A little Gail Goes a Long Way

Thank heavens for BravoTV.com. I found today that they had a little bit of what I need, and that’s Gail Simmons

Gail does a fabulous job in her blog this week explaining the decision that ultimately got Jamie sent home. On TV, it doesn’t seem to make a lot of sense, but from Gail, I get it. Good parts bolded below:

 

Were you surprised that Jamie was sent home?

No. She went home because she didn’t like her dish as much as anything else. From the get-go she knew this was not a technique she liked. She didn’t want to do the bass right off the bat. It was her least favorite dish, so I think a lot of it became attitude. I love Jamie, I loved her from the first day, and I actually think she’s a great talent. I have a lot of friends in San Francisco who are obsessed with her restaurant. I know she had a shot at being Top Chef just as much as anyone, but I know she can be negative when she doesn’t like what she’s doing. That is a problem for chefs, because it’s easy for them to forget that they’re not cooking for themselves, they’re cooking for customers. There are always going to be tasks, dishes, flavor profiles and combinations, and ingredients you might not like or might not be your favorite thing to do.

You can argue that as an executive chef of restaurant you’ll never have to do something you don’t want to, but even that’s not true, especially now. If a customer comes into your restaurant and pays $100 a person or more, as they would be at Le Bernardin, and a customer says, “I want a side of Caesar Salad with my fish” or something like that, that’s what you do for them. Cooking cannot be about your ego. Chefs often get into a lot of trouble when they stop cooking for other people, and they start cooking for themselves only. I think Jamie can fall into that trap. I think part of her demise on this episode was that her head wasn’t in the game because she didn’t love what she was doing. She saw the challenge as a hindrance to her success.

Gail, right? She knows.

Now for a tiny spoiler:

Can you give us a little teaser about the Finale?

What I can tell you is that I had the most amazing time in New Orleans. I can’t believe how dynamic the city is, and how good and diverse the food is. You will get to see a lot of that on the show. New Orleans will really show the true colors of the remaining chefs. Nothing is as it seems. Nothing.

Ok, now I’m excited!

A few Holiday gifts for you

As the holidays (and my Mexico vacation) near, I thought I would REGAIL you, blog readers, with some of my favorite Top Chef  bits from the web this week.

1) BRAVOTV.COM

The Top Chef page on Bravotv.com has an amazing amount of distracting crap to keep you procrastinating on those spreadsheets for your boss until well past your lunch hour. There’s the fantasy game (which I’ll comment more on below), the judge’s blogs (Gail this week) and the restaurant finder (great for New Yorkers with a little disposable income still available) with great suggestions by chef’s such as Wylie Dufrense, of WD-50 fame, and past Top Chef contestants.

2) Amuse-biatch.com

Amuse-biatch is mostly ok, but I’ll be DAMNED if I wasn’t blown away by the Top Chef contestant’s wives photos they’ve posted this week. Seriously, these men, Jeff, Hosea, Fabio, etc., have got some hot babe spouses. MILFs, if you will.  Check it out. It will rock you.

So, the big show is tonight and, of course, on my mind right now is my fantasy team. If you’ll remember, I rocked it last week with Stefan, Jamie and Hosea (I said Leah, but the website didn’t change my pick, so it was actually Hosea). But, despite my success, I think I’m gonna make one change this week.

The person I’m swapping? Jamie. Bitch, I can’t  STAND that bitch. I hate what a whiny sore loser she was last week. Honey, you’re not that surprised you haven’t been winning, you’re bitching about it because you know, deep down, that its no one’s fault but your own. Problem is: all you make is soup! Its pretty, yes, and tasty, probably, but honey, carrot puree isn’t gonna get you nowhere. Sorry.

Now, the know the argument has been made here on this blog’s comments that Jamie made the marinade for Ariane’s lamb last week and therefore should have won. Well, you know people, this isn’t TOP MARINADER, it’s TOP CHEF, and as we’ve learned many times, you have to COOK to win, and Jamie didn’t cook that lamb. Ariane did. Anyone with a tongue can put together a marinade that tastes good, but not just anybody can cook a piece of meat really nicely (yours truly included in that group, there). AND, Jamie didn’t even come up with the flavors in the marinade, RHADIKA DID! It was Indian food, Rhadi style! Jamie may have had the idea of saying, “oh, Indian food is NEW because its NEW to me,” but that doesn’t mean she created the flavors on the menu or cooked ANYTHING, which is why I’m trading her this week foooooooooooooooor…

 

Rhadika!

