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Jeff, Jamie, and Leah

Just when you think they’re gone, three contestants come back to put some fire under the four remaining cheftestants. The three formerly eliminated challengers got to participate in a quickfire challenge and whoever won got to work in the elimination catering challenge in the Big Easy City.

The city known for it’s delicious and savory food was a great setting for the finale and Jeff rose to the challenge on the quickfire but according to judge Tom Colicchio from his blog on BravoTV , “Jeff was never in the running for a reason that didn’t make it into the final edit. He did a very fine job, however he used some sort of sterno chafing dish to keep his oysters warm that, for whatever reason, imparted a taste of burning sterno to the oysters. We all smelled it and remarked on it while the chefs were setting up their stations, and then we tasted that horrible taste when we sampled his selections. So, unfortunately for Jeff, who otherwise was cooking very well, he could never have taken the top spot of the evening.” Arg, the curse of the stinky sterno.

This season’s final four are all very good chef’s and so it came down to some small reasons to eliminate the charming Fabio. He shouldn’t feel inferior to the three remaining cheftestants. Hosea, Carla, and Stefan.

Top Chef was pretty cool this week. It started off with the Quickfire Challenge with Carla winning and Wylie Dufresne judging. The challenge was to make an egg meal with a new twist and she made green eggs with jalapeno sauce.
The Elimination Challenge was entitled, “What would Your Last Meal Be?” and each cheftestant had to serve several of the top chefs from around the world. Before they began the challenge they got to check out the first Top Chef winner’s restaurant, Perilla. Then they all got to show their cooking skills to the likes of Jacques Pepin who also served as the guest judge. Fabio won the challenge with his chicken despite a broken pinky. Leah lost with her uncooked egg and runny hollandaise sauce. So the finals in New Orleans will include Hosea, Stephan, Carla, and Fabio.

Harried Radhika

No matter how they edit a show sometimes you just know who is going home and on this weeks Top Chef, it was Radhika. You can’t hide terrible service, poor team leadership, or a slow mind.

Carla Sends Love with her food

Although Carla trying to “send love” along with crappy desserts was a close second. What was that all about? I thought her eyes were going to fall out of her head when she defended her choice in sending out melted sorbet. I don’t see her lasting much longer even if her bio on the Top Chef web site describes her as owner/chef of Alchemy Caterers and that she is a graduate of C.C.T. L’Academie de Cuisine.

So who is left? Carla, of course, Stephan, Hosea along with his non-girlfriend Leah, Jamie, Fabio who did very well in front of the restaurant this week, and Jeff. 

Top Chef  tore up the farm on this weeks episode. The “cheftestants” were stuck on a farm and had to use the fresh ingredients provided by Blue Hill Farm. Dan Barber, chef and co-owner of Blue Hill Farm restaurant in NYC, served as guest judge. He was pretty low key but on the spot with his astute observations of the challengers entrees for the “fresh farm food”.

Down on the farm

 

Ariana, pictured on left, lost the challenge because she failed to show the judges the proper way to butcher a baby lamb. All I could think of was poor baby lamb… awww.

 

Judge Tom said, ” “Cooking simple” is like walking a tightrope without a net” and apparently Ariana needed a big one. One large enough to cut up a raw piece of meat properly. She had won several previous challenges and was judged on this one challenge alone; making it difficult for them to let her go on to next week. I felt they should have let her go on to next week and let someone who was weaker, like Leah leave. 

Radhika

On Top Chef Wednesday night, the Quickfire Challenge was difficult for the non-pastry making cheftestants. They had to create a sugar free dessert. The judge for the challenge was a French chef named Jean Christophe. He’s going to have his own show on Bravo later this year and he was tough! Radhika won immunity with her bread pudding.
For the Elimination Challenge they had to create a family style meal with a blind taste test and two chefs would be eliminated. The blind part? The cheftestants had to taste their counterparts entrees along with the judges without knowing who’s dish was who’s.

Toby Young

The contestants were tough but not as tough as new judge Toby Young who will be the new judge (taking over for Gail for the rest of the season). He’s much harsher than her with his brutal descriptions but he has a quick wit and should be fun to watch. Jamie won the challenge (her first win). The two losers? Melissa and Gene.

Martha Stewart judged the One Pot Wonder Quick Fire Challenge on the December 17 episode. They only had one hour and could only use one pot. She didn’t like the taste of the potato risotto made by Jeff, or Eugene’s Korean stew because she hated the corn starch in the stew and she was turned off by Fabio’s gray polenta but she liked Hosea’s paella, Jamie’s dish with scallops, and Ariane’s beef with puree. Martha gave the  immunity winner, Ariane, an autographed copy of her new cook book.
The elimination competition was a catering job for the fundraiser amfAR with 300 people and each dish had to be inspired by one of the twelve days of Christmas.
The morning of the elimination challenge was a disaster because one of the fridges was left open causing all the food to go bad. So everyone helped the ones who’s food went bad. The kitchen was filled with Christmas Spirit. I could almost hear birds chirping and angels singing.
Natasha Richardson an actress/not a chef, was the guest judge for the elimination and she got to announce to Hosea that he was the winner of this round.

Tom C. actually went into the waiting room to yell at the contestants for cooking simple food and playing it safe but then he told them no one was eliminated because it was Christmas and because they all helped each other. awww

Top Chef was fun to watch this week, beginning with the Quick Fire Challenge. The “cheftestants” got to play Name that Ingredient;  an homage to Name That Tune (the old reality competition singing show), they had to taste a bowl of un-named food and guess the ingredients in it. This game showed the viewer who had the best palate and who didn’t. Well, in the end Hosea won and was immune from elimination.

The Elimination Challenge featured a Bridal Shower for Judge Gail Simmons (her Top Chef bio states she is already married, so she must be a newlywed) and all the contestants were in groups of three; Something Old, Borrowed, or Blue.

Poor Ol’ Danny Boy from New Yawk was the loser of this episode with his questionable choice of food. Hiding woodsy tasting mushrooms under fellow contestant Carla’s salad? Thinking his food was tasty? Tom C. scoffed at that one. But at least Danny stood by his food.

I think Eugene should have been eliminated with his build your own sushi fiasco. Not a good concept for a Bridal Shower. While I like Eugene’s personality on the show that should never be a reason to keep a chef on the show. It’s called Top Chef not Top Nice Guy. Likewise, if someone like the arrogant Stefan wins it should be because of his culinary expertise.