TVSquad

You know why Rachael Ray is smiling all the time? She's the richest food star in the world. According to the latest Forbes list of top-earning celebrity chefs, Rachael Ray leads the pack. In fact, of the top 10 names, all but two are TV stars.

Therefore, you better believe that all that exposure on Food Network, Bravo, Travel Channel, Fine Living, BBC America, and Fox -- not to mention syndication and appearances on talk shows and demonstrations on the Today Show -- makes a big difference.

Food Network is either creating a new reality food competition program that sounds remarkably like a miniature version of Top Chef or this is the biggest coincidence in the world of cable television. Food Network has put out a casting notice that calls for professional chefs who are interested in testing their skills in the kitchen against other chefs by having their food judged on taste, creativity and presentation by experts.

They're looking for four contestants; each week one will be eliminated till a winner remains. The winner will then be -- wait for it -- top food maker. No, that part I made up. They're not saying what the winner will be called or even what the best chef will win. The details aren't spelled out in the casting notice.

Despite rumors and conspiracy theories about Bravo trying to sabotage Project Runway because the show is leaving them for Lifetime, the premiere had the most viewers for a premiere that the network has ever seen, 2.9 million. That was enough to make Bravo the #1 cable network from 9-10 in all key demographics. And Project Runway was the top ranked cable telecast for the day in adults 18-49.

That's certainly cause for celebration, but there's more good news. The fourth episode of Shear Genius managed a milestone of its own, becoming just the fifth Bravo show to top 2 million viewers for an episode. The others are Queer Eye, Top Chef, Project Runway, and The Real Housewives of Orange County. Completing the trifecta of personal bests, Flipping Out broke a million viewers for the first time.

The success sets the stage for a very interesting ratings drama once Project Runway debuts on Lifetime. Will the fans follow the show to Lifetime? And will the Lifetime audience embrace a show that seems to fit the network's brand about as well as a new season of Queer Eye on Spike? I'd prefer to see it stay at Bravo, but I'm all kinds of curious to watch the change play out.

This is a rather confusing story. Or maybe all of this heat is getting to me and there's obvious point here I'm missing.

Nielsen Media surveyed 82,000 18-49 year-olds (a rather hefty sample), and 75% of the respondents say that Bravo is the most engaging network. Yup, the network of reality shows (is there anything else on the network these days?) holds the attention of that key demographic more than any other channel, network or cable, including runner-up CBS (which got 74%), ABC (73%), The CW (71%), NBC (70%), and FOX (69%).

Bravo's top-rated and highly acclaimed reality food show, Top Chef, has big plans for the fifth season. Like real estate, it's all about location, location, location and Top Chef has chosen a most unique place, somewhere you might not guess in a game of 20 questions. I'm not going to reveal the place until after the jump, because there may be some of you out there that want to be surprised.

Just to recap, Top Chef has already spent seasons in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Miami and Chicago. They've also had special episodes and finales in Napa Valley, Las Vegas, Hawaii and Aspen and San Juan, Puerto Rico. Traveling to interesting and even exotic locales is part of the fun, giving the contestants a chance to incorporate the regional foods and the style of that part of the world.

Okay, if the suspense is getting to you -- I know it is -- go to the jump and see where season five of Top Chef is going to be...

Part Five: The Money Shot

After about an hour and a half of fake fights, thrown tennis balls, and clap after clap after clap, everyone sat down for a Q&A.

The students were able to ask questions of the following three people:

Robert Russel, the aforementioned reality show casting director.

Dave Martin, finalist on season one of Bravo's Top Chef.

Jorge Bendersky, "Dog Stylist" on Animal Planet's Groomer Has It.

I'm going to do something that I haven't done up until this point: report what happened without snarky asides or not-so-subtle digs at the students or organizers. This hour was actually worth the price of admission. If you're someone that is truly interested in the way reality shows work and what they're looking for, the Q&A gave some real insight into the process.

• At 8, FOX has a new So You Think You Can Dance.
• NBC has a new Deal Or No Deal at 8, followed by a new Celebrity Circus.
• At 9, The CW has a new Farmer Wants A Wife.
• At 9:30, HGTV has a new Design on a Dime, then a new House Hunters.
• At 10, TBS has two new episodes of Tyler Perry's House of Payne.
• Tru TV has the series premiere of Black Gold at 10.
• MTV has a new Real World at 10.
• Also at 10: Bravo has the Top Chef Reunion.
• At 10:30, Comedy Central has a new Mind of Mencia.

Check your local TV listings for more.

Here are the weekly cable ratings, by number of viewers.

OK, so auto racing makes it to number one for the second week in a row, but I'm just amazed at the power of SpongeBob SquarePants. Look, it's a great, fun show, but every week it has at least one episode in the top 10, and usually has two or three episodes on the list. Is it that strong with kids or is the talk that adult stoners and gays being really into it true?

1. Sprint Cup Racing (TNT)
2. Monday Night RAW (USA)
3. Monday Night RAW (USA)
4. iCarly (Nickelodeon)
5. Army Wives (Lifetime)
6. In Plain Sight (USA)
7. SpongeBob SquarePants (Nickelodeon)
8. SpongeBob SquarePants (Nickelodeon)
9. Top Chef (Bravo)
10. SpongeBob SquarePants (Nickelodeon)

The first reality show contestant I learned to hate was Puck from the San Francisco season of MTV's The Real World. This was actually before people went on reality shows just to be on television and become some sort of celebrity. Oh, what innocent, fun times those were (and I'm serious - the first few seasons of The Real World were quite good).

