Guy Fieri reflects on two decades with Food Network – and what's next

NEW YORK – For a term he coined off the cuff, TV host and chef Guy Fieri's "Flavortown" has expanded to areas few could've imagined: TV shows, a series of Super Bowl tailgates and lines of cooking sauces, merchandise and spiked seltzers. Fieri's Food Network empire also expanded in March with the premiere of "Flavortown Food Fight" (Wednesdays, 9 ET/8 CT) and the return of "Tournament of Champions" (Sundays, 8 ET/7 CT).

But like every other municipality in the United States, things change with time. Fieri's latest contract with Food Network runs until November, making him reflect on what he's accomplished in two decades on TV – and what might come next.

"I'm in a great spot in my life," Fieri, 58, tells USA TODAY while citing his "great family," health and "doing things that mean a ton to me." The "Mayor of Flavortown" is grateful for the the show that made him a household name, "Diners, Drive-ins and Dives," calling it "the toughest thing" he's accomplished in his career because of the travel involved. The first episode aired in 2006.

"Knowing what it does for a restaurant and knowing how it's the culinary lottery," Fieri says, "Not every single one pops off, but there's so many stories of hundreds of restaurants that have second, third, fourth locations" after appearing on the show. The TV host also mentions one family who told him a few years ago that the exposure their business received from "Triple D" helped put all four of their kids through college and grad school.

"I don't care what happens after this, if that's what I've had a chance to participate in, then for me as a person, as a chef, as a dad, as a member of society, I feel so fulfilled," Fieri continues. "So as long as stuff is filling my heart, and as long as the things [I'm doing] are what people want, then that's what's for me."

Guy Fieri explains why he wants to be 'the culinary Dana White'

Fieri says he created "Tournament of Champions" (the host also serves as executive producer) to give chefs he loves and admires a platform to be recognized on. "TOC" is a single-elimination, bracket-style tournament where two chefs face off by cooking a dish under parameters set by "The Randomizer," essentially a slot machine of different key factors like ingredients, equipment, cooking style and more. Season 7's winner scores the championship belt and $150,000.

"I wanted the show that was really going to give us the champion, as a big MMA fan," Fieri says. "I joke all the time and Dana's probably going to kill me for it, but I want to be the culinary Dana White."

Fieri calls White a "legend for what he's done for folks." White became the president of Ultimate Fighting Championship in 2001 and helped turned UFC into a multibillion dollar company, albeit not without some controversy along the way. Fieri also wants to help others succeed and cites the rise of chefs Britt Rescigno, Tobias Dorzon and Sara Bradley as proof that the format is working. Dorzon is a former NFL player; Bradley was a finalist on Season 16 of "Top Chef."

"All of a sudden they come in and they start taking out heavy hitters that you've seen a bunch of times," Fieri says. "You've taken out Iron Chefs, taken out Top Chefs, taken out past 'TOC' winners and [the audience is] all of a sudden like, 'Wait a second, I want to follow this person. I want to follow their trajectory and their career.'"

Fieri hopes to do the same with "Flavortown Food Fight." In each episode three chefs are invited to "Flavortown," built out by over 200 workers on a Northern California soundstage, to face off in a multi-round competition. The show almost got shelved: Fieri suffered a devastating leg injury on the second day of filming and needed emergency surgery. Perhaps channeling his own inner-UFC fighter, the TV host returned to the set just days after surgery to continue the 10-day shoot.

"It was the last shoot everybody had before Christmas," Fieri recalls of the 125-person film crew. "And unemployment is not going to kick in until a few months later on and insurance doesn't cover until you reshoot the show. Plus I'm not real good at sitting. Out of the eight weeks of being laid up, the first two of them, I shot a show. I felt worthy. I felt like I was doing something."

With Food Network contract expiring, what's next for Guy Fieri?

Fieri, who reportedly signed a 3-year, $100 million contract with Food Network in November 2023, says he's no longer doing TV for the money but jokes, "everybody likes extra bling." Fieri also thinks his son Hunter, who assists on "Food Fight," "TOC" and Fieri's other projects has a "great career" in front of him. The TV host wants to lean into more philanthropy under his Guy Fieri Foundation, which he established in 2011 to teach the next generation of chefs how to cook. Fieri doesn't want to speculate on what will happen with his Food Network deal in part because he doesn't like predicting things and would prefer not to get "pigeonholed." Plus, Food Network was just purchased by Paramount Skydance as a part of the company's acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery.

But regardless of how contract talks go later this year, it doesn't sound like Fieri is eyeing retirement.

"I love to see the new aspiring chefs getting their shows," he says. "I produce shows for other chefs and we'll just kind of see where it takes us. But I don't think this is the last you've seen of Guy Fieri. I think I might be around for a little bit longer."