I enjoyed this episode even more than the last one. Very edifying, actually. Not the food per se---The Food is always a mystery on these shows; but the teamwork and skill and discipline: even an a-hole like me can't help but be affected by these scary peeks at real Pros in action free of the obligatory clay ducks the regular Top Chef front-loads the show with.
(Of course the RIDICULOUS (ahem!)"lack of burners" in the EC kitchen was obviously the work of Andy Cohen's Hateful Turd Children. *sigh!* & g-dammit!)
I was irritated by this episode. You throw 11 professionals into a microscopic kitchen with only 6 (or was it 9) burners. And then stagger the times so that one set of chefs has not completed cooking before another set begins.
To any TC producers reading this blog -- STOP doing crap like that!! These are supposed to be "Masters". I want them to live or die by their food, not by some substandard kitchen or stupid gimmick.
Anyone else find it a little fishy that the guy who probably would've been sent home last week—if the diners had agreed with the critics—is suddenly gone and Acheson has returned?
I haven't gotten too familiar with the contestants, but wasn't that the guy who said his wife was pregnant with twins and he was recovering from cancer? When they said he went home because of an emergency, I figured it could have been either of those things.
I'm out for the rest of this season. The hamstringing that the Elves are inflicting on the chefs outweighs the pleasure of seeing pros strut their stuff.
I'm not sure which was the the worst -- bringing in two celebrity judges, one who frankly admits that she hates the type of dish she's going to be judging and the other a person who claims to be " a classically trained chef, herself" but who can't tell the difference between fennel and dill, and who refuses to eat the bread component of a sandwich and dismisses the part she did eat as "too salty"; or the conditions the chefs had to work under in the elimination.
There's "throw them a curve ball to see how well they can cope" and there's "Make things miserable to the point of nearly impossible, for no good reason". This was the latter.
I understand all the reasons why this show is frustrating, but there is at least one reason I will continue to watch - Survir. That guy is a hoot! "When I drop an onion, I see my beautiful shoes and I smile that my life is not so bad after all" (or something similar.) I may need to add that to my Facebook quotes!
I'm having to change over to rabrab's side. I think the pleasant soma of just having watched America's Next Top Model affected my score for TCM upwards.
I too haven't watched- just no interest. BUT, on another note, I just read that Carla Hall is going to be on a new ABC show with Mario Batali called "The Chew"! Congrats, Carla, I'll be tuning in.
I think you should keep them going if you're up for it. Or take a break if you're feeling burned out.
Then again you could try following Top Chef Canada assuming you can find a place to check it out online. Only 1 ep out so far but its looking pretty good.
dominic: how about making this and top chef canada topics for the off-season section?
i haven't watched the 2nd episode of tcm3, either.
i watched the first episode of tc canada and was pretty happy to see my home town (toronto) but ... i'm not sold on it ... the first ep was okay ... a blueberry rub, pancakes with salmon, seal flippers, scallops three ways ... the women look strong but, of course, there are only three of them ... it looks a little more straightforward than tcm3, more about the food. so, i'll tune in for the second episode. for americans who're interested, the episodes will no doubt be on torrent sites ...
Thanks for the Daily Motion TC Canada link. It was good. No spoilers but the gay guy married to his mini-me was funny. Also the women immediately going all girls v. boys can only be chalked up to editing 25%. (I thought Canadian women were more post-liberation than that. Must be a North American disease endemic north of the Rio Grande and south of Baffin Bay.)
"What do you say, folks... do we pull the plug on TCM postmortems and reconvene when Top Chef S9 comes around?"---skilletdoux
I vote for keeping the TCM postmortems. I'm sure a suitable soap opera storyline will emerge that your regular foodie commentators will be able to sink their teeth into.
:0)
"No spoilers but the gay guy married to his mini-me was funny."
I had similar thoughts about the gay guy and spouse, except I wasn't listening and thought it was his lil brother or something. That couple, on the surface anyway, seems too similar.
"Also the women immediately going all girls v. boys can only be chalked up to editing 25%."
