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Food Travel

Tall Toques Travel: The Food Olympics

September 25, 2008 at 9:48 AM | 0 Comments

Forget "Top Chef." If you're looking for some serious cooking contest drama, get yourself to Disney World this weekend for the semi-finals of the Bocuse d'Or.

The so-called Olympics of cooking, the Bocuse d'Or finals are held every year in Lyon, France, and for global gastrophiles, this contest carries serious weight. (Check out the over-the-top website intro--these people clearly think this is much bigger than the Olympics.)

Unfortunately, America's track record is far from golden. In the 20 years the competition has been held, Team USA has never placed in medal position--in fact, they've never come close, with their best finish a lowly sixth in 2003.

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Top Chef

Top Chef 5: Stalking Future-Almost-Kinda-Celebs

August 11, 2008 at 10:30 AM | 0 Comments

Top Chef is pretty much the cooking show to be obsessed with nowadays (sorry, "The Next Food Network Star"), and the foodie blogosphere is sure getting the obsession thing down to a science.

Ever since bloggers got word that Top Chef 5 would be filming this summer in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, they've been on the lookout for sightings of Padma Lakshmi and company.

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Top Chef

Reality TV Travel: Top Chef Tours

July 16, 2008 at 10:00 AM | 0 Comments

Reality shows only break for two or three months in between seasons, and most people can go without them for that long. But just in case you're a die-hard Top Chef fan suffering from withdrawal since the season finale, it's worth checking out Top Chef: The Tour this summer.

We ignored the Top Chef tour when it was first announced, as it sounded like an overcrowded promo event. But TV Food Fan has an update from the Philadelphia stop, and it sounds like they really keep it to a limited number of ticket holders and let fans get up close and personal with the Top Chef personalities along for the ride. ("Top Chef personalities" means runners-up from Season Three, not Padma Lakshmi.)

The official tour site has a list of upcoming cities, along with details on how to secure free tickets.

Related Stories:
· Top Chef: The Tour [Official Site]
· Top Chef Tour Puts You in the Kitchen [TV Food Fan]
· Top Chef Travel coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: TV Food Fan]

Television Travel

Top Chef Travel: Hung's Back in Vegas

October 16, 2007 at 10:30 AM | 2 Comments

Right after Hung Huynh won Bravo's Top Chef, we filled you in on the hot tables at his stomping grounds, Restaurant Guy Savoy. And starting tomorrow, the four-course menu that Hung constructed with the help of Rocco DiSpirito will be served Guy Savoy's new Bubbles Bar.

The competition-winning meal starts with "fish and chips" (hamachi and potato chips) before moving to sugar and coconut glazed prawns with radish salad. Sous vide duck with mushroom ragout takes center stage before a chocolate cake finale.

The Bubbles Bar is a more casual take on Guy Savoy, one of the priciest restaurants in Vegas. With a communal table and smaller, shareable portions, you'll be able to strike up a convo about Hung with your fellow diners--even if you're not sampling his menu.

Related Stories:
· Top Chef Travel: Guy Savoy [Jaunted]
· Television Travel coverage [Jaunted]
· Ceasars Palace [HotelChatter]

[Photo: Sabin Orr]

Television Travel

Top Chef Travel: Guy Savoy

October 4, 2007 at 2:30 PM | 0 Comments

As much as we like TV travel, we could never really get into Top Chef even though it was in Miami. (Probably because it was season 3. You can't start watching a reality show after season 1 is over.) But now that Hung Huynh has carried off the proverbial golden toque, we're gonna be on the lookout for his new restaurant. (Though if history is any guide, it'll take awhile to get the place open.)

In the meantime, you might want to check out Guy Savoy in Vegas. Hung honed his skills as a sous chef at the French haute cuisine house working with dishes like butter roasted veal sweetbreads and artichoke black truffle soup. On the second floor of Ceasars Palace, the dining room has a good view of the casino's Roman Plaza where you'll spot lots of folks not dropping hundreds of dollars on dinner.

For a double dip of reality TV travel, after dinner you should head to Ceasars' nightclub Pure, the venue that played host to pseudo-star Brody Jenner's birthday party on this week's episode of The Hills. If LC is around, ask her for a kiss!

Related Stories:
· Guy Savoy [Official Site]
· Television Travel coverage [Jaunted]