bravofan27

Now that this show has so much attention, Ken and Lisa are both trying to get in as many scenes as possible. Lisa never was this around before on this show. IMO, Ariana is into girls and if Tom didn't move it forward and involve Ariana (given what Lala said about her and Ariana hooking up with Tom right there, and that the possibility of him joining was very real) with Raquel, then Ariana would have. My opinion. I don't get why Ariana is calling Raquel one of her good friends. Uh, Huh? How? Why? I think it's just Ariana wanting to get into Raquel's pants. There are people like that-- they have two lives-- 1 is the socially acceptable life and 2 is the life they want. IMO, Ariana is clearly not in love with Tom or really even that into him, so I can see his resentment, because he was getting used, especially since he was letting her get intimate with women. Anyway, watching this all unfold, makes me question if Ariana even has the emotional bandwidth to think about all this-- she just seems so sad and depressed, and looks incredibly unhappy in general. She's always just sitting quietly next to other people, looking a little lost. I don't think she should be on this show.

The fast and furious challenge really was confusing. I get the first part was "fast and furious" (the FASTEST ELIMINATION in TOP CHEF HISTORY!- LOL) then it gets off for me-- some strange connection to different countries in the movie, and this connects to a protein, fruit, and veg. What happened to the food they prepped that wasn't their dish? The team finishing prepping the ingredients first got to pick which ingredient their team had to cook with-- that was it. The instructions on my screen said, "In teams of 3, compete in a mise en place race and then create 3 dishes featuring your teams' mise en place ingredients." Later the next day she says, "The ingredient you choose, must be featured in one of your 3 dishes." So that's a little mixed message right there with a change in instructions or different nuances. Amar should have gone home because he didn't understand the challenge-- he kept thinking it was about the protein and the other stuff were sides. The challenge wasn't about featuring the protein specifically. The whole team featured the lamb which is why the were last and no one featured prickly pear. From there, I think Amar should have gone home because used all three ingredients and didn't try to feature any of them. And he said something about the three of them each using a different part of the lamb. Bottom line-- Amar only cared about the lamb, and he should have gone. I wonder if Padma could say "fast or fastest" any more possible times.

LOL. And when he tripped and nearly got a concussion trying to find running water. Tooo funny. I really think he thought he was going to go blind.

LOL. Yes. I don't see Adriana and Tom breaking up up and moving on officially with different people/relationships. Next season will be all about their reconciliation or bitter/complicated relationship. I predict Adriana will start dating someone and then Tom will realize how much he loves her and ask for her back, and she will say he needs to prove it, and he will go on a redemption tour. Satchel and Raquel... BAHAHAHAH! YES! Never will happen. Adriana thinks Tom is dumb, so she must think James is extra stupid. Ally and James are well matched via personality. And really Adriana is the best match for Tom. The other Tom is a little more tricky because he is so weird and bitter/angry and puts females down.

Shultz nailed it-- she's corny. Looks like it is already over. That said, he IS a model. Not that models are always good looking, but he's been in some pretty impressive campaigns. The face tats are gross corny. https://pagesix.com/2022/11/03/lala-kents-instagram-mystery-man-identified-as-don-lopez/

From the Howie show, it doesn't seem that Ariana and Tom are broken up-- they still live together. Tom said that Ariana said that she refused to break up with him. Tom also said that he is still at the house because he takes care of everything. I think Ariana needs him and he needs to be needed. I also think he likes taking care of her. It's a very codependent relationship. When Howie asked about the house, it didn't seem like Tom had any interest in selling it. Me thinks they are still together and trying to work it out. I also think they have an openish relationship and Adriana turns a blind eye to it.

Naw. Lala's best decision was to have a kid. She will have financial support for a long time and also her kid will be provided for. That said, she gets to stay in that infamy-- if she was just a gf she would be gone. Now with the kid she will be associated with Randall for life, and she's clearly not capable of providing for herself or being even remotely resourceful. That loser thug she's fucking? He is a total mooch. He can't offer anything but a body to be next to her. Lala is so screwed.

Lala is going to do good financially. Randall isn't the most sophisticated investor (he isn't investing in tech but movies), but he's going to have royalties forever as he has produced a ton of movies and tv shows. He's not going bankrupt, that's for sure. Lala will likely be fine unless he goes to prison which will be a wrench for sure. I do have to say, Lala making fun of how ANYONE looks, when she was a placemat to Randall is pretty rich. She got her rich guy, she's getting child support, and now she can mess around with good looking guys. In any case, I think if she played it better, she would be in a much better place. Takes 2 to tango.