I wouldn't be surprised if the girls v boys thing was started by the interviewer.
"I wouldn't be surprised if the girls v boys thing was started by the interviewer."---Quoll
True. If only the fish hook were met by an icy stare. Or a roll of the eyes. Or a suppressed laugh.
"I will continue watching as long as John Currence is on. Giving Mississippi a good name as he did so well this past week."---gilmour
I agree. *cue Dixie* Plus Currence wears a nice hygienic do' rag while in the kitchen, whereas everyone else, with an eye to Food-Star plastic banana teevee traditions, is flopping their filthy hair over the diners' plates like idiots.
I know I seem to be in the minority here, but I'm kind enjoying TCM as I get to know some of the chefs better. In viewing the two episodes of TCM thus far, and the upcoming preview, I can already see it's shaping up for Chef Naomi Pomeroy from Beast in Portland to be a pot stirrer of drama.
I'll have to check out TC Canada at that daily motion link. Thanks.
I am tuning out for the rest of Top Chef Masters. The Elves seem to have adopted the same strategy that hamstrung All Stars. 'We have a much more talented pool of contestants; let's make the challenges so inherently limiting they are designed to product failure.' No thanks.
Dom -- Wasting your time ranking these chefs for the handful of us paying any attention is unnecessary, but if you could spare a corner and just open a venue for us few to whine and complain, that would be nice -- and ample.
These are great chefs, and it is a pleasure to watch them work -- despite the cretins judging, the moronic editing, and the hassles thrown up by the Elves.
I honestly don't know whether the "I'm out" will stick. I did enjoy watching the chefs work, and some of the dishes they made did make me go "I want to try that!" While I was angry when the episode was over, I was angry for the chefs, not about them.
I think I'm with Duffy; it's nice to have a quiet corner to talk about it, but there's no need or reason for rankings or dissection entries if you don't feel like doing them.
Coming in pretty late on this, but I just wanted to cast my vote for keeping the postmortem entries for TCM.
Also: I was pretty irritated by the quickfire celeb judge, Kelis, especially when she couldn't tell fennel from dill, but in retrospect, it is pretty amazing how often the Top Chef contestants fail to identify seemingly obvious ingredients during those blind tests.
And I don't know if Naomi Pomeroy is getting the villain edit this season, but I was dying to visit Beast before watching her on the show; now, not as much. With everything else I've heard about the rigid policies there, and the control-freak vibe I'm getting from Pomeroy, I get a bad feeling it would be an oppressive experience despite the whole rustic, communal-table thing. I'd be delighted to be wrong, though.
I finally caught episode 2 today and it wasn't half-bad. It's apalling that one chef had to use a deep fryer while other chefs were allowed to execute the dish they planned but, other than kitchen issues, I liked it alright.
I don't blame Kellis for not recognizing the fennel -- I blame Curtis Stone for not saying that it's fennel. She's a singer who (the show says) went to cooking school; He's supposedly a professional chef, the bloody host of the show and tasting alongside her.
As for Christina Hendricks, I loved every time she took a jab at the show for forcing her to eat yet another 60's inspired meal. Calling out the producers on-camera for lack of originality = comedy.
Mahalo... Sorry, it's been totally off my radar. I haven't even watched since the premiere. I was going to put up the postmortem last week, but then I forgot since I wasn't watching, and by the time I remembered I could see that there was no discernable traffic spike at all (while the shows are on, I have massive spikes on Thursday GMT). So I assumed nobody was watching and didn't bother. If you guys are still watching and want to jabber, maybe I'll toss up a post with a link or something like that. Bug me one more time if you'd like that. Sound off!
Dom, I am watching intermittently and the quality of the chefs makes it entertaining; albeit not as entertaining as if Jay Rayner were still there and as if the production monkeys had not decided to attempt to hamstring the chefs.
There are also things occuring in the shows that you might find intriguing. For example, one of the chefs is a practicising buddhist who will cook meat but not taste it. Nor will he kill a live animal, even an insect. It is interesting watching a chef who has made the choices and distinctions that he has performing in the Top Chef environment.
