Top Chef New York

So, just a reminder - the new season of Top Chef begins tomorrow and takes place in New York!

Should be good!

I'm looking forward to it!

As they'd say in NY, Don't fugget about it!

I can't wait!

<--------- will be watching

I just wish they'd post recipes from the show for us to download!

The CMA awards are also on tonight. I'll be flipping channels back and forth

Instead of flipping back and forth, you can watch Top Chef immediately after the CMA awards. They play it twice in a row each week. Works great for my dvr

^^^and if you miss an episode they usually air it before the new one the following week if you don't have a dvr! Great all around!

Yea, I actually have my DVR set to record the entire season of Top Chef. So I'll have tonights episode recorded and watch it in the morning before I come to work. Still, my curiosity will have me flipping channels.

Is anyone playing the fantasy game for this show?

Fantasy game?? Do tell!

It's on the Bravo web site.

Ok, so I can't say I'm surprised that the two chefs just out of culinary school were the first to go.

I'm not sure they could have possibly realized what was in store for them.

Looks to be an interesting group - I haven't picked a favorite yet.

No one stood out for me last, so I haven't picked a favorite.

I haven't picked a favorite yet, however I do know who I want to leave. Carla, her eyes freak me out!

As the baby says in the E-Trade commercial "kind of creepy"

the indian lady??

My favorite was the one who was kicked out even before she made it past the first quickfire

She used to be a chef here in Cincinnati, and I love Jags.

I'm sorry BF!

Um, she couldn't peel or cube apples, BF. I hesitate to think what she'd cook. By the way, what was the term Tom used for dicing?

bruniose was the term (finely dice). I couldn't remember - just that it began with a "b" so I looked it up!

I think she got cut because of the simplicity of a salad. The others were more creative.

Did anyone watch this week's show?

How did Jill make it onto the show? No attempt at creating a hot dog, and then after the elmination challenge, unable to defend her dish.

I was thinking the same thing!

I still am having trouble picking a favorite, but I might stand behind Fabio. He seems to have great skills, does that gastro-molecular stuff too and I most definitely love the kind of food he cooks.

I hope that Ariane is the next to go...she's such a whiner...and not a very good chef...I mean, to have a judge spit your food out?!?! Time to pack it up...

^^^what she said! Ariane is way too insecure and I am not impressed with what she had made so far.

Question: Would you even order anything off of a menu with the word "surprise" in it?

Is anyone other than me still watching this show? Is this the worst group of chefs ever?!?

What's with the attitudes of some of them. They smart off at the judges criticism of their cooking when it's supposed to be constructive criticism.

Every week I say I'm not watching the following week, but there I am hoping for an improvement.

ok, I'll fess up. I'm still watching. I was pleased to see them all help each other when the fridge got left open. Looks like it could get really interesting next week when the new judge steps in. He's got an edge to him that just may take them down a peg.

What's with 'chef scallop' anyway? If she did them well it would be one thing but she's consistently cooking them poorly. Time to try....ummm....chicken!!

I know she either cooks corn or scallops. I was hoping they would send one of them home last night, they are definately not cooking well

Is the new judge replacing someone or just an additional judge? I missed that part (dozed off!).

I agree about the scallops. Give it up. Try something else. It ain't working! And she wonders why she hasn't won?!?!

I still watch the show. I told myself not to watch last night because I do not care for Martha Stewart, but I watched anyway. The chefs this season do not compare to those of past seasons. What was with the deviled eggs? I like to see new and exciting stuff. Stuff you can't get at Micky D's

::raises hand::

Still watching - and very disappointed. Yeah, the scallop - corn queen definitely needs to mix it up a bit.

I dozed off last night too, so never saw the end to see who got the boot.
I'm definitely not impressed with this group.

No one was booted. Said it was a Christmas gift, however, really because everyone thought all the dishes were not impressive, including the winner.

Tom came in and basically told them that the cooking so far has been sub par. They need to be more creative and step it up.

Haven't really picked a favorite, I do like Fabio and Hosea so far.

The new judge is replacing "Tom" from queer guys for straight guys show.

Did anyone watch last night? I missed most of it (busy doing NyQuil!). Which two went home?

<--- missed it also.

That pacific guy with tats and the long straight hair blonde girl.

Carla is still there??? Great!!! I was so afraid that she'd be gone. She reminds me of my CA friend. I want her to stay until the end!

