That's Gastrotainment!

Well our little Burg of Santa Rosa has another celebrity chef in its midst: Andrea Mikiami Ballus, owner/operator of Sift Cupcakes and Desert Bar. This week on Cupcake Wars, she kicked some major butt and took the Grand Prize - and it wasn't really close. Andrea repeatedly drew on her wine country roots and wowed the judges, especially wedding designer Amy Weiss. The final challenge was to create a wedding display employing 2000 cupcakes. Andrea's creation destroyed the competition. Not. Even. Close. So bartender - a round of frosting shots for all my frieeeeeeeeeeeeeends.

The good news just keeps coming. It was officially announced this week that Spike TV has purchased all 52 episodes of Three Sheets. The series will begin airing on Feb. 8th at 10:30 pm EST, and will continue every Tuesday at that slot. Kudos to the fans who truly saved this show and also to Spike for recognizing a real gem of an opportunity. It's a good show.

The new season of Andrew Zimmern's Bizarre Foods is set to launch on Tuesday, Feb 18th, so Tuesdays are looking like Gastrotainment Central. We've still no idea on whether our spots ended up in the final cut of the San Francisco episode. It's a must watch either way as that episode is something of a departure from his usual shtick.

Sonoma County's Bette Noir, Guy Fieri, is hosting a sneak peak of a new episode of Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives at a local theater. The event is a fundraiser for a local operation, Worth Our Weight, which he features in the episode. Worth Our Weight offers culinary apprenticeships to kids and young adults who are struggling with significant challenges such as legal troubles, foster care, family disruption and even homelessness. It functions as a school and catering service. It's a great program and they also just happen to pump out some great food. They also operate a cafe on Sundays, and a booth at the local Farmer's Market which I'll be heading to shortly.

Happy viewing chow hounds.