Top Chef - S4E11 Postmortem

Too bad. Season four just simultaneously got less interesting and more annoying.

He earned it, though.

UPDATE: Looking at a lot of the comments below, I'm not sure the calculus on the dishes made by Dale and Lisa is entirely correct -- both in who made what and how it was received. I will endeavor to straighten this out by Monday.

UPDATE 2: See, the nice thing about it being my blog is that my comments are right at the top :-) In any case, while people are angry and conspiracy theories are flying again, given how many people below insist they won't be watching the rest of the season, allow me to pose this question: If this was, indeed, an effort to stack the finals with female contestants (ostensibly to help ratings), as many have suggested, doesn't eliminating one of the favorites and alienating their audience seem like an awfully strange way to go about it? Or does logic not figure into the equation? :-)

UPDATE 3: And really, does Anthony Bourdain strike ANYBODY as the kind of guy to be in on a fix?

UPDATE 4: Another common sentiment seems to be that, even under the presumption that the show is completely on the up-and-up, Dale not making the finals somehow invalidates Top Chef's value as a contest of culinary skill. I understand the frustration, but that's rather overblown, don't you think? It's no different than any sport. The best team doesn't always win. If it did, that would be boring. I've been as big a believer in Dale as anybody, and I stand by my assessment of his skills. But he caught a bad break and then compounded that with some bad decisions. Whether Lisa was more deserving of the ouster for this challenge is certainly a legitimate topic of debate (I don't think anybody is arguing that she isn't the weaker chef in the grand scheme), but it isn't as though Dale was arbitrarily selected for the axe. He did plenty to bring it on himself.

Comments

[Andy]

I'm extremely aggravated with the judges' decision, if Lisa had been "executive chef" I'm sure the result would be much different. She needs to go. Not only does she produce mediocre food, her attitude is appalling.

[Gilby]

And Dale's attitude was great? It's not Top Attitude. It's Top Chef! Get it through your head!

Yeah, Lisa's food sucked. No argument. But if Dale had pulled off livable scallops he'd still be around. There was nothing the judges could use to keep him around.

Now. As for interesting. Big time win for Steph. As much good as was going on with that team, she rocked the front of the house and was responsible for the two biggest successes in terms of recipes. And looked cute enough to maybe capture some fan support from those that insisted that this season had nothing in terms of attractive women.

[musicalcolin]

And we are stuck with Lisa AND Spike. Gah!! I have to say that from the moment Antonia picked her team I felt very very worried for Dale. Is anyone else starting to wonder if they punish people who step up. I mean Dale may I have deserved it (I really don't know) but even Bourdain said that the only reason Spike was ok was because he was hiding in the front of the house.

[DaveP]

Well, like some of us have been speculating, I can't say I was too surprised. In fact, the moment Antonia won the QF and her prize was announced, I knew Dale was doomed. And really, what's up with a team challenge this late into the game?

Correct me if I'm wrong, but of the 6 dishes Mai Buddha produced, 4 of them were Dale's, 2 were Lisa's. Spike provided the recipe for the braised shortribs, but Dale executed them, right? So Dale made the horrific scallops, but the potstickers, ribs & halo halo went over very well, so 3 out of 4 vs... rice pudding (or baby vomit, or whatever Bourdain had to say about it) and smoked chicken soup. And Lisa stays. And she's been on the chopping block how many episodes in a row now?

These last episodes are going to be painful to watch knowing that either Lisa or Spike will be going on to the final rounds and Antonia will most likely get into the final episode. The only piece of vindication will come when either Richard or Stephanie (gratz to her on the win btw, great job!) win it all, because the other three don't have a chance. Ugh.

[Tim]

"... And the wheels on the bus go grinding Dale down, go grinding Dale down..."
Wow. This season is winding down more painfully than season 2. Ugh! What gives with such a wide divide in talent to let the QF winner pick their teammates? As far as I'm concerned, the Elimination round was decided in 'the Hole.' The only thing Dale could have done was to do what Spike did, and play to lose by letting Lisa assume control of the train wreck - er, kitchen. But, as much as I dislike his lack of respect for others, Dale had too much professionalism not to make a whole-hearted effort. He has my respect for that.
But Dale did bring this on himself by alienating potential teammates in past episodes. If anything, there's a cautionary tale in this, of how important it is in any endeavor to cultivate - or at least negotiate - professional relationships. I'm sure we've all been saddled with people we can't get along with at one time or another. But to be professional and successful, we've got to manage the good and the bad.
OMG! Am I preaching? Sorry.

