Jackson Free Press

Nathan Glenn, chef extraordinaire and the executive chef at The Auditorium in Fondren, has recently whipped up a new cooking show idea, "Nathan Glenn Cooks!"

On Aug. 25, a pilot episode was filmed in front of a live audience inside The Auditorium. The stage portion of the restaurant was converted into a kitchen studio where Glenn and a backing band shared the space. Four cameras and a large filming crew scrambled around the dining area, catching shots of Glenn preparing southern staples such as shrimp 'n' grits and redfish, and another camera was recording action in the restaurant's kitchen as part of a documentary.

Glenn was pleased with the first taping and says he also learned a lot in the process.

"It was the first live show I've ever done," Glen says. "I've done live cooking demonstrations before, but never a show." The next episode will be filmed on Sept. 22 and the show will begin airing on WAPT in the near future.

While conventional television chefs may aspire to become the next Julia Child, Glenn cites John Belushi as one of his biggest influences.

"We want to add a little humor to the show," Glenn says. "Television is really lacking in entertainment these days."

Glenn says he is disheartened when he watches southern-influenced cooking shows which paint the south as a hotbed for "redneck chefs."

"I want to sell the cool part about the south; the food, the music, the people, the loyalty," Glenn says adamantly.

And when it comes to filming in front of a large audience, Glenn shakes off any notions that he may get nervous on stage.

"I'm a south Jackson kid," he boasts. "I've been working in a kitchen since I was born, and your skin can get really, really thick when you work in a kitchen.