Save the Date: Around the World in 80 Plates

Event: Around the World in 80 Plates premiere
Date: Wednesday, May 9

I just finished saying that all reality shows have expiration dates. What's the cure for that? Finding a worthy replacement! Of course, there's no way of knowing if a new show is worthy until we actually see it, but taking two old favorites and combining the best parts of them sure sounds promising.

Around the World in 80 Plates appears to be a combination of Top Chef and The Amazing Race, in which a group of chefs go from country to country and attempt to replicate the local cuisine. That's an awesome concept, so everything's going to come down to the execution. I haven't done a ton of research, so I don't know if Curtis Stone is the judge and Cat Cora the host, or vice versa, or what. I've always liked her on Iron Chef, and he's... Well, he's easy on the eyes, anyway.

Handled correctly, this show has the potential to be a new favorite. Handled incorrectly, it'll be the next Shear Genius. Either way, my Top Chef viewing party is already stockpiling wine in eager anticipation of the premiere.