To say that this attempt to bring famed chef Emeril Lagasse to the sitcom world is bad would be understating the case. The unfortunate thing for Mr. Lagasse is that, despite what many will say, it simply isn't HIS fault. If you can stand to sit through one of these excruciating half hours, you may notice that Emeril himself is not all that bad. He's amateurish, and not nearly as fluid with his delivery of scripted lines as he is with the open banter of his actual cooking shows. But he's actually the best one of the bunch of "clowns" in this incomprehensible mess. The problem appears to be that the producers were afraid of Emeril's lack of polish and simply tried to cover it up by supplying a bevy of loud, obnoxious old-hat stereotypes to run around screaming. Mr. Lagasse could probably have done much better with some subtlety in the writing. Perhaps if the producers had modeled their product on the British comedy "Chef!", it might have suited better. Sorry Emeril, a chef is only as good as his ingredients, and the producers handed you spoiled ham to work with.
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ghayes-210 October 2001
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afijamesy2k25 September 2001Not even Emeril Lagasse cooking can save this disjointed, overheaded idiotic nonsense, starring emeril lagasse as a TV chef from the food channel,who with help of the crew to try to make the show better, poor plot and stupid script throw this show down the drain, Robert Urich wasted in the poorly supporting role and sadly this was his last one ever(R.I.P.),
This is the worst show of 2001 and it will be on the list of the worst shows of this decade.
I Feel Very Sorry for Emeril Lagasse for making this sitcom, he even said himself it stunk.
It's hard to believe that they are the same producers of designing women that did this mess.
You Know there's a difference between this dreadful and his later shows (Emeril Green, Fresh Food Fast, Emeril's Table, The originals with emeril & the emeril lagasse show) the only difference is those later shows were watchable and this wasn't. TV Review: 1 Star -
VinnieRattolle8 March 2014In this short-lived sitcom, popular TV chef Emeril Lagasse portrayed a fictional version of himself. Following a critically-panned pilot in which time was equally split between Emeril's home and work life, the scene shifted almost exclusively to his set and office, where he was surrounded by an eccentric staff. Producer Cassandra was a loud- mouthed, twice-divorced mother of one; Melva was a sassy black stage manager who instilled fear in all of her coworkers; food stylist B.D. was a naive, recently-divorced simpleton; Jerry was Emeril's sleazy manager/best friend; Trish was a condescending network executive; and Nurse Smearball was the network's humorless nurse. Infrequently seen were Emeril's wife, Nora, as well as his two sons and daughter (all portrayed by actors). Plots were what you'd expect from a workplace sitcom set on a TV show: backstage squabbles, office parties, spinning negative press into positive, wrangling celebrity guest stars, etc. As sort of a lame tie-in, after each episode viewers could go to NBC's website and get the recipe for a dish which was seen on the show that week.
The show was slated to debut on September 18, 2001, but continuous news coverage of the 9-11 attacks delayed the start of the entire TV season... quickly leading to jokes that terrorists were trying to save us from enduring shows like "Emeril." Because fear and confusion was so thick in the air, TV viewers found solace in established series like "Friends" and every new show that season tanked (though oddities like "The Tick" and "Greg the Bunny" went on to develop cult followings on DVD). Soon afterward, Emeril's popularity waned and this sitcom was blamed. Thing is, that's not really fair - without reinvention stars tend to fizzle and this show was really no worse than any other sitcom on the air at the time (it was certainly better than that era's crap like "What About Joan?," the aptly-named "Cursed" and the inexplicably long-running "According to Jim").
There were times (particularly in the unaired pilot) when he seemed uncomfortable wrapping his mouth around the scripted sitcom dialogue, but for the most part Emeril was charismatic and seemed right at home in front of the cameras. Lisa Ann Walter (Cass) and Sherri Shepard (Melva) had terrific chemistry; Robert Urich (Jerry) was a seasoned pro who seemed to relish playing his slimy character (his final series role); and Tricia O'Kelley (Trish) basically played a variation of the same character she'd go on to portray for several years in "The New Adventures of Old Christine." The writing was not up to par with Linda Bloodworth-Thomason's earlier "Designing Women," but frankly that show got off to an almost-equally wobbly start, and this time Thomason pawned off writing duties for most episodes to her staff of writers. Yes, there were a lot of lame jokes (like any sitcom), but there were also some funny zingers too. Unfortunately, with abysmal ratings, NBC abruptly halted production after 10 episodes (3 shy of their 13 episode commitment) and only 7 of them aired.
