S10.E08: One-of-a-Kind Experience

[Bella]

 

As Las Vegas is all about one-of-a-kind experiences, the finalists are divided into two teams, and each must each create a memorable dining experience for the Selection Committee along with special guest Penn Jillette. The team voted least successful lands in the bottom three.

 

[GaT]

FN shows have become a 2nd career for Penn Jillette, I wonder how the other guy who doesn't speak makes money?

[jennifer6973]

so totally off topic, but I thought at one time when I was way younger Teller used to speak.

[Totale]

Not in the magic act, but he does speak in real life - I've heard him on the radio several times.  His extracurricular activities tend towards a bit more class than Penn's.

 

http://artery.wbur.org/2014/05/14/tell-the-tempest-cambridge-art

[cooksdelight]

Look at this photo. What is Loreal trying to project now, tipsy housefrau? What is with Sarah's stiff pose with her petticoat hanging out? LOL  Hey, Nicole, I can see your bra! :)

 

https://www.facebook.com/FoodNetwork/photos/a.107997326726.108677.20534666726/10152194188461727/?type=1&theater

Edited July 20, 2014 by cooksdelight

[justspiffy]

Not in the magic act, but he does speak in real life - I've heard him on the radio several times.  His extracurricular activities tend towards a bit more class than Penn's.

 

http://artery.wbur.org/2014/05/14/tell-the-tempest-cambridge-art

Edited to add that I have spoken to him after the two shows I attended.

I was not the original poster of that quote.....first time trying to quote, sorry!

[leighdear]

Oh good lord, I felt so sorry for Lenny.  Emma's whole "Gods" idea sucked REALLY bad.  She was the right one to go.   Lenny would have been fine with the small group, if Emma had come up with a decent concept.

 

Sarah's team did well, though I don't know where in Texas her lobster belongs.  Unless it's at Red Lobster.  I loved when Penn called it "Tex-Vegas"....*LOL*  Unfortunately, we're still stuck with her.

 

Luca is growing on me, even though I still can't understand him very well.

[Lillybee]

I thought that it was unfair that Emma's team was given much more difficult proteins. For instance, how was Lenny supposed to tie sea urchin into his culinary point of view. I can understand why he was subdued.

[cooksdelight]

Damn, we are stuck with Sarah and her non-stop talking heads for another week. Crap!

Emma and her Nasal Cold Voice was the right one to go. Her concept was stupid. Period.

I wanted to slap Loreal for toasting/burning marshmallows for ambrosia salad. You don't toast them. Ever.

I can't understand Luca either, so I don't see him getting a TV show. Unless it's on the Latin channel.

Emma's team's food must have really, REALLY sucked for them not to edit the show to keep us in the dark until the end. No mystery who lost that challenge.

[smiley13]

Well boo!  I was hoping Hair Product was out of there, but no, they had to get rid of poor Emma because of her badly told burning pig story.

 

Sarah's team did seem to get easier food to prepare.  

[cooksdelight]

The coin toss gave Emma the team picking advantage, but the way the proteins were dolled out by Caesar, it could have definitely been manipulated to give Sarah's team the better choices, I think.

[Tyrone Biggums]

So, Nicole, Luca and Lenny look to be the obvious final three.

 

That means that both TexasTexasTexas!!!!! and Hair Product will end up in the F3, right?

 

As soon as they had the shot of Emma asking her team if they were getting their stories ready, I wanted her gone.

[NYGirl]

God Suzie and Bob annoy me so much!  They don't care how well somebody cooks as long as their story is good.

 

Emma was putting me to sleep tonight.  I couldn't believe it when she gave poor Lenny the sea urchin.

 

I am so mad that Sarah did well.  I want her gone gone gone.

 

I liked the way the $77 burger looked.

[Alapaki]

I think the epitaph on the gravestone of this show will be:

 

"We fell in love with the promise of the Butcher Babe."

 

Thats Just. So. Tusch.

[Pepper the Cat]

I think Emma's team had much harder proteins, as soon as the proteins were revealed, I knew they were doomed.

