Starbucks 'Trenta': How The New Size Compares To Your Stomach
Famous Death Row Last Meals
Spoilers! Really, what do you expect?So even Tom Colicchio has chimed in to call this season of Top Chef a "hard one to read" (aka mediocre), which means that either 1) I have low standards for television (possible), or 2) My television airs a secret, for-my-eyes-only awesome version of Top Chef that's full of crazy cooking and fun. I loved watching Restaurant Wars last night, and I'm still sticking to my belief that the show is as sharp as ever. Let's get into it. Head judge Tom Colicchio paid the cheftestants a friendly 5:45 a.m. visit to rouse them for the Quickfire Challenge -- running the egg station at Chicago's Lou Mitchells restaurant. Spike hadn't cooked eggs in a while and Stephanie couldn't find her poached ones in a pot full of left-behind whites. Antonia won, though Dale was a close second.
Though there's no more immunity, Colicchio announced that Antonia would receive an advantage in the Elimination Challenge, for which he would not be present. He handed the chefs a piece of paper with an address, and they proceeded to engage in a bit of product placement, using some phone with GPS capability to arrive at an enormous, beautiful, open space. Padma was there, and she announced Restaurant Wars -- everyone's all-time favorite Elimination Challenge in which the chefs divide into teams to open their own restaurants for the night. For her reward, Antonia was allowed to pick her team, and she wisely chose Richard and Stephanie. Not only did she advantage herself by choosing the two other strongest chefs, but she also gave her team an enormous boost by leaving Dale and Lisa together after their contention during Wedding Wars. As pointed out, the teams were actually the same as those during Wedding Wars, with the exception of the contestants recently sent home.
Antonia, Stephanie and Richard became Warehouse Kitchen, a restaurant inspired by gastro-pub cuisine. They decided to aim for food that was simple, beautiful and clean, with dishes like linguine and clams, beet and goat cheese salad, trout with cauliflower, and lamb squared (two ways, get it?). Antonia served as Executive Chef, and Stephanie decided to work the front of the restaurant. Dale took the position of Executive Chef for Mai Buddha, with Lisa and Spike, who ran the front. Given the chef's backgrounds in Asian cuisine, they decided to go with an upscale Asian concept, featuring dishes like shrimp laksa, braised short ribs, and scallops with butterscotch. They chefs received $1500 for food, and another chunk of $5000 to choose decor at Pier 1 Imports. Team Mai Buddha went nuts with buddhas, buying out possibly every statue in the store.
While the chefs were busily working, none other than Anthony Bourdain popped in to say hello, and announce that he would be replacing Tom Colicchio as the Top Chef in the challenge. Team Mai Buddha flipped out (in an excited yet nervous way), given Bourdain's extensive experiences eating and traveling in Asia. After surveying the teams, Bourdain seemed to like that Team Warehouse Kitchen didn't seem to be setting up overly high expectations, and noted that the continent of Asia is huge (an excellent observation), and that it's unlikely that the team could be that good at all Asian cuisine.
Well, it turned out that they weren't good at very much Asian cuisine at all. The judges, including guest Judge Jose Andreas were unimpressed by many of the dishes, mostly the too-sweet butterscotch scallops which Bourdain likened to something that Willy Wonka might serve and the mango sticky rice, which turned out all wrong. A customer even wrote that it was like "baby food garnished with potpourri." On the other hand, the chefs really enjoyed the food at Warehouse Kitchen, especially the clam dish designed by Stephanie, as well as her gorgonzola blue cheese cheesecake. Though Antonia was executive chef, Stephanie took home the win for leading the conceptualization of the restaurant, as well as for her dishes.
Over on the "chopping block" (as the chefs like to call it), we saw the usual Dale-Lisa throwdown, as Dale evaded leadership responsibility and Lisa tried to blame the entire thing on Dale. I think that these two actually have so much trouble working together not because their personalities clash, but rather because they are too similar. Both have trouble taking criticism, and become extremely frazzled when one thing goes wrong or when attitudes in the kitchen go sour. Furthermore, both want to take charge in the kitchen, so they have trouble working with other strong personalities. I really wasn't sure who would head home until it was announced, but Dale ended up being sent out. Lisa performed poorly in the Quickfire as well, and has been in the bottom frequently lately, so I think it's unlikely that she'll make it through the next episode. But considering that she said her goal was just to make it through restaurant wars, she should feel lucky that she made it through this one.
