S21.E06: Chaos Cuisine

[ProudMary]

Airdate: Wednesday, April 24, 2024

Synopsis:

A

Last Chance Kitchen surprise changes the game. Milk Bar's Christina Tosi joins Kristen for a sweet Quickfire that requires the chefs to create a dairy-forward dessert. The chefs must serve a dish that exemplifies chaos cuisine.

[tv echo]

Top Chef Season 21 episode 6 exclusive clip: Matty Matheson channels chaos cuisine
By Cristine Struble | Apr 23, 2024
https://foodsided.com/posts/top-chef-season-21-episode-6-exclusive-clip-matty-matheson-chaos-cuisine-01hvwh85se4e 

[Bastet]

I would have absolutely no idea what to do for this “chaotic cuisine” challenge, even after Amanda supposedly clarified it.  And I found the male guest judge really annoying.

But some of the food sounded very good, and I love that Savannah nailed it with the mustard greens.  Soo’s shrimp I probably would have eaten all night.

I knew either Rasika or Michelle was going home, and that was a huge bummer as they were both such early favorites for me.  I initially thought it was going to be Michelle, then Rasika, then went back to Michelle.  I’m relieved to still have Michelle, and would love to see Rasika make it back via LCK.

Even though Michelle is one of those people who pronounces mascarpone as “marscapone” – which is one of my pet peeves – I’m glad she at least won the QF.  Kaleena’s caramel dish sounded really good, too.  (I hate bananas, so Amanda’s was not doing it for me.)

Danny knowing he’s going to hear it from his pastry chef wife and Kevin winding up in America because of a drunken purchase of a plane ticket both made me laugh.  As did another chorus of “Power Bottoms!”

[mlp]

Slug-like has to be one of the worst criticisms ever.  I wasn't really surprised to see Rasika go after that comment.  I was very surprised she didn't do better though as she has seemed like one of the best chefs there.  Michelle is one of my favorites so I'm glad she stayed.

I like Soo.  I hope he makes it to the finale.  

I didn't understand the challenge any better than the cheftestants.

[susannot]

I'm so shallow but I enjoyed images of Kevin in the gym.

His food was good too.

[HappyDancex2]

Rasika was both a contender and a personality that was fun to watch.  Guess Tom is going to send her back through LCK a la Kristin Kish?  
 

I’m still not sure how Soo’s dish was anymore chaotic than the “concept” of Michelle’s.  He made a firecracker shrimp with salsa verde and salsa roja.  Tasty?  Of course.  Who doesn’t like crispy shrimp?!  
 

Rasika should have said “this dish is chaotic because it will be completely devoid of flavor and the most unpleasant texture because I made it up for this challenge.”  LOL 

[Tess23]

Did they even introduce the female guest judge?

Soo in the mix elevates the competition - hope he wins it all.

[rlc]

I would be happy to see the top 4 from this episode be the top 4 of the season.

Kaleena continues to annoy me. From her ‘I’m back bitches’ spiel, to her being concerned that the judges didn’t ‘get’ the heaviness of her dish rather than being concerned that they didn’t like it. I hope she’s gone again very soon.

[Mellowyellow]

Kaleena is as sour as Michelle is likeable! I hope Kaleena gets booted again. Preferably when there’s no now LCK so I don’t have love with the promise of her gone only to have her come back like a whack a mole. 
 

They cast for less drama these days so she stands out as being comparatively unpleasant.

I like Rasika but am especially fond of Michelle so am very relieved she survived!

[dubstepford wife]

It drives me crazy when I hear people say, "Oh you just didn't *get* it."  That's the laziest excuse for bad performance.  These are judges with decades of experience, Kaleena.  They'll get it just fine.  And if they don't, maybe that's because there's nothing to get.  Man, I want to like her but she makes it tough.

Somebody on the production team really hates Laura.  She mostly laid low this episode but they couldn't help themselves with the dark chocolate at the beginning.  That said, even though I defended her last episode because I didn't think the budget problems were her fault alone, she's emerging as a dirty player.  The editors can't make up footage.

I like Rasika a lot and I'm surprised she's gone when it's still relatively early in the competition.  But "slimy" and "slug like" are not criticisms from which you can recover.  It's game over at that point.

