As a Food Network fanatic, as soon as I heard that celebrity chef Bobby Flay was signing books at Sur La Table in River Oaks Tuesday, I knew I'd be in line.

Flay is a long-time Food Network star with shows likeGrill It! with Bobby Flay, Throwdown! with Bobby Flay, and Boy Meets Grill (he's big on exclamation points and mass exposure). Flay's specialty is Southwest flavors which are incorporated into most of his dishes. He owns restaurants all over the country, writes cookbooks and is a Food Network Iron Chef.

In Flay's ninth book, Bobby Flay’s Throwdown!, he compiles over 100 recipes and stories from the show’s six seasons, including food photos from the winning and competing chefs. Throwdown challenges include macaroni and cheese, cupcakes, barbecue, muffuletta and chili. At the book signing, the store cooked the mac and cheese (page 65) and offered samples to the waiting crowd. The memorable chili competitor on Flay's show from Houston (Cindy Reed Wilkins, page 24) was there to get her book signed too.

I arrived at 9:45 a.m. for a scheduled 12 -2 p.m. signing, and there were already 30 people in front of me. By noon, there were a few hundred people in a line that wrapped around the outside of the store. People came with their lawn chairs, iPads, and books, ready to sit and wait. Many purchased multiple books ($27.50) that Flay happily personalized.

When it was my turn to meet Flay at about 12:30 p.m. (after two hours and 45 minutes of waiting), he was extremely kind. He posed for photos with anyone who wanted one. I also brought a copy of this month’s Runner’s World where he's featured in the last page “I’m a Runner” column. He signed that too. Flay is running his third New York Marathon Nov 7.

Now I need to get cooking. I’ll bet his barbecued chicken and potato salad (page 254) would fit in great in this town.