[cooksdelight]

If Lenny had left that dang sea urchin in it's original "hedgehog" shell with just a light touch of seasoning and some thinly sliced veggies on top, or anything other than using TRUFFLE OIL!!! That's the kiss of death, pairing it with cauliflower. What the hell was he thinking?

[SusannahTaylor3]

Wow I don't know what to say about this last episode...... Emma actually talked about burnt pigs during her presentation? Seriously? She should have shut up while she was ahead. When she started to open her mouth about the barn burning I was saying shut up Emma.

Even Lenny was off this week with his food and presentation.

Sarah was lucky this week with steak. I mean unless you get a bad cut of steak it's pretty darn hard to screw it up. I still don't like her though. I don't care how much she smiles. I'd rather see anyone but her win this competition.

As far as Luca, I mean he had Italian food and he's Italian. It's not much of a stretch for his challenge this week. I don't think he will win though. He's pretty limited in what he can do. They already have an Italian diva

Do the contestants have access to the internet? I'm asking because there have to be sites with recipes for those foods or is that considered cheating?

I can see where Emma's team would have more problems with their food picks than Sarah's.

Edited by SusannahTaylor3, 8 minutes ago.

[ElleryAnne]

I may be a terrible person, but I couldn't stop laughing all through the "Garden of the Gods" presentations.  Lenny channeling his history-recording speaker's voice, Loreal tossing the flower petals on the table even as everyone knew it was just not working in the way they envisioned it would, Emma's story... "and then the cute little piglets died in a horrible fire and everyone ate them and boy were they delicious!"  Alton looked like he wanted to be anyplace other than where he was.  (Well, I guess he looks like that often on this show.)   I knew Emma would be the one going home, since she's the least dramatic of the three.  

 

I was surprised that they didn't comment on Sarah's dish other than to note that it was Vegas-like in being big and over-the-top.  I feel like a lesser-favorite contestant of theirs would have been verbally eviscerated for that serving size.

 

I thought the best concept of the night was the s'mores dessert.  Nice balance between classic and clever.  I just wish they'd had something better than trios of tea candles for melting the marshmallows.  

[cooksdelight]

I thought the best concept of the night was the s'mores dessert. Nice balance between classic and clever. I just wish they'd had something better than trios of tea candles for melting the marshmallows.

If it had been the other team, based on how badly they did with presentation, they'd have lit a big bonfire and told them all to sit cross-legged around it and sing Kumbaya.

[Tyrone Biggums]

In which Alton Brown unintentionally explains everything that has made this show jump the shark in under 1:20:

 

http://blog.foodnetwork.com/star-talk/2014/07/20/altons-post-star-rundown-episode-8/

[SusannahTaylor3]

The coin toss gave Emma the team picking advantage, but the way the proteins were dolled out by Caesar, it could have definitely been manipulated to give Sarah's team the better choices, I think.

It very well could have been manipulated to have Sarah's team win so that they could still have her talking heads. I think it would have been more fair if each contestant took turns choosing a scroll, not knowing what their pick was until they opened them. Or maybe to make it more Vegas they could gamble their choice for another pick. I mean it was pretty obvious that the tides were changing in Sarah's favor when steak was the first choice for her team. Of course she would pick that. Nicole got a softball thrown at her too with frog legs. Her story didn't fit but her food was good which is what saved her. The deck was definitely stacked against Emma and her team. I think Lenny would have done fine with a small or large audience. The food was something he had never worked with before so his confidence was shaken. Sarah could care less how the others on her team did as long as she could portray Texas. Luca did a good job of telling his story although his food didn't impress as much as the other too. If I had even attempted to eat everything Sarah served I would have been so full I would have wanted to throw up. That steak looked huge!!

I may be a terrible person, but I couldn't stop laughing all through the "Garden of the Gods" presentations.  Lenny channeling his history-recording speaker's voice, Loreal tossing the flower petals on the table even as everyone knew it was just not working in the way they envisioned it would, Emma's story... "and then the cute little piglets died in a horrible fire and everyone ate them and boy were they delicious!"  Alton looked like he wanted to be anyplace other than where he was.  (Well, I guess he looks like that often on this show.)   I knew Emma would be the one going home, since she's the least dramatic of the three.  

