S14.E10: Shrimp Boats and Hat Ladies

[FormerMod-a1]

The chefs are asked to prepare a decadent brunch for the famed Charleston Hat Ladies. However, it won't be a traditional southern brunch as they must create whimsical breakfast and lunch hybrid dishes inventive enough to impress the judges.

[sourpickles]

I know this isn't even over yet, but I just have to ask.....have any of these chefs even heard of brunch?  Because this seemed like a great challenge and so few seem to understand the concept.  Some great dishes, but I'd eat them for dinner, if at all. 

[CaliCheeseSucks]

As soon as Gail (I think) said they had made their heartbreaking decision, it was obvious that it was Sylva. Hopefully, his exposure from this will lead him to new opportunities and investors. 

Next time, Bravo - just do an All Star season from the get-go if that's what you want.

[DHDancer]

Brooke really doesn't know what "whimsical" means (actually I don't think anyone on Top Chef does).  I was screaming at the screen every time she used the word.

And yeah, I don't think any of them understood mashup and brunch.  I'm so pissed off that Silva got cut but I do hope he finds redemption in LCK.   John is a whining weasel.  And so is Shirley (not the weasel bit), to be honest.  Could she have whined any more tonight?

[sourpickles]

I'm so bummed.  If I'm going to be honest right now, I would rather have seen Brooke go, even though I like her.  BUT, Sylva had some serious issues.  I was surprised John went on if we were going to do eggs vs eggs.

[Bastet]

The editors aren't even trying anymore; including the judges saying they're sad about their decision and, especially, the "Both fell apart in execution, but one at least was trying for a mash-up" commentary made it clear Brooke was going home.  Oh, wait.  Nice fake-out, guys.  That could have gone either way; they both really screwed up, and didn't cook anywhere near as well as they're capable of, and they both knew it and owned up to it.  Sad elimination, and it was going to be either way.

I felt for Shirley in the QF -- I, too, would have had to take meds to get out on that boat, and then I, too, would have been foggy-brained and sluggish (nothing that doesn't cause those side effects keeps me from puking - or wishing I would puke).  I also felt bad for Casey; they're all so talented, and we're so far along in the competition, that people are going to be in the bottom and go home for great dishes, but basically last time she heard her dish was great and the only reason it wasn't quite as great as the others was it needed three grains of salt, and this time she added four grains and heard, "It's great, but one fewer grain of salt and you'd be in the winning group."

When I heard the EC challenge, commanding them to be creative, I figured Brooke had it in the bag, since she is one of the most creative chefs I've ever seen on this show.  But then I heard John talk about what it's like to be told, "Be creative" and realized he made sense; I then figured it was going to be a struggle for several of them.  And poor Brooke -- the thing she just made in the last EC would have been perfect for this one.  I'd have had a hard time getting out of my head and coming up with something else under those circumstances.

Then Sheldon got the phone call from home scene and I got nervous for him.  Especially when I saw him opening bags of waffles!  Funny that they never even mentioned it.

And then Sylva's eggs came out of the oven under-cooked, and I worried about him.

Nerve-wracking episode; other than John, this is a really likable group of chefs to me, so I'm enjoying them beyond their food.  Someone has to go home, I know, but I was going to be sad to lose anyone other than him.

Oh, and also -- I hated John's plating; it looked like he'd used dirty bowls.  Brooke's plating was awful, too, but that wasn't what she intended to do. 

Edited February 3, 2017 by Bastet

[LennieBriscoe]

Brooke has been in like Flynn since Day One. OF COURSE Silva was leaving tonight. John goes next week, is my bet.

[sourpickles]

On 2/2/2017 at 9:03 PM, DHDancer said:

Brooke really doesn't know what "whimsical" means (actually I don't think anyone on Top Chef does).  I was screaming at the screen every time she used the word.

Brunch is not whimsical unless you are on a soap opera.  And sometimes not even then.  I'm not even sure why she wanted to go there...maybe the hibiscus?

On 2/2/2017 at 9:04 PM, Bastet said:

I hated John's plating; it looked like he'd used dirty bowls

Let's see if this goes through twice now...........Yes to that, what was that ring around the bowl he put out?  Gross.  I couldn't post before, got jammed.

[archer1267]

Not Sylva! Hopefully he fights his way back. Sheldon's chicken waffle sounded awesome and I want that!  

I think people got tripped up thinking of the usual brunch dishes and trying to make them more upscale. 

