Top Chef Las Vegas 11/11 *spoilers* [Text View]

Big Deficit

11-12-2009, 06:17 PM

I agree it's about time. I still think the final 3 are going be Mike, Bryan and Kevin. and that it is Kevin's to lose.

Like Richard Blais?;)

I think any of those 3 will be worthy winners. I also think that each has already won big career wise. I wonder if something significant is happening in Jens life away from the show that she's not talking about. The focus that she showed early on is gone and she doesn't seem concerned about it

gossamer88

11-12-2009, 08:10 PM

I think any of those 3 will be worthy winners.

As long as Mike doesn't win.

Bob Coxner

11-12-2009, 10:36 PM

Our long national nightmare is over. The producers finally decided that Robin's drama value wasn't worth the joke of keeping her around anymore.

I think Kevin may be the best chef they've ever had on the show. The brothers are good but Kevin never misses a beat and he's not a one trick pony with meat.

Jesda

11-12-2009, 10:58 PM

Robin seemed fine. I thought the other chefs were being crybabies.

jsmeeker

11-12-2009, 11:01 PM

I'm surprised that Eli didn't get the axe, but HOORAY!!!

Mike can be bit of an arrogant prick sometime, but he has serious talent. I think it's between him and Kevin now. Too bad Jen had slumped. Real shame, because she is good too.

My recording got cut over during the previews for next week, but I was excited to see the person I saw. :)

uncdrew

11-12-2009, 11:34 PM

Robin seemed fine. I thought the other chefs were being crybabies.

Agreed.

I'm pretty bummed by the judges. Eli should have gone home. They should vote out the worst performer of that challenge. If Robin keeps being second worse, she should continue to stay.

Her dish was edible, just a tad stiff. Eli's made judges want to spit it out. And he doesn't lose?!?

Boo.

mrpantstm

11-12-2009, 11:50 PM

Mike can be bit of an arrogant prick sometime, but he has serious talent. I think it's between him and Kevin now. Too bad Jen had slumped. Real shame, because she is good too.

I think Mike can come off as a prick but he also seems respectful and polite at other times. If I walked into the kitchen the way it appeared Robin left it and wound up in the weeds as he was, I'd be short with her as well. Course the editing, blah blah blah.

I'd love to see Jen be the come back kid and give the top three a run. If she can pull even a quickfire win next week that should be enough to get her head back in the game. As is though, she's so far in the weeds in this competition I don't think she'll do it. Shame.

My recording got cut over during the previews for next week, but I was excited to see the person I saw. :)

Yeah. As to keep with the rules:

While I would have liked to see TK in the finale since I believe it's being taped in Napa, I'm happy to see him. Wonder what Jen was talking about chefs training for for years and they have a day? With TK, I'm thinking something to do with the Bocuse d'Or but who knows.

Man, Top Chef has had some amazing judges this season.

mrpantstm

11-13-2009, 12:00 AM

Her dish was edible, just a tad stiff. Eli's made judges want to spit it out. And he doesn't lose?!?

I think it was more than just a tad stiff. It was a poorly done panna cotta which should have been bang easy to do. According to Tom the sauce was also poor and her theme didn't come through. While Eli's dish didn't look appetizing and the texture was bad, Tom said he actually liked the dish. And I think Eli at least got his theme on the plate even if it wasn't done well.

Eh, it definitely seemed like Eli had the worse dish but I think it was perfectly fair that Robin went home standing on this challenge alone.

jradosh

11-13-2009, 09:13 AM

Loved the quickfire challenge only because the two women in bed. Other than that, it was a pretty lame "cook me breakfast" challenge.

I really like Kevin, and from the previews of next week...
That arrogant pissant says "Kevin's food is what I cook on my day off". :eek: He should get the boot just for that. It's OK to be confident about your own food, but trashing a competitor is really poor form. And Kevin has never (that I recall) said a bad word about any other chef.

Craigbob

11-13-2009, 09:27 AM

Loved the quickfire challenge only because the two women in bed. Other than that, it was a pretty lame "cook me breakfast" challenge.

