Top Chef Result: What Do You Think? (Spoilers Ahead)
So it was Stefan, Hosea and Carla, and we all know who won.
What do you think?
I was relieved Stefan didn't. They said it best: great technical skill, no soul. Arrogant prick, too.
Carla? She made the same mistake twice in letting others overrule her better instincts. It bit her hard today. Long-term, she learned the most valuable lesson of all, provided she reflects that lesson day-to-day. I was rooting for her the most, but alas.
Hosea? Hehe, NOW I see the set-up. All season, they focused on his rivalry with Stefan. Given that these things are edited afterward, I should've seen it. The faltering of Stefan lately. . .the constant attention on Hosea's rivalry. . .the build-up of Fabio telling Stefan he'd kick his butt if he didn't win.
Ah, in retrospect, in all makes more sense now. Could be 20/20 hindsight, but it makes sense to me.
What did YOU think?
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18 Comments:
I think Hosea was terrible this season... I'm so upset. I was hoping for Fabio. Then either Carla or Stefan...
This outcome just doesn't make sense to me. Hosea should have been eliminated weeks ago.
mandoopandoo at 4:28AM on 02/26/09
Hosea played safe often and I don't agree he was at all the top chef.
Carla was the one I wanted to see take the whole thing. I may not be consoled till the next season.
JerzeeTomato at 7:13AM on 02/26/09
As I understand it, history doesn't count. Chefs are judged for each event independently. While I personally thought, for weeks, that Carla was shaping up for the win, she didn't pull it off. Clearly Hosea made the best meal of the evening, giving him the win. He clearly used Richard to his advantage (while the others didn't use their help wisely). Do I think Hosea is the best chef? No. Do I think he did enough to win the night (and thus the competition). Yup.
derosa at 9:20AM on 02/26/09
I am underwhelmed by Hosea winning. In context of the full season he was not the top chef. He did win the last meal with smart game play. Poor Carla I was rooting for her but she went off track...again.
GiantsfanJT at 9:21AM on 02/26/09
See, the way I looked at it is this: Who would I want to cook me one meal out of the 3 remaining choices? Honestly, I would choose Carla. Granted, Hosea did "win" the challenge, I believe. However, Carla's souffle killed her.
pastry262 at 9:30AM on 02/26/09
I think what killled Carla was forgetting her vow "to thine own self be true".
I knew it was over for her as soon as she sheepishly agreed to sou vide (sp?) the beef. I even yelled at the television which is not something I'm known for. I really wanted her to win and would love to see her get her own show on the Food Network.
bessfour at 10:00AM on 02/26/09
I don't think it makes sense. I think it Hosea was sort of picked out of process of elimination. Or maybe, I'm just frustrated that the judges only base their decision on the one meal instead of the whole season. Hosea's meal did look good, but come on! Stefan and Carla made better food the rest of the season. How can Hosea be Top Chef is he was very rarely at the top? Isn't there something to be said for consistency?
Hillary
Chew on That
Chew on That at 10:34AM on 02/26/09
When I saw Casey on the set with Carla I knew it was over for her. Damn shame too.
chardonnay at 11:00AM on 02/26/09
My thoughts:
Stefan: Proved that not only could he cook what he knew and do it well (squab), he also proved that he could make a decent, if not brilliant dessert, and make a delicious appetizer using an ingredient that he was unfamiliar with (alligator).
Hosea: Always makes fish, and has shown that he can do that. He repeated that in the finale.
Carla: Has consistently proven that although she is brilliant as a chef, she is far too agreeable and that gets her in trouble too often when she works with others, instead of being true to herself.
So, with that said, Carla should not have one, although she was my favorite. A "Top Chef" would be able to take charge, know what they want and do it, and she has shown that can only really do that when she is on her own, and not with someone. What top chef ever truly works alone?
Hosea showed that he could still make fish. Big deal. his was consistently good, but not thrilling or brilliant or anything like that.
Stefan, though, sure the man has an ego, but frankly, he has the right to one. He has frequently been given curve balls and nailed them out of the park. he knows what he wants and does and does it well, alone or with groups. His dishes were either good (like Hosea's) or brilliant (like the squab). And he proved that he could cook with any ingredient thrown at him, even in that finale pressure situation.
