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The Stew

By JEFF HOUCK

The Tampa Tribune

Published: September 17, 2008

OLIVER, HARDLY

I received a nice e-mail from dedicated Stew reader Cindy Vickers of Sebring the other day.

"Maybe you can help get a message to the Food Network," Cindy writes. "They made a bad move, in my way of thinking, to take Jamie Oliver off the air at 9:30 a.m. on Saturday and put the 'The Cooking Loft' gal Alexandra Guarnaschelli in his place.

It shows to me that they have lost their 'taste' to good entertaining for this viewer, and I hope many others. Not only is he down-to-earth, refreshing and funny, but very unique.

"Thanks for any help you can contribute to getting him back on the Network," she says.

Hmm. I reluctantly admit that I have no power in this regard, Cindy. As for Oliver, I'll admit to having enjoyed his shows. I like his new cookbook, "Jamie at Home," very much (see mini review on Page 4). But Food Network doesn't consult with me much on programming.

I asked Cindy to elaborate. Clearly she had issues with Food Network similar to those many readers have expressed to me.

Might as well let her uncork on their behalf, I reasoned.

Cindy stepped up to the plate in a subsequent letter.

"No more gripes, and the 'wonder whys' are not that many," she says. "Just can't figure out why they give sooooooooooo much TV time to the 'chosen few' (not mentioning any names).

"Maybe the viewers just couldn't keep up with Jamie O," she writes. "If the 'Loft' gal is there to teach, I missed the boat! She tossed a gal a watermelon and told her to cut it up, letting all of her guests do her 'dirty' work. Your article said that she would be on Sunday morning - maybe they will give Jamie back his spot. Amen."

Amen, sister.

My take: Although it can be frustrating for viewers to see longtime food stars such as Emeril Lagasse and Mario Batali and, yes, Oliver, shuffled out in favor of new faces, few networks can afford to invest in only a handful of stalwarts. Metaphorically speaking, Food Network figures it will catch more fish if they throw more bait in the water.

It probably doesn't help when newbies such as Rachael Ray or Guy Fieri burst on the scene and go nuclear-hot with popularity.

It doesn't matter if your name is Wolfgang Puck, Michael Chiarello or Tyler Florence, eventually, everyone gets sent to TV's version of the restaurant walk-in cooler. And by "the cooler," I mean a 2 a.m. time slot or the Fine Living Network.

Cable is a cruel mistress.

CHOCOLATE TRUFFLE, WHOOPI!

In Renaissance times, artisans would jostle to get the attention of wealthy families for lucrative commissions. These days, a whisper from Oprah's lips can make or break a career.

Although neither a nod from a Medici nor Winfrey, William Dean Chocolates of Largo got a nonetheless significant nod earlier this month when Whoopi Goldberg gave the line of hand-painted designer treats a mention as one of her "favorite things" on the ABC talk show "The View."

Since chocolatier William Dean Brown started his company a little more than a year ago, his chocolates have found their way onto the plates of Donatella Versace and the pope.

The line is available nationally through the gourmet chain Dean & Deluca and several Bay area retailers. Brown also is a semifinalist for the Next Generation Chocolatiers Awards in New York. The results will be announced in November.

Brown's chocolates will be featured Sept. 27 at the "All That Glitters" wine and food tasting at the Pepin Hospitality Center in Tampa in support of MacDonald Training Center, which helps adults with disabilities. More than two dozen other restaurants and caterers will participate in the event.

Tickets are $75 for general admission and $100 for VIP passes. They can be ordered at www.macdonaldcenter.org and will be available at the door on the night of the event.

18 WHEELS AND 2 CHEFS

The 20-city "Top Chef" tour 18-wheeler semi rolls into town Saturday at the Ybor City Saturday Market in Centennial Park, Eighth Avenue and 19th Street in Tampa. Richard Blais, who was one of the finalists competing on season four of the Bravo network cooking series, will be doing demonstrations and tastings with Carlos Fernandez, who appeared on season two.

Personally, I just want to see the 48-foot-long truck, a moving kitchen equipped with power and water with the capacity to accommodate 38 guests per seating.

Free tickets were snatched up quickly last week, but they will be available on a first-come, first-served basis on the day of the event. If you didn't get a ticket, a live feed of the chefs will be shown on a 52-inch screen. The three shows will be at 10:30 a.m., noon and 1:30 p.m.

Come early and expect a crowd. Appearances in the previous 16 cities have attracted thousands of fans.

And if you don't make it, check out my posts online Saturday at Twitter.com. I'll be blogging the event live. My logon is TwitStew.

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