S14.E06: Shark Night Dinner

[Whimsy]

In the first challenge, the finalists have to update their family favorites with a culinary twist. They have to film an Instagram story about their process while they cook. Food blogger Molly Yeh pops in to help judge

[cooksdelight]

Nothing looked appetizing. And Giada’s face when she tasted the vinegar-laced soup of Palak’s said it all.

[springbarb]

I don't really understand the Manny love. And on these shows, you have to know that if you have a ton of extra time, you're doing something wrong.

[LexieLily]

Palek shouldn't feel bad, I don't know what an Instagram story is either and why using fancy fonts and emojis like a twelve year old girl is something to be praised.

[mlp]

Quote

Palek shouldn't feel bad, I don't know what an Instagram story is either

I've never even looked at Instagram so I didn't know what they were talking about for the most part.  If I wanted to learn how to prepare something, I imagine a 15 second video is about the last place I'd look.

Manny and Christian are still my favorites but Manny has the edge because Christian always looks so sloppy.  The problem with those fritters was that they were all trying to make them in large numbers with way too many in the fryers.  If Manny had been able to make a few at a time like he did in the previous challenge, they would have been fine.

Did the Popeye's woman have any reason to be there aside from obvious product placement?  That was just strange.  It would have been less peculiar if they'd had her participate in the judging.

One blonde down and one to go.  I was really sick of watching both of them put their hands in their hair and then right into the food.  I will never understand what they see in Amy.  I thought her presentation at the dinner was poor.  No one really cares that her kid can name sharks, Giada.

I like Palak and I think she's beautiful but she's just not cut out for this kind of thing.

[Wings]

Chris is the likely winner from where I sit.  Manny is not consistent but I can see a glimmer of hope if he can annunciate clearly. 

The last challenge was horrible. Clams for a salad course?  Yellow tail in a soup? Smack on the forehead to the one who created that. It was stupid.  First one wasn’t  much better. 

[LittleIggy]

26 minutes ago, Wings said:

Chris is the likely winner from where I sit.  Manny is not consistent but I can see a glimmer of hope if he can annunciate clearly. 

The last challenge was horrible. Clams for a salad course?  Yellow tail in a soup? Smack on the forehead to the one who created that. It was stupid.  First one wasn’t  much better. 

Mr. Wonderful from “Shark Tank” would tell that person “You are dead to me!”

[rhys]

It wasn't very fair that Palak had to completely process that fish was it? Did Chris have to find all the bones in his cod? 

I found it a bit odd that seafood was being served at an aquarium. But serving beef could have been weird too.

[Brookside]

47 minutes ago, Wings said:

 

The last challenge was horrible. Clams for a salad course?  Yellow tail in a soup? 

 

I don't eat clams, but I do make salads with fish - such as tuna nicoise with fresh tune.  I also make bouillabaisse with salmon, tuna, true cod - no shellfish.

I was surprised to see Palak struggle so much butchering her fish.

Edited July 16, 2018 by Brookside

[cooksdelight]

2 minutes ago, Brookside said:

I was surprised to see Palak struggle so much butchering her fish.

I wasn’t. None of these people are of the caliber to be hosting a food show. Or judging one, which is probably where the winner will wind up.

[Brookside]

33 minutes ago, cooksdelight said:

I wasn’t. None of these people are of the caliber to be hosting a food show. Or judging one, which is probably where the winner will wind up.

I wouldn't have been surprised at some of the others being incapable of skinning fish, but Palak seems at least halfway competent.

Edited July 16, 2018 by Brookside
Spelling

[Aerobicidal]

I don’t understand why Palak has such a beef with her stew assignment. I think it’s a prime opportunity for her to show that she’s not just a daal but has a quick-thinking bean and understands the pulse of this contest.

LentilCakeGate™ is giving me flashbacks to “I didn’t steal the bitch’s dye” from the first season of Project Runway. Remember when reality TV used to be watchable? When Giada had only 45% more teeth than the average adult? When Christian originally purchased his entire wardrobe of B.U.M. Equipment for Kohl’s fashions? Neither do I.