Edited April 25 by dubstepford wife
edit for spelling

[NowVoyager]

It was so nice that Danny helped Dan plate & still won the elimination challenge. Ahem, Laura? That's called good sportsmanship. I'm about ready for her to exit stage left.

I was horrified by the bottom 2 because I'm rooting for both Rasika and Michelle. Interesting that Michelle said Soo had trouble sleeping & she said welcome to the club. I wonder why the contestants aren't resting well? 

[CrazyInAlabama]

I hate that Rasika will have to go to LCK, but at least Michelle stayed longer.    

I didn't understand anything about the challenge, and still don't.   To me Chaotic means messy, sloppy, and disjointed.   However, if Rasika's was really the way the judges said, it sounds hideous.   I pity the judges for having to try to eat that.   

Laura is not showing very well, and I'm guessing she's going to claim a bad edit.  However, you can't show something that didn't happen or wasn't said, so I'm not believing anything she says.   

[Heathrowe]

I know these things are usually planned out far in advance but I wonder if Soo happened because the caliber of chefs became apparent by episode two?  Or earlier? Did the producers think they needed to bring someone in to elevate the dishes? 
 

That said, I didn’t think fried shrimp with two sauces was all that? I was rooting for “the guy with the green thing” and the scallop mousse or the mustard green woman.

I don’t know, I like Kristin - but this season is just off somehow.

Edited April 25 by Heathrowe

[BlackberryJam]

I haven't really been wowed by the food except really Michelle's and...Soo's. His LCK food looked amazing. I know Rasika was doing well, but I felt no mouth-watering hunger looking at the things she made. That makes it hard for me to care that she's gone. 

I don't know if it's the chefs or a change in production, but the food just doesn't sound incredible and amazing when they describe it. I used to watch TC episodes and just crave the food. That's not happening in the same way this season. The LCK food has looked so much better to me. 

Edited April 25 by BlackberryJam

[bosawks]

Overall, the cooking seemed better this week but then we have two of whom I think are the strongest performers in the bottom and losing Rasika.

This season is just weird.

 

[Suzn]

10 hours ago, HappyDancex2 said:

Rasika should have said “this dish is chaotic because it will be completely devoid of flavor and the most unpleasant texture because I made it up for this challenge.”  LOL 

Add to that - it was an ugly plate of food.

[BlackberryJam]

26 minutes ago, Suzn said:

Add to that - it was an ugly plate of food.

It looked like a slab of blubber on top of whipped cream. Really unappetizing. 

[rhofmovalley]

1 hour ago, BlackberryJam said:

but the food just doesn't sound incredible and amazing when they describe it. I used to watch TC episodes and just crave the food. That's not happening in the same way this season.

I used to try to have dinner ready so I could have something to eat during the episode when I inevitably got hungry from looking at the food. It just hasn't been happening this season. I'm sure they're skilled chefs, but something isn't coming across for some reason.

I feared Danny was getting a "knifed" edit so I'm glad it wasn't. I like him and Dan. Danny reminds me of Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel and I like Dan because I find him attractive, probably because he seems humble. And of course Michelle is awesome, she just really missed it this challenge.

Edited April 25 by rhofmovalley

[seltzer3]

I don't really blame the chefs.  I find this challenge super weird and confusing.  Like I don't understand the difference between "chaos" and just fusion?  I felt like I would have been just as lost as Michelle has.

I mean it says a lot when this challenge knocks the top 2 frontrunners in the bottom.

[BlackberryJam]

I get that the challenge was confusing, but neither of them made good food, and that's the real sin. There were a couple of dishes that the judges called too safe, but those people weren't up for elimination. I think grace for not understanding the challenge was definitely given. Michelle was up for a food that didn't taste good and pork that was poorly cooked. Rasika was up because her food was flavorless with a gross texture. Neither of them was up for elimination because their food didn't fit the challenge. 

[Fukui San]

After watching Dish with Kish, I see that Kristin is still confused as to what the challenge was about. I think, after all of this, the challenge boils down to "make a weird dish that still tastes good". Weird fusions? Fine. Looks like one thing but tastes like another? OK. Breaks some cardinal rule of cooking? Go for it. 

