Top Chef 8-15

[KristiB]

Link to Andrea Strongs blog (http://thestrongbuzz.com)

Is it me or did they really take her opinion into account more than their own?

I couldn't decide who to send home either given the failure on all sides.
But I was worried they were going to send 2 home.

Also why was Dale blamed for the silverware problem. Weren't the hired waiters supposed to take care of that?

When has anyone ever seen scented candles in a restaurant? . WTF were they thinking? And Dale has front of the house experience! Blechhh!

I think Howie made the worst dish. If he had been on Hells Kitchen, where they mess up risotto all the time, Howie would have been wearing it.

Tre knew his potatoes were bad but he used them anyway. Bad move.

[gertdog]

Yeah, it was interesting. When Colicchio said that from here on out it would really be about the food, and then that he knew just what they should do, I thought it would be Tre or Howie since they served the worst food.

Anyone feel pretty bad for Brian with the snarky Right-Guard comments? Glad he wasn't sent home based on that. "You're a good chef, but you sweat too much. Please pack your knives and go!"

But the scented candles thing seemed like the most egregious error.

[KristiB]

Anyone feel pretty bad for Brian with the snarky Right-Guard comments? Glad he wasn't sent home based on that. "You're a good chef, but you sweat too much. Please pack your knives and go!"


Ususally it's Howie who's sweating.

I still can't get past the scented candles....

But yes elimination should have been about the food.

[Laura]

I wasn't sure who was going home, but I was glad that it wasn't Tre. I found the comments for next week's show interesting. They indicated that it was going to be a surprise, and that it was based on that night's show only. Hopefully, it won't be Tre or CJ. They are my favorites, and I would hate to see either one of them go home. I know that TC producers say they are basing each elimination on that night's performance, but it seems to me you miss out on getting the "Top Chef" doing so, especially as you get into the later episodes.

[KristiB]

Looks like Anthony Bourdain is a permanent blogger.

He addresses the elimination issue HERE (http://www.bravotv.com/blog/anthonybourdain/2007/08/free_ride_hard_landing_at_the_soft_open.php)

"The elimination criteria, as I understand it, runs along the lines of "What Have You Done For Me TODAY." You may have been terrific yesterday -- and the day before -- but if you screw up big time today -- bigger time than the guy who's been skating along all season (not winning but not losing), then it's you that gets thrown over the side. An unfair and unrealistic decision making process? I don't know...

If you've been performing very well as a novice sous-chef at Daniel Boulud's Restaurant Daniel, and then, suddenly, make a horrible botch of even one Saturday night, you're probably not going to be around next Saturday. Restaurants of Daniel's caliber aren't allowed to have a "bad night". The food at a "top" chef's establishment is expected to be exactly as good, day in, day out, every day and every night, whether the chef is there or not. At that level, at those prices, with that level of expectation, where customers have booked months in advance, often traveling hundreds (if not thousands) of miles, it takes only one bad dish, one messed up plate, for people to start buzzing about the place going downhill -- particularly in this era when half your customers seem to be food bloggers.

With that kind of cold-blooded, cold hearted math at work, I'm afraid to say that the otherwise worthy contestants below might well -- under ordinary circumstances -- have found themselves facing the executioner."

[Hammster]

Ugghhh, I hate these non-decisions. The only one I didn't see going home was Hung. They all seemed to like his tartare.
I wonder what happened with Brian. In the catering truck challenge he was full of energy and seemed to really shine at being "front of the house" in that challenge. Yet this one he really was fully flustered. Perhaps his choice of wearing a suit wasn't such a good idea given the Miami heat and pressure of the competition.
I sort of liked that they used someone else's opinion. Sometimes I think Collichio may be a bit too close to be real impartial. So, having a fresh set of eyes was a good idea IMO.
Another bit of great editing. Brian and Casey agree no scented items on their tables. Quick cut over to Dale and Hung; "Let's get scented candles". Good stuff.
I agree with Howie making the horrible risotto. I was thinking he might go home.
I wonder if they'll all keep the same roles next week as this week. Casey looked like she did a great job in front of the house. Maybe Brian will go back to the kitchen and Casey will move out front.

Does it seem they started the no more immunity thing sooner this season?

I'm wondering if 2 will be cut next week.

[SDMomChef]

I was hoping that Howie would go home...I'm tired of his attitude and tired of seeing him sweating all the time. So, when they called in Brian and Dale I was so disappointed - I didn't want to see either one of them go right now - I wanted them to move on. So, I was glad that it was a non-elimination night.