Thank you, I stepped outside and just missed who went home

Carla was the third person in the bottom three (the one who was 'safe').

I am really getting irritated by Jamie, anyone else? And Stefan a little bit....

Stephan seems to think very highly of himself. Jeff seems to me to be a cook - not a chef - and also seems to think highly of himself.

What was with his family style apps???

I kinda like Hosea.

Me too, there isn't anyone else that I like close to him, either do to attitude or lack of orginality

I like Hung! Wait, he was a few seasons back! Uh.... at least we'll see him again next episode.

Oh, and I like the new judge. Finally, someone who's not afraid to say you cook for *&@&

I like Hosea, too. Melissa and Eugene were the names of the two that got the boot.

that Jamie won on her, what?, 10th scallop dish?

Top Scallops!

I finally watched the episode. Jamie needs to stop cooking scallops now that she's "proven herself".

Carla was the right choice to stay. She appreciates the input of the judges and it able to look at her food objectively. Her facial expressions also make for great tv.

Anyone watch last night?

yes.

What did you think of the one sent home?

I figured they would have sent Leah home, but the one they did send home would have been close behind anyways.

I am guessing they saved Leah another week was to see if they could get more footage of her playing with Hosea some more, and not for her skills.

I would rather they had sent Leah home. She knew how to tie the meat and didn't do a good job at it.

I agree. I think they kept her there for the footage.

Personally, I think they should send everyone home, and cancel the season. I haven't seen a single dish lately that I think WOW, that sounds really good!

The fried green tomatoes sounded good but that's been done here for years. I missed what he used on them as the coating.

I don't think it was anything special.

Nothing really wowed again last night, not even the winning team. Nothing overly innovative, and that was the second time we have seen that dessert now as well.

I was thankful though that we did not see scallops again, regardless of how much I enjoy them, enough is enough already!

I watched. I can't imagine having all those wonderful farm fresh ingredients and nothing really came out of it. So disappointing!

I think y'all are right and Leah is just being kept for the "romance" right now. Seems to me some people are really starting to cop attitudes like they don't care (Leah and even Rhadikha) and that is annoying!

Leah definitely should have gone home, at least Ariane has had moments of showing she really CAN cook, whereas has Leah won anything yet?

Restaurant Wars next week = not at all my favorite show. I guess I'll be glad to get it over with.

I haven't been impressed with any of them this season. Usually there's one or two stand-outs that like BF, I would think Wow - how creative or wonderful sounding. This season - none of that. I think the judges agree as well, nothing special at all. I also find some of their attitudes as appalling as their food.

BINGO! You can cop an attitude if you can back it up. The only one who comes close to being able to back up his mouth with his food is the German guy. Bet he wins it for this year. There's no one whose food I would even consider eating.

I'd like to know what past winners are doing now. They've had one or two back to judge a quick fire but that's about it. I want to know what restaurant they're heading up.

The other thing I'd like to see is Tom cook a really tough challenge meal. Show them what a good chef can do in exactly the same circumstances as the contestants. This group in particular is so substandard they might actually get it if he showed them.

btw, I like the new judge. He's way better than Ms ? was.

It would be interesting to see Tom in a cook-off with them!

Yeah, the new judge is so funny. I don't think Tom knows how to take his jokes some times.

I agree, TR. I would love to see what the past winners are doing besides commercials. I would also love to see if they are living up to their reputations and becoming more successful or just resting on their laurels.

Totally off subject - last season's winner of Project Runway - Christian Siriano - I saw him doing commentary on a fashion police show about the Golden Globes. Is he even designing or just being a celebrity?

I also do agree that I do like the new judge. He's honest and not going to be sugar-coating ANYTHING. I think sometimes the judges try to take it easy on the contestants instead of honestly judging the food. I think Gail is just on her honeymoon now and will probably be back. I hope not too soon because these chefs need a wake up call that they really aren't good.

BTW - Bagweaver - I also thought Leah should go home for butchering the tying of the roasts. It was a team challenge and all members of the team should help out. Just because she is buddies with Hosea doesn't mean she gets to sabotage a member of her own team. But that also makes me ask - if Arianne is truly a chef - how come she doesn't know how to tie a roast?

One of the judges (Tom?) questioned her tying skills also. At least she made an attempt. Wonder what the other two would have done if she'd said that she didn't want to do the lamb but wanted to do one of the other dishes.

