TV Talk: ‘Plate It, Pittsburgh’ brings ‘Chopped’-style culinary competition to Very Local

Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen offers a viewing tip for the coming week.

The Pittsburgh channel of Hearst’s Very Local streaming service, available via Amazon Fire, Apple TV, Android TV and Roku devices, lives up to its name with its latest original, local production titled “Plate It, Pittsburgh.”

Imagine a localized version of Food Network’s “Chopped,” and you’ll have a good idea of what to expect from this culinary competition that features local chefs and is hosted by local food blogger/improv performer Dave Forman, who lives in Forest Hills.

He joins judge Briana White and rotating guest judges (WQED-TV’s Rick Sebak in the first episode) to decide which chef whips up the best three-course meal in each half-hour episode.

Premiering on Very Local on March 3 with a new episode premiering each Thursday through April 7, episodes begin with two local chefs choosing ingredients at a local farmer’s market, utilizing three ingredients specified by Forman. A secret, fourth ingredient is sprung on the cheftestants who are tasked with interpreting a clue or riddle and choosing an ingredient they think fits the bill.

Then it’s off to the kitchen — the show used the kitchen of a community center in Homewood in the first episode filmed, which will air later in the season; all other episodes used a kitchen at Pittsburgh Technical College in Oakdale — to whip up their culinary creations. Dishes are judged on presentation, creativity and taste with the winner getting $500 to donate to a charity or local business of their choice.

Most of the episodes were shot in April and May 2021, and one episode was filmed in October 2021. The show, produced for Very Local by Pittsburgh-based Rocketfuel Studios, devoted one day to film each episode.

“The concept I love: It’s not malicious. It’s not like someone gets eliminated,” Forman said. “It’s here’s two Pittsburgh chefs that cook locally, shopping in a farmers market locally.”

The premiere episode features chef Alex Brown of Wigle Whiskey in the Strip District facing off against chef Claudy Pierre of Eminent Hospitality Solutions catering.

Forman, whose day job is working as a project manager, said he was contacted about “Plate It, Pittsburgh” by a Hearst producer in April 2021. She found him through his blog, David the Gastronome.

“I really just want to highlight Pittsburgh,” said Forman, who describes his role as that of a conductor who moves each episode along while the spotlight shines on the chefs and their food. “I want the world to know Pittsburgh food as much as I love Pittsburgh food. We’re so much more than a Primanti sandwich. We talk about that all the time because it’s such an easy thing to come back to. … We’re indescribable in one dish. We are just a beautiful plethora of people, a melting pot.”

Very Local head of programming Laura Ling said similar cooking competitions may come to fruition in other cities. Very Local is not rated, so Ling said Hearst will rely on analytics and streaming viewership to determine whether to order additional episodes of any of its Pittsburgh-originated shows.

The advent of relatively inexpensive digital technology allows Very Local to create the kind of local programming that was plentiful at the start of television in the 1940s and ’50s but hasn’t been seen much over the past four decades as local stations instead focused on newscasts, a local TV station’s profit center.

“We really are trying to fill that gap and that desire that we believe is out there for more programming that celebrates local,” Ling said.

In addition to offering access to WTAE’s latest newscast nationwide, Very Local’s Pittsburgh efforts include “Ed and Day in the ’Burgh,” starring comedians/podcasters/craft beer enthusiasts Ed Bailey and Day Bracey as they explore the best places in Pittsburgh to grab a cold brew.

Very Local’s “Finding Adventure,” a national show hosted by Kinga Philipps, features the host visiting various cities with Hearst-owned TV stations, to take a local person out of their comfort zones and on an adventure. A Pittsburgh episode debuted Feb. 8, and a second Pittsburgh episode streams March 29.

In addition to “Plate It, Pittsburgh,” Very Local will add another Pittsburgh-based food series, “What’s on the Menu,” on April 7. More of a docu-series — there’s no host — Ling said each episode will profile four different restaurants/chefs in each half-hour episode.

Plate It, Pittsburgh!

EPISODE: BETWEEN THE BREAD, March 3

Featured chefs:

Claudy Pierre – Eminent Hospitality Soltuions

Alex Brown – Wigle Whiskey

Featured market

Squirrell Hill Farmers Market

Guest Judges

Rick Sebak

Briana White – Breelicious Bites

EPISODE: STEELERS SUNDAY, March 10

Featured chefs

Cory Hughes – Fig & Ash Wood Fired Kitchen

Les Murphy – Bigham Tavern

Featured market

Labriola’s Italian Markets

Guest judges

Sonja Finn

Briana White – Breelicious Bites

EPISODE: VEGGIE LOVERS, March 17

Featured chefs

Elsa Santos – Azorean Cafe

Kayla Nogueira – Casa Brasil

Featured market

Bloomfield Saturday Market

Guest judges

Quelcy Kogel – With The Grains

Briana White – Breelicious Bites

EPISODE: YINZ EATS, March 24

Featured chefs

Kay Stewart – House of Soul Catering

David Carmine – The Abbey on Butler

Featured market

Pennsylvania Macaroni Company

Guest judges

Chancellor Humphrey – Keep Pittsburgh Dope

Briana White – Breelicious Bites

EPISODE: THRILL OF THE GRILL, March 31

Featured chefs

Todd Cassell – Vault Tap Room

Alekka Sweeney – Chef Alekka

Featured market

Farmers’ Cooperative Market of East Liberty

Guest judges

Jessica Iacullo – Hungry Jess Big City

Briana White – Breelicious Bites

EPISODE: BREAKFAST FOR DINNER, April 7

Featured chefs

Joey Hilty – The Vandal

Nissa’a Stallworth

Featured market

Bedner’s Farm Market

Guest judges

Kenny Gould – Hop Culture Mag

Briana White – Breelicious Bites