Were going to do this quick and dirty since your trusted weekly Top Chef recapper has been kidnapped or something. But in a good way. And weve already gotten rid of the most annoying cheftestant this season, so I wont have to focus all my vitriol on a single person. Instead were at the point where the end is in sight and as a chef I start to enjoy the nuanced differences between everyone.
Lets be honest with what we have left in the top six. Very capable chefs who have proven numerous times this season they deserve to be there. While achieving this they also excel at not being particularly memorable in any way. At this junction its all about who screws things up with a flat dessert or over seasons a simple grilled steak. Amandas oxidized tuna tartare I saw happening as she pushed the fish through a metal grinder. Not just the air, but contact with the metal is going to do bad things to tuna overnight. No matter how perfect her dish tastes, theres just something disturbing about grey tuna tartare.
This week the cheftestants were tasked to upgrade ball park food. As usual certain people took the challenge at face value, deciding to prepare ball park style food but in a fresher style. Then others just lost their minds with ideas of dim sum dumbed down some. Look, I like Angelo. I think hes a really good chef and I dont see him being deliberately malicious to the competition. But hes a frazzle brain sometimes.
But before they rose to that challenge the cheftestants first had to combat food idioms. Cute phrases that involved food items like spill the beans were the challenge this week. I like the Quick Fire challenges each week simply because theyre so often bullshit. Although I doubt anything will every top the mystery box challenge. This week I noticed something named Ed. He made gnocchi, which you dont see often on Top Chef, and awakened me to the idea that he was an Italian inspired chef. And uh, I also noticed Ed. Everyone talking about theres no drama or surprise or interesting people on this season need to keep their eyes on the unobtrusive Ed. Hes going to end up winning the whole damn thing and people will be flabbergasted. But no, I warned you right here that something like this could happen. Hell, if Kenny can be sent home before Alex anything is possible.
Speaking of Ed, he continued along his Italian way by making an arancini like dish. Basically we most often call deep fried risotto balls arancini for simplicity sake. Technically there are distinct variations depending on whats put inside, the shape, or where they originated from. Suppli are my favorite because you get that long gooey strand of mozzarella. Anyways, Ed puts out a shrimp and corn arancini. Which sounds fantastic. But its Tiffany I have to pick as my personal winner with her sausage meatball hybrid sub thing. Im all for sushi, crab cakes, or fried risotto at the ball park if thats what you want, and youre willing to pay the exorbitant price. But personally Ill go for the cold 24oz beer and the meatballs every time.
The judges decided that it was Eds fried rice balls that deserved the honors this week. I cant disagree, but arancini are always a winning choice. On the other end of things poor Amanda got called out on her grey tuna tartare. I feel bad because its such a silly little mistake, but its the details that make you a better chef. Or as Im told numerous times each week while working the line, If you wanna shine West, you gotta polish! So with that detail missed Amanda packs up her knives and goes home.
Angelo, Kevin and Kelly in the final three? You go ahead and hold on to that thought, but dont ignore the faint whisper of Eds name as we come to the end of this season.
Photo by: David Giesbrecht/Bravo

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In a last moment decision, Bravo has decided to return its jet skis and back away from the ramp. At least for now, the great white will have to go hungry. If those last two sentences did not make sense to you, please refer back to last weeks post, where I proclaimed that Bravo was preparing to jump the shark when it came to Alexs participation on Top Chef. Thankfully, the sloppy chef now returns to his west coast abode where he will not be able to bother us with his inexplicable lack of focus any longer.
Top Chef is now down to six contestants, and like all marathon-type competitions, even the best are getting tired. The baseball term is the dog days of summer; I suppose that would make this the doggie-bag days of summer? Even major contenders like Angelo are starting to fizzle, as he landed himself in the bottom three for the first time in recent memory.
This week, the seven chefs left in this sixteen week competition cooked for our nations red-headed security agency, the CIA. Not quite as sexy as the FBI, nor as bad-ass as the secret service (In the Line of Fire any one?), the CIA is just kind of, you know, there. Finding out what kind of pornography you watch and what books you check out from the library; because nothing says terrorist like someone who watches dirty videos and reads Balzac, right? Anyway, in light of this weeks theme, the Quickfire Challenge gave the chefs a rather unique assignment… The Mystery Box Quickfire.
