S16.E10: Hoop Dreams

[desertflower]

I’m sure it felt terrible to be heckled by the crowd but I don’t think Adrienne went into that situation with that intent. The producers clearly fed Tom the info that the mix was bought because why else would he just bring that up out of the blue? Adrienne bantered back and forth with him about how she saw some mix in the other team’s cart (not mentioning Sara outright) and it just seemed like some light hearted trash talking in the kitchen at the time. If anything I would blame Tom for bringing it up to the crowd and also Justin and Eric for encouraging the chants. 

Sad to Michelle go. 

[avecsans]

It was really good to see Ed Lee again. I liked him on his season and l’m glad he’s doing well.

 I did not like the elimination challenge. Too much like Food Network garbage. I thought the taunting was way over the top, even when it was directed at heinous egomaniac Sara.

Another aspect I didn’t like? Featuring John Calipari, who somehow slithered out of the consequences of being the head coach of dirty programs at Umass and Memphis.

 I usually have a favorite well before this point in the season, but I have finally settled on Eric. I hope that doesn’t mean he’ll be out next week. I can live with anyone winning except Sara.

[rhys]

1 hour ago, kicksave said:

However, I thought what her fellow contestants did by starting a chant with the huge crowd that was more of a taunt, showed poor sportsmanship and was very immature. For Sara, a Kentucky girl who loves her Wildcats, it was a humiliating moment and was unnecessary. She was called out for it...why rub it in with a sold out crowd and embarrass her further? 

Top Chef said the crowd was 4500. Totale on page one of this thread was in attendance & stated it was 1/3 full. 

Edited February 9, 2019 by rhys

[Pickles]

I liked Michelle, but her voice made me nuts. Was not sorry to see her go for that reason alone. Cannot stand Sarah. Not fond of Kelsey either. 

[carrps]

1 hour ago, Aerobicidal said:

I'm from Minnesota, home of the Juicy Lucy (or Jucy Lucy), and I think they are incredibly overrated. But people are obsessed with them here just like people in other states are (also inexplicably, IMO) obsessed with In-N-Out. Now I'll run and hide before you all throw handfuls of animal style fries me. . . .

Just throw them in my general direction!

P.S. I don't think In-n-Out is all that, but they're great value for the money, and the shakes are awesome. I usually prefer Humble Potato burgers when I indulge -- Battle Royale for the win!

[Chit Chat]

2 hours ago, kicksave said:

I don't know about everyone else, but I'm tiring of Padma and her revolving door of outfits and hairstyles...

I don't mind her hairstyle, it's the clothes that sometimes bug me!  Some of her choices are just plain ugly.  YMMV. 

[dleighg]

3 minutes ago, ChitChat said:

don't mind her hairstyle, it's the clothes that sometimes bug me!  Some of her choices are just plain ugly.  YMMV. 

She's a beautiful woman and I wish I had her bod, but her opening outfit (for every episode) gives her hips out to there in what looks like mom jeans IMHO. She usually looks really great in those opening segments.

[hoosiermommy]

Sarah chose a mix that was a pancake/waffle mix. If I recall correctly pancake batter and waffle batter are not made the same. Pancakes are softer than waffles, so the proportions of dry ingredients aren’t interchangeable. That led to soft waffles.

[goldil]

59 minutes ago, rhys said:

Top Chef said the crowd was 4500. Totale on page one of this thread was in attendance & stated it was 1/3 full. 

Yeah, there were plenty of crowd shots that showed the upper bowl was all but empty and it looked like some of the top rows in the bottom bowl were empty as well. 

[Totale]

22 minutes ago, goldil said:

Yeah, there were plenty of crowd shots that showed the upper bowl was all but empty and it looked like some of the top rows in the bottom bowl were empty as well. 

All of the top level was empty, there were people in sections 32-34 and 13-11 below, plus all the sections in the grey lower level behind the area marked Stage below.  The judges were to the front of the Stage area

[Chit Chat]

2 hours ago, dleighg said:

She's a beautiful woman and I wish I had her bod, but her opening outfit (for every episode) gives her hips out to there in what looks like mom jeans IMHO. She usually looks really great in those opening segments.

