Tinley Woman's Dream Comes True With Spot On Guy Fieri's TV Show

TINLEY PARK, IL — A Tinley Park woman with a passion for cooking says she's seen her a longtime dream come true, with her appearance on a TV show by famed American restaurateur Guy Fieri.

Genien Sheikah, 34, is a lifelong Tinley resident whose love of food and cooking inspired her to create a food blog and social media presence to share her passion. It was those outlets that brought her closer to Fieri. Sheikah was invited to appear on Fieri's show "Guy's Grocery Games" on The Food Network—an intense dash through Fieri's Flavortown grocery store to scoop up ingredients and cook a dish within 30 minutes. With her episode set to air April 12, Sheikah called it a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

Sheikah was joined on the show by her husband, Ahmed, and mother, Yousra. Sheikah and her husband have been avid watchers of the show for years, she said.

"My husband and I would watch this show, and say, 'we would do this, or this differently,' which is so much easier to say from your couch," she said, laughing. "Now I know that."

Their involvement in the show was a whirlwind, with an audition followed by no news, then by a call that they'd need to take COVID-19 tests and hop on a plane two days later.

"It all happened so fast," Sheikah said.

Sheikah's team went up against two others. The teams are given 30 minutes and a standard shopping cart to collect the ingredients they need, cook and plate their dish for the judges. With the episode not yet aired Wednesday afternoon, Sheikah wasn't able to give any spoilers on her dish, or the results.

The Andrew High School graduate said on her blog, Instagram and social media she focuses on Middle Eastern dishes, and other easy, quick, family-friendly ones. Her desire to focus on Middle Eastern cuisine stems from earlier generations' tendency to cook by feel or to taste, rather than following exact recipes.

"I try to do a lot of traditional Middle Eastern," she said, "because a lot of Middle Eastern moms and grandmas do not use measuring cups (for their recipes), but younger generations need measuring."

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Sheikah uses her expertise in cooking, as well as her personable nature, to encourage others to explore the art and try new things. You can follow her cooking adventures on Instagram and TikTok.

As she waited eagerly for the episode Wednesday evening—you can see it on The Food Network at 8 p.m.—she reflected on meeting Fieri.

"He was so great," she said. "He gave us a little pep talk, he told us all that we already won, that it doesn’t matter what the outcome was. Being one of three teams that were chosen for the show was a win."

The experience was one she'll never forget.

"Honestly, it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience," Sheikah said. "We were treated like royalty, it was like a dream come true. Meeting someone you’ve been watching on TV for years was amazing."