While it was far from the greatest sitcom ever produced, it was equally far from the worst -- though it frequently shows up on worst lists. Had circumstances been different, "Emeril" might have grown into a long-running hit rather than the notorious bomb that it's reputed to be today. -
ekathleenkelly-180329 November 2020He may be acclaimed as a chef, which makes me doubt food experts. Emeril, in my opinion, is a cook not a chef.
And his attempts at humor are gringe-worthy. -
I didn't really think Emeril Lagasse could pass as a comedian, but after watching this show, not only has it been confirmed that he isn't funny - but he also can't act.
The promo spots on television for this sitcom didn't feature any laughable teasers. That's usually a bad sign for things to come. Emeril basically plays himself in this show. He's a television chef of a reasonably successful cooking show and the sitcom centers around himself and his staff.
The premiere episode was something I could only describe as 'just awful'. Emeril and his crew enter themselves into a competition to see who can lose the most weight against the crews of the other cooking shows on the same network. The prize, $100,000.00, to be split amongst the winning crew. We spend thirty painstaking minutes listening to tired jokes about losing weight and how dieting makes people cranky. We see Emeril and his 'agent' (played by Robert Urich, which is almost a laugh in itself) get themselves into ridiculous situations, such as sweating it out at a gym. And to top it off, we see the main characters sitting in wet-suits on power-cycles at the gym arguing amongst themselves over who can lose the most weight.
One of the worst things about this show is the supporting cast themselves. They over-act to the point where the jokes are forgotten and you find yourself cringing in turmoil over why you haven't yet changed the channel at this point.
If you find it amusing when Emeril shouts "BAM!" when throwing salt onto a plate of food, then this show is for you.
If you want to watch something that will make you laugh at least once, then this show is not for you.
Shame on NBC for serving up this garbage to us so early in the season! -
Fun198816 March 2017I still have it on VHS and a I look back at it, there are so many sitcoms that have made it which are much worse. Yes, Emeril was not used to the actual acting, but the cast was great. The witty repartee was memorable and the story line believable "Pork fat is always called for".
If anyone has better copies of the the 11 episodes I would love to buy them. -
wdenicolo30 October 2001NBC must be getting desprite to put this untalented goof on the air. Thank God he knows how to cook,because his acting ability isnt going to pay the rent. Its like watching A bad SNL host that keeps looking at the Que cards.
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skipster27 September 2001The critics keep expecting a show that is synonymous with Henrick Ibsen or Anton Chekov in its writing and plots. But that isn't what Emeril does. The show is just a pleasant diversion, with common issues with its viewers. I watched the show and enjoyed it for what it was. Why are people attacking it? It's not derogatory, it isn't hateful, and it doesn't dumb down to anybody. It's just a pleasant television show about a famous cook!
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bux5 June 2002This poorly written sitcom relies entirely on the charisma of Emeril, and he needs help. The scripts were dreadful, the supporting cast (with the exception of Urich) were pedestrian, and the entire concept seems poorly thought out. Linda Bloodworth Thomassan, who with her husband gave the much needed support to President Clinton, via advice and speech critique, seems to have lost out again. And again it is the viewers that suffer.
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JJC-327 January 2005It was not Emerils fault that the show bombed.
The Thomasons would not let Emeril "play" Emeril as himself.
There were no "bams", no "kick it up a notches".
They forced him to play a toned down version of himself.
Then cast a bunch of actors around him to liven the show up.
Sure Emeril is no Sir Laurence Oliver, but neither is Tom Hanks.
Emeril was handicapped by not being allowed to be himself.
Emeril can still buy and sell any of you out there who have knocked his effort.
I went to one of the tapings of the show in California and in my opinion did as good of a job as was possible given the circumstances.
At least HE tried, can any of you dopes say say the same! -
truegenius-125 August 2005Emeril LaGasse is a well-renowned chef whose antics on his own show, "Emeril Live", which airs on the Food Network (on cable), are plenty entertaining. So why did NBC decide to green-light an effort - with a script - where Emeril plays himself? Who knows? It could be imagined that Emeril was so hot at the time the sitcom aired (2001) that NBC wanted a piece of the pie.