Was Stefan my favorite? Not really. But the man is genuinely a "Top Chef", and I think that he should have won. I am disappointed that we didn't get to see Carla make Carla's food, because that would have been great, but Hosea? No way.
Traveller at 11:23AM on 02/26/09
i wanted to yell at carla while watching this episode. one because i feel like sous vide never goes over well on top chef and two because souffle??? seriously? especially when you know the judges usually love your tarts bad decision.
sustarz at 11:37AM on 02/26/09
I feel quite badly for Carla - I was definitely rooting for her because she was so passionate about her food. Maybe if she had meditated longer before the competition, she would have felt stronger and more centered. Enough that she could have gone with her heart on preparing her dish, rather than letting Casey derail her with the sous vide preparation. What a shame...
I think she also was overwhelmed and a bit confused when they threw in another course. She seemed very scattered and somewhat lost her focus. When Casey suggested the sous vide, it just took a big decision off her shoulders. Even if the tarts had turned out perfectly, I don't think it would have overcome the sous vide fiasco with the judges.
Stefan and Hosea? Don't care...I'm still mad about Carla. And what was with the overatures from Stefan to hug and console Carla? Not only arrogant, but phony, too.
frederika at 12:27PM on 02/26/09
@frederika - call me naive, but I think that Stefan was not phony when he went to hug Carla (twice, actually). To me, it looked like he genuinely was upset that Carla was crying. Unlike Hosea, who had no class, and when sitting in the "steam room" and looking straight at Carla, proudly pronounced, "I made sure I cooked my food".
I was rooting for Carla, and I have never been a fan of Stefan's at all, but I have a feeling I would have been more OK with his win than I am with Hosea's. "Arrogant" is not the worst trait for a chef. At least Stefan struck me as somebody who's rather straightforward, the "what you see is what you get" type, as opposed to Hosea. Plus, Stefan didn't use tinned crab to make crab cakes that, by everybody's admission, tasted like a tin the crab came from. Ugh. I know, it was a long time ago, but Hosea works in a seafood restaurant, for f's sake, so I'm not forgetting this. I'll take a dessert circa 1982 over tinned crab any day.
And Carla...you broke my heart. It's like the Casey Curse all over again, huh? And I know that Carla should have stood up for what she knew at heart was right, but still.
brooke29 at 12:56PM on 02/26/09
The whole season has been a major disappointment.
bessfour at 12:57PM on 02/26/09
@brooke - Sorry! I guess I didn't have my cockeyed optimist glasses on last night! lol... My husband and I just looked at each other and went - "oh, give me a break!" Neither Stefan or Hosea seem like really genuine little sweethearts, though... All in the heat of the competition, I guess.
And I think Carla would have done much better by herself, rather than with Casey's "help". We can console ourselves with the fact that Top Chef didn't hurt her catering business.:)
frederika at 1:31PM on 02/26/09
@frederika - lol, a "sweetheart" he's certainly not, but it doesn't mean that he can't have a genuine moment here and there. You're forgetting one thing - Carla is a sweetheart, and you needed to be a truly rotten person (cough> Hoseanot want to console her when she broke in tears. Stefan may have been awkward about it (like many other men in a situation involving women and tears are), but this cockeyed optimist doesn't think he was phony:-).
brooke29 at 1:43PM on 02/26/09
I thought it was a ploy for the judges sake when Stefan hugged Carla. Maybe I'm too cynical, but I cringed and called him a phony.
I'm still in shock that Hosea took the title. Carla was my pick. I expected Stefan to win. I thought the finalists should have been Stefan and Carla, and then any of these: Fabio, Jeff, Jamie. Not Hosea by any stretch of the imagination. Such a disappointment.
PerkyMac at 9:45PM on 02/26/09
I wanted Fabio to win! That aside, Carla ruined her chances. It really was her own darn fault ( I would have liked to see her win!). Everybody is saying that Hosea should not have won, because his food has been consistently good, but not brilliant. Call me crazy but I would have eat at a resturant that is always good(Hosea), than one that is hit or miss!(Stefan)
mhurst826 at 1:27AM on 02/28/09
A top Chef should know how to make desserts. I'm just saying Hosea. He doesn't have to be the best at it, but he should know how to crank out a little something sweet. Stefan by far was this season's Top Chef.
Amy Le at 1:46PM on 03/03/09