+ 1

uncdrew

11-13-2009, 10:31 AM

I think it was more than just a tad stiff. It was a poorly done panna cotta which should have been bang easy to do. According to Tom the sauce was also poor and her theme didn't come through. While Eli's dish didn't look appetizing and the texture was bad, Tom said he actually liked the dish. And I think Eli at least got his theme on the plate even if it wasn't done well.

Eh, it definitely seemed like Eli had the worse dish but I think it was perfectly fair that Robin went home standing on this challenge alone.

That's a valid argument, but not one I agree with. I suppose it could be like Olympic diving, where they take "difficulty factor" into account. So perhaps a minor screw-up on a grilled cheese sandwich is a worst offense than a major screw-up on a beef wellington. I dunno. But to me a Top Chef shouldn't serve anything that judges have a hard time even eating.

If these Chefs make something that makes a judge gag, that should be automatic elimination IMHO. Robin's dish looked quite nice. Eli's looked like garbage. Robin's wasn't out-of-this-world, but they all ate it and weren't all that negative about the experience. I 100% agree she should have been in the bottom 3, and that she's amazingly lucky to have made it as far as she did. She's out of her league. But all that said, I really don't think her dish was worst this week.

Funny how the judges keep saying panna cota is an easy dish to make, but it seems like Top Chef contestants can never do it right. :p

As far as staying on theme, I'm not sure some of the other chefs did at all, or at least it wasn't well explained.

justen_m

11-13-2009, 10:58 AM

MonsterJoe

11-13-2009, 11:29 AM

jsmeeker

11-13-2009, 11:32 AM

I'm suprised the judges didn't think Robin's theme came through. I thought it was the most clear representation of all of them.

I think she "lost points" because she didn't actually serve the sugar pieces with the dish.

I still haven't read Tom's blog, though. Usually, it all comes down to taste.

FireMen2003

11-13-2009, 11:34 AM

I think Mike can come off as a prick but he also seems respectful and polite at other times. If I walked into the kitchen the way it appeared Robin left it and wound up in the weeds as he was, I'd be short with her as well. Course the editing, blah blah blah.

It's not like they had time to clean up. As soon as they finished, they went upstairs so I don't understand why he was so upset...

That arrogant pissant says "Kevin's food is what I cook on my day off". He should get the boot just for that. It's OK to be confident about your own food, but trashing a competitor is really poor form. And Kevin has never (that I recall) said a bad word about any other chef.

I agree and this isn't the first time, that has happened. I'm completely turned off from him.

jsmeeker

11-13-2009, 11:39 AM

It's not like they had time to clean up. As soon as they finished, they went upstairs so I don't understand why he was so upset...

It's because she didn't work clean. If you work clean, you don't leave a giant mess.

I don't really care if he is a prick in the kitchen. If he can turn out good food, that is what I want. I'm not ever going to WORK for a guy like that. (or a guy like Kevin or a girl like Jen). I'm just going to be a customer.

sharkster

11-13-2009, 11:40 AM

Yeah, it seems like somebody sure is jealous of Kevin's success. LMAO...what a baby! I know he's good, he knows he's good, and everybody knows he's good. So maybe he just needs to concentrate on his own performance and stop the juvenile comments about Kevin.

As for Robin - woo-freakin-hoo!! I'm in the camp that has wanted her gone for a while now. She cannot compete on this level.

As for Jen - Man, I wish she would come back to the party! She was doing so well and showing her talents so well, then she just started tanking and hasn't recovered. I hope she does, and if she doesn't I expect to see her gone next wk.

Aniketos

11-13-2009, 11:41 AM

I'm suprised the judges didn't think Robin's theme came through. I thought it was the most clear representation of all of them.

They need to decide how they judge. They've always said based on the elimination challenge alone, but it never really has been.

