Top Chef: Movie Night
Like any good movie director, Top Chef decided to create some drama in the very first scene of tonight's episode. They introduced the idea that Jen and Zoi have an advantage because they're not separated from their loved ones. They even set it up with a sound-bite from Jen herself, talking about keeping some distance to defuse any suggestion that she and her partner are giving each other unfair support. Spike, always good for a snide comment or two, offered his assessment that the couple have a "slight advantage" and, in the Top Chef competition, that could make all the difference. It was the laugh-out-loud line of the show, for sure. Of course, part of me hoped it was true, so we could bid adieu to Spike (and his ludicrous hats) as soon as possible.
That would have to wait, however, because back in the kitchen, Daniel Boulud came in and announced the QuickFire Challenge: Make a vegetable plate using three different culinary techniques. After a frantic 30 minutes of slicing and dicing and brunoising, the master chef offered his appaisal of the results.
[Movie spoilers after the jump.]
On the bottom: Nikki, Lisa, and Manuel. Boulud's favorites: Zoi, Dale, and Richard. And the winner was Dale, who did look impressive with thinly shaved cucumber garnishing his plate of vegan sashimi. He was promptly awarded immunity for the rest of the evening's events.
The Elimination Challenge was to create a "movie-themed course" for a dinner party at Chicago film critic Richard Roeper's house. Twelve chefs were paired off for each of the six courses and Dale was allowed to choose which team he wanted to join. He picked Richard and Andrew, who had been together before -- as rivals in the first week's heads-up match.
Here are the teams and the movies they chose:
Team 1 - Andrew, Dale, Richard - Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory
Team 2 - Spike and Manuel - Good Morning Vietnam
Team 3 - Jen and Nikki, Il Postino
Team 4 - Mark and Ryan, A Christmas Story
Team 5 - Antonia and Zoi, Talk to Her
Team 6 - Stephanie and Lisa, Top Secret!
The movie selection scenes were actually pretty revealing. My take: These people really have been spending a lot of time in the kitchen. Boulud offered up Casablanca as a movie that he would tap for inspiration. Yet somehow we end up with Good Morning Vietnam and Top Secret? Um, okay.
At first it looks like the heavy-hitting team of Richard, Dale, and Andrew have an edge. Not only do they seem largely on the same page, but with the advantage of going first, they may be able to make a big impression. But when Richard brings out his now-signature mini-smoker, Team Wonka runs into a snag -- the gizmo craps after only 3 of 12 plates. It remains to be seen if the resulting improvisation will derail the dream team.
Host Richard Roeper and his guest of honor, actress Aisha Tyler, joined Padma, Tom, Ted Allen, Daniel Boulud, and a handful of civilians at the table. As the courses rolled out, it was clear very quickly which ones impressed and which disappointed.
As expected, the opening trio's Wonka-inspired appetizer was met with much approval, despite the backstage snafus.
Good Morning Vietnam was identified, accurately, as a very thinly veiled excuse to present Vietnamese cuisine. It might have worked, too, if the dish had delivered.
The Il Postino course was met with the most mixed reviews at the dinner table. The host and his friends really liked the "rustic" Italian tortellini. The judges weren't so enthused.
Surprisingly, Team Christmas Story's dish was met with delight, both for the taste of their dish and the connection to the movie. If you ask me, Ryan lucked out on that one. In the kitchen, he couldn't actually remember the name of the film, and at the store, they couldn't find duck, which was meant to be the main connection to the Chinese restaurant Christmas dinner in the flick. Seems like Mark's skill in the kitchen clearly saved this team's bacon.
The Talk to Her crew spun a story about the vibrant colors of Spain, which clearly weren't in evidence on their plate of lamb chops and gremolata. Oops.
Finally, Stephanie and Lisa brought out NY Strip Steak with a Braised Short-Rib & Apple Wonton in Asian Caramel Sauce. I still have no idea how that related to Top Secret other than going by Lisa's statement, "Every time I see a cow, I think of that scene in Top Secret." Awesome. Luckily for her, flavor usually takes the lead in determining a thumbs up or a thumbs down, and the dish clearly won the diners over in the taste department.
At judges' table, the obvious preferences at the dinner table played themselves out without much surprise. The first course and last made the top two, with Daniel Boulud heaping hearty praise on both dishes. In the end, he deemed the smoked salmon appetizer with white-chocolate wasabi sauce to be the perfectly executed course and Richard was awarded the win for leading that team.
Back in the waiting room, the remaining contestants wondered if the two teams in front of the judges were winners or losers. Seems like it should be obvious by now that winners always get called first. But they just couldn't fathom the fact that chocolate and wasabi could taste good in a just universe. It was nice juxtaposition against the judges own misgivings about the combination -- that is, until they tasted it and fell in love.
When the hammer came down, it was Spike and Manuel and their Vietnamese summer roll that nobody liked, paired against Antonia and Zoi's not-so-vibrant lamb chops of Spain. It turned out that the judges didn't mind the ladies' dish, but they hated their spiel, so hence the dressing down.
In the end, it was a weird decision. While it was obvious that Spike was the designer and driver of the disastrous Vietnamese appetizer, the judges decided that Manuel's reluctance to wrestle for control of the dish was a higher crime. Or maybe it was just that Manuel had failed to make a very good showing in any of the previous challenges, individual or team. In any case, Manuel made the decision look a very suspect when he went out with a lot of class and grace, while the preview for next week shows Spike readying a fresh fedora and some more unearned arrogance.
Add a comment:
Previewing your comment:
HTML Hints
Some HTML is OK: <a href="URL">link</a>, <strong>strong</strong>, <em>em</em>
Comment Guidelines
Post whatever you want, just keep it seriously about eats, seriously. We reserve the right to delete off-topic or inflammatory comments. Learn more at our Comment Policy page.
If you see something not so nice, please, report an inappropriate comment.
6 Comments:
Spike has GOT to go.
bessfour at 9:51AM on 04/03/08
I think they made their decision for TV reasons. Spike obviously makes for better TV than Manuel.
Or maybe the judges didn't want to have security drag Spike out. I mean, he did say this was "His House".
randyzip at 10:12AM on 04/03/08
no question it was for tv reasons. manuel is just there and his personality has never been seen in the show.
same reason why erik got the boot last week. they HAVE to get more drama out of the relationship before they boot zoi or jennifer. unless one of those two completely screw up a dish, they're not getting a boot until they get some good tv out of them.
attgig at 10:43AM on 04/03/08
sorry randyzip, you're thinking of Andrew who said that "top chef" was his house. but I agree that they kept Spike for the drama.
meganaw at 11:46AM on 04/03/08
How can the Whole Foods market not have DUCK??? I thought Mark and Ryan would be doomed because of it, but they pulled it off. So cheers to Mark and Ryan and jeers to Whole Foods!
jonfoxx at 1:48PM on 04/03/08
As far as Chocolate and Wasabi as a flavor combination goes, my favorite chocolate bar is a dark chocolate and wasabi bar from a company called Vosges.
seric at 10:37PM on 04/07/08