The eleventh season of Food Paradise, an American food reality television series narrated by Jess Blaze Snider (formally Mason Pettit) on the Travel Channel, premiered on May 21, 2017. First-run episodes of the series aired in the United States on the Travel Channel on Mondays at 10:00 p.m. EDT. The season contained 15 episodes and concluded airing on August 20, 2017.
Food Paradise features the best places to find various cuisines at food locations across America. Each episode focuses on a certain type of restaurant, such as "Diners", "Bars", "Drive-Thrus" or "Breakfast" places that people go to find a certain food specialty.
Episodes Note: These episodes aired from May 21 – August 20, 2017.
Lay It on Thick Restaurant Location Specialty(s) Dos Chinos Latin Asian Grub @ 4th Street Market Santa Ana, California Secret Menu Item: "The Lobster Elote" – deep-fried whole lobster, split in half, topped with garlic aioli (infused with fish sauce), shredded Monterrey jack cheese, elote (sweet grilled corn), baked in the oven and garnished with deep-fried dehydrated shallots and deep-fried scallions, and sprinkled with cayenne pepper, cilantro and lime juice. Award-winning: "Irvine Shrimp Taco" – deep-fried battered shrimp layered with shredded purple cabbage, topped with a sauce (made from mayo, duce de leche, and Vietnamese fish sauce), sprinkled with chili & lime chopped walnuts, raw chopped white onions and minced cilantro on a double flour tortilla. Isles Bun & Coffee Minneapolis, Minnesota "Isles' Cinnamon Bun" – massive cinnamon bun made with buttermilk dough layered with butter, cinnamon, rolled up, sliced and baked in oven, topped with vanilla cream cheese frosting (made with butter, cream cheese, powdered sugar and vanilla), served with a side of extra frosting. "Carmel Pecan Sticky Buns" – the same cinnamon bun coated in sweet, crunchy pecans, and layered with liquefied caramel sauce. Crisp Chicago, Illinois Korean-style chicken wings: "Jay’s Crisp Barbecue Wings" – brined for 24 hours in salt, sugar, secret spices and water, battered in buttermilk and double-fried in a pressure-fryer and then an open fryer, tossed in gochujang (a Korean sauce made with soy sauce and sesame oil and secret spices), and sprinkled with sesame seeds. Emmy Squared Williamsburg, Brooklyn, New York "Margherita Pizza" – Detroit-inspired square pan pizza cooked in rectangle pans: a pound of dough topped with shredded mozzarella cheese, homemade tomato sauce laid out in stripes, grated pecorino, baked in a conveyor belt oven, garnished with burrata cheese, fresh basil and a drizzle of olive oil. "Le Big Matt Burger" – thin gourmet beef patties sprinkled with salt and grilled on a flattop, stacked, topped with white American cheese slices, mizuna, and pickles, slathered with house special 'Sammy Sauce' (made with Indonesian sambal and aioli), on a butter-toasted pretzel bun. The Bang Candy Company Nashville, Tennessee "Rose Cardamom S'mores" – marshmallows (made with special syrup, gelatin and water, flavored with cardamom, beet juice, vanilla extract, and rose water), laid out on a sheet pan, baked and covered in powder sugar and cornstarch, cut into inch squares, toasted and sandwiched between two homemade shortbread cookies sandwich spread with liquefied, tempered dark chocolate. "Maple Bacon Bourbon Marshmallows" – homemade bourbon marshmallows half-coated with dark chocolate and topped with candy bacon. Burro Cheese Kitchen Austin, Texas "The Waylon and Willie" – (named after country music greats Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson): a gourmet grilled cheese sandwich two slices of sourdough bread layered with 'crack sauce' ( made with blended with eight strips of bacon, jalapeños, cream cheese, plain unsweetened yogurt, and grade A maple syrup), rosemary-caramelized onions, diced pepperoncini and aged shredded cheddar and gouda cheese that's melted with a torch, and grilled in a panini press. "Burnin' Mac" – grilled cheese stuffed with homemade spicy 'muchacho mac & cheese' topped with aged cheddar and provolone on panini-pressed bread with habanero hot sauce. Hat Yai Portland, Oregon Southern Thai soul food: "Melayu Style Curry" – a rich and thick sauce that starts with a curry paste made from an array of spices (smashed the old-fashioned way in a mortar and pestle: flake salt, dried chilies, lemongrass, galangal, cilantro stems, garlic, shallots, and shrimp paste and secret spices), cooked with coconut cream, fish sauce, and sugar, poured in a bowl and served with fried chicken (brined in Thai spices and double-fired) and hand-rolled roti (a flaky, flat fry bread made with butter and sweet condensed milk). Rise n°2 Houston, Texas "Jambon et Gruyére" – a savory soufflé (ham and cheese), a Mornay sauce (a classic French cheese sauce made from gruyere, Parmesan, nutmeg, salt, pepper, 40 egg yolks, Italian-style ham and egg whites), baked in a high-tech oven, and served in a ramekin lined with butter and grated Parmesan. "Chocolate Soufflé" – made with milk chocolate, cocoa powder, pastry cream and egg whites, accompanied by chocolate anglais.
