CMT Blog: Archive

Let me start by saying I'm no chef, but I got the chance to learn from one of the best when I was asked to be part of Food Network's hit TV show Dinner: Impossible.

I started the day by meeting up with the host, Michael Symon, at the Ryman Auditorium in downtown Nashville where he was getting a lesson in country music history. I waited in the alley in a limo to pick him up and take him to the Opryland Hotel where the actual cooking would take place.

Michael was very cool from the get go and made me feel comfortable with the idea of cooking on national television. I rarely cook in the comfort of my own home, but I was willing to work and I think he liked that. The mission - should I choose to accept it - was cooking a Southern-inspired meal for Charlie Daniels and 300 Opry attendees in something like six hours! Which to me is certainly an impossible mission.

I've never seen the Iron Chef do his thing so it was wild watching him build a menu from scratch and then have to adjust it as we figured out we didn't have all the necessary ingredients. It was a pressure-cooker environment, and he kept his cool all day, taking time to explain to me what he wanted me to do and why. His only lapse in judgment was giving a guitar player those incredibly sharp knives to chop and cut things with (oh, those precious fingers!). Not only did I have to cook all day but I also had to play the Opry that night, so you can imagine my stress!

Luckily, though, it wasn't just Michael and me that were expected to do all the work, he had a couple of talented sous chefs from around the country to help tackle the mountain of food we had to prepare. Todd Downs of Fort Wayne, Ind., was one of those.

Todd and I instantly bonded, joked and laughed the whole time -- all the while knowing our deadline was looming. We furiously cooked and worked, knowing Charlie was going to be the judge and our success or failure rode on what he thought of our dishes. (By the way, if you're ever in Fort Wayne, go see my boy Todd Downs for an unbelievable meal at Bourbon Street Hideaway.)

I know you're dying to hear how it turned out, but you'll just have to tune in to the Food Network on Wednesday (Aug. 27) to see how we did.

So, what did Chef Symon think of Chef Otto? Read his blog about the Dinner: Impossible experience tomorrow.

(Photo courtesy of Food Network)