It's a bit sad to see Dale go since he seemed like a strong contender early on, but I think that this proves that becoming a contentious figure in the show rarely serves people well, as fighting in the kitchen seems to send chefs home on a pretty regular basis. Next week we'll see who makes it to the final four. I'm definitely excited that at least Stephanie or Antonia will make it, since they were my favorites from the start. Richard's a given, and it's Spike's place to lose to Lisa. Stay tuned!
LOOK: Amazing Underwater Photos Of Dogs
Broke Stars: 11 Celebrities Who Went Bankrupt
PHOTOS: How You Can Get The 'Miracle' Dress
Social Security Is Failing Even Faster Than We Thought
Man Says Starbucks Discriminated Against Him Because He Has Half An Arm
Jane Seymour's Modest And Modern Style
Chris Brown, Grammys 2012: Embattled Singer Slams Critics
Ford's clever Sports Illustrated Swimsuit ad features phantom model
Janice Dickinson's Outrageous Style
Trace Adkins Reunites With College Crush, 30 Years Later
Van Gogh's Starry Night modded into beautiful interactive light and sound show (video)
Lauren Scruggs Goes On Ski Vacation
Adele Five-Year Break? Singer Plans to Focus on Relationship, Write 'Happy Record'
'Hooker Teacher' Forced To Resign, Now Can't Find Work
WATCH AND LAUGH: Cops In 2-Hour Standoff With Empty Car
Nick Cannon Hospitalized: Star Reveals New Serious Health Condition
PHOTOS: Model Falls At Dennis Basso Show
Woman's Dead Fiance Is Behind Her Disappearance: Cops
Best In Show Winner Declared
WATCH: Saint VaLINtine Hits Game-Winning Shot
Denise Richards' Casual Style
WATCH: Amazon Withholds Money From Blooming Florist
PHOTOS: Cute Overload?
LOOK: The Last Of The Cave People
Honduras Prison Fire Kills At Least 300 Inmates
WATCH: Clinton Aides Open Up About Lewinsky Affair
Scuba Diver Had Motive To Drown Wife On Honeymoon, Prosecutor Says
PHOTOS: Just In Time For Carnival, A Beginner's Guide To Rio
Reports: Iran Stops Oil Exports To 6 European Countries
WATCH: Nancy Grace Defends Her Controversial Comments About Whitney Houston
'Game Of Thrones' Season 2 Teaser: War Is Coming
Hidden In The Open: A Photographic Essay Of African-American Male Couples
5-22-2008 @9:57AM halvasnack said... I can't believe that Lisa lives for another day! Her cooking is inferior to Dale's. I'm shocked that he was sent home as it was her food that ensured the team lose. I'm guessing that the producers are trying to stack the female deck to go after Richard (Spike is no real challenge here) for the first female winner in Top Chef. If that's the case my money is on Antonia.
Reply
5-22-2008 @10:01AM Harlan said... Good summary! I thought it was a really good episode too. It was amusing to see Stephanie and Spike all dolled up in the front of the house... (And then more amusing to see Spike smirking at his teammates as they back-stabbed each other in front of the judges.)
WTF was the Asian team thinking trying to improvise a sticky rice with the wrong kind of rice? Even I know that you can't make that work with Uncle Bens or whatever they ended up using! They should have just pulled it.
Miso scallops sound tasty, and a bit of caramelization is a good idea, but butterscotch is too sweet for that dish! They would have been better off with thin pieces of brittle, which would have added that bit of sweetness in a sparer fashion...
I think Stephanie, Antonia, Richard, and Spike will make a great Final Four, with Stephanie and Richard as the favorites to win...
Reply
5-22-2008 @10:19AM sfmitch said... The judges made a really bad decision - Lisa should have been the one to go. She is SOOOO annoying and her cooking has been horrible (lately). Dale, while sometimes being a jerk, has been an above average performer.
Not performing well as the 'Executive Chef' is a farce -- as Chef you can't choose your staff and you have no absolutely no authority over them. If your Chef d' Cuisine screws up, there isn't much you can do (Dale couldn't have made a 2nd, less smoky, stock (no ingredients, no time) or fix the sticky rice (same reasons) or change the menu)).
I was really psyched when Jose Andres showed up, he is a great Chef.
Reply
5-22-2008 @10:34AM doodoolemonque said... Lisa was kept exactly BECAUSE she is so annoying. As such, she represents tension among a group of otherwise mild mannered high achievers. Every good drama needs a villain and Lisa fits the bill nicely. What bothers me is that her portrayal as the cast bitch does not seem to be a product of editing, but rather her commitment to her own ego. What an ugly image she presents of herself.