One of my favorites is Carla.

I like the new judge too. Takes a Brit to shake things up a bit!!

A contest against Tom would really be interesting to watch!

I can't believe that Stephan's dessert saved Leah's behind. The focus on the "romance" just totally turned me off on this episode.


And Radhika goes home...............But Wait! Next week is going to be interesting with the contestants from previous episodes - that ought to shake things up!

What did Jaime cook? I missed that part.

Let's see, there were of course - scallops - fish, lamb, soup.

Jaime and Jeff did all the apps & entrees, Carla did the dessert and almost got the boot for it.

The scallops weren't Jaime's, were they?

I never really did get who cooked what. Did Jeff cook the scallops with the chickpea cake?

Radika needed to actually be a leader. If she thought Jeff would have been better than her out front (which he would have been) she should have just insisted. It was her cuisine that was being featured after all so she knows how to cook it. She really blew it - when the judges didn't have cutlery she should have just run and retrieved it herself and not wait for the wait staff to get it. She didn't even demonstrate one iota that she was the leader of the team. If she wasn't so poor out front she would have stayed and Carla would have gone for just sending out crappy desserts with "love". What is that about - I don't want "love" with my desserts, I want flavor!!

Well said. Frankly, I'd rather a restaurant said "We don't have any desserts tonight" than "All I have is crappy cake and melted "frozen" yogurt!"

You're right - they weren't worth sending out at all. If Carla knew that they were that bad (which she did) she should have either ditched them all together or try to come up with something else. That's part of the judges point - don't just serve something that you know is bad - do something about it. Carla knew the cake was terrible before she even cooked it and that the yogurt was not freezing. Do what Stefan did and fix it. He was having trouble too.

I also missed what happened to Carla's cake. Did she put something in it that shouldn't have been in there? I thought I saw her dipping something out of the batter.

Not sure if she was dipping something out - maybe spooning into cake pans? I don't know and it is probably paranoia on my part but does anyone else get disgusted by the amount of bare hand touching that goes on with the food? You see them wipe their sweat off or run around touching everything and then dig their bare hands into the food. I've also noticed some of them tasting something and then sticking the spoon back into the mixture. And yes I know, there are hands that prepare my food but I don't have to watch them do it

MM, trust me, if you knew what happened to your food in many restaurants before you ate it, you would never eat out again!

Unfortunately I do know, I did work in a restaurant as a teenager so I have seen what goes on in the kitchen. I try not to think about it but sometimes when you watch some of these cooking shows it just brings it into the forefront again. I am particular about where I eat out and I do like the restaurants where you can see into the kitchen and watch them preparing. If a kitchen is not appearing to be clean I will leave. I also try not to antagonize the staff so they don't deliberately do something to my food. I worked with people who did that.

Some one said it earlier in this thread. This is singularly the least stellar cast yet. The program is going downhill season by season. There hasn't been a single dish prepared that I made me want to rush to the website to see if they listed a recipe.

I agree - the cast this year is just b-o-r-i-n-g and so are their dishes. That is one reason why I am hoping the past contestants coming on next week will show them a thing or two.

And of all things I hope this romance thing is done!

Absolutely!! This is supposed to be Top Chef not Big Brother. I am watching this to see if any of them have the talent enough to blow the other contestants away. This season has concentrated too much on their personal side starting with the Rainbow club, Stefan having a crush on Jamie, and Hosea and Leah swarming all over each other. Just show me some amazing cooking, dag nab it!!

The good news is, H3lls Kitchen starts soon, and we can only imagine what Gordon Ramsey would say to these cooks on Top Chef this season!

"This tastes like swill, you stew-pid cow."

I wish that they could make MORE dishes with scallops...not.

Somehow I think he'd call them a donkey not a cow, but yup, taht's it!

That would be interesting to get his reaction. I am glad that's coming on - Top Chef is just way too boring...

Make Ramsey should be a guest judge!

^^^^^I love that idea!!

Competing networks, won't happen. You notice Ted Allen is no longer associated with Top Chef now that he's got show(s) on Food Network (and he's not a very good host over there, I must say.)

EGB... I laughed when I read your Ramsey comment, totally heard his voice... Awesome!

So Stefan, Fabio and Jeff were on the bottom this time. It was good to see Stefan taken down a notch. Ultimately, I think they choose correctly sending Jeff home, but Fabio had better watch his back.