I think after all of this, my dish I would make for this would be to make a set of dumplings, like four on a plate for each judge. I would split my filling before stuffing and add something to each to make them as different as possible. One would be normal, one would be as spicy as possible without changing the appearance, one would be as sweet as can be without being revolting, and one would have the flavors of a different cuisine. So maybe Sui Mei but inside the fusion one there is mozzarella and basil. The judges would bite into it and each would get a totally different experience than the others. Would that be chaos? Who knows.

Anyway, this cast may not be the most inspiring culinarily amongst Top Chef casts, but I think they're probably the most fit and athletic cast I can think of.

[bravofan27]

I read an interview with Kaleena where she talks about how she "very recently" learned that she could be an effective chef without being abusive and screaming and yelling at people in the kitchen. She seems like the type of person who has to try really hard to be nice. I feel like she has lots of slip ups at work regarding her new enlightenment.

I think with chaos, the food needed to look like chaos. I would have thought Dan did the best job with everything. Danny's dish looked really really cool. 

I think this is one of those challenges that would have worked better with a partner. 

Soo is definitely going to elevate this for everyone. He also seems a good deal older than the other chefs. 

For chaos, I am thinking those McDonald hacks-- a spin on that. So making a Big Mac like sandwich with a chicken pattie and fish patty and serving it upside down on a huge skewer like a fair food. Putting onion rings and a crab cake in there. Pouring the sauce on the outside or served in hanging bird feeder type thing where people have to dip or press their food into this hanging vessle. Something that looks really funky. 

[Bossa Nova]

Of all the Top Chef seasons, and challenges....this one has to be the worst challenge.

Just awful. 

What did "chaos" have to do with Wisconsin, or even cuisine and cooking skills? It was ridiculous and uncreative nonsense. I felt sorry for these chefs, and the understandable stress they are under. 

That "celebrity" ? Who the heck is he? No, dont answer. I dont care. 

He looked and ate like a slob. Did you see him licking his fingers at the dinner table?  

I suspect there was a cancellation of another guest, or celebrity chef, judge, and he was all they could get at the last minute. But in order to book him, he had to have his way with his stupid challenge.

I also suspect that polite and gentlemanly Tom, just barely tolerated him.

 

[luna1122again]

None of y'all watch The Bear? 

[Rammchick]

4 minutes ago, luna1122again said:

None of y'all watch The Bear? 

Clearly they don't.  Although I was convinced that Matty Matheson was a character on the show, only to find that's really him in RL.

And Kristin should fire her stylists.  What did they put her in this episode?  A shapeless, weird...suit thing....in an unbecoming gray, and then a nude colored sweater that matched her skin tone.  I get that she's pretty and young and fresh and not-Padma, but really, they couldn't do better than that?

[Irlandesa]

1 hour ago, Fukui San said:

I think after all of this, my dish I would make for this would be to make a set of dumplings, like four on a plate for each judge. I would split my filling before stuffing and add something to each to make them as different as possible. One would be normal, one would be as spicy as possible without changing the appearance, one would be as sweet as can be without being revolting, and one would have the flavors of a different cuisine. So maybe Sui Mei but inside the fusion one there is mozzarella and basil. The judges would bite into it and each would get a totally different experience than the others. Would that be chaos? Who knows.

I think this is a great idea.  Introduce the dumplings and two main ingredients but not tell them there's going to be a culinary difference and hope everyone eats a different dumpling.  It'd all fall apart if everyone accidentally eats the same dumpling.

1 hour ago, Bossa Nova said:

That "celebrity" ? Who the heck is he? No, dont answer. I dont care.

I know you don't care but since it's coming up a lot, he was hired as a chef consultant on The Bear, which is a very popular Hulu show about the workings of a restaurant.  He then got asked to appear on camera but he didn't want to play a chef so he plays a cousin or a friend or something like that. 

If people haven't seen The Bear, it's a very intense show when it depicts the inner workings of a kitchen.  There's a lot of screaming, yelling, activity, and, yes...chaos.  That's why I don't think he was a replacement for someone else.  It's pretty clear the challenge was created to thematically align with the tone of the show he's on. 

