S15.E05: This Is Not Glamping

[FormerMod-a1]

Quote

Tom surprises the chefs with a twist that changes the game; the chefs are sent camping where they must make a 5-star meal outdoors and are met with an unexpected storm; chef Naomi Pomeroy joins the judges in the Colorado mountains.

[Wings]

Watching them cook outside, in the mountains during a snow storm.  hmmmmm  I expect to see Lee Ann coming back in.  People from Hawaii just love this type of thing.  Poor girl.  

Edited January 5, 2018 by Wings

[noveltylibrary]

Not loving this, forcing them to camp in the snow.  Is this still Top Chef?

[Thumper]

Ugh.  Camping.  In the snow.  

Can we just have them cook?

[HunterHunted]

About 25 years ago, my parents' stove and oven died on Christmas Eve. We lived in Pennsylvania. We had to figure out how to improvise. We cooked the entire meal outdoors in the snow. It's something we revisit about every 5 years. I know how to do this shit, but it's not entertainment and it's not entertaining to watch. Nor is it something my family does without ample preparation these days. This is Food Network level bullshit.

I'm glad I watched that Last Chance Kitchen episode just to see it replayed in the episode. I'm sorry Kwame got bounced just for us to get the sour Claudette. Unless resting bitch face manages to trip over a clue, she's not going to get a post show bounce at her restaurant because she's coming across like an asshole.

Edited January 5, 2018 by HunterHunted

[rustyspigot]

Of COURSE Bruce is that guy who brings a damn guitar camping.

So I guess it was the case of the missing garnish. Thanks for nothing, Tu.

[threebluestars]

I loved Fatima: "It's like waking up from a crypt."

Gotta say the snow oven was pretty awesome. I heard cake and thought Carrie was a goner.

Edited January 7, 2018 by threebluestars
turned "she" into Carrie for clarity

[NowVoyager]

What was that bit about Tu getting a second chance even though LCK is over? 

[Nordly Beaumont]

40 minutes ago, noveltylibrary said:

Not loving this, forcing them to camp in the snow.  Is this still Top Chef?

Well, they didn't have to chip ingredients out of ice blocks or shoot targets.

I thought it was fun! And for the most part they did very well, so I'm not feeling bad for them. I'm always amazed and impressed when they are put under unusual situations and do well.

[Bastet]

The cheftestants being confused upon walking in to a cook-off in progress was rather silly; they weren’t expecting it at this point in the competition, no, but obviously it’s Last Chance Kitchen, especially with Claudette there.

(I don’t watch LCK, so it was nice to get a glimpse of Jen, one of my favorites, and Marcel didn’t annoy me for the first time ever.)

I wanted Lee Ann’s dumplings!  Claudette’s dish looked quite good, too, I just have a major thing for dumplings.  Am I really to believe Tom decided in the moment to bring back two instead of one, despite how that throws off the numbers for future challenges?  There better be a double elimination coming up soon.

Tanya’s “I hate camping; I’m already sleeping in a bunk bed, and now I gotta go sleep on the ground?” cracked me up.  I will only go camping in a motorhome – I love being outdoors, but when it’s time to cook, sleep, go the bathroom, etc., I want the comforts of home - so I feel her, Fatima, and the others who wanted no part of this.  Tent camping, in that weather?  Hell, no.

Carrie as Ms. Wilderness making sure they don’t sleep on the ground was fun, though.  As was the fretting that actual bears wouldn’t recognize The Bears as family and leave them be.

The top:

Bruce’s pasta didn’t particularly excite me, but I can see how it was impressive, and I like how he came up with the texture.  I’m a bit surprised it got the win, but I didn’t taste it.  Bruce talking about the young chefs knowing ingredients he’s never even heard of was the first time I’ve liked him.

Carrie’s cake coming out well made me really happy.   She fucking dug a hole in the snow to make her own “oven” so she could make a cake.  That is the definition of go big or go home.  I was pulling for her.  Fatima’s “She made an oven out of snow!  Who does that?!” was great.

