A Roanoke chef recently won big on a foodie television game-show. River and Rail Chef Aaron Deal won $20,000 after making pizza with a peanut butter reduction and a gourmet franks-and-beans platter. And he’s hoping his win will draw attention to the region.
Aaron Deal stands next to the bleached and spiky-haired Guy Fieri. He’s smiling proudly after surviving three elimination rounds on Fieri’s latest Food Network installment, Guy’s Grocery Games. The show is part timed cooking challenge, part ingredient hunt, and Deal has already swept the cooking segment featuring unmarked merchandise and mystery meat. Now, he’s about to play beat the clock-- making a mad dash through the grocery store checking off a shopping list-- Find all the items, and it’s a $20,000 paycheck.
After working in restaurants in Chicago and Boston, Deal, who is a native of North Carolina, came to Roanoke a couple of years ago. He became executive chef at River and Rail restaurant, where he creates dishes embodying the South with his own dash of originality.
Deal says he’s excited the show will help draw attention to the Roanoke region, and he made it very clear that he would go to great lengths to promote the vibrant culinary scene.
You can catch a re-broadcast of the episode of Guy’s Grocery Games featuring Chef Deal on June 22nd at 4 PM, on the Food Network.