[Skillet Doux]

This was definitely an episode where we could use some more context, but I'm worried we might not get it. Gail and Ted are both out for the week and Tom wasn't there, leaving Bourdain, Lee Anne and possibly a little information from Andres. We'll have to wait and see what happens, though.

Gilby has it on the nose, though, and that was exactly my thought. Much will be made of his leadership issues, but if the scallops are good, he's still around. That's what killed him. He picked the wrong time to blow a dish.

[Scott]

I honestly do not even want to watch the rest of this season knowing how crappy the remaining contestants are. How undeserving. The judges aren't even brave enough to weather the blogs on bravotv.com. They know they screwed up.

[Rosedel]

I'm disappointed in Dale for not stepping up and make great food like he usually does. I'm aggravated that Lisa and Spike are still there and for Lisa to say that this is the first time that she actually messed up with her food is just unbelievable.

I'm really hoping they'd do a double elimination and get rid of Lisa and Spike altogether. Attitudes aside, I think they're not in the same caliber as Richard and Stephanie. Yes, I'm gunning for these two for the finals.

[Skillet Doux]

Respectfully, Scott, I think you need to come back at this one tomorrow :-)

Richard, Stephanie and Antonia are all very talented, and despite my well-documented annoyance with Antonia's lack of creativity, I still think those three would make for the most stacked finals to date.

And let's not go blaming the judges, here. Dale's the one who screwed up.

[Skillet Doux]

" I'm aggravated that Lisa and Spike are still there and for Lisa to say that this is the first time that she actually messed up with her food is just unbelievable."

That was, unquestionably, the howler of the season :-)

[Skillet Doux]

P.S. I'm liking this postmortem thread. Should we do this more often?

[Todd]

As far as I'm concered, this was BS on so many levels some of which have already been mentioned here:
1. Having an episode without Tom, Ted and Gail. It's called film a week later. Drastically changing the judging standards at this point in the game is absurd.
2. Allowing Antonia such a huge advantage for whatever she did better on the quickfire (it didn't look like Dale did much wrong, the tiebreaker seemed to be "poise"??? Or for all we know, the tiebreaker was gender.)
3. Keeping someone who could not execute a single dish well. As mentioned, Dale did 3 out of 4 right, which makes this a very different situation from last year where Tre's dishes were as much of a problem as his leadership.
4. What kind of leadership is Dale supposed to exhibit? The challenge is to put out six dishes. He knew that Lisa's two dishes sucked, he told her they sucked, and she was incapable of fixing them. Is he supposed to not let them go out? And then get sent home for being the leader of a team that couldn't produce their whole menu?

Restaurant wars is retarded in it's current form. Here's what they SHOULD do. Have restaurant wars for the final 4. Let EACH of remaining candidates be the team LEADER and then compare like with like. Let already eliminated chefs pick out candles and Buddhas. Otherwise you're going to just send home someone every year who has the gumption to take a leadership role and let hacks like Spike and Lisa continue on.

[Gilby]

" I'm aggravated that Lisa and Spike are still there and for Lisa to say that this is the first time that she actually messed up with her food is just unbelievable."

Yeah. I had just taken a nice big mouthful of beer when she said that. It was a very near thing, not spraying IPA all over the living room.

[kay]

The show definitely got less interesting. I'll probably skip the remaining episodes and just check in here for updates, because having to watch Lisa and K-Fed for another week might do me in.

[Steve]

I thought the compressed timetable for Restaurant Wars was just horrid. How's it any different than any other episode when they are robbed of the time to think it through, discuss it thoroughly, come up with a name, focus on atmosphere and menus and everything that goes into the restaurant experience? I was nothing like watching someone live out their dream or get their shot a dream but another quick and dirty exhaustion-fest.

[Steven]

ahhh sh*t... I was praying to God this would not happen.. I've never been so depressed after watching a TV show. Dale is an amazing chef and he'll definitely get his due.