I don't understand some of the challenges they've had.  I've seen some people blame the Wisconsin tourism board but I don't think that's it.  There's no reason they couldn't have come up with a decent challenge for the chefs to serve at Taliesen which was absolutely a unique dining experience.  And The Bear is filmed in Chicago so the chaos theme has nothing to do with location.  Other challenges, like using cheese, cherries, and beer, should be no-brainers.  They're as simple and straightforward as it gets on Top Chef and there's no reason for the lack of creativity.

One thing I did like about this challenge is that, instead of shopping at Whole Foods, they had the choice to go to the Asian market or Latin market.  I'd like more of that and things like shopping at the Farmer's market. 

 

 

Edited April 25 by Irlandesa

[luna1122again]

I didn't actually notice Matty licking his fingers, but I did notice, twice, Tom running a finger thru the sauce on his plate and putting it in his mouth. Which I found kind of charming. 

[dleighg]

16 hours ago, Bastet said:

Even though Michelle is one of those people who pronounces mascarpone as “marscapone” – which is one of my pet peeves – I’m glad she at least won the QF.

I think that pronunciation is a hanging offense, personally :) 

Dan's pudding looked like poop on a plate

8 hours ago, dubstepford wife said:

Somebody on the production team really hates Laura. 

seriously! Plus it seemed like she more or less reproduced something from her restaurant, which seems the opposite of what this challenge was about. Presumably the judges didn't know that.

Savanah's potato balls were seriously cool! If I liked to deep fry (I don't) I'd love to give that a try.

Can ANYONE explain to me what was chaotic about the winning dish? It was gorgeous. Tom comparing it to a duck meant absolutely nothing to me.

 

2 hours ago, Bossa Nova said:

That "celebrity" ? Who the heck is he? No, dont answer. I dont care. 

He looked and ate like a slob. Did you see him licking his fingers at the dinner table?  

Yeah, "The Bear." Awesome show.

[Bastet]

10 hours ago, dubstepford wife said:

Somebody on the production team really hates Laura.  She mostly laid low this episode but they couldn't help themselves with the dark chocolate at the beginning.  That said, even though I defended her last episode because I didn't think the budget problems were her fault alone, she's emerging as a dirty player.  The editors can't make up footage.

I suspect Dan was correct when he theorized it's less that she's inconsiderate and more that she's just in her own little world (which is a difference of degrees, and I think he's speaking to intent).  Because it looked to me like she was just focused on her cooking, probably not paying attention to anything being shouted in the kitchen other than the calls of time left, so didn't even register that someone was asking for an ingredient that she had, rather than her hearing it and deciding not to answer.

[CrazyInAlabama]

I am tired of cheftestants coming to TC, and saying "Desserts aren't in my wheel house" or "I haven't done a dessert since culinary school".  If you want to come to TC and do well, you try a variety of local dishes when you know the location, a variety of dishes including a couple of desserts, and a full menu if you make the finals.  

I watched the elimination challenge instructions again, and I still don't know what the challenge actually was.   

 

Edited April 29 by CrazyInAlabama

[mlp]

20 minutes ago, Bastet said:

I suspect Dan was correct when he theorized it's less that she's [Laura] inconsiderate and more that she's just in her own little world

I think you're probably right about this instance but I still don't like her.  She hasn't come off well several times already.  I hope she and Kaleena are the next two eliminated.  

3 hours ago, Rammchick said:

And Kristin should fire her stylists.

Amen.  That sleeveless "suit" might have been cute if the pants hadn't been too long and she had had a turtleneck or something under the jacket.  The bra part almost down to her abdomen exposing a large expanse of flat chest wasn't flattering at all.  If Padma saw this episode, she's probably still cringing.

 

[dubstepford wife]

2 hours ago, dleighg said:

Can ANYONE explain to me what was chaotic about the winning dish? It was gorgeous. Tom comparing it to a duck meant absolutely nothing to me.