All in all - even with the old contestants coming back - still pretty boring.

I missed it last night. Drat!

But the thing was, Tigg, that Stefan did not feel like he was taken down a notch. He said himself that he was safe since it was only his first time at the bottom. What was he thinking? Salads for a Super Bowl party? And especially for the Dallas Cowboys??? That's just blasphemous!!

But I do agree that Jeff needed to go. How many times did they have to tell him that he takes on too much when he tries to cook something? He focused too much on the number of ingredients and dishes that he prepared rather than concentrating on the quality of the dish.

And Fabio, he's more ego than substance...

You're right Mocha - he was still being pretty pompous. He'll find out - the bigger the ego - the harder they fall.

I was happy for Carla - but then again, she made gumbo and I may be a little bias!

Carla's a hoot, and I'd love it if she won. Her eyes would probably pop out of her head!

It'll be interesting to see if the "significant others" of the smooching pair are still in the picture after the show. Good grief - what were they THINKING? And on National TV. Stoopid.

I kinda like Fabio. He's conceited, for sure, but some of it seems a little like an act to get attention. I think he'd run a really good (and fun) restaurant. He can turn on the charm when he needs to, and it's not like he can't cook.

I REALLY don't like Leah. Or Jamie.
But especially Leah...she can go any episode now. I really don't understand why she's still there...

You know it's going to be the girl, Jaimie (SF scallop queen).

Well I definitely like Fabio more than I do Stefan. I do see that he would be kind of fun and charming. He does argue with the judges too much, though, but that's his ego talking.

I find Stefan just to be totally obnoxious and condescending to everyone - even Jamie who he has a crush on. I will have to admit to feeling a touch of "nyah, nyah" to him when he lost to Andrea. He picked her since he was so sure he could beat her easily and she won and he was the first one to get zero points!! That was so funny (or at least to my mind) that he got his comeuppance.

And you're right, Madison, I have no idea how Leah is still there. She really can't cook or at least she hasn't demonstrated yet that she can. Plus, she has such a defeatist attitude - I don't really see what Hosea sees in her.

boobies.

I was sad to see Jeff go. I know he wasn't F3 material but still, he had a fairly sophisticated culinary POV. (Although - enough with the sorbets already!) [OK, OK, and he was cute.] I was glad to see Crazy Carla win though, she is fun to watch. Again, not F3 material, but still fun.

I am with those of you who think Leah is a waste of space. Send her home already. I'm thinking Stefan, Jamie and Hosea for F3.

Those were NOT "All Stars". Those were D-list former contestants. If it were really All Stars, where were Harold, Sam (mmmmmm, Harold & Sam), Tiffany, Marcel, Hung, Antonia, Richard..... I didn't even remember Andrea The Vegetarian Cook. And seriously - Miguel?? :rolleyes: I did like seeing Andrew again, though. He is nuts.

I liked seeing Andrew and Spike, but you are so right about lacking all-stars.

Another ho-hum episode.

They definitely used the definition of an All-Star very loosely. I guess they considered anyone who has been seen on Top Chef is a "star". The "real" stars are too busy to appear on this show...

Well, I can finally say I'm excited about some recipes - Eric Rupert's!
All of those fish dishes looked delectable.

The results - still wish they would send Leah home, but Jamie really messed up.

Oh - and big dummy I am! Caught the very beginning of the show for the first time - I did not realize the finale was going to be here in Louisiana! Wow! Wish I had known earlier.

I was coming here to post the very same thing. Perhaps the people who chose the challenges realized these people had boring, uninteresting recipes, and decided they would add this challenge. There's something about Eric Ripert (not Rupert!) I have always disliked, but his food looked delish!

In past seasons they have had the chefs recreate a famous chef's recipe.

Who got voted off? I fell asleep.

It was the end of team Rainbow.

Scallops again???

No, but if there had been a scallop dish on the 6 course menu, she would have drawn it!

She couldn't cook celery is what it came down to.

Question: How freaking hard is it to braise celery!

Answer: Any child can learn to do it in 30 minutes or less!

What age child?

My bad! - Really thought that was how you spelled it! I'm so embarrassed.

Here's my prediction of how the rest of the show will pan out (oh, yes...the cooking pun was needed)

In order of elimination
Lea
Hosea
Fabio

Final two will be Carla and Stefan with Stefan winning...

I'd really like to see Carla win, but I know that Stephan probably will.