[Brian]

If I had not seen the post before I watched the show (no Bravo on cable) I would have expected Dale to go home anyway tonight. Considering the judges are all about having the captain go down with the ship, the second Dale said he would be executive chef he should have packed his knives. Antonia's price for the QF was so powerful the second half of the show was pretty much useless apart from some delicious dishes from Richard and Stephanie.

[txc1010]

***sigh***

Dale, Dale, Dale....

I am going to tune out the rest of the reason and catch the finale. If Spike and the dyke are the two left standing in the finale, we know that the end of days are here....

[Dan]

Your writing and rankings continue to be fair and excellent, though I still have a lot of trouble with Antonia's utter lack of creativity and bitchy personality. Still, execution is important, and she appears to always execute very well.

I was sorry to see Andrew go, and I'm sorry to see Dale go - that being said, the judges just didn't really have any wiggle room in either case. I'm sure they were disappointed too, and irritated that the two obvious candidates for expulsion (Spike and Lisa) remain in competition.

Also, thank you Rosedel for pointing out Lisa's line. That girl is just deluded. I also enjoyed her comment about how Dale's mood is what brought hers down. When was she ever up?

I definitely agree with the other commenters - Antonia's advantage was just way too great with 2 absolute duds still left in competition, and was especially ridiculous considering the nature of Restaurant wars.

[Lonestar]

As much as I loathe Lisa and look forward to the day she goes home, Dale made several significant mistakes on this menu that stood out to me.

1.) The scallop dish seemed to be on par with the sticky rice as the worst dish of the evening.. butterscotch? comon.. Dale is innovative but that was just foolish

2.) Not holding Spike more accountable.. if Stephanie can amazingly bust out two very good dishes and still do the front of the house while Spike "conceptualized" one

3.) Allowing Lisa to continue with the Laksa instead of having her do it over with Spike's recipe. When 2/3 chefs can already tell a dish is poor, and the exec chef still lets it out.. bad decision

4.) Should have just scratched the Sticky Rice altogether.. he knew it was bad from the getgo.

Even the Halo Halo looked worse than last time. He needed to have Spike actually cook one dish, cancel one of Lisa's, and do all of his well.

Antonia I thought was very under appreciated this episode. Like it or not, she was the executive chef of arguably THE BEST restaurant in four seasons of this show.. not one dish was a disaster.. Bourdain didn't like the scallop dish a ton but the guest judge seemed to like it. That is a remarkable achievement. Stephanie might have deserved the win, but her lack of praise at the judge's table was unfortunate, thought she did a terrific job. Choosing that team was obviously a no brainer.

Hope Lisa goes home next week, she seems to be getting on people's nerves in the preview.

[Tom]

Add me to the list of people who think the QF reward was just too much. The only way the ED wouldn't have been an automatic victory for the QF winner was if Spike or Lisa won. What were the chances of that?

In the end, Dale's insistence on being the executive chef did him in. Too bad. It would have been really interesting to see what he put out in the finale.

[Karen]

Thank you for your comments. I got nothing from Bravo and this site is great.

[jonny]

Not that Dale didn't screw up with an entree with butterscotch, I'm going to conclude he was feeling so desperate working with those two, he felt he had to knock one of the park to have a chance at staying. I don't think he wanted to be executive chef either. Didn't they say there was a coin flip between him and Lisa and Dale won the flip which equals losing? Also the QF was Antonia by a nose w/Dale a close second so why didn't they just let Antonia have first pick and Dale second and so on to even out the talent?

Taking a conspiracy tack, could the producers have decided to have two women in the finals this year to give them a better chance at a woman winner given Casey's meltdown last year and this episode was the best chance to cull Dale?

[Wangus]

Boo to Dale's departure. I was a bit "happy" (read: felt justified) to see the tears though: I've constantly defended Dale's personality by saying that he (as he himself said last night) is a "hate him or love him" person. Look at the way he interacted with people like Jenn and Zoi in the past, Richard as well (even Mammo and Steph I think as well). There's definitely a connection made between him and other contestants much more than say Hung from last year.

A couple of comments:

Antonia's comment (two weeks in a row now) about Dale's only Asian cooking. Antonia? Please see Anthony Bourdain's comment of "Asia's a big place". Dale's shown a comfort with several, extremely varied, Asian cuisines (Curry, Halo Halo, and Lettuce Wraps are similar cuisines? I don't think so). It would be like Dale saying "oh, he/she only cooks food from Europe".

