TOP CHEF ALL STARS Spoilers

[filkertom]

I thought the Quickfire Challenge this week was really dumb. They had some clothes designer out there, and the challenge was to make the food enticing-looking rather than worry about whether it was edible. Or something. The more I think about these chefs trying to sculpt something this oddball would find aesthetically pleasing, as if food were only colored Play-Doh, the more I Do Not Want. Blais won, for basically a dairy diorama not unlike green plants on crumbly asphalt.

The Elimination challenge was way the hell more fun. There is an Italian restaurant in New York, Rao's, that goes back 114 years. They've got ten tables, and you cannot get reservations. The challenge was to create a dish inspired by this legendary place. The chefs pulled knives to determine if they would cook antipasti, primo, or secundo.

Everybody, with the possible exception of Dale, was pretty confident. Mike, one of the Italian-Americans on the show right now (along with Fabio, Angelo and Antonia), was talking trash about how he was gonna walk all over this one. Not only did that make me think he was going home, I REALLY WANTED him to go home.

The antipasti (Tiffany, Antonia, Carla) turned out great, with Antonia's mussels w/fennel and garlic standing out.

The primo (Mike, Dale, Tre) had problems from the get-go: Mike and Dale badly undercooked their pasta, while Tre's risotto was a glop of starch on the plate with no integrity or spread to the rice.

The secundo (Angelo, Fabio, Blais) made up for a lot, particularly Fabio's chicken cacciatore w/polenta.

Judges' Table: Fabio, Antonia, Carla, and Tiffany had the best dishes of the evening. Antonia won. Everybody seemed a little surprised and possibly offended by that, on the grounds that steaming mussels isn't that difficult and (in Fabio's view) it's a "French" dish. Note to Fabio: look up "inspired by" in the dictionary, mmkay?

The entire pasta course was on the cutting block. I thought for sure Mike was going home -- he admitted his pasta was cooked badly -- but the more they talked about Tre's risotto, the more it became obvious that he was going home, which he did. Mike looked as if he had literally dodged a bullet.

I honestly think Mike and Angelo are just Not All That. I was proud of the ladies stepping up and kicking ass, and even Blais was impressed with Fabio this week. It's getting tighter, and I'm betting that Mike will be one of the next two eliminated.

Thoughts?

Comments

[redaxe.livejournal.com]

I think the difference in who went home this ep was that Tre argued for his dish ("this is how I was taught to make risotto") while Mike acknowledged that he'd blown it. It's possible to argue for a dish, but the judges really hate anything that would show them up, e.g., having to acknowledge that they were wrong about how a classic dish ought to be. (Doubly so when the judge in question is Italian, and so's the dish; triply so when the chef isn't.)

That said, Mike could have, and possibly should have, gone home. His error of execution was at least as bad as anyone's there.

FWIW, the concept of the Quickfire wasn't bad, but I'd have liked to see the chefs have to produce something tasty, too.

We're getting down to the really good ones; I don't think there's anyone left who isn't at least on the high side of midrange for ability.

Quick fire challenge

[ldyerzsie.livejournal.com]

I could have with 5 minutes and a slab of marzipan. Tasty and good looking.

[johnpatrickmcp.livejournal.com]

I'm waiting for Angelo to go home. It seems like he is just always in the background and the only reason he has survived this long is because there were just people who sucked more than he did. I think Fabio should have won, his dish seemed to best embody the spirit of the challenge. But my money is still on Blais to take it all.

[alfiechat.livejournal.com]

I love Tre, and am sad that he's gone. I don't like Antonia at all. I am liking Dale T a lot better this season than in his original one. Angelo isn't bugging me as much this season either, but I don't want him to win. I would love the top three to be Richard, Carla, and Tiffany to be the final 3.