The Shows of 2015: More Indecipherable Seasonings

[GHScorpiosRule]

I'm not sure what season this episode was, but it was just on. Anyhow:

 

the guy in the dessert round basically did what I thought to do (I'm not a chef at all), just put all the stuff in the croissant lol. He did that and didn't change any of the ingredients. I was surprised that he basically just gave up.

 

 

I saw that one! The reason why he just gave up was, he said he totally blanked out, almost passed out, because he was in extreme pain. something about pins in his back?  So he didn't do anything, and that lost him the competition.

 

I have to admit, this was the first one I watched where a contestant admitted he was arrogant, but that he was going to win Chopped. And if not for this guy, who crapped out in the dessert round, and I think would have won, the arrogant dude did. And he was quite contemptuous of his competition getting all weepy over his mother, who was undergoing chemotherapy.

 

Though I'm in the same boat, where, please, I don't want to hear any sob stories, but this guy who ended up winning was really being a jerk about it.

[Bruinsfan]

I don't know what spa cuisine is, but I'm glad the snotty Team Spa was voted off in the first round so I didn't have to hear more about it.

I know nothing about it, but the visual image the term immediately brings up is little plates of supposedly healthy appetizer food like you'd have at an art gallery show: cheese and sprigs of herbs atop cucumber or zucchini slices, that sort of thing.

[GHScorpiosRule]

 I guess the number of chefs who want to come on this show has gone down, because tonight's new episode is yet another redemption episode. Gah.

 

And I have to be honest: I've been to a few high-end restaurants, and never have any of the appetizers or entrees or desserts looked like what they do here. You know, with the schmear of the puree "drawn" across the plate, or the food piled high, etc.  I think someone here mentioned that this kind of "look" only happens on these cooking shows.  But even when Ted is introducing the contestants, and you see them explaining where they work and what they do, and you see them getting all fancy schmancy with the plate they're putting together before holding it in front of the camera...I've never seen anything like that to the places I've been to.

 

Maybe I need to expand my...horizons? Naah.

[Julia]

Spa cuisine is cuisine minceur for the new millennium, which is to say fresh and pretty and beautifully prepared expensive hospital food.

[mlp]

Geeesh.  I hated tonight's episode.  I liked Rique despite that affected name the first time he was on and he was the only one I liked tonight.  The other guy was too egotistical and the women were awful.  The blond looked and acted like a bimbo.  Hard to believe she went to law school.  The other woman was just obnoxious.  Her behavior was just a couple steps above Lauren Van Der Pool.

[GaT]

I did not like either woman & was hoping somehow they would both lose. 

[Drogo]

I don't know much about jewelry, but I couldn't figure out why the blonde had a giant "V" necklace on when her name was Stephanie Khanich.  V for victory?

[cooksdelight]

Maybe she's from the planet Vega. Or she worships Vger.

[NikSac]

ha, I was wondering about that necklace too. I had missed her name so I assumed there was a 'V' in there somewhere. Actually I was wondering about her whole upper half outfit. I mean I know it's a cooking show, not a fashion show, but did she really think a tank top that looked like a skin tight swimsuit was a good idea?  I'm not one to worry that much about what people wear in general, but it seemed totally unprofessional to me - both for a chef/cook on national TV, and for a lawyer. I know she was cooking, not practicing law, but I kept thinking "I wonder if she's this unprofessional in her 'day job' at the law firm."

 

On a totally separate note I thought Alex was extra kind and encouraging on that episode. Was she just in an exceptionally good mood? Or maybe she was also in the midst of filming the All Star Academy show so she's in mentor mode?  Possibly trying to offset the harshness of the other judges?  I'm not sure what it was but I kind of liked it.

[Drogo]

Maybe the V is for Vegan Loaf. 

[GHScorpiosRule]

I found Jackie's zit on her chin more distracting than the V necklace, actually.

And Chris was snarkier than usually; that is, more snarky, especially over Jackie's appetizer, which made me laugh. That was a first!