Judges decision: Sigh, it IS disappointing to see 'The Dragon' go, but I'm with Dom in that it wasn't completely out of line from the judges. It's similar to (though in my opinion possibly even more controversial than) Tre's departure last year. If Dale hadn't have botched the scallops, I don't think they could have sent him home. But since he did ... see ya.

Speaking of those scallops: From the judges' reaction, it was obvious they were bad (I think Bourdain even said they were the worst thing on the menu). However, I don't think people should immediately say it was a bad concept. People have done sweet/savory in harder mixtures before: chocolate and bacon being my most noted example. Butterscotch IS a hard flavor to pair with savory, but it would have had epic poems sung in its honor if it was done correctly. However, Dale's choice to go with such a risky dish is definitely a mistake. It probably would have been smarter to go simple: Scallops, eggplant, longbeans (I LOVE that Dale uses longbeans) with miso and black bean sauce or something similar. Let the miso lend that tiny bit of sweet against a savory sauce like the black beans (since the scallop itself has a definite sweeter taste).

[Jason]

Everyone is right that Dale bit it because of the scallops, but the idea of Spike *blech* or Lisa *double blech* advancing any further is anathema. She cannot cook, and she's a loathsome person to boot. I know Dale's attitude was poor, and he should suffer for that, but man, sometimes you can't fix a poor employee.

[anon man]

More context indeed needed. Ok, the Scallops sucked. But, Lisa handled the Lahksa which sucked and the sticky rice which also sucked. (Anyone else find it interesting that self-proclaimed Asian expert Lisa can't cook rice two weeks in a row? That's like a French expert not knowing how to use butter.)

Anyone know who made the Dumpling? That was the only thing other than the ribs (Spike) that was praised. So who made it, Lisa or Dale? The answer to that question should stay, IMHO.

So, assuming they take Spike or Lisa to the final four (and not just three), then we know that's the person who loses first.

Anyone else wonder that if Tom was there, he would have stood up for Dale as being more consistent than Lisa?

[DebbyT]

I'm very sorry Dale was sent home. His biggest problem was Lisa's negative attitude and her lack of respect. If he took the role of exec chef (and I'm sure she was pissed that she lost the coin flip) then she should have put her ego aside and listened to him. She did not, and Dale gets sent home. Y'think she had a plan???

[bill]

Argh. That hurts, but he did earn it.

Stephanie: sets up the front of the house, creates two winning dishes.

Spike: "I was busy hanging Buddhas."

He should have that tattooed to his forehead.

[bill]

Also, if we establish Nikki as the culinary Mendoza line, short of somehow winning the entire Show, Spike and Lisa will finish below her.

[Skillet Doux]

Ha!

The Cascone Line!

I love it :-)

[ArDoubleYou]

SD, I like your blog and think your rankings are well-reasoned, but I'm going to have to respectfully disagree with you that Dale deserved to go. As many have mentioned, he got 3 of 4 dishes right (or 2 of 3 if you leave out the short ribs). Lisa went 0 for 2. If he'd 86'd either of Lisa's dishes, he'd be gone. He was stuck between a rock and a hard place.

I think if you look back over the past few episodes, it's clear that the producers knew the outcome of this one wasn't going to go over well with viewers and, through editing, took every opportunity to make Dale look bad. He didn't make it easy for them, though -- he kept winning challenges. (It's also clear that they've been setting Antonia up for the finals. I'm sorry, but she hasn't made anything that wouldn't qualify as banquet food. Boooring. It's like she's executing dishes that culinary schools might use to test first-year students.)

I know it's silly to get upset about a tv show, but I care about food and the skill it takes to prepare it, and this show is, like it or not, the closest a lot of people will ever get to knowing what it's like to work in a high-end restaurant kitchen. That's why it bothered me to watch the chefs pack lunchboxes and feed kiddies, and that's why it bothers me so much that Lisa and Spike are still around while Dale -- either the most talented or second-most talented contestant, in my opinion -- goes home.

I've gotten frustrated with the show before when it veered too far from competition and too close to melodrama. But I can honestly say that, before now, I've never actually felt like the prospect of watching another episode sounded unpleasant.

Unfortunately, it's not exaggeration to say I'm done with it. I'll keep tabs on it through your really good blog and otherwise save myself an hour a week.

