SANTA FE, NM – TV cameras and a famous face attracted a crowd Friday at Santa Fe Plaza as the Food Network brought another one of its big shows back to New Mexico.

The show called “Great Food Truck Race” spent all of Thursday in the plaza shooting a big food competition segment for an episode of the show airing later this year. Producers didn’t leave out the New Mexico flare either with contestants getting their hands hot with nothing other than New Mexico chile.

The TV shoot drew crowds throughout the day, some as big as 100 people. Many were cheering as they heard the host announce “Santa Fe, New Mexico”

While New Mexicans might be used to seeing TV and movie cameras with a boom in entertainment production, this shoot had food fans excited.

“Nothing really ever comes here, so it’s exciting!” exclaimed one Santa Fe girl who stumbled upon the shoot with a group of her friends as they were leaving school.

“Big fan of the Food Network!” said Joe Foreman, a Colorado man who was visiting Santa Fe.

“I was like oh my god is Tyler Florence, it’s Tyler Florence!” exclaimed Kim Carroll, who also wasn’t expecting the shooting.

The shoot was the work of Food Network and celebrity chef Tyler Florence, host of “The Great Food Truck Race.”

“I want Santa Fe to kick off with a bang!” said Florence during the show’s filming on Thursday.

It’s the second time the show has been in Santa Fe, according to the executive producers. This season, experienced food truck chefs drive their businesses to a new city where they compete in a weekend full of cooking and selling. One team is eliminated each week. The last team standing will win $50,000.

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