Yay! This girl has grown on me. Not only can she cook (she’s won a quickfire and an elimination challenge) but she’s got a quiet confidence about her which should not be overlooked. I think she’s gonna rock it this week. GO RHADI

Check back manana for some good ole fashion Top Chef post hashin.

Cheers!

-Allie

Oh Hell

As If I needed another Top Chef related work distraction, I was just doing a little research for tonight’s episode on BRAVOTV.com when I came across the Top Chef Fantasy Game. Great. There goes the next hour.

So the game works like this: each week you pick a team for the week’s episode. My Team is called “NoDesserts.” YA! So, for each episode, each contestant is awarded or subtracted points for adhering to the following: 

What Happened Points

Wins the Elimination Challenge +6

Foo Fighters’ Favorite Dish  +5

Makes a dessert +5

In the top group at Judges’ Table, but not winner  +4

MVC: This week’s Most Valuable Chef  +4

Wins a Quickfire Challenge  +4

Helps a competitor  +3

Featured commenter about guest judge  +3

Featured in a “coming up next” clip +3

Says “I’m not here to make friends”, or a variation +1

First chef in Top Chef kitchen +1

Makes salad or scallop as main dish -1

Gets bleeped -1

Cries -1

Takes a taste from a utensil that is used during preparation -2

Judges say dish is over or under-seasoned -2

Talks back to the Judges’ Table -2

Fights with another contestant -2

Forgets an ingredient  -3

In the bottom group at Judges’ Table, but not eliminated  -4

Eliminated -6

 

Pretty hilarious, right?? And really right on (besides the dessert thing…whats that about) So, if your team wins the most points based on the aforementioned criteria, you win a free copy of the Top Chef Cookbook! And, if you’re the person with the most points at the end of the season, you win $2,500!!!! WOOOOHOOO. Clearly this is so worth my wasted time.

I’m sure you’re dying to know who I picked for my team this week. Well, I’ll tell you. My team is as follows: Stefan, Jamie and Leah. My reasons? Ahem:

1: Stefan

Stefan is a clear choice for obvious reasons. He is, in my opinion, the best chef on the show. Like Richard Blais before him, he shows a level of culinary skill that is head and shoulders above most of the other contestants, but not all, which is why I’m not declaring him the winner of this season, just an excellent team member. Also, I saw the preview for this week and it looks like the major storyline during the Elimination Challenge revolves around his crush on Jamie, which will win me some “featured in a ‘coming up’ clip” points.  And I think there’s a preeeeetty good chance he’ll say something like, “I’m not here to make friends,” even though I’d bet money that Danny is  our best chance on that front. Moving on!

2: Jamie

So, Jamie. While I don’t love her personality, I do think she’s a good chef. Maybe even a great one, I don’t know. The stuff with Stefan is a reason I picked her this week (see above) and a reason I will probably keep picking her in general. To take on Stefan, the arrogant European, you need balls, and I think Jamie’s got ‘em (insert lesbian joke here). I mean that in the most complimentary of ways, really. Plus, she’s come close to winning some quickfires in past few episodes, so maybe she’ll pull it out tonight. She’s not Stephanie, aka: the love of my life, but she is a strong woman who could go all the way. GO Jamie! …? Alright, finally,

3: Leah

I went back and forth between Leah and Hosea for my the 3rd slot on my team this week, and I think they’re both probably good cooks, but I settled on Leah for two reasons. 1: She’s won the past two quick fires and 2: she’s a girl. Now, usually gender wouldn’t inform my choice, but this week’s Elimination Challenge is a bridal shower for Gail, and I think that a woman chef may have more of a clue as to what ladies like to lunch on. Call it a hunch or a sexist presumption, but that’s what I think.

Now you may be asking: “Why didn’t she pick her clear favorite, Fabio?” Well, I don’t know. While I do think his cooking is good, and I’m sure he’ll charm the PANTS off the ladies at Gail’s lunch (which will lead to even more airtime than usual as the BRAVO people LOVE to showcase him and his Italian bravado) I just see him landing somewhere in the middle this week. I think that now, since we’re approaching episode 5, his Italian fare may start to get old. I could be wrong, we’ll see…but I’ve chosen my choices. I CHOOSE MY CHOICE!

If you want to play along in the fantasy game with me, just click the link above and create a team of your own. Then you can post your team name and members in the comments and we can see who wins. Should be fun!

 T-minus 6 hours.

-Allie