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Set to air on Sunday, April 16, 2023, at 9 pm ET, Food Network’s latest cooking competition, Ciao House, will fly 10 up-and-coming chefs to Italy to compete. In the upcoming culinary competition, the contestants will live and compete in a beautiful Italian villa as they navigate the competition as individuals as well as teams.
The ultimate goal is to be the last surviving chef, as each week, one person will go home. Set to appear in the upcoming competition is Jess Mahoney from Los Angeles, California, who currently works in Mirate.
Ciao House contestant Jess Mahoney once worked at a seafood specialty restaurant
One of the 10 contestants set to compete in the culinary reality show is Jess Mahoney, who is currently working at the Los Feliz kitchen of Mirate. Jess started her career working at a seafood specialty restaurant Son of a Gun, where she used to prepare scallop crudo with gin and citrus in herb oil.
The skateboard butcher, who is also vegan, spoke to LA Weekly about her appearance in the upcoming competition. The Ciao House contestant said that she could compare Tuscany to California in a lot of ways. She said that the terrain of the Italian city reminded her of California along with the appreciation for fresh ingredients that she has often witnessed in the city. Jess continued:
"We are at the forefront of knowing which farms our food comes from and how the animals were treated. Italy likes to keep things really local from the farms."
The Ciao House contestant added that she was aware of the show being a reality show but that it wasn’t “one of those look hot in a bikini.” As such, she hopes to get a large social media following kind of a thing.
She said that people in her field will watch the show where she wants to be true to herself and not focus entirely on winning. Comparing herself to a sponge, Jess added that she wants to learn during her duration on the show.
She continued that her greatest takeaway from being on the Food Network show is having met so many other chefs and working with them. She added that Americans think Italian food is a "heavy bowl of carbs with hot tomato sauce on top." However, the show is more than just that since it showcases the diversity of Tuscan fare.
More about the show
Ciao House will be hosted and judged by Alex Guarnaschelli and Gabriele Bertaccini as they take the 20 contestants to Tuscany as they live and cook together.
The official press release of the show reads:
"From real-life nonnas showcasing how they make pasta from scratch to a lesson with the head butcher of a three centuries-old family butcher business, each challenge is accompanied by a local experience steeped in tradition."
Apart from Jess Mahoney, other contestants who will be seen on Ciao House are:
- Omar Ashley from Avenel, New Jersey
- Corey Becker from Brooklyn, New York
- Saba Duffy from Framingham, Massachusetts
- Trenica Johnson from Houston, Texas
- Preston Paine from Dallas, Texas
- Sarah Raffetto from New York,
- Justin Robinson from Atlanta, Georgia
- Natalia Rosario from Chicago, Illinois
- Matt Wasson from Staten Island, New York
Tune in on Sunday, April 16, at 9 pm ET to watch the season premiere of Ciao House of the Food Network.
