Chicago caterers win Food Network contest

NEW YORK, June 28 (UPI) -- The owners of Chicago's The Hearty Boys Caterers are the winners of the Food Network's "The Next Food Network Star."

Dan Smith and Steve McDonagh were selected by the network's viewers Sunday night over Deborah Fewell of Pasadena, Calif., who runs a personal chef business.

As winners, the partners, who also run HB Restaurant in Chicago, will star in a six-episode weekly half-hour show on the Food Network. The network said that, wasting no time, the first production meeting was held Monday at 11 a.m.

On "The Next Food Network Star," chefs competed in a series of challenges until the field was narrowed to two teams or individuals. The finalists each produced a half-hour pilot, which was judged by the audience voting electronically.