they have tasted and loved. This is the ultimate guide to dishes recommended by foodies who have obsessed over food their entire lives.

Dishes showcased include best fried foods, best BBQ, best snack foods, best meat dishes, best chocolate, dishes with bacon, best pizzas, best burgers, best sweets, food obsessions, holiday foods and more.

Some of the featured chef food reviews include Michael Symon, Ted Allen, Giada De Laurentiis, Aaron Sanchez, Bobby Flay, Paula Dean, Guy Fieri and Tyler Florence to name a few. The best thing about this show, besides enjoying the visuals and descriptions of the dishes, is the opportunity to find local places you can visit that the chefs recommend. What better way to try a new dish or restaurant that has such a high seal of approval than a chef telling you this is the best they’ve ever eaten?

If you are wondering where you can find the delicious foods featured on The Best Thing I Ever Ate, just visit the show’s website on Food Network (www.foodnetwork.com) and you will find episodes listed along with the locations of the places where those magical foods are created. If you look at the restaurant websites featured on The Best Thing I Ever Ate you may find that some of the recipes are listed on the restaurant websites for those of you eager to try making the dishes yourself. If you are lucky, some of those food goodies can be shipped to you directly if you live too far away to enjoy what the restaurants offer. Be sure to check out the Food Network show listings for more information.

Watch The Best Thing I Ever Ate On Food Network on Fridays at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT

Next Tony visits Quaker Creek Store where they create their own artisanal sausages. A local gives Tony a bottle of homemade Polish Vodka for his meal. Chef Bobby, one of the owners of the store, dines with Tony as they enjoy traditional Polish dishes such as sausages and potato and onion perogies. Tony pulls out the Polish vodka and tries it, saying after drinking the homemade vodka he hopes he doesn’t “wake up naked in a dumpster without my kidneys”.

In the next scene we see Tony, along with his good friend, chef Michael Ruhlman, driving in an old convertible Lincoln Continental. They are on their way to the Culinary Institute of America (CIA) where Tony trained as a chef. Tony and Ruhlman are paired together with other young chefs who must put together a dish for the CIA instructor Michael Pardis. Tony and Ruhlman gear up with aprons and tall chef hats. Tony says of the hats “hated them then and I hate them now, we used to call them coffee filters”. Tony and Ruhlman get cutting, slicing up red peppers and squid, arguing which way to cut the squid until Pardis tells them to cut it in rings, Tony’s way. Tony harasses Ruhlman, telling him “look up chef in the dictionary and it says ‘not you’”.

In the CIA parking lot Tony is jokingly passing out No Reservations t-shirts to the students for money and passing out condoms, as the young chefs laugh and banter with the two seasoned chefs. Next Tony and Ruhlman visit Rondout Bay Marina where they hang out with some of the locals and drink shots at the outdoor bar.

Tony and Ruhlman are seen driving in the convertible headed to Mohonk Mountain House, a grand 265-room Victorian castle, one of America’s oldest family-owned resorts. Ruhlman exclaims “wow” as they drive up to the impressive castle, the castle surrounded by water and beautiful landscaping. Tony has arranged for them to paddle a canoe in the lake then enjoy high tea. Ruhlman is shocked Tony is interested in high tea but changes his mind when the extensive layout of fancy sandwiches and petit fours arrives. Tony tells Ruhlman the castle has an eariness to it similar to the movie “The Shining”.

Next stop is a party at CIA instructor Michael Pardis’ home. Tony and Ruhlman are looking forward to the numerous asian dishes Pardis is preparing for them. Tony digs into a bowl of noodles with pork and is in heaven. Pardis’ 10 year old daughter (going on 40) tells Tony she watches his show. As Tony jokes with the girl about how hard his television job is, she says sarcastically “food in your mouth is so much work” and Tony cracks up. Tony tells the camera Pardis’s daughter “beat him like a rented mule” with her clever comments during their conversation. Tony returns the favor by helping her fly high on her tire swing.