 

I was surprised that they didn't comment on Sarah's dish other than to note that it was Vegas-like in being big and over-the-top.  I feel like a lesser-favorite contestant of theirs would have been verbally eviscerated for that serving size.

 

I thought the best concept of the night was the s'mores dessert.  Nice balance between classic and clever.  I just wish they'd had something better than trios of tea candles for melting the marshmallows.

I think Giada commented on Sarah's meal portion as a Vegas sized meal. So I guess she felt that whoever got that dish would get their money's worth.

I did think that the s'mores with the candle was lame.

[cooksdelight]

This was the first time ever watching this show that I almost changed the channel 10 minutes into it. I thought, surely they can't give Sarah any more airtime! But, lo and behold, they gave it all to her. Next week, if she's leading the pack in talking heads, I may tune out and just come here for some good snark and to find out who was eliminated.

[Tyrone Biggums]

Did anybody notice the smile under Sarah's hand as she was covering her mouth when Emma came back in post-elimination? Maybe I've just been driven to a state of confusion by this fustercluck.

[SusannahTaylor3]

In which Alton Brown unintentionally explains everything that has made this show jump the shark in under 1:20:

 

http://blog.foodnetwork.com/star-talk/2014/07/20/altons-post-star-rundown-episode-8/

Hi for some reason I can't get the link to load. Can you give us an idea of what Alton said? I'm curious.

Did anybody notice the smile under Sarah's hand as she was covering her mouth when Emma came back in post-elimination? Maybe I've just been driven to a state of confusion by this fustercluck.

Yep I caught it. If she could have done a happy dance she would have. Then she goes and hugs Emma like she's really sad to see her go. Yeah right. Nicole really did look upset to see her friend go. I think those two are really friends. This show was fixed in her favor tonight. I'm convinced.

[Tyrone Biggums]

Hi for some reason I can't get the link to load. Can you give us an idea of what Alton said? I'm curious.

 

• "We went back and forth a lot on the vote."
• "Although L'Oreal was very uneven, her food has been consistently better, to me, than Emma's."
• "I understand the Butcher Babe concept...I get it, and I like it."
• "She (Emma)'s been flat for a long time for me."
• "I don't think there's a star in there.  I don't think flat gets you stardom."
• "I still don't know what her POV is.  I still don't know what she's really about.  If you're gonna be a star on Food Network, somebody should be able to put a plate of food down in front of you, and you say 'ahhh, that belongs to...this person'."

[cooksdelight]

And that's the problem with this entire season. NO ONE has a concept that I could decipher if a plate of their food were in front of me. No one.

With Jeff Mauro, you know you're getting a sandwich. With Damaris, you know you're getting southern food, probably laced with Kentucky bourbon.

None of these people have anything that sets them apart. Lenny, maybe, in the personality department. But tonight he followed Emma's lead and tried to give a Greek mythology presentation. That's like asking a turd to smell like roses.

[SusannahTaylor3]

• "We went back and forth a lot on the vote."
• "Although L'Oreal was very uneven, her food has been consistently better, to me, than Emma's."
• "I understand the Butcher Babe concept...I get it, and I like it."
• "She (Emma)'s been flat for a long time for me."
• "I don't think there's a star in there.  I don't think flat gets you stardom."
• "I still don't know what her POV is.  I still don't know what she's really about.  If you're gonna be a star on Food Network, somebody should be able to put a plate of food down in front of you, and you say 'ahhh, that belongs to...this person'."

You are awesome! Thanks so much :) I agree pretty much with all of those points but I haven't seen a lot of butcher babe out of her lately either. She needs to step that up. Emma is pretty much vanilla, bland and unmemorable. I also think they've got the farm to table concept already so that could be another reason. Emma started off good but consistently started going down to the middle of the heap..... Not the worst not the best. Like Bob said not memorable.

[Accidental Martyr]

 

I liked the way the $77 burger looked.

$777 burger. :)

[SusannahTaylor3]

$777 burger. :)

I could not believe the prices of the food! $1000 for an ice cream sundae? I can see spending money on a piece of jewelry or a great trip or even an outfit.... But $777 on a burger that you will eat, digest, and poop out is outrageous to me, but I guess I'm not a real foodie.