Mea culpa, Dom. Jay Raynor is indeed missed by me. The present judges' decision to award itinerant game show contestant "Strike Two" Tio's "chalky", "under-flavored" puddin'(sic!) a win over Chef Currence's perfectly "fine" risotto was verrry verrry scwoowy. I tend to doubt that Raynor would not have pitched a fit over that even if he were out-voted in the end. As it were, we had "O.K." Oselund welcoming his former boy ward to the guest chair. Smoky-eyed looker, Restaurant Girl, is a noted flack and thus careful to remain mute in service to her prospectus. The Aussie is apparently resume puffer a'la Blais. Speaking of: (and God bless, Mike Voltaggio, and damn the cognitive dissonance) this is funny. (I hope the link works)_
Annex: To be clear, I vote for a weekly TCM thread. I am genuinely curious to see how far down the rabbit hole goes. Plus Suvir and Alice Waters-type Pomeroy are really talented and interesting. Pomeroy especially seems to rub people the wrong way. Her heirloom seed bank charity seems a bridge too far for the bleeding hearts. I, though, appreciate her failure to care what our public bleeding hearts think.
I hope if you keep the TCM post-mortem thread alive, there will be enough posters to make it worth your while. I'm starting to enjoy the competition, although it really is like TC All Stars, just with more experienced (and some renowned) chefs.
Me again. Upon second viewing I have to bump TCM up to an overall B+. The quality of food (minus Tio) is first-rate. So there *is* The Food. Plus "the bugs" challenge is now past tense.
So what's left to desire? Drama? It's supplied in the judging which might be heavily peopled by e-critics, but upon second viewing this has it's piquant charms and might make up for the lack of Toby Clowns in the TCM (as opposed to the TC) kitchen. For example, Oselund playing Dutch Uncle to Restaurant Girl and Boy Ward in regard to classically cooked vegetables, going gonzo on the whippersnappers' nouvelle cuisine herd mentality was rather funny. While Boy Ward's mere midget presence distracted me at first, upon review (Tivo) Restaurant Girl's hurt sideways glance at Dutch Uncle Oselund's chiding was, to me, worth 1000 words. So vulnerable and fetching! (Keep a' you eyes on Restaurant Girl!)
wow; to do that to such accomplished chefs was a sin; what a ridiculous EC. I think I have finally had more than enough of TCM. Good luck to the remaining chefs.
Yeah, the surprise fast food elimination challenge was a bit much, although I was a bit perplexed by some of the chef's dishes when they were explicitly told that the diners would not have utensils to eat. I can't stop watching TC Masters though, because I think I have fallen in love with Naomi.
This link to a blog on CNN sums up the problems with this season. This really has become just another season of regular old Top Chef. I don't watch a lot of TV, so this is one of my guilty pleasures and I will continue to watch, but I miss the old format which seemed to have more gravitas than the current season.
Losing the tournament format and scoring system really has hurt the show. The previous format was nice, because you had rounds with fewer chefs in each round, so there was more focus on each dish, and fewer opportunities for interpersonal drama. I also would imagine that it was easier to get master chefs onboard since there was less of a time commitment involved for individual chefs. This time around, you can see the chefs getting worn out, losing motivation, and generally not feeling the enthusiasm. This season certainly has the least energy of any Top Chef franchise season I've seen to date. If Masters comes back for another season, I certainly hope they'll wise up and go back to their original formula.
Also, while I'm grudgingly coming around on Naomi, I still think her charity is ridiculous, so I'm rooting against her.
Edward... Seed Saver Exchange? I don't know much about that particular organization, but if they are, as they appear to be at first glance, about preserving heirloom varieties, I can't understand what's ridiculous about that. If you buy one of the 3-4 available types of cardboard tomato at the grocery store and then go to a good farmers market where there are thirty varieties to choose from all with different flavors and textures, I'm puzzled that anybody would suggest ensuring the preservation of the latter isn't at the very least a laudable goal.