She is a beautiful woman for sure!  Seems like she'd have some better wardrobe choices offered to her though. 

[LeighLeigh]

Loved Padma’s yellow dress in the QuickFire. Meghan Markle has the same one. 

[Irlandesa]

On 2/9/2019 at 12:14 AM, mlp said:

Sara should have known better than to use a prepared mix but it was kind of snippy of Adrienne to tattle to Tom.  He probably already knew it anyway and she made herself look less than good by doing that.  

Yep.  There's a camera person who follows everyone around when they're purchasing their ingredients.  Why would anyone be under the false assumption that they could avoid answering for choices or shortcuts they make?  That's why I was fine with what Adrienne did.  She probably realized it mattered not one bit whether or not she told Tom what happened with Sara.  It's also why I think Sara overreacted.  There was a camera in her face when she was buying the mix.  Did she really think she could have put one over on the judges had Adrienne not hinted she used mix? 

If she is, then she's naive as hell. Whether her dish succeeded or failed, she was going to be asked about it.  Had she pulled it off, she would have gotten praise for making it work. As it is, it's not (at least not obviously) the reason why she lost her round.

22 hours ago, ChitChat said:

True, but fans taunt, players aren't supposed to.  In this instance, the chefs were the "players."

I didn't see what they were doing as taunting.  I thought it was hyping up the crowd.  For one, the chant wasn't "box mix bad", it was "home made" which highlights something positive the white team did--in that their meal was home made.  Much like Sara using her hometown girl/Kentucky fan knowledge to try to get the crowd on her side. 

I think she was upset at being caught flat footed without a response.  I also think she wouldn't have reacted this way if it hadn't been her at the center of it all.  And that's fine to have those feelings.  I get it.  It's embarrassment.  Frustration.  I think it's fair for her to share how the chants made her feel but I think it was wrong of her to take zero ownership of it.  Not just the boxed mix but to acknowledge the spirit of the chant wasn't meant to upset her and is perfectly in line with a sports competition.

18 hours ago, Aerobicidal said:

I'm from Minnesota, home of the Juicy Lucy (or Jucy Lucy), and I think they are incredibly overrated.

They are but I think I'd like to try Justin's mainly because it wasn't on a bun.  Every time I've ever bitten into a Juicy Lucy, the boiling cheese has farted out the back leaving me without cheese.  Using a knife and fork probably controls the gushage a bit more.

Edited February 10, 2019 by Irlandesa

[Eulipian 5k]

12 hours ago, ChitChat said:

12 hours ago, hendersonrocks said:

I mean, to have a large group of people actively rooting against you (in your home region, where you make your livelihood) is REALLY different than hashing it out in private at judges table.

That's what I didn't like.  There's a penalty in sports for taunting.  You just don't do it.  The white team should've had more class than to do that.  

Heh, I thought the use of the crowd was a blast, bwah haha. It's a game, not unlike the cheering whenever anyone entered the party houseboat in RW  - it's call "using the crowd". There is no penalty for inciting the crowd in any sport.

btw: I heard the chef say, incredulously, "Do you think I would use boxed mix on Top Chef?" She never said who did but they figured out who the only other waffle maker was.

[novhappy]

II don’t know. Yeah the food looked tasty and it was appropriate for a sporting event but man those are top chefs? Fried chicken, waffles, dumplings, burger w stuff on it? This was not elevated food, not gourmet and not impressive. What would the Voltaggio brothers have cooked?  Stephanie or Blais?  Hung, Kristen or Jennifer? This seasons chefs are not at the level this show has had in the past. “ you crimped dumplings!”  And yeah I think the ribs should have gone home. I make ribs all the time like that. Nothing special at all. And they had additional help!  

And the winner takes it because he frenched his drumsticks. Ok. Great. That takes time but they had help! Way to knock it out of the park 

I know the judges said best chicken, best drumstick, tastiest they’d ever had. Maybe they were just really hungry or protecting the franchise but come on! It really seemed like Food Network level cooking. 