Lee Anne’s goose looked incredibly rich and delicious; no wonder they were scraping the plate.  She was my second choice.

The bottom:

Tanya’s lamb looked good, as I love lamb, but the sides didn’t do it for me at all and the overall dish seemed to be a mess.  I was worried about her.

Chris’s buffalo chili didn’t do anything for me, on any level. 

Tu’s rabbit was something that, when he was describing it, sounded good to me (I don’t like rabbit, but picturing the three ways with a protein I do like, the dish sounded good), but it didn’t materialize in execution.  And there was nothing to it other than rabbit!  He was my pick to go.  And I can’t believe he was in just a t-shirt while they were cooking.

The rest:

Joseph’s squab looked over cooked, and I can’t abide over-cooked meat.

Fatima’s duck breast looked delicious, and I’m not a huge duck fan.

Adrienne’s quail looked so inviting, and I’m not a huge quail fan, either.

Mustache Joe’s trout didn’t really register with me, as I don’t like trout, and there was nothing about the dish as a whole that excited me.

Claudette’s dish, on the other hand, looked good despite my also not liking elk.

Brother’s pheasant looked horribly over-cooked.  I think he’s lucky others screwed up more.

Edited January 5, 2018 by Bastet

[hendersonrocks]

I realllllly thought they were going to be picked up and taken to a hotel in a late night surprise. I can’t believe they actually camped in the snow. That’s hard core.

Carrie’s cake sounds amazing - I wish we could have seen it better, and good on her for taking care of the team. I loved all of the top 3, and am really happy Chris and Tanya were spared from the bottom.

[Nidratime]

I almost think they chose two chefs to come back from Last Chance Kitchen, because they didn't expect Leann to last, physically.

[Bastet]

1 minute ago, NowVoyager said:

What was that bit about Tu getting a second chance even though LCK is over?

It's not over, it's just happening in two stages -- the pre-show veteran LCK competition plus few people eliminated thus far LCK competition yielded a cheftestant to enter the competition as a whole at this point, and those eliminated going forward will still have a chance to beat each other and come back in later, presumably near the end as has happened previously.

[Blonde Gator]

I liked this challenge.  Once again, the contestants all pulled together, and made the best of a very difficult situation.  (Personally, I'd have had to warn everyone I'd cry all night, I loathe the cold, but do okay camping, because grandson in the Cub Scouts).  This episode was akin to the Soiree in the Swamp (New Orleans)....and not nearly as stupid as that cooking on the Gondola from Brooke's first season.

Fatima is fantastic, I hope we get an update on her soon....she's a lovely girl, and she can cook.  But her judges table cheerleading for Carrie's ingenuity made me want to hug her! 

The choices of dishes were interesting.  So much non-typical protein on display.  Very difficult proteins, too, under ideal circumstances (Quail, goose, buffalo, rabbit),  Only Joe and Tanya did something fairly straight forward and simple.  Joe's dish was a nice one, but couldn't compete with the more unusual dishes which were executed beautifully.  I was glad to see Bruce get back into his own style of cooking, and take the win with his clever use of the mandolin to shape his pasta.  And Lee Ann hung in there, even though she wasn't feeling great, huge props to her for making it to the top in this challenge.

All in all, a very good episode. 

PS.  Super happy that two chefs made it back in from LCK, felt bad for Kwame, though.

5 minutes ago, NowVoyager said:

What was that bit about Tu getting a second chance even though LCK is over? 

Apparently NOT over.  Sounds like they're going to return another booted chef late in the season.  Hoping Kwame is still in the mix, but I suppose it will only be open to people kicked off from this point forward....it really wouldn't be fair any other way.

[avecsans]

I didn’t mind the outdoor cooking per se, because it is Colorado, but way too much time was spent shopping and setting up the tents. I want to see cooking.

