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Open Letter: Dear Food Network Challenge

Published on: June 10, 2009 – 8:42 am by FNH Staff Comment

kerry-vincent-headband-evilDear Food Network Challenge,

First, you plied me with ample coverage of the blandly entertaining Keegan Gerhard. Keegan makes me feel safe, the kind of safe where you don’t have to think too much, unlike anything Alton hosts. But you go and ruin it every time Kerry Vincent shows up to judge. Who is this mysterious ice queen? Rather than judging on execution or creativity, she often bullies the contestants with opinions aligning with her own bland, pastel sense of style. Just because you don’t like something doesn’t mean it’s not EXCELLENT, Kerry.

So please, stop pretending to be British even though you’re from Australia.  Let someone who doesn’t think an iced doily is the height of fashion judge for once (as long as it’s not Alex Guarnaschelli). And do the world a favor: take off the atrocious headband. Your hair is three inches long.

[Written by Jennifer Schmidt, administrator of the 'Take off the headband, Kerry Vincent" support group on Facebook. Edited by Jillian Madison.]



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  1. avatar Miguel
    June 10th, 2009

    I’ve always wondered what “Hall of Fame she claims to be part of of . The HAll of Fame in her own mind maybe.

    Her constant negativity makes watching these shows quite painful. I’d love to see her compete in one. And her disgusting little sidekick FatPat Coston. What a pair they make.

    Thanks for exposing this fraudulent woman.

  2. avatar Youknowwhoiam
    June 10th, 2009

    She’s Australian?!?!

  3. avatar eyeris
    June 10th, 2009

    The woman is a word that starts with the letter “c” and rhymes with the word “punt.”

    If I know she’s going to be judging a Cake Challenge, I flip the channel as fast as I can.

  4. avatar alexis
    June 10th, 2009

    I LOL’d at “take off the atrocious headband. Your hair is three inches long.”

  5. avatar Sandra
    June 10th, 2009

    I’m wearing a headband today, but my hair is way longer than 3 inches. LOL

  6. avatar Jill
    June 10th, 2009

    OMG. I just found a photo of her smiling. That’s one of the signs of the apocalypse, isn’t it? http://www.oklahomasugarartists.com/images/Kerry_black.jpg

    Random: I saw Alex Guarnaschelli from the waist down, for the first time, on last Sunday’s episode of Next Food Network Star. Two words: holy moly.

  7. avatar Micah
    June 10th, 2009

    I like the cakes she hates, and I hate the cakes she likes.

    Get her off my television please!

  8. June 10th, 2009

    It’s unfortunate that she adds to the car wreck quality of all the stupid challenges. You don’t want to watch, but can’t help but listen to her nonsense. ACK!

  9. avatar Miguel
    June 10th, 2009

    Could you expound on your comment about Alex Guarnaschelli from the waist down Jill ? Holy Moly ? Does that mean you saw her bucket back end loader ?

  10. June 10th, 2009

    Miguel,
    I posted a photo of Alex Guarnaschelli from the waist down. Just for you.

  11. June 10th, 2009

    If there’s one thing I dislike more than the British it’s people who pretend to be British. And people who interfere with cakes.

  12. avatar Crystal
    June 13th, 2009

    I dislike her I think she ruins the shows she judges on Please Foodnetwork get someone NEW.

  13. avatar Fortuna
    June 14th, 2009

    I am glued to my TV watching the Kerry Vincent Surprise Birthday Cake Extravaganza. This thing is comedy gold. Stevie Famulari is creating a caketstrophe of biblical proportions and having a flat out hissy fit looney tunes meltdown on National TV. She started out with a massive chip of Kerry Hate on her shoulder and behaved like a snotty five year old in her “client interview.” She is constructing some hellish nightmare made up of bricks and loaves and wads of cake glued and mooshed together and impaled on dozens of wood dowels. Her kitchen looks like the DMZ. Cake and puddles of runny icing and powdered sugar all over the floor and covering every surface. It is an unholy conflagration like nothing I’ve ever seen before. Teasers promise she’s planning to douse the whole thing with some sort of flammable liquor and torch the whole mess, resulting in a smoke filled studio and emergency personnel with fire extinguishers descending on the whole mess. This might be the coolest thing I’ve ever seen on television. As much as I wish Kerry would take the stick out of her ass, I’m thrilled and delighted that this idiot is willing to humiliate herself on National Television in order to present Kerry with the most ungodly creation ever conceived in the history of cooking. Happy freakin’ birthday, Kerry, you ol’ battleaxe.