[avecsans]

I'm pretty happy that Casey's gone.  She was not happy with Padma.  In the words of Loggins and Messina: "what a shot you could be if you could shoot at me with those angry eyes."  It's almost like Tom and Padma were screwing with her about the seasoning.  One week she was missing a grain of salt, and the next week just a little too much.  And Casey, no matter what you say, you're not actually that good at Top Chef, because you've never won.

I'm sad that Silva's gone.  But except for John, who is skeevy, I like them all.

For some reason, I think English women look great in hats.  The women at this event just looked pretentious.

[sourpickles]

Casey will be back. She just will, season 33 or something.  I have faith in that, at least.  I love the hats, just because I don't get them.  I mean, what better way to entertain oneself than to see silliness on a head?  I loved every minute.......and I thought Gail and Padma looked great.

[Court]

Boo. I need John to leave. I don't care how much Sylva messed up. He should stay. 

[sourpickles]

I felt bad for Shirley, like she misjudged the amount of what I assume was Dramamine or some such.  I did that myself.  I have to go over the Tappan Zee bridge ( I hate the GW more) and it freaks me out, but this last time I took two pills instead of one.  I was a zombie for more than a day.  On the other hand, I didn't feel sick.  But I get how it could interfere with your cooking abilities. 

[jackjill89]

I'm so sad Sylva left. The bottom three sure didn't understand the challenge at all, did they? Shirley and Sheldon got it. I think sometimes they get so far in their heads they forget how to be creative. They could have started with a sweet breakfast dish and savoried it up. Or flip-flopped a concept like Sheldon did. Hash is hash unless you totally flip it on its ear. Octopus? Not really. A parfait is a parfait is a parfait. Now, if she had Rachel Greened it and made a Shepherd's Pie Trifle... :)  I don't know what Sylva was trying to do, but I'm sad he's gone. 

[Pickles]

John was sweating on his dishes. Ick. Brooke's plates looked kind of like a mess. 

[susannot]

OK, since others are posting....felt so bad about the result tonight.  I think eggs and any kind of well cooked fish are better than a soggy fruit and yogurt mashup.

[sourpickles]

Padma or Tom "So Casey, what'd you make on this shrimp challenge"

Casey "Shrimp"

Might have been the worst edit ever but I swear that is what I heard.

[Nordly Beaumont]

20 minutes ago, Bastet said:

Especially when I saw him opening bags of waffles!  Funny that they never even mentioned it.

I think it was because it wasn't a main component.

 

21 minutes ago, Bastet said:

I hated John's plating; it looked like he'd used dirty bowls. 

Bloody bowls. Looked like he wiped the edges with a bloody thumb. To go with the sweat I guess.

13 minutes ago, sourpickles said:

I thought Gail and Padma looked great.

Me too! Loved Gail's hat, loved Padma's "whaa?" look when John tossed "love your hats" at them.

Felt bad for Silva, but at this point it's going to be hard for me to see anyone go (except John, but he cooked well this episode, so...)

[pinguina]

I really wanted John to bomb big time!  i was so sad to see Sylva go!  

I thought that yogurt and fruit was less creative than the egg and salmon (?) that Sylva made. And although I like Brooke, I preferred that she leave instead of Sylva.

I really liked Shirley and Sheldon's dishes - I would have eaten both :)   I'm happy she won because I like Shirley.

I'm happy for any of the  chefs  to win - well, except  for John.

[awaken]

Disappointing ep. Didn't like the EC- not enough  Time for them to come up with something creative and execute it well! None of it looked particularly good and much of it looked downright gross.  I felt nauseas seeing john's non- crispy octopus hash and sylva's undercooked eggs  

I'm curious how Sheldon fried the chicken twice AND pressed it in the waffle maker and it wasn't completely over cooked? Does he have the most adorable family, or what?!

I didn't think Shirley's cheeseburger dim sum sounded good at all.  loved the din sum idea, but cheeseburger, no!  Someone even said it was dry.  I was really surprised she won since people seemed to rave over Sheldon's.  

I wish the quick fire had been the EC- make a meaningful dish with local shrimp they had gone out to catch. I think we'd have had much better results.  I felt bad for Shirley with the motion sickness meds affecting her cooking. 

Tell me more about bycatch. Are the fish pulled up that they don't need typically tossed back alive, left to die and wasted, or eaten/sold in some other capacity, as shown?  I felt really bad for the shark caught in the shrimp net just sitting there. 