I enjoyed this episode even more than the last one. Very edifying, actually. Not the food per se---The Food is always a mystery on these shows; but the teamwork and skill and discipline: even an a-hole like me can't help but be affected by these scary peeks at real Pros in action free of the obligatory clay ducks the regular Top Chef front-loads the show with.
(Of course the RIDICULOUS (ahem!)"lack of burners" in the EC kitchen was obviously the work of Andy Cohen's Hateful Turd Children. *sigh!* & g-dammit!)
Posted by: bryanD | April 13, 2011 at 08:44 PM
I was irritated by this episode. You throw 11 professionals into a microscopic kitchen with only 6 (or was it 9) burners. And then stagger the times so that one set of chefs has not completed cooking before another set begins.
To any TC producers reading this blog -- STOP doing crap like that!! These are supposed to be "Masters". I want them to live or die by their food, not by some substandard kitchen or stupid gimmick.
Posted by: Dreamboat | April 13, 2011 at 10:28 PM
Anyone else find it a little fishy that the guy who probably would've been sent home last week—if the diners had agreed with the critics—is suddenly gone and Acheson has returned?
Posted by: Michelle | April 14, 2011 at 06:01 AM
I haven't gotten too familiar with the contestants, but wasn't that the guy who said his wife was pregnant with twins and he was recovering from cancer? When they said he went home because of an emergency, I figured it could have been either of those things.
Posted by: Nikki L | April 14, 2011 at 09:20 AM
I'm out for the rest of this season. The hamstringing that the Elves are inflicting on the chefs outweighs the pleasure of seeing pros strut their stuff.
I'm not sure which was the the worst -- bringing in two celebrity judges, one who frankly admits that she hates the type of dish she's going to be judging and the other a person who claims to be " a classically trained chef, herself" but who can't tell the difference between fennel and dill, and who refuses to eat the bread component of a sandwich and dismisses the part she did eat as "too salty"; or the conditions the chefs had to work under in the elimination.
There's "throw them a curve ball to see how well they can cope" and there's "Make things miserable to the point of nearly impossible, for no good reason". This was the latter.
Posted by: rabrab | April 14, 2011 at 11:23 AM
I understand all the reasons why this show is frustrating, but there is at least one reason I will continue to watch - Survir. That guy is a hoot! "When I drop an onion, I see my beautiful shoes and I smile that my life is not so bad after all" (or something similar.) I may need to add that to my Facebook quotes!
Posted by: wolfefan | April 14, 2011 at 01:37 PM
I'm having to change over to rabrab's side. I think the pleasant soma of just having watched America's Next Top Model affected my score for TCM upwards.
Posted by: bryanD | April 14, 2011 at 02:09 PM
I haven't even watched yet. What do you say, folks... do we pull the plug on TCM postmortems and reconvene when Top Chef S9 comes around?
Posted by: Skillet Doux | April 14, 2011 at 02:13 PM
I too haven't watched- just no interest. BUT, on another note, I just read that Carla Hall is going to be on a new ABC show with Mario Batali called "The Chew"! Congrats, Carla, I'll be tuning in.
Posted by: Karen B | April 14, 2011 at 06:12 PM
I think you should keep them going if you're up for it. Or take a break if you're feeling burned out.
Then again you could try following Top Chef Canada assuming you can find a place to check it out online. Only 1 ep out so far but its looking pretty good.
Posted by: Quoll | April 14, 2011 at 09:36 PM
Turns out that the show is presently viewable on its site for viewers everywhere. No telling for how long though.
For those interested -
http://www.foodnetwork.ca/topchefcanada/video/index.html
Posted by: Quoll | April 14, 2011 at 09:47 PM
dominic: how about making this and top chef canada topics for the off-season section?
i haven't watched the 2nd episode of tcm3, either.
i watched the first episode of tc canada and was pretty happy to see my home town (toronto) but ... i'm not sold on it ... the first ep was okay ... a blueberry rub, pancakes with salmon, seal flippers, scallops three ways ... the women look strong but, of course, there are only three of them ... it looks a little more straightforward than tcm3, more about the food. so, i'll tune in for the second episode. for americans who're interested, the episodes will no doubt be on torrent sites ...
