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Lisa Garza in 'Next Food Network Star' finals

10:13 PM Sun, Jul 20, 2008 | Permalink
Stephen Becker

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Lisa Garza, co-owner of the Dallas restaurant Suze, advanced to the finals of The Next Food Network Star on Sunday night as the cooking reality show provided a twist for viewers. The surprise is that she'll be joined by fellow competitors Adam Gertler and Aaron McCargo because the judges deemed it to difficult to give someone the boot during the penultimate episode, forcing the show's first ever three-way final. Look for a tale-of-the-tape comparison of the finalists Thursday in GuideLive.

I have to give Lisa props -- she handled a huge miscue with grace as she accidentally left half of one of her entrees sitting on the floor of Whole Foods. And she went a long way in battling one of her weaknesses -- that she doesn't come off as warm on camera -- by belting out a country-tinged song to introduce her buffet to the judges and assembled Vegas performers.
As far as her competition goes, Adam took a big step up in showing that he actually can cook (raise your hand if you didn't think those chicken wings were going to once again come out rare). This guy has always had the personality to be a TV star, and for once he showed that he has the know-how, too. Aaron, on the other hand, made me want to crawl into a hole with his uncomfortable introduction to his buffet, stepping out on a limb with (I guess) a comedy idea that would have earned cat calls from a less-kind audience. Still, his food seems to be the best fit for the Food Network, and ultimately I think that's why he's hanging around.
So who will win the title next week? If this were a contest based on who has tried the hardest and who wants it the most, I'd say Lisa. But if I had to bet today, I'd have to say Adam. I think ultimately, this is a question of who comes off the best on camera, and he's been the most comfortable from day one. His weaknesses are ones that can be worked on, but that natural presentation in front of the camera is difficult to train.

Comments

Posted by Carl Jones @ 12:35 PM Mon, Jul 21, 2008

The Food Network judges are weak. They should have eliminated one of the three. Were they implying that all three are equal? I think not! The next "Next Food Network Star" needs to have professional judges.

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Posted by Alan Davis @ 6:27 PM Mon, Jul 28, 2008

Lisa was robbed. She was by far the best choice. Very dissapointed. I'll miss her!!!

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Lisa Garza in 'Next Food Network Star' finals

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