I’ve been looking forward to seeing Alton Brown’s new show, “Feasting on Asphalt”. Originally, it was because, “Hey, it’s Alton Brown. Even if it’s just a Rachael Ray type travel show it can’t be that bad”. 15 minutes into the first episode (watching on my computer because Food Network Canada doesn’t carry the show) I’m hooked.

The show is about him, and his crew of 5 (some on motorcycles, some in the van) crossing the United States, avoiding interstate highways and only eating at “road food” joints like diners, cafes, stands, etc. No national chains. The show has footage of them driving, their stops, the food, etc. Usually it’s just Alton, but the crew sometimes joins in. Often he’ll help in the kitchen of places he goes, so far he’s washed dishes, made fry-cakes, and help do prep work for a small town event.

The waxing poetic about road food gets tiring, and most of the interviews are pretty boring. But when he joins in the action or it’s just candid shots of him, it’s an amazing show. Think “Good Eats” hits reality TV. There’s even the requisite “And if I had a food historian handy… Hey, there’s one right there!” (though in that scene he seems to always be cutting her off, I’m not sure if she was boring or he was in a hurry).

There’s a good mix of history (including stuff you’d never guess about Duncan Hines), some travel, and full of the quirks you’d expect from AB (including a 6’ map of the US they carry with them)). It’s lightly edited and fairly unscripted. He’s got a quick wit about him, even though you can tell he’s got a sense of humour from watching Good Eats, when he’s interacting with people, especially in the kitchen, he’s really funny.

From his website I know the 4th episode has him break something in an accident. It was just posted to torrents so it’ll be a bit before I get to see it. Unfortunately the 4th is also the last. Maybe he’ll do it again, I can only hope.