Television theory says when it comes to talent shows, the ‘talent’ is always of secondary importance to the judges.
Clearly the producers of The Taste (9pm, C4, 7 January) understand this and made three cast-iron selections. French chef Ludo Lefebvre plays the unpredictable Louis Walsh role, kitchen cult hero Anthony Bourdain assumes the Cowell-ish mantle of head judge, while Nigella Lawson arrives carrying bags of publicity, looking almost as good as she did when she strode into court the other day, took the stand, and showed the world she rocks.
The show itself attempts to mix MasterChef, The Voice and The Apprentice to create a winning recipe. First, the wannabe chefs attempted to wow the judges with a winning dish. The twist was that it must be served on a single spoon. One of the contestants couldn’t resist overloading his, causing Nigella to look unusually undignified as she gagged on half a monkfish. He was swiftly dispatched.
If the spoon tastes amazing, the judges battle to get the creator on their team and then mentor them over the next few episodes. The budding chefs will be kicked out if they deliver a dodgy spoonful, leaving one ultimately victorious.
Despite the excellent judges, the judging process itself lacked tension and overall the show felt a little flat, but I did constantly wonder what I would shrink down to fit on a spoon, so it had a good play-along factor. My verdict? I wasn’t wowed by the show, but I wouldn’t send it back to the kitchen just yet.
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