PrintThey're Ba-ack! 'Top Chef' Gets Windy
"The show has definitely found its groove. People know it and love it. If the omelet ain't broke, don't fix it."
Season Four of Top Chef kicked off in fine fashion, with Padma Lakshmi and Tom Colicchio returning to lead a motley crew of 16 executive chefs, line cooks, and culinary consultants toward $100,000 and 15 delicious minutes of fame.
At first glance, the mix of personalities and talent levels seems pretty good. Geographically, much like seasons past, San Francisco and New York are well represented. There are a few contestants from the South, and probably too few from the host city of Chicago. Also, as in past seasons, fans of fauxhawks and other dubious coiffure will not be disappointed.
[Warning: Spoilers after the jump.]
A Winning Formula
As for the show's format, precious little has changed, and why should it? Top Chef has definitely found its groove. People know it and love it. If the omelet ain't broke, don't fix it. The Quickfire Challenge is still there. This week, it didn't grant immunity but rather helped set up the Elimination Challenge, which followed a new format that was really compelling and that I'd personally love to see again.
The top eight chefs from the Quickfire Challenge each chose one of the "losing" chefs to go against, head-to-head. The challenged chef then chose the dish they'd compete on. The choices: chicken piccata, steak au poivre, shrimp scampi, duck l'orange, lasagna, soufflé, crab cakes, and eggs Benedict.
The binary nature of the challenge made for exciting food television. Rivalries were formed. Some chefs, who had gained confidence from the Quickfire, found themselves on the other side of the judges' favor. Another nice touch: instant judgments. Guest judges Rocco DiSpirito and Tony Bourdain, along with Lakshmi and Colicchio, gave quick thumbs-up and thumbs-down to each pair. It was a nice way to whittle down the competition and ratchet up the elimination suspense.
In the end, a young Atlanta chef named Nimma won the "We hardly knew ye" award. Her shrimp scampi prompted the dreaded term "inedible" at the judges' table and it seemed like she might have known right there that her time on Top Chef was going to be short and very salty.
Keep Your Eye On These Folks
It will take a few weeks to form strong opinions about front-runners and fan favorites, but if you ask me, here are some contestants to watch:
Richard: His molecular gastronomy got off on the right foot. He may have the right stuff to measure up to Chicago's surprisingly avant-garde food scene.
Andrew: Animated is an understatement. Andrew's already made a big impression, and not necessarily with his food.
Jennifer: Bias alert. I've eaten at Coco500 many times, and it's consistently great. If Jennifer can survive the stress of having to compete against her own partner, I wouldn't bet against her.
Blog entries and reactions are already up on the Top Chef website, including some video fierceness from Project Runway's Christian Siriano, so don't hesitate to dig in. Sadly, no word yet from Bourdain, whose recaps are so good they hurt. Fingers crossed that he gets the chance to weigh in from time to time.
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12 Comments:
I must have missed something. Who is Jennifer's partner?
bygnerd at 2:48AM on 03/13/08
"fauxhawks"
So that is what they're called. That was the first thing I noticed, I just figured that it was a mandatory style on the show.
feep at 7:51AM on 03/13/08
@bygnerd - Her partner is Zoi. They announced it while they were eating at Pizzeria Uno (of all places...)
modysoul at 8:26AM on 03/13/08
anyone else think it's a bit unfair that Richard Blais is competing? he's already a pretty well known chef even before he was on Iron Chef America.
Harlock_jds at 8:30AM on 03/13/08
so far i like nikki, stephanie and valerie. the guys i just dont know yet except for one, andrew. whats up with his attitude. i think he might be the bad boy.
one question i have to ask though, these guys are so stressed and they have been cooking for years, you would think it would be a little better for them. certainly they have cooked thousands of dishes and could do so in their sleep. crab cakes, shrimp scampi-please!!!!!!!!!
jobug_tincher at 10:35AM on 03/13/08
This season looks like it will be good. The talent level appears to be high as the judges liked most of the dishes (although maybe that's because they were making "normal" food). Anyway, I am looking forward to it. And Richard at this point seems like the person to beat.
apsteph at 11:25AM on 03/13/08
Andrew strikes me as the Joey of this season. Joey was all 'F this, F that, F you, I'm from F'in Noo Yawk', then when he got kicked off the show he was blubbering like a baby.
Buckethead at 12:59PM on 03/13/08
andrew is already annoying. I think the saying goes something like win THEN talk s**t!? He already has constant garbage flying out of his mouth...and hasnt done much to back it up. he'll be the first to cry about leaving and of course it wont be HIS fault. not impressed! LOVED stephanie and richard of course...
hungrygrl7 at 1:47PM on 03/13/08
Okay, as a Chicagoan, I have to take issue with the chefs eating at Pizzeria Uno. Of all the fantastic pizza joints in this town, the powers that be at Bravo pick Pizzeria Uno?
On a more positive note, Tony Bourdain was amusing as usual.
jazspin at 10:16PM on 03/13/08
@Jazspin: I agree about Pizzeria Uno. Not an auspicious start. Yes, Uno's originated in Chicago, but it definitely has acquired a T.G.I. McFunsters vibe. One hopes that choice helped the show's bottom line enough to spare us a few gratuitous Gladware spots down the line...
Harold Check at 5:33PM on 03/14/08
A quick defense of Pizzeria Uno: Unlike the locations of the chain across the country, the original Chicago location is still producing excellent pizza. I prefer it to Lou Malnati's, Giordano's and Gino's East. Unfortunately, the miserable fare served at the other locations— along with that McFunster vibe— have given Uno's a bad name.
TheMangoLassie at 10:32AM on 03/17/08
themangolassie, thanks for clearing that up. i was wondering about this, upon my viewing of the first top chef episode. but indeed, upon doublechecking this with a chowhound search and some extensive reading. it is the general consensus that the original uno's location is pretty highly regarded as both tasty and classic in the typical foodie chicagoan opinion. i'm glad to understand this now.
tinymango at 11:00PM on 03/17/08