Amy’s instagram presentation is like what would happen if someone asked Wilford Brimley to imagine what a cool teen using emojis would look like. “Mo spice is mo better?” Somewhere on an island filled with hubris, braggadocio, and despair, Tregaye is filming herself screaming “Yassssssssss!” and hoping her Insta will light up again like it did . . . in her most delusional fantasies.

Even though Christian has likely never been to a gym in his life (which is a compliment, coming from me), his presentation still manages to evoke roid rage. It’s method acting. I’m half expecting he’s going to rip off a giant mask and body pad and reveal that he’s actually Amy Sedaris at some point before the end of the season.

“The Bonnethead eats . . . clams.” I honestly wouldn’t have been surprised if Christian had screamed, “So do I!!! Because I’m not a homosexual!!!” and laughed for 35 seconds. The level of stereotypes and “humor” this season makes Jack Benny seem like a progressive media pioneer.

I cannot believe how boring these people are. I can’t stand Justin Warner, but I would rather watch an ultra-slow motion video of him applying and reapplying lip balm and hair gel for 44 minutes than this episode. Oh, and Palak just said, “mic drop!” which totally redeems her hipness after failing Instagram what seems like fourteen hours ago.

Manny feels authentic??? Yes, in the same way Christian feels stylish, Palak feels camera-ready, Giada feels Mennonite, and Sandra Lee feels like she could be the head chef at Eleven Madison Park. What is it with the judges of this show and loud’n’large men? Pie Style, Lunch Lady, Chef of Love . . . I am weeping that Sara Moulton used to be on this network.

"My two girls love to go clamming." Lord honey! Wax my dolphin and call me an ooey gooey Food Network Star.

[pinguina]

Watching this now.  I didn't think the first challenge was relevant.  I wasn't sure how being able to do a 15 second Instagram would be helpful to someone who wanted to see or learn how to cook something.  Watching Giada taste Palak's soup  compared to the "visiting judge" who took a big spoonful of it - wow, she really does not want to even gain a half a percentage of a calorie.  I guess I never really noticed how she tastes the food in front of her although others have pointed it out much more eloquently. 

I remember when the contestants really knew how to cook and would do everything possible to do well - Say what you will about Melissa d'Arabian, she had to use chiles in a dish and wasn't sure about how hot they were, she taste tested all of them to figure it out and presented a pretty great dish.  And in the past the contestants had to present in front of an audience with dial of doom.  Plus had to be able to give tips as they cooked plus "stories" (Hated that they had to do stories and the only thing that they kept).

But based on what I've seen - I think I would like Palak because she seems so calm but no way is she going to win.  I agree that it is probably going to be Manny or Christian.

[Brookside]

Why do we always see cheftestants cooking enough for maybe four or five people but suddenly they have enough for 50+ ?  Done in an hour.

[spiderpig]

Painful episode to watch, partially redeemed by seeing Katie (of the clay-um salad) sent home.

Amy can follow her next week.  After that I don't care who wins.

[LillyB]

I rather not take culinary advice from a guy who looks like he just crawled out of bed. They really need to neaten Christian up.

[J-Man]

39 minutes ago, Aerobicidal said:

The level of stereotypes and “humor” this season makes Jack Benny seem like a progressive media pioneer.

I hope you watched this week's "Star Salvation" where the entire theme (as well as the title of the episode) was a double entendre/sexual innuendo.

[GaT]

Glad to see Katie go, so, so tired of hearing her tell us how she doesn't cook certain things because she cooks "healthy" 

I thought both challenges were stupid tonight, why would anyone have to know how to turn a soup into a sandwich?

[cooksdelight]

These “elevated” dishes were gross. If that’s the best any of them can do, they will be shovedd to the back shelf with He Who Shall Not Be Named.

