In late 2021, as pandemic-related things here were winding down, we were contacted by folk from A&E about filming a dinner at Casa SaltShaker. It took a lot of back and forth negotiating and paperwork, but eventually, in July of 2022, it all came to pass. The last word we had was around the end of 2023, when it was supposed to air in November, that the whole project had been put on hold. I only found out because someone posted a congratulations to us on Instagram, that the show, 1000 Ways to Dine, had finally started to air.
We’re in episode three, starting about eight and a half minutes in. I’m probably not supposed to post the clip that I skimmed from the broadcast, but, hey, I’m a rebel of sorts, right? Well, actually, part of the negotiations was that I refused to do the show unless we were given a copy of the episode (we weren’t), and that we could use our clip from it on our own website. I also added the captions for Spanish speaking folk.
And you get to see me, Henry, our kitchen, and dining room.
I do wish they’d have spelled my name right. Especially after multiple emails, and both a producer and a fact checker confirming the spelling with me. And if they were going to use that silly bit at the end about the toilet paper roll, at least the mocked-up demo that they used should have reversed the way they hung the roll!
It’s an odd format for a show - short little 3-4 minute clips of numerous restaurants in each episode - like half a dozen in 20 minutes. I guess they need to do that to get through 1000 places (will there really be 1000?) in however many seasons they plan to do this. And I was surprised at the approach of having a host who’s never been to the places, though I guess the cost of sending a star along with the show’s production staff would have started to add up quickly!
Enjoy!