  14. avatar gaye
    June 15th, 2009

    As a fellow Australian and from Western Australia to boot – I hate Kerry Vincents guts – however “Stevie”’s outburst of “Well I don’t always believe the customer is right” sounds worse than most of the things that have come from Kerry’s mouth – um Stevie honey – the customers are the ones who pay YOU to make THEM cakes so that you can make a living – that was the worst insult you could have given anyone – god I used to think that Jay was such a diva – but you give diva a bad name – I wouldn’t eat one of her cakes or go anywhere near her for a million dollars……

  15. avatar gaye
    June 15th, 2009

    I just emailed Stevie to tell her what I thought – I said that while I agreed with her assessment of Kerry the fact of what she had said about the customer was awful and that I would NEVER buy a cake from her or recommend her to anyone….wonder how many of those shes got today….

  16. avatar gaye
    June 15th, 2009

    oh and pray for kerrys husband – poor thing….

  17. avatar gaye
    June 16th, 2009

    OMG has anyone gone to Stevies website – shes nuts!

  18. avatar james
    June 20th, 2009

    What in holy hell was that monstrosity of a cake that Stevie made??? Was that supposed to be @ss ugly because she doesn’t like Kerry or did it just fail in execution. I’m so confused!

  19. avatar S9
    June 20th, 2009

    “Coco” left me speechless…

  20. avatar Pat Wilson
    June 21st, 2009

    Wow ! I just saw the challenge which required the contestants to make a birthday cake for Kerry Vincent…
    was Stevie Famulari high or what ?? That atrocity she tried to pass off as a cake was a gross insult to every other contestant on the program…and most especially to Kerry Vincent…..it’s ok not to like someone but Kerry Vincent (who I don’t know and will never know) seems to be a person who knows her “stuff” and should at least be shown some respect for her years of experience….If Ms. Famulari dislikes Ms. Vincent so much then she should have excused herself from the competition….thus not showing her as being petty and ridiculously spoiled. I will not watch any other challenge in which she participates.

  21. avatar patricia murray
    June 21st, 2009

    OMG Hilarious! This women is nuts. Her only saving grace is how she irks Carrie Vincent. I think Carrie is either a man in drag, or Meryl Streep preparing for her next comedy role “The Devil Wears Fondant”

  22. avatar Judy
    June 21st, 2009

    The smokin birthday cake.
    If Food TV network is going to continue to have Stevie Famulari on any of their shows, they should send the poor girl to cooking school. Maybe then she’d have a clue as to how to work with food as an art medium!!! It’s called basic food science and cooking basic cooking 101. It’s not neuroscience. Her work station made me sick. Call me clueless – but I’m having a difficult time understanding the “thinking” at Foodtv regarding who qualifies for such a challenge. Are they obligated to have one obvious loser with embarrassingly poor cooking skills?
    Love “The Devil wears Fondant” comment ;)

  23. avatar Connie
    June 21st, 2009

    I didn’t get to see who won the contest??? I’m pretty sure it wasn’t Stevie though! Can someone fill me in? Thanks!

  24. avatar S9
    June 22nd, 2009

    Jason won.

  25. avatar Chris V
    June 23rd, 2009

    That Stevie is a total idiot…it’s obvious she is completely unqualified to do anything related to cakes and the fact that she considers herself an “artist” is a horrible insult to anyone remotely talented in the arts. As another poster suggested, I too would like to know wtf the people at food network were thinking by allowing here to participate in the challenges. I’m not a baker or a cake decorator, but if someone that is so lacking in talent can get on the food network and actually be on television, show me where to sign up.