By that logic Robin would have gone home a long time ago, shes been in the bottom almost everytime and takes out chefs that maybe had been in the bottom once or twice. Robin made a panna cota and "glass" sugar because of the glass sculpture. Then didn't put anything but a panna cota and sauce on the plate, that's not a clear representation of the challenge if you say to the judges, "Here's my inspiration, over there in the corner, I'm not putting it on your dish."

USAFSSO

11-13-2009, 11:47 AM

I agree it's about time. I still think the final 3 are going be Mike, Bryan and Kevin. and that it is Kevin's to lose.
...

Kevin has it locked, he is some one I would like to meet and have a beer with. Mike and Bryan are total DBs. They barely crack a smile when they win, must have had a fun childhood.

And this is why Kevin should win.
http://www.bravotv.com/media/imagecache/125x90/images/persons/kevin-gillespie-125x125.jpg http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:37lBEICVT6VQmM:http://static.tvguide.com/MediaBin/Galleries/Shows/S_Z/Sa_Sh/santaClaus_isComingToTown/crops/santa-claus-coming-town4.jpg
I know I posted the earlier.

jsmeeker

11-13-2009, 11:48 AM

Setting aside the people for a moment..

The collection of properties they visited was interesting. Unless I am forgetting something, all MGM-Mirage. I cringed when Eli drew the Clown. Jen getting Excalibur wasn't so great, either.

SoldOnTiVo

11-13-2009, 12:01 PM

WHat made me cringe is Tom saying something about medieval food being so bad they had to cover it with spices to make it palatable ?!?!?!

Sorry Tom, That's total B.S. Fresh meats were readily available back then.

I've cooked from 400year olds recipes that were fabulolus even by today's standards.

Edit: With just a little web research, Jen could have found some great stuff out there. Sword and Stone... puh-lease.

jradosh

11-13-2009, 12:06 PM

I cringed when Eli drew the Clown. Jen getting Excalibur wasn't so great, either.

With just a little web research, Jen could have found some great stuff out there. Sword and Stone... puh-lease.

I don't think there was anything limiting about any of the casino choices. The whole "inspired by" guideline was so loosely defined as to be virtually meaningless.

FireMen2003

11-13-2009, 12:08 PM

It's because she didn't work clean. If you work clean, you don't leave a giant mess.

I'll give you that...

What about when everyone is in the room at the end to see who is going to be eliminated and Kevin always tries to cheer up the mood and he is just ignored every time...:(

jsmeeker

11-13-2009, 12:14 PM

Edit: With just a little web research, Jen could have found some great stuff out there. Sword and Stone... puh-lease.

are they allowed to do that?

Eli was funny back at the house. "There wasn't any food there!!" :D

uncdrew

11-13-2009, 12:29 PM

uncdrew

11-13-2009, 12:32 PM

By that logic Robin would have gone home a long time ago, shes been in the bottom almost everytime and takes out chefs that maybe had been in the bottom once or twice. Robin made a panna cota and "glass" sugar because of the glass sculpture. Then didn't put anything but a panna cota and sauce on the plate, that's not a clear representation of the challenge if you say to the judges, "Here's my inspiration, over there in the corner, I'm not putting it on your dish."

I thought Robin's colors captured the Belagio well, along with the topping on the panna cota. Agreed that the sugar thing would have helped her tremendously.

Jen put a toothpick in a hunk of meat for her theme. :p

uncdrew

11-13-2009, 12:33 PM

I don't think there was anything limiting about any of the casino choices. The whole "inspired by" guideline was so loosely defined as to be virtually meaningless.

I was waiting for someone to serve up the Las Vegas Strip Steak. :p

MonsterJoe

11-13-2009, 01:03 PM

By that logic Robin would have gone home a long time ago, shes been in the bottom almost everytime and takes out chefs that maybe had been in the bottom once or twice. Robin made a panna cota and "glass" sugar because of the glass sculpture. Then didn't put anything but a panna cota and sauce on the plate, that's not a clear representation of the challenge if you say to the judges, "Here's my inspiration, over there in the corner, I'm not putting it on your dish."

