People are voting emotionally.

A lot more amusing than I thought it would be.

A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

A Chef's Life is as entertaining and realistic as reality TV can get. Vivian and Ben are natural on the screen and conversations are not contrived. This show is not only great for learning great recipes, but it is fun to watch because you actually care about the people. It is also a nice window into the lives of real people in rural North Carolina. The show does not, however portray these people as rednecks, hicks or stereotypes. All in all a binge worthy and entertaining watch.

The "2" is for the food and cooking, which often look delicious. But this show is so obviously faked, I am amazed people fall for this. Do they believe the couples on "Bachelor/Bachelorette" are genuinely dating and "in love"?There is no real restaurant "Chef and The Farmer". It's a set for a TV reality show. Simple common sense tell you that no such upscale eatery could survive in a dreary, remote small rural village that is 90 minutes (each way) from the nearest (modest-sized) metropolitan area. You'd be lucky to have 5 customers most nights. It would be impossible to survive. No -- this was an admittedly clever idea for a reality show, and the "customers" are clearly fake, or showing up to get on TV. It was "pre-sold" as a concept for PBS (in SC) and then went national.Vivian Howard is an attractive, 30-something lady, though her demeanor is often crabby. Of course, from other fake, scripted "reality shows" like American Pickers and Pawn Stars, we know this too is a "shtick". Her husband is rarely seen. They seem to argue a lot. I hope their marriage is better than it looks here. Both of them claim to have "worked in New York City" but if you do the math...they only spent a couple of years there out of college. By age 26, Vivian was back home in rural North Carolina (a place she says upfront she hated and wanted to GET AWAY FROM)....hmm, why would anyone do that? NYC is the gourmet restaurant capital of THE WORLD. I could see going to a slightly smaller market, but a village in NC? where no customers exist?BTW: I have talked to actual residents of this part of NC, and they have told me "Kinston is a poor, black-majority village, and no way any of the locals could possibly be eating at an upscale, fancy restaurant". Watch the show, folks. You can count the black people on one hand and have fingers left over. No black customers and no black STAFF. How can you live and work and have a business in a 90% black area, with no black people? Hmmm.Howard's parents own a large farm, and are immensely rich. Check out the "man cabin" (or whatever they call it) -- it's not a shack. It's nicer than most people's homes! and HUGE! so these very rich people got their daughter to come back to NC, by first offering to support her, and her deadbeat husband (perhaps when she got preggers?) and THEN by offering to pay for her to have a "fake restaurant" and then they (or her husband) marketed the heck out of filming the "fake tribulations" for PBS....and the restaurant burned down. No inkling as to how you'd survive that, or how someone who works 24/7 can be raising twins....or what kind of income you could possibly generate from a super-fancy restaurant in BUM you-know-what Egypt. (Of course, I know once it got on famous on TV, that did generate some business plus profits from books, PBS revenues, etc.. I mean INITIALLY.)Every crisis and situation is fake and manufactured for TV cameras. I pity their kids. I pity the husband and the marriage. I'll be really happy when reality TV dies a much deserved death.

There are a lot of cooking shows, some instructional, some merely exist as platforms to display contrived drama. This show is real. Warts and all. Learning anything about the cooking process or generic intricacies of the restaurant business is secondary.What allows this show to stand out in comparison to others is the lack of pretension. The interface of those on camera is fantastic and genuine. The viewer is being allowed a real glimpse into others' private lives. And Chef Vivian, via her narration, shares her personal thoughts and feeling as she displays a gamut of emotions, from happiness to sorrow.It's real. Very real. I highly recommend it.

What an honest and interesting life. All fantastic recipes featuring home town produce, wine, meat, mixed with a great growing family story. This is real and not contrived or flamboyant production. From moonshine drinks to grape pizza the cuisine is great and filled with history of this quaint region. Vivian, her husband and crew are educating and creating return customers with new and remastered classic meals. The wait staff is to die for. They work the room and get die-hards to try new entrées and drinks.The struggle with the fire and trying to build a home adds enough drama to make this show intoxicating. We love this show