Claudette has been my least favorite cheftestant this season, so I was rooting for Kwame to come back. I did not watch season 1, so I don’t know much about Leann, except that I really enjoyed the blog she wrote on the Bravo website after each episode when she worked behind the scenes.  All I wanted to do was sleep during my first trimesters, so good for her for toughing it out and making a great dish.

This is such a good group that there are only a few that I won’t be sorry to lose - Claudette, the two Joes, Carrie - and they aren’t even that bad. They don’t approach Lisa Fernandes levels of dislike for me.  I liked Tu a lot but Gail was right. Nobody succeeds on Top Chef doing something three ways.  And Fatima is hilarious.

[Squirrely]

I love camping, and I really love cooking over a fire (we do it at home in the backyard all the time), but not in the freaking snow! Screw that. I'm outdoorsy for 3/4 of the seasons only. It was hard to enjoy, knowing how miserable it was for them, and I'm sorry that was Fatima's first (and only, clearly) camping experience. 

I didn't want any of the bottom 3 to leave, but Tu seemed like the right call. He over reached, and nothing about his dish looked appealing. 

 I can't believe how much I like the cheftestants, and how well they get along! It's so refreshing to watch. 

[MerBearHou]

I got interrupted shortly after the episode began so missed much of it.  Am I understanding that 2 of the 3 made it out of Last Chance Kitchen and only Kwame was left behind? How cruel.  And especially disappointing (to me) that the obnoxious Claudette was one of the 2.

Top Chef is getting too cutesy with its scenarios — tiny utensils, setting up camp and cooking in snow — less and less on the beauty of purely great cooking that I’ve enjoyed watching in the past.  Such a shame IMO.  

Fatima is a delight as is Brother.  

Edited January 5, 2018 by MerBearHou

[Wings]

This is a good season.  I am thrilled to see Lee Ann back in it.  She is an excellent chef and delightful. 

Fatima is hysterical and precious. I didn't mind this as much as I thought I might.  I do prefer them in a kitchen so I see more of the cooking. 

Rabbit,  buffalo and Elk have very little fat so they can be tough. They need to be prepared with a good amout of fat.  Duck was there though!  One of my favorites. 

I am fine with Tu going. He was just background noise to me.  I would have been disappointed had Tanya or Chris been booted. 

I like everyone this season other than Claudette. 

And YAY for Bruce, he got his footing. 

[mlp]

I would have enjoyed this episode more in July.  I've been cold for 10 days and watching them all coping with the cold and snow made me feel more chilled.  I wonder if they really slept in those tents or if there were trailers or something with bathrooms out of camera range.  I also wonder what the point was of the whole exercise.  

Fatima was cracking me up.

Poor Kwame.  It must have been hurtful on top of disappointing to be the only one eliminated.  Tom's "spontaneous" decision neatly solved the problem of getting back to only two competitors in LCK.

The chefs came up with some impressive dishes considering the circumstances.  Tu's did look like the worst one so his elimination seemed fair.

[Blonde Gator]

Just now, mlp said:

I would have enjoyed this episode more in July.  I've been cold for 10 days and watching them all coping with the cold and snow made me feel more chilled.  I wonder if they really slept in those tents or if there were trailers or something with bathrooms out of camera range.  I also wonder what the point was of the whole exercise.  

Fatima was cracking me up.

Poor Kwame.  It must have been hurtful on top of disappointing to be the only one eliminated.  Tom's "spontaneous" decision neatly solved the problem of getting back to only two competitors in LCK.

The chefs came up with some impressive dishes considering the circumstances.  Tu's did look like the worst one so his elimination seemed fair.

Truth!  I live in South Florida, it's currently 47 degrees out, and I'm contemplating making straight up chile chili tomorrow, with some HOT chile peppers!  Bring on the Scoville Units!

I thought they began filming this season in May or June????  I've been to Estes Park, it's always a bit chilly, (there's that word again!), but this looked like it was filmed in a blizzard!  Does anyone here actually know what the TC filming schedule really is? 