That's the point, though. She hasn't had the worst dish every time she was in the bottom, and that's what they say they base it on.

...even without the sugar, though, her plate looked most like it was inspired by the casino she was sent to. They didn't even give her that credit.

I don't care that she went home, just thought she deserved a little more credit for this one.

While I'm sure she is a perfectly fine chef when she is in her element, she's obviously a little out of her league here.

sushikitten

11-13-2009, 01:34 PM

From Tom's blog:
http://www.bravotv.com/top-chef/blogs/tom-colicchio/inspiration-hotel
While there were three dishes in the top and bottom, in both cases it really came down to two. Jen’s dish was more boring than it could’ve been, and the meat was a bit tough, but apart from that there were no glaring mistakes — certainly nothing to rival those of Robin and Eli. She didn’t really know about medieval cooking. I believe that had she known more about how rancid meats were the motivating factor behind the spice trade, or about the use of honey, those facts would have triggered ideas for her and her dish would have packed a larger punch. But when her meal was placed alongside those of Eli and Robin, there was no chance of her being sent home.

SoldOnTiVo

11-13-2009, 02:13 PM

are they allowed to do that?

...

Interesting question......

uncdrew

11-13-2009, 02:17 PM

Interesting question......

They do seem to have plenty of downtime in the apartment. And they usually get their elimination task a day or so before they present.

However, I'm guessing the apartment doesn't have cookbooks. And in that vein, I'm guessing they aren't allowed much on the internet to look stuff up.

SoldOnTiVo

11-13-2009, 02:19 PM

From Tom's blog:
http://www.bravotv.com/top-chef/blogs/tom-colicchio/inspiration-hotel\

Here he goes with the rancid thing again. I think the man needs to check his sources. At some point, spices were actually a status symbol; as a way to show off to your guests.. the more spices you could put in a dish, the richer you were considered because you had to acquire those spices at high price.

SoldOnTiVo

11-13-2009, 02:22 PM

Interesting and short article on the subject of medieval cooking and the "rancid meat" myth.

http://www.wilsoncenter.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=wq.essay&essay_id=504319

Edit: The comments on Tom's blogs actually do a pretty good explanation job too. :)

Smeek, You have to check out godecookery.com. I know you'll make some tasty discoveries in there.

jsmeeker

11-13-2009, 02:34 PM

\

Here he goes with the rancid thing again. I think the man needs to check his sources. At some point, spices were actually a status symbol; as a way to show off to your guests.. the more spices you could put in a dish, the richer you were considered because you had to acquire those spices at high price.

So, he was half right. Lots of spices would have been good. It's what the well to do would have dined on.

sushikitten

11-13-2009, 03:55 PM

They do seem to have plenty of downtime in the apartment. And they usually get their elimination task a day or so before they present.

However, I'm guessing the apartment doesn't have cookbooks. And in that vein, I'm guessing they aren't allowed much on the internet to look stuff up.

I don't remember where I read it, maybe an interview with Mike after he was kicked off, but he said the whole thing took place in like 6 weeks so it was go-go-go with barely any downtime and they had no TV, no internet, no newspapers, etc.

Fleegle

11-13-2009, 04:33 PM

Panna cota? Sounds like risotto. I've never made panna cota, but I make risotto all the time. On Hell's Kitchen (yeah, I know, off topic) nobody ever seems to make a decent risotto. I'm not a chef, and just an amateur home cook, but risotto is easy. Perfect vegetarian dish. It is like macorini and cheese.

Panna Cotta is a custard style dish. Kind of like a Flan. It should be fairly easy for most chefs to make, but almost invariably the Top Chef contestants can't get the consistency right. Either it never sets or it's too firm. Most likely it's the same reason that their attempts at baking almost never work: The time restraints make them rush, and baking requires exacting measurements.

jsmeeker

11-13-2009, 05:06 PM

Panna Cotta is a custard style dish. Kind of like a Flan. .