It will be interesting to see what they do differently next week.

[avariell]

I was hoping that Howie would go home...I'm tired of his attitude and tired of seeing him sweating all the time. So, when they called in Brian and Dale I was so disappointed - I didn't want to see either one of them go right now - I wanted them to move on. So, I was glad that it was a non-elimination night.

It will be interesting to see what they do differently next week.

i was at the end of my rope with howie after last week but i was impressed by him last night. i expected he and sara to go at it - but they worked together well, and he seemed to keep his cool. however, the previews for next week look like they will get into it again. his risotto looked like crap - a lot of the food looked like crap though. i am excited to see what happens next week food wise :)

[manetta]

I can't get over the scented candles, either. Unbelievable.

I was glad that Brian and Dale both survived. It took a lot of courage for Brian to work the front of the house. I worked as a server right out of college almost 20 :eek: years ago and still have nightmares about being in the weeds to this day.

I am completely over Howie. I really hoped he would be asked to pack his knives. Tre's over-smoked potatoes could be forgiven, but bad risotto not so much. Altough I do agree with Kristi. Tre should just not have plated the potatoes.

[SDMomChef]

Altough I do agree with Kristi. Tre should just not have plated the potatoes.

I dunno - seems like he might have been in trouble either way since the menu mentioned smoked potatoes. I remember that in Season 2 that Elia's dessert had to be changed from chocolate hearts on top to chocolate pieces because they didn't hold together and they commented on that and I seem to recall that they might have held that against her.

[Hammster]

I think if Tre had pulled the potatoes, came out and served the judges himself and stated they were not to his standards (pre-emptive strike) that may have gone a long way to helping himself out. Sounds like the beef itself could have stood alone.

[Canice]

I think Bourdain's view on the elimination being based on the day's performance makes a lot of sense (I'm sure he'd be thrilled to know :rolleyes: ) but I also think that, to a lesser degree, there's a certain practicality of it. Otherwise, each week would have to be a cumulative evaluation in a way, which would be unweildy. And in which case, Hung and Dale would NEVER hear the end of that hair-brained decision to put scented candles on a dining table.


Is it me or did they really take her opinion into account more than their own?
...
Also why was Dale blamed for the silverware problem. Weren't the hired waiters supposed to take care of that?

I liked the idea of the secret diner, but I agree - it seemed there was at least as much time (no doubt due to editing, but still) given to her opinions as to the judges'. And I agree about the Right Guard comment not being appropriate. But I actually have a number of problems with a lot of restaurant reviews by food bloggers - but that's a different thread.

Dale was the GM and the one contestant responsible for the front of the house, so even though the servers were asleep at the switch, the GM oversees them and has to see that everything in the front of the house is flawless. After all, the servers are ALL getting sent home at the end of the night. ;)

[Jessnc]

I would've been so upset if they sent Dale or Brian home last night. It was good to see that this episode was actually a "practice run" for a real elimination. They will have that much more pressure next week.

If anyone should be spoken negatively about for perspiration, it should be Howie. Yuck. At least Brian wasn't dripping sweat over the food.

I'm rooting for team April (so long as it's the same team). I think they make a good team. I was very surprised to see Sara and Howie working so well together, and I have to commend them for that.

[Terrie53]

Scented candles in a restaurant? What were they thinking? My first thoughts when Dale and Hung were buying them was "What the heck are they thinking?" And "Bad move!" :confused::eek:

Howie was very low key compared to his past MO. What's with that?:confused:

I was very surprised with Brian. He was so on it the previous show. Very strange.:confused: In fact I think everyone was a little "off". They're all looking a little tired at this point.;)

If there was no elimination for this show, will there be two for the next one? I'm thinking........:rolleyes: :D

[Canice]

...
If there was no elimination for this show, will there be two for the next one? I'm thinking........:rolleyes: :D

You'd have to think, no? They have a schedule to keep. Unless the number of contestants out the gate figures in - I can't really keep up anymore.
What about Sara M? Besides her chile rillenos (http://recipes.bravotv.com/top_chef/season_3/episode_5/stuffed_poblanos.php), has she really shone here? This seems to be the part of the competetion where the people who've neither failed nor succeeded face elimination. While she doesn't have the "big personality" of an Ilan or Marcel, I find her somehow unlikable, though I can't put my finger on just why. Not, of course, that that should matter.