I thought Alton Brown did a terrific job at the Hippodrome's Foodie Experience.  This was a pivotal year for the event, and I think it overcame the sophomore jinx. Brown is certainly popular, but it's fair to say he lacks the crossover following of last year's headliner, Anthony Bourdain. But on Saturday night, Brown was a bona fide headliner. And the Foodie Experience has legs.

Brown's first degree, as he mentioned at least once last night, is in theater (from the University of Georgia) -- his culinary training came later. The Hippodrome event asked him to perform both in a large auditorium and, beforehand, in a more intimate cabaret setting. I thought the handled both extremely well.

I'll have more on Brown's performance tomorrow, along with a few of my favorite offerings from the restaurants and caterers that participated in the post-show grazing. 

I did want to go on record that Brown is a class act. He worked the shows back to back, without a rest, and mingled quietly and obligingly at the post-show gathering afterward. 

He was especially obliging with photographs, even when he must have known they would turn as badly as this one of him with my brother-in-law.

The fact is I had only a fleeting familiarity with his Good Eats show and none at all with Iron Chef America. I'm a convert.