Puck was actually OK for several episodes, but then he started with the hateful talk, not getting along with his roommates, and the battles with Pedro (though I have to admit that the thing I disliked most about Puck wasn't any of those things, it was the time he stuck his fingers in the peanut butter - gah). Now TV Guide includes Puck in their list of the top 10 reality TV villains. You can probably guess a few of the others. Spencer Pratt is on there (I had never seen or heard of this guy until Letterman's interview last night), Survivor's Jonny Fairplay, and, of course, Omarosa of The Apprentice.

Anyone missing from this list?

(By the way, it actually hurt a little bit to check the "celebrities" category for this post.)

American Idol does it. So You Think You Can Dance does it. Dancing with the Stars does it. And now, Top Chef will hit the road on a nationwide tour. Top Chef? Really? It's true. Beginning June 21st, the popular Bravo show will embark on a twenty-city tour. The tour will begin on Long Island at the Whole Foods market in Jericho. Top Chef on wheels will feature a customized 18-wheeler semi-truck and "will offer Bravo's passionate fans and cable affiliate partners with the unique opportunity to experience the hit series in their hometowns."

Here's how it will work. In each city, select "chef-testants" from the hit show will do cooking demonstrations, give out gourmet tips, share show secrets and offer food tastings all from the monster truck which includes a state-of-the-art kitchen and can accommodate 38 guests per seating. Every one else can watch from HD screens.

Tour dates are after the jump. Top Chef might be pulling up to a farmers market or food festival near you. What do you think? Does this sound like something you'd go to?

There was some controversy today in our Top Chef winner's post. We revealed who the winner was before the jump (and without spoiler warnings). Our commenters -- usually shy and unwilling to criticize our site (ahem) -- let us know exactly what they thought of that decision (hint: they were not happy).

It occurred to me that the idea of television spoilers is a relatively new one. I mean, after all, it's only been about 20 years or so that the majority of us had the power to watch our shows whenever we wanted to. In our parents' day, you talked about what happened on TV the night before without fear -- if anyone at the office missed the show, well, there was nothing they could do about it anyway.

What we need is a new etiquette. So, I figured I'd throw a post up and ask you guys: how long should you wait before it's okay to talk about spoilers?

Last night, I watched the season finale of Top Chef. Faux-hawks and silly hats aside, this is one of my favorite shows. Seriously, I consider myself an honorary member of the Glad family of products.

But here's the thing: I have terrible taste in food. I've been cursed with the kind of ugly American anti-palate that European foodies tell stories about to scare their kids. Let's put it this way, when it comes to restaurant choice, I care as much about the quality of Americana hanging on the walls as I do about the quality of the various fried food on my plate.

For me, watching people actually cook food (and care about it!) is nothing short of miraculous. Please, then, don't take this question as a criticism; it's something I'm actually curious about. Is all that fancy food talk on the show real? Or is it just a case of the Emperor's new clothes?

Now that the big finale is in the books, and the right chef won, the fine folks over at Top Chef HQ have some time on their hands. It appears they'll be spending it getting going on their new spinoff, Top Chef Jr. (not an official title). According to the press release, the series comes about because Top Chef is the "number one food show on cable." I think that is a point that might be contested by someone at Food Network, but I do agree, it is my favorite of the cooking based shows.

The show will have an eight episode run and feature teens (13-16) in the familiar competitions to see if they are junior top chefs. Bravo calls it a natural expansion of their food domain and says it will be fun for the whole family. I can't help but think of Trading Spaces: Boys vs Girls. It was a fine imitation of the original Trading Spaces, but didn't hold up among the parent show's fans. And that's exactly what I would expect from Top Chef Jr.

Did you watch the finale of Top Chef on Bravo last night? It wasn't as exciting as the previous three seasons, but what it lacked in drama, it made up for in history. For the first time ever, a woman was crowned Top Chef. Chicago chef Stephanie Izard beat out Richard Blais and Lisa Fernandes by preparing a four-course meal -- including dessert -- that wowed the judges and outshone her competitors.

I was rooting for Stephanie because all through the Top Chef challenges, she showed talent, temperment, taste and modesty (with regard to her chef skills). She consistently produced great food and even though the win last night was not based on the entire season, it could have been because she again came through.

Just to be clear, Stephanie didn't win because she's a woman and it was time for Top Chef to give the prize to the female of the species. This isn't a Hillary thing, so don't go there!

• At 8, FOX has a new, two hour So You Think You Can Dance.
• NBC has a new Deal Or No Deal at 8, followed by the premiere of Celebrity Circus.
• At 9, The CW has a new Farmer Wants A Wife.
• History Channel has a new MonsterQuest at 9.
• Spike has a new UFC Unleashed at 9, then a new Ultimate Fighter.
• At 9:30, HGTV has a new Design on a Dime.
• At 10, ABC has the series finale of Men in Trees.
• The Top Chef season finale airs on Bravo at 10.
• TBS has two new episodes of Tyler Perry's House of Payne starting at 10.
• Also at 10: MTV has a new episode of The Real World.
• At 10:30, Comedy Central has a new Mind of Mencia.

Check your local TV listings for more.