At this point in the usual "Top Chef" season trajectory, you might expect a certain focus and discipline that naturally comes with narrowing the playing field down to seven ambitious young chefs, each working at the top of his or her game. This year, however, is another story.
Maybe it's that the talented and reliable Jen is off her game, or that the universally derided Robin is still around or that the twerpy Eli can actually put together an interesting plate of food for once. In any event, Wednesday night's episode felt like a detour into a "Top Chef" bizarro-world, where up is down, left is right and nobody knows anything anymore. Well, almost anything: Robin still sucks, Michael V. is still a cocky jerk and Kevin is still the model of modest brilliance.
Rattling off the random highlights of the episode sounds as scattered as Robin's cooking philosophy: Dirty jokes! Vegetarianism! Natalie Portman! No Toby Young! A Quickfire challenge that revealed itself to be a desperate marketing ploy! Make that two marketing ploys! In fact, Portman's description of one dish neatly summed up the entire episode: "It makes me smile and laugh -- and I'm confused!"
What do chefs eat when they need a palate cleanser after so much fancy restaurant fare? When they take off their aprons, they reach for the same indulgences we do -- perhaps just with an upgrade. Slashfood asked celebrity chefs to share their favorite cravings.
Mario Batali When orange-clogged chef and television personality Mario Batali isn't reinventing Italian cuisine, he's still got it in the bag -- of Doritos, that is. "I love two things: good gelato and, strangely enough, Doritos and salsa. It has to be Doritos, though. I especially like the lime-flavored ones with chili."
Nigella Lawson Which foods make domestic goddess Nigella Lawson feel sinful? None! Nigella, who is famous for her intimate, relaxed cooking style says, "I don't have any guilty food pleasures. The only thing one should ever feel guilty about is not taking pleasure."
See what snacks Bobby Flay, Tom Colicchio and other celebrity chefs sneak after the jump.
Laurine, the calm amid the 'Top Chef' chaos. Photo: Bravo.
Break out the chaps. Dust off your spurs. Get ready for Padma to ring the dinner bell as only she knows how -- that is, gingerly and timidly.
That's right, with "Top Chef" stationed in the middle of the Southwest this season, we knew there'd have to be some sort of roughing-it challenge to go along with all the gaudy glitz of the Vegas strip. The only question would be just how much roughness our cheftestants would have to endure.
Surprisingly, quite a bit. With only the most mysterious hint of their destination, the dozen remaining chefs were shipped off -- after countless shots of them enjoying the plush luxury of their product-placement Toyotas -- and left to fend for themselves in a remote desert ranch, in teepees, no less. "Is Padma sleeping in a teepee? I'd just like to know," asked Kevin.
That would be an emphatic "no." And while some chefs used the opportunity to wax nostalgic on their outdoorsy upbringings -- some (Ashley) more convincingly than others (Robin) -- some just weren't having it. Cue the urbanite whining of Atlantan Eli, or the voodoo-spellcasting of Haitian Ron, whose elaborate warding off of snakes was appreciated, if not understood, by bunkmate Ash.
Top Chef judges Toby, Padma, Tom and Gail. Photo: Bravo TV.
Chef-testants for season six of Top Chef were announced today. The showdown will take place in Las Vegas, which Tom Colicchio assures us is a "very serious food town."
The primary thing a bunch of these newbies have in common? Tattoos, big time. Click through the gallery and let us know if we're wrong. That's not to say we don't spy some serious contenders in the mix. Talent ranges from Michael Voltaggio, chef de cuisine of the buzzed-about José Andrés Bazaar in Los Angeles, to the innocuous-looking (but perhaps culinarily ferocious) Jesse Sandlin, one of the tattooed toques, who sports a flower in her hair.
Don't skip the video of our four judges, in which Gail declares, "I'm eating very well," and Padma asserts, "A few of these contestants have even taught Tom a thing or two." Hmm. We'll see.
Are you stoked about Top Chef Vegas -- or are you over it by now?
We were wondering what to serve for our weekly viewing party of that guilty little pleasure "True Blood." Chef Tom Colicchio has the answer.
Fresh from his Diet Coke ad, the Craft-y chef has done a campy viral video for the HBO vampire series, making a drink to satiate Colicchio's vampire pals while the "Top Chef" host dines out.
"I have a few friends that are vampires and I've had this issue," Colicchio tells the host of the fake show "The Perspective." We go out, and I'm sitting there through an appetizer, an entree and dessert, and they're just kind of nursing a Tru Blood [the blood substitute vampires drink on the show]. It's a little awkward."
'Wichcraft' Recipes by Tom Colicchio with Sisha Ortuzar Text by Rhona Silverbush Photos by Bill Bettencourt Clarkson Potter -- 2009 Buy it at Amazon
It's not unusual to find one of us standing in the lunch crowd line at the 'wichcraft so conveniently located right downstairs from our office building. Can you blame us? Anyone who's ever tasted a sammie designed by Tom Colicchio and Sisha Ortuzar's knows exactly what we are talking about -- this isn't your ordinary sandwich, it's a sandwich adventure. For those who have wondered, sleepless, how they could replicate those tastes at home, pine no more: This cookbook divulges all the be-'wiching secrets for your munching pleasure.
