TV: Alton Brown Returns With a Newfangled ‘Good Eats’

Aug. 25; foodnetwork.com.

In 2012 — after writing, directing and starring in 252 episodes of “Good Eats” on the Food Network — Alton Brown needed a break.

He wanted to concentrate on his theatrical tour and hosting the game show “Cutthroat Kitchen.” He also wanted to see how the internet would affect ingredients not readily available to the average viewer, like the North African harissa required for shakshuka, a dish he’d held off making.

And having started his career behind the camera, he wanted to see what advances in film technology might percolate up in the future that would make shooting a bit more, well, exciting.

“I was getting bored with the toys,” he admitted in a call from Marietta, Ga., where he lives and works. “I had told myself I’m going to give it five years.” By the time his calendar cleared, it was seven.