Whats it about? Ludovic Ludo Lefebvre is a trained French chef with 5-star ratings from some of the top kitchens of the world (LOrangerie and Bastide among others). After gaining a great deal of popularity during his stint in the kitchen of these restaurants,Chef Ludo,with his wife and business partner,Krissy Lefebvre,started the LudoBites restaurant in Los Angeles. A restaurant with no permanent address was how they described it. Otherwise known as a pop-up restaurant,this concept allowed Chef Ludo to travel to various parts of Los Angeles and cook out of other peoples kitchens. For this series,the Lefebvres take to the road and travel across America,learning about the different cultures of the places they visit and reinventing the traditional cuisine of each of these places. Among the places they travel to are South Carolina,New Mexico and Texas.

Whos in it?The stars of the show are Chef Ludo and his wife,but each episode also features a number of other people,primarily locals from the various states the two visit. While some of these are the people whose kitchens they take over,others are customers they meet while exploring various eating joints of the states. In the first episode,for instance,they meet a customer at a restaurant in Santa Fe and strike up a conversation with her,during which she tells him that she makes tortillas and invites them over to teach them.

Whats hot?The show is hugely entertaining,if only for the manner in which Chef Ludo conducts himself. He is your typical representation of a French chef,the sort one sees on television shows and in films everywhere flamboyant,excessively proud (even arrogant) about his culinary skills and the unmistakable exaggerated French accent. The other most appealing aspect about the show is the fact that they include a certain amount of information about the history and culture of the places they visit,making it sufficiently informative.

Whats not?The one,most important aspect Ludo Bites America falls short on is the focus on food,or lack thereof. Theres far too much in each episode about the behind the scenes drama,so to speak,and not nearly enough about how the chef prepares the food he ultimately serves to his customers. In addition,it seems as though the producers of the show tried rather hard to make his wife,Krissy,appear like your typical blonde American schoolteacher wearing black-rimmed glasses,but every scene featuring her was only a little short of annoying.

Should you be watching it?When the show aired in America it became hugely popular with a section of the audience,so there are,without doubt,people who have liked the format. One could,therefore,give it a try,but be warned,the show is much more about the drama than the cooking.