Making the Detour (TV Review)
My Review of David Chang’s New Food and Travel Show
David Chang is the latest “celebrity chef” to host a new travel show centered around food. I just finished watching the first episode and came away not only disappointed, but often bored and annoyed.
That’s a shame because I had really high hopes for the host and this show. After all, as the founder of the Momofuku group, he’s a real chef and a refreshing return to authenticity after several previous hosts were clearly chosen for their good looks or quirky personalities, rather than any expertise or even a genuine love of food.
In a much broader sense, CNN’s original entertainment programming tends to be excellent, and sometimes is truly spectacular. This is particularly true for their historical documentaries. Typically, one doesn’t think of food, or restaurants, or travel when flipping onto a news channel. For more than a decade, CNN has developed a niche attraction and loyal viewing audience. These types of shows appear mostly on weekends, which are slow news days more amiable to leisurely subjects.
Of course, what CNN is really aiming for here is the long-awaited heir apparent to the late king of the entire concept — Anthony Bourdain. He was the gold standard of food- and travel-themed entertainment. Bourdain ring-mastered shows from Laos to Detroit and little-known places in-between, and one feature was just as fascinating as the next. Raw and genuine, he inspired millions of viewers (and readers) to share his intense joys of food and drink–melded with a deep appreciation and respect for other cultures. Bourdain died in 2018. Chang becomes the first chef to host a CNN “original series” since Bourdain (the other programs aired on CNN but were produced elsewhere). Accordingly, this sets up high expectations.
Chang’s theme is food-centered road trips. Sounds like fun. I’m hungry, just thinking about it. In the first two episodes, he’s covered Tennessee and Las Vegas (and the surrounding region). Presumably, this will be an American-centric series, and that’s perfectly fine. There’s lots of interesting food regions scattered across the United States, and the culinary landscape is constantly changing. Perhaps this is why there are so many television shows of this kind.
What Chang apparently lacks is an intellectual curiosity about the places and people he’s featuring. We cannot fake sincerity, and when one tries and fails, results are disastrous. The best food and travel shows (Bourdain, already mentioned; Rick Stein in the U.K.; were ideal examples of this magical formula). They combined history and culture with food and drink — each segment punctuated with personality and charisma, with a sprig of the unpredictable. Chang brings little of anything, other than a mouth and an appetite. Instead, he seems to be going after a road trip version of The Hangover.
For instance, take his visit (paired with a friend) to a truck stop in the desert outside Las Vegas (I don’t remember the location). The show makes a big deal out of the kitchen serving both Indian food and Mexican food. This might have been unusual a generation ago. Now, similar places like that exist nearly everywhere. The Mad Greek, nestled halfway between Los Angeles and Las Vegas (Baker, CA) is the prime example of a seemingly odd ethnic food spot that has been around for decades, a crowded oasis where it doesn’t seem to belong. Everybody who’s made that LA to LV drive knows The Mad Greek. Similar food havens have sprouted up on highways all across America. Few population demographics know good cheap food in strange places better than truckers.
As for personal taste, I find the host to be completely devoid of charm and frequently obnoxious. Food and travel shows require some decorum, even sophistication. All I see in Chang is a hungry mess with no apparent impulse control, supposedly being “spontaneous” in front of the cameras (i.e., unscripted). If these are the *best* moments of the road trip, the worst must be painfully dull. Naturally, all the usual stereotypes are squeezed for their full value. Tennessee. Las Vegas. Texas. You can imagine.
The Detour with David Chang includes six episodes, thus far. Two have already aired. The series could expand, depending upon the public reaction and ratings.
I wish a positive review here was forthcoming because — I love the concept. Many of us can’t get enough food reality and adventure travel and we hunger for something new. But alas, I’ll pass on taking this detour. I much prefer the main road with the familiar signposts that were so successful on comparative programming of this nature.