Edited February 10, 2019 by novhappy

[Heathrowe]

I don't have a problem with Adrienne mentioning that Sarah used boxed mix, but the guy leading the crowd in the chant was over the top rude. If I had been Sarah I'd have cried right there. And I would take it pretty personally. That said, it was a mistake to use the mix, I doubt it even saved much time or money. I was sad to see Michelle go then, at the end, after an episode that wasn't really much about her.

[hendersonrocks]

11 hours ago, Eulipian 5k said:

Heh, I thought the use of the crowd was a blast, bwah haha. It's a game, not unlike the cheering whenever anyone entered the party houseboat in RW  - it's call "using the crowd". There is no penalty for inciting the crowd in any sport.

btw: I heard the chef say, incredulously, "Do you think I would use boxed mix on Top Chef?" She never said who did but they figured out who the only other waffle maker was.

To your first paragraph, I think this is where Sara's point in the stew room is relevant. All the "using the crowd" thus far has been positive - trying to use the crowd to support your own dish, rather than use the crowd to rag on an opponent's. That's a big difference, and I think any chef probably would have been shaken by that abrupt change in tenor. Since it happened to her, who a lot of viewers already don't like, the whole thing feels a little less sympathetic.

To your second, I'm pretty sure there was another sentence after the one you quoted where Adrienne did in fact point the hypothetical finger towards Sara. And I have no issue with that, honestly. The thing I think was regrettable was the white team whipping up the crowd with a chant about Sara's food, especially since a) she wasn't going up against the other chicken and waffle maker anyways (and guess what! that person on your team just lost their match!), and b) it was already pretty clear Eric's dish was going to beat hers by a mile.

For the record: I don't even like Sara. I do see where her hurt is coming from, though. 

[jackjill89]

I don't like heckling and trash talk, I'd rather see someone use a crowd to build someone up, not take someone down.

That being said, I understand that it was embarrassing for Sara, but I think she overreacted. She should have just owned what she did. 

I also get that she's a huge Wildcat fan, but how is being heckled by that crowd in that place any less embarrassing than anywhere else? Did she think she'd skate through because she's a huge fan and from Kentucky? 

It's always interesting to watch the show twice. I watched again with my daughter and they didn't completely hate Michelle's ribs. Ed Lee commented about how great Adrienne's C & W was. Later, Michelle's ribs are wet and far worse than they initially said, Sara had the best chicken, and it seemed like Adrienne's C & W, while generally praised, even though she lost, were panned a bit. It must have been close all around and they had to adjust their critiques to match their elimination. 

[carrps]

13 hours ago, Eulipian 5k said:

Heh, I thought the use of the crowd was a blast, bwah haha. It's a game, not unlike the cheering whenever anyone entered the party houseboat in RW  - it's call "using the crowd". There is no penalty for inciting the crowd in any sport.

Yeah, I meant to mention the houseboat episode. Sara had no problem...at all...ragging on the other houseboat. It's only a problem when her ox is being gored. And, I agree, the chant was "Homemade! Homemade!" not "Sara Stinks! Sara Stinks!"

[whinewithwine]

16 minutes ago, carrps said:

It's only a problem when her ox is being gored

Totally agree.  Don't dish it out and then be so thin skinned.

Damn it, Ed Lee called the burger "unctuous".  He and Aaaaaaron Sanchez might break out a dictionary sometime.

[rhofmovalley]

Did I miss something?  When did anyone encourage the crowd to "rag on" Sara's dish? I heard them chanting "Home made".

[Chit Chat]

17 minutes ago, rhofmovalley said:

Did I miss something?  When did anyone encourage the crowd to "rag on" Sara's dish? I heard them chanting "Home made".

One of the guys on the white team started the chant.  "Home made" = you didn't make it from scratch, which was a direct slam on Sara.  Unfortunately, she shouldn't have picked up the bagged waffle mix, and even more importantly, don't do in front of another teammate or the cameras!  

