When I was selected to be a food judge on the Lifetime Network show, Supermarket Superstars, I was nervous and excited. After signing a confidential form agreeing to pay a huge fine if I divulged about the show and contestants, I was ready for the taping. I was one of 6 judges, all members of the International Food, Wine and Travel Writers Association, and we met upstairs in the non descript studio and waited for our time to be escorted to the filming area. The show’s theme was global cuisine and we were chosen as world travelers knowing good food.
I knew the show was for real when I saw celebrity chef Michael Chiarello and Debbi Fields from Mrs. Fields cookies assisting with the show. Each contestant had made their dish they were hoping to market into grocery stores and we had to taste it and rate the good and bad for each item. There were Russian piroshky, Asian-Mexican tamales and Portuguese linguica soup.
A lot weighed on our evaluations of each item as to taste and would it sell to the public. We had lively dialog during the taping to show the home audience we were determined to find the next best product to hit the supermarket shelves. The Asian-Mexican tamale made the cut and went on to the finale.
Overall it was a fun experience and thankfully, no paparazzi followed me!
