Kathy StephensonUtah chef Jen Gilroy will compete for shopping supremacy and $20,000 on an upcoming episode of “Guy’s Grocery Games.”
This is the first time that Gilroy — who owns and operates Meditrina, in Salt Lake City’s Central 9th neighborhood, and Porch, in South Jordan’s Daybreak development — has been on a Food Network culinary competition.
“A couple of years ago, I got a phone call from one of the producers asking me to apply,” she said. “They didn’t select me for that season because they didn’t feel there was an episode that fit well with my style. In December, I got a call out of the blue — and the rest is history.”
(Scott Sommerdorf | Tribune file photo) Meditrina owner Jennifer Gilroy brings in some flowers for a special event on Sunday, March 19, 2017.
Gilroy said she traveled to California in January to film the episode, titled “Express Lane Extreme: Name Your Number.” It premieres Sept. 11 (check local listings for times) and will repeat Sept. 12 and Oct. 6.
In the episode, host and television personality Guy Fieri asks the four competing chefs to decide whether to use six, eight or 10 ingredients before knowing what kind of dish they will be asked to prepare.
“The chefs have to decide whether to go big early to ensure a spot in the later rounds,” according to the Food Network description, “or risk using fewer ingredients upfront so they can finish with a strong, multifaceted dish.”
Sometimes referred to as “Triple G” — a nod to Fieri’s other popular show, “Diners, Drive-ins and Dives,” or “Triple D” — “Guy’s Grocery Games” is set inside an actual market called Flavortown. It was built within a 15,500-square-foot warehouse in Santa Rosa, Calif., and stocked with more than 20,000 items, according to the Food Network.
Each episode starts with four chefs who compete in various challenges — each with a different theme — that require them to shop for ingredients and then cook to showcase their culinary skills. A rotating list of guest judges determines which contestant is eliminated in each round.
The chef who makes it through all three challenges then has two minutes to collect items on a shopping list. Each item on the list is worth $2,000. If the chef gets every item, he or she wins $20,000.