[cooksdelight]

Those prices are for the high-rollers who drop hundreds of thousands of dollars per night at the casino. My sister is a blackjack dealer, she says that she's never seen people throw so much money at cards in her life.

[SusannahTaylor3]

Those prices are for the high-rollers who drop hundreds of thousands of dollars per night at the casino. My sister is a blackjack dealer, she says that she's never seen people throw so much money at cards in her life.

Unbelievable..... I mean I believe you.... I just can't believe people would waste their money that way. I can think of so many things I could do with that money.

[JTMacc99]

Given the choice, I would have gone burger all the way. It came with pricey Champagne, which makes it almost sound like a reasonably priced experience. (If really expensive wine floats your boat.) I can't justify the Sundae under any circumstances.

[cooksdelight]

I just can't believe people would waste their money that way.

You've got the people who have so much money they don't know what to do with it. Then you've got the gambling addicts who will wear adult diapers so they don't have to leave their chair for 2 days. I kid you not.

This episode could have been a much better one if they'd put the "gamble" into the equation. Picking teams: Let them barter for an unknown advantage if they swapped players. Have them pick knives or straws or whatever to see who gets which protein, then allow them so much money to bet and challenge the others to get their item.

Instead, it just all fell flat.

[SusannahTaylor3]

You've got the people who have so much money they don't know what to do with it. Then you've got the gambling addicts who will wear adult diapers so they don't have to leave their chair for 2 days. I kid you not.

This episode could have been a much better one if they'd put the "gamble" into the equation. Picking teams: Let them barter for an unknown advantage if they swapped players. Have them pick knives or straws or whatever to see who gets which protein, then allow them so much money to bet and challenge the others to get their item.

Instead, it just all fell flat.

Wow is all I can say about that lol.

I agree about putting the gamble into the challenge. They could choose a scroll and choose to either keep it or take their chances with another pick. Kind of like 21 in a way. They could have had Emma and Sarah pick their teams and then switch the teams on them or switch the captain. Instead it looked fixed to me in favor of Sarah's team. I also think that they should have had the bottom two from each team on the bottom instead of team on the bottom but then again, none of their foods seemed to wow any of the judges. Sorry for the continued edits. My iPad seems to think it knows what I want to type better than I do.

Edited July 21, 2014 by SusannahTaylor3

[Tyrone Biggums]

THIS would have been the episode for them to put in the dopey Cutthroat Kitchen influence, if they absolutely insisted on doing so.

 

I know, I know, don't encourage them.

[JTMacc99]

I liked the challenge exactly the way it was. Other than assigning the unusual proteins, it was a standard cook and present task. I feel like should put more stock in who did well in this one, which if not for the Sarah factor, might be an opinion I would be willing to defend.

[xaxat]

I may be a terrible person, but I couldn't stop laughing all through the "Garden of the Gods" presentations.  Lenny channeling his history-recording speaker's voice, Loreal tossing the flower petals on the table even as everyone knew it was just not working in the way they envisioned it would, Emma's story... "and then the cute little piglets died in a horrible fire and everyone ate them and boy were they delicious!"  Alton looked like he wanted to be anyplace other than where he was.  (Well, I guess he looks like that often on this show.)   I knew Emma would be the one going home, since she's the least dramatic of the three.  

 

You weren't alone. When the promos showed Suzie talking about how weird it was I though she might be exaggerating for dramatic effect. Nope.

 

However, my favorite part was when Bob was critiquing Sarah. He starts out with a big smile, talks about how she has improved during her "journey" (or some such non-sense).  There is twinkly optimistic music and then. . . BLAM he slams her and the music changes to the tune of doom. Bravo editors!

[SusannahTaylor3]

Where has Bobby Flay been? This is the second week he hasn't been with the show. I like his feedback for the most part. I don't see these 3 as mentors. Mentors are supposed to be unbiased and don't evaluate. I am a mentor teacher at my school and we coach first year teachers and guide them but font formally evaluate them. We give feedback after observing them but it is for improvement not to judge. Bobby, Giada, and Alton should be renamed judges not mentors.