It has no eggs. So, really, not a custard. It's set with gealtin.

mrpantstm

11-13-2009, 06:44 PM

Richard Blais on his blog has some good suggestions on what Jen could have done. Using swordfish and stone ground polenta to riff on her theme.

Roadblock

11-13-2009, 09:00 PM

Her dish was edible, just a tad stiff. Eli's made judges want to spit it out. And he doesn't lose?!?
Boo.

Her dish looked like crap. It was way more than 'a tad' stiff. Tom has always been hard on people who pick really easy dishes and screw them up. She screwed up a simple dish and didn't get everything on the plate, recipe for elimination.

Robin's dish looked quite nice. Eli's looked like garbage. Robin's wasn't out-of-this-world, but they all ate it and weren't all that negative about the experience. I 100% agree she should have been in the bottom 3, and that she's amazingly lucky to have made it as far as she did. She's out of her league. But all that said, I really don't think her dish was worst this week.

Funny how the judges keep saying panna cota is an easy dish to make, but it seems like Top Chef contestants can never do it right. :p

As far as staying on theme, I'm not sure some of the other chefs did at all, or at least it wasn't well explained.

I couldn't disagree with you more. Eli's dish didn't look great either, but hers was the worst.

...even without the sugar, though, her plate looked most like it was inspired by the casino she was sent to.

How so? She strikes me as the type of person that will give me some long dramatic, artsy story about her dish even though it doesn't have anything to do with the food on the plate and it tastes like crap. Real chefs keep it simple and get it right.

The guest judge with the fake accent was a real b****.

mrpantstm

11-13-2009, 09:32 PM

The guest judge with the fake accent was a real b****.

Nigella Lawson is actually British. Her comments were pretty weak though.

jsmeeker

11-13-2009, 09:36 PM

I just thought of this..

Two of the bottom dishes were inspired by the bottom 2 joints that were visited by the chefs..

MonsterJoe

11-13-2009, 09:50 PM

How so? She strikes me as the type of person that will give me some long dramatic, artsy story about her dish even though it doesn't have anything to do with the food on the plate and it tastes like crap. Real chefs keep it simple and get it right.

The guest judge with the fake accent was a real b****.

The rich colors...and the panna cota mimicked the art shape/style of the casino.

it looked nice.

eli made peanut water...sorry, soup... with crap on top...and it looked it.
jen made a beef tip

the top three's dishes tasted good, i'm sure...but all three missed the mark on the visual representation of the casino, which I figured would be important.

MonsterJoe

11-13-2009, 09:52 PM

oh and i also want to say how it irritates me that everything is a "play on.." something.

Kevin did it this week, but everyone does it. Come on...it's not a "play on steak and eggs" ...it's freakin steak and eggs.

jsmeeker

11-13-2009, 09:54 PM

the top three's dishes tasted good, i'm sure...but all three missed the mark on the visual representation of the casino, which I figured would be important.

was that the challenge? Create something that was a VISUAL representation of the casino? I recall the challenge being "create a dish inspired by the casino".

I deleted the episode, so I can't rewatch what they were told (or at least, what we actually heard them be told)

MonsterJoe

11-13-2009, 11:00 PM

was that the challenge? Create something that was a VISUAL representation of the casino? I recall the challenge being "create a dish inspired by the casino".

I deleted the episode, so I can't rewatch what they were told (or at least, what we actually heard them be told)

No...like I said, I figured it would be important, that's all.

The casinos have so much visual character...I figured it would/should carry over into plating.

uncdrew

11-13-2009, 11:20 PM

I couldn't disagree with you more. Eli's dish didn't look great either, but hers was the worst.

I wish we had photos of the dishes. Eli's looked like baby food with sand poured haphazardly on top and a pink golf ball dropped in. Hers was a pretty piece surrounded by a nice looking sauce.

Even the judges don't agree with you.

uncdrew

11-13-2009, 11:23 PM

No...like I said, I figured it would be important, that's all.

The casinos have so much visual character...I figured it would/should carry over into plating.

I'm with ya.