I wish that Hosea would last longer than Leah or Fabio.

Leah should've been booted just for giving up during the quickfire challenge.

Yep!

I don't know, what's worse, giving up on a challenge that will only give you an advantage in the elimination challenge, and a little reward, or not being able to do something as simple as braise celery?

I hope Carla wins fan favorite.

She is a riot!

I hope Carla wins fan favorite too. She gives personality to the show.

Any good or even great chef can screw up simple things on occasion. It sounded to me like Jamie knew it was bad and didn't have the time to fix it. In a 'real life' situation, I would like to think she'd do it over before serving it.

Leah just rubbed me the wrong way from the first episode, so her giving up in the quickfire was just the end of the line for me.

That being said, Jamie and Leah were my two least favorites, so I would've been happy to see either of them leave.

I have not liked Leah from the start - her disgruntled attitude disturbs me. I think it is worse to just give up on a challenge, especially the way she did it - she acted like a petulant child. I would not want her in my kitchen. With the fish cooking challenge she basically gave up on that as well since she didn't really seem to care that she did not have the miso portion of the dish correct.

Jamie at least did have some talent - she was just stuck serving the celery since her time ran out.

Personally I don't think Stefan should have won for the lobster dish. His was the easiest to recreate yet he got the hollandaise sauce incorrect. I was more impressed with Fabio and Carla's recreation of their dishes. Theirs were much more complicated and Eric admitted to that.

Ok, so can I say it?

Woo Hoo! Leah's finally gone!

I'm still not seeing food that makes me excited, though. I was again glad to see Stephan on the bottom and he seemed to take it a little more to heart this time. We'll see how they do when the come here.....

Go, Carla!!! Green eggs and ham! I love it!

Did they say how Fabio hurt his finger? Did I understand it right that he broke it?

They didn't say how - he said it bent all the way back and cracked. I believe he broke it.

I thought it was very funny when Fabio said he would cut off his broken finger and sear the wound.

Do they post the recipes online? I am curious about that roast chicken.

I think it's a qualified final four.

Personally, I would love it if Fabio and Carla were the final two, but I don't think it will happen...

You took the words right out of my mouth, Tigg. So happy she's gone but it's about time.

I did like Carla's green eggs and ham, though. At least for the irony of it. She is making smart choices now - hopefully it will hold her in good stead.

I also was glad to see Stefan get knocked down a peg or two. I think if Leah wasn't more deserving of going home, it may have cost him the final four.

I agree that Stefan't ego is TOO huge, and it was great to see him shake in his boots a bit. Carla is hilarious - it'll be wonderful to see how she does in the Big Easy. She has my vote all the way!

Carla's green eggs and ham recipe is available on the site. It's so simple it's ridiculous. I'm going to make a variation of it for my grangirls next time they overnight. Now we have to see if the judges go for real food or flash. I'm tired of the wiz kid chef winning over food people would actually order and eat.

I stand by my earlier predictions...

What happened last night? I fell asleep - AGAIN!!!

They brought back Jamie, Leah and Jeff to compete for a spot in the finale for the Quick Fire. Jeff won, but in order to stay in the finale he had to win the elimination challenge. Carla won the elimination (yeah!) Fabio and Jeff went home. Stephan & Fabio were the bottom two in this challenge. I knew Fabio would be the one to go, but was sooooooo hoping to get rid of Stephan.

I've GOT to watch the rerun then. I love it when Carla wins and Stephan is in the bottom.

I agree, Tigg. I've come to the point I can't even stand Stephan anymore. He's so obnoxious and I love Tom's face last night when he called him on his arrogance. He didn't even put that much work into his offerings last night.

I was happy for Carla for winning. I will admit at the beginning of the season I wasn't crazy about her but she has grown on me. I was actually hoping that Jeff would win simply it would have been an automatic dismissal for Stephan. Oh well, let's hope he doesn't win the whole thing.

Instead of smoking that cigarette Stefan should have cooked that roux longer.

Yes, he should have.

Everyone knows it takes a 1/2 bottle of red wine to make a good roux.

That is - the time it takes to drink a 1/2 bottle of red wine while you're stirring!

I was really hoping Jeff would win, and Stefan and Fabio would both go home. His dishes looked yummy, and for the first time, I wanted a recipe.... For Carla's dish!

Carla's smile is infectious. I've even grown to like her laugh.