So, like just about everyone, I didn't completely understand the challenge, but my understanding was that the winning dish appeared super simple, but beneath the surface it ended up being super complex and sophisticated.  That's where the duck analogy came from -- ducks look calm and even bored on the surface, but below the surface of the water they're paddling like crazy.  This dish appeared to be a cabbage leaf in a bowl of milk, but it was much, much more than that.  Is that chaotic?  I probably wouldn't use that word, I'd describe it more as deceptive as opposed to chaotic, but I guess the judges liked the interpretation of the assignment.

15 minutes ago, mlp said:

Amen.  That sleeveless "suit" might have been cute if the pants hadn't been too long and she had had a turtleneck or something under the jacket.  The bra part almost down to her abdomen exposing a large expanse of flat chest wasn't flattering at all.  If Padma saw this episode, she's probably still cringing.

It's certainly not for everyone but I love Kristin's androgynous style.  You have to have a very specific look to pull that off.  You have to basically be her -- tall, rail thin, sharp facial features, short hair -- for it to work.  Put androgynous clothes on someone with an hourglass figure and long hair and it doesn't work as well.  Like Padma for instance would never be able to wear that outfit, she was way too voluptuous.  Kristin looks very model-esque, like she just walked off a high fashion runway.  I agree the pants were too long, when you can't see someone's shoes it makes me think of JNCO jeans from the late 90s, but otherwise I thought she looked fabulous.

Edited April 25 by dubstepford wife

[Bastet]

7 minutes ago, dubstepford wife said:

I agree the pants were too long, when you can't see someone's shoes it makes me think of JNCO jeans from the late 90s, but otherwise I thought she looked fabulous.

Same here; I absolutely loved that outfit on her other than the length of the pants.

[Ancaster]

4 hours ago, luna1122again said:

I didn't actually notice Matty licking his fingers, but I did notice, twice, Tom running a finger thru the sauce on his plate and putting it in his mouth. Which I found kind of charming. 

I quite like Tom but he has terrible table manners.

It often bothers me that he leans down to the plate/fork rather than bringing the fork up to his mouth.

[Ancaster]

I pretty much hated the whole episode, from the incomprehensible challenge, to the slobby judge, to the horrible food, to Kristen's nasty outfit (I love Kristen and I'm all for androgyny, but the shoulders, colour, and length were all wrong).  Plus I just dislike Amanda for no good reason and that makes me feel like a bad person. 

 

Edited April 25 by Ancaster

[dleighg]

10 minutes ago, Ancaster said:

Plus I just dislike Amanda for no good reason

she seemed very smug this episode. like "chaos is exactly what I do."

Doesn't make me want to go to her restaurant.

[carrps]

I don't watch The Bear, but everytime I've seen someone from the show, they've been really off-putting, and this Matty guy is no exception. He seems like an ass. And then saying Manny's dish was chaotic, basically, because he liked it? WTF???

Bad bad bad challenge.

I thought Dan's, Savannah's and Soo's looked awesome. Danny's did not look good to me (and his "foam" looked like non-fat milk), but it sounded tasty. I love scallops in any iteration.

Yeah, I want to like Kaleena, but, no.

[dleighg]

5 minutes ago, carrps said:

And then saying Manny's dish was chaotic, basically, because he liked it? WTF???

That is ABSOLUTELY the impression I got. So fine, don't meet the challenge, but make something tasty, you're not going to get offed. But to actually WIN? I seriously don't get it. I think Dan should have won. They loved it, and it was seriously chaotic.

[ALittleShelfish]

This is the first season where I've been so completely bored with the episodes that I forget I'm watching it.  More than once, I've picked up the remote thinking "Oh man, TC is on and I'm missing it!" only to find that I'm already watching it. 

I think the chefs are mostly boring, or at least not as many memorable ones as in previous seasons.  This far in and I can't remember which one is Dan/Danny or Savannah/Laura.  

I could also just be old and forgetful.  🤷‍♀️

[dleighg]

18 minutes ago, ALittleShelfish said:

This far in and I can't remember which one is Dan/Danny or Savannah/Laura.  

 

It's funny, Danny got a significant talking head in this episode and my first thought was "who the hell is that?"

I know he's had "some moments" so far, but his face was a complete forget for me. 