[Bella]

I occasionally find an episode unwatchable because of the contestants. This was one of those episodes. I FF'd to the end after the intros to see which annoying person won, and it was the second-most annoying. There was no reason to watch after that.

[cooksdelight]

After reading all the comments, I'm FF'ing too. But I have to say, the V necklace is there to point to her cleavage. I can see no other reason for it, given what she chose to wear.

[GHScorpiosRule]

I really didn't like that she won. And turning on the water works when Alex asked if she was happy with the dessert she made. In the... Talking Heads? she was so smug that her dessert rocked and that she had it in the bag. Didn't like her in her first appearance; didn't care for her this time, either.

[JessDVD]

Was this the all-tool version of Chopped or something? I didn't really care for any of the contestants, although the guy chopped in the entree round was mildly tolerable.

[theatremouse]

I don't know much about jewelry, but I couldn't figure out why the blonde had a giant "V" necklace on when her name was Stephanie Khanich.  V for victory?

Maybe her significant other's name starts with V?

[Totale]

Maybe her significant other's name starts with V?

 

Given that she was all broke up about her recent breakup I doubt that's it.  I think cooksdelight nailed it.

[Drogo]

After reading all the comments, I'm FF'ing too. But I have to say, the V necklace is there to point to her cleavage. I can see no other reason for it, given what she chose to wear.

 

Just what we men need... a cleavage compass.  

 

*Sorry, I just came from the Survivor board so my opinions of my gender are quite low. 

[Julia]

Just what we men need... a cleavage compass.  

 

*Sorry, I just came from the Survivor board so my opinions of my gender are quite low.

 

Maybe not all that low. Blogger lady on Best Restaurant wore a lowcut dress and a push up bra on this week's episode. Usually we get close shots of her putting her fork between her lips while she's trying the food. This week the top of her head barely made the frame.

[Drogo]

Maybe not all that low. Blogger lady on Best Restaurant wore a lowcut dress and a push up bra on this week's episode. Usually we get close shots of her putting her fork between her lips while she's trying the food. This week the top of her head barely made the frame.

 

$10 to the first man who can tell me what she was cooking.  ;)

[cattykit]

For me, Jackie was less obnoxious than she was the first time, but that's not saying much.  The other woman I don't even remember.  She was definitely in van der Pool territory.  And I find it very, very hard to believe that hundreds of people are stopping her in the street, much less to tell her she was robbed.  And then for her to greet the judges' pleasant greeting with, "I was robbed."  What a hosebeast.  Who was very, very lucky she survived the first round because apparently her food was dreck.

[GaT]

I wonder if anyone from the show ever reads boards like this? When the majority of the people posting seem to dislike all the contestants, maybe it's time to rethink what you're doing.

[Julia]

I get the impression that most of the revenue of TFN has to do with merchandizing. That aside, it seems to me that they're more than happy to get viewers from a combination of faux blue collar hominess and hatewatching. 

[theatremouse]

I wonder if anyone from the show ever reads boards like this? When the majority of the people posting seem to dislike all the contestants, maybe it's time to rethink what you're doing.

It doesn't matter that we dislike them; it matters that we watch anyway, which apparently is still the pattern.

[jcbrown]

 

ha, I was wondering about that necklace too. I had missed her name so I assumed there was a 'V' in there somewhere. Actually I was wondering about her whole upper half outfit. I mean I know it's a cooking show, not a fashion show, but did she really think a tank top that looked like a skin tight swimsuit was a good idea?

I could not figure it out, either. I wear a lot of jewelry but that was just odd. And I thought the same--she looked like she was wearing a swimsuit. I noticed that the way she had her apron tied made a little roll over the top of the tie, too. Not that I am critiquing that, exactly, it just seemed inconsistent for someone who was clearly interested in putting it all out there. Maybe this was an audition for a new significant other, since she mentioned that a couple of times?

 

 

the V necklace is there to point to her cleavage. I can see no other reason for it, given what she chose to wear.

Yeah, that was the only rationale I could see, too. I agree with the poster upthread who was hoping they would both lose.