Edited February 10, 2019 by ChitChat

[Eulipian 5k]

The next time I watch a football game I'll remember that the "twelfth man" is only wishing good  thoughts for their team and are never encouraged to Boo, hiss, distract or "psyche out the opponent". And the next time a Kentucky opponent takes a foul shot the crowd will never try to distract the foul shooter from behind the basket. After all this is life and death, not a game.

[Chit Chat]

1 hour ago, Eulipian 5k said:

And the next time a Kentucky opponent takes a foul shot the crowd will never try to distract the foul shooter from behind the basket.

Respectfully, there's a difference between the crowd cheering and taunting vs. the player/chef doing it.  Crowds don't get penalized for it, nor should they.  However, players aren't supposed to taunt other players.  Sara felt let down by her fellow cheftestant, even though he was on the other team.   There was no need to rub her nose in the fact that she bought a pre-packaged waffle mix.  Tom was well aware of it and she would answer for it at judge's table.  No need to humiliate her any further.

Edited February 10, 2019 by ChitChat

[Eulipian 5k]

21 minutes ago, ChitChat said:

Respectfully, there's a difference between the crowd cheering and taunting vs. the player/chef doing it. 

In football, on every third down the opposing defenders encourage the crowd to "MAKE SOME NOISE", they stand in front of the refs with upraised arms. It may be unfair/improper at Wimbledon, during a chess match, or in a Boardroom, but on a basketball court? Big harm, no foul. 3 ingredients!

[Yeah No]

On 2/9/2019 at 4:03 PM, desertflower said:

I’m sure it felt terrible to be heckled by the crowd but I don’t think Adrienne went into that situation with that intent. The producers clearly fed Tom the info that the mix was bought because why else would he just bring that up out of the blue? Adrienne bantered back and forth with him about how she saw some mix in the other team’s cart (not mentioning Sara outright) and it just seemed like some light hearted trash talking in the kitchen at the time. If anything I would blame Tom for bringing it up to the crowd and also Justin and Eric for encouraging the chants. 

Tom clearly committed the worse offense here, but I felt that Adrienne's taking of the bait and hinting around about Sara was mean spirited and that's what I object to.  I don't think it was just innocent banter.  Nothing in a competition like this is just "light hearted trash talking" when you do it in front of the head judge who is also judging the person you're hinting around about.  And I don't even like Sara.   I just detest outing people like that more.

11 hours ago, ChitChat said:

Respectfully, there's a difference between the crowd cheering and taunting vs. the player/chef doing it.  Crowds don't get penalized for it, nor should they.  However, players aren't supposed to taunt other players.  Sara felt let down by her fellow cheftestant, even though he was on the other team.   There was no need to rub her nose in the fact that she bought a pre-packaged waffle mix.  Tom was well aware of it and she would answer for it at judge's table.  No need to humiliate her any further.

I agree.  The whole thing felt mean spirited and almost like bullying behavior, and that's not what this competition should be all about.  It felt like shades of earlier seasons where there was a lot of under-bus throwing and general nastiness between the cheftestants.  It was a let down in a season where there hasn't been much if any of that kind of immature behavior.

[biakbiak]

26 minutes ago, Yeah No said:

Tom clearly committed the worse offense here, but I felt that Adrienne's taking of the bait and hinting around about Sara was mean spirited and that's what I object to.  I don't think it was just innocent banter.  Nothing in a competition like this is just "light hearted trash talking" when you do it in front of the head judge who is also judging the person you're hinting around about.  And I don't even like Sara.   I just detest outing people like that more.

I don’t get how either is an offense. Sarah made a decision to cut a corner with her dish, a decision I understand but one that was hers and hers alone. Pointing out that decision by Adrienne or Tom is not wrong and Sarah should have stood her ground and stood by that decision. 

[Yeah No]

1 minute ago, biakbiak said:

I don’t get how either is an offense. Sarah made a decision to cut a corner with her dish, a decision I understand but one that was hers and hers alone. Pointing out that decision by Adrienne or Tom is not wrong and Sarah should have stood her ground and stood by that decision. 