And I agree, Savannah and Laura get mixed up in my head.

I guess I'm gonna root for Soo LOL.

[CrazyInAlabama]

On 4/25/2024 at 5:27 PM, ALittleShelfish said:

This is the first season where I've been so completely bored with the episodes that I forget I'm watching it.  More than once, I've picked up the remote thinking "Oh man, TC is on and I'm missing it!" only to find that I'm already watching it. 

I think the chefs are mostly boring, or at least not as many memorable ones as in previous seasons.  This far in and I can't remember which one is Dan/Danny or Savannah/Laura.  

I could also just be old and forgetful.  🤷‍♀️

For me, the switch to Wednesday night is very disconcerting.    I don't know why, but it is.      Because of conflicts with My 600 Lb Life, I only get to watch the ending, and have to watch the On Demand for the episode, and for LCK.  Watching it backwards is very strange. 

This episode was very confusing, and I still don't understand Chaos cuisine.  

Edited April 29 by CrazyInAlabama

[OnMatchPoint]

10 hours ago, Heathrowe said:

I know these things are usually planned out far in advance but I wonder if Soo happened because the caliber of chefs became apparent by episode two?  Or earlier? Did the producers think they needed to bring someone in to elevate the dishes? 

David Murphy got wind that he would be receiving a villain edit and declined to participate in LCK, so they had to recruit the closest backup (Soo being 45min south of Milwaukee).

[caitmcg]

50 minutes ago, OnMatchPoint said:

David Murphy got wind that he would be receiving a villain edit and declined to participate in LCK, so they had to recruit the closest backup (Soo being 45min south of Milwaukee).

Do you have a source for this intel? There's been a lot of wondering about conflicting accounts about why David Murphy didn't compete in LCK and whether the Soo twist was long-planned. Also, in recent seasons they've begun with 16, but this time they did not, and yet they brought two back in, so it's still an uneven number (for now)...

[Domenicholas]

I hate open-ended challenges like this. The definition of chaos is so arbitrary that you can make it mean whatever you want. Good thing that most chefs got decent-to-good dishes out, but if I were any of them, I would have done something completely ridiculous. For example:

- Chocolate-covered turducken

- Poutine-stuffed chitins

- Full English Breakfast smoothie

- Chicken-fried sushi

- Cereal-stuffed ravioli

- Rice lasagna with bacon replacing the noodles

- An actually properly-cooked risotto

[Rai]

I'm generally game for whatever Top Chef wants to do, but I literally did not understand how this challenge worked. If they'd given any examples of successful dishes, that would've been really helpful just to have a frame of reference. I just was lost, and the chefs largely seemed to be as well. I will say though I love that Savannah had her moment of redemption, even though I'd certainly be wary of mustard greens in a dessert. But go with your chaotic pastries, girl.

I will never steam creme fraiche though, I'll tell you what. Poor Rasika. I really didn't expect her to crash so hard and so early. But also, she's 25? She's gonna be okay. I already have forgotten who won though, so this season continues to be flattened in a weird way.

I do agree Laura just looked tuned out and not fully connecting that she had the dark chocolate Dan was yelling about. She didn't have any issue with him grabbing it off her station. I don't have a problem with Kaleena or Amanda. I don't don't have a problem with Kristin's outfit. I don't even care chefs lick their fingers after eating something with their hands. I am here for the hot power bottoms, and it makes me laugh they've turned it into a rallying cry.

Michelle, Danny, Dan, and Soo now seem to be the frontrunners with Rasika out. Hoping for a strong LCK run from Rasika! It'd be fun to see her and Soo have to face off at some point!

2 minutes ago, Domenicholas said:

Good thing that most chefs got decent-to-good dishes out, but if I were any of them, I would have done something completely ridiculous. For example:

- An actually properly-cooked risotto

THE SHADE 🤣

[Spicysweet]

15 minutes ago, Rai said:

I don't don't have a problem with Kristin's outfit. I don't even care chefs lick their fingers after eating something with their hands. I am here for the hot power bottoms, and it makes me laugh they've turned it into a rallying cry.

