Tag Archives: Bravo TV

Film and Television, Pop Culture

The Voltaggio Brothers Take On: Thanksgiving For the Cooking Channel!

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Bryan & Michael Voltaggio (All Photos Except This One By Anne Raso)

Handsome and talented brothers sporting as many tattoos as members of Motley Crue, Chefs Michael and Bryan Voltaggio first gained national recognition as contestants on Bravo TV’s Top Chef: Las Vegas – my personal favorite season of Top Chef to date. Out of four very charismatic finalists, the competition ended with Michael taking home the title of Top Chef and Bryan finishing a close second to his brother. Sibling rivalry, not kidding! While I confess that I was a total Bryan fan – cheering for him to pull off a victory – it cannot be denied that Michael was a deserving champion. Because let’s face it, these guys can cook.

Already accomplished chefs and noted restaurateurs before appearing on Top Chef, the Brothers Voltaggio are now bona fide culinary Rock Stars, having just released a massive, coffee-table-sized recipe book, Volt Ink, and entering into a partnership with Williams Sonoma to promote their products. The Volts are also set to debut their first TV special, Voltaggios Take On: Thanksgiving, premiering November 6, 2011 at 8:00 PM on the Cooking Channel.


Bryan V Signs a Copy of Volt Ink for a Fan

The Voltaggios were in NYC last evening to host a book signing at the Williams Sonoma store in Columbus Circle, which was followed by a private party to celebrate the book, the Cooking Channel special, and the Voltaggio’s staggering degree of awesomeness in general. While sampling selections featured in the special’s holiday menu (bites of roast turkey, sautéed Brussels sprouts with bacon, chestnut dressing and a delectable pumpkin cheesecake garnished with fresh orange that was just insane) partiers were treated to a brief preview of the special, which is lots of fun and entertaining as well as educational. Voltaggios Take On: Thanksgiving finds chefs Bryan and Michael putting their unique twist on classic recipes that reveal their secrets for creating an impressively delicious meal. Packed with survival tips to get you through America’s toughest culinary challenge, this hour-long special is sure to inspire. Voltaggios Take On: Thanksgiving is the ultimate modern twist on our favorite holiday feast. I will be watching it for sure!


Michael V and Gail

It was great to get the chance to meet both Michael and Bryan at the party and to speak with them briefly. They are both super friendly, and they genuinely seem to really love their fans. Thanks to Williams Sonoma for throwing such a fun bash and also for the gift bag which contained a T Shirt emblazoned with the words “Food Person” (yes) and a potato ricer, the tool with which the Volts make their famous creamy mashed potatoes. Be sure to tune in to Voltaggios Take On: Thanksgiving, on Sunday, November 6th at 8:00 PM on the Cooking Channel (check your local listings for broadcast information) to see the potato ricer in action!

Film and Television, Pop Culture

IFC Miniseries Dead Set Unleashes Zombies on the Big Brother House!

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I’m not at all apologetic about being a huge fan of Reality TV: Survivor, The Amazing Race, Project Runway, Hoarders – I love all that crap. I get a lot of grief for my taste in TV programming, but I could really give a shit what anyone else thinks. If you don’t like it, no one is holding a gun to your head making you watch Flipping Out with me.

I’ll defend my allegiance to Bravo TV to the end, but even I draw the line at CBS’s summertime ratings–ringer, Big Brother, which is just as loathsome as TV can possibly get. Aside from the Real Housewives franchise and possibly  American Idol, Big Brother, for me, represents the absolute nadir of an already much-maligned entertainment genre. With that in mind, all you Reality TV Haters out there – especially those who hold Big Brother in as low regard as I do – may want to set your DVRs to record IFC’s five-part series Dead Set (premiering tonight, 10/25). Dead Set, created by British journalist Charlie Brooker, is a black comedy-horror-satire in which  a ravenous mob of zombies is unleashed on the Big Brother UK house — seemingly the only stronghold left in the country, and possibly the world — on an eviction night that goes horribly and hilariously wrong.

Shot at the real BBUK house with cameos by actual BBUK houseguests, Brooker imposes actual life-and-death on the show’s “stars,” for once warranting all the hyperbolic talk of eliminations, chopping blocks and backstabbing. The contestants get their share of skewering (“Does this mean we’re not on telly anymore?”) as they survey the post-apocalyptic landscape. And yet even in the midst of Doomsday, reality TV dutifully and tragically marches on: the broadcast continues, the contestants strategize who lives and dies, and an insatiable, bloodthirsty mob pounds on the door for more flesh. Sounds like a good time to me!

Dead Set airs tonight, 10/25 through Friday 10/29 at Midnight on IFC. A marathon of all the episodes will air Sunday 10/31 – hey, that’s Halloween! – starting at 7:30 PM.

Design and Innovation

Pink Thing of The Day: Pink Fuzzy Cabinet Shelving!

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The Seventies Will Never Die

Designer Ryan Humphrey – a former contestant on Bravo’s Top Design – got what can only be called wildly creative with his apartment redesign project, which features these Hot pink fake fur-lined shelving units. Oh my. Ryan explains: “These are guitar amplifier cabinets that I turned into bookshelves lined with faux fur. Nothing says ‘Hair Metal’ more than high quality pink fur.” I would have them in my house; that is without question. Read all about the redesign project and see pictures of all of the other rooms (hint: very cool) at this link.

Thanks to Rose at The Lacking Organization for the Tip!

Film and Television, Pop Culture

Me Gusta Top Chef!

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Top Chef Cleaver

We’re already about five weeks into the latest season of Bravo’s awesome reality cooking competition, Top Chef – one of my very favorite TV shows. This season, which is set in Las Vegas, is very, very good indeed! But I’ve yet to blog about Top Chef Las Vegas because there are so many other sites (Best Week Ever, Television Without Pity, Gawker) that recap this show weekly with so much more snark and mean-spirited hilarity than I could ever even hope to muster. And you know me: if I can’t be the best at something I don’t even try to get in the game. But even though I bear a serious grudge against Gawker for mysteriously banning me from commenting on their typo-ridden posts, their live-blog recap of last night’s Top Chef episode is just too hilarious not to share the link. Be sure to read all of the reader comments at the end of the post for their added value.

Design and Innovation

Celebrity Sighting: Nathan Thomas of Bravo’s Top Design!

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Nathan and Fellow Designer, Ondine

It is no secret that I am a huge fan of Bravo TV’s reality programming. Project Runway, Sheer Genius, Top Chef, Top Design – I love all that crap. So I got a little thrill this afternoon when Geoffrey and I were at the Museum of Modern Art and I spotted Nathan Thomas, winner of Top Design’s second season.  I was actually so excited that I forgot I am supposed be a jaded rock critic and I walked right up and asked if he was Nathan from Top Design, and he said yes, he was. I introduced myself and mentioned what a huge fan I am of the show and of his design work in particular. Then we made small talk about the art for about a minute before I excused myself and scampered off to find Geoffrey, because people are probably always recognizing  him in public and bugging him and blah blah blah. Anyway, he was REALLY nice!


Nathan in the Room he Designed for the Lighting Challenge