Quickfire Challenge: Heres how the Mystery Box Quickfire Challenge works: Every chef is given a box with the same mystery ingredients inside of it. Simple enough, right? Well, it would be, if the chefs werent given another box every ten minutes or so until their time is up. This challenge really showed how tiring this competition is. All the chefs gave their best effort, but it seemed like many of the chefs dishes were just not up to par with what they have been cooking all season. Tiffany managed to use the unappetizing fish to her advantage and took the win easily. I personally wouldnt have touched it, but then, Im not much of a fish guy.
Elimination Challenge: As I eluded to earlier, the elimination challenge had the cheftestants cook for some of the higher ups of the CIA, which gave Bravo the chance to slip in plenty of poor CIA puns and a really lame challenge. Since the CIA spends so much time undercover (I dont even know if thats true), the chefs had to create a dish which was chosen for them (they drew knives) and then disguise this dish, while keeping the original flavors at heart. Challenges like this make me wonder just how much baking Bravo execs do while planning out these elimination challenges, if you know what I mean.
Jacobs Pick: Tiffany
Tiffany came forward with a really great looking meal; taking the concept of a gyro and disguising it adequately enough to get the judges singing her praises for the second time tonight. She has been on a remarkable hot streak as of late, and if she keeps it up she stands to win the entire competition. I wont say Im shocked, but if you had asked me in the first week if Tiffany would go the distance, I probably would have said no. That being said, she has really found a groove within which she has made some pretty spectacular dishes. Better look out boys, Tiffany is coming up fast.
Judges Pick: Tiffany
Oh, and she won a trip to Paris. Isnt that nice.
Pack It: Alex
Oh Alex; while I dont quite hold the same glee that I did when Tracey or Andrea went home, I must say that I am beyond pleased to see that your poor cooking has ousted you from the competition. Your sloppiness and lack of preparation came forward in full force in your dry, overcooked beef, and I truly wonder how you got into this competition to begin with, let alone get this far into it. The judges made the right decision this week, so enjoy the sunshine of California, Alex – Im sure it has missed you almost as much as Ed will miss you.
Top Chef seems to be steering itself back to more stable ground, which I can not be happy enough about. With only six contestants left, there is not a whole lot of competition left to come. Who is your pick to make it to the finale this season? As it stands now, Im thinking well see Angelo, Tiffany, and Ed in the top three. Ed may not be particularly interesting, but he gets the job done week in and week out, and that should help him in the coming weeks.

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Restaurant Wars is as much a part of Top Chef as the Quickfire Challenge. Tonights competition pitted Ed, Tiffany, Angelo, and Alex against Kenny, Kevin, Kelly, and Amanda; a match made in Top Chef producer heaven. Kenny and Angelo led their teams to battle in an episode that had plenty of spark, but little sizzle.
The Quickfire Challenge was guest judged by Nancy Pelosi, who likes to eat when she isnt causing me to be embarrassed that I live in California. In this challenge, the aforementioned teams took part in a tag team challenge. So, one chef at a time would go up, prepare a part of a dish, and tag the next chef on their team when the first chefs time was up. Alex salted the red teams dish too early, which gave the blue team an easy Quickfire victory. This luck would not last; well, you wouldnt think so if you were to look at the results.
From beginning to end, Kennys blue team dominated. Their demeanor was far more relaxed than the red teams and their food was better received by the judges, as was the service. The red team was plagued by poor service (again, thanks to Alex), poorly prepared food, and an overall poor reception from the judges, who left the red teams EVOO restaurant in a huff.
Then we come to judges table, where the red team is crowned victorious in season sevens restaurant wars. Dont worry, I think I can explain why this happened: they dont want Alex to go home, not yet, at least. Despite the fact that he is the least qualified judge left in this competition, he escaped any opportunity to be eliminated this week because he was lucky enough to end up on the winning team.
Heres the catch: Luck doesnt exist on reality television unless it is manufactured by the producers. In order to get Alex out of the hot seat, the judges awarded the wrong team, and as such, sent home a contestant that is only slightly deserving of his fate.
Jacobs Pick: The Blue Team
Judges Pick: The Red Team
Pack It: Kenny
A couple of weeks ago, I wondered if the only reason Kenny had made it as far as he did in this competition was because of his rivalry with Angelo. Kenny has always talked a big game, but has rarely provided any solid results. Tonight was no exception. As usual, his dish was too ambitious, a problem that he has had all season. His arrogance and unwillingness to absorb criticism cost him any chance of getting to the finale of this season. Pack your knives, Kenny; because while you may be better than Alex, you still dont deserve to be in this competition.
