Season 13 Last Chance Kitchen

[Bella]

Where Tom C thinks that he absolutely doesn't play favorites.

[Pickles]

I was kind of surprised Renee got booted, but that chicken was burned.

[FormerMod-a1]

I was pulling for her, too.  

[Constantinople]

LCK UO: I was pulling for Garret.

 

I don't know why.  Usually someone who kept saying he was the better chef and he should win and blah blah blah would get on my nerves.  I suppose it was the trash talking of Mike Isabella in the first episode.  Or perhaps it was that sometimes Renee had a way of speaking that reminded me of Phoebe from Friends.

 

That said, I don't see Garrett "running the table", as it were, in LCK.

 

ETA: I liked having two regular episodes of the show in the opening week so that the first episode of LCK was also available this week instead of next.

Edited December 4, 2015 by Constantinople

[Wings]

I was rooting for Garrett, too and agree with you, Constantinople.  

 

Renee had a descent basket.  It was shocking to see she blew it.  

[Julia]

Eh. I was willing to forgive Renee the homecoming queen posturing in episode 1 because she broke down the chicken really nicely (although the list of  things she said she just broke down in twenty minutes last week? I sincerely doubt she broke down in twenty minutes ). But going to that well twice suggests that it's a go-to move, and just no.

[Quilt Fairy]

Eh. I was willing to forgive Renee the homecoming queen posturing in episode 1 because she broke down the chicken really nicely (although the list of  things she said she just broke down in twenty minutes last week? I sincerely doubt she broke down in twenty minutes ). But going to that well twice suggests that it's a go-to move, and just no.

I thought she said she had an hour and twenty minutes to break down all that stuff at her restaurant.

[Julia]

I thought she said she had an hour and twenty minutes to break down all that stuff at her restaurant.

Was it really? Because if so, that was knd of a sad amount of product to process in over an hour.

[bluepiano]

I was sympathetic to Garrett last week because of his trashing Isabella, who I can't stand. But I'm starting to think that Garrett is not much different personality-wise. He seems pretty arrogant and entitled, He also doesn't seem to be a strong enough chef to have a long run on LCK.

 

I'm certainly hoping that's the case, because he said he was going to "literally" chew up and spit out the competition. Not being a fan of cannibalism, I would not want to see that.

[RCharter]

I thought she said she had an hour and twenty minutes to break down all that stuff at her restaurant.

I remember her saying 24 minutes to break down like 9 chickens.  But I specifically remember 24 minutes.

[RCharter]

I was sympathetic to Garrett last week because of his trashing Isabella, who I can't stand. But I'm starting to think that Garrett is not much different personality-wise. He seems pretty arrogant and entitled, He also doesn't seem to be a strong enough chef to have a long run on LCK.

 

I'm certainly hoping that's the case, because he said he was going to "literally" chew up and spit out the competition. Not being a fan of cannibalism, I would not want to see that.

Garrett seems like a pretty condescending guy, IMO.  However, I liked that he admitted his mistake and I think he got a raw deal.  I realize consistency is important, but the other two on the bottom had a dish that was either bad, or unimaginative.  To me, being boring or just putting together a bad dish that no one liked are the greater sins.  And boring should have been the greatest sin of all.  I think if you're going to do something that isn't imaginative...like a meatball in red sauce....it had better be the best meatball to hit the scene and the tastiest red sauce.

 

His dish was well liked by Emeril and Gail.  I think its hard to keep up consistency cooking for that many people.  And I guess, as others have pointed out, he could have held back some good servings for Padma and Tom, but he may not have anticipated that he would overtoast some of the almonds.  I also think it was sort of cool that he handmade the pasta when serving that many people.

[ProudMary]

RE:  Keeping up consistency.

I haven't done a re-watch but I seem to recall that when giving the rules for the challenge telling the chefs they'll be cooking for 200, we hear Padma tell them to be sure to keep up their consistency, but we don't see her saying it to them.  I remember thinking that her voice had a different tone when presenting this information.  It may have been a voice-over, edited in after the fact to back up the judges' decision to PYKAG Garrett.  Of course, consistency should be a given for the level of chefs represented here, but I think a point was being made.  I didn't remember this while I was watching JT but I think Garrett's elimination was foreshadowed.
 

