Asian Food Channel

I've tried my darndest best to NOT write about food because, well, I do it in other places for one, and I think there are enough people writing about food as it is. So, I'm writing about the Asian Food Channel, which we get here in the Philippines on cable. Cop out? I'm not sure, but I'm doing it anyway.

It's a channel that broadcasts a rather eclectic collection of shows, from wacky Singaporean and Japanese food review shows to popular shows like Hell's Kitchen or A Cook's Tour, to unintentionally wacky food shows from Canada, Europe, and other places. It isn't as slick as the Food Network (US). It can get hokey and corny, but it works, for all that.

I actually enjoy it more than Food Network, because it isn't all slick production values and cool camera work. Watching Charlie Trotter mince a shallot with a chef's knife (to microscopic, even, portions) is painfully boring to a lot of people, but my jaw hung open when he did it, nonchalantly, while preparing a salad. They were able to air the service footage of Hell's Kitchen, unedited, where Ramsey became less of an ogre, where suddenly the reasons for his outbursts were made clear (telling someone to repeat a dish four times can do that, especially during dinner service).

The channel seems more sincere in its corniness, and that's what I enjoy about it most. I guess I've seen too much slick, cutting edge stuff in my time that a little kitsch and cliche can seem welcome. Maybe it's the Asian in me, tired of all the western chrome and edge. Sometimes, it's nice to just be corny.

Oh, and Emeril isn't there. Can't stand his show.