[racked]

I love Brooke but I have to admit I was with Padma when she was arguing that what Brooke did was overly simplistic and not really an attempt to fit the challenge. I guess it's better to send out a tasty but easy dish than one that had potential but was executed poorly. 

Really rooting for Sylva to come back via LCK! Especially over whiney petulant Casey. 

I thought sheldons dish looked tastiest but I would love to eat some of Shirley's cheese dumplings. Not so much the meat ones. 

[awaken]

Not too sad about Casey. It was her week to go, and I was hoping it would be john's too. I've never seen her as that interesting, or a major star on this show and don't see why she's gotten three chances (other than that she was available!). 

John was a hot mess when he presented his food. Yikes!  Can't believe they showed him actually dripping sweat into the food. 

[Bastet]

46 minutes ago, susannot said:

I think eggs and any kind of well cooked fish

I thought the fish drew criticism, too.

[Souris]

1 hour ago, sourpickles said:

I'm so bummed.  If I'm going to be honest right now, I would rather have seen Brooke go, even though I like her.  BUT, Sylva had some serious issues. 

Same. I mean, I do like Brooke, but a deconstructed parfait? Really? That should not have gone through. That is not a Top Chef-level concept. I really liked Sylva. I'm glad that at least Top Chef seems to have jump-started his drive again, and I hope he'll find success with this exposure.

[cooksdelight]

Once again, Brooke skates on through even though she didn't adhere to the challenge. Last week, she failed to cook a dish that was a memory of her childhood. This week, she fails to follow instructions and do a creative combo of brunch and lunch.

Who does she have dirt on?

[Quilt Fairy]

Am I the only one who thought the guest judge said the winner was Sheldon, not Shirley?  So then I was surprised to see the look on Shirley's face and I rewound to listen to it again because I couldn't believe it. Winning for a cheeseburger dumpling sounds like it was a really low bar.

[mlp]

Did Shirley pre-cook her ground beef before putting it in the won ton wrappers?  It looked raw to me and I couldn't figure out how the dumplings didn't end up full of grease. 

I'd love to see Sheldon win this.  He's been very creative and had winning dishes several times.  He has a lovely family.  Every one of his kids is cute.  

I was glad to see Casey leave.  She's very pretty but her whining and snippy attitude make her less than likable.  

Brooke should have been sent home, not Sylva.  I can't shake the feeling that the fix is in for her.

[Calamity Jane]

22 minutes ago, cooksdelight said:

Once again, Brooke skates on through even though she didn't adhere to the challenge. Last week, she failed to cook a dish that was a memory of her childhood. This week, she fails to follow instructions and do a creative combo of brunch and lunch.

Who does she have dirt on?

Is there anyone who doesn't think the finale is guaranteed to feature Sheldon and Brooke, probably Shirley too?  Shirley and Sheldon honestly seem to be earning it much more than Brooke right now. 

[chiaros]

34 minutes ago, cooksdelight said:

Once again, Brooke skates on through even though she didn't adhere to the challenge. Last week, she failed to cook a dish that was a memory of her childhood. This week, she fails to follow instructions and do a creative combo of brunch and lunch.

Who does she have dirt on?

^^^ This.

[Court]

I'm surprised Shirley is still there. I guess she had been flying under the radar for me. I truly thought there would be one new chef and that it would be Brooke, Sheldon,and Sylva.

But clearly, I was wrong.

[Wings]

Awwww, shucks.  I was rooting for you Sylva. I knew it would be him when looking at the bottom 3.  If he had made a successful frittata he still would have been there but safe.  A frittata is not all that no matter what is in it.  The eggs are overly cooked by design.  I have reluctantly made them to feed a gathering because a 14" skillet makes enough for 8 to have a slice.  Not innovative. 

No more returnees. Not good. 

Kelly is so kind and encouraging to these kids, kudos. 

Edited February 3, 2017 by wings707

[chiaros]

I think Sheldon should have won. I don't recall complaints about his dish but rather compliments instead. Shirley's beef dumplings aren't that creative** (there are beef and beef-mixture dumplings and potstickers aplenty, all well-known in E Asian cuisine) and wasn't it faulted for slightly dry beef by one of the judges, too?

Brooke should have gone to LCK. Her dish looked disgusting. I would have eaten Sylva's dish over hers anytime, whether it was or was not a frittata or just scrambled eggs and fish.