Edited July 16, 2018 by cooksdelight

[TDT]

"Shark Night"..? Had figured this would be a cross-promotion with either Discovery Channel's Shark Week or the upcoming film The Meg..

[rustyspigot]

I hope my nonexistent children will be able to identify sharks before the age of three. Amy is straight up weird in what she says, And OF COURSE they loved it.

[cooksdelight]

That bit from Amy was so obviously made up in order to get attention.

[Whimsy]

36 minutes ago, rustyspigot said:

I hope my nonexistent children will be able to identify sharks before the age of three. Amy is straight up weird in what she says, And OF COURSE they loved it.

Well, IF it was true (which I doubt), she was saying that her son could identify all the different types of sharks by the age of three.  Considering there are about 440 known species of shark (thanks, Google!), I bet he maybe knew a small handful by pointing to pictures in a book as she named the sharks. 

[cooksdelight]

I’m thinking he knows hammerhead and great white.... from seeing Shark Tank and Jaws on TV.

[Simon47]

OMG, so NOT sorry to see the last of Killer Shark Katie. She was the unfaithful Penny of this season. Bossing people around, blaming people for HER problems, I just didn’t like her. She turned me off five seconds after she appeared. I had a feeling she would win this thing. I was so happy when they announced that she would be shown the ?. Maybe tell Jess, Rebekah, Harrison, Samone that she’s gone so they could redeem themselves. She has sent every one of them home from week 2. She definitely reminded me of Rudy from the Cosby Show and I hope she doesn’t come back from SS. I also LOL’d when the other contestants reacted to her.

I now like Amy. Her son could name so many sharks before he was 3. That was so cool!

I now want to watch someone teach me how to COOK. Where’s Barefoot Contessa?

[eyechart]

When Mr. "Man Vs. Food" said he didn't envy Bobby and Giada picking one of them, I wished he'd ended it "...because they all suck."  I still can't take Manny seriously; he would've been kicked out of "Top Chef" for poor time management (as if he could EVER be on that far superior show).  Christian adding those classic Thai ingredients of truffle and parmesan cheese in the first challenge...how did that manage to be edible?  I guess Palak's astringent soup could be used as an acne medicine (that's the only time I'd ever use that word...but Jess would find a way to add it whenever possible).  Guess I was wrong about Katie winning it...we'll never have a healthy food judge for Guy's Grocery Games!  And Amy...she's been learning shade and makeup lessons from Trixie Mattel.  Why haven't I given up on this train wreck yet?  So much hate-watching...

[TomCorps]

10 hours ago, mlp said:

I like Palak and I think she's beautiful

Same here.  I didn't include the second half of your sentence (..."but she's just not cut out for this kind of thing") because I don't think any of these people are ready-made to be the host of a food/cooking show at this point.  I think Palek has genuine talent with food, and is eminently watchable.  Give her a show with an experienced director, a fleet of support staff and a reasonable amount of time to shoot, and I think she'd be terrific.  She's certainly the only one of this crew I would watch.  Having said this, I don't think there's a chance she's going to win this utterly stupid competition.

 

I fear that "win" is going to go to Christian.  Sorry, but I just can't stand this guy.  Not a single second.  Cringe-fest 2018.  Maybe I'm more sensitive to this because I happen to share the same ethnicity and am also NYC, but Christian represents the worst of the Italian-American stereotype.  Come to think of it, didn't Bobby shoot down the young Latino fellow in one of the first episodes of this season for being a "cartoon" version of the Latino male?  And what part of Christian's bada-bing shtick isn't an awful stereotype?  Mind you, I'm not saying I think Christian is a phony.  I absolutely know Italian guys--plenty of them--who revel in this affect.  I generally avoid such guys (and their guidette counterparts) like the plague; they're selfish, unimaginative oafs.  Not at all what I want to see, or if I do, I'll watch reruns of The Sopranos, because at least the writing was elevated so it was either genuinely funny or incisive.  And shame on shark-teeth Giada, being of Italian descent as well, for not being woke enough to call out the stereotype for what it is.