I liked the challenge exactly the way it was. Other than assigning the unusual proteins, it was a standard cook and present task. I feel like should put more stock in who did well in this one, which if not for the Sarah factor, might be an opinion I would be willing to defend.

I don't know. I don't see it as a standard cooking task. Some of those foods were foreign to some of them. They were supposed to make a memorable meal like the foods they tasted during the first part of the challenge. I agree that Emma's group theme was laughable. It might have actually been ok if they had bothered to bone up on their mythology and come up with a way to tie the story in with the foods or choose a different theme. They could have done s surf and turf kind of theme. Sarah's group didn't tie the theme in very well either but it worked and their food was better than the other groups.

One thing I have to say is that I didn't feel that Sarah's presentation didn't say Texas as well as they all thought she did. She could have said something like I made for you a Texas sized steak because we love our steaks big down in Texas. She also could have made Texas toast for her bread.

Edited July 21, 2014 by SusannahTaylor3

[Lillybee]

I am calling foul on the favoritism that Sarah received today. She was able to eat a great rib eye at a steakhouse and was able to cook a rib eye for the challenge.

[SusannahTaylor3]

I am calling foul on the favoritism that Sarah received today. She was able to eat a great rib eye at a steakhouse and was able to cook a rib eye for the challenge.

Big stretch right? I think that was the producers way of keeping her on so she could continue to do her snarky commentaries. Not too difficult to cook a steak since the meat was a good cut. Her other sides weren't that difficult either.

Edited July 21, 2014 by SusannahTaylor3

[phoenix780]

I'm not minding Sarah now.  As far as reality shows go, everyone else is kind of forgettable.  Or maybe that's just because they don't get shown.  It's kind of a chicken/egg kinda question, I guess.

 

So Texas food means...big quantities of meat?  Good to know.   

 

In that video Alton said Loreal made the best bite of food for the team.  So why wasn't Lenny in the bottom 2?  I wasn't paying attention, but it seems like they excused/saved him first.  I also don't agree with Alton about Loreal's concept being clearer than Emma's.  It's...meat.  I don't know how that distinguishes a plate of food from her, 'cause most chefs cook meat.

 

I liked Emma's concept, I just don't think it had anything to do with what they prepared.  And ambrosia for dessert was a bad call, imho.   love ambrosia, but I can get it from my grocery store.  In a plastic tub.  It doesn't correlate with the whole "gods" thing beyond the name.  

 

Also- they did get screwed on ingredients.  I'm glad they did, though, because I would have hated to miss the reality tv trope of the underdog team triumphing over the others.  It was so suspenseful, wondering who was going to win.  Plus now it feels like everyone is on a more even playing field...right?   

[WickedTuna]

I agree with the posters who thought Sarah's team got a big advantage with the proteins.  

I'm wondering why Emma got dinged for her serve yourself idea at the pool but it was ok for the s'mores.    I was sad to see her go.  I'd much rather watch her then the ding bat Loreal.  I was actually creeped out by her.  She seemed high or something.

 

 

[J-Man]

I agree about the ambrosia -- and even a 10-year old could have made that (although probably not with burnt marshmallows.) It was strange that both desserts involved marshmallow. Was there a promotional consideration fee paid by the National Marshmallow Council this week?

[Lnmop]

Some of those foods were foreign to some of them. They were supposed to make a memorable meal like the foods they tasted during the first part of the challenge.

Yeah, I've never cooked a hedghog.

Alton told Lenny that in the end, this job was about being on television. I laughed so hard that my dog was worried about me.

Edited July 21, 2014 by Lnmop

[SusannahTaylor3]

"In that video Alton said Loreal made the best bite of food for the team. So why wasn't Lenny in the bottom 2? I wasn't paying attention, but it seems like they excused/saved him first. I also don't agree with Alton about Loreal's concept being clearer than Emma's. It's...meat. I don't know how that distinguishes a plate of food from her, 'cause most chefs cook meat."

L'Oreal making the best food on that challenge isn't saying much because even though it was better than the others it wasn't great. Susie complimented the chicken skin more than anything on her dish. I think L'Oreal has more personality than Emma.