I thought John T's dish looked fine. Ditto the plating, and apparently all the components were cooked well and the whole thing tasted just fine. Octopus for brunch/breakfast? Sure, why not? I don't think there is anything that cannot be eaten at any time of the day or night and do not subscribe to the view that there HAS to be foods that can ONLY be eaten for the morning meal, or a meal around mid-morning or close to noon; and other foods ONLY eaten in the evening or at night and so on. Hmm, I'm thinking of making a pot of bak kut teh now for a morning meal...haven't had some for maybe a month...

I do find it curious that there is so much John-Hate on this forum.  I don't see the excessively vile attributes ascribed to him by some.

** ETA: And, a 5-second Google search for "beef and cheese potstickers" turns up more than 2 million results, with these on the first page: This, this, this. And so on.

Edited February 3, 2017 by chiaros

[bobbobbob199]

I feel like these chefs are all skating by, not really embracing the challenges--the food seemed to be more impressive earlier on in the season. The concept was to combine two different dishes (like the cronut) while combining breakfast/lunch/brunch. Shirley's dish was not brunch at all, Sheldon's was just chicken and waffles with a Korean spin, Brooke's and Sylva's didn't combine anything,... Brooke's dish for the last episode fit perfectly: it was both a brunch dish and combined two things (crepes and eggs benedict)

I probably would have done an egg souffle with crab and egg yolk sauce.

[snarktini]

If they really want creativity they could give them longer than the ride to the store to plan.

Edited February 3, 2017 by snarktini

[hendersonrocks]

John's glasses were fogged up with sweat as he was presenting his food to the judges. That's a whole new level of ick.

I was stunned Shirley won over Sheldon, as his dish seemed much more highly praised. I'm totally biased, though, as I'm on team SHELDON FOR EVERYTHING.

Sylva will be missed, for his cooking and vibe. And this doesn't really feel like a new season of Top Chef now that he's gone. It now feels like Top Chef 2: Electric Boogaloo. 

[Calamity Jane]

36 minutes ago, wings707 said:

Awwww, shucks.  I was rooting for you Sylva. I knew it would be him when looking at the bottom 3.  If he had made a successful frittata he still would have been there but safe.  A frittata is not all that no matter what is in it.  The eggs are overly cooked by design.  I have reluctantly made them to feed a gathering because a 14" skillet makes enough for 8 to have a slice.  Not innovative. 

No more returnees. Not good. 

Kelly is so kind and encouraging to these kids, kudos. 

Also, never, never call it a frittata if that isn't what it ended up being.  How do they not all know that's one of Tom's biggest gripes?

[Court]

The more I think about it, the more I think Brooke should have gone home. 

 

It looked terrible and wasn't creative at all.

Edited February 3, 2017 by Court

[bobbobbob199]

Yeah, Brooke seems to have infinite lives...anyways, the moment I saw the season promo when all the other returning contestants looked all happy and Brooke was all stressed, saying something like "I should have never done this again if I wasn't going to do as well", I knew she had won for sure.

[RealReality]

So glad I'm fully spoiled so I won't get mad when I watch this episode.

I agree with everyone who says they either need to do an all-stars season or stick with newbies.  This was remarkably unfair, especially at some of the first team challenges which were newbies vs. vets.

Having said that, I would be happy with a Sheldon or Shirley win.  I like them both a lot.  I'd like to see JT go down in flames.

However, I also agree that the fix is probably in for Brooke since she came so close last time.

[HunterHunted]

The elimination challenge brief was needlessly complicated. Though I like them both, Sheldon and Shirley made more refined versions of things that already exist and are known. I think Sylva, Brooke, and John tried to adhere to the challenge brief and were really tripped up by Dominique Ansel's presence. The cronut is a wonder. You shouldn't really be able to deep fryer a laminated dough. They have so much butter in them that they should turn into a grease bomb. But somehow they are light and pretty airy. I think his presence just messed with their heads. Brooke unfortunately blew her perfect dish in the last challenge.

Edited February 3, 2017 by HunterHunted

[Quilt Fairy]

18 minutes ago, HunterHunted said:

The elimination challenge brief was needlessly complicated.

This times 1000, and that's one of the reasons I think most of the dishes tanked.  Brunch is, by definition, already a "mash-up".   I always think of it as a mixture of breakfast dishes that are heavied up and lunch/dinner dishes that are lightened up. 

And now I feel the need to go out tomorrow and get a can of Hormel corned beef hash and have it nice and crispy with a couple of fried eggs on top.