Here was the problem: Emeril didn't need a script. The man is at his best when he's working without a net, schmoozing the audience stageside, and chatting with his band. He's plenty funny on Food Network's show without any help from writers and, of course, meddling producers and exec-producers. In addition, his real show gets a full hour while working to a sitcom format (plot exposes, builds, and resolves in 30 minutes) would have been constricting.
Mercifully, this dish from NBC was sent back to the kitchen. "Emeril Live" continues to provide "Bam!" on Food Network, where Emeril will continue to work his magic on viewers. -
ireallyhategolf9 April 2006Emeril is a tremendously talented chef ala artiste, but a comedic actor (or actor period) he's not. This mess is a terribly formulaic take on Emeril's actual Food Channel cooking show (a joy of a show and where Emeril belongs). To make up for Emeril's lack of acting ability, the producers surrounded him with crisp, timing-savvy comedic pros...you can almost hear the snare drum and cymbals after every punchline. Robert Urich lent a legitimate "big-name" which evoked nostalgic sympathy for the cancer victim. Plots lines are trite and "text-book", and yet infantile (those excruciatingly bad baldy wigs in episode #1). Painful to watch, thank God this mistake was taken off the burner before it became completely overdone and rancid.
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bigjoe12218122 April 2005i really was a pretty good show but it was against his Emeril Live show so it really had no audience. Those who would have watched were tuned into Emeril Live on Food Network. I really think it was a good show just wrongfully setup by the time slot. maybe if it was a different time, it would have been a hit. Though time slot has a lot to do with how well a show does. the show "Friends" was a terrible show and it was successful due to the time slot. It was as unfunny as a show could get. The jokes were so sophomoric and lacked any depth needed to make a show good. Though other shows, such as the simpsons, were great due to time slot and genius writers. That show has been going for many years and still keeps that plots fresh. Yes, they do have a basic formula of the sequences in their writing, but it still works with many different events that happen throughout the show. So, you may have good writing but a bad time slot and fail, or a good time slot and crappy writing and succeed. but failure doesn't yield a bad show.
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TxMike12 December 2004I have always cooked, starting when I was a mere teenager. I suppose I was attracted to cooking for the same reasons that I became a Chemist. It really is the same thing. I first learned of Emeril Lagasse from my friend Dave in New Orleans. Long before the American audiences learned of Emeril and his patented "bam" approach to a little extra seasoning, he was operating "Emeril's", one of the most highly regarded small restaurants in New Orleans. Dave said when he dined there, Emeril often would drop by his table and chat, just to say 'hello' and to make sure the food was superb. So it was with great joy for me that Emeril now has his own TV show. There is no question he is a highly entertaining person, and although I have not personally met him, those who have tell me he is exactly that away from the camera. I don't always try to cook what he presents on his show, but I never fail to learn something from him. After all that what the best cooks do, learn for others and use that knowledge to create something new and distinctive. You go, Emeril!!
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hillari6 November 2001I enjoy watching Emeril Lagasse's cooking shows on the Food Network, but this situation comedy built around him is a misfire. Compliments to the chef: Lagasse appears to be very comfortable acting in front of the camera as opposed to cooking. However, it's as if he's a supporting character on his own show. Lisa Ann Walter (veteran of a failed sitcom herself) and the other two ladies who play characters who assist with the chef's cooking show seem to pull the action right out from under him. I have no idea why Robert Ulrich's agent character is there at all; I guess the writers needed to give Lagasse a male buddy to interact with to counterpoint all of the women he's surrounded by.
His cooking shows on cable are more entertaining than this undercooked offering. -
rmt_online25 February 2002I actually favored watching his live show on the Food Network over this show. If only NBC had done things differently, Emeril fans, like myself, wouldn't have ran out the door! I now feel sorry for Emeril and his potential acting career because I think he could've gone far with this one. My advice to Emeril is, "Please try again."
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PixiStik168714 October 2001Most cooking shows are boring, and I fall asleep after the first five minutes. (And I'm 13.) But this may sound weird, but Emeril is the only cooking show that I actually enjoy watching. It's fun to watch what he does, and what he makes. Overall, I give it a 4/5.
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tvgal232 October 2001The critics slammed this show before it even premiered, but its really good! I saw it and thought it was hilarious. The supporting cast is terrific and who knew that Robert Urich was so funny? Ignore the haters and give this show a chance.