Takeaway tips: Hoagie-making is taken to a new level by essays that instruct the reader on stocking the ideal pantry and define the architecture of a structurally sound sandwich. We also love the picture-packed "menu" at the beginning of the book that gives snapshots of the rest of the book (so much better than a Table of Contents!). The tome concludes with a source guide including all of the ingredients the shop uses, most of which are available online.
Quality of pictures: Mouthwatering -- some of the most detailed and appealing food porn we've ever seen.
See what we tested and whether it's worth buying -- after the jump.
Last night, while watching the Oscars (I was a little bummed that Viola Davis didn't win for her performance in Doubt, she was spectacularly good in that role), I was taken aback by the sight of Tom Colicchio in a commercial for Diet Coke. I've come to accept the bizarre product placements on Top Chef, but somehow, I always looked at Colicchio as a celebrity chef who was above shilling for vast corporations.
In the commercial, Colicchio walks through a fancy restaurant that is serving all manner of convolution appetizers and entrees, while his voiceover advocates for simple good taste. The whole thing culminates with him drinking an ungarnished glass of Diet Coke. It's a good message (the one about simplicity), but the whole thing leaves me feeling dirty and a little disappointed.
What do the rest of you think about the commercial?
Tom Colicchio is well-known in the food community as a great chef, a fair judge on Top Chef and a successful restaurateur. After last night, we can now also add hero to his list of accomplishments. He was in attendance at an Art.Food.Hope dinner in Washington, D.C. when cookbook author Joan Nathan (most famously known for Jewish Cooking in America and The New American Cooking) choked on a piece of chicken.
According to Ezra Klein of the Internet Food Association, who was also in attendance at the dinner, Alice Waters came running, shouting for someone to perform the Heimlich Maneuver after Nathan began to choke. Colicchio happened to be close by and was able to dislodge the offending morsel quickly.
Klein had an opportunity to speak with both parties after the incident. Colicchio offered an unassuming "I just happened to be nearby." Nathan commented with flattering appreciation, "He's so strong!"
Another week and another round of cooking and drama on the fifth season of Top Chef. This week the 15 remaining chefs must please the normal panel of judges (Tom, Padma, and Gail) along with guest judge Donatella Arpaia, a very successful New York restaurateur.
The Quick Fire Challenge once again has some New York flavor to it: the chefs must create a signature hot dog that will wow Padma and Donatella, and they only have 45 minutes with which to rustle up their doggies. The catch? Not only are they competing against one another but they will also be judged against a dog from Dominick's hot dog cart, as prepared by Angelina D'Angelo. Pretty stiff competition.
Read on to see who won the Quick Fire and who packed their knives and left at the end of the show (read no further if you haven't had a chance to watch yet, as there are spoilers ahead).
Okay Top Chef junkies, here's the cookbook you've got to own. Top Chef The Cookbook not only offers up the best of the first three seasons of the addictive reality show, it also gives you something of a behind the scenes peek into how the show works and why it is so appealing. The introduction is written by Tom Colicchio (one of the show's primary judges), and it is interesting and conversational, making me feel like I was sitting down with him, asking questions about how he got involved with it and receiving candid answers in return.
It takes this book 35 pages to get to the recipes, because they have devoted the beginning of the book to setting up the show, sharing unknown secrets about how it works and offering up lots of wisdom about why the show is as appealing as it it. I found this section to be totally engrossing and lost half a hour reading it (I'm a known skimmer, something has to be really interesting for me to read it closely and deeply).
But finally, the recipes do arrive and they are dishes that the chef-testants dream up when they are on their game and the food gods are smiling. In other words, these recipes are the best of the best to come out of the show. Many of the recipes are simple, familiar dishes that the chefs have elevated (such as waffles, steak and eggs and eggs in a hole) so that they are intriguing while still being recognizably tasty. Others are slightly more outrageous and unique (although nothing like some of what Richard dreamed up on this most recent season).
Essentially, this is a cookbook built around a TV show and it will feed those of you who love to watch Top Chef. But it is also an interesting and serviceable cookbook that would serve you well, even if you'd never watched a single episode. That's a tough line to walk and they've done it admirably.
When renowned high-end restauranteur Sirio
Maccioni reopensLe Cirque in late May, there will be a sideshow of sorts.
Cast aside any worries that he's adding a freak show to his flagship operation. The new attraction at Le Cirque will
be one that's been popping up at New York City's temples of fine dining for the past couple of years: a casual
component that stands apart from its more rarefied sibling yet shares the same space.
Maccioni joins the
ranks of such chefs as Jean-Georges Vongerichten whose eponymous eatery shares a space with the more casual Nougatine
and Tom Colicchio whose Gramercy Tavern features a less casual bar area that serves as a gateway to the more formal
dining room.
Another week and another round of cooking and drama on the fifth season of Top Chef. This week the 15 remaining chefs must please the normal panel of judges (Tom, Padma, and Gail) along with guest judge 
Okay Top Chef junkies, here's the cookbook you've got to own. 
When renowned high-end restauranteur Sirio
Maccioni reopens 
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