(Oh, and P.S., should I get a tinfoil hat if I find it a little convenient that all the official Bravo blogs are "on hiatus" this week?"

[Ben]

A quote from Lee Anne's Blog

"The fact that Dale refused to take responsibility as the Executive Chef, the role he so eagerly deemed himself, and for Lisa’s mistakes, got him sent home."

So in fact Dale was not really sent home for his food sure he had one bad dish and one successful dish out of 4 on the other hand Lisa was 0/2 and her usual happy self in the kitchen. There is no way Dale deserved to go this week and its getting painfully obvious they want to do everything possible to stack the odds for a female winner even if Richard is much more likely to win.

At this point I would honestly be surprized if spike doesn't get it next week no matter how undeserving Lisa might be.

[jc]

dale's biggest mistake? not letting lisa be exec chef on this challenge. he had to know this was going to end bad, and should have been smart like spike, stepped aside and let lisa drive herself into the ground.

[AJ]

I have NEVER been one for the conspiracy theories, because I think that's all very silly & there is way too much of judges table that we don't see for us to assume that the powers that be are playing with us.
BUT, last night the producers went out of their way to stack the deck before it ever went to the judges by letting Antonia pick her entire team first. It's ridic that they think a woman can't win without their assistance in conspiring to get rid of all the guys first. Dale had no chance the minute those teams were picked.
As an aside, I was so glad to have Bourdain back (esp. when he referred to himself as a sunnier version of Tom)

[Jake]

You know, I have to think having most of the regular judging panel gone had to hurt Dale. You know they count the whole season's performance to some degree, and I think they should.

That said, Lisa botched both of her dishes, and Dale created some successful dishes to go with an ambitious but failed pairing. I don't really see how you can fail all your dishes and stay.

I think Dale should get much respect for his exit interview and his reaction to being eliminated. He didn't bitch and moan like several others, but said, hey, I made some bad decisions, and that's what happens. He may be abrasive, but he takes responsibility where a lot of contestants have been trying to shift it off.

While I thought Dale was the only one who could beat Richard in the final, I'm still watching to see what Richard comes up with, and to see if Stephanie or Antonia can step up and give him at least a little run for his money. I do think it's a bit of a travesty that either Lisa or Spike will make the finals, but we've had some pretty lame finalists in the past, so that's not out of character.

[Magi]

I really think they should take into consideration a person's performance over the entire series. I know that wasn't possible with both Tom and Gail missing and two guest judges. Dale had a bad night, true, but he has been a consistently good chef. Personality issues aside, he's been inarguably one of the best three chefs in the competition.

Lisa, on the other hand, has proven over and over that she is not only a bad chef. She is a disagreeable person who refuses to take responsibility for her bad dishes. Spike is a coward who shirks his reponsibility by hiding behind others. That they remain when Dale is gone is nothing short of a travesty for Top Chef history.

[anon man]

One other wrinkle. One of the failed dishes: the sticky rice, Lisa deftly attempted to deflect on to Dale's shoulders. "I can't cook sticky rice! But that's Dale's fault!"

[Bill]

don't understand the negativity towards Antonia. Granted her comments on Asian cuisine are misguided, especially considering she works in L.A., but hardly cause for loathing.
Unlike some people I don't have the ability to look into her eyes and know her soul so I have to go by her performance and only Stephanie has more combined highs/wins. I get the sense people would be outraged if she won.
Why isn't her performance good enough to win? Her food is boring? The judges don't seem to think so and they are the ones that taste it.
I think she would be an excellent addition to most restaurant kitchens and she has a legitimate shot to win this.

[anon man]

Sorry, for the double post, but...

At judges table, Richard said he made the beet salad. Given that he 1) likes to use beets and 2) likes using Raz al Hanout, I assumed that was true. But, check out the Foxtail menu on the web, the dish, right down to the type of cheese used is right off the menu. Maybe Antonia is not so boring. Either that or she stole it from Richard and put it on the menu afterwards.

[Travis]

I love me some Tony Bourdain, but i cannot believe that Gail, Ted, and Tom all missed restaurant wars. That seems like a reason to give the contestants one or two days off and shoot the show at another time. Perhaps if the regular judges had been around they would have taken past performance into account and made a different decision. Lisa has now been on the bottom of NINE CONSECUTIVE CHALLENGES! This is just getting silly. And what's up with all of the official Bravo blogs not being up this week on the most controversial elimination of the season? I can't quit you Top Chef, but i really want to.