But most of all, she's the first contestant I admire for staying true to her style of cooking. She believes in fresh true flavor.

A non-alcoholic cocktail at Mardi Gras?!!! Emeril raved about it.

Hand shucking oysters for a drop dead stew.

little bitty bignets....

She's the first one that I would actually make it my business to eat in her restaurant.

Stefan's entire attitude last night was irritating. He just seemed to figure he had the whole competition in the bag so he didn't even need to try. I hate his condescending attitude towards Hosea as well. He doesn't think the boy can cook but he sure can!!

I agree, TR. I have become a Carla convert. She truly believes in what she cooks and puts her all into it. I was a little leary of the "love" bit especially when she wasn't really producing quality food. But she has really stepped up her game!!

Well, I'm sad that Fabio went home.

I was really hoping for a Fabio/Carla final two (I thought maybe Stefan would crash at just the right time to be booted before the finale...)

I was hoping Jamie would make it back to compete, I'd have liked to see her take another shot at it. But I liked Jeff too so was not unhappy to see him get in. I hope when he sees how close he did come to winning a return, he is proud of himself. Carla is peaking at just the right time, and I really have enjoyed watching her settle down and produce results. Stefan is bottoming out at just the WRONG time! And Hosea annoys me.

Hosea annoys you more than Stefan EGB?

<---------- team Carla!

Yea, Carla!

Stephan just has such an attitude that I hate to even watch him. I don't think that Hosea's cooking has really been that good.

If Carla doesn't win, I'll be very disappointed.

Carla's cooking hasn't been all that hot until the last couple episodes. She'd have been kicked out of [censored]'s kitchen by now!

I agree. I didn't like her at first, but the more I watched, the more she reminded me of a friend of mine in CA.

I like Carla because she's real. She doesn't whine and complain. She takes her criticisms with respect and knows her weaknesses. I'm glad she's been able to step back and regroup in the last few episodes. I would love to see her come out of the pack and win.

I also was not a Carla fan, however during the show this week I told my son that even though I did not like her in the beginning, I was impressed by the way that she had progressed over the entire season. I would rather see Hosea win, but if Carla was to win I would not be disappointed. However, if Stefan was to win, that would be a different story.

I think Stephan needs to lose based on attitude. The judges have already commented on that. Besides, I think it would do him some real good to be brought down a notch. He needs to learn how to make and eat a little humble pie.

Humble Pie! I can make that!

I've never made it - but I've eaten a LOT of it over my lifetime.

I think that Carla and Hosea did a great job and deserve their spots in the final.

Carla is so excited and really puts her all into her dishes. She commits and takes responsibility for what is on the plate, even when it's not perfect. She seems to be more comfortable as the competition goes on.

Hosea really put forth the extra effort and care into this challenge. He has been pretty solid through the competition and is a strong contender.

Stephan is talented, but his attitude stinks! While I think he might be able to outcook Carla and Hosea, he is NOT a team players and doesn't have the qualities to really be a leader.

I'd be happy is Hosea won it all, and Carla would be a nice surprise.

I'd be really happy if they announced that there was no winner this season because none of them were worth a darn!

Yet that jerk on He//'s Kitchen makes Stephan look like milk toast by comparison.

Ramsey is a jerk, but people sign up to go on that show and be ripped up by him, so they know what they're getting into.

Everyone on Top Chef has has to put up with Stephan and try to work with him the best they can.

The contestants on Top Chef didn't know they'd have someone like Stephan to endure. There have been others similar to Stephan, but I don't remember any being quite so bad.

Please, Bag, Stephan isn't nearly half as bad as that blondie wine geek from a season or two ago. He was the ultimate jerk so far in all the TC seasons, imho.

Coulc be. Absence makes the heart grow fonder - or age makes you forget - one or the other!

Wasn't he from the first season?? Stephen??

A couple of seasons ago they had the guy who was into gastronomics and a lot of weird stuff. I can't remember his name but I think he was the one who always made things with foam. He was extremely obnoxious but different than Stefan. Stefan is definitely Euro-centric. In his opinion nobody in America can cook like a European, that's why he so egotistical.

You're thinking of Marcel, he was beyond annoying!

Oh Truff! I remember Stephen from Season 1 - I wanted to strangle him!
Marcel was pretty annoying too. I remember one of the other cast members from the season with Marcel got the boot because he physically went after him - they were going to try and shave his head.