[biakbiak]

Also, the whole reason he was in the bottom was because he was voted in by the critics so it wasn't just a few inconsistent dishes.

[Constantinople]

Garret's consistent now!

 

2-0 in LCK.

 

I loved the challenge of taking a vegetable and doing whatever you want with it provided you serve it at least three ways.  I think the "simple" challenges are usually the best.

 

It was clever of Garret to fry the beet skins to minimize waste, given that was one of the criteria of the challenge.

 

Frances, as usual, did a little too much, in this case a little too spicy.

[Wings]

Tom's comment 'too spicy' meant way too much Hidden Valley but he could not say that.  That is the only seasoning she used and added it to all 3 components!  Yowza.  Tom's face on first bite telegraphed the end for her.  

 

I am glad Garrett won, I was rooting for him.  

[urusai]

Frances used chilis in her puree.

Edited December 12, 2015 by urusai

[biakbiak]

I think it might have been a combination of both because as soon as she said she added the seasoning packet to all three components I knew she would lose, she should have just kept it in the sauce.

[cattykit]

Always jarring when Tom the food purist plugs the product placement as if it was real food.

 

I also thought of the disparity between a challenge based on food waste, and every challenge where they make full sized dishes that the judges take one bite out of.  I often wonder what happens to the rest of those plates?

 

I will never root against Garrett, just for the Mike Isabella comment. 

[Wings]

The crew on any show involving food scarf up every last crumb.  They are notorious! 

[Pickles]

And Grayson is back in. Ugh.

[riverheightsnancy]

I hate to say it, but it is like we are watching 2 different Graysons. I wonder if they edited her to be this "villian" on regular Top Chef, to have her reappear at the end confident and changed with a LCK win?  I will own it, I love Renee (sassy red). She would be great on food network. Can you imagine her on Next Food Network Star? She is cute and can smile, takes defeat well, and seemingly can cook. Way better than most of the slugs that show up on that show (yeah I'm looking at you Lenny). I think that she is totally going to parlay this into something else. I would watch her. 

[RCharter]

I hate to say it, but it is like we are watching 2 different Graysons. I wonder if they edited her to be this "villian" on regular Top Chef, to have her reappear at the end confident and changed with a LCK win?  I will own it, I love Renee (sassy red). She would be great on food network. Can you imagine her on Next Food Network Star? She is cute and can smile, takes defeat well, and seemingly can cook. Way better than most of the slugs that show up on that show (yeah I'm looking at you Lenny). I think that she is totally going to parlay this into something else. I would watch her. 

I wonder if Renee didn't try out for NFNS?  She seems like a shoo-in.  Is Lenny still on Food Network, or have they quietly let that fail.  I can't believe the Food Network got catfished into hiring that guy.

[riverheightsnancy]

I wonder if Renee didn't try out for NFNS?  She seems like a shoo-in.  Is Lenny still on Food Network, or have they quietly let that fail.  I can't believe the Food Network got catfished into hiring that guy.

No joke. I don't watch the Pioneer Woman show, but she seems like a nice person, and the stuff he said about her, there was no way they could allow him on the network. No way. He deserved the social death that he received. But, back onto to LCK, Coliciho doesn;t seem phased by Grayson's attitude. He doesn't seem to hate her. 

[candall]

No joke. I don't watch the Pioneer Woman show, but she seems like a nice person, and the stuff he said about her, there was no way they could allow him on the network. No way. He deserved the social death that he received. But, back onto to LCK, Coliciho doesn;t seem phased by Grayson's attitude. He doesn't seem to hate her. 

Well, that's good.  I haven't seen any LCK's, but in the promo it looked like he was running her through the ringer. 

 

But who can tell--LCK is so subjective.  It's plausible Tom would have to pick her to win at least once because the two of them had so much friction on the regular show, blah blah blah, any number of scenarios not quite related to the dish.

 

Call me when the LCK judging is blind.

[Julia]

I wonder if Renee didn't try out for NFNS?  She seems like a shoo-in.  Is Lenny still on Food Network, or have they quietly let that fail.  I can't believe the Food Network got catfished into hiring that guy.