[Bastet]

I didn't see it, but was it a regular "V" or a little different?  Because the only thing I can think of is she's into astrological signs and was wearing the symbol for Aries.  I'm a Scorpio, and someone gave me a necklace with that sign -- which looks like an M, a letter which appears nowhere in my name.

[cooksdelight]

No, it wasn't the Aries V. That one has a curve at the top of the V. This one was sharp, straight, like an arrow.....pointing downward. :)

[FormerMod-a1]

I watched the episode and I don't remember the necklace at all. Guess it just wasn't remarkable/worth noting in my mind.  Now I'm curious, but not curious to do anything about it.  :-)

[backformore]

I hated Jackie, her dress, her attitude, even though once or twice she looked like Julia Louis dreyfus with bleached hair and a tanning booth addiction.

But I also hated miss "I was robbed" Sunny.

Didn't really care which one of them won.

[cooksdelight]

Another breakfast, lunch and dinner show.

But.... I am so glad that Christopher Walken was eliminated for his burned buns because if I had to listen to him for the entire show I think I would have fallen asleep. What a strange dude! He thought those burned buns were OK? Really? I'd be scared to eat where he works.

[mlp]

I didn't understand why Ted and all the judges just sat there and watched Jonathan hunt for his truffle.  What unspoken rule would have been violated if they'd pointed it out to him?  I was afraid they were going to give the win to the woman just to prove that a judge's employee doesn't necessarily win - even though he deserved it IMO. 

 

I liked the woman who went home after the lunch round.  Her good nature was refreshing.

[cooksdelight]

I think it falls in the same category as when they see someone has left out a ingredient with time to spare, they can't yell out to tell them to add the pickles. Even though a few times they've said "Make sure you have all your ingredients in the dish!" They are supposed to be hands-off.

But bless his heart for running to wash it off!

[Donny Ketchum]

I was afraid they were going to give the win to the woman just to prove that a judge's employee doesn't necessarily win - even though he deserved it IMO.

I'd love to hear how he did.  I thought Diane did way better throughout than he did.

[xaxat]

I think we can safely say that gravity was the true winner of this episode.

[GaT]

Is it just me, but did anybody else think Chef Mark was massively stoned? 

[cooksdelight]

GaT, I think that's just the way he is, judging from his intro. But I'm not saying he didn't have a little help in being that laid back.

[cattykit]

 

I was afraid they were going to give the win to the woman just to prove that a judge's employee doesn't necessarily win - even though he deserved it IMO. 

I really don't understand a judge's employee being allowed to compete.  IIRC, on a regular game show, if you even work for the show sponsor, much less anyone who appears on camera, you can't compete.  Even though Chris wasn't a judge here, there's still a bias, even if it's not obvious.  I also really wish some of these young chefs would learn the difference between confidence and arrogance. 

[cooksdelight]

There have been quite a few chefs who work for the judges in the past. Ted's even made a point of announcing "Hey, he works for Alex!" or whoever a few times.

[chessiegal]

"Chopped" and its ilk are not "regular" game shows that come under FCC regulations. They are entertainment shows. They can make up their own rules.

[Julia]

Seriously, this is the Food Network. During the finale of Next Iron Chef, totally impartial judge Bobby Flay said a glaring flaw in Amanda's japanese-inspired dish meant Alex deserved the win. Morimoto didn't detect a glaring flaw. Bobby Flay told Morimoto he didn't know what the japanese ingredients were supposed to taste like. Bobby Flay's company produced Alex' show for TFN.

Even before that, ubiquitous Iron Chef judge Karine "the challenger's food is as poop unto my palate" Bakhoum was always identified as the owner of KB Network News and not Bobby Flay's publicist. Michael Ruhlman was never identified as the guy who wrote a book about Mike Symon before they published a cookbook together when he judged Symons' battles, or for that matter voted to make Symons an Iron Chef to begin with. Granted unlike Guarnaschelli and Flay my impression was that Symon generally won on his own merits, but still.

