Joe
I think it's inspired like it's kind of our way these days to say like FU to the man, like to turn around, to turn your life around from what's the drudgery of the job that you hate and the rut that you're in, and food is like in the '60s. It may have been Bob Dillon and reefer and now it's ceviche and risotto. It's a way of turning your personal passion and who you are into a reality in kind of a way and people taking that leap and trying to reach out for a dream.Because at the end of the day your life is your life … and if you really love food, if you're talented, if you can give to others in that way, to not ever give it a shot, it's probably the saddest thing that could ever happen to anybody. So … young inspiring cooks who have passion passion. They see MasterChef as a way of liberation, freeing themselves of the monotony and grind and everything that they hate about their lives, and about bringing what they have passion for into their lives. I applaud it, I'm inspired by it.
I feel like … luckiest person in the world, because every day I can make a living doing what I love to do, which is getting food and hospitality for people. I think it's one of the really wonderful elements of the MasterChef. It's a chance to go out there and to really do something incredible in the culinary world and let America know who you are and what you can cook and show america a little a piece of you.
You mentioned a couple questions back, the great foodie culture in America and all these great restaurants and obviously the country’s full of that, but then there's also the stereotype of fast food nation and all of these sort of unhealthy things going on. I'm wondering either what you discovered or what you hope viewers will discover about the state of American kitchens and maybe what some of the repercussions of a show like this can be?
Joe
Let me tell you, I think that the MasterChef is a great state for America … things that are happening in all these home kitchens all over the country. We're really seeing from California to Oregon, to Boston to Florida, to Mississippi what the state of people's passion for food are and how incredibly versatile and regional and how passionate people are … cooking and making it a part of their lives. I think that again on a major scale MasterChef will give a shout out to the whole country of where we stand as a foodie nation, and really how far we've come and how important food is to us.And of course, yes, we have our history and we still struggle with processed food and the whole fast food nation, but I think that that's quickly changing, and I think it's kind of siphoning through the ranks, and I think every day we become more of a true food nation. And I think that MasterChef in a big way will kind of be able to broadcast that for everyone to hear.