In the final segment, Tony visits chef Peter Kelly’s restaurant X20, set on a pier on the Hudson river. Kelly has arranged for his good friend Bill Murray to have dinner with Tony, who is blown away that he will be meeting the movie icon. Tony and Murray chat while dining, talking about their beloved New York. When Tony asks Murray where he’d like to travel, Murray tells Tony he’d like to take a PT boat through the Philippines. Dinner consists of lobster two ways, sashimi, duck with hoisin sauce and steamed buns, finishing with a cowboy ribeye steak for two. The final scene shows Tony heading home, riding on a tugboat down the Hudson river.

Shula’s steak challenge has been tried by 80,000 restaurant visitors, with only two people ever completing the challenge. Restaurant visitors have no time limit in order to complete the challenge. Shula’s steak challenge features a 48 oz. porterhouse steak grilled live for Adam to feast on. Adam has 20 minutes to finish the entire steak, not much time to accomplish this impressive feat. Shula’s uses the best angus beef steak available for the challenge.

The crowd cheers Adam as the show starts. Adam points out the many tailgate snack foods available for the audience featuring local restaurants providing Philly cheesesteaks, hot wings and huge deli sandwiches for the crowd.

Pre-taped segments showed Adam visiting local restaurants to sample their best dishes. The first taped segment shows Adam visiting Sarussi restaurant and sampling their Cuban sandwiches. Adam tries their Cubano sandwich “The Sarrusi Original”, a 16 inch by 4 inch sandwich filled with 20 slices of baked ham, 15 slices of Cuban roasted pork, 8 slices of mozzarella cheese, freshly baked bread slathered in garlic butter, then the meats are topped with pickles and a spicy sauce. Adam takes a bite, closes his eyes as he relishes the taste, then tells the restaurant owner he wants to move next door to the restaurant because the sandwich is so delicious he would eat it for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Another taped segment shows Adam visiting Joe’s Stone Crabs restaurant to taste their “Joe’s Jumbo Stone Crab Claws” special. Adam finds out fishermen catch stone crabs and remove one claw, which grows back in six months. This means the crabs continue to live and regrow their claws instead of dying like most caught crabs do. Adam tries his hand at cracking some of the crab claws with a mallet, not so easy to do as he finds out. Adam finally gets the chance to try the crab claws and mentions how sweet and flaky the crab meat is. Adam and the restaurant owner finish the meal with their famous Key Lime pie for dessert.

The next taped segment shows Adam visiting La Moon restaurant to try their stacked hot dog special “Supermoon Perro”, a 9 1/2 inch long dog. This gigantic hot dog features an all beef hot dog, chorizo, bacon, melted mozzarella, fried shoestring potato sticks, mayo, pink mayo, ketchup, homemade mustard and a pineapple sauce, topped with a hard boiled quail egg speared into the hot dog. Adam is dubious about the addition of the pineapple sauce but becomes a convert quickly as he bites into the delectable hot dog.

Adam runs a few live food challenges for the audience during the show. The first challenge takes four audience members, two New Orleans fans and two Indianapolis fans who chow down on huge 10 pound angus beef hamburgers to see which team can eat the most burger in 15 minutes. The hamburgers are cut in quarters using hacksaws. In the end, the challenge is won by the Indianapolis team who receive free t-shirts, to great cheers from the crowd. The second live food challenge for the audience features hot wings using habenero sauce. Each team must down three hot wings each to win the challenge. Two teams of three linebackers comprise the challenge, including Travel Channel host Dhani Jones. The wings go down one by one, with Dhani’s team winning the hot wing challenge. Glasses of milk are ready to be drunk after this hot sauce challenge.

The last taped segments show Adam gearing up for the big steak challenge with the help of coach Don Shula, who gives him a pep talk and takes him through a number of football warm-up exercises. Shula delivers a taped message near the end of the show to encourage Adam during the final minutes of the food challenge.