I don't get how drawing attention to that decision is right.  It's like the kid in school that outs his fellow classmate for having the math formula written on their wrist while taking a test.  Sure, it's not right to use a crib sheet, but it's also not cool to be a tattler.  Especially when you have nothing but to gain by doing so, as in you stand to win and make the other person lose by revealing it.  And what Sara did is not even as bad as using a crib sheet!  It was a shortcut and not even a really bad one.  It's not like she used frozen waffles or anything.

[biakbiak]

17 minutes ago, Yeah No said:

don't get how drawing attention to that decision is right. 

Why they are supposed to stand up for every part of their dish and it was a main component of her dish. This is hardly the first time Tom, a judge or another opponent has mentioned another chef taking a short cut. 

Sarah stayed halfheartedly in the stew room that she had not just used the box mix so she could have explained the changes that she made but that of course that could have also contributed to the “soft texture” of her waffles.

At the end of the day they are responsible for everything that is put on the plate, people have had garnishes nckpicked before, and using waffle mix when your dish is chicken and waffles is a decision that should be highlighted and defended or criticized.

[Yeah No]

1 minute ago, biakbiak said:

Why they are supposed to stand up for every part of their dish and it was a main component of her dish. This is hardly the first time Tom, a judge or another opponent has mentioned another chef taking a short cut. 

Sarah stayed halfheartedly in the stew room that she had not just used the box mix so she could have explained the changes that she made but that of course that could have also contributed to the “soft texture” of her waffles.

At the end of the day they are responsible for everything that is put on the plate, people have had garnishes nckpicked before, and using waffle mix when your dish is chicken and waffles is a decision that should be highlighted and defended or criticized.

You're absolutely right and I agree with you, but where I disagree is that I don't think it was Adrienne's place to hint around about someone else using a boxed mix, especially when doing so might give her an advantage over that person in a competition.  YMMV.

[biakbiak]

2 minutes ago, Yeah No said:

Adrienne's place to hint around about someone else using a boxed mix, especially when doing so might give her an advantage over that person in a competition.  YMMV.

It’s moot because her waffles were clearly better received but why should she not want the judges to know that she put in more work than someone who made the exact same dish. 

[Talented Tenth]

23 hours ago, Heathrowe said:

I don't have a problem with Adrienne mentioning that Sarah used boxed mix, but the guy leading the crowd in the chant was over the top rude. If I had been Sarah I'd have cried right there. And I would take it pretty personally. That said, it was a mistake to use the mix, I doubt it even saved much time or money. I was sad to see Michelle go then, at the end, after an episode that wasn't really much about her.

She needed to take accountability for her choice to use boxed mix.  Even without knowing how much things like that are frowned upon the show, one would think being on Top Chef would have clued her in not to take shortcuts.

17 hours ago, ChitChat said:

Respectfully, there's a difference between the crowd cheering and taunting vs. the player/chef doing it.  Crowds don't get penalized for it, nor should they.  However, players aren't supposed to taunt other players.  Sara felt let down by her fellow cheftestant, even though he was on the other team.   There was no need to rub her nose in the fact that she bought a pre-packaged waffle mix.  Tom was well aware of it and she would answer for it at judge's table.  No need to humiliate her any further.

Tom brought it up in front of the entire crowd.  Justin started a cheer that indicated the white team's food was homemade.  If she felt like she did nothing bad/wrong, then the other team talking about their food shouldn't have evoked such a strong reaction from her.

[Yeah No]

6 hours ago, biakbiak said:

It’s moot because her waffles were clearly better received but why should she not want the judges to know that she put in more work than someone who made the exact same dish. 

Because it seems like a snotty thing to put yourself up and make yourself look better at someone else's expense?  If I did that at work that wouldn't be received too well by anyone.  We're all in this together.  It seems a little too cutthroat to me, that's all.

[Yeah No]

1 hour ago, Talented Tenth said:

She needed to take accountability for her choice to use boxed mix.  Even without knowing how much things like that are frowned upon the show, one would think being on Top Chef would have clued her in not to take shortcuts.