 

Lenny doesn't appear on their lineup. For some (very, very NSFW) reason.

Edited December 18, 2015 by Julia

[Constantinople]

And Grayson is back in. Ugh.

 

Double Ugh, especially since I'm operating on the assumption that Angelina will be the next cheftestant to visit LCK.  Choosing sides in Angelina vs. Grayson will be like choosing sides in the Iran Iraq war, and since one of them must win that means one of them will still be in LCK 2 weeks from now.

[Wings]

I enjoyed the flirtatious banter between Grayson and Tom.  I was rooting for her to win.  

[RCharter]

No joke. I don't watch the Pioneer Woman show, but she seems like a nice person, and the stuff he said about her, there was no way they could allow him on the network. No way. He deserved the social death that he received. But, back onto to LCK, Coliciho doesn;t seem phased by Grayson's attitude. He doesn't seem to hate her. 

Why would he even care?  He has a hit TV show and successful restaurants and I'm sure something from James Beard.  Why would he care what Grayson who can't cook thinks about him?  When a person doesn't matter to you, when you don't really respect them or whatever they are doing, their opinion of you probably doesn't much matter.  I would imagine if Gordon Ramsay or Emeril hated Tom C. he would probably care, or at least be perturbed.

 

Double Ugh, especially since I'm operating on the assumption that Angelina will be the next cheftestant to visit LCK.  Choosing sides in Angelina vs. Grayson will be like choosing sides in the Iran Iraq war, and since one of them must win that means one of them will still be in LCK 2 weeks from now.

Its a real Sophie's choice between the two of them, isn't it?

Edited December 19, 2015 by RCharter

[riverheightsnancy]

Why would he even care?  He has a hit TV show and successful restaurants and I'm sure something from James Beard.  Why would he care what Grayson who can't cook thinks about him?  When a person doesn't matter to you, when you don't really respect them or whatever they are doing, their opinion of you probably doesn't much matter.  I would imagine if Gordon Ramsay or Emeril hated Tom C. he would probably care, or at least be perturbed.

I'm would imagine that he doesn't care. But lots of people have contended that he has been kind of dickish to her on the regular Top Chef and that she has been talking back a lot to him as evidenced this season. He seems to not be bothered by her talking back, which to me, means that he can judge her food fairly. I kind of thought that he thinks it is ok if you stand up for your food, even if you look like a jerk doing it.   MMV. 

[RCharter]

I'm would imagine that he doesn't care. But lots of people have contended that he has been kind of dickish to her on the regular Top Chef and that she has been talking back a lot to him as evidenced this season. He seems to not be bothered by her talking back, which to me, means that he can judge her food fairly. I kind of thought that he thinks it is ok if you stand up for your food, even if you look like a jerk doing it.   MMV. 

Maybe.  I truly don't remember her from TC Texas, but I might go back and do a re-watch to see if he was awful to her.  If so, maybe she has a valid bone to pick.  She has been talking back a lot to all the judges.  Even if she doesn't say anything she is shaking her head, crossing her arms or doing anything else she can think of to just let everyone know how she feels.  But, she does seem to have more to say to Tom.

 

You may be right too about him preferring chefs that stand up for their food.  The patronizing look he gave her as he left didn't make it seem like he much respected her for speaking up but, I he did like it when Angelina said something about how her food should speak for her instead of her age.  Which is a comeback that Tom seemed to appreciate.  So maybe he likes fiesty!

[hendersonrocks]

This was the most fun LCK in a while - it seemed as though everyone was having a good time. The previously vile Grayson and her nemesis Tom included!

 

I'd rather both Grayson and Giselle go far far away, but if one of them has to stick around for another week I guess I'm good with the one who at least seems to own her 'tude and somewhat revel in it as opposed to the one who can't seem to let go of telling herself "I'M A NICE PERSON!"

[Wings]

I loved both LCKs with Grayson.  I like her in this setting.  She and Tom clearly like each other and I enjoy their playful banter.  I knew she would win because a boned chicken breast will never be better than lamb no matter what you do.  Why not use the thigh?  

You hear chefs talk smack about chicken breasts all the time.  No one likes them.  