Adam is backstage preparing for the challenge, iPod buds plugged in his ears. Adam focuses, pacing back and forth before the event begins. Adam arrives to the challenge dressed in a black tuxedo. Suddenly Adam tears away the tuxedo to reveal a t-shirt and jeans as the crowd screams approval. The announcers talk about the event as if its a football game, giving odds on Adam’s chances to win the challenge. The announcer states Adam’s wins this season so far for Man v. Food are 24 wins for man vs 14 wins for food. The 48 oz. steak for Adam’s Shula’s steak challenge arrives on the plate. Adam dabs the juice of the steak behind each ear like perfume, then begins the 20 minute steak challenge while the audience chants “eat that meat”, “yes you can” and “let’s go Adam, let’s go” over and over.

Adam devours the steak quickly and is 1/3 of the way through the steak at the 4 minute mark. After 12 minutes Adam has 24 oz. of the 48 oz. steak eaten, but starts complaining about his jaw hurting from the excessive chewing of the steak. The announcers states Adam seems to have the “meat sweats” and might have a “beef drunk” going on as Adam rolls his eyes at the amount of meat and wipes his brow while eating. The steak cam shows up close how little is left of the steak on the bone. At 7 minutes Adam asks coach Shula’s son if the two bites from the steak bone he has left qualify as the final bites and he says yes. Adam downs the first bite, grimacing from jaw pain, then stands to announce the final bite, finishing the steak challenge with 3 minutes and 23 seconds left on the clock. Adam completes the challenge to cheers from his fans and once again, in the challenge of man vs food, man won.

Watch Man v. Food Wednesdays at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT on The Travel Channel.

As the episode begins, Tony recites a fast rendition of Prague’s history, finally getting to the heart of the matter when he says that Communism influenced the food for the worse here. Tony notices there are boatloads of dumplings and goulash offered in the restaurants here. Tony meets with local Chef Sahajdák for beer and eats. First the beer arrives with stinky cheese and dark bread to go with it. Beer is a staple drink here and beer making is a great pride for Prague. Lunch starts with a huge appetizer of slow roasted pig tails. Tony is in heaven. The main courses arrive featuring two beef dishes: marinated rib of beef in beer and beef with rosehip sauce. Tony loves the beef dishes.

Dinner at Chef Sahajdák’s restaurant La Degustation Boheme Bourgeoise features a tasting menu of fried carp and potato salad with tripe soup, a menu similar to the traditional Christmas menu of Prague. Next is beef tartar between crisp chips. Aspic of ham with poached egg and lardon on toast are classical Prague ingredients that make Tony very happy. Rabbit three ways and beef tongue with chanterelle mushrooms complete the meal. Tony states this was “a fantastic meal, a taste of old and new”.

Beer and more beer is on the menu next at the old brewery. Local beer expert Evan Rail takes Tony on a tour of Kout brewery. The brewery looks very old and worn as they walk through the building. Evan tells Tony Prague drinks the most beer in the world, even more than Australia, mentioning workers often have beer with their breakfast. Tony and Evan meet that evening for dinner at the Pivovarsky Klub. The restaurant has six beers on tap. Soon a meal of pork shanks arrives at the table, along with a side dish of red cabbage. Observing how big the pork shank is, Tony exclaims “this one is the size of a medium Batali”, a reference to his friend, Chef Mario Batali. As Tony ingests a lot of pork fat with the pork meat he warns Evan flatulence is in his future. Tony is startled by the Giraffe beer, eight glasses of beer in a very tall glass.

Tony meets up with controversial artist David Cerny, a Czech sculptor, famous for painting a tank in the square pink and his upside-down horse sculpture. Cerny takes Tony to one of his outdoor sculptures, shapes of different countries on a tall metal shaped sculpture. Cerny’s country sculptures include Romainia sporting vampire teeth, Germany with a swastika built into its shape and Belgium portrayed as a tray of chocolates. Tony describes Cerny as a grumpy guy who likes his beer, very similar to himself.

Tony wants sausage and meets with local chef Zdenek Pohlreich to scour the Wenceslas Square sausage stands. Tony is enthralled with the number of sausages, eating two with relish, then spotting a cheese sandwich he knows he must have. Tony eats the melted cheese on a bun, calling it magnificent.