Tu is such a sweet guy, and so young.....I look forward to him coming back in a year or three after he's matured a bit.  He has such huge potential, but is so young that he's overly influenced by the other competitors at this point.   I wish him all the best, and can't wait to see him back.

Really enjoyed this challenge, although personally could never have even stood on the sidelines cheer-leading.  These chefs are brave, and determined!  On the whole, this season has been wonderful, the show has expertly refreshed and reworked, for a show that's been on the air for so many seasons.  And Gail Simmons should be the STAR of the show. 

Looking forward to next week's episode.

[jackjill89]

Didn't Padma criticize Bruce for making gnocchi twice? So...he stepped out of his wheelhouse...but now he's firmly back in it and being praised for it because he's so good at it. The judges give me whiplash. 

[Brookside]

I was glad to see Top Chef provided winter coats (and boots?) for them.  I was worried for them in the car shots when they were wearing flimsy sweatshirts.

[biakbiak]

1 hour ago, Blonde Gator said:

thought they began filming this season in May or June????  I've been to Estes Park, it's always a bit chilly, (there's that word again!), but this looked like it was filmed in a blizzard!  Does anyone here actually know what the TC filming schedule really is? 

Based on various SM they started filming May 8th and there was a huge snowstorm in the area on May 18th with three feet of snow.

Edited January 5, 2018 by biakbiak

[biakbiak]

1 hour ago, jackjill89 said:

Didn't Padma criticize Bruce for making gnocchi twice? So...he stepped out of his wheelhouse...but now he's firmly back in it and being praised for it because he's so good at it. The judges give me whiplash. 

He didn’t make gnochi, he made cavetalli which though similiar in shape are quite different.

[hula-la]

On behalf of ethnic people everywhere, this episode was scary. We ethnics don’t camp, and the idea of watching them camp and cook outside, much less in the snow,  got my heart rate up a bit (ok, a lot). 

[GaT]

They are back to the stupid crap things to make it hard to cook, I don’t watch this show to see chefs setting up a campsite, I don’t want to watch chefs trying to cook in the snow. I just want to watch chefs cooking amazing food.

[biakbiak]

9 minutes ago, GaT said:

They are back to the stupid crap things to make it hard to cook, I don’t watch this show to see chefs setting up a campsite, I don’t want to watch chefs trying to cook in the snow. I just want to watch chefs cooking amazing food.

But several chefs managed to make extremely well received dishes and even the bottom three seemed to be how they planned their dish Tanya's issue was plating, Chris included the dry buffalo that he didn't need, and Tu thought he couldnt go simple and over complicated it with doing it three ways . All of those things have been dinged on other challenges and didn’t seem to have anything to do with where they cooked.

[spiderpig]

Fatima's facial reactions were priceless.

Bruce seemed genuinely delighted to have found his groove.  I thought he was a bit grumpy in previous eps.

We talk about this often on this board, but haven't some contestants ever seen a cooking competition before?  A cardinal rule is "don't do something three ways".  It gives the judges two extra opportunities to find fault.

The Rockies are gorgeous, but I'm sure the last thing east coast viewers wanted to look at last night was More Snow.

I'm one of those confused about LCK.  Will they start from scratch with Tu and if so, when?

[AttackTurtle]

4 hours ago, mlp said:

I would have enjoyed this episode more in July.  I've been cold for 10 days and watching them all coping with the cold and snow made me feel more chilled.  I wonder if they really slept in those tents or if there were trailers or something with bathrooms out of camera range.  I also wonder what the point was of the whole exercise.  

Fatima was cracking me up.

Poor Kwame.  It must have been hurtful on top of disappointing to be the only one eliminated.  Tom's "spontaneous" decision neatly solved the problem of getting back to only two competitors in LCK.

The chefs came up with some impressive dishes considering the circumstances.  Tu's did look like the worst one so his elimination seemed fair.