Edited March 26, 2015 by Julia

[cooksdelight]

I thought "Oh nooooooooo!! Another gimmick show!!!!"

But I really liked the April Fool's Day jokes. If you just assumed a caramel apple was just that... were you ever in for a rude awakening! Which is why Lauren got sacked first.

That cake which was actually meat was really cool.

[potatochips]

I liked the April Fools show too but I think the Charleston chef got totally robbed. The chef who won did not season her food in the first two rounds and then left cloves and other spices sticking to her dessert dumplings. That final decision did not make sense to me.

[cooksdelight]

I agree, I thought he had it in the bag.

[xaxat]

Does anyone know what the ratings are like? The fact that every episode this "season" is themed makes me wonder if the producers have realized (like most of us already have) that the show has run out of steam.

[Rammchick]

And again, we're not seeing the deliberations for the first two rounds. I assume it's because what we generally see is redundant, but it seems jarring to have the show be presented this way.

I really liked the theme but to tell the truth, I was almost sure that Ted was going to say, "April Fools!" when the winner was announced. That decision definitely didn't seem right, based on their earlier critiques.

[GaT]

Am I going to Hell just because I wanted the winning chef to be eliminated first just so her daughter could say "told you so!"?

[cooksdelight]

Am I going to Hell just because I wanted the winning chef to be eliminated first just so her daughter could say "told you so!"?

HA!!

I was glad the other woman went first. Otherwise, she'd have been writhing on the floor in agony, crying herself to sleep.

[NikSac]

I'm not entirely sure when this first aired, but just saw a rerun today of the show with Johnny (I think that was his name?) and the rest. He was the "culinary instructor" pounding out the deckle of beef so hard stuff was flying around, then he left a pot of boiling water, a bunch of other pans, AND butter on the ground. I felt so bad for the woman who lost because she cut herself. I was wondering if the guy acting like a complete nutcase rattled her nerves - I guess that was his intent but he was seriously out of control.

 

Just now starting the April Fool's episode and looking forward to it.

[NikSac]

The April Fool's thing was fun. I kind of want to make the cauli-sheep for Easter - so cute! I loved the mashed potato ice cream sundae too. I think those would be fun to serve at Thanksgiving in small portions if I could find a way to keep them warm. Maybe a sundae bar... hmmm.

 

I can't believe how many chefs didn't cut/check/taste the ingredients in the first round and took them at face value. Did they not overhear the other chefs going "ohh!?" as they ran across the real ingredients?  I've never been totally clear on how much they can hear from the judges, but I know they can hear at least some stuff because some of the more vocal chefs have been shown responding.

 

How could they not give the win to Cole who made the dessert nachos? That was such a fun idea that fit in so well with the theme. I guess if they were looking at all the dishes in total maybe he wasn't as strong. Must say I liked how nice the chefs were to each other, especially the final two.

[Totale]

Call me an old curmudgeon, but I hated the April Fool's show.  First off, there was no judging in the first two rounds (psst, you FN interns assigned to lurk here, THIS DOES NOT WORK!  Tell the boss the remaining part of your rapidly diminishing audience strongly suggests you edit out 4 minutes or so of gratuitous sob stories and put the judging back in, and don't try anything that stupid again.)  Then I felt horrible for the woman cut in the first round and totally understood why she had a blubberfest.  It's probably been the focus of her life for a couple of months before filming, and she puts time into it and takes time off work and spends her own money to travel and stay in NYC and they FUCK HER UP with their stupid theme episode bullshit and send her away crying and feeling like crap.  Chapter and verse on why they can't get any talented chefs on the show anymore, who wants to spend their own resources to do that?  Then as several people said above by all appearances they rob the Southern guy who really was more consistent all along, even if he didn't get stuff in the fryer on time in the first round (and that fryer looked pretty weak, I wouldn't be surprised if they turned it down Hell's Kitchen style as part of the "fun").  Just horrible all around and one of the worst episodes I've seen.

Edited April 2, 2015 by Totale