Yup, Stephen and Marcel...the guys you love to hate. Then there's the stupid ones. Remember them shaving their heads?

For some reason, I find Stefan beyond Marcel.

FWIW, I agree... Stefan is more of a cocky lazy bully... Marcel was nothing more than a little gnat meant to be squached with one's thumb.

Marcel actually got attacked here on the strip shortly after the show ended. A disgruntled fan of the show smashed a bottle over his head.

For some reason I think Stefan is going to win, I don't want him to win, but I think he will.

Unfortunately, I have the same feeling. The one I usually want to win loses.

That's the name!! See he was so annoying I had to put his name out of my mind!!

Good for Hosea!

I felt so bad for Carla. Had she done her version of the food she was cooking instead of Casey's, I believe the judges would have had an even more difficult time making their decision.

I don't think I would have been even remotely interested in eating a strip steak that was cooked sous vide. It did not sound appetizing.

I like that Hosea won also, but i had to find out from a blog that was bashing him.(huge fire in the neighborhood, just went to see if they had kids that needed a bed for the night)

Geez kms! Hope no one got hurt.

nope no injuries everyone got out ok

good to hear kms, good to hear.

I wanted Carla to win! And I think she would have had she not listened to Casey. She should've stuck to her guns! But at least she got the car. And yay that Stefan was booted....what arrogance.

Carla dropped the ball because she was too enamored of the former almost won who was to be her ASSISTANT chef. Instead of cooking her food, she cooked Casey's food. Even if everything had been perfect, and both bald arrogant guys didn't put a thing on the plate, they should have given the win to Casey, since Carla did whatever she wanted instead of sticking to her own food. You don't try something you've never done before when the judges tell you GIVE ME YOUR BEST MEAL.

It is so unfortunate for Carla that she was swayed by Casey's opinions. What's funny is I remember that Casey was wishy-washy herself when she was on the show - I guess she found someone she could steamroll over. It's just so bad for Carla -I was rooting for her.

But all I can say is thank goodness that Hosea won and not Stefan. I don't think I could have stood it if he had won.

What I thought was funny tho, is that Stefan had old annoying Marcel to deal with.

Yes, he did. Stefan was an a$$, no doubt about it - but he was so up front about it. Hosea was a little too holier-than-thou for my taste.

I wish Carla had not let Casey influence her so much and had won. Sigh. Still it was nice to see Richard again.

<----- is hoping (and thinking) Carla is going to win FF.

Today's paper had a short item that said that Leah and Hosea broke up with their respective boyfriend and girlfriend. They were spotted at a NYC hotspot all over each other.

Love is in the air!!!

This week they are supposed to be airing a show about after the Top Chef show. They do ask them about this but they are cryptic about the answers. So now we know...

The other night I was watching an episode of "Iron Chef America" and Arianne was one of the sous chefs for the challenger.

I saw her too! I guess she went to work for Chef Freitag? Because I don't think she was working for anyone pre-Top Chef.

No, I was under the impression she had her own place in Jersey. Actually, that's the second Top Cheftestant I've seen on on that show. The African American guy that got the boot when he tried to pin down Marcel was a sous chef for someone also. I can't remember his name right now....

Trey. Sous chef for those big ol' brothers from Texas that battled Bobby, I think?

That's him!!! That was killing me last night. I just couldn't think of his name.
I do believe that was the episode, too.
Maybe after Top Chef, Iron Chef is a breeze!

What exactly is a sous chef? The assistant to the executive chef??

from wiki wiki wikipedia (thanks, AG):

Sous chef

The sous-chef de cuisine (under-chef of the kitchen) is the direct assistant of the executive chef and is second in command. They may be responsible for scheduling, and filling in when the executive chef is off-duty. The Sous Chef will also fill in for, or assist the chef de partie (line cook) when needed. Smaller operations may not have a sous chef, while larger operations may have multiple.

Just like a quickfire, only more hands working.

Thank you, Sir.

Did anyone else watch the reunion show? I thought it was pretty good...lots of laughs.

And Fabio won fan favorite. Yay! I figured it would be between him and Carla...

I figured it would be between those two too. It was a good show. The out-takes were funny.

I missed most of the reunion show (I was watching something else) but I did see Fabio win the fan favorite. He was one of my favorites but for different reasons than the others. There was just something about him that was endearing even though he did have a big ego.