I’ve lived in MA for nearly 20 years and the last two weeks have been the coldest days of my frickin life...and it’s only January.  I honestly almost turned the channel when I saw them huddling under blankets in the snow.

I was surprised that Kwame didn’t go forward as I know he’s a favorite of Tom’s.  I loved Leanne during Season One and am thrilled she made it through.  

 

Claudette continues to annoy me.  Her arrogance is off putting; particularly when other really talented chefs (Fatima) are cheering on other chefs.   I think her food looks delicious, but I think she falls a part a bit when she gets out of her comfort zone.

 

I was dissapointed in Chris this week.  He’s one of my picks to win, but his dried out meat looked awful. 

[cooksdelight]

2 hours ago, spiderpig said:

Bruce seemed genuinely delighted to have found his groove.  I thought he was a bit grumpy in previous eps.

Bless him, he and his wife were in the process of adopting a child so I think his mind has been elsewhere. :) I’d love to know if he got good news about their son, or something along those lines, when this was filmed.

It’s 7° right now and I could care less about watching people cook in the snow. LOL!! I have a propane camping stove in case of emergencies if we lose power for an extended time.... and a gas grill.... and a charcoal grill....I wish I could find the photo of my dog’s reaction when we went camping and it snowed. It was the epitomy of “WHAT were you people thinking??”

I don’t like gimicky things, I want them to be thrown a bag of beets, some chicken livers, and see what they can do with it.

[dleighg]

I'm kind of like Fatima in terms of my love for camping, but I had to do it when my daughter was at summer camp, as they had a mom's weekend where you had to camp with your kid (on a lawn!). I got the biggest friggin tent I could, and I *practiced* at home. Those things are easy to put up but you have to have a visual idea of what the whole idea is. I really felt for them out in the snow with those fiddly rods to deal with!

[toomuchtv]

I liked when one of the judges (padma maybe?) said when they’re given more time they cook better food. 

[Cheerwyn]

Spoiler

 

Tom Colicchio tweeted  right before they sat down to eat " If you’re watching, some damn good food is about to happen."  It was amazing how well the chefs were able to pull off their dishes in those conditions.

Although I do have to wonder whether there wasn't a lot of production help behind the scenes.  When  they first pull  up to the campsite, it was completely covered by snow.   After a few shots of the chefs trying to clear away so much snow, the cooking area looks much more cleared out than could possibly have been  done with just a few  shovels.   That was even more apparent when the next day there were walking trails carved out between the cooking area and the judges' table.

And it made for good TV to have them struggle with the tents, but did we ever see the chefs actually sleeping in them?  It would  have been completely miserable to sleep on the ground in below freezing temps.  I'm wondering if there were some cabins or campers that they actually slept in.

And a huge side-eye to a camping store  that wouldn't have dutch ovens.  And no Lodge cast iron products? 

But all in all an enjoyable  episode with minimal drama and creative food.

[dleighg]

Tu's plate looked so sad. Why on earth do three different preparations and then just throw some carrots on top? I expect a balanced plate, the old protein-veg-starch plus a nice sauce. And some color! He's was brown on brown.

[FormerMod-a1]

I'm in MN where it's currently -8F and snowy and I loved watching the winter camping.  CO is beautiful.  Plus they had all that sunshine.  I used to go to Estes Park every other summer growing up (for a few years there - family vacation road trips).  I wasn't worried about them being too cold.  I've been winter camping a couple of times and those tents hold the heat.  I remember stripping down to my bottom layer while in the tent and just covering with a sheet.  And with spring/summer snow it's often quite a bit warmer the next day.  In May, I've been in snow one day and 70F the next.  I'm not saying it was 70 for them, it wasn't, just that it's not -10 either.  

The food all sounded so good. 

[dleighg]

Hell the caption said it was 38 degrees that afternoon! I'm in the Northeast now and we have not been above freezing for a couple of weeks, and today the high is something like 12 degrees.