 

When I was cooking for a family of 4, I bought an entire chicken (budget choice), broke it down and with the breasts,  made either chicken salad,  creamed over noodles or with dumplings.  And I made sure to cut it up very small so you didn't get a large chunk the texture of a cotton ball in your mouth.    Now I don't buy chicken at all!  

Edited January 8, 2016 by wings707

[mlp]

That was an amusing LCK although I really don't like either one of the women.  I preferred Grayson to Giselle though so I was happy with the decision.  

 

I never understand why Tom always tells the loser to "pack up and leave the kitchen" when the other losers are sitting right there.  Why not have them just walk over and join that group?

[riverheightsnancy]

Well hell, unless I am stupid, they have not updated LCK on Comcast, cause I cannot find it. I just checked and the last one there is Grayson vs. Garett. Hrumpf. 

[ProudMary]

Well hell, unless I am stupid, they have not updated LCK on Comcast, cause I cannot find it. I just checked and the last one there is Grayson vs. Garett. Hrumpf. 

Here's the direct link to the Grayson vs. Giselle LCK.  Hope this works for you.

http://www.bravotv.com/last-chance-kitchen/season-5/videos/lck-ep-4-decisions-decisions-decisions

[riverheightsnancy]

Thanks, I never look online because I usually just watch OnDemand on my TV. But thanks. It was a good one. Grayson seems so much happier. 

[stillshimpy]

Thank you for the link, ProudMary, and for the DVR alert in the episode thread.  I really appreciate both :-) 

 

There's Grayson!!! The Grayson I liked in Season 9 -- in a season where there were about three likable people (thankfully, one of them won the entire season, which was nice) -- and here she is back after a fairly grumpy turn on TC proper.  Still, that exuberant, big personality with a ready laugh and a kind heart is exactly what made her memorable to me last time and I'm really grateful to see her here. 

 

In fact, Last Chance Kitchen is working out really well this season.  Garret got a chance to prove he has game after an unfortunate elimination in the first episode.  Renee, who I think is a talented chef, she was just wildly out of her element, also has gotten a chance to be one of the nicer personalities from the peanut gallery.  Giselle, who was visibly miserable and nervous on Top Chef seemed happy here too.  

 

On the subject of Renee, I don't think I've ever seen anyone look so nervously uncomfortable as she did during her first judging on LCK.  I really felt for her, she looked so relieved to just have it be over and now she is a nicely spirited and supportive voice in the LCK kitchen.  I've never minded the concept of LCK and this season I think it's actively good. 

[Darth Nigel]

Yeah, it was really nice to see Grayson (and somewhat Giselle) having fun in a kitchen with Tom.

[paramitch]

No joke. I don't watch the Pioneer Woman show, but she seems like a nice person, and the stuff he said about her, there was no way they could allow him on the network. No way. He deserved the social death that he received. But, back onto to LCK, Coliciho doesn;t seem phased by Grayson's attitude. He doesn't seem to hate her. 

 

I actually think it's the reverse. I think Tom feels genuinely warm and paternal about most of the TC contestants, and I think he gets a kick out of Grayson. But I also think he wants people to own their mistakes, and when she didn't do that, I really felt he was trying to be constructive, saying, "It was the corn."

 

And I actually think Grayson has no real animosity towards Tom at all either -- I just think she disagreed with him and was willing to argue about it. Which made her less fun to watch this season on the regular show, but I still love her anyway and don't think she's the Antichrist for it.

 

He seems to not be bothered by her talking back, which to me, means that he can judge her food fairly. I kind of thought that he thinks it is ok if you stand up for your food, even if you look like a jerk doing it.   MMV. 

 

I think Tom likes people who stand behind their cooking, even if it makes them look stubborn. It rarely flies on TC since it just makes them look delusional, but I'm fin with those who feel passionate about what they accomplish and want to defend it.

 

I loved both LCKs with Grayson.  I like her in this setting.  She and Tom clearly like each other and I enjoy their playful banter.  I knew she would win because a boned chicken breast will never be better than lamb no matter what you do.  Why not use the thigh?  

You hear chefs talk smack about chicken breasts all the time.  No one likes them.  

 

These last two LCK episodes were so much fun. I loved that Grayson used the wood-burning oven to roast the lamb, too -- that had to be so much more interesting and delicate than that chicken breast, and I thought her sides appeared stronger as well.

