Guy Fieri, the loud host of Food Network's "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives," got grilled by a New York Times food critic who gave his new New York City restaurant a scathing review. Now the celebrity chef is firing back at the review of his NYC eatery.
Many know Fieri as the guy who drives around the country in a red '67 Chevy convertible, looking for good eats. However, he also opened a restaurant in Times Square in September, called Guy's American Kitchen & Bar.
New York Times food critic, Pete Wells, sat down at Fieri's restaurant and left far less than satisfied. Restaurants may get good or bad reviews, but this one was downright scathing.
In his review, Wells asks Fieri a series of 34 questions, in which he nitpicks several aspects of the restaurant.
The review starts off addressing Fieri:
"GUY FIERI, have you eaten at your new restaurant in Times Square? Have you pulled up one of the 500 seats at Guy's American Kitchen & Bar and ordered a meal? Did you eat the food? Did it live up to your expectations?"
Wells then goes on to criticize everything from the atmosphere, to the menu design, to the service, to the portion size, the drinks, and of course, the food.
Here's just a taste of some phrases of the harsh critique:
"Why is one of the few things on your menu that can be eaten without fear or regret - a lunch-only sandwich of chopped soy-glazed pork with coleslaw and cucumbers - called a Roasted Pork Bahn Mi, when it resembles that item about as much as you resemble Emily Dickinson?"
"Hey, did you try that blue drink, the one that glows like nuclear waste? The watermelon margarita? Any idea why it tastes like some combination of radiator fluid and formaldehyde?"
After the hostile critique made waves, Fieri has responded to Wells' claims and defended his restaurant.
"I wholeheartedly disagree with The New York Times' review of Guy's American Kitchen & Bar," Fieri told Yahoo. "I'm proud of the food we put out, and always will be."
Fieri appeared on the Today show on Thursday to also talk about the review and he believes that Wells wanted to attack him for being a celebrity that isn't native to New York. He thinks Wells went into his restaurant with his mind already made up.
"I just thought it was ridiculous," Fieri said on the Today show. "He came in with a different agenda. It's a great way to make a name for yourself, go after a celebrity chef who is not a New Yorker."
Fieri did admit that his restaurant may not be perfect, but it is only two months old.
"We're trying as hard as we can to make it right, to do it right. Is it perfect right now? No. Are we striving for that? Yeah," he told Today."We've only been open a short while, but I've seen countless people come to my restaurant - families, fans, tourists, and yes, even New Yorkers - looking to get away for an hour or two, and they've had a great experience and a meal that they enjoyed," Fieri told Yahoo.
Guy's American Kitchen & Bar in NYC isn't the only restaurant Fieri owns. He also owns five Johnny Garlic's restaurants and two Tex Wasabi's establishments in California. He even owns a few burger joints on Carnival Cruise ships.
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