[RemoteControlFreak]

Challenges like this are part of Top Chef. FTR, I live in New England where it's cold and snowy, yada yada yada, and I've winter camped. I loved the beautiful Rocky Mountain scenery.  They were essentially car camping in 30°-ish temps with May sun and accompanying daytime warmth.  It wasn't an Everest expedition.

Not super happy with the win going to Bruce just because he found an innovative way to make a pasta shape. Joe's trout looked awful. Did anyone eat it?

Edited January 5, 2018 by RemoteControlFreak

[Special K]

Love how all these chefs have such good attitudes about all this nonsense.  Love Carrie as MacGyver and pretty much everything that Fatima says.  Blink and you missed it, but I loved Bruce's dry comment in the morning, getting up off the hard, cold ground:  "My back feels great."  And Fatima's:  "It's like waking up out of a crypt."  I LOVE camping but can totally relate to these sentiments.

That black/gray/blue lipstick is not doing Claudette any favors.  It makes her look like a ghoul, which does not help you when you also act like an asshole.

[hendersonrocks]

Quote

I'm in MN where it's currently -8F and snowy and I loved watching the winter camping.

*waving from the same winter tundra* Me too. You could tell it was a freak summer snow when the next day Brother was in a t-shirt and others were shedding layers real fast (though it was obviously still chilly enough for Padma to be in mittens).

Bear Dean Joe is quietly funny, and I appreciate that. He also looked like he was really enjoying the beer by the fire - I recognized the "oh wow I'm kinda drunk" look on his face from my own bonfire escapades. Brother is another up and coming fave. I feel like we're seeing more of his personality now and I dig it (I also love his connection to Lee Ann).

Edited January 5, 2018 by hendersonrocks

[Lovecat]

3 hours ago, toomuchtv said:

I liked when one of the judges (padma maybe?) said when they’re given more time they cook better food. 

I think it was Gail, but I do know what was said was the more challenges we throw at them, the better they cook.  Yikes.  Next thing we know, they're going to have to hunt their own protein with a Nerf gun.  Blindfolded.  With one hand tied behind their backs, and one leg bound to another contestant.

[jackjill89]

8 hours ago, biakbiak said:

He didn’t make gnochi, he made cavetalli which though similiar in shape are quite different.

Thanks. My point is that he was making pasta previously, it was pointed out to him, so he pulled back and now he's doing it again because it's "his" food. I think the judges give very confusing advice. You can really let it get in your head -- like Bruce said. 

Edited January 5, 2018 by jackjill89

[susannot]

7 hours ago, spiderpig said:

Fatima's facial reactions were priceless.

Bruce seemed genuinely delighted to have found his groove.  I thought he was a bit grumpy in previous eps.

We talk about this often on this board, but haven't some contestants ever seen a cooking competition before?  A cardinal rule is "don't do something three ways".  It gives the judges two extra opportunities to find fault.

The Rockies are gorgeous, but I'm sure the last thing east coast viewers wanted to look at last night was More Snow.

I'm one of those confused about LCK.  Will they start from scratch with Tu and if so, when?

Really!  I need only look out my back door to see mounds of snow.  Felt sorry for the cheftestants.

[Wings]

3 hours ago, Cheerwyn said:

And a huge side-eye to a camping store  that wouldn't have dutch ovens.  And no Lodge cast iron products? 

Camping stores have light weight cookware.  Even when in a camper you have to keep your weight down and space is limited.  I was surprised she thought they would have one! 

---------------------------------

Fatima is emerging as the rising star.  She is adorable and I love her wit.  

I loved Bruce's "my back feels great" too.  

4 hours ago, cooksdelight said:

I don’t like gimicky things, I want them to be thrown a bag of beets, some chicken livers, and see what they can do with it.

I got a chuckle out of this.  :)  A beets and chicken liver challenge is the height of quirky and very Chopped.  

[RemoteControlFreak]

1 hour ago, Wings said:

Camping stores have light weight cookware.  Even when in a camper you have to keep your weight down and space is limited.  I was surprised she thought they would have one! 