Posted by: aaalex | April 14, 2011 at 09:48 PM
Just noticed that the above link isn't working too well. Luckily the ep is up on DM. Hope this helps the non-torrent using folk.
http://www.dailymotion.com/TopChefx#videoId=xi5bwv
Posted by: Quoll | April 14, 2011 at 10:06 PM
Top Chef Canada is looking interesting. Thanks for the link to the Daily Motions site!
Posted by: rabrab | April 15, 2011 at 12:38 AM
@NIKKI L - No, I think that was Alex Stratta—the guy who made the fricassee (sp) in the first episode. The guy who left was an older fellow.
Posted by: Michelle | April 15, 2011 at 11:56 AM
Thanks for the Daily Motion TC Canada link. It was good. No spoilers but the gay guy married to his mini-me was funny. Also the women immediately going all girls v. boys can only be chalked up to editing 25%. (I thought Canadian women were more post-liberation than that. Must be a North American disease endemic north of the Rio Grande and south of Baffin Bay.)
"What do you say, folks... do we pull the plug on TCM postmortems and reconvene when Top Chef S9 comes around?"---skilletdoux
I vote for keeping the TCM postmortems. I'm sure a suitable soap opera storyline will emerge that your regular foodie commentators will be able to sink their teeth into.
:0)
Posted by: bryanD | April 15, 2011 at 12:31 PM
I am sick of the celebrities on this and any other show.
The guest judges do not add to the show.
I will continue watching as long as John Currence is on. Giving Mississippi a good name as he did so well this past week.
Dom - I hope you keep the threads going - so we have a place to whine.
Posted by: gilmore | April 15, 2011 at 01:07 PM
@bryanD,rabrab - no prob.
"No spoilers but the gay guy married to his mini-me was funny."
I had similar thoughts about the gay guy and spouse, except I wasn't listening and thought it was his lil brother or something. That couple, on the surface anyway, seems too similar.
"Also the women immediately going all girls v. boys can only be chalked up to editing 25%."
I wouldn't be surprised if the girls v boys thing was started by the interviewer.
Posted by: Quoll | April 15, 2011 at 02:48 PM
"I wouldn't be surprised if the girls v boys thing was started by the interviewer."---Quoll
True. If only the fish hook were met by an icy stare. Or a roll of the eyes. Or a suppressed laugh.
"I will continue watching as long as John Currence is on. Giving Mississippi a good name as he did so well this past week."---gilmour
I agree. *cue Dixie* Plus Currence wears a nice hygienic do' rag while in the kitchen, whereas everyone else, with an eye to Food-Star plastic banana teevee traditions, is flopping their filthy hair over the diners' plates like idiots.
Posted by: bryanD | April 15, 2011 at 04:46 PM
Off-topic but excellent.
http://www.itd.nps.gov/cwss/soldiers.cfm
Posted by: bryanD | April 15, 2011 at 04:55 PM
I know I seem to be in the minority here, but I'm kind enjoying TCM as I get to know some of the chefs better. In viewing the two episodes of TCM thus far, and the upcoming preview, I can already see it's shaping up for Chef Naomi Pomeroy from Beast in Portland to be a pot stirrer of drama.
I'll have to check out TC Canada at that daily motion link. Thanks.
Posted by: Mahalo | April 15, 2011 at 09:57 PM
I am tuning out for the rest of Top Chef Masters. The Elves seem to have adopted the same strategy that hamstrung All Stars. 'We have a much more talented pool of contestants; let's make the challenges so inherently limiting they are designed to product failure.' No thanks.
Posted by: Erik N | April 16, 2011 at 12:34 PM
Dom -- Wasting your time ranking these chefs for the handful of us paying any attention is unnecessary, but if you could spare a corner and just open a venue for us few to whine and complain, that would be nice -- and ample.
