He beat Bobby Flay
New World chef Ric Orlando was on the Food Network show Beat Bobby Flay Thursday night.
And he won!
Here's the setup of the show, if you haven't seen it before. Two chefs face off in an opening round using a common ingredient. Then two (playful) Bobby Flay antagonist pick their favorite, who then advances to a matchup with the eponymous star chef. Flay and the contestant then compete to see who can the best dish of the contestant's choice. Three new judges make an appearance at the end to pick the winner.
So, for this episode Ric Orlando faced off with Houston chef Kiran Verma in an opening round that featured flat iron steak. The Bobby Flay antagonists: Food Network star Anne Burrell and DC-area chef (and former Top Chef contestant) Spike Mendelsohn. Orlando made a Korean-inspired lettuce cup -- which, based on Burrell's reaction, was very spicy. It went over well, except for the steak being undercooked. Verma's dish seemed to underwhelm the antagonists, and she forgot to put beef on one of the plates. Orlando advanced.
For the Bobby Flay round, Orlando picked latkes. This ended up being a good choice because Bobby Flay apparently didn't have much experience with them -- and it showed.
Orlando created two latke versions for his plate, one with a chipotle apple sauce, the other with smoked salmon. His latkes turned out a beautiful golden brown after cooking first in a pan with duck fat, and then a dip in the fryer. (And he finished with enough time to taunt and showboat around Flay a bit, no doubt becoming a hero to TV viewers everywhere. There's just something about Bobby Flay... er, sorry, back to the recap...)
Flay seemed to struggle, falling behind on time. He created a thin, sort of sad-looking latke with smoked trout and toppings that included a peach jam.
The judges -- chef and Chopped judge Maneet Chauhan, chef Madison Cowan (who's done well on Chopped), and the owner (we think.. we didn't catch his name) of Veselka (a longtime East Village spot famous for Eastern European food).
The judges ended up really liking Orlando's latkes and the smoked the salmon -- the applesauce, not so much (Chauhan thought it lacked depth of flavor).
They weren't fans of Flay's latkes, though they seemed to appreciate the toppings.
And Orlando took the win. Congrats!
This isn't Orlando's first success on the Food Network. He previously performed very well on multiple episodes of Chopped, making it all the way to the finals of one of the show's champions tournaments.
This episode of Beat Bobby Flay was set to repeat November 6 at 1 am. And we're guessing it will pop up a few more times in the not-too-distant future -- the show seems to repeat a fair amount.
Earlier on AOA:
+ Ric Orlando on Chopped Champions
+ Grocery games, for the win
+ Exit from Flavortown
New World Catering advertises on AOA.
screengrab from Food Network
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Comments
It's a good thing I hadn't recorded this to watch later. Otherwise your headline might have completely ruined it. Oh wait you did. Seriously a lot of people don't watch shows exactly when they air. It would be nice if you didn't put the spoiler right in the headline.
... said John on Nov 6, 2015 at 7:58 AM | link
Well I appreciate the headline....don't usually (actually never) watch these types of shows. Will make a point of finding, recording and probably never watching. THX
... said mike on Nov 6, 2015 at 8:27 AM | link
"And he finished with enough time to taunt and showboat around Flay a bit, no doubt becoming a hero to TV viewers everywhere."
You must be speaking about me. I am THRILLED that Ric Orlando beat Bobby Flay NOT ONLY because I love Ric and his food, but because Bobby Flay is one of the most arrogant, pompous, egotistical men in existence. The premise of "Throwdown" is that he is better than people at their very best; that he can come in and do it better than the other person has been doing it for forever. And "Beat Bobby Flay?" Now two people first have to compete against each other for the HONOR of competing against Flay. "I AM BOBBY FLAY AND NO ONE IS BETTER THAN MEEEEE!!!" I swear to god. He gets me RILED UP.
... said Ashley on Nov 6, 2015 at 10:01 AM | link
Yea, shame on you AOA for putting interesting news in the headline of a story. You should be more aware of the TV viewing habits of all your readers. What did you do with the crystal ball I bought you for Christmas?
... said Harold on Nov 6, 2015 at 10:57 AM | link
@John: I guess I viewed this sort of like a sporting event, and "the game" was last night. But thank you for saying something. We'll keep it mind the next time something like this comes up.
(@Harold: That's a crystal ball?! Argh. We've been using it as a fancy paper weight all this time.)
... said Greg on Nov 6, 2015 at 12:53 PM | link
I frequent a lot of entertainment forums online, and the general rule if its aired, its fair game.
... said Daniel N on Nov 6, 2015 at 2:06 PM | link
I was going to say "there are probably people that complain on the TU comments about 'Giants beat Cowboys, 20-17' (for example), too..." in a tongue in cheek way.
..
But then I remembered, it's the TU comments section. There almost certainly are.
... said Alex on Nov 6, 2015 at 3:51 PM | link
I knew he would beat Bobby Flay. I've watched all his Chopped episodes. He is a very humble and great guy. We went and celebrated, my husband and I's wedding anniversary in 2011, at New World Home Cooking Co. in Saugerties, NY. His restaurant in Albany, has the best calamari!
... said lea on Nov 6, 2015 at 11:16 PM | link
Any ideas about where to watch the episode online?
... said Michelle on Nov 7, 2015 at 4:15 PM | link
Any ideas about where to watch the episode online?
... said Michelle on Nov 8, 2015 at 9:00 AM | link