| Genre: | Food reality |
| Presenter: | Camille Ford |
| Country: | United States |
| Language: | English |
| Num Seasons: | 1 |
| Num Episodes: | 22 |
| Executive Producer: | Matt Sharp |
| Producer: | Scott Miller |
| Editor: | Liam Lawyer |
| Cinematography: | Scott Sans |
| Camera: | Multi-camera |
| Channel: | Travel Channel |
Food Wars is a weekly Travel Channel series hosted by Camille Ford that debuted on Tuesday, March 9, 2010.[1] The show featured restaurant rivalries in cities around the United States, with loyal fans cheering for one of two restaurants that serve one of the city's signature dishes. A blind taste test with five tasters was conducted at the end of each show to decide which restaurant's version of the dish was better.
The show aired 1 season from March to November 2010. It was cancelled and not picked up for any further seasons.
In each episode, Food Wars travels to a particular U.S. city and finds two restaurants who are top-rated rivals serving the same dish, one symbolic of the featured city (e.g., Buffalo wings in Buffalo, New York). Ford visits both restaurants, tries the dish in question and talks with owners and fans. The show presents a history of each restaurant and origins of the rivalry.
At the end of each episode, a taste test is conducted with the judging panel. Each judge tastes a sample of each dish and votes for his or her favorite. The restaurant that receives more votes is declared the winner of that food war. At the beginning of the series, the panel consisted of two "super fans" - one of each restaurant's most loyal customers and fans - and three impartial judges consisting of local personalities and/or critics. In this format, the judging was done via a blind taste test, where the identity of each sample was not revealed until after the judging. Beginning with the fourteenth episode the taste test format changed. The superfans were dropped and host Ford joined the taste test panel with two other locals. The panel is no longer blindfolded; they know whose dish they are tasting and can ask the owner questions.
Food Wars debuted on March 9, 2010 with two back-to-back episodes that premiered at 10:00 and 10:30 PM EST, featuring buffalo-wing restaurants in Buffalo, New York and Italian-beef restaurants in Chicago. Further episodes aired on Wednesday nights at 10:00 PM EST.
| Episode | Ep. # | Original Air Date | Rivalry | Winner | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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| "Buffalo, NY Wing War" | 01 | March 9, 2010 | Anchor Bar vs. Duff's | Duff's | |
| Food Wars traveled to Buffalo, New York to pit Anchor Bar against cross-town rival Duff's to decide which serves the city's best Buffalo wings. The show was filmed in late December 2009.[2] | |||||
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| "Chicago, IL Italian Beef War" | 02 | March 9, 2010 | Al's #1 Italian Beef vs. Mr. Beef | Mr. Beef | |
| Food Wars traveled to Chicago to settle a rivalry between two Italian-beef sandwich restaurants: Al's #1 Italian Beef and Mr. Beef. In a lopsided victory, Mr. Beef soundly defeated Al's 4-1.[3] | |||||
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| "Pittsburg, KS Fried Chicken War" | 03 | March 16, 2010 | Chicken Annie's vs. Chicken Mary's | Chicken Mary's | |
| Food Wars visit to Pittsburg, Kansas pitted fried-chicken rivals Chicken Annie's and Chicken Mary's against each other. The episode was filmed January 15–17, 2010.[4] | |||||
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| "Lockhart, TX BBQ War" | 04 | March 23, 2010 | Kreuz Market vs. Smitty's Market | Kreuz Market | |
| In Lockhart, Texas, Food Wars featured the barbecue rivalry between Kreuz Market and Smitty's Market, which resulted from a family feud between brother and sister.[5] Unlike other episodes which taste-test a single food item, this week's challenge featured both beef brisket and smoked sausage from each restaurant, which according to one judge's commentary caused voting confusion. | |||||
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| "Minneapolis, MN Jucy Lucy War" | 05 | March 30, 2010 | Matt's | ||
| Two Minneapolis favorites battled it out in this episode. Each restaurant claims to have invented the city's signature Jucy Lucy (or Juicy Lucy), a hamburger that boasts melted cheese cooked inside the meat patty. This installment was filmed February 8–10, 2010.[6] | |||||
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| "Tucson, AZ Sonoran Dog War" | 06 | April 6, 2010 | BK vs. El Güero Canelo | BK | |
| Food Wars excursion into Tucson, Arizona featured two purveyors of the Sonoran hot dog, a hot dog wrapped in bacon and topped with pinto beans, chopped tomatoes, both fresh and grilled onions, mustard, jalapeño sauce and mayonnaise. This episode was filmed January 28–30, 2010[7] and in a Food Wars first, both opposing superfans (who happen to be brothers) voted for the same competitor, BK's Sonoran dog. | |||||
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| "Washington, D.C. Jumbo Pizza Slice War" | 07 | April 13, 2010 | Pizza Mart vs Jumbo Slice | Pizza Mart | |
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| "New York, NY Pastrami Sandwich War" | 08 | April 20, 2010 | Katz’s Deli | ||
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| "Los Angeles, CA Gourmet Burger Truck War" | 09 | August 18, 2010 | Baby's Badass Burgers vs Grill 'Em All | Baby's Badass Burgers | |
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| "Detroit, MI Coney Island Hot Dog War" | 10 | August 25, 2010 | American Coney Island vs Lafayette Coney Island | American Coney Island | |
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| "Pueblo, CO Slopper War" | 11 | September 1, 2010 | Gray's Coors Tavern vs Sunset Inn | Sunset Inn | |
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| "Kansas City, MO BBQ Ribs War" | 12 | September 8, 2010 | Arthur Bryant's | ||
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| "New Orleans, LA Po'Boy Sandwich War" | 13 | September 15, 2010 | Domilise's Restaurant vs Parkway Bakery & Tavern | Domilise's | |
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| "Philadelphia, PA Philly Cheesesteak War" | 14 | September 22, 2010 | Pat's King of Steaks | ||
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| "Chicago, IL Deep Dish Pizza War" | 15 | September 29, 2010 | Lou Malnati's | ||
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| "Newark, NJ Italian Hot Dog War" | 16 | October 6, 2010 | Jimmy Buff's vs. Charlie's "Famous" Italian Hot Dog | Charlie's | |
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| "Milwaukee, WI Cheeseburger War" | 17 | October 13, 2010 | Sobelman's vs. AJ Bomber's | AJ Bomber's | |
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| "Omaha, NE Steak War" | 18 | October 20, 2010 | Caniglia's Venice Inn vs. Piccolo Pete's Restaurant | Caniglia's | |
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| "Key West, FL Key Lime Pie War" | 19 | October 27, 2010 | Blue Heaven vs. Blond Giraffe | Blond Giraffe | |
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| "Maine Lobster Roll War" | 20 | November 3, 2010 | The Clam Shack | ||
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| "Reno, NV Awful-Awful Burger War" | 21 | November 10, 2010 | John Ascuaga's Nugget vs. The Little Nugget | The Little Nugget | |
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| "New York City Pizza War" | 22 | November 17, 2010 | John's of Bleecker Street vs. Grimaldi's Pizzeria | Grimaldi's Pizzeria | |