Eventually, this Alex thing is going to have to end. Everyone hates him. Everyone. Yeah, that might be entertaining for a few weeks, but I can sense that Bravo is about to jump the shark with this unoriginal plot device. Thankfully, we are to the point in this season where just about every contestant is interesting, talented, or both. This should step up the entertainment value of Top Chef considerably within the coming weeks.
Also – Top Chef has a new time starting next week! Catch Top Chef at 10 PM, instead of the usual 9 PM airtime.
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In last weeks episode of Top Chef, Alex allegedly stole a pea puree that belonged to another contestant, Ed. Tensions were high, and much to do was made about the missing pea puree, to the point that the focus of the episode largely drifted to the back kitchen conflict, and less towards the presented food. Ideally, thats how Top Chef should be. Yeah, the food is the reason all the contestants are there, but lets be honest; we arent half as interested in beef bourginion as we are in the contestants making the dishes in the first place. Heres the problem: last week we were all supposed to get excited about a missing pea puree.
Think about that for a minute. What does that say about this season of Top Chef? Nothing good, as far as Im concerned, as it seems that the contestants are not interesting enough to carry the seventeen week program. Tonights episode Well, lets just say that if it was served to me at a restaurant, I would send it back.
The quickfire challenge had the cheftestants create a dish inspired by Ethiopian cuisine, based mostly on a special spice called Berbere, the curry of Ethiopia. The problem is this: what the hell is Ethiopian cuisine? Not to sound too American, but I didnt even know a distinct cuisine existed. While its great that Top Chef is trying to broaden our culinary horizons, not enough is explained about this cuisine to get our imaginations going, which is what great food should do. It also makes all the chefs look like a bunch of amateurs, a huge problem in a program where I should never feel that I could do something just as easily as the chefs.
Tiffany made it out with a win, which granted her immunity in the elimination challenge, not that she needed it. Her Beef Goulash was just a taste of the greatness that was to come later in the night.
The concept behind this weeks elimination challenge was a good one. Every contestant chooses a different country and then uses that country as inspiration towards the creation of their dish. These dishes were then served to ambassadors, dignitaries, and other people that have a lot of experience with foreign cuisine. This great concept made it even more obvious that a certain spark, or fire, was missing from last nights episode.
Jacobs Pick: Kelly (Italy)
Kellys Beef Carpaccio holds a lot of appeal for me, both visually and conceptually; I love Italian food, so forgive me for my slight bias. The pairing of beef with a light salad and vinaigrette is a fantastic idea, and it always works perfectly when eaten together. This was definitely one of those dishes that I wish I could try myself!
Judges Pick: Tiffany (Mexico)
Tiffany made some of the best looking Chicken Tamales I have ever seen. Im from California, so pseudo-Mexican food is a staple around here, but rarely do I see gourmet Mexican food. It is often reduced to fast food burritos and quesadillas, which is truly a shame, given the great diversity of flavors that authentic Mexican food offers. Tiffany put forth a great effort, and secured her first win in both the quickfire and elimination challenges, and boy did she deserve it.
Pack It: Stephen (Brazil)
Stephen was the last to choose a country, and as such, he was stuck with whatever was left. While his dish appeared great conceptually (Flank Steak with Black Beans & Rice), judges complained that it lacked focus, and the dryness of the beans and rice took away from the flavor of the beef. Joining him on the bottom were Alex and Ed, two contestants that are used to getting a look at the bottom of the ladder, although both were in the top three last week.
The elimination of Stephen is unfortunate, as it knocks out one of the greatest personalities of this season and leaves the intolerable Alex. It seems that Top Chef has found their Sanjaya, and they plan to exploit it. A problem I have always had with reality television shows is that instead of getting you to root for a particular contestant, they seem tasked with causing you to hate another. The tease for next week consisted almost entirely of Alex bashing, and while I hate the formulaity of this decision, I must admit that it has me intrigued for next weeks episode. Maybe those Top Chef producers know what theyre doing after all…
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You have probably noticed that the last few episodes of Top Chef have been lacking something. That something would be a theme, or a constant in all the challenges. Weak tie ins had left me wondering whether or not this season was going to utilize the D.C. theme to its full potential. After watching the latest episode, Id be just fine with a little under-utilization.
The producers decided to lay it on thicker than syrup on pancakes with more grinning, goobery politicians and analysts than you can shake a stick at; or fit on a large barbecue grill, depending on your personal tastes. Its all about the food, of course, but Top Chef believes that when it comes to lobbying and deal making, the same is true. I dont know about you, but the healthcare bill wasnt passed because of some tasty lobster. Seriously, it would have taken at least a Turducken for me to get on board. But maybe some politicians standards are lower than mine; its possible.
