How Vivian Howard From A Chef's Life Offended The Food Network
Vivian Howard is best known for her TV show, "A Chef's Life," where she explores food ingredients from the South. As per Reality Blurred, Howard said that being a part of the TV show was not easy for her, and she found herself struggling in the first season. "In season one, we had no idea what we were doing," she said. She further explained that they encountered several hiccups when her first eatery, Chef and the Farmer, was damaged in a fire (via Eater.) Notably, the crew was accustomed to shooting on the restaurant's premises. Howard was so dejected after this incident that she didn't want to continue with "A Chef's Life." Fortunately, her director, Cynthia Hill, didn't give up and pushed her to continue filming. This was a great decision, as "A Chef's Life" managed to strike a chord among its viewers.
Howard may be a known face on television, but she has encountered her share of difficulties in the industry. One particular incident that stands out in her memory is a meeting with Food Network executives that didn't go as planned.
The meeting was a disaster
According to Reality Blurred, Vivian Howard chose to be herself when she had her meeting with the Food Network, but she didn't realize that it would backfire. She recalled, "I have a really hard time not being honest, and I really offended them. And they basically — I'm like an urban legend there now. I didn't mean to; I was just trying to help them." She added that she understands that ratings are important for the channel and assumed that she was being helpful with her honest feedback, but it didn't work out that way.
Howard also said that she enjoyed the earlier seasons of "Top Chef" and "Mind of a Chef." However, she said that the one thing that really bothers her about many food shows is that they make chefs seem unnecessarily glamorous. She made a conscious decision to step away from this trend on "A Chef's Life" and be more accessible to her viewers. Howard said, "I'm just a person, and this is what I look like on a daily basis, and it ain't always pretty. This is stressful."