 

There's Grayson!!! The Grayson I liked in Season 9 -- in a season where there were about three likable people (thankfully, one of them won the entire season, which was nice) -- and here she is back after a fairly grumpy turn on TC proper.  Still, that exuberant, big personality with a ready laugh and a kind heart is exactly what made her memorable to me last time and I'm really grateful to see her here. 

 

In fact, Last Chance Kitchen is working out really well this season.  Garret got a chance to prove he has game after an unfortunate elimination in the first episode.  Renee, who I think is a talented chef, she was just wildly out of her element, also has gotten a chance to be one of the nicer personalities from the peanut gallery.  Giselle, who was visibly miserable and nervous on Top Chef seemed happy here too.  

 

On the subject of Renee, I don't think I've ever seen anyone look so nervously uncomfortable as she did during her first judging on LCK.  I really felt for her, she looked so relieved to just have it be over and now she is a nicely spirited and supportive voice in the LCK kitchen.  I've never minded the concept of LCK and this season I think it's actively good. 

 

I totally agree -- it was lovely to see the Grayson I remembered, since her stint in Season 9 made her one of my all-time favorite Top Chef contestants for all the reasons we saw here. She was funny, honest, earthy, completely willing to laugh at herself, and just one of those people who seems like a blast to be around. I think Tom was genuinely tickled at what a frazzled, funny goofball she was here, and I really felt like you could tell that despite the fact that they constantly butt heads, there's a lot of warmth there. But I think Tom's very capable of being objective, so that doesn't bother me and it just makes the entire thing fun to watch.

 

I'm absolutely loving LCK this season. Tom's relaxed and having fun, the eliminated chefs are so much fun, and the chemistry just works this season. I love that Garrett got to redeem himself for going out first (which always has to sting), and am similarly happy for Grayson's two wins. I would be delighted if she cooked her way all the way back into the competition, but even if she (likely) doesn't, she's going to be a lot of fun in the peanut gallery of LCK for the rest of the season.

[RCharter]

Ugh, I truly hope they aren't trying to set up a Grayson come back and win. Although there are so many other chefs that seem more talented than her, so I can't see how she would come through all the way to the end. But then again, I felt the same way about that guy that came back last year (George?)

[stillshimpy]

And I actually think Grayson has no real animosity towards Tom at all either -- I just think she disagreed with him and was willing to argue about it. Which made her less fun to watch this season on the regular show, but I still love her anyway and don't think she's the Antichrist for it.

In fairness though, Paramitch, standing her ground on the corn was actually not a terrible moment, or the reason that she seemed pretty sour for most of the season. Personally, I thought the way she acted when having to cook Vegan foods was a low point for her, and in the episode she was eliminated in she had started to show a lot of her "Oh, that's the person I remember!" type of traits. She wouldn't just heave Angelina into the path of any oncoming vehicles to save her own skin and the thing that endeared her to me in her first turn was when one of the Heathers (I think that is actually her name) attempted to blame Beverly for screwing up her dish during restaurant wars. Grayson immediately, directly and with no bones being made said that if Beverly was screwing it up, she wasn't meaning to.

It was a glorious moment of shutting-the-shit-down and the look on Heather's face was a thing of wonder to behold: I've never seen anyone so shocked to be called on being unkind.

But anyway, all of the things that make Grayson great are also things that can make her more difficult to take: when she's irked, you're going to know. When she thinks something is stupid; you're going to know that too.

Like with most genuine people, what makes her awesome can also make her awful from time-to-time and the reason she was getting dinged for it in the episode threads was just a sense of confusion for why anyone would come back, knowing full well what the experience was like (and frankly, Top Chef Texas was far worse in terms of atmosphere, the weather was stinking hot and the had to cook veritable herds of cows) .

So part of the reason I was so glad to see her having fun and really enjoying herself here is....that's who I remember her to be, but it is just the exact same heart-on-sleeves-with-boisterous-voice personality traits.

[Julia]

The thing is, though, I don't think Grayson owned what Tom was asking her to own.