 

Amy is a really remarkable kook--er, I mean cook...I think.  How she got here, two seasons in a row, is endlessly fascinating and amusing to me.  She's become the poster child for everything that's wrong with this show at this point.

[Wings]

I agree that the stereotypical Italian posture annoys.  And they typically make food that you can buy at any pizza joint on any corner, USA.   

Scott Conant opened a restaurant in Phoenix that is superior.  Only 4 dishes with tomato sauce and no spaghetti.   Mora Italian is the name.  I am working my way through the menu.  So good. 

Sorry, I digressed.

Edited July 16, 2018 by Wings

[Totale]

3 hours ago, cooksdelight said:

I’m thinking he knows hammerhead and great white.... from seeing Shark Tank and Jaws on TV.

I'm thinking she pulled that out of her ass and her kid maybe recognizes Marvel Superheroes if anything.

I always thought clams lived buried in the sand covered on both sides in a hard shell.  How are they shark food?

Answer that one and we'll move on to harder questions like (other than Palak lighting up my screen) why I watch this shit at all?

Edited July 16, 2018 by Totale

[biakbiak]

19 minutes ago, Totale said:

always thought clams lived buried in the sand covered on both sides in a hard shell.  How are they shark food?

Apparently the Bonnethead does In fact eat clams.

[lh25]

10 hours ago, GaT said:

I thought both challenges were stupid tonight, why would anyone have to know how to turn a soup into a sandwich?

Did they have declare the dish they were going to make before they got the twist?  Too often, they go into a challenge fixated on making a given dish and won't change that, so they are kind of doomed from the start.  Even when they could change.  

That said, I agree that the challenges can be stupid.  And aren't things that would come up if/when they had their own shows.

And I got a little tired of Palak acting like no one else had ever made a fish soap in the history of soup...

[dahling]

33 minutes ago, lh25 said:

Did they have declare the dish they were going to make before they got the twist?  Too often, they go into a challenge fixated on making a given dish and won't change that, so they are kind of doomed from the start.  Even when they could change.  

I imagine that before filming starts, they have some kind of questionnaire with questions like, "What is your signature dish?" and "What is your traditional family dish?" and "What is your most hated food?"  Therefore when the challenge pops up for them to prepare their signature dish, or their traditional family dish, or a dish containing their most hated ingredient, they're already locked into it.

Damn this episode was boring. Katie didn't have a partner to take the fall this week, so it was all on her. 

[parrotfeathers]

5 hours ago, Simon47 said:

OMG, so NOT sorry to see the last of Killer Shark Katie. She was the unfaithful Penny of this season. Bossing people around, blaming people for HER problems, I just didn’t like her. She turned me off five seconds after she appeared. I had a feeling she would win this thing. I was so happy when they announced that she would be shown the ?.

Yes but G said "I have a feeling this isn't the last time we will see you" as she went out the door.

That man vs. food guy--he needs to do something with that greasy hair.  No way I could watch any show he was on.  At least get a barrette or something.

I almost quite watching this "show" last year.  That fleek thing was just way too much for me.

All of them need some fashion advice for what to wear on TV.

Edited July 16, 2018 by parrotfeathers

[meowmommy]

16 hours ago, Whimsy said:

Food blogger Molly Yeh pops in to help judge

It surely felt like a kick in the face to the competitors (I just can't call them cheftestants) that some bubble-headed blogger walks in off the street and gets a FN series while they have to run this stupid gauntlet for the chance to win...nothing.

14 hours ago, rhys said:

I found it a bit odd that seafood was being served at an aquarium. But serving beef could have been weird too.

Next week they'll serve lamb and goat at a petting zoo.

15 hours ago, cooksdelight said:

Nothing looked appetizing. And Giada’s face when she tasted the vinegar-laced soup of Palak’s said it all.

