emmy plath

Looks like it's finally over: http://www.people.com/article/bethenny-frankel-jason-hoppy-finalize-divorce

LilyoftheValley, I will first admit that my expectations may have been high from watching past Restaurant War teams do very well. But specifically, my table repeatedly complained that their dishes were too bland and could've used more salt or some acidic element. The words "pedestrian" and "airplane food" were thrown around a lot. If it gives you any additional insight, there were 6 people at the table, including myself: 2 professional chefs (both of whom had appeared on Top Chef/Top Chef Masters previously); 1 editor of some food blog I can't recall; and 3 fans. candall, the episode was filmed early June, so my memory is fuzzy at this point. Also, each person was only allowed to order 1 app and 1 main, so I remember the items I personally ordered better than the ones I didn't. I ordered the asparagus with crispy egg, which was fine. The egg was cooked well, though I know that can be subjective. I would have preferred an acidic element, even just a squeeze of lemon juice. Those who ordered the soup thought the flavor was fine. Some of my fellow diners swapped apps so they could taste a little of both. Soup was better received overall. In comparison to the salad, it was better seasoned and more interesting conceptually. For my main course, I ordered the salmon. My portion was cooked fine (while others sent theirs back for being overcooked). The skin was crispy, the yogurt sauce provided a nice tang, and the ratatouille was ok. The diners who ordered the chicken thought the dish was more visually appealing than the salmon, tasted fine, but was too simple and safe. RCharter, the only time anyone on production talked to us during lunch service was to instruct us to get ready to discuss our feedback for the cameras. That's it. The actual dining space wasn't too large, and because of where I sat, I could see most of the room. To my knowledge, I didn't see any interactions between the guests and production except for when the crew needed to film comments. But who knows what happened after my group left the restaurant. All I can say is that nobody instructed my table to linger and that I didn't overhear anyone else being asked to hang around either. There was no indication that production was purposely holding back comment cards. Like I said, our plates sat around a while after everyone finished eating, and it seemed like the comment cards weren't supposed to be distributed until after tables were cleared. I assume that the servers were just poorly trained. I mean, utensils weren't replaced. Drinks weren't delivered unless you asked multiple times. When we asked questions about the menu, our particular server seemed very hesitant with her answers. As for the soup, I didn't order it. However, the people at my table who did thought it was fine. It wasn't crap but wasn't outstanding either. A few other random tidbits I remember from my experience: The beers they served were not as cold as they should have been. Padma is stunning in real life, as is Gail. My fellow diners hated the decor; they thought the chairs were uncomfortable and that the tables were awful because anything that spilled on them couldn't be cleaned off easily. Kwame was very polite, though he gave off a nervous energy as he talked to us. I assumed at the time that drama was going down in the kitchen.

I actually participated as a guest diner for this episode, so it was exciting to finally watch the episode. For those who were wondering, I was invited after seeing Padma's tweet about the show needing diners. I filled out an application and got very lucky. Based on conversations I had with several other people there (and there was a lot of waiting around that day, so I got to meet a bunch of diners), many of them were fans just like me. So for at least this episode, I doubt there were many (if any) actors or "plants." Anyway, I was seated at District LA, and service was indeed slow, and it's nice to understand why now that the episode has aired. Also, at least at my table, a lengthy bit of time passed between us finishing our entrees and the comment cards arriving at the table. That might explain why some tables lingered--since those of us who have watched previous Restaurant Wars know that the diners usually fill out comment cards, some tables probably didn't simply leave because they knew they still needed to fill those cards out. It's a whole process, too. When you get the cards, someone from productions comes over to let you know that the cameras will come by after you're done with the cards. Then you have to discuss with the table your overall thoughts while they film it all. So while it's definitely possible that some people lingered just to stay on set, some tables really did have to wait a while to have their plates cleared and provide their feedback. Also, I'm glad the judges seemed to agree with my table that the entrees weren't all that impressive. Although we didn't get to taste Palate's food, the general consensus was that the food was underwhelming. Two people even sent back their salmon dishes.

I haven't seen season 4 since its original airing. Because of your post, I just signed up for a Hulu trial just for that scene--hilarious!!! Love Sonja's talking head. Thank you so much!

That was a complete disappointment. I'm certainly not tuning in for the spin-off now.