Reply
5-22-2008 @10:41AM GL said... It was disappointing to see Dale go. Even though I'm no fan, Dale was a quality chef. However, as has been pointed out, he has shown no range, is supposed to be an Asian cuisine expert and wanted the Executive Chef role.
He did have the authority to look at the soup recipe before it got made or (as the judges pointed out), not had them make something he had no idea how to make or judge the success of. Additionally, as Exec. Chef, he did not have the luxury of tasting the soup, deciding it was too smoky, shrugging and saying he wouldn't go down for someone else's soup.
He also had control over that scallop dish and the ridiculous ad hoc sticky rice.
Lisa is awful and I'm really tired of her pinched facial expressions, but it was a dead heat for which of either Dale or Lisa should get tossed.
Reply
5-22-2008 @11:33AM heather said... In my opinion, the show just stopped being a competition and is now just reality TV (for this season anyways). We all know Dale was the one to beat, and since he was kicked off, in my mind its now a race to second place. I hate to use this rationale, but why kick off the (arguably) strongest chef on the program for two mistakes, and allow a mediocre (at best) chef to continue? Especially since her tactic seems to be to throw everyone under the bus? I wonder if he would have been off if Tom had been judging? This late in the game, previous showings SHOULD matter.
Reply
5-22-2008 @3:21PM Lisashouldbegone said... What, you were waiting for the judges to make a bad decision and send the wrong person home? Or, were you waiting for Dale to be sent home?
Any way you slice it, keeping Lisa was a producers decision, not a judges decision. And too bad for Dale. This whole kumbaya, let's make homosexuality seem normal no matter what the cost attitude is really hurting Bravo and it's credibility. The way they make it seem, 1/2 the food industry is lesbians, which is most certainly NOT the case. As in real life, lesbians are a fringe group at best, and Bravo's insistance on casting/keeping them in the show is making me wonder why I should care anymore. It's Top Chef, not Top Lesbian.
Reply
5-27-2008 @7:40PM Adriane said... Dale and Lisa are both horrendeous for different reasons. Like Nikki, Dale couldn't step up and be the exec. chef. You heard him- he ended up barking frantic orders and botching his own dishes.
Lisa is, obviously, not going to last much longer either with that attitude and the dishes she puts out there-- The one thing I can say is at least she admits to the judges she knows what went wrong [unlike Dale who tried to downplay his mistakes, throw his teammates under the bus, and bolster his own ego about 'how much he did alone']
Surprising, I thought Dale would make it to the top 4. Lisa certainly won't make it. Spike is the underdog for sure between steph, richard and antonia but I'm very interested to see how he does in the upcoming episodes.
As a side, I wonder what they do with the $5000 worth of pier one decor after the restaurant wars are over??
Reply
5-22-2008 @4:10PM meghan said... I was shocked when they booted Dale. I think he's much more of a pain in the ass than Lisa (i.e. good television) and also a far better cook.
Reply
5-22-2008 @7:49PM Sara said... I have to wonder if the decision would have been different if Tom had been there, since he's more familiar with Lisa and Dale's past performances.
Reply
5-22-2008 @9:14PM Zach S said... Yeah, Dale was my pick to possibly win as the competition went along, because he was really good. Lisa has been bothering me for ages and she needed to go a long time ago- she's never gonna win! At least Dale had a chance.
Reply
5-22-2008 @9:41PM somemale said... they had to boot dale. he was the executive chef for this challenge. he should have been smarter and let lisa take the lead. as they still wouldnt have won and so she would most likely take the fall. just think back to tre going home early last year. the exective chef will most surely take the fall.
Reply
5-23-2008 @11:17AM v said... I remember hearing rumors that they're really trying to set up a female top chef for this year and having the possibility of 3 in the top 4 seems to be reinforcing that rumor
Reply
5-24-2008 @2:28PM Chloe said... While I don't think Dale is the best in the group I was sad to see him leave. Lisa continues to sail through even though it's been proven time an time again that she has no palate whatsoever. I can't even comprehend that she is even a "chef". Over and over her things are too bland or too spicy. It's time for her to leave.
Reply
5-23-2008 @8:04PM jill said... Lisa ruins everything she cooks and then manages to put the blame on someone else. Dale's capabilities had taken a nosedive but now that he is gone, it is definitely Lisa's turn.
Reply