These are great chefs, and it is a pleasure to watch them work -- despite the cretins judging, the moronic editing, and the hassles thrown up by the Elves.
Posted by: Duffy | April 16, 2011 at 01:12 PM
I honestly don't know whether the "I'm out" will stick. I did enjoy watching the chefs work, and some of the dishes they made did make me go "I want to try that!" While I was angry when the episode was over, I was angry for the chefs, not about them.
I think I'm with Duffy; it's nice to have a quiet corner to talk about it, but there's no need or reason for rankings or dissection entries if you don't feel like doing them.
Posted by: rabrab | April 16, 2011 at 03:05 PM
Coming in pretty late on this, but I just wanted to cast my vote for keeping the postmortem entries for TCM.
Also: I was pretty irritated by the quickfire celeb judge, Kelis, especially when she couldn't tell fennel from dill, but in retrospect, it is pretty amazing how often the Top Chef contestants fail to identify seemingly obvious ingredients during those blind tests.
And I don't know if Naomi Pomeroy is getting the villain edit this season, but I was dying to visit Beast before watching her on the show; now, not as much. With everything else I've heard about the rigid policies there, and the control-freak vibe I'm getting from Pomeroy, I get a bad feeling it would be an oppressive experience despite the whole rustic, communal-table thing. I'd be delighted to be wrong, though.
Posted by: Edward Sung | April 18, 2011 at 07:34 AM
I finally caught episode 2 today and it wasn't half-bad. It's apalling that one chef had to use a deep fryer while other chefs were allowed to execute the dish they planned but, other than kitchen issues, I liked it alright.
I don't blame Kellis for not recognizing the fennel -- I blame Curtis Stone for not saying that it's fennel. She's a singer who (the show says) went to cooking school; He's supposedly a professional chef, the bloody host of the show and tasting alongside her.
As for Christina Hendricks, I loved every time she took a jab at the show for forcing her to eat yet another 60's inspired meal. Calling out the producers on-camera for lack of originality = comedy.
Posted by: rab01 | April 24, 2011 at 12:54 PM
Dom,
Are you going to post any more post-mortem threads for TCM?
:)
Posted by: Mahalo | April 24, 2011 at 11:15 PM
Mahalo... Sorry, it's been totally off my radar. I haven't even watched since the premiere. I was going to put up the postmortem last week, but then I forgot since I wasn't watching, and by the time I remembered I could see that there was no discernable traffic spike at all (while the shows are on, I have massive spikes on Thursday GMT). So I assumed nobody was watching and didn't bother. If you guys are still watching and want to jabber, maybe I'll toss up a post with a link or something like that. Bug me one more time if you'd like that. Sound off!
Posted by: Skillet Doux | April 24, 2011 at 11:54 PM
Dom, I am watching intermittently and the quality of the chefs makes it entertaining; albeit not as entertaining as if Jay Rayner were still there and as if the production monkeys had not decided to attempt to hamstring the chefs.
There are also things occuring in the shows that you might find intriguing. For example, one of the chefs is a practicising buddhist who will cook meat but not taste it. Nor will he kill a live animal, even an insect. It is interesting watching a chef who has made the choices and distinctions that he has performing in the Top Chef environment.
Posted by: rab01 | April 25, 2011 at 11:42 AM
Mea culpa, Dom. Jay Raynor is indeed missed by me. The present judges' decision to award itinerant game show contestant "Strike Two" Tio's "chalky", "under-flavored" puddin'(sic!) a win over Chef Currence's perfectly "fine" risotto was verrry verrry scwoowy. I tend to doubt that Raynor would not have pitched a fit over that even if he were out-voted in the end. As it were, we had "O.K." Oselund welcoming his former boy ward to the guest chair. Smoky-eyed looker, Restaurant Girl, is a noted flack and thus careful to remain mute in service to her prospectus. The Aussie is apparently resume puffer a'la Blais. Speaking of: (and God bless, Mike Voltaggio, and damn the cognitive dissonance) this is funny. (I hope the link works)_
http://twitter.com/#!/skremineagle/statuses/62376972856205312
"4"??? LOL. (I still say 0, of course)
Posted by: bryanD | April 25, 2011 at 04:16 PM
Annex: To be clear, I vote for a weekly TCM thread. I am genuinely curious to see how far down the rabbit hole goes. Plus Suvir and Alice Waters-type Pomeroy are really talented and interesting. Pomeroy especially seems to rub people the wrong way. Her heirloom seed bank charity seems a bridge too far for the bleeding hearts. I, though, appreciate her failure to care what our public bleeding hearts think.