Tom brought it up in front of the entire crowd.  Justin started a cheer that indicated the white team's food was homemade.  If she felt like she did nothing bad/wrong, then the other team talking about their food shouldn't have evoked such a strong reaction from her.

For sure, Sara should take responsibility for her choice of using a boxed mix, but I suspect that if she were a more popular contestant there would be more sympathy for her for not being open about it.  I've watched TC since season 1, and a lot of really good chefs seem to commit that offense cluelessly, not realizing it's a mortal offense to do so and I've never seen such negative sentiment towards them.  I don't like her either but that doesn't change my opinion on this.

And if I were in her shoes I would have felt like the other team was ganging up on me and making a public spectacle of my mistake through patting themselves on the back for not using a pre-made mix.  The implication that they were attempting to humiliate Sara was more than obvious to me, and speaks of a mean-spiritedness that I frankly thought these chefs were above.  Why didn't anyone clue her in about the mix beforehand, too?  I thought we valued contestants that helped other contestants, not let them swing in the breeze and then make a spectacle of them, unless something changed overnight when I wasn't looking.

[BusyOctober]

I think Adrienne is the only female I've liked for the past few weeks.

Kelsey is smug and as a superiority complex.  If I had to hear her say "BOOO-Yawn" one more time in the QF, my tv may not have escaped damage.  And she loses points for boo-hooing about leaving her baby behind to pursue her dream all to make his life better.  I get being homesick or missing family, but these contestants CHOSE to leave their family.  For whatever reason - fame, fortune, career advancement- YOU made the decision to pack you knives and get on the plane.  Tom & Padma didn't kidnap you from your bed, Ninja style in the middle of the night.  So just shut it about your 'sacrifices'! 

Sara is a smug, know it all with an abrasive personality IMO.  Rolled my eyes so hard at hearing her 'poor widdle me' whine fest in the stew room.  When Adrienne was explaining she thought it was all in good fun, and called Sara "Mamma...", and Sara sniped back, "Don't call me 'Mamma'!!! Call me SARA!"...I was like, "oh no you didn't.  'Bye girl.

And Michelle, although she seemed sweet & is talented, girl has a voice that had me scrambling for the mute button on my remote every week.  

[FormerMod-a1]

MOD NOTE: Let's leave the cultural appropriation conversion out of this thread. It's a debate for elsewhere in the net-verse.

[AriAu]

Quote

To your first paragraph, I think this is where Sara's point in the stew room is relevant. All the "using the crowd" thus far has been positive - trying to use the crowd to support your own dish, rather than use the crowd to rag on an opponent's. That's a big difference, and I think any chef probably would have been shaken by that abrupt change in tenor. Since it happened to her, who a lot of viewers already don't like, the whole thing feels a little less sympathetic.

To your second, I'm pretty sure there was another sentence after the one you quoted where Adrienne did in fact point the hypothetical finger towards Sara. And I have no issue with that, honestly. The thing I think was regrettable was the white team whipping up the crowd with a chant about Sara's food, especially since a) she wasn't going up against the other chicken and waffle maker anyways (and guess what! that person on your team just lost their match!), and b) it was already pretty clear Eric's dish was going to beat hers by a mile.

I agree with this but want to add that clearly this group, while not best buddies, seem to have made some pact to stick together and play nice in the sandbox, as evidenced by their comments when Brother joined the house. I am emphasizing the "seem" part since they havent said this, but certainly have acted that way. Therefore, Adrienne's comment was beyond "good natured ribbing" since it was to the judge, was behind Sara's back and was NOT about working together. Sara's mistake was using a mix as her base AND, most importantly, not making good waffles. If she had said "I used the mix as a base since time was short, I was at my budget yada yada, but it was only the base-I added all kinds of seasonings and ingredients to make it special..." she would have been ok IF they were good waffles, but they were not. It's not like when Kwame used pre-made waffles a few years back. She made the batter and the waffles....they just were not good. She also choked when confronted and did not have the good answer that she had later on about adding stuff to the mix.

