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‘Food Network Star’ boasts three contenders from Big Apple

THE BIG APPLE is looming larger than ever on the Food Network this season.

The cooking channel’s seminal competition series, “Food Network Star,” opens its 11th season June 7 — and one quarter of the contestants are from the New York area. Staten Island, Brooklyn and Harlem are represented by, respectively, chefs Dominick Tesoriero, Rue Rusike and Sita Lewis. The trio anchor a field with nine additional hopefuls.

Tesoriero (below) is the oldschool immigrant entrepreneur type. Like everyone else on the show, he’s been cooking since he was a kid and he studied in his family’s ancestral homeland. But Tesoriero stands out because he manned the stoves at the USA house at three consecutive Olympiads and created the Mac Truck — the city’s first (and still only) mobile mac and cheese slinger.

“It pretty much embodies the whole American dream,” said Tesoriero, who believes his hard work and creative spirit have prepared him best for the intense competition.

Rue Rusike (below center) is the immigrant candidate. From Zimbabwe, she took full advantage of New York’s culinary riches by getting jobs at top restaurants in the city and honing her South African cuisine as a private chef.

“Living, cooking and working in New York City is every chef’s biggest dream come true,” said Rusike, who worked at 11 Madison Park and Regency Bar & Grill before opening Williamsburg restaurant, Station.

Sita Lewis (near l.) is the insider. She taught herself to cook dishes from her African and Italian roots, and has turned her skills into a career as a culinary instructor and a segment producer on food shows for BET, Fox and others.