Lenny was declared safe at the final elimination because his food on the most part has been consistent. Also Alton mentioned that they were concerned whether he could do a good job with a small audience. I think that was their way of saying hmmm we need to keep him on to see if they were right. I felt that he was safe with some misgivings attached. I think it could have hone either way with Emma and L'Oreal. There were good points for eliminating both of them.

It might have been interesting if each group cooked the same foods or the same ones Sarah's group picked. That would have been a good comparison. I would have liked to see what Lenny or the butcher babe would have done with the wagyu beef or frogs legs. That might gave been more fair than giving one team winner winner chicken dinner foods and the others more difficult selections.

Edited July 21, 2014 by SusannahTaylor3

[Lillybee]

I think that Lenny would have rocked that wagyu beef, duck breast or the frog legs, they all seem to be something that is in his wheelhouse. The sea urchin was something that he wasn't familiar with though.

[backformore]

Sarah was lucky this week with steak. I mean unless you get a bad cut of steak it's pretty darn hard to screw it up. I still don't like her though. I don't care how much she smiles. I'd rather see anyone but her win this competition.

 

I wish I could figure out why sarah bugs me (and apparently others)  so  much.   she's probably a NICE person, but her personality is grating.  When she presented her food and said "we placed the steaks on the table, and the selection committees eyes are THIS BIG",  I wanted to throw something at her.   Something about her voice when she says things like that just irritates the hell out of me.

 

Oh, yeah, I was also annoyed that she got credit from the judges for an expensive cut of meat in a very large portion.   Yeah, she had the easiest task.   

Edited July 21, 2014 by backformore

[GaT]

Last week I thought this was the week Sarah was going to finally be gone, but no, Emma had to pick gods. I knew she was gone as soon as I saw their presentation. Out of the losing team, there was no way they were going to get rid of Lenny or Loreal, so it had to be Emma.

 

I thought that it was unfair that Emma's team was given much more difficult proteins. For instance, how was Lenny supposed to tie sea urchin into his culinary point of view. I can understand why he was subdued.

Emma was the one stupid enough to assign it to Lenny, why she would think Lenny would know what to do with sea urchin is beyond me. 

[Accidental Martyr]

 

Emma was the one stupid enough to assign it to Lenny, why she would think Lenny would know what to do with sea urchin is beyond me.

I don't think any of them really knew what to do with sea urchin. I've never even tasted it. It's one of the things I avoid when I get sushi because I don't like how it looks.

[SusannahTaylor3]

Last week I thought this was the week Sarah was going to finally be gone, but no, Emma had to pick gods. I knew she was gone as soon as I saw their presentation. Out of the losing team, there was no way they were going to get rid of Lenny or Loreal, so it had to be Emma.

 

Emma was the one stupid enough to assign it to Lenny, why she would think Lenny would know what to do with sea urchin is beyond me. 

Emma thought she was playing it smart by choosing Loreal and Lenny and I can see her logic in that. They might have been successful  with strong competitors except that they all pretty much failed in the challenge. If L'Oreal would have been at her best as well as Lenny Emma would have stayed in the game and it might have been Sarah's team on the bottom 3 and it might have made for a more interesting elimination.  Emma got the advantage of choosing her team first, but that gave Sarah the chance to choose her ingredient and the teams first.  There are a lot of what ifs involved in this.  It was obvious at the end that Emma would be the one going home from the judges discussion. Lenny and L'Oreal were saved because they cooked a little better than Emma tonight. I don't think that any of those three were safe actually. Alton had concerns about Lenny and the others had concerns about L'Oreal. Bob was especially critical of L'Oreal tonight.  Both need to step it up or they're gone as well.

I don't think any of them really knew what to do with sea urchin. I've never even tasted it. It's one of the things I avoid when I get sushi because I don't like how it looks.

I've eaten it before and I'm not crazy about it. Its a prickly looking little thing. I think Lenny was familiar with it but it was definitely out of the realm of things he makes regularly. I admire him for taking a stab at it.

Edited July 21, 2014 by SusannahTaylor3