Adriene's response was kinda wormy in the junior high sense of the word...calling her by a pet name after throwing her under the bus was childish...she should have stood behind her comment and not tried to kiss up after she DID throw her under the bus.

Quote

When will Sara go home? She's becoming Lisa Fernandes V2.0. Unpleasant, untalented, ungone.

No, no she isn't the gorgon. Sara is quite talented and has made excellent dishes, unlike Lisa Fernandez, who was basically the 2nd worst a lot. 7 weeks in a row in the bottom..... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Top_Chef_(season_4)

Sara is just not as good as the game she talks...but is plenty good. The judges loved her chicken this week and have liked many of her dishes.  Plus, unlike Lisa Fernandez, the other cheftestants seem to like and respect her.  

Edited February 11, 2019 by AriAu

[Rai]

Trash talk in a basketball setting seemed totally appropriate to me, and Sara needs to toughen up a bit. But I get why she feels humiliated. It's just she could've laughed it off (although if she'd gone home, I'd be more sympathetic, I guess, it just seemed like her fear of going home made her oversensitive). 

Still rooting for Eric. Still rooting for Kelsey too. And now I'm rooting for Michelle to come back from LCK.

I actually don't have much to say about this episode, but the preview for next week made me tear up unexpectedly. Muhammad Ali tribute? I love it. Don't know what he has to do with Top Chef, really, but any excuse to honor the Greatest is fine by me.

Lastly, I'm not sure how I feel about Padma's braids, but the reasons why Black communities historically have been torturing themselves with hair straighteners and skin bleachers are rooted in unfair beauty standards and white supremacy, so calling that cultural appropriation is so far off the mark, it's mind-boggling. 

Edited February 11, 2019 by Rai
Word choice

[Eulipian 5k]

9 hours ago, Yeah No said:

especially when doing so might give her an advantage over that person in a competition

Cheating to gain an advantage is wrong. Seeking an advantage is the whole point of all competitions. Slipping a depressant in Eddie's coffee would be seeking an unfair advantage; like stealing someone's pea puree or Bro. Luck-ishly hiding an ingredient from a competitor, LOL.

(It's the second incident where a chef blames somebody else for how their food is received, did somebody de-bone these chefs?). Taste, presentation, and technique are the judging criteria here folks.

[AriAu]

Quote

I actually don't have much to say about this episode, but the preview for next week made me tear up unexpectedly. Muhammad Ali tribute? I love it. Don't know what he has to do with Top Chef, really, but any excuse to honor the Greatest is fine by me.

Ali is from Louisville...but other than that, he has no connection to TC that I know of.

[carrps]

12 minutes ago, AriAu said:

Ali is from Louisville...but other than that, he has no connection to TC that I know of.

I assumed that's why he's the focus of the upcoming episode.

[Eulipian 5k]

6 minutes ago, AriAu said:

Ali is from Louisville...but other than that, he has no connection to TC that I know of. 

Ali was once refused service with a "I'm sorry we don't serve Negroes" His rejoinder was "That's okay, I don't eat them!". That makes him the People's Top Chef" , in my book! I think his daughter Leila (sp?) did a cooking channel show once.

[Yeah No]

54 minutes ago, Eulipian 5k said:

Cheating to gain an advantage is wrong. Seeking an advantage is the whole point of all competitions. Slipping a depressant in Eddie's coffee would be seeking an unfair advantage; like stealing someone's pea puree or Bro. Luck-ishly hiding an ingredient from a competitor, LOL.

(It's the second incident where a chef blames somebody else for how their food is received, did somebody de-bone these chefs?). Taste, presentation, and technique are the judging criteria here folks.

