Wow, I did not expect to watch anything worthwhile on this network, until I read about this show, and the travel junkie in me, was immediately intrigued. There have been attempts to duplicate The Amazing Race, but come out not as good, and in some cases, I ended up hating it. Treasure Hunters, anyone?
3 episodes have aired so far, but I have only seen the 1st one so far. Basically, I see this show as a cross between TAR and Hell's Kitchen (minus the excessive yelling). I've heard comparisons with Top Chef, but I don't know since I never watched that show.
The title of this show being based on that of the Jules Verne novel, I find it interesting that this show would begin in London, where the main character of the novel was from, and the starting point of his race around the world to win a bet. Also, the starting point in this show, Borough Market, was featured in an episode of Bizarre Foods, which I watched after seeing this one.
The first part was like The Amazing Race, where the chefs randomly divided into 2 teams, then received their clue. Then like TAR, race around London on a pub crawl, learning about the local dishes at each place, and at the same time, have to eat and drink at each place quickly, for the prize of the "essential ingredient".
Second part is like Hell's Kitchen, with the teams taking over a restaurant, serving those local dishes to the locals, critics, and restaurant owners, all of which are the judges. In the end, there is a winner and loser, with the losing team having to pick someone that should leave.
You would think getting the essential ingredient would be a huge advantage, but it can only go so far, as the Red Team would learn. I guess Nookie is not as dumb as I thought he was, the way he ended up saving himself.
After seeing this episode, it was enough for me to come back for seconds.
3 episodes have aired so far, but I have only seen the 1st one so far. Basically, I see this show as a cross between TAR and Hell's Kitchen (minus the excessive yelling). I've heard comparisons with Top Chef, but I don't know since I never watched that show.
The title of this show being based on that of the Jules Verne novel, I find it interesting that this show would begin in London, where the main character of the novel was from, and the starting point of his race around the world to win a bet. Also, the starting point in this show, Borough Market, was featured in an episode of Bizarre Foods, which I watched after seeing this one.
The first part was like The Amazing Race, where the chefs randomly divided into 2 teams, then received their clue. Then like TAR, race around London on a pub crawl, learning about the local dishes at each place, and at the same time, have to eat and drink at each place quickly, for the prize of the "essential ingredient".
Second part is like Hell's Kitchen, with the teams taking over a restaurant, serving those local dishes to the locals, critics, and restaurant owners, all of which are the judges. In the end, there is a winner and loser, with the losing team having to pick someone that should leave.
You would think getting the essential ingredient would be a huge advantage, but it can only go so far, as the Red Team would learn. I guess Nookie is not as dumb as I thought he was, the way he ended up saving himself.
After seeing this episode, it was enough for me to come back for seconds.