I'm as big a Kevin fanboi as can be, but I don't know how The Mirage inspired his dish.

Mandalay Bay and seafood is a connection, but kind of easy/weak. Don't remember the other one.

The bottom three actually got that part of the challenge completed pretty well -- to bad none of them cooked worth a damn.

jradosh

11-14-2009, 10:09 AM

I'm as big a Kevin fanboi as can be, but I don't know how The Mirage inspired his dish.

Mandalay Bay and seafood is a connection, but kind of easy/weak. Don't remember the other one.

The third was chicken wings (inspired by NY NY -> Fireboat -> firemen eat bar food). That was a bit of a stretch for me, but still within the "inspired by" guidelines.

---

on the topic of the first challenge.... what the hell was Jen thinking serving up ***** on a Shingle??? :confused:

mrpantstm

11-14-2009, 02:41 PM

The third was chicken wings (inspired by NY NY -> Fireboat -> firemen eat bar food). That was a bit of a stretch for me, but still within the "inspired by" guidelines.

---

on the topic of the first challenge.... what the hell was Jen thinking serving up ***** on a Shingle??? :confused:

yeah, even if your dish is good, she still called it ****. Seriously.

I think the top three were all good dishes but Micheal's was closest to his casino theme. Even if he was thinking NYC, the casino is really NY so that would include Buffalo.

Mr. Soze

11-14-2009, 05:04 PM

My wife often puts me on risotto stirring duty. Seems (one of) the main key is to keep stirring.Yep. Before I first made one albeit 20 odd years ago, all I heard was how hard it was to get right. 20 minutes of constant stirring, bah blah blah. Total BS. One of the very best things I ever made was a risotto made with the broth from a Christmas turkey carcass, finished with a tub of black truffle butter from D'Artagnan. And I HATE when people say Riz-oh-toe. ;)

Top 3 will be final 3. Any one of them would not shock me. I'd still like Bryan to win. As to Robyn: Was she going to win TC? NFW. Could Eli? Possibly. Could Jen? Possibly, but she's circling the drain. Her whole body language screams defeat. But it's a very nice body.

d-dub

11-14-2009, 09:12 PM

on the topic of the first challenge.... what the hell was Jen thinking serving up ***** on a Shingle??? :confused:

Serving it is fine, but it was pretty stupid to call it that.

jsmeeker

11-14-2009, 09:14 PM

Serving it is fine, but it was pretty stupid to call it that.

That's what it's called! :D

You see how picky they can get over the name of a dish on that show.

uncdrew

11-14-2009, 09:17 PM

Serving it is fine, but it was pretty stupid to call it that.

Yeah, Eli was smart enough not to call his dish "**** in a cup" :p

Aniketos

11-14-2009, 10:57 PM

From Tom's Blog

Between you and me, I kind of liked Eli’s dish. It was not successful by a long shot, and I understand why my fellow judges truly did not, but I enjoyed it. I think the raspberry dome should have topped the other elements (circuses happen under the big top, right?) — it would have been fun in a way befitting the circus theme to break through that to find what surprises awaited beneath. Even so, the theme was better realized than in Robin’s dish, where she just never translated the Dale Chihuly glass sculpture from the lobby of the Bellagio to her dish. The colors of the flowers in that handblown glass sculpture are so vivid, the texture so striking, and yet we were handed a piece of white panna cotta in a pale purple sauce with a pice of amber sugar on top (which, incidentally, made the photo taken for the episode, but didn’t make it to our plates). Right now every pastry chef who watched the program is thinking, “Ohmigod, there are SO many ways to pull this off!” If you know how to work with sugars, you cold make little translucent flowers in a host of colors, using dyes. Even if you’re not proficient enough to work in sugars, there are myriad ways to work with the colors and the idea of flowers. Panna cotta is basic, simple fare, but Robin’s wasn’t well done; the texture was wrong. And the sauce was terrible. What can I say? At the end of the day, every element of her dish failed. Eli’s dish was less bad. And so it was Robin’s turn to go.