Next Tony decides he has had a bit too much goulash and wants Vietnamese food. Tony joins Tina to find a great bowl of pho at The Asian Trade Center Sapa. They get permission to film at Sapa Vietnamese Market, but are not allowed to film any where else at the trade center. When Tony and Tina arrive, the restaurant workers tell them they are out of pho. Tony gets loud and clear they are unwelcome there. Tony finds another restaurant where he and Tina get a bowl of rice with broth, snails and vegetables, for which he is very grateful. Tony still feels snubbed by Sapa Vietnamese Market.

Tony and the crew arrive at a suburban neighborhood, where traditionally neighbors chip in to hire a butcher to cut up a pig for a big neighborhood meal. Drinks start right away as the pig is cut up and cooked. Tony, being very cold as they cook the pig outdoors, is grateful for the alcoholic drink to warm up with. The pig cooks in pieces, with goulash with broth first on the menu. Tony states its “simple but delicious”. Next comes pig belly, pig cheek and pig jowl dipped in mustard, all of which Tony partakes of along with more beer. The camera crew and Tony find themselves permeated with pork steam as the pork cooks. Pork sausage is being stuffed by hand and Tony is stunned at the old-school methods the cooks are using. Next blood sausage is created, Tony’s favorite. Tony tastes the sausages and is thrilled. Blood soup is last, a soup Tony thoroughly enjoys. Tony says “the whole meal was amazing and delicious”.

Tony’s final meal is one of his favorite types, he is invited to one of the guides family’s homes to have dinner. They begin with an aperitif to start the meal. The menu consists of roast duck with caraway seeds, roasted overnight, homemade yeast buns (some savory and some sweet), red cabbage and homemade dumplings. Tony as always is appreciative of home cooked meals which tend to be his favorite.

The premise of this culinary show is chef Ramsay called in to help some of the most problematic, failed kitchens in America. Chef Ramsay is first invited to meet the restaurant owners and dine in their restaurant, judging the food and observing the restaurant customers and atmosphere. Chef Ramsay’s expertise is called on to update the restaurant, find the right style of food to serve to gain customers and work directly with the restaurant owners, chefs and wait staff to improve their business. The goal is to make the restaurant sought after and popular, leading to success in the restaurant biz or if they fail, to close their doors forever.

Chef Ramsay’s previous Kitchen Nightmares episodes from season 1 include Sante La Brea in Los Angeles, where health food was in actuality spoiled food, served along with bad attitudes; The Secret Garden in California, a french restaurant catering to an older crowd, with old fashioned furnishings and $300,000 in debt owed; New York’s Long Island restaurant, Finn McCool’s, a family-owned restaurant cutting corners on the quality of their food, with the restaurant slowly dying; in Bellmore, a suburb near New York City, The Mixing Bowl had owners working themselves to death doing everyone else’s job while the manager schmoozed with customers; and The Seascape Inn on Long Island, one of the most historical and successful restaurants there, featured the owners, a mother and son, at each other’s throats, along with a head chef who would not listen to them.

As abrupt as chef Ramsay can be, he seems to identify problems quickly and pick up on relationships or service that are impeding the success of the restaurant. Chef Ramsay shows his friendlier side in this show in comparison to Hell’s Kitchen but still steps in and calls it like he sees it when problems arise.

Season 3 of Kitchen Nightmares premieres with Chef Ramsay visiting Philadelphia’s Hot Potato Cafe, owned by two sisters and their sister-in-law. The restaurant was founded two years ago but problems running the cafe along with stress is tearing the family apart. Chef Ramsay knows motivation, passion, and spirit originally energized the restaurant, but now finds these prime ingredients lacking.

Gordon Ramsay is a chef, television personality and restaurateur. Chef Ramsay has been awarded a total of 12 Michelin Stars. He is a cookbook author and operator of numerous restaurants worldwide.

The new season of Kitchen Nightmares premieres this Friday at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT on FOX.

