S12.E08: Clean Up In Aisle 2!

[chiaros]

I am totally with you - I have no recollection of him, either.  But it appears that he lost the Museum of Science challenge - here's a video of his exit interview.  It isn't like he trashed the show in his exit interview, but he did say he was having panic attacks and didn't think that competition was for him.

 

 

That isn't the exit video on their Web site, but it is hazily coming back to me.  I doubt, however, that is the reason why he isn't there.  There's been no shortage of cheftestants who have questioned the judges' palates. If I had to guess, based on what he said above, I suspect he took himself out of the competition and the producers let him go because what good is guy having panic attacks.

 

I should clarify that I was referring to his "talking head" (TH) within the episode proper.  I just re-watched episode 1 (the relevant bits) and 1) correction, he questioned Tom C's and Padma L's palates in his "TH just after they tasted his food"; and 2) in his TH after he was told to PPYKAG he said Tom C should be more open minded, needs to grow or he (Tom C.) would be left behind, and that he didn't care what Tom C. thinks.

[buttersister]

if George had gotten the boot this episode, or if he gets the boot soon, does he go into the LCK pool or do they say, "Well, you had your chance, g'bye"?

Heh, this is not Top Ways to Keep George Around. I'll give him a week or two to see if he does something more interesting than kabobs and a cup of lentils. I'm sure the flavors were very good, but it was a safe move and more than one player has been booted because they did that.

[Chasing Whitebeams]

I've been very happy with the season so far, but this episode with its twistiness... Last episode I was patting the show on its back for once having more women than men left, and now they let in someone who obviously deserved to go and is a bit of douche, to kick out someone who, while patchy and at times in above her head, also really explored cooking and pulled out interesting things. Ugh. I feel I've been feinted. And why did we do this? We have Last Chance Kitchen and this totally random "hey, let's obviously put the first guy in because he deserves it" (deserves it how?)

 

Then we lose Adam, who I really liked. 

[Texasmom1970]

Is George trying to compete with George McFly with the grease in his hair. To quote "Back to the Future" it's about time to change that oil!

[Lura]

I've calmed down from my rant yesterday about LCK, George re-entering the fray, etc.  I don't think that this season has been nearly as boring as I've thought.  However, I wonder whether Tom saw it as lacking excitement.  Greg has been a clear leader for most of the show until Doug began to step up the action.  That leaves only two of them to root for, and Tom always loves surprises.  I am beginning to think that Tom wanted George back in there to enliven the season, to pick up the pace, and thus to make the show more exciting.  It's a proven fact that viewers opt out when they think the ending is predictable.  George's presence has certainly added to my own excitement.  I can hardly wait to find out whether he can out-cook Greg and Doug or whether George will find his competition too steep.  It should be interesting!

Edited December 13, 2014 by Lura

[archer1267]

I think Jerry Remy might have made a bit more sense.

 

 

I take it you're not from Boston. I won't get into what is a very divisive subject here, but Jerry Remy's image got badly tarnished a year or ago, and he's kept a low profile ever since. Having Jerry on the show would be a very bad move, to say the least.

 

I'm okay with George cooking Greek food, especially since Padma had classical Greek ingredients in mind when she shopped for him. It's not like he was given the chance to choose his own ingredients and automatically went to Greek food. I could argue that several of those dishes weren't particularly original (any home cook who's made paella knows about the pairing of chorizo with shellfish, and if Gregory hadn't added the jackfruit to his chicken curry, I doubt he'd have been in the top 3). I'm not okay with bringing someone in so late in the game, though.

 

What were Adam and Doug supposed to do with lecithin? I was bummed to see Adam go, although his semi-cooked shrimp sounded icky. I laughed long and hard at his description of Richard's cooking style though ("playful molecular shit"). How did Melissa outlast him? Despite being in the bottom several times, she's made no effort to step up her game. Shrimp and salad, really? This is the second challenge where she's mentioned wanting to showcase her knife skills, and I don't get it. For someone with impressive credentials, she doesn't really seem to swing for the fences.