Lala and James are easily the funniest people on this show, and overall I like their energy together, but Lala does seem to be a little submissive to James, which is funny. He does need a mother figure, given he is a giant infant, and Lala seems to like taking care of people who have connections (James grew up with George Michael- HELLO! Thats incredibly cool). I'm not surprised that lala has no patience or shows no interest in the Toms given they aren't able to connect her with important people that can spend money on her. I think she was an idiot for getting rid of Randall. She should have stuck it out, got married, and then taken away a huge chunk of money. Then she wouldn't be forced to hang with the bottom feeders of LA. All sarcasm. But Lala is the most egregious of all social climbers. To tell Tom that she won't talk to him until he has a restaurant is so superficial and really stupid. Because people are only important or valuable if they own a restaurant? Whatever. She's just as dumb as Racquel-- only older so she has learned a few things. And she is completely desperate for relevancy. James is good because he is connected. He was born connected. Lala is from some small town from somewhere. She's gutter based on her own criteria. She the ultimate social climber. (I'm shamelessly delighted Tom S. called her out on her ridiculous plastic surgeries; she was strikingly beautiful when she first started).

I don't like Swartz but him taking out Lala was great. It was definitely mean of him to pick on her looks and make fun of her, but she DID call him a farm animal, so she was really abusive as well. I think Lala was first going to defend Tom a bit, but when James was like, "no but, I'm gone!" Lala quickly changed her tune-- she really wanted James to stay. Sheana just constantly grates. Raquel didn't really seem to have anyone to talk to when she was there, and looked a little out of place. I don't think anyone likes her-- they just tolerate her since she is part of the show. James is really getting cute, and he is really funny and quick witted. I am really starting to like him a lot. His girlfriend Alley is a dullard, and her outfits are pretty unfortunate.

White privilege is a real thing. For white people to ignore or hyperfocus on their own agendas when people right next to them are suffering from racism, historical trauma, injustice, and struggle to have their voices heard to protect their families is, IMO, not a way to conduct oneself in a moral fashion. A mortal sin is a religious term. But given people don't like Carrie (myself included) isn't because she did something to go to "hell" but more because she isn't authentic, caring, or advocating for those less resourced and stigmatized. Does that make sense to you?

Yeah, I'm pretty creative and can really reach, but I'm having a hard time thinking of how sushi could be emotional, or stir up emotions. Amar had a banana I think, and he just made something featuring banana. I guess Victorie failed because she didn't have an emotion story and then didn't make sushi-- her icon was the rice and raw fish on top. At least now sushi will have emotions for her!

On her season, she was extra happy, toothy, smiley, and completely ignored that her co-chef, an older African American woman was experiencing extreme imposter syndrome and racism. She was totally clueless, and just looked stupid when it was brought to her attention. She is annoying because she is ultra privileged white girl who just grins big and is cheerful and ignores everything around her. She was terrible, selfish, fake, and just ultimately dumb as fuck.

Yeah, the US chefs are definitely rough looking. German Tom is attractive and has cute hair (though he's a punk). Victorie is absolutely adorable. Ari is very handsome. Charbel has gorgeous dreamy eyes. Love his dark dark long lashes. SWOON. Amar has a great personality. He's just not healthy, overweight, and not sure what is up with the hair. I think he dresses for comfort and it makes him look extra sloppy. He and Sarah are twinsies there. Buddha is also unhealthy looking and overweight, but he keeps his hair looking good, and he seems to shower/look clean. Amar and Sarah look like they shower very unregularly. Ick.

Sarah has high school girl mentality. She still thinks she is that "cool" high school girl that smokes weed and cuts class. I think it's chronic immaturity. Probably her brain is fried from all the drugs-- she looks busted.

He has to maintain standard chef douchery quota. Being extra, fussy, entitled, and elevated is "competition." Buddha definitely thinks he's smarter than everyone, but he's just a douche like all the chefs (I dated a "top chef" in 2013 and he was the biggest dumbass prick douche EVER).

Didn't Gordon Ramsey try that for a time? Going into other countries and making their traditional dishes "elevated" or improving them? Because if Gordon Ramsey pays attention to it, now it's actually important and good. No one needs Dale to educate the world that mole is a legit food worth eating. I think if he made a mole and explained he experienced emotions blah blah the first time he tried mole, it would have been better-- but making it sound like he tried mole and was impressed because he thought it was peasant food but really rivals French roux was pretty white guy colonization. Yeah, he is still a dick. A dick on prozac. Mexico is packed with indigenous foods-- it shouldn't compete or be compared to European fine dining aristocracy crap. IMO.

So excited for this new episode. This is my favorite Top Chef group so far. I don't love every contestant, but I think overall the energy is pretty cool and people are great and treat each other well. You can't say that about every Top Chef cohort. They seem really interested in learning and creating. Anyway, the emoji guy did not seem to resonate with the others. The chefs just sort of stared at him blankly. It's a bit weird for someone who doesn't think that way and it's a little deep for people, not a way everyone has been trained to think. Gabri had a great "fire" emoji story. I loved it. He is great at telling stories and connecting his food to his lived experiences. I think that is important and I'm so glad he is still in the competition because he goes deep with his food and is a great storyteller.