I was sad to see Dale go home. No doubt the guy made some mistakes but it was certainly kind of a perfect storm, and the cards were definitely stacked against him. Its especially heartbreaking because i felt the prize for winning the quickfire was WAY too big of an advantage and Dale came within a hair of winning the QF. Maybe it should have been that the winner got first pick, like in kickball in grade school, then the teams alternate. I don't know what Dale was thinking being executive chef, he should have just stayed back, and execute his assignments well. Instead he decided to take a leadership role and tried to hit one out of the park and wiffed with that scallop dish. He certainly made mistakes, and i respect the judges' decision, but Lisa screwed up everything she touched, which, when combined with past performance would have had me sending her home. But as many have said, if Dale nails those scallops, he's still around.

One more thing: if Dale got sent home because he was the leader of the weaker team shouldn't they give the victory to Antonia who led the stronger team? Now i like Steph much better than Antonia (at least we've heard the end of her complaining about Dale only doing Asian), and i was happy to see Steph get a much needed win and confidence boost, but for the sake of consistency shouldn't the win go to Antonia? Otherwise contestants have no motivation to step into leadership roles.

Lisa was her usual bitchy self. With every show i grow to like her less and less. The judges are obviously on to her attitude problems so in the words of Dale, "Why is she still here?" Her inability to take criticism and accept responsibility for her actions drives me nuts! K-Fed, errr- Spike was again a slimy and manipulative contestant who is obviously not playing to win, but just to stay around as long as possible. Spike and Lisa are driving me nuts. How about some double elimination action? You are the weakest link. GOOD BYE!

[DaveP]

Please do more of these post-mortems. It's torture waiting until Monday after the show to see the new power rankings and it's good to vent, esp. after an epsidoe like this. :)

Richard, Steph & Antonia might be a stronger lineup than Hung, Dale & Casey (though at a lower altitude & a 100% Casey, I might give the nod to S2), but Richard, Dale & Steph would've definitely been the deepest ever at the finals. I'm still really down on Antonia (another "Asian-ony Dale" comment--I wonder if she caught Bourdain's, "Asia is really big," retort) and don't think she can match up with the S3 finalists when all are given complete culinary freedom.

BTW, I've heard from a few sources that butterscotch & scallops is a legit flavor combination in Vietnamese cuisine. I never had it myself, and obviously Dale screwed the pooch on that one, but I don't think it was a conceptual failure. Well, other than the fact that they were expecting to find good Asian ingredients at Whole Foods alone.

[meg]

~ if it were based on how well the chefs performed on individual per-episode challenges, stephanie should've been sent home a few episodes ago for bad dishes. she wasn't, and rightly so, because she had been performing well on other dishes. yet dale, who doesn't perform well on ONE dish, is sent home. he only appeared as the bad leader "in front of the judges" because of accusations from lisa (who we know can lie to drag others down) and spike. he offered feedback on their dishes and restaurant layout. i HOPE that the judges, by watching this episode, see how he clearly performed the responsibilities of a leader. he tried to work with both of them; they didn't with him (all they did was complain).

~ and so what if he complained about them off-camera? at least he'd set aside personal differences while getting the job done in order to get the job done FIRST. he IS all about the food (the tears only further emphasize his passion for his job).

~ despite what people say (leanne, for example), i find it extremely unfair to just comment that he wasn't taking responsibility for lisa's dishes. didn't he offer his feedback to her? didn't he assist her with her dishes? didn't he cook spike's dish for him? dale said it himself he made some wrong decisions, but it is only just that he does not take credit for bad actions/dishes he wasn't responsible for. again, lisa and spike keep blaming him, and the poor guy has to defend himself. how easy it is just to say that the chef has to be on top of everything. as for the laksha(?), is it his entirely fault for trusting lisa and spike's recipe, and that he doesn't know what it is?

~ "careful" editing made it look like dale was a bad chef to deal with. however, it's apparent in his exit interview that he did bond with other chefs, and there were many times he has helped others (telling andrew about the missing equipment, helping with the bread that steph and jen made, getting richard some equipment). he makes attempts to apologize to lisa, and even hugs spike!