The camping store seemed to have a mixture of light weight gear for backpacking and heavy car camping gear.

But if you look at the cooking scenes at their campsite (especially the daylight scenes starting at about the 30 minute mark), they were amply stocked with high-end pots and pans, including some that looked to be enameled cast iron, sheet pans, cutting boards, mixing bowls, etc. This is far more than they could have bought at the camping store for $100 each

It's likely that in addition to their BMW  SUVs being "loaded up with camping gear," as Padma explained in the challenge intro, they were also accompanied by a truck with a lot more camping and cooking gear.

As for Carrie and the Dutch oven, there are plenty of lightweight dutch ovens available for backpacking and camping (like this one or this one.) The store they went to probably didn't have the exact one she was envisioning that would fit within her $100 budget.

The big question is what happened to all the food waste and prepared food they were creating from their evening cooking session?  Rule number 1 when cooking in the wilderness is to leave not a speck of food out where animals can find it.  My guess is that there was staff either from the show or the camping area that helped keep things clean and keep animals away.

Edited January 5, 2018 by RemoteControlFreak

[dleighg]

9 minutes ago, RemoteControlFreak said:

The big question is what happened to all the food waste and prepared food they were creating from their evening cooking session?  Rule number 1 when cooking in the wilderness is to leave not a speck of food out where animals can find it.

I thought of that at the end of the first day's cooking when someone said something like "everything has to be packed up in 10 minutes" and they were stuffing things in coolers. I figured those coolers were being driven away someplace. But I hadn't thought about all the scraps and whatever which would also attract visitors.

Edited January 5, 2018 by dleighg

[Fretful]

Didn't Lee Anne used to work for Top Chef?  It seems a bit unfair if she gets to compete again.

[HunterHunted]

36 minutes ago, Fretful said:

Didn't Lee Anne used to work for Top Chef?  It seems a bit unfair if she gets to compete again.

It's probably no less unfair than letting people come back for multiple seasons. Lee Ann's primary job was testing if challenges were feasible. The only leg up that gives her is that she doesn't approach a challenge with a defeatist attitude because she knows a chef like her was checking the challenge to see if it was doable.

[Wings]

I am sure they followed the rules of Estes Park.  Take only take pictures and leave only foot prints.  I think they stayed in cabins; there are many to rent.  Judges and crew probably did too.  They have some very fancy rentals from cabins to houses with hot tubs, pools and many amentities.  

Bruce's comment, my back feels great was a nice touch but gave it away that he didn't sleep there though.  :^) 

The trip to the camping store was for show.  TC clearly drove the necessary cookware there for them.  

They think this makes it more entertaining.  How cute.  When is the board going to get sarcastic font?  

I love Padma's style and her pig tails were fabulous!  

Edited January 5, 2018 by Wings

[annewithaneee]

I watch Top Chef over text with my mom, and last night all of our reactions were clearly that of non-camping worrywarts. I get the same way when Rupaul's Drag Race has the queens doing physical stunts in heels -- who is insuring this??? I couldn't stop worrying about cold bare hands doing precise knife-work, a pregnant woman in higher altitudes exerting herself, did anyone buy them long underwear if they were sleeping in the tents overnight, etc etc etc. I full-body cringed watching Bruce use his mandolin to shape his pasta. It was all very distracting. And, for the Tom visit to be lit seemingly only with headlamps (I'm guessing the crew brought some light with them too), it maybe didn't make the best TV, but it was a fun departure. 

It did seem like an odd choice for Chris to cook his meat starting the night before. Some things lend themselves really well to that - like brisket, I guess? I haven't eaten or cooked meat for a few years - but buffalo has to be pretty lean and gamey to start out with. 

I'm still rooting for Tanya, glad to see her get through.

[meep.meep]

Chris was trying to smoke the buffalo before cooking the chili - don't think he expected it to cook as much.