 

I know Katie's got many fans, but I'm sorry, the black tea and sourdough chowder sounded absolutely disgusting to me.

 

If Gregory whips up another curry/coconut milk dish next week, then he's just gotten cocky about his frontrunner status.

[Lillybee]

If people think that Mike Isabella got George bank in the show, why didn't Eric Ripert do the same for Jen?

[cooksdelight]

Because Jen made an ass of herself on the way out the door. Ripert was probably mortified.

[eleanorofaquitaine]

I trust his food opinion, unlike next week's preview -- Gronk and sausage.  Oh good gravy!  I think Jerry Remy might have made a bit more sense.  Gronk could have helped Padma shop at Whole Foods while riding in a motorized cart:

http://www.boston.com/sports/football/patriots/2014/04/04/rob-gronkowski-apparently-loves-food-shopping/c29kMvJEAcHRFT6M25SMrL/story.html

 

While I understand your thinking here because Remy owns restaurants, archer1267 is entirely correct that Jerry Remy is keeping a low profile recently because of the fact that his son murdered his girlfriend, and because there has been a lot of local reporting on how much Remy and his wife spent years hiding their son's violent history.  Plus, regardless, they already did their Red Sox episode.

 

That being said, the Patriot who would make the most sense for TC is Vince Wilfork - the guy tweets about baking bread and cooking other food all the time.  But obviously, Gronk is a big name.

Edited December 14, 2014 by eleanorofaquitaine

[MortysCleaningLady]

I actually am a transplanted Bostonian; I moved out of state a couple years ago.  I missed the news story about Remy's son.  How tragic! 

[Muffyn]

I figured they voted George back in because they couldn't stand being sequestered with him and his excessive sweat and oiled hair.  

[Lura]

I don't care for the grease either, but maybe George uses it to keep his hair back and dislikes wearing a scarf.  To each his own.

[NowVoyager]

Random thoughts:

---Jackfruit looks like something out of "Invasion of the Body Snatchers. All that's missing is the foam & that creepy popping sound. Of course I'm dying to taste it now.

---I was very impressed with Padma's grocery shopping/meal planning skills. Out of the top 3, 2 of the chefs had her pantry.

---I don't know if I'm more mad at Melissa for playing dirty or Mei for not calling her out on her shit. Wth was Mei supposed to do with 3 clams?!? My dislike of Melissa made me forget all about Aaron until I saw him on LCK. She's got some 'splaining to do at the reunion show.

[Lamb18]

I was wondering if there were two Texas seasons and I missed the good one. :)

When Richard went running off with his shopping cart, I think he forgot he was a judge and he was once again a contestant.

Maybe he's been judging too many Guy's Grocery Games!

[eleanorofaquitaine]

To be fair to Blais, who I don't really like, his experience as a contestant actually came out during the shopping.  Gail said that they all went for the fruit while Blais immediately went to the proteins, which was smart on his part, and likely comes from knowing that getting the best protein puts a contestant in the best position to win.

[Mischievious]

I enjoyed the episode. Not sure why but I'm thankful Adam is gone. I have nothing against him but he just consistently annoyed me. Hoping for Doug or Gregory to win. At this point I'm leaning more towards Doug for who I want to win.

 

One that is still bugging me from watching the episode. They showed the "Super Fans" making comments to the camera as well as their conversations with other "Super Fans." I've deleted the episode off my DVR so I can't double check but I swear, one of the "Super Fans" was Robin Kassner from Millionaire Matchmaker. You know, the one obsessed with pink and Hello Kitty. I could easily be wrong but as soon as the camera cut to that lady my mind immediately assumed it was her. If so, I'm not sure I believe these were all "Super Fans." Although the little girl was adorable and I thought it was great of Doug to give her his menu board.

[theatremouse]

"Super fans" don't necessarily need to be never-on-television people. I'm sure plenty of G-list celebs consider themselves super fans and can finegle their way into a dining room. When it's not specifically stated as a super fan event, the crowds at the catering challenges are generally at least half out of work actors.