~ i find it really funny how most judges don't have a blog for this episode. i wish they would have some comments, just to see their side (or at least come up with a backbone to justify dale's ouster and to face the comments of bloggers). and even though it is THEIR palates that decide the result, the viewers have the benefit of seeing some of the behind-the-scenes story that the judges don't see. with this episode, i really hope the judges express at least some regret for letting dale go.

~ with dale himself, i'm SATISFIED by how he justified himself in his exit interview. somehow, he was able to answer all the statements some people/bloggers say about him (like he could tell what they would say beforehand - "love me or hate me", "i don't take criticism well, too", "i'm not the best, but i deserve to be in top3", "i will not be judged by a tv show"), as well as solidify his statement that he was only being true to himself and to others. nevertheless, like some, this will be the last top chef i will watch, and i am sorry that i will just rely on blog posts to see who will be the eventual winner of this season.

sorry for the long post. i simply HAD to get that off my chest.

[Sophia]

Dale has certainly aggravated me with his personality, but he bring talent to the kitchen. Is it just me or did anyone else notice Dale really attempting to tone down his arrogance and try hard to get through this as a team player?

sigh...things could have been so different if only Lisa had won that coin toss.

[wow]

not dale...

[Scott]

To atone for my previous comment, I do know that there are a lot of talented chefs left, but to me it's only Richard and Stephanie. I am not bought on the Antonia train, she might be technically sound but her dishes are just not high-end enough for me to notice. I think what bothered me about the judging of this episode (and the editing) is how they tried to paint Dale as a bad leader. They put in all his swearing, they put in all his fights with Lisa. They even got a judge who seems to care a lot about this teamwork aspect of it. I don't know why but in the exit interviews Dale said that it was funny to be eliminated by the spanish cook. I don't know what this means, but I took it to be that he's not entirely respectable.

But you know, I got to point this out, what annoyed me about this season is if you watch earlier episodes, Dale is ALWAYS ignored. I am 100% sure there were at least 2 quickfires where his dish wasn't even shown tasted by the judges nor was he shown commenting on his cooking during elimination. In fact, during one of Tom's walk through of the kitchen, he totally ignored Dale as well. I have no idea why, but I find this entirely sickening. It's like a horrible monopoly, you have to watch this show but the producers are just screwing you up.

My comment about the judging was the fact that you can clearly see a lot of emotions written on these judges faces. Padma clearly just looks like she detests Dale and the guest judge and Bordain are disappointed in his leadership/teamwork qualities. I know he screwed up on the scallop dish, but the editors made his leadership the main issue. I think my point is that, unlike Tre last season, this group of chefs were set up for failure and I think the producers should have done something about that. You just get a feeling that the producers wanted to throw Dale under a bus. I would like to see someone tell me how exactly Antonia beat Dale in the quickfire. I know a lot people said this episode hinged on a coin toss, I think this episode hinged on the quickfire guest judge and how Antonia was better than Dale.

Dale went home because of conceptualization and a bit of execution, while Lisa stays when she could not even cook Mango Rice correctly. As Ted clearly states, her knife work was terrible. It's not that I love Dale and hate Lisa, (I really thought Lisa would eventually step up because I always thought she had skills), it's just that I am a bit disheartened by what this show has become.

BTW: I think season 3's final three of Hung, Dale, and Casey were EXTREMELY talented, and I actually thought they were all equally ranked as to beat each other in the final episodes. This season, it's Blaise all the way.

[Elise]

I'll join the conspiracy theorists here. When Padma said "I think our choice is clear...(or something very similar)" I think she meant, this is the only chance we're going to have to get rid of Dale.

Do I like to think the judges purposely left Lisa in place to knock Dale out of the competition, thus making it that much easier for one of the ladies to win? No. I hate the idea that Bourdain or Ted Allen would be involved in such a thing. But, if you've got a tie vote, who wins? Do the producers get to have a say then?

What I'm finding especially fascinating is that Tom didn't judge, Padma and Ted won't blog about judging, and so far Tony and the guest judge haven't had anything to say either. I don't remember everyone going into hiding after they axed Tre.