To me it made sense to have the picnic at the castle-- as picnics are about being somewhere pretty or scenic, and what a cool view! I personally love it. Yeah, a little disappointing that no one got to see shots of inside the castle, but looking at the website it seems like it's kind of a multi-use building, with tons of different things going on. Sort of like a convention center, British style, but people live there too? In any case, it's a busy place it seems. They offer tours, so who knows if the Top Chef cast went on one or not. Now that I'm thinking about ground picnics vs. table picnics, ground picnics are maybe for couples so they can make out after eating and drinking wine. Roll around on some blankets. Zip up the sleeping bags. LOL. Also, I'm referring to US style picnics as I'm not British and have never watched Downtown Abbey or any England-based shows. I know many countries under British rule love the queen and were devastated when she passed, which I understand. But she never did shit for me.

Not to nit-pic (see what I did there, LOL), but aren't picnics on the ground? I feel like people should have been laying out on some plaid burberry blanket with a scenic view of something. I forced my ex-husband (when we were dating) to go on a picnic with me. I went to Whole Foods and picked up a bunch of different items from the cold and hot bars, grabbed some sleeping blankets, and we set up shop next to some lake. It was very sweet. A little uncomfortable though. Definitely prefer a restaurant these days -as I'm as old as Amar and cranky- unless there is some scenic spot that my family/partner would be hankering to enjoy.

I don't think anyone felt strongly about an ingredient that they weren't able to obtain (hence German Tom taking advantage) or anyone felt their own dish suffered significantly because German Tom used most of the money for his dish. That said, it defintely made him look really bad at judge time. As others said-- if his dish was amazing, maybe the judges would be more impressed, but he took the budget, made a dish that wasn't that popular, and made him look sort of stupid to the judges. Or maybe I just think he's stupid. Who knows. LOL. In any case, he's not coming off as very wise and certainly not showing much leadership (which you need to be as an executive chef). Buddha has more leadership skills than German Tom. But of all these people, the most capable of running a kitchen would probably Ali, Charbel, Sara, or Nicole. They are quiet, don't need to be center of attention, focused, and handle pressure pretty well without losing it. Buddha has shown he isn't very mature, same with German Tom, and it's on the fence with Dale. Victorie seems a bit introverted/ imposter syndrome happening. Bodela was probably the most confident with running a kitchen-- I'm going to say Sara is right up there. Now, are they the best chefs for cooking things within the bizarre confines of a cooking reality show? Not sure.

According to him he's an old man now at 40 and has a baby. Because old men have newborns. LOL (40 is hardly old). He was 33 when he was on initially. I liked Amar on his initial season cuz he was this big guy but so dainty with ingredients. It was cute seeing him but these tiny herbs on a small bite with a tweezers with his huge hands. I looked up British picnic and it's a thing-- sort of like a tea- time, taken outdoors, with lunch bites. It's fancy but casual and it seems like there are lots of eggs and mayo in stuff, along with finger sandwiches and scones (what Tom Judge said). Who knows, I'm not British. They keep showing Amar looking giddy and delighted, and Buddha looking petulant and annoyed like something smells bad. Amar is at Disney Land. Buddha is on a hog farm. Bodela cooking her sandwich was bad idea for lunch. Needs to be light and cold and bitey. The team letting German Tom spend all the money was super smart. They knew his dish was going to be terrible and they could use it against him later, which they ALL did. The silence was very intentional when Padma asked them about the budget. No one defended Tom at all-- fall dude! Nicole Gomes was the most passive aggressive about it-- she also "innocently" calls out things and tattles. Like she was the one that made sure everyone knew there was no mango compote on her scone thing. Also bitchy-- just does it with a smile. I think this is my first time seeing Dale, but he seems way more humble and maybe taking Prozac. LOL. He's a totally different person than the throwback. I'm glad Begona is gone. She totally screwed over Luciana, and was a total asshole about it in LCK. Luciana tried to collaborate when Bogona took the same protein, but Bogeona just ignored her completely. Very bitchy and Luciana looked a bit shell shocked. I felt bad for her- bullies suck, but I guess they are all over this show.

Lala got with Randal for his money, and now she's getting child support and set for the next 15 plus years. She can do whatever she wants now-- she has steady income coming in, and her kid is provided for. Lala is like Cameron on Southern Charm-- more like a commentor- outside observer than anything. But not part of the group regarding lifestyle/class.

I bet you are super fun at parties! LOL. :)

I agree on the walnuts. WTF? How unfriendly. Contestant Tom and Buddha are becoming less enjoyable to watch. The competition is getting to them. I was just at a conference RE tribal health, and the importance of promoting breastfeeding to normalize it in communities. I think it's great that it's being mentioned. It reduces stigma and helps many women feel more comfortable as well taking care of their babies while also working. I personally love it. It's a great message.