The Next Food Network Star: Episode One, June 1

by Teresa Gubbins

Lisa Garza, the latest Dallasite to dive into the reality-show realm, survived her first week – just barely -- as a contestant on the latest season of The Next Food Network Star, which premiered on Sunday June 1.

Garza – who co-owns Dallas restaurant Suze with her chef husband Gilbert – came in at No. 9, placing in the bottom two of the 10 contestants. Fellow contestant Cory Kahaney, a comedian, saved the day by not being funny and thus getting sent home.

But Garza's near-loss seemed contrived, after seeing how much camera time she earned and how much drama she provided. She was the main focus for most of the episode. Her fidgeting, nerves, high-fashion sense, stiletto heels, and fiendish chopping earned her the nickname "The Diva of Dallas."

Only 19-year-old Shane Lyons came close when he served up the greatest gift: tears. He broke down and cried during the judging. He's not going anywhere soon, either.

Garza's big weakness, according to host Alton Brown and the judges, was her nebulous Point of View, a characteristic that's deemed essential for a food network star. Asked to describe herself in one sentence, she rambled about cooking and "community outreach" in a summary that the judges claimed to find "baffling".

Casey Thompson, chef at Shinsei, had some insight, having been a finalist on the most recent season of Bravo channel’s Top Chef.

"The first challenge is nerve-wracking," Thompson says. "You're going into it and you don't know how talented the other contestants are. My first thoughts were, 'Am I going to come out looking like a jackass? I could completely ruin my own career by having all these people running circles around me.' The first challenge clearly shows you where you stand, and who's going further into it. There were ones that were clueless. I'd look at some and think, 'You're out, you're out, you're out.' You start sizing them up."

On Sunday night's episode, the 10 contestants -- five females, five males -- were broken into teams of two and required to devise three dishes: one apiece of their own and one collaboration. Garza's salmon with basil sauce got an OK from the judges, but the salad she and her partner created was panned.

Partnering up is a difficult thing, Thompson says.

"I was paired with people I didn't want to be paired up," she says. "But you just have to suck it up and make the most of it because you don’t want to get eliminated. Besides, my mother taught me to play nice with other children."

Garza's salmon dish was liked better than some of the other contestants'; but one judge said they were looking for a "unique perspective and breakthrough personality," with no mention of skill of the dish.

But relegating Garza to the bottom still came off as a ruse to keep viewer interest up -- a technique that Thompson witnessed happen to herself.

"I'd see previews for the next week, showing me saying something like, 'Oh I can't believe they said that' – as if I were about to be kicked off, when I knew I was on top," Thompson says. "To my closest friends who I tell everything, I'd say, 'I'm not even on the bottom.'"