However this was, thankfully, quickly overshadowed by the fervent drama going on in the kitchen. The rivalry between Ed and Alex blew up tonight in what could be called the greatest pea heist of the century. Before I get too far ahead of myself, lets take a look at the Quickfire Challenge.
The youngest congressman (a smiley fellow from Illinois) gave the challenge to our cheftestants. Apparently, the ethics committee believes that buying meals for politicians is an easy way to buy off votes. To solve this problem, they decided that all food served to a politician must come on a tooth pick. Im not sure what the exact specifications are, but Id just get a bigger tooth pick, right? I mean, Ive seen some giant tooth picks in sandwiches before, and if the lobbyists can afford to buy votes to begin with, youd think this wouldnt be an issue.
Regardless, some of the dishes did end up looking rather pleasant. Stephens scallop and beef dish impressed, but in the end, Angelo took the Quickfire win, immunity, and 20,000. Again. The chefs dont like Angelo, despite the fact that his rather explosive personality has cooled in the last couple of weeks. But they say that success brings jealousy, and Angelo has certainly had a lot of success with Top Chef thus far.
The Elimination Challenge entrusted the worlds survival to the chefs when they were asked to create power lunches for the guests of The Palm restaurant. Cause nothing says sanctions against nuclear arms more than a great porterhouse, am I right? The self importance of this episode was nauseating, but thats television I suppose.
Amid the pomp and circumstance came a rather shocking and possibly underdeveloped story. Ed and Alex have been at each others throats all season long, but when Eds pea puree went missing, and a pea puree happened to end up on Alexs dish Well, lets just say theres something fishy about that. My real problem is that, again, the producers seem less interested in creating a fair competition and more interested in making good television. As such, there was no investigation into Alexs possibly malfeasance, nor was any factual light shed upon anything to do with the controversy. It didnt even come up at Judges Table, which leaves me wondering just what kind of competition this is; a fair one? Or an entertaining one?
Jacobs Pick: Ed
Even without his pea puree, Ed shined by poaching giant lobsters (seriously, those deadliest catch guys have nothing on these bad boys) with eggplant and asparagus fricassee. He ended up in the top three, along with his buddy Tiffany, and of course, Alex. I dont believe this top three could have possibly been more contrived. The three contestants thrust deepest into the controversy all ended up in the top three, and I cant believe that it was a coincidence.
Judges Pick: Alex
If picking Alex as the winner this week was done to inflame viewers, it succeeded. A note to the producers of Top Chef: If youre going to crown Alex as the winner, dont you think you should make sure the star of his dish is actually his? As I said, fairness doesnt seem to matter to Top Chef, but good drama sure does.
Pack It: Andrea
Okay, so my prediction came a little bit late, but to be fair, both Kelly and Andrea ended up in the bottom three tonight. Kevin hit a stumbling block after his first win last week, and Kelly continued her dull plod through the competition. None of the food seemed overly bad, if not all that tasty. However, I will not complain about seeing one of my least favorite contestants sent packing, so bon voyage, Andrea. Have a lovely time serving food in your Crocs and army jeans elsewhere!
Top Chef is walking the line between entertaining and unfair. They better keep their eyes open wide, their ends out for the tie that binds, and keep a close eye on the hearts of their viewers if they want us to reamin faithful to their cooking dramedy.
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The struggle within television competitions comes down to one question: Are you (the creators) looking to showcase the competitors talent? Or are you simply trying to create good television? Top Chef has always listed towards the latter, and that showed in tonights episode.
Tonights Quickfire Challenge was unassuming, and as a result a little boring. The cheftestants were asked to create a dish showcasing crabs. No relevance, really; but the dishes were interesting, as was the direction the chefs took them in. While some chefs chose to stick to the roots of crab dishes, your crab chowders and New England staples, the majority took crabs to the far east for some fine Asian dining. What struck me the most about this challenge was the brutality with which crabs are cooked. Chopped in half, thrown in boiling water, baked in an oven; all while still alive, I might add. I dont love crabs any more than baby seals, but I hope that if reincarnation exists, I never come back as a crab.
The eastern influence won out as Eds Asian style crab dish took the challenge. Im not much for crab, so his Jumbo Lump Crab with Thai didnt excite me. That being said, it did appear to be one of the more appealing dishes offered in this challenge; although I would not have minded seeing Kennys dish crowned king here (that was some crab humor, enjoy).