Have you ever noticed that about 99% of the time, LBH's comments rebound off what someone else has already said?  Like she doesn't actually know what the food tastes like--she'd actually have to swallow some food--but she knows how to echo what she's already heard.

5 hours ago, Simon47 said:

OMG, so NOT sorry to see the last of Killer Shark Katie. She was the unfaithful Penny of this season.

Ooh!  Ooh!  You said her name!!!!  Katie reminded me much more of Sarah than She Who Must Not Be Named.

[Simon47]

48 minutes ago, parrotfeathers said:

Yes but G said "I have a feeling this isn't the last time we will see you" as she went out the door.

That man vs. food guy--he needs to do something with that greasy hair.  No way I could watch any show he was on.  At least get a barrette or something.

I almost quite watching this "show" last year.  That fleek thing was just way too much for me.

All of them need some fashion advice for what to wear on TV.

Sorry that I typed Penny’s name, I know what will happen. And I don’t care about it happening anyway.

2 minutes ago, meowmommy said:

Ooh!  Ooh!  You said her name!!!!  Katie reminded me much more of Sarah than She Who Must Not Be Named.

Sorry! Sorry! She ALSO reminded me of Sarah Penrod.

[mlp]

Quote

I think Palek has genuine talent with food, and is eminently watchable.  Give her a show with an experienced director, a fleet of support staff and a reasonable amount of time to shoot, and I think she'd be terrific.  

I totally agree.  I think she'd be fine with an Ina Garten sort of show.  She's actually a chef unlike most of the others.  She's just not good with all the frenzied activity, stress and nonsense.  And I don't blame her.

[akr]

Amy's story about sharks rang true to me - they live in Hawaii and some little kids get obsessions about things. Could be dinosaurs, could be trucks - why not sharks?  Amy seems like she might have been that kind of kid herself.

[Amarsir]

2 hours ago, parrotfeathers said:

I almost quite watching this "show" last year.  That fleek thing was just way too much for me.

That was 2 years ago. The fact that you forgot last year's is itself a review of season 13. (Honey Lord Ol' Mighty Jason won, and I pretty much forget that season as well because we all knew the winner before it started.)

16 hours ago, mlp said:

Did the Popeye's woman have any reason to be there aside from obvious product placement?  That was just strange.  It would have been less peculiar if they'd had her participate in the judging.

Especially since all she did was recite some commercial copy. I have a pretty high threshold for product placement, but this is not how to do it.

[Simon47]

3 hours ago, parrotfeathers said:

I almost quite watching this "show" last year.  That fleek thing was just way too much for me.

Last year the winner was Jason and his ole Kentucky sayings. Tregaye and yasss/fleek was season 12.

[parrotfeathers]

9 minutes ago, Simon47 said:

Last year the winner was Jason and his ole Kentucky sayings. Tregaye and yasss/fleek was season 12.

Oops.  SEE???  That's how bad I was traumatized....

[Tippi]

I don't care what any contestants or Food Network "stars" kids have to say about anything.  Goodness, if that isn't one overused pile of garbage on this show.  Following close behind are mama's and grandma's best dishes.  I might not mind an occasional mention, but every single episode someone has to pull this card out of the deck?  And in every episode of this and Guy's Grocery Games, somebody has to make a mac and cheese something?  Enough already!

Palak and Chris give some impression of knowing something of the culinary arts.  Both need a lot of work to get them ready to host their own show.  Amy can pull a dish together, usually, but that mommy shtick is a turn off for me.  Manny is personable and could do a firehouse roadshow (as has been mentioned before) but I don't like the travelling shows.  If the winner ends up as a judge on Guy's Grocery Games, I might change my opinion of them.  I always rather liked Aaarti and find her to be a pretty good egg on GGG.  I didn't like Justin Warner before, but I really like him on GGG.  So there is hope, I guess!

[mme ginger]

I have liked Amy right along but found that story about her son a bit hard to swallow. Although I’m sure if she’d told the judges her son caught a shark before he was three, they would’ve clapped and cheered in glee.  As long as mommies talk about their kids! Make it personal! 

