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Access Atlanta > Blog > Archives > 2007 > July > 16 > Entry
Seeking fame, chefs up with the chickens
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Please pack your knives and go … to Hard Rock Cafe. That’s what about 83 “Top Chef” wannabes did Sunday afternoon for the Bravo show’s first casting call for next season.
“I’ve been in line since 6 a.m.” said Pete Blumberg, who owns a personal chef business in Mechanicsville, Va., and was the first person in line on Peachtree Street.
Who was the second person? Ben Christopher of Sarasota, Fla.
Could it be that out-of-towners were showing up hot Atlanta chefs for possible spots among judges Tom Colicchio and Padma Lakshmi for Season 4 of the sizzling show? How could Virginia and Florida beat us out for the No. 1 and 2 spots in line?
Well, after the two interviews, Alex Friedman, owner of gastro pub P’cheen in Inman Park, finally appeared, heavy on the tattoos and charisma. Whew! Casting directors flipped through his application packet and quickly asked him to expand not on his amuse-bouche, but on his past drug charge (he said he was convicted when he was 20 years old of marijuana and Valium possession and put on probation). Uh oh!
But despite that little gravy stain, it seemed the directors really liked him. Friedman poured on the charm and got about a 15- minute interview, while the previous two, ahem, non-locals got in about five minutes. We’ll have to wait and see if Friedman — or any other of the hopefuls, for that matter — makes it to Round 2 here this week, which includes a camera test.
Buzz is positive the casting crew is aware of Atlanta’s cooking talent: This is, after all, the city where chef Colicchio chose to open his Midtown restaurant Craft next year.
Speaking of Hard Rock Cafe…
Hard Rock Cafe’s huge indoor renovation project includes revamped memorabilia scenes, modernized space and encased guitars. You’ll notice a cleaner, more airy look, with plenty of plasma screens around. The menu also went through a transformation.
Next up for the Peachtree Street restaurant, according to marketing manager Elise Roth Tedeschi? It’s renovating the outside — and that famed Cadillac over the front door will be replaced by a huge guitar.
Let’s play! You could’ve guessed what type of party it was when promoter Imari Havard welcomed guests to Play Date Atlanta on Saturday night with a Blow Pop lollipop firmly in hand. This is totally a compliment — the guy’s a big kid!
At the monthly event at Crowne Plaza Ravinia at Perimeter Center, hundreds of folks, from married couples to singles, young trendsetters to the young-at-heart, sip cocktails, nosh on munchies and listen to R&B and hip-hop. And play games — lots of games.
There’s Monopoly here, Scrabble there. Operation in one corner, Connect Four in another. Pac-Man and Mortal Kombat video games, billiards, spades and bid whist.
It was all there, and so was the fun and energy from a crowd in its 20s to mid-40s clearly enjoying the nostalgia.
“One thing I found out about Atlanta is people are looking for something different,” said a buff, youthful Havard, who started Play Date Atlanta in 2005. “The club scene’s gotten a little monotonous. There’s got to be an alternative.”
For next month’s event, check out http://www.playdateatl.com. Also, click here to see all the Play Date action in our photo gallery.
Local pop team down for the count
El Chupacabra, the trio of metro Atlantans who won $250,000 last year on the first edition of VH1’s guilty pleasure quiz show “The World Series of Pop Culture,” couldn’t repeat the magic in an episode that aired last week.
Chamblee resident Jodi Roth, 34, was taken down in a sense by Rocky Balboa. More specifically, during a key tiebreaker, she was stumped coming up with Rocky opponents after naming Ivan Drago from “Rocky IV.” Their opponents were Baltimore women under the team name Fragilay, which is how the dad in the classic 1983 film “A Christmas Story” mispronounced the word “fragile.”
“I haven’t seen all the Rocky films so I knew I was in trouble,” Roth told Buzz. “It was so sad to watch.” Her teammates were knocked out earlier: Mason Spencer lost in a round about Kevin Bacon flicks, and Alexandra Burris got tongue-tied over “Weird Al” Yankovic songs.
Nothing ugly about marriage
“Ugly Betty” star Rebecca Romijn married “Crossing Jordan” star Jerry O’Connell in a small ceremony at their home Saturday, according to Romijn’s representative.
Celebrity birthdays
Actor-singer Ruben Blades is 59. Drummer Stewart Copeland of the Police is 55. Actress Phoebe Cates is 44. Actor Will Ferrell (“Saturday Night Live”) is 40. Actor Corey Feldman is 36. Singer-guitarist Ed Kowalczyk of Live (LYV) is 36.
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
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