[Muffyn]

4 hours ago, DHDancer said:

Brooke really doesn't know what "whimsical" means (actually I don't think anyone on Top Chef does).  I was screaming at the screen every time she used the word.

And yeah, I don't think any of them understood mashup and brunch.  I'm so pissed off that Silva got cut but I do hope he finds redemption in LCK.   John is a whining weasel.  And so is Shirley (not the weasel bit), to be honest.  Could she have whined any more tonight?

Every time she said whimsical, I thought of Hung's cereal village.  Now that was whimsical.  Yogurt turds and hibiscus sauce, not so much.

[Richness]

My hatred of the sudden death quickfire continues to grow. It needs to pack it's knives and go away for good. I'd be saying this even if someone I hated (like Katsuji) were sent away.

Unfortunately, there wasn't much to like this episode. John doesn't appeal to me, and I'm not sure why, unless it's his vacant, open mouth stare. Oh yeah, don't forget the sweat dripping into the food.

However, there were two things I liked about the episode. The say something hats and the lady behind the guest judge. She was totally staring at the camera and eavesdropping for the best gossip. You can see her a couple of times while the guest judge is talking about the food with the chefs.

[rho]

I was only half watching this episode but when the judges were all torn up about their regret to send this person home, I was positive Brooke was getting the boot. I was shocked! She served yogurt and berries. A three year old could probably produce a better dish. She may as well pour them a bowl of cocoa puffs! Can we just give her a participation trophy and get this season over with?

3 hours ago, awaken said:

Tell me more about bycatch. Are the fish pulled up that they don't need typically tossed back alive, left to die and wasted, or eaten/sold in some other capacity, as shown?  I felt really bad for the shark caught in the shrimp net just sitting there. 

My understanding is the bycatch is generally not salvaged in time to be viable in the ocean. They release it back when possible, but if not it's usually sold at low cost and turned into generic seafood like fish sticks or fish paste.

[Machiabelly]

Was it just me or was Padma wearing pair of mom jeans....backwards?

[holly4755]

I thought that Brooke said she was making what sounded like a lava cake only with fruit juice instead of fudge. but the cake broke and leaked so it didn't work. 

[cooksdelight]

6 hours ago, chiaros said:

 

I think Sheldon should have won. I don't recall complaints about his dish but rather compliments instead. Shirley's beef dumplings aren't that creative** (there are beef and beef-mixture dumplings and potstickers aplenty, all well-known in E Asian cuisine) and wasn't it faulted for slightly dry beef by one of the judges, too?

 

I totally agree. They loved Sheldon's dish, and told Shirley her beef was dry. Then at JT, the cronut guy was telling her how juicy her beef was. WTF??? 

Brooke is quickly becoming the female Richard Blais for me. Well, no, she's already there.

[rehoboth]

I wasn't faked out at all by the judges over who was going home.  Tom's decision always comes out in the end.  Once he argued for Silva being eliminated, I knew I didn't need to listen to what the other judges said.  They always say that they argue and go round and round over the finer points of the dishes but I don't think I've ever seen things not go Tom's way.  I feel like he gets two votes.

[archer1267]

8 hours ago, awaken said:

Not too sad about Casey. It was her week to go, and I was hoping it would be john's too. I've never seen her as that interesting, or a major star on this show and don't see why she's gotten three chances (other than that she was available!). 

I'm glad that her exit was gracious this time. In the All Stars season, she spent her farewell TH on how it should have been Jamie going home, and that even Jamie had expected to be PYKAG'ed. I get that everyone was fed up with Jamie at that point, but it didn't reflect well on Casey.

I think she's the only chef (?) to come back three times. I do feel for her a bit that it must be tough to have been on this show several times over 10 years and never made it into the final round.

[Texasmom1970]

7 hours ago, hendersonrocks said:

John's glasses were fogged up with sweat as he was presenting his food to the judges. That's a whole new level of ick.

I was stunned Shirley won over Sheldon, as his dish seemed much more highly praised. I'm totally biased, though, as I'm on team SHELDON FOR EVERYTHING.

I was hollering at the television for John to take a hot minute and clean those glasses, so gross!

I know some will disagree but I was happy to see Casey get the boot. Especially happy to see Sheldon win the quickfire after she mentioned him doing that again. Ha Casey, STFU! And please let salt-gate go, get over it, all chefs have issues and get criticisms at one time or another.