Say Whole Food sold fresh-off-the-vine corn, which no supermarket does, and she'd used it raw. The dish would still have been a greasy, stodgy mess that no-one in full sunlight on a golf course in the desert would have ever wanted to eat. Spicy sausage swimming in its own grease with a starch which doesn't absorb grease is just a terrible concept, and the concept was Angelina's. Grayson was responsible for the lime, the only thing the judges were positive about.

If they wanted her to take the hit for letting the poor cook make decisions á la Josie, I can see it. Certainly the end result, Grayson not taking up screen time playing Most Aggrieved Contestant every week, is something I can sign off on (clever editors). I have to agree with her, though, that Tom's explanation was kind of silly.

[stillshimpy]

Spicy sausage swimming in its own grease with a starch which doesn't absorb grease is just a terrible concept, and the concept was Angelina's

But it never works that way. It doesn't matter who conceived the terrible idea if another person abdicates responsibility for the concept, they are still responsible for the dish, even in not shooting it down in the conceptualization.

So it doesn't matter whose dumb idea it was, if someone goes along with it rather than saying, "No way, my name is going to be on that too and it's the freaking desert. Have you lost your mind?" (or some more politic wording) And it was actually Grayson who opted out of putting the corn in fresh, which was a direct comment from the judges. In that instance, Angelina would be equally responsible for not taking the hint though. That's actually what Grayson said to Tom -- they both bought the corn and used the corn, so why was she being held more responsible? It truly seemed to be that she had ultimately been the one to reject the judges' advice and then Angelina should be on the hook for not insisting.

The whole thing is a moebius strip (or if you prefer, Möbius strip) when it comes to co-created dishes. Nobody gets to decide they are someone else's sous chef if they are both being judged equally. If someone has a rotten idea, then it's up to the other person to not go along with it.

But regardless, in Last Chance Kitchen one of the nice things about the premise is that there are no group challenges. No one ever gets stuck for taking the fall for someone else's mistakes or misjudgments.

It's already served one contestant well when Kristen went down in flames for Josie's failings and because Josie had no compunction about throwing her into the fighting pits to save her own neck.

I know opinions differ on the worth of LCK -- and I don't think Grayson is going to be able to win LCk, sooner or later someone like Isaac, Jason, Kwame, even Wesley is going to end up going head to head with her and is likely to beat her -- but I like it because no one ever has to have someone else's bad dish cost them.

[DarkRaichu]

So did they tape LCK episodes between last California episode and the finale or just after each elimination ?

[Wings]

So did they tape LCK episodes between last California episode and the finale or just after each elimination ?

 

Good question.  When I think about it why not do many at time since the lights, camera, sound and pantry are all set up.  Each episode is very short.  Maybe they do it in several sessions at a time rather than all at once or after each episode.  I am going to focus on Renee's hair.  Her style is one that could look very different day to day. 

[Maverick]

 Since they are travelling to different cities every few days, I assume it's done at the end.  I'm sure the schedule is tight enough with Tom (and some of the crew) goign back and forth to wherever the LCK is staged and the city they're currently filming in.

[Maysie]

This is just a bit of spoilery info from an interview Isaac did on a show on the local NPR Station. In response to a couple of questions, he said that it took about eight weeks of his time, which makes me think he'll be around for at least a little while. He also referred to two judging appearances by Emeril, so there's that.

Edited January 13, 2016 by Maysie

[biakbiak]

Eliminated contestants are sequestered even after their elimination so it takes everyone the same amount of time.

[Maysie]

Thanks for telling me that - I wasn't sure, but it makes perfect sense. (I'm not watching enough Reality TV, I think . . .) So basically, the only "tell" was that he gets to see Emeril as a judge again. But that could be as soon as next week, so he didn't spill anything telling.

[Special K]

I knew she would win because a boned chicken breast will never be better than lamb no matter what you do.  Why not use the thigh?  

You hear chefs talk smack about chicken breasts all the time.  No one likes them.  

 

 

Yeah, when she said chicken breast with a corn-and-tomato salsa over polenta, I about died.  That's the way I cook!  And I'm a terrible cook.   No imagination at all.  Like I bet you can get that at Applebee's.

 

And then she said that she was glad she challenged herself, or whatever it was, in her exit TH.  Ok then.