Ive always had a problem with team rounds in Top Chef, mostly because it doesnt seem like a fair judge of the chefs individual talent. While the drama certainly makes for compelling television, I would like to see a reality show that doesnt short change its contestants in the name of higher ratings. This weeks Elimination Challenge took the idea of teamwork to its absolute extreme: all of the contestants on one team.
Clearly in an effort to showcase Kennys and Angelos raging egos (someone needs to pull out a ruler and put an end to this), Top Chef took the easy way out by staging a situation that would almost assuredly end in fireworks. The contestants challenge was to create six dishes using all organic products from a farm that prides itself on being organic and cruelty free – never accuse Bravo of having an agenda. Of course the irony is that not thirty minutes ago, the Cheftestants were slicing live crabs in half – even I think thats a little tough to watch.
The real problem comes from the four dish to twelve contestant ratio. This basically leads to one contestants creating the main piece of the dish, and the other offering the side dish. While this is totally fine for the judges, who can easily tell apart one from the other, as a viewer, I felt that this made the dishes particularly hard to identify; a task already difficult with so many contestants. That being said, most of the dishes looked great, and even the losing chefs dish was not a complete wash.
Jacobs Pick: Beef Tenderloin by Ed, Tiffany, and Alex.
Beef Tenderloin stuffed with Ratatouille? Im there. This meal perfectly fit the episodes surroundings (the lush farm from which all of the ingredients were grown) and is a great example of the talent lying underneath some of the smaller contenders in this season. Alex and Ed seem destined to get the axe before the top six, but Tiffany could be a surprise later this season; Id keep an eye on her as the season progresses.
Judges Pick: Kennys side dish, which was created for a dish with too many chefs to list.
Not a bad choice at all. Really, the win could have gone to any one in this challenge. While each chef had to take technical responsibility for a dish, the entire meal was a collaboration and the judging should be treated as such. This is why team challenges dont work for Top Chef; theyre unfair to the chefs and the viewers.
Tim pulled the short straw this week; an unfortunate departure in many ways. While he certainly wasnt going to win this thing, he had a great attitude, and gave his all in every challenge. Good luck in your future endeavors, Tim; Im sure youll be missed around Chef Manor.
Andrea and Kelly hung on this week (go ahead, throw your tomatoes, I dont care), but theyre certainly not the stars of this season. At this point, Im counting on Angelo, Kenny, Tiffany, and Amanda to make it into the final four. Next week marks the sixth episode of the seventh season, and Im hoping we get back to a one on one challenge after two weeks in a row of duet performances.
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One problem I have always had with Top Chef comes from the judging. I understand that no dish is perfect and that most deserve their fair share of criticism. That being said, there is a fine line between critical and pretentious. We as the viewers should love the judges wit and knowledge as much as the contestants heart and perseverance, if youll forgive me the cliche. But when judges like Tom Colicchio continuously harp on seemingly insignificant and uppity matters, that connection is lost. Regardless of the showmanship of judging in Top Chef, in this episode a fan favorite was lost, and I cant help but wonder if this was in an effort to save a season long rivalry from disappearing too early.
For the most part, Top Chef has managed to stick with a central theme: America. However, this Quickfire Challenge deviated from America the Beautiful and instead focused on… babies? The challenge: Create a dish for an adult and their young offspring. This comes about because of the newborns wriggling around the houses of head judge, Tom Colicchio, and host, Padma Lakshmi. No, it didnt make a whole lot of sense, but with ten thousand dollars on the line the chefs went all out. I dont know if its anything youll find mass produced by Gerber any time soon, but Angelos Poached Tuna looked fantastic, even if Tameshas Salmon and Kennys Curried Chicken walked away with the money.
The dual winners of the Quickfire Challenge was a precursor of things to come. In the Elimination Challenge, the cheftestants were placed into teams of two and tasked with creating a meal fit for room service at a Hilton Hotel. If nothing else, this challenge reminded me why I changed majors; hotel and restaurant managers scare the hell out of me.
To make it interesting, the Elimination Challenge had three rounds: one for each meal. The top two teams for breakfast got to relax for the rest of the challenge, and the same for the winning lunch teams. It all came down to the dinner dish between last weeks winner Arnold, who was paired with Lynne; Kenny (Angelos arch rival – Angelo escaped in the lunch round with Tamesha) who was paired with Kevin; and Kelly, paired with Andrea.