[Lura]

When it's not specifically stated as a super fan event, the crowds at the catering challenges are generally at least half out of work actors.

 

Theatremouse, this is interesting to me.  Where did you learn about this?

Edited December 16, 2014 by Lura

[cooksdelight]

I know of two friends who are actors who do these parties. One was actually a "judge" on FNS. And she regularly runs into other actors she's worked with. Most come from central casting.

[heebiejeebie]

I'm so glad Adam is gone.  At least for now.  He is almost as annoying as Blaise of Douche when it comes to loving hearing the sound of his own voice.  Every thing had to be some profound deep meaning of pots and pans.  Even when they were relaxing back at the house.  I howled when he snotted his grief in the packing his knives talking head.  What a douchebag.

 

I do hate returns.  Even Stephanie by the end of N.O. annoyed me a bit.  Last Chance Kitchen is something that should never have been.  So not happy to see it return. Especially if it means Adam and his over earnest talking inspirational poster self might be back.

 

Watching Blaising Douche crawl up the collective asses of the other judges at Whole Foods was rather funny.  And sad.  He practically begged Tom before parting those cheeks and hauling on board.  But the best was his simpering "I'm part of the cool crowd now right,,,right" routine after Padma "pranked" him.

 

I'm still waiting for that dish I want to crawl through my screen and devour to appear this season.  Nothing so far.

 

I can get on board Texas as the best season.   At least in part.  As a season it sucked balls.  But despite being cast with a pool of contestants I think Paul could have still out cooked with only one hand and no vision, I found Paul's performance probably one of the most impressive in terms of dishes and demeanor of any season.  His dishes were incredible week after week.  It was like the top four of the Vegas season was rolled into one person. 

[theatremouse]

This is interesting to me.  Where did you learn about this?

Same way as cooksdelight. Actor-friends who suddenly showed up as diners on the show, on multiple different occasions.

Edited December 16, 2014 by theatremouse

[cooksdelight]

It's a paid gig, too. Easy money, provided you get something good to eat.

[Lura]

You learn something new every day!   Sorry this is off-topic, but it reminds me of a question my DH asked:  Do people who are contestants, but leave with no money, still get paid anything?  He saw Curtis Stone's new show, "Kitchen Inferno," and he wondered about the people who come on the show to win $50,000 but fail and, as the show states, "lose it all." 

[ChelseaNH]

My understanding is that contestants get appearance fees.

[Jobiska]

I am no huge fan of Richard, but I had to laugh at how he saved Katsuji's bacon:

 

Gail:  What did you think of my food selections, Katsuji?

Katsuji:  They were cute.

Gail, steam coming out her ears: Cute?

Katsuji:  Yeah, cute.

Gail, head about to fly off into the stratosphere:  Cute?

 

Richard:  I think I see what he's getting at--you didn't buy enough chilis.

 

Now, I'm a lifelong feminist, and I don't like a "aww, look what the little woman did" attitude, but I'm pretty sure that's not what Katsuji was going for here.  I don't think he was totally innocent as we all know him as a pot-stirrer, but I don't think he was trying to imply anything about women specifically.  But I got where Gail was coming from too.  
 

[Julia]

Now, I'm a lifelong feminist, and I don't like a "aww, look what the little woman did" attitude, but I'm pretty sure that's not what Katsuji was going for here.  I don't think he was totally innocent as we all know him as a pot-stirrer, but I don't think he was trying to imply anything about women specifically.  But I got where Gail was coming from too.  

 

I'm not sure - there's enough prejudice about women not being serious savory chefs that Katsuji telling Gail her palate was "cute" is a little triggery, and I don't think he's stupid. 

[Lura]

I just read about the Remy case because I didn't understand what that was about.  What a horrible nightmare the Remys and the Martels have been through!