Next chef Olivier takes Tony to his bakery Les Maisons de Bricourt to show him his delicious desserts. Tony orders a Napoleon dessert made of puff pastry and cream filling for dinner later that evening. Chef Olivier takes Tony to his shop Entrepots Epices-Roellinger, where he sells his own line of spices. Back at Les Maisons de Bricourt Tony and chef Olivier have dinner featuring fresh bass and lobster. Tony finally digs into his Napoleon dessert, saying it tastes even better than it looks.

Everywhere he looks, Tony see pristine shellfish to eat. Tony starts ranting about wanting a shellfish tower. Zack the cameraman insists they visit one of the tourist shops to look at clothes. Zack tries on a white and black striped shirt. Tony tells Zack “you signed on to this tour, Gilligan”. Tony tells the viewers people in France do not wear striped shirts but people still insist on buying them when they visit.

Tony meets up with local specialty shop owner Mr. Peron to visit Belon oyster farm, among the most famous oysters in the world. Anne Belon is a fifth-generation oyster farmer who gives them a tour of the farm. Tony tries fresh oysters out of the water and loves the taste, calling them sweet and nutty tasting. Mr. Peron and Tony sit down at a nearby oyster bar called Le Bistrot de L’Ecailler and eat oysters to their heart’s content.

In the next scene we see Tony mock yelling at the producer “where’s my wine?”. The producer gave Tony wine to carry while walking along the dock near the water then takes it away to Tony’s dismay. He complains he should have a glass of wine in hand for these “beauty scenes” they are filming since France has wonderful wine. Tony’s whining gets him his glass of wine back and all is right with the film world.

Tony is visiting an outdoor fish stand. Ato Dossena’s specialty is frying and grilling fresh fish. Ata serves Tony pea stew, grilled bass and grilled salmon. From there Tony meets up with Mr. Peron at his specialty shop to sample his canned and jarred foods. Boutique de Pont-Aven is famous for their jarred sardines, the fish standing upright in the jars and swimming in olive oil. Tony is amazed at how good the quality and taste of the sardines are for canned and jarred versions. As they sample the sardines with white wine and bread, Tony says he could drink down the sardine olive oil like a PBR (Pabst Blue Ribbon beer) its so good.

Crepes are next on the menu, Tony figures you gotta do crepes when in France, so he and Franz Lang visit Ty Billig Creperie. Tony and Franz start with breakfast crepes, a sunnyside egg with crisp bacon wrapped in a crepe. Tony and Franz approve of the egg and bacon crepe. The next crepe features andouille sausage, mustard and seaweed. They both grimace at the taste and Tony says it sucked. A sweet crepe is next, simple butter, sugar and apple brandy. This crepe is a welcome change from the last one and is enjoyed by them both.

After crepes, Tony starts talking about that shellfish tower he wants to eat. Tony is invited to his guide’s home where Tony is cooked a traditional french meal. The meal consists of boiled beef and vegetables and savory Farz, made of buckwheat flour, similar to a pancake mix, then boiled, broken up and mixed with meat. A sweet Farz is next, using the simple ingredients of butter, eggs and white and brown sugar. Tony says the sweet Farz was reminiscent of a sweet Yorkshire pudding. Tony tells the family “this meal was like a one most chefs ache for”, calling it a wonderful meal.

Finally Tony has found his destination for a shellfish tower meal, Chez Jacky, a popular seafood spot located on the Port de Belon. Tony tells the viewers this scene is about ordering the shellfish tower meal and pigging out. The huge platter is meant for two people (or more) and comes filled high with snails, shrimp, clams, cockles, periwinkles, mussels, crab and lobster claws with bread to accompany the meal. He starts with the snails and works his way up to the claws. Tony is in heaven and feels satisfied after defeating the tower of shellfish on his own. At the end of the episode we see Tony and the crew wearing their new tourist striped shirts from france and digging into another shellfish tower.

Tony’s first guide is Ezra, who takes him to a local breakfast place. Tony finds out what a typical breakfast meal is in Istanbul: eggs, bread, flatbread, a variety of fresh and fried cheeses, olives, tomatoes and cucumbers accompanied by strong Turkish tea during the meal and strong Turkish coffee after the meal. Another tasty item Tony tries is cooked peppers and melted cheese rolled in a bread and baked.