Why does anyone care what the new host of a COOKING competition wears??? This isn't Project Runway! Kristen is terrific in her new role and has the chops to  intelligently judge the food placed in front of her. 

I do love a good bromance, though. I don't think the "Power Bottoms" will last a whole lot longer, but they're lots of fun like Ali and Amar last year.

[CrazyInAlabama]

1 hour ago, caitmcg said:

Do you have a source for this intel? There's been a lot of wondering about conflicting accounts about why David Murphy didn't compete in LCK and whether the Soo twist was long-planned. Also, in recent seasons they've begun with 16, but this time they did not, and yet they brought two back in, so it's still an uneven number (for now)...

Kristen did say they may chop two cheftestants in a future episode.   So, now they're down to ten?   Or did I miscount again?    This episode was a big fail for me, and I'm hoping they gave the chefs more explanation that we didn't see.   

[ProudMary]

Did someone sprinkle negativity dust all over this thread? And directed at so much: contestants, judges, guest judges, Wisconsin, the season! My goodness.

Is everyone OK?

[gorgy]

Does every episode begin with cheftestants working out or running now? Was that always a thing?

Okay. I need to write this down and might delete later. I was slightly annoyed when the three bigger guys on Top Chef Colorado called themselves bears with the not-so-subtle gay undertones, and by this point, I'm so over the whole team Power Bottom. I can pinpoint it to when "There's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" explained different roles in gay sex as it became a thing for straight guys to giggle about. It's not far from the people that would ask, "which one of you is the man and which one of you is the woman in the relationship or which one is the pitcher and which one is the catcher?" with a wink and a hardy guffaw. It's like having to spend my childhood where people would mimic the Seinfeld, "not that there's anything wrong with that" every single damn time they could followed by a Don't Ask, Don't Tell reference. I'm tired of it all. Anyway, what are we talking about? Oh right, the cooking show.

So we have yet another unnecessary Quickfire round that means nothing to the overall competition. It was nice seeing Christina Tosi, I suppose. I'm not a sweets/desserts person, but I once had her famous naked cake for a birthday and it was good. I'd have it again. Yeah, okay. moving on.

I think I liked the conceit of the Elimination Challenge. Years ago, when Dave Egger's first book came out, I was about 14 or 15, it was about a struggling 21 year raising an 8 year old and it went into detail about the meals he would make. One was called the Mexican-Italian War (don't ask me what was in it) and it got me to thinking about how to create meals using different ingredients or technique in a pseudo-fusion manner. I'm not the world's most daring eater or cook, but it lead me to learn about different cultures and whatnot through food. Sure, my skill level was in the range of making a Taco Bell Mexican Pizza, but it did lead me to some new areas of knowledge. Anyway, there's too many chefs (again) for me to remember much that was served, but some of them did well, I think. Really, outside of Michelle and Soo The Ringer, I'm having a hard time getting behind anybody. I'm sure most of them are nice enough (except for Kaleena (sp?) and her this bitch is back attitude. Like seriously, enough with describing yourself as a bitch; it's so played out)

Speaking of overusing curse words, Kristen is a fine host but it doesn't feel like she adds much of anything when the judges are being served. Padma had a way of describing things that elevated the dishes and helped viewers at home understand what they were tasting. It feels like Tom leads the discussion, which I don't mind, but I'm not sure he should be in that role. Next season, I expect more from her.

There's something about Last Chance Kitchen that never sat right with me. I don't know what it is. It feels far too integral the finale somehow, and now it just feels so telegraphed that Rasika will inevitably come back just like adding Soo to the competition was never in doubt. At this point, I'd rather they get rid of the Quickfire altogether and have the bottom two chefs battle it out a la Lip-sync For Your Life. If Bravo needs to create content for the internet, turn Last Chance Kitchen into Second Chance Kitchen where the losers battle for like $50,000. 

 

 

[ProudMary]

5 minutes ago, gorgy said:

So we have yet another unnecessary Quickfire round that means nothing to the overall competition.

It certainly meant something to Michelle, who won $7,500!

I still enjoy the Quickfire Challenges, even though immunity is handled in a different way now. Also, it was a dairy challenge, which means something to Wisconsin and its dairy farmers.