 

I have to stick up for Katsuji on this one.  In the first place, I didn't feel that he meant his comment as a put-down of Gail.  I also didn't feel that it reeked of anti-feminist feeling.  I thought that Katsuji used the word "cute" for lack of a better one.  He may be a troublemaker, but he knows better than to insult a judge.  I even thought, by the somewhat shy look on his face, that he meant it as a compliment.  The English language isn't always easy for Americans, let alone a relative newcomer!

[BC Mama]

I also think Gail was joking around a bit. I thought they were teasing each other.

[stillshimpy]

I may regret asking this, but what Remy case? 

 

 

 

I know Katie's got many fans, but I'm sorry, the black tea and sourdough chowder sounded absolutely disgusting to me.

 

Didn't it though?  Thickening something with bread is sort of an odd choice, but it can work.  Using black tea with sourdough just sound dreadful to me.  

 

I don't personally mind that George came back and aside from the fact that it is actually illegal to try and fix contests where there is money on the line, here's one reason I can't see Mike Isabella demanding that his protege reenter the competition:  I can't see Mike Isabella actually caring that much.  Going out that early pretty much guarantees that no one was going to remember him.  He didn't have time to show his ass on TV (Jen Carroll of Ripert fame) or show that he was completely unskilled, or unsanitary (Aaron the Assaults charges guy) .  He just didn't go out in any humiliating fashion other than early and he lost to someone who has been in the lead.   

 

So anyway, yeah, there are regulatory reasons why there is no conspiracy to be had (remember the movie Quiz Show? ) and then there are personal reasons: Isabella caring that much for someone's fate who isn't carrying the last name of Isabella? Wouldn't it just be easier to fire George?  I bet Melissa's boss isn't exactly digging her current representation on the show, what the hell?  Leaving behind three clams? That just gave Mei a chance to look like a really principled person for not ratting out everyone else.  Beyond everything else, there are far worse fates than being eliminated before anyone can remember you.  There's being eliminated in a manner that EVERYONE will remember you ("The Red Hots are for my mommy!" Top Chef Desserts, as a for instance)

 

Anyway, didn't mind the twist.  Didn't mind seeing Katie going because that was a wretched choice.  

 

I also didn't mind that Blais got some molecular gastronomy ingredients.  I don't think it unnecessarily hobbled anyone, Adam didn't have to use any of the Blais Chemistry set (and it's not like Agar Agar is difficult to use) and I honestly don't know how you manage to under-cook shrimp.  They seem to overcook and turn into rubbery in the blink of an eye.   

 

Also, although it is rare, every now and then Blais can do something that makes me like him an itty-bitty-bit and he made me laugh when he surrendered the lamb while looking like he'd also submissively pee if Tom commanded it.  It was just sort of cute.  Sometimes Blais's awkwardness is irritating to me, sometimes it is winning.  When he look genuinely a little bit freaked out over the lamb thing?  I found it winning.  Although please get a haircut, Blais.  You're giving Marcel a run for his money in the Heat Miser Olympics. 

 

I am sorry that Adam left, only because it clearly just broke his heart and that was sad to see.  

Edited December 17, 2014 by stillshimpy

[ChelseaNH]

there are regulatory reasons why there is no conspiracy to be had (remember the movie Quiz Show? )

 

Reality competitions are structured so they aren't legally considered game shows.  Which is why they have a disclaimer about winners being chosen in consultation with the producers, which is why some people insist that all decisions are producer-driven (more true on some shows than others).

[Rhondinella]

I know I'm late to the party but I just came to say. . . . overalls?  Really Padma?  Are those a fashion thing now?  Lord help us if so.

[stillshimpy]

Yes, overalls are apparently back in style again. 

 

That's interesting, Chelsea, thanks for the information.  I'm going to stick with believing there's no conspiracy for all the other reasons I named then. 

Edited December 17, 2014 by stillshimpy

[theatremouse]

I may regret asking this, but what Remy case?  

Scroll up a bit, a few people elaborated.