  26. avatar 5 Friends in Wisconsin
    June 23rd, 2009

    We were in such awe of this episode of Food Network Challenge that we’ve been trying to track down a complete video ever since we saw it. Wish we had a DVR! We eventually found Stevie’s website with her own take on events of the day but the entire debacle is funnier from the Food Network co-star and judges perspective. Watching professionals try to handle her “artistic vision” while maintaining their own integrity was too funny.

  27. avatar Judy
    June 23rd, 2009

    Kerry is highly regarding in the cake decorating circles for her knowledge and what she creates. While she isn’t exciting to watch, her work and opinion is highly regarded among professionals-which is the reason the contestants strove so hard to please her.Well Stevie was well–she has issues.

  28. June 24th, 2009

    does anyone know if the birthday cake challenge with stevie famulari (june 14th) will air again? i would love to have my friends see this. it was hilarious.

  29. avatar Judy
    June 24th, 2009

    The Food Network repeats alot of the challenges. You might go to the website and see if the times are listed. I am still trying to figure out why she was allowed on the show. Her website is dark and lousy pictures. It is one of those things where you just shake your head and wonder how people think that they are that good. I would be embarrassed to display the “art” she shows.

  30. avatar Steele
    July 2nd, 2009

    gosh, people, give kerry a rest. She is like simon on American idol. what most people do not know is that american idol contestance like simon the most becuase he gives them actual advice that they can use to get better. That is the way Kerry works, and I think most of the contestants like her for it. it is true that she comes acros as a horable woman when she is judgeing (not to say she is probubly great outside of the studio).

  31. avatar Carol
    July 14th, 2009

    I think people are missing the whole point in regard to Kerry Vincent. She is an extremely talented woman with much to teach to those who are truly interested in learning. She is also a woman who in my opinion does not bear idiots well and it is this trait that I think people take the wrong way on her shows. She is actually very entertaining, but the show has to create “Characters” for viewers to like or dislike and what they show does not do her justice.

  32. avatar Dan
    July 14th, 2009

    Carol, more like you’re missing the point that this is a humor site :)

  33. avatar Blackdog
    September 1st, 2009

    I can’t disagree with all of the comments on Kerry’s attitude. But I have to say, though I may stand alone in this, that I think she is one hell of a sexy woman! A bit stern, yes, but classy and just all around HOT!

  34. avatar Princess Crazypants
    September 12th, 2009

    I have searched for information on Kerry Vincent and I’m usually an excellent researcher but I could hardly find anything about her. I found maybe one or two books and one or two affiliations and not much else. Most of it is Food Network Challenge related. I wanted to know just who this person is and why they’re qualified to be a judge and the judge everyone cowers from. Why does she hold so much authority? I genuinely wanted to know and I can’t find anything substantial detailing her many achievements. I think she gets respect because it’s a word of mouth thing. People hear she is “somebody” so they bow before her without looking to see if she is legit. How can someone be such a snotnose and have nothing to back it up with?

  35. avatar Crystal
    September 30th, 2009

    Princess Crazypants you should change your name to Princess Snotnose because you sound more snotnosed than I’ve ever heard Kerry Vincent sound. Also, you can’t possibly be an excellent researcher if you couldn’t find much information about Kerry Vincent. I suggest you try reading her Wikipedia entry and then google her name and the names of the organizations she’s involved with for further information.

  36. avatar A-non-e-mouse
    October 4th, 2009

    Reading these comments is hilarious. Especially the ones about Stevie. I know Stevie personally and while she can, in fact, be just as crazy as she is on these challenges she is also a generally nice person. She is very creative but definitely has her own way of going about things, good or bad.

  37. avatar Cake novice
    October 27th, 2009

    I watched this episode in total disbelief, punctuated with chortling over her disasterous attempt at a cake. It was the perfect defintion of Schadenfreude. Not only is Stevie a pretentious fool whose nose is permanently in the air over her alleged “artistic ability,” but she clearly had no idea what she was doing in this challenge. Sure, Kerry can be a task-mistress, but Stevie should’ve played nice and at least tried to make a cake that Kerry would like, instead of that bizarre creation from cake hell that she made (and ignited).