What bothers me most about this is that Dale made the only good dishes we saw from that team. (Granted, Spike's the creator of the ribs, so I don't think he'd deserve a space on the chopping block either. He may not have cooked, but at least he had a good idea.) But Lisa muffed everything she touched. And, Ted Allen has said that they do consider past performance if it's close between two contestants. So, how bad could those scallops have been? We didn't see anyone spitting them out. I mean compared to "baby vomit with wood chips?" Granted butterscotch and scallops sounds pretty awful to me, but so does over smoked sour chicken soup.

Oh well, I didn't taste it. They really could have been that bad, and the editors were working over time to make it look like there was a chance Lisa might go home so as to increase tension. But really, talk about an episode where getting a chance to get into the heads of the judges would have been helpful!

[Jason]

Man, I'm disappointed. Had a feeling it was going to happen after reading the Power Rankings and comments yesterday, and dreaded watching the episode. When the first thing to be judged on the winning team was positive, I knew it was Dale.

A few points-

- I, too, find it troubling that none of the judges are blogging this week. But I find it more troubling that Tom wasn't there for this one. Anthony is one of my favorite judges, and I don't doubt his integrity, but I can't help feel that Tom would have provided some insight on the performances as a whole (for the season) when making his decision.

- I didn't really think about the fact that Antonia's narrow win in the QF was such a huge advantage in the scheme of things. Definitely screwed Dale in the end though.

- I almost broke my tv when Lisa fessed up to her "first screwup". I hate her, I really do. I wouldn't serve her if she came into my restaurant. And Spike...I tire of the fact that he seems to advance more because he "plays the game" than he does for any actual cooking. I still say he should have gone home last week for the lame chicken salad that my cat could make. And his little smirks and smiles irritate me to no end.

- All of this said, Dale did enough to justify being sent home. It's upsetting, because he was really the only person I could see unseating Richard...and it would have made the finals incredibly compelling. I can't say I won't watch, because it would just be hyperbole and false bravado, but I'm not as interested at this point, because it's no longer a show about the best overall chef, and the winner seems a foregone conclusion (and if Richard doesn't win, who would be happy with that?)

Rock on Dale, I'd love to get a chance to eat some of your food one day. You have supplanted Sam for the title of "Best Top Chef contestant to be sent packing too soon" in my eyes.

[Beatrice]

Love this blog. Dom's work is outstanding but the comments also are well above average.

A few thoughts: one thing to keep in mind is that this is not a test to determine who is the most talented chef, but a series of entertaining competitions to determine who can win the title of Top Chef. If it were the former, they could simply have everyone prepare a dish to the best of their ability each week, and then pick whose was the best and the worst until they had discovered who was the best chef. That would be fair, but would make for boring television.

I find myself asking these questions:

Given her choice of teammates, did Antonia pick Richard and Stephanie based purely on who were the most talented chefs left, or on whom she wanted to work with? If Dale had not earned his reputation for flying off the handle and hitting lockers, might he have found himself on the Dream Team instead of Stephanie?

If Richard had been stuck on a team with Spike and Lisa, do you think there is any way Richard would have been the one sent home?

I am sorry to see Dale go, especially after his graceful and emotional last words. I agree with those who think a Richard and Dale finale would have been awesome. But he is not an innocent victim. He made mistakes and unfortunately they proved to be his undoing.

[Bill]

(and if Richard doesn't win, who would be happy with that?)

Me, I'm perfectly content with Richard, Stephanie or Antonia winning. They're all very good. Stephanie and Antonia both have more highs/wins than Richard. Why is he considered so superior?

[Al Fahores]

As far as making nice with your teammates -- if I remember correctly Dale once took the high road and apologized for his behavior only to get blown off. I've certainly got more respect for him as a person than Lisa and Spike.

About re-doing some of the courses -- I doubt they had enough ingredients to start over from scratch. And it's not like they would have had the time or the budget to run back to WholeFoods. Seems like 86-ing the dishes would have been the only option. What other options are there? It's not like you can crush up some of the decor and plate it.

Let's see, Dale screws up the halo halo, becomes pissed off, and fights to fix it. Lisa screws hers up and then blames the exec chef since the food is ultimately his responsibility. And Spike moves on without actually *cooking* anything. I understand while Dale was picked. But I'm also in the camp that thinks all three should have been cut.

Meanwhile, my money's now on Dale to be part of the winner's team in the final, either for Richard or Stephanie.