I'm so used to having new Netflix shows and movies pop up in my recommended category that I went and watched a competition cooking show from 2022 with my Netflix subscription by mistake. I'm glad I did, however, because Snack vs. Chef is quite a bizarre offering, and it feels like a humiliation ritual for professional chefs.
Meg Stalter and Hari Kondabolu co-host this unique series, in which experienced bakers and dessert makers attempt to replicate iconic candies and snack foods, and impress with their own unique offerings as well. Part of it is entertaining, but I'm still not sure how I feel about the snack recreation phase.
How Snack Vs. Chef Humiliated Experienced Chefs With Its First Challenge
Do you think you could make a hot Cheeto at home? What about a Kit-Kat bar? If you said yes to either, I think you're lying, because I watched a full series in which chefs with years of professional experience failed miserably to do so. Snack vs. Chef routinely kicked off episodes like this, and I have to wonder why.
It's no surprise to me that something like Gushers, a snack that feels conceived and entirely made in a factory, is impossible to make. So it's hard to feel like the contestants weren't set up to be humbled as the judges gnaw on their replications and complain of the texture or taste being unlike the corporate product rolled out to big box stores. It feels like watching Nailed It, but the people being humiliated are professional chefs. Did "Big Snack" finance this show or something?
The Second Part Of The Show Was Great, But The First Is So Dumb It Kind Of Ruined The Premise
There is a litany of great cooking shows to watch on Netflix, and I think Snack vs. Chef is just out of reach of being considered in that category. The first part of each episode is such a stupid and meaningless challenge that it distracts from the actual entertaining part in the second half.
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In the second half of each episode, contestants are tasked to make their own snack that has a similar taste and desirable textures as the snack they highlighted in the first round. This allows contestants to cook up things like rose chips, carrot and ginger flavored popcorn, and all sorts of other unique stuff. In the end, the winner gets $50k, which allows them to pursue their own cooking dreams.
The latter part made me hungry, which I think is the key to success for most cooking shows. Watching a chocolatier make a deformed KitKat didn't give me that same feeling, and I think for that reason it's no surprise this show didn't make it to Season 2. Fortunately, Meg Stalter has recovered and continues to be in the public eye, even with Hacks wrapping up its run on the 2026 TV schedule.
Snack vs. Chef is available to stream on Netflix, and I still recommend it even if I have some issues with its execution. I don't think I'm hurting anyone's feelings in saying viewers don't have to watch the entire season if they don't like it, but maybe just skip over the first segment if you're not feeling it to see the more unique snacks.