Jacobs Pick: Arnold and Lynne
Arnold has a great personality, and he makes great food. Thus, I would have seen him go on to the top five, if not the top three in this competition. His elimination this week is a huge loss to the chemistry of the show, although I can say much less for his partner, Lynne. Arnolds dish was gutsy. Pairing pasta with an ink squid sauce is probably not something I would try out if I was looking over a room service menu, but heres the catch: It wasnt just another short rib dish, which is what his competitors put out. I always admired Top Chef for being a show in which originality is celebrated, but this week it appears to have been punished. What they say is true: big business squashes creativity.
Judges Pick: Kelly and Andrea
Words can not explain how disappointed I am with the judges decision this week. Andrea and Kelly are not only two of the most irritating contestants on this show (seriously, they give Tracey a run for her money), they are also completely unremarkable chefs. They may have won this challenge (well, the consolation prize anyway), but I do not expect this trend to continue. In fact, I am predicting that one of these two chefs will be packing her knives come next week.
Top Chef is like a roller coaster of emotions and as such, weeks like this happen. The best and the boldest are not always rewarded, such is the way of reality television. Next weeks episode is being hyped as a massive showdown between Angelo and Kenny; lets hope this turns into more than a twenty second sound-byte. These two need to duke it out, and soon. Otherwise, this rivalry risks running out of gas in the middle of the freeway. Or turnpike. Whatever they call the roads you drive fast on in D.C.
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This isnt my first rodeo. I remember the mid 2000s, you know, when reality T.V. dominated the tube with shows like The Amazing Race, Survivor, and Project Runway standing atop the podium. Because of my vast exposure to these shows, and to Top Chef, I have become accustomed to the fact that interesting people tend to stick around the longest. Tonight, the judges sent home one of the shows more colorful characters and at the same time crowned an unlikely winner. Thank you Bravo for keeping a show that could easily become stale as fresh as the ingredients used in tonights dishes.
In the first two episodes, I talked a lot about desserts and the danger of creating a dessert on this show. Well, the Top Chef gods heard me; this weeks Quickfire Challenge was attached to that oh so delicious American staple: the pie. The irony of this challenge is that the only contestants who have braved a dessert dish thus far have been sent home. So were left with a lot of chefs receiving mixed messages on the judges intentions; thats what makes a great reality show: nonsense.
A lot of chefs played it safe with apple pies and the like. Some failed (Like Tracey) and others succeeded (Like Kenny). Since desserts with a short time frame are always kind of a crap shoot, the most experienced chef is likely to walk away the winner. In this case, it was Kenny. His Bananas Foster Pie looked delicious and was adventurous. It still looked like a pie (I hate these fancy chefs trying to mess with something that works just fine) but it wasnt just a pie. It was the kind of pie that a top chef should make. You dont have to be an expert pastry chef to know that Kennys dish looked awesome. The judges agreed – very wise of them.
The elimination challenge was a little disappointing; not in concept, but in execution. Tasked with creating a picnic lunch for White House interns, the theme of the day was grilling. I found this particularly exciting, being someone that really goes for good barbecue. That excitement quickly turned to disappointment as I realized that A) half of the chefs dont know how to use a grill, and B) that half of those who did have no concept of a good side dish.
Jacobs Pick: Amanda
Amandas baby back ribs paired with grilled asparagus not only looked appealing, but they fit the part. After listening to the judges describe the excellence that this dish possessed when it came to taste, I was sold. The entire episode saw Amanda being critiqued and dismissed (and rightly so), so to see her end up on the top four was a surprise – Top Chef sucker punched me again, damn!
Judges Pick: Arnold
Remember the half I mentioned a few paragraphs ago? You know, the half that didnt know how to grill? Yeah, Arnold fits perfectly into that category. From the time the challenge was first announced, Arnold downplayed his abilities – or at least, thats what we as the viewers were shown. I was sucked into the drama of the episode and looked foolish once again.
Jacobs Pack It Pick: Kelly
Kelly, why are you here? Clearly youre not here to win, because the dish you unveiled in tonights episode was exceptionally dull. A bison burger and pseudo salad? Are you serious? I just made myself some of that for dinner in under an hour, and Im no top chef. In my opinion, if youre not going to try, you dont belong in a competition. You may have not had the worst dish of the night, but it was so full of cowardice that I could not help but grimace at the lack of imagination.
The Judges Pack It Pick: Tracey
Oh Tracey. Tracey, Tracey, Tracey. Loud, irritiating, obnoxious Tracey. I wont miss you, and I cant imagine the rest of the Chef House will either. You had limited talent, low ambition, and no personality. You liked to yell, and you liked to self depricate – thats why you lasted this long on this show. In my opinion, you should have been knocked out from week one, but it all works out in the end I suppose.