The next guide takes Tony to sample a pizza like object popular in Turkey. This thin crusted pizza bread is topped with lamb, a spicy salsa, tangy sumac spice, red peppers, arugula, parsley and a squeeze of lemon juice. The pizza has a thin crispy crust which Tony approves of.

Tony is hankering for some street food and gyros are what he is craving. Yes he admits he likes the “meat on a stick” pre-formed gyros towers you find in the U.S. but this is the real deal: layers of cut meats in a tower, slathered onto flatbread to eat. Tony comments “this is classic stoner food” as he eats his authentic gyro. Tony is drawn to another cart food item he has heard about, Istanbul’s “soggy burger”, and gives it a try. He thinks of it like a big spicy slider and jokingly laments “that’s going straight to my hips”.

A local Chef de Cuisine guides Tony to a butcher shop and restaurant where offal is one of the offerings. Tony is always interested in organ meats and this is no exception. As he and the chef gather some spices and offal items to cook up Tony can’t resist having some of the dishes the restaurant features. Tony and the chef sit down to roasted lambs head and lamb kabobs with spicy chili. Tony likes the lamb kabobs with flatbread so much he orders a second one.

Next the chef takes Tony to a fine dining restaurant that specializes in ancient recipes of the country. The chef and Tony decide on a red meat with fruit stuffed in a lemon shell dish and a stew dish of baby lamb, dried figs, raisins, currants and dates. The chef tells Tony so many people rush through meals and it should be a time to enjoy the food and talk.

Ramadan is an Islamic month of fasting for Muslims, requiring a fast from dawn ’till dusk, it is thought the fast teaches Muslims patience, modesty and spirituality. At 4:30 a.m. a local taxi driver is Tony’s next guide, driving Tony through the city looking for a meal before dawn arrives. The guide and Tony partake of available food, eating a big breakfast that needs to last until 8:00 p.m. when fasting ends for the day. Tony discovers the taxi driver is a bit of a character, he seems to know everybody in the city and is a encyclopedia of historical information about Istanbul. As dusk sets Tony and his guide arrive at the Blue Mosque to find food as they end their daily fast.

Tony visits the Bosphorus where the Black sea and the Mediterranean sea meet. Tony’s guide takes him to a restaurant that serves fresh seafood caught that very day. Tony tries the unrefrigerated mussels stuffed with spice and rice that he thinks is very good, and hopes the room temp seafood does not come back on him with a vengence. The guide takes Tony to a restaurant featuring brain salad. Tony immediately bites saying brain salad sounds bizarre and he must have it. A local fish that is fried and resembles anchovies is brought to the table. Tony says they are “small, boney and delicious”. The next restaurant stop is a place that cooks their meat in a brick hole in the ground where the meat hangs over the flames. Tony and his guide enjoy the big portions of cooked meat with colorful vegetables wrapped in flatbread.

Tony is invited to one of the guide’s home where her mother and grandmother cook traditional dishes. The dishes are plentiful, with cooked okra, peas and onions with fava beans and dill, zucchini in pastry shell, and lamb with eggplant puree which Tony says is sensational. All desserts he has had here are delicious and the dessert at the end of the meal is no exception, a flaky, rich concoction covered in pomegranate seeds. Tony says “it’s nice to be wrong, to be surprised” about Turkey, “Turkey’s food is a slam dunk”. Tony tells the family he is dining with to his surprise he loves the yogurt in Turkey, saying “any place that can get me excited about yogurt – then anything is possible.” Tony’s final meal in the country dining with his guide’s family is, according to him, the best meal of the trip.

The first episode of season six is centered on Panama. Tony and the crew arrive in a small plane in Sambu. As he narrates he tells the audience he had no expectations of Panama and “so far, so good”. Tony meets a local chef who takes him to a restaurant where locals eat. In Panama the favorite snack food is ceviche. Tony and the chef try a number of ceviches made from fresh fish. The chef tells Tony ceviche is especially good for hangovers. Tony visits a fine dining restaurant with guests, sampling the ceviche and coconut flavored drinks. Tony finds the food delicious and the people of Panama laid back.