Handheld Happiness Restaurant Location Specialty(s) Hattie B's Nashville, Tennessee Hot Fried Chicken Hubcap Grill Houston, Texas Sticky Sliders Hola Arepa Minneapolis, Minnesota Shredded Beef with Plantain Arepa, Slow Roasted Pork Arepa The Angry Crab Chicago, Illinois "Cajun Seafood" – served in a bag. Valentina's Tex Mex BBQ Austin, Texas Smoked Brisket Tacos, Real Deal Holyfield The Loop Little Saigon, Orange County, Westminster, California Loop Shaped Churros Sticky's Finger Joint Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan, New York City Chicken Fingers Pokpok Portland, Oregon Fish Sauce Wings, Thai Style Baby Rack Ribs
Carb Overload Restaurant Location Specialty(s) Burnt Crumbs @ Lot 579 Gourmet Market Huntington Beach, California "Spaghetti Grilled Cheese" – spaghetti topped with tomato sauce (made with tomatoes, whole basil, and ground black angus beef) mixed with shredded mozzarella cheese, placed on a tray and baked in oven, cut into squares and tucked into a grilled cheese (made with two slices of mozzarella) on butter-toasted sourdough bread. Jinny's Pizzeria @ 4th Street Market Santa Ana, California "Spaghetti and Meatball Pizza" – 18-inch stretched dough with a garlic herb oil (garlic, bay leaves, lemon peels, chili flakes and basil) crust, topped with tomato sauce mixed with spaghetti, homemade meatballs (made with ground beef, bread, buttermilk, eggs, olive oil, parsley and Parmesan cheese), and mozzarella cheese, garnished with fresh basil and Parmesan cheese. Gnarly Knots Pretzel Co. Winfield, Illinois "Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Stuffed Pretzel" – dough (made with flour, sugar, water, salt, yeast and butter), stuffed with cookie dough (mixed with chocolate chips and homemade twice-baked salty pretzel chips), twisted into a pretzel shape, placed into a food-grade lye bath, salted and baked in the oven to a golden brown. "Birthday Cake Stuffed Pretzel" – a jumbo soft pretzel stuffed with a vanilla confetti cake (mixed with freshly made vanilla frosting), baked and topped with chocolate frosting and rainbow sprinkles. Blue Star Donuts Pearl District, Portland, Oregon "Sweet Potato Fritter" – brioche dough (made with flour, yeast, salt, sugar, eggs, milk and butter—Grand Marnier orange liquor and ground mace is added), chopped into small chunks, combined with shredded and pureed sweet potatoes, brown sugar, and a five-spice mix (fennel, black pepper, star anise, cinnamon, and cloves), shaped into fritters and deep-fried, topped with a brown butter glaze (brown butter base sweetened with jumbo marshmallows, heavy cream, and powdered sugar) and garnished with mini marshmallows. "Bacon Bourbon Breakfast Fritter" – fritter dough (combined with maple-candied bacon crumbles, shredded and mashed Yukon potatoes, and five spice), deep-fried and topped with maple bourbon glaze (made with powdered sugar, bourbon, maple syrup, and water). Jacob's Pickles Upper West Side, New York City, New York "Buffalo Chicken Mac and Cheese" – penne pasta poured onto a sauce of cheddar, American and pecorino cheeses (mixed with butter, flour and heavy cream), combined with shredded cheddar and mozzarella, and signature spicy buffalo sauce (made with distilled vinegar and arbol chilies), chunks of double-breaded buttermilk chicken breasts, baked in the oven and served in a personal cast-iron skillet. "Chicken and Pancakes" – double breaded southern-fried chicken breasts piled high onto two big buttermilk pancakes (made with buttermilk, eggs, flour, sugar, baking powder and salt), topped with clover honey and sprinkled with crispy bacon bits. Eggy's Diner Minneapolis, Minnesota "Crunchy French Toast" – thick-cut slices of challah bread spread with peanut butter, dredged in a French toast mix (brown sugar, cinnamon, vanilla extract, heavy cream and eggs), rolled in corn flakes, browned on a griddle, and topped with cinnamon-sugar bananas, strawberries, chocolate hazelnut spread and powdered sugar. "Cinnamon Roll Pancakes" – two pancakes swirled in cinnamon, sugar and chopped pecans while on the griddle, spread with mascarpone brown sugar-cinnamon filling, rolled, cut and served standing up and sprinkled with more chopped pecans and cinnamon-sugar. The Flipside 12th South, Nashville, Tennessee 21 varieties of "Jack's Best Chicken" – Deep-fried chicken culets named after owner's son Jack. 6-ounce chicken breast, pounded thin. Seasoned with salt, pepper, garlic and onion powder, dunked in egg wash, and dredged in thick coating of Italian breadcrumbs, deep-fried in a cast-iron skillet. "Mac Daddy" – Jack's chicken topped with homemade chili (made with ground beef, garlic, onion, seasoned with garlic powder, onion powder, chili powder, and cumin, pureed tomatoes and tomato paste, local IPA beer, dark chocolate, and kidney beans) and mac & cheese (made with cubes of American cheddar and Monterey Jack cheese is mixed with whole milk, blended with pasta shells), served with a side of fries. "The Scooter" – Jack's chicken topped with their tater tot nacho appetizer (tater tots mixed with chunks of avocado, diced tomatoes, and pickled jalapeños, drizzled with warm cheese sauce and a squirt of buffalo sauce. Wholy Bagel Austin, Texas "Everything Bagels" – bagels made from (high-gluten flour, yeast, malt, warm water, and salt), shaped into bagel forms, boiled in hot water for 30 seconds, topped with dehydrated onions, garlic, salt and poppy seeds, then baked in oven. "Pork Roll Egg and Cheese Breakfast Bagel" – an everything bagel with Taylor Ham or pork roll, one organic egg over easy, and covered with melted cheese. "Texas Loaded" – cream cheese (mixed with cayenne, paprika, salt, pepper, green onions, cheddar cheese and bacon bits) smeared on an everything bagel.
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