  38. avatar pandora
    November 9th, 2009

    I just watched the episode with the fire cake. This isn’t the first time she’s been on Challenge. Why do they keep inviting her back and better yet why does she accept when she knows the Kerry Vincent woman is the judge? (what is up with the big headband)

    What the hell was that mess she called a cake? It was total disaster and her kitchen was a mess. Like a child throwing a tantrum. If this is her expression of artistic interpretation of a birthday cake, then clearly the only person that understands her vision are the voices in her head. That “cake” was just vomit…

  39. avatar jenna
    November 9th, 2009

    Didn’t Stevie win the cereal bridges challenge? If not she should have, her bridge was the best. I agree that sometimes her artistic vision gets a little misunderstood, but in this challenge she must have straight up been on crack. Im happy Jason won, he and his assistant are soooo cute!

  40. avatar Sheri
    November 11th, 2009

    The only way I could justify Stevie Famulari’s “cake” as anything other than is if it was intended to be an artistic representation of Famulari’s attitude or Kerry Vincent’s soul.

  41. avatar Sheri
    November 11th, 2009

    The only way I could justify Stevie Famulari’s “cake” as anything other than the results of a blindfolded 3-year-old is if it was intended to be an artistic representation of Famulari’s attitude or Kerry Vincent’s soul.

  42. avatar Lauralei
    November 11th, 2009

    While I understand that there are artists that have really abstract works, they should still be tasteful. The condition of her kitchen alone would have been enough for me to say I don’t even want to taste that cake. Like many of the rest of you, I don’t understand Food Network’s thinking on why they let Stevie come back. I saw Stevie’s website too and “Coco” was disgusting. I was appalled! I will not watch a challenge if it has Stevie on it again. As far as Kerry goes, she is a hard @$$ but, I expect that from a judge. PLEASE FOOD NETWORK NO MORE STEVIE FAMULARI, I DON’T WANT TO BE SICK FROM WATCHING YOUR SHOW!!

  43. November 13th, 2009

    STEVIE CRASHED HER BRIDGE JUST LIKE SHE SET KERRIE’S CAKE ON FIRE. NO TIME MANAGEMENT OR TALENT AS FAR AS CAKE DECORATING.
    SHE’S AN INSULTING PIECE OF GARBAGE TO THE INDUSTRY
    B.J.

  44. avatar wenoel
    December 14th, 2009

    I think Stevie’s issue is she grew up in a family that must have told her she FABULOUS, she could do no wrong, she was an ARTIST she was original etc etc ad nauseum. As a result she has no real talent at all and cannot take constructive criticism. What Kerry tells people may not be sparing their feelings in tone she is correct in her assessments. If you look at Stevie’s site and her so-called accomplishments she cannot decide what she is, what she wants to be and as a result is hopeless at everything she attempts. Her high falutin “I’m a conceptual” artist comments make me ill. How about her stupid Christmas tree? Why decorate something then cover it all with what amounts to tissue paper?!? What’s THAT concept supposed to be??? No doubt she’ll go home and wonder why no one “understands” her ART. Yeah. Right. I think her art is for HER. She enjoys making humongous messes and doesn’t care a whit about what it actually looks like to the observers. Where’s the art in that?

  45. avatar William
    December 20th, 2009

    I too would like to see the judges compete. Ms. Kerry Vincent is a pompus ass on the show. I think they should fire the old, mean, bitch. I feel sorry for the poor man who married her. She may be the best sugar artist in the WHOLE WORLD, but lets see her happy ass perform under time pressure like the poor saps who compete!!!

    Stevie is a poster child for the old saying “Crack Kills” or “This is your brain, this is your brain on DRUGS”

  46. avatar Karen
    December 27th, 2009

    Please remove Kerry Vincent from all future challenges. She judges based on her own taste, not what the general public would like. She finds something to be critical of on every cake…and focuses on it! I will not watch future Food Network shows with her on it. Among many things, I can’t stand that she things everyone should clean up every little crumb every time one drops. Clean up is for the end.

  47. avatar Sandra
    December 28th, 2009

    Kerry Vincent might tough on tv but in person she is actually a nice sweet lady!

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