[meowmommy]

3 hours ago, Tippi said:

I don't care what any contestants or Food Network "stars" kids have to say about anything.  Goodness, if that isn't one overused pile of garbage on this show.  Following close behind are mama's and grandma's best dishes. 

I know, right?  Waiting for the competitor who came from an orphanage because her father was a pimp and her mother was addicted to crack cocaine.  

Has Bobby Flay, on any of the eight hundred thousand shows he's done for FN, ever once referenced anyone related to him?  For all we know, he might have been hatched, rather than born.  I don't believe for a nanosecond that he's really impressed or charmed by stories about someone's kids or gramma.  It's just part of the brief for this show.

[pinguina]

7 minutes ago, meowmommy said:

Has Bobby Flay, on any of the eight hundred thousand shows he's done for FN, ever once referenced anyone related to him?  For all we know, he might have been hatched, rather than born.  I don't believe for a nanosecond that he's really impressed or charmed by stories about someone's kids or gramma.  It's just part of the brief for this show.

SO MUCH THIS!! ^^^^^

[chessiegal]

21 minutes ago, meowmommy said:

I know, right?  Waiting for the competitor who came from an orphanage because her father was a pimp and her mother was addicted to crack cocaine.  

Has Bobby Flay, on any of the eight hundred thousand shows he's done for FN, ever once referenced anyone related to him?  For all we know, he might have been hatched, rather than born.  I don't believe for a nanosecond that he's really impressed or charmed by stories about someone's kids or gramma.  It's just part of the brief for this show.

Bobby talks a lot about his Mom. He's also mentioned his daughter Sophie often.

ETA: When he was married to Stephanie he not only mentioned her, but had her on a show, and once her sister and Mom on a show.

Edited July 17, 2018 by chessiegal

[cooksdelight]

He forgot to mention his mistress, January Jones. Left her out of the story arc. :)

[smiley13]

Well I am glad that Katie is gone.  And I think it is awesome that Manny outlasted her.  Katie just gave off a vibe of entitlement as she was shown.   And sorry, but I don't give a hoot about Amy's kid naming sharks.   Why were they raving about that???  Of the final 4, I like Manny.

[Sew Sumi]

I'm Team Nobody.

[Yeah No]

How low this show has sunk that we're scraping the bottom of the barrel to find something redeeming about any of these people!  Palak seems nice but I agree that she isn't cut out for this sort of thing.  Christian has hammed up his performance to the point that it feels forced but the judges seem to like it.  I guess that's better than being ho-hum but it still is nowhere near being worth the win.  Manny seems nice too but would I watch him?  Probably not.  Katie was "meh" so she was no great loss.  Amy is "meh" too so that leaves no one to root for.  I think FN has forgotten that it's about personal magnetism and a personality that can get people to root for them over anyone else.  None of these people fits that bill, but my suspicion is that this is intended by the network because they really don't want any more stars.  If they want to hire someone they just hire them, not make them go through this fake competition.  The only problem is that if they don't feature contestants that get people interested and excited, the ratings of this show will eventually suffer.

[Yeah No]

15 hours ago, TomCorps said:

I fear that "win" is going to go to Christian.  Sorry, but I just can't stand this guy.  Not a single second.  Cringe-fest 2018.  Maybe I'm more sensitive to this because I happen to share the same ethnicity and am also NYC, but Christian represents the worst of the Italian-American stereotype.  

I'm of Italian American descent from NYC myself and I'm pretty sure I have seen far worse than Christian as far as that stereotype goes, but then again I came of age when "Saturday Night Fever" was in the theater and every Italian American guy I knew wanted to look and act just like John Travolta in that movie.  I actually thought Dom from a few seasons ago was a far more fitting example of the stereotype, down to the accent than Christian.  I could have identified Dom as being from NY in 2 seconds.  Christian felt NY area-ish to me, but not necessarily specific to the city.