Rich Landau of Vedge Prepping for Iron Chef

Our local vegan hero, Rich Landau of Vedge and the dearly departed Horizons, is practicing for his closeup on Iron Chef America. A TV crew was in the house yesterday shooting an application video for the series for more than 15 hours. Considering Landau was the first and only vegan chef to ever cook at the James Beard House in NYC, we're thinking this is just a formality before they head to the small screen.

"We're a good story, and they said it's not a hard sell," said Landau in regards to leading the vegan charge in Philly with his wife and partner Kate Jacoby. "But it's been a long day, and we're excited to get the thumbs up."

Vedge has gotten a lot of love from local critics and even meat-man Marc Vetri in the early goings, and Landau mentioned that he looks forward to taking on another chef if he ends up in Kitchen Stadium.

"I'd probably challenge Jose Garces, but maybe not. I wouldn't want to embarrass him on TV, and then have to see him around town," joked Landau.

· Vedge [Official]