Back in January, the spiky-haired Food Network star showcased local staples Alewife and Miss Shirley’s on his long-running series Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives (DDD), and now, beloved meat mecca The Smoking Swine is on deck to be featured in an upcoming episode airing March 11 at 10 p.m.

While he was in town filming the segment at Miss Shirley’s in October, Fieri climbed on board the silver Smoking Swine truck to whip up barbecue dishes alongside owner and executive chef L. Drew Pumphrey.

“It was brief, but it was everything that I expected it to be in a good way,” Pumphrey says. “Talking to him feels like talking to someone you’ve known for a long time.”

Pumphrey mentions that, although the show has attracted such a huge following throughout the years, bringing attention to budding businesses across the country remains Fieri’s main priority.

“People like to trash talk him, but I’ll tell you what, he’s one of the best things to happen to the modern American culinary landscape,” Pumphrey says. “You can tell from just being around him that local businesses are his entire life.”

Since hitting the streets in 2012, The Smoking Swine has become known for its mouthwatering specialties like pulled pork sandwiches, smoked ribs, and the fan-favorite “Slap Yo Mama Mac and Cheese” topped with Goldfish crackers. Although Pumphrey is keeping details about the dishes featured on the show under tight wraps, he says that viewers can look forward to seeing him prepare one of the truck’s most popular items.

To celebrate the episode’s premiere, The Smoking Swine crew is teaming up with longtime friends at Waverly Brewing Company to host a viewing party at the brewery on Friday, March 11 at 9 p.m., complete with plenty of beer and barbecue to go around.

Although a handful of other area eateries, including Swallow at the Hollow, Joe Squared, and Johnny Rad’s, have previously been featured on DDD, The Smoking Swine is the first local food truck to score its own segment.

“From day one, The Smoking Swine has strived to represent the food truck scene, not just in Baltimore but on a national level, as something that is a viable and serious business,” Pumphrey says “It’s not what a lot of people think—it’s restaurant-quality food from eight-by-10-foot kitchens with just three people jammed inside.”

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In addition to opening his own burger joint inside Horseshoe Casino last fall, the fun-loving, spiky-haired star has showcased Charm City staples such as Slainte, Clementine, Joe Squared, and Swallow at the Hollow in previous seasons of his long-running Food Network series Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives (DDD). And next month, we’ll be able to add two more restaurants to the running list of local hotspots that have been featured on the show.

Alewife, the Westside beer bar famous for its burgers and fries, and Miss Shirley’s, the brunch spot best known for its benedicts and Bloodies, will both be featured in the 24th season of DDD, which is set to premiere on Friday, Jan. 1 at 10 p.m.

Alewife’s executive chef Chad Wells explains that each time the show films in Baltimore, the producers ask the featured chefs where they like to eat, which, in turn, helps the crew to scout new locations for future episodes.

“Several other places in Baltimore had mentioned us,” Wells says. “So they called and we went through the entire screening process, which took hours of interviews. Then they go through all of the food items, send what they’re interested in to Guy Fieri, and he ultimately picks what you prepare on the show.”

Alewife’s segment will highlight Wells’ signature wild boar sliders and pork belly mac and cheese fries.

“It’s pretty cool that they picked those two items because we don’t consider ourselves to be a stuffy fine dining restaurant. We’re a beer bar and we like to have fun,” Wells says. “They’re both fun dishes that you can enjoy with friends while kicking back and listening to The Ramones in the dining room.”

According to a synopsis posted on Food Network’s website, we’ll get to see Fieri hit yet another local favorite as he chows down on crab cake po’boys and coconut cream French toast at Miss Shirley’s in an episode airing on Friday, Jan. 15 at 10 p.m.

“It was a blast working with the crew, who were all very down-to-earth, complimentary, professional, and fun,” says Brigitte O. Bledsoe, Miss Shirley’s corporate executive chef. “We are just one of many incredible Baltimore restaurants that have helped to boost Maryland to the top of the culinary scene. We’re so honored to be welcomed into the Triple-D family.”

Alewife will throw a viewing party in honor of the episode’s premiere, complete with a Fieri-inspired cocktail, draft specials starting at 10 p.m., and, of course, plenty of wild boar sliders and pork belly mac and cheese fries to go around. Wells adds that, while he is eager to hear everyone’s thoughts on the episode, he’s most excited to witness his 3-year-old son’s reaction to seeing his dad on the big screen.

