The Davis Street Tavern has been selected to be part of a Food Network show called “Chef versus City.”
,“Nebraska native Gabriel Kapustka will be one half of the two person team with his Chef de Cuisine Ryan McMullen, who’s been in the business 13 years. The pair will go up against two Food Network chefs on Chef vs. City, now filming it’s second season. Compared to a combination of “Amazing Race” meets “Iron Chef” the competitors aren’t sure exactly what they’re getting themselves into.
“We don’t know what we’re going to have to do,” says Ryan McMullen. “Eat habanero fritters, voodoo donuts, who knows?”
Gabriel says he’s not really nervous, but he is apprenhensive. ‘[It's just] their goal is for good tv. And good tv often humiliates people.’”
I must say that, while my interest in anything on the Food Network has dwindled to near nonexistence at this point, and my distaste for almost all reality TV is intense and visceral, I have seen one episode of this show and actually found it pretty enjoyable. I think I’d like it even more being about Portland, so all in all, I’m pretty excited for this. It might have been nice if they had picked a more quintessentially “Portland” chef team, but who knows, Gabe and Ryan could prove my snarkiness unfounded, and I hope they do.