This was a great episode for Top Chef. Enthralling, engrossing, and surprising. I didnt guess the end results before the show ended, and I kind of like that. While being right all the time does have its perks, there is certainly something to be said for a little surprise now and again. Well done, Top Chef – well done.
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Remember what I said last week? You know, about the corny political jokes? Yeah, those arent going away. Neither is Bravos continued desire to make a political impact with their programming. Perhaps Im not progressive enough, but Id rather watch chefs make food than talk about whats wrong with America for an hour.
Last week saw the demise of John, a stringy haired, wild eyed man that was probably not missed around the Chef Manor. This week the rivalry between Kenny and Angelo continued to heat up, most likely due to the posturing that comes with the territory on reality television. Does all of this sound familiar? Yeah, thats because youve seen it all before. Last week.
Quickfire Challenge – Bipartisandwich
Because the best governments are bipartisan, the best sandwiches must be as well! Chefs arent known for their logic, but if the food tastes good, I dont care if my chef is John Locke or Spongebob Squarepants. In this challenge, the chefs were paired in groups of two and tasked with creating a delicious sandwich – but as always, theres a catch. Each team was joined by one large apron, thus keeping the spirit of bipartisanship alive. This must have been how the healthcare bill was put together. Well, if it works, it works.
The judges again favored Angelos dish (partnered with Tracey in this challenge). Their flounder sandwich looked absolutely delicious; with plenty of the right vegetables (onions and salad) and well toasted bread, they sealed the deal. This week, Ill hand it to the judges; they got it right.
Judges Pick: Angelo & Tracey
Jacobs Pick: Angelo & Tracey
The Elimination Challenge – Out of the Lunchbox
Tasked with the impossible challenge of feeding a middle school with a budget of just over 2 a child, the cheftestants are placed into teams of four to come up with a healthy, tasty, and under-budget menu for fifty kids. Bravo then swings in with their political sucker punch: Middle school chefs go through this every day. The horrors.
While this would not normally be the end of the world (merely a little annoying), the food was completely upstaged by the political aspects of this challenge. I hardly got a look at any of the food, only for long enough to know that none of it looked particularly appetizing. Not enough color and not enough to excite kids about what theyre eating, which was the goal of the challenge: healthy food that kids can get excited about.
Since Angelo and Tracey won their challenge, they got to choose who else was on their team for the elimination challenge. Angelo, being as crafty as he is, picked Kenny and Ed. Thus, if their team ended up on the bottom of the heap, Angelos toughest competition had a fifty percent chance of hitting the chopping block. Yikes.
Jacobs Top Team: Angelo, Ed, Kenny, Tracey
While this team ended up in the bottom two of the competition, I found their food to be the most normal of the bunch (kids dont want to eat tuna tartar, they want to eat hamburgers and french fries), and it would be what I wanted as a kid had I gone through the public education system. That being said, their food was not the healthiest of the bunch. Plenty of starch to go around here, but I think that the dish had enough going for it to save it from these faults.
Jacobs Bottom Team: Amanda, Tamesha, Stephen, Jacqueline
Im looking at their dish on (and if youd like to see pictures, thats not a bad place to go) and I cant believe that they looked at that dish and said, Yes, lets go forward with this. The vegetables and fruit are visually appealing, but nothing else looks terribly appetizing. The chicken looks bland, as does the rice, and I have no idea what the hell is in that cup. I was not surprised to see this team end up in the bottom group, nor was I terribly disappointed to see one of their number leave.
Winning Team: Kelly, Arnold, Lynne, Tiffany
Despite some bickering, this team was able to pull their butts out of the fire and place themselves on top for this challenge. My main problem with this dish was the decision to use pork in the tacos. Part of what makes a great school dish is its level of accessibility to everyone. Maybe its because of swine flu, or perhaps because it isnt kosher – pork is not a particularly well received meat. Most of the kids I know (and even many of the adults) are not fans of pork. Bacon is most peoples limit when it comes to this curly tailed mammal. This was not an awful dish, but it was also not a great one.
Pack It: Jacqueline
The dessert curse strikes again. Jacqueline, tasked with creating the desert for my bottom team, got the axe this week due to the graininess of her dessert. Ah well Jacqueline, cest la vie!
Winner: Kelly
All I can say is, dont get used to it Kelly. You may have won this challenge, but you will not go much farther than this if your ego balloons any larger than it already has.
This season will likely boil down to the rivalry brewing between Kenny and Angelo. The focus of this episode was unnecessarily placed on the petty bickering that went on between them when their team landed in the bottom four. Bravo knows which contestants are in it for the long haul; the show is already over. By picking up on little cues such as these, its not terribly difficult to see who will be making it to the final weeks.