[stillshimpy]

Wow, holy crap.  At first I didn't think it was possible that I'd just missed it...I don't actually have anyone who is posting on here on Ignore, but sure enough, I must have just breezed over that because my mind rejected it for being too horrible.  

 

Oh my God, that's terrible. 

 

I can't "like" that, but thanks for directing me, theatremouse.

Edited December 18, 2014 by stillshimpy

[Lura]

A poster upthread mentioned being glad to see Adam go.  I had a hard time liking Adam.  On the one hand, he seemed to work hard and had a measure of success, while on the other hand, I grew tired of hearing his voice.  It overrode everyone else's voice, and it irked me that he always had to have the last word.  He assumed leadership over others on a number of occasions when it wasn't his place to dole out orders.  Adam barked orders at other contestants when it was not his place to do so.

 

Adam's comments about others were either negative or sarcastic most of the time.  I can't recall a time when he was genuinely happy to see someone else win a challenge unless they were on his team.  He frequently tried to get the attention of the camera, such as in the Lexington and Concord Battle when he waved his flag so hysterically that I hoped he'd fall over.  I even became a little bit tired of him constantly referring to himself as "the only New Yorker."

 

I'm sure that Adam had some redeeming qualities, but they were hard for me to find.  I never hated him, but I'm not sure that I cared for him all that much.  When he was told to pack his knives, I felt relieved.  I did think that his final words were spoken sincerely and held a lot of truth, but I didn't find myself wishing that he could return.  I wish him well because I think that cooking is his passion, but I hope that somewhere along the line he learns to keep his ego in check and learns that people are judged by their words.  If he would stop and think before blurting something out, I think he'd be much more successful and respected by his peers.  So long, Adam, and have a good life!                                                                                                                          

[Julia]

Holy cow. And someone gave custody of his grandchildren to that man? I thought influence in NY politics was bad.

More to the point, people actually eat at his restaurant?

[paramitch]

Talk about needing brain bleach. I just read about the Remy case and really wish I could erase any knowledge of it from my brain. Good lord, that was one of the most chilling, depressing things I've ever read in my life. 

 

Onward. I laughed at Richard several times in this episode. He's at his most winning when he's up-front about his neediness, so I kind of thought he was pretty likable here, and his desire to put together a good pantry for his cheftestants was charming.  I thought Dougie showed that his efforts were obviously fine -- while Adam nevertheless made one of those absolutely bizarre decisions (as Katie had earlier) that just had me befuddled. Scorched, raw shrimp? Really? We may not be able to taste the deliciousness on this show but every once in awhile I'm profoundly grateful, and this was one of those times. Ugh.

 

I was really angry at Melissa, and felt like there should have been some kind of action taken over the theft of the clams from Mei's station, or at least that it should have been addressed with or before the judges.

 

Last but not least, I wasn't thrilled that George rejoined the competition, but he seemed very well-liked by his fellow sequestered cheftestants, which doubtless had something to do with it and their feelings that it had been 'unjust' for him to go so soon. I don't hate Isabella -- I have found him to be at varying times asstastic, rude, and pompous but also sharp, surprisingly endearing, and occasionally funny. The fact that he remains adored by almost all of his past co-contestants I suspect says a lot -- I think he's probably an okay guy in day to day life.

 

Adam was interesting for me. I've often found him to be a bit of a blowhard, but here I was genuinely moved by how upset he was at his elimination, and I felt really sorry for him and for how deeply it affected him. I liked his honesty about the situation and his emotions; I just wish he'd had that kind of clarity when choosing what sounded like an absolutely horrible dish.

Edited December 20, 2014 by paramitch

[Funzlerks]

I feel like there is this joke this season between Padma and the wardrobe department. Like, "Let's see if an insanely beautiful woman can wear Beetlejuice bellbottoms and not inspire immediate laughter. Padma, I dare you.". Like where are they even getting these clothes. Is she just bored with silk jersey dresses or something?

Edited December 24, 2014 by Funzlerks

[wovenloaf]

What especially confused me about the overalls was that they were tight on the top... Tight overalls? Is that a thing?