TCM grade so far (despite everything): B
Posted by: bryanD | April 25, 2011 at 04:31 PM
Dom,
I hope if you keep the TCM post-mortem thread alive, there will be enough posters to make it worth your while. I'm starting to enjoy the competition, although it really is like TC All Stars, just with more experienced (and some renowned) chefs.
Posted by: Mahalo | April 25, 2011 at 09:06 PM
Me again. Upon second viewing I have to bump TCM up to an overall B+. The quality of food (minus Tio) is first-rate. So there *is* The Food. Plus "the bugs" challenge is now past tense.
So what's left to desire? Drama? It's supplied in the judging which might be heavily peopled by e-critics, but upon second viewing this has it's piquant charms and might make up for the lack of Toby Clowns in the TCM (as opposed to the TC) kitchen. For example, Oselund playing Dutch Uncle to Restaurant Girl and Boy Ward in regard to classically cooked vegetables, going gonzo on the whippersnappers' nouvelle cuisine herd mentality was rather funny. While Boy Ward's mere midget presence distracted me at first, upon review (Tivo) Restaurant Girl's hurt sideways glance at Dutch Uncle Oselund's chiding was, to me, worth 1000 words. So vulnerable and fetching! (Keep a' you eyes on Restaurant Girl!)
Posted by: bryanD | April 26, 2011 at 02:05 PM
wow; to do that to such accomplished chefs was a sin; what a ridiculous EC. I think I have finally had more than enough of TCM. Good luck to the remaining chefs.
Posted by: Trillium | May 5, 2011 at 05:53 PM
Yeah, the surprise fast food elimination challenge was a bit much, although I was a bit perplexed by some of the chef's dishes when they were explicitly told that the diners would not have utensils to eat. I can't stop watching TC Masters though, because I think I have fallen in love with Naomi.
Posted by: Kilgore Trout | May 6, 2011 at 06:03 AM
This link to a blog on CNN sums up the problems with this season. This really has become just another season of regular old Top Chef. I don't watch a lot of TV, so this is one of my guilty pleasures and I will continue to watch, but I miss the old format which seemed to have more gravitas than the current season.
Posted by: Kilgore Trout | May 6, 2011 at 06:13 AM
Losing the tournament format and scoring system really has hurt the show. The previous format was nice, because you had rounds with fewer chefs in each round, so there was more focus on each dish, and fewer opportunities for interpersonal drama. I also would imagine that it was easier to get master chefs onboard since there was less of a time commitment involved for individual chefs. This time around, you can see the chefs getting worn out, losing motivation, and generally not feeling the enthusiasm. This season certainly has the least energy of any Top Chef franchise season I've seen to date. If Masters comes back for another season, I certainly hope they'll wise up and go back to their original formula.
Also, while I'm grudgingly coming around on Naomi, I still think her charity is ridiculous, so I'm rooting against her.
Posted by: Edward Sung | May 9, 2011 at 09:42 AM
Edward... Seed Saver Exchange? I don't know much about that particular organization, but if they are, as they appear to be at first glance, about preserving heirloom varieties, I can't understand what's ridiculous about that. If you buy one of the 3-4 available types of cardboard tomato at the grocery store and then go to a good farmers market where there are thirty varieties to choose from all with different flavors and textures, I'm puzzled that anybody would suggest ensuring the preservation of the latter isn't at the very least a laudable goal.
Posted by: Skillet Doux | May 9, 2011 at 09:57 AM