Source:Cinema Blend

Top Chef is back, and this time has landed itself in Washington D.C. in order to capitalize on the rampant patriotism in America in 2010. Is it just me, or did the producers of Top Chef miss their window of opportunity? I think last year, you know, right after America rushed Obama into the White House was the right time to capitalize on anything. But were here, and now I get to watch Padma wave American flags around all Summer, which is just fine by me.
The format remains the same – if you win you get a lot of money, youre featured in Food & Wine Magazine, and you get featured at a food and wine festival in Aspen. Not a bad gig, but youd think that after six seasons something a little more interesting would be offered. Like a blender, or something. Bob Barker should be giving out these prizes. You know what? He should be a guest judge. Right, Im off topic. Anyway.
After three legs that included dismembering a chicken, peeling potatoes, and dicing onions, the remaining judges (each leg saw four or five judges knocked out of contention) used these ingredients and whatever they could find in the expansive Top Chef pantry to make a dish. These four finalists, Angelo, Kenny, Tim, and Kevin are likely to be the face of this competition. The rivalry brewing between Angelo and Kenny is something that you could only possibly find on a reality tv show. Angelo strikes first and wins the Quickfire Challenge with roasted chicken. Personally, I would have gone with Kennys dish – it appeared to possess more flavor and was a little more interesting.
Judges Pick: Angelo.
Jacobs Pick: Kenny.
The Elimination Round asked the competitors to create a dish that best represented where they came from. Expect many more patriotic challenges to be devised as the season progresses (I cant wait for my favorite congresswoman Nancy Pelosi to join the chefs for a show)
In order to avoid boring you with a list of seventeen dishes, Ill widdle it down to my top two and bottom two, and then compare that with who the judges crowned as champion, and who they sent packing.
Jacobs Top Two:
Kelly: What appeared to be a beautiful steak creation by Kelly was completely snubbed by the judges, as she did not appear in the top four at all. While I cant speak for the taste, I do have several years of eating experience under my belt, and from looks alone, Kelly appeared to have the best dish. Or at least the most interesting.
Kenny: Expect Kenny to be the guy youll root for all season, but who probably does not stand a chance against Angelo when it comes to the end. Ive seen enough reality television to know that Kenny is the nice guy, and Angelo is the cocky but talented guy. Regardless, Kenny crafted a great fish dish, which rightfully landed him in the top four.
Jacobs Bottom Two:
Jacqueline: A chicken liver dish that appeared to be bland, and poorly made, landed Jacqueline in the bottom four, and my bottom two. Youve probably never had chicken liver, but its not a light dish by any means. Its very French, which means it has a lot of fat (ironic, yes?) She made the mistake of turning it into a light dish in order to pander to the typical D.C. crowd – but the judges nailed her for it. Lesson being: Dont mess with a good thing.
Tracey: I get the feeling that even though Tracey is not very talented, she will be around for a while. She has a big mouth, a big body, and a big personality. In other words, shes perfect for this show. Her shrimp dish looked very unappealing and although the judges did not bring her to the bottom four, they should have.
Winner: Angelo.
Not terribly shocking by any means, Angelo is clearly very talented, and very determined. That being said, his dish was not the best made tonight. The interviews with the guests and the judges after eating Angelos dish were not quite as excited as they were after eating Kennys, nor Alexs for that matter. As of week one, its Angelo – 1, Kenny – 0.
Pack It: John.
From the moment that John told the camera he was making a dessert, I knew it was over. Any one who has ever watched Top Chef consistently knows that the pastry chef is always the first to go. Tonight was no exception. Perhaps the judges are taking a stand against obesity in America, or maybe Padma got food poisoning from a doughnut once. Either way, desserts remain the kryptonite of this competition.
Top Chef is back, and the competition is likely to be as fierce as ever. From serving food on the White House lawn to grilling up hot dogs at the Nationals ball park in downtown D.C., the challenges are sure to be as interesting and inventive as always. I know Im looking forward to it.
Cheftestants: Tracey Bloom, Timothy Dean, Tiffany Derry, Tamesha Warren, Stephen Hopcraft, Lynne Gigliotti, Kevin Sbraga, Kenny Gilbert, Kelly Liken, John Somerville, Jacqueline Lombard, Ed Cotton, Arnold Myint, Angelo Sosa, Andrea Curto-Randazzo, Amanda Baumgarten, Alex Reznik.
Source:Cinema Blend