A husband-and-wife food fight. Havarti cheese flying in the air. Crank calls to celebrity chefs. Silver metallic sunglasses. And plenty of "dude" talk.
Mix those ingredients together and what do you get?
A live Guy Fieri food show with hundreds of screaming fans loving every antic this high-energy Food Network star has to offer.
"Some people have Brad Pitt. I have Guy Fieri," said Nicole Vargas, 30.
The Corona resident was among nearly 200 people who attended a Saturday cooking show starring Fieri, host of Food Network's most popular show, "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives." It was Fieri's third appearance at Disney's California Food & Wine festival, held at Disney's California Adventure.
Each year, the event continues to grow — with record crowds coming to see celebrity chefs. But, today's crowd was particularly fanatical, with some showing up as early as 5 a.m. to snag a seat.
For those who got in, Fieri did not disappoint. The high-octane event kicked off with the spiky-haired chef strutting in wearing a white chef's coat. But, within seconds of hitting the stage, he ripped off the coat like a rock star.
The move caused fans to jump to their feet, as the near strip-tease revealed the Fieri they all know and love: a California "dude" with plenty of tattoos and dressed in black Dickey's shorts, a red and black tank top and flip flops.
"I really feel like an American Idol," Fieri told the crowd after learning that some folks lined up before dawn to meet him.
After the high-octane show was over, Fieri said he was humbled by the loyalty of his fans — many of whom voted for him when he won "The Next Food Network Star" title in 2006.
"I've done these shows a lot and they're taking on a much more rock concert feel," Fieri told me back stage before heading out to sign autographs for the crowd. "I had an awesome time."
And so did his fans.
"It was great fun and totally unexpected," said Leanne Anderson. She and her husband, Ron, were tapped by Fieri to engage in a fun "squirt bottle" battle during the show.