Next Tony visits Panama’s local Chinatown district. Tony discovers the menu is much the same as western chinese food. Choosing from a varied menu featuring stir fried tripe, won ton soup and roast pork, Tony and his tour guide feast on roast duck. Tony and his crew take a trip on the railway which is parallel to the canal. They arrive at a restaurant surrounded by water, known for its fresh seafood specialties of lobster and crab. Tony enjoys both but favors their stewed octopus dish.

In the next scene we get a brief history of former dictator of Panama Manuel Noriega and his asylum in Panama. Noriega took control of a poor section of Panama and set up shop there. The government gives Tony and the crew a tour of Noriega’s home. Tony comments after twenty years uninhabited the house is pretty much a mess and says “I feel so Geraldo, so Al Capone’s vault”. As the tour guide mentions Noriega was a Buddhist, Tony remarks Noriega was a bad Buddhist.

Tony is taken to a secret location by the Panama state police. Geared up in bullet-proof vests, the police have recently seized 12 tons of cocaine and are destroying 6 tons of cocaine out in the middle of nowhere. Tony, who has a history of drug abuse years ago, is shocked at the idea he will destroy cocaine. Tony snickers “crack is whack” as he chops away at a kilo. Machetes fly as the police and Tony hack away at the kilos of cocaine. Kilos are piled together and set on fire, creating quite a bonfire.

Tony visits the poverty stricken neighborhood where Noriega lived. His guide suggests Tony and the crew wear bullet-proof vests because of gang activity and drive-by shootings. Yet Tony finds the people in the neighborhood smiling and friendly. He visits a small restaurant the locals frequent. The chef insists Tony try the soup. Tony gives the chef a thumbs up on the soup, making the chef smile broadly. Tony feasts on fried fish and tamales with chicken and pork.

Tony meets with an expert jungle guide who will be taking Tony and the crew up the river to the Darien Gap. First they have a simple meal of fried fish, coconut rice and beans. After a three and a half hour trip up the river forge their way through the thick jungle. They arrive at Darien Gap to meet one of the last tribal groups in Panama. As they hack their way through the jungle, Tony comments on the extreme humidity saying “its like trying to breathe through soup”. They arrive at Darien Gap and the guide takes them to a clearing where two tribal members are building a wooden boat by hand. Tony and the crew arrive at the village. The tribal members paint Tony and crew with tribal ink, then prepare a meal of roast pork, yucca and plantains. After the meal members of the tribe play music and dance as Tony watches in admiration of the tribal way of life.

This new reality TV Food Network show is similar to an Amazing Race style of competition with the chefs competing against local chefs or foodies in each city they visit. Chef Sánchez and Chef Cosentino must use their cooking skills in each episode. The contests can vary for each episode whether it be tasting food, eating contests, identifying ingredients of food, or making food, their chef skills are put to good use.

The chefs and their competitors must follow written clues from each location in the city, the chefs and their competitors driving to locations and literally running from challenge to challenge to the finish line. Timed challenges have included identifying flavors in candies, stomping grapes for grape juice, a bread fight, putting together a meat puzzle, eating spicy curry, devouring chocolates, fighting off crawfish and blue crab pinchers, creating a gigantic Boston creme pie and other engaging tests of their abilities. Season one locations for the show included San Francisco, Malibu, New York City, New Orleans and Las Vegas.

Chef Sánchez is a leading chef of contemporary Latin cuisine, and has been involved in Food Network shows including as co-host of Food Network’s Melting Pot, guest judge on Chopped and guest judge on Iron Chef America. Chef Sánchez was a contestant on 2008’s The Next Iron Chef. Chef Cosentino specializes in Italian cuisine and offal dishes and is known for his eco-consciousness. Chef Cosentino was also a contestant on 2008’s The Next Iron Chef.

The first season of Chef vs City premiered on Food Network in August of 2009 on Fridays at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT. Casting is underway for the second season of the show. Check Food Network’s schedule at http://www.foodnetwork.com for new episodes of Chef vs City coming in 2010.