I don't know, these are not the ethical standards I have seen expected of contestants on this show here in the past.  Suddenly  the rules changed and I didn't get the memo.  Speaking of competitions and sportsmanship, what Adrienne said was at best snotty and poor sportsmanship, and that is not a good look on anyone on "Top Chef" in my opinion.  I suppose if I were being considered for a promotion it is now considered OK for me to insinuate to my boss that the others I am competing with for the position, who I know and work with, are not as good as I am because they are using shortcuts and I am not.  None of my bosses would have thought that showed good sportsmanship, and I likely would not have gotten the position on that basis, but I guess the world has changed when I wasn't looking.

The point is, I thought we expected the chefs to get ahead on their own merits, not by comparing themselves to anyone else in any derogatory way.

Edited February 11, 2019 by Yeah No

[carrps]

12 minutes ago, Yeah No said:

I don't know, these are not the ethical standards I have seen expected of contestants on this show here in the past.  Suddenly  the rules changed and I didn't get the memo.  Speaking of competitions and sportsmanship, what Adrienne said was at best snotty and poor sportsmanship, and that is not a good look on anyone on "Top Chef" in my opinion.  I suppose if I were being considered for a promotion it is now considered OK for me to insinuate to my boss that the others I am competing with for the position, who I know and work with, are not as good as I am because they are using shortcuts and I am not.  None of my bosses would have thought that showed good sportsmanship, and I likely would not have gotten the position on that basis, but I guess the world has changed when I wasn't looking.

The point is, I thought we expected the chefs to get ahead on their own merits, not by comparing themselves to anyone else in any derogatory way.

I'm sorry, but I'm having a hard time finding anything Adrienne did that was snotty. She was asked, and she answered.

It has been a looooooooooong tradition on Top Chef that shortcuts like this are really looked down on, and Tom hates them. I'm just not seeing any nefarious skullduggery here at all. Sara is the one who has been snotty the entire season.

Edited February 11, 2019 by carrps

[bad things are bad]

On 2/9/2019 at 1:14 AM, mlp said:

The whole elimination challenge had a phony feel like the extravaganzas Gordon Ramsay is so fond of on Hell's Kitchen.  I'm sure the cooking was legit but the crowd, the jumbotron, the cheerleaders .................. overkill.

So much this. I HATED that whole charade. I sympathize with Sara being called out and the "fans" being riled up basically to cheer against her. 

[Eulipian 5k]

What happened to the show where the challenges were the food? Like "gooey duck" or the black chicken or even Stefan's trick with removing eel skin? (And I don't mean "Ch*pped's fish fingers and custard baskets). The twists should involve knowledge of food not kitchen appliance repair.

[carrps]

1 minute ago, Eulipian 5k said:

What happened to the show where the challenges were the food? Like "gooey duck" or the black chicken or even Stefan's trick with removing eel skin? (And I don't mean "Ch*pped's fish fingers and custard baskets). The twists should involve knowledge of food not kitchen appliance repair.

Yeah, what is the deal this season with all the equipment failures? It's not like they're in a Third World country.

[Totale]

1 hour ago, Eulipian 5k said:

Ali was once refused service with a "I'm sorry we don't serve Negroes" His rejoinder was "That's okay, I don't eat them!".

That was Dick Gregory, but it's still cool that they are going to the Ali center, one of the major attractions in Louisville.

[Eulipian 5k]

6 minutes ago, Totale said:

1 hour ago, Eulipian 5k said:

Ali was once refused service with a "I'm sorry we don't serve Negroes" His rejoinder was "That's okay, I don't eat them!".

That was Dick Gregory, but it's still cool that they are going to the Ali center, one of the major attractions in Louisville. 

Heh, thx for the correction. I don't think Dick Gregory (RIP) would approve of the TC diet, LOL.

[Tikichick]

Sara was all kinds of committed to her decision to use the package mix in the store -- proudly told the camera that she'd take that shortcut everyday.  Clearly someone in production raised that issue with her in the store to elicit a comment.  I think it's likely Tom was fishing to find out if Adrienne was the culprit because he was clearly tipped off before walking into the kitchen.

Adrienne's initial critique after the tasting was that her chicken and her waffles were great.  Then by the time they were said and done with both teams they edged up the drama by stating Sara's chicken was phenomenal, it was just a shame her waffles let the dish down.