“I have the utmost respect for [Fieri],” he says. “He’s so much fun to work with and it’s awesome to see someone in his position who really has a passion for helping smaller businesses on such an amazing scale. Baltimore’s food culture is very unique compared to other places, and right now is an awesome time for it to be getting so much attention.”

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In an episode that aired on July 19, Scott Hines, chef de cuisine at Farmstead Grill in Canton, went head-to-head with three other competitors and ultimately walked away with a check for $14,000.

“I want to say that I thought I would win [all along], because I’m confident in what I do, but I had had some pretty big doubts,” Hines says.

After responding to a casting call on the network’s website and engaging in a series of phone interviews with producers, Hines made his way to California to shoot the episode back in January.

“Food Network always names specific demographics when casting for different shows, and I saw that they were specifically looking for a chef from Baltimore, which, I’m assuming, is because Guy [Fieri] had just opened his restaurant in Horseshoe Casino.”

Set in a makeshift grocery store, the weekly series pits four chefs from across the country against one another, challenging them to shop, cook, and plate a dish in 30 minutes to be judged after each round. But with the network’s fun-loving spiky-haired all-star, Chef Guy Fieri, as the show’s host, there’s never any shortage of wildcard moments.

Some of the challenges that Hines faced included being limited to only seven ingredients in creating an international dish and only being able to shop for groceries found in even-numbered aisles. In the final round, he won over the judges with his buttermilk-fried quail stuffed with dates, roasted potatoes, and haricot verts.

“Before the show filmed they sent us a schematic of the store and a picture of our stations, so in that sense you’re not going in totally blind, but the 30 minutes isn’t ‘stage time,’ it’s really only 30 minutes,” Hines says. “So, especially in the first round, it was a bit nerve-wracking.”

Hines says that he was excited to be able to represent Baltimore on the show, and that he plans to save his winnings for his family.

If you missed last weekend’s episode, check out this clip of Chef Hines racing against the clock to prepare his international dish during round two.

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Known for its English and Irish pub grub, as well as being an amazing setting for soccer games, Sláinte’s highlights on the show will include its spicy gumbo (previously a Baltimore’s best) as indicated by a Food Network tweet earlier.

While he was in town, Fieri also visited Johnny Rad’s, Clementine, and Jimmy’s Famous Seafood. That episode is airing on Nov. 21 with this Food Network description:

This trip, Guy’s hitting the pavement for a tasty tour of Baltimore. First, just off Dundalk Ave, the local legend cranking out all kinds of crab plates. Then in the Hamilton neighborhood, the farm-to-table spot cooking up bacon-wrapped meatloaf and Asian braised pork. And in the Upper Fells Point neighborhood, the funky pizza joint firing up some outta bounds pies and savory risotto balls.

Additionally, DDD (as it’s become known) will pay homage to another local hotspot later in the month, including Swallow at the Hollow, a dive-bar institution in Belvedere Square. That episode will air Nov. 28 and staffers at the bar said they will throw a viewing party. 

Of course, if you want a more immediate taste of Guy Fieri, you can head over to his restaurant in Horseshoe Casino. A full (and we mean filling) review will be in our upcoming December issue.

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lucky charm
Lucky horseshoes stem back to 969 AD when the patron saint of blacksmiths used one to ward off the devil.

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“I’ve been to Baltimore many times—it’s an amazing city filled with fun-loving people who appreciate great food,” Fieri said in a statement. “I’m looking forward to bringing this exciting new restaurant concept to Horseshoe Baltimore and to making more friends in Charm City as we serve up a fantastic menu in an environment where people can feel free to have a great time.” 

The restaurant, slated to open in 2014, will include an outdoor dining area, and the cooking space—employing metal, tile, and wood elements—will resemble Fieri’s home kitchen. Also look for the chef’s legendary tattoos to be worked into the space’s design.

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In the restaurant’s signature square shape, the coal-fired, thin-crust pizza (pictured) includes clams, maple-smoked bacon, roasted garlic cream, onion, oregano, and mozzarella, Romano, and Asiago cheeses.

Diners
TV host Guy Fieri picked Joe Squared, with locations in Station North
and the Inner Harbor, as one of his favorite pizza places in the
country.

The clam pizza also was cited by Zagat in December as the best pizza in all of Maryland.

Kudos to owner Joe Edwardsen.

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