The Next Food Network Star: Penn!

Penn Gastronomy Club (PGC), sister organization to Penn Appetit and Penn's newly founded foodie group, is dedicated to its creed of "connecting everyone to the power and joy of food." It turns out that Food Network has the same mission, as Susie Fogelson (Food Network's VP of Marketing and a judge on The Next Food Network Star) explained to an enraptured crowd last evening. PGC's event "A Taste of Philly's Finest", co-sponsored by Delta Sigma Pi, was a huge success and drew foodies from all across campus. A line of over 500 students stretched from JMHH G60 to the front entrance of Huntsman Hall, with every attendee eager for tasty bites and an inspiring talk.

Once students were settled in their seats in both JMHH G60 and JMHH 370 (where there was streaming live feed of the talk), Fogelson took center stage. Throughout her presentation, she spoke about the growth of Food Network and the direction of the food industry. She explored aspects of Food Network's "top-ten-rated power brand", which extends beyond the TV screen to books, housewares, a magazine, video games, and even travel. She also introduced Food Network's latest venture, the Cooking Channel. The spinoff channel focuses more on instructional shows rather than "reality style" contest programming and is an outlet where Food Network can introduce new show concepts and gauge their success.

Fogelson kept the talk informal and constantly engaged the audience. She brought up interesting factoids throughout her presentation; for instance, she spoke about a study that found people "would give up Facebook and sex before food media." At the end of her presentation, she participated in a Q&A session where those who asked questions won snazzy Food Network swag including t-shirts, Food Network magazines, and reusable totebags.

Of course, the true star of the event was the food. Morimoto, Biba, and Pizzeria Stella sponsored the event, wowing everyone's taste buds with unique and exciting flavors. From tuna pizza (a crisp tortilla topped with spicy tuna carpaccio and anchovy sauce) to artisanal cheese appetizers, fresh sushi to Arancini de Riso (fried risotto balls), the fare was certainly "a taste of Philly's finest."

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