Top Chef Season 5-Spolers Probable
 

Well what do we think of the chefs so far? I hope that trend of whomever wins the first competition wins the season doesn't come true this time around because I can't stand that guy already. No real surprise on who went home imo, they never are a big fan of culinary students. And how weird that the two that knew each other beforehand were the ones to go.

I was surprised Hosea was not one of the judges three favorites after their comments during his judging. I'll go on record right now and say I think he wins. Pretty funny that the guy who had no idea what he was cooking ended up in the top 3 anyway.

Who do I want to go home soon? Probably crazy lady who lets her spirit guides determine what she's going to cook. :confused:

Where was the (_)#$(_@# eye candy??? I miss Casey.

what's a spoler?

I think the big furry-faced gay guy who had the comments about Tom was hilarious.

A french recipe that uses native mushroms

I'm not digging the European guys.

Rough guesses on who could win: the blonde guy from the Ritz in Florida, the girl who cooked the modern italian last night...hmm who else? Hosea?

I'm pulling for my fellow CU Alum (Hosea).

I did call who was gone last night though, from just looking at the bios. No way a freakin' culinary student hangs with some of these guys.

Added bonus of eliminating one of "Team Rainbow" right out of the shoot.

Interesting first episode. Glad the 2 that got kicked went, didn't like either of them.

Richard and Daniel cracked me up, but I don't know if that's enough to want them to stay on for long.

I'd love nothing more than to see Ariane go home, she seemed like a complete talentless hack.

So far, I'm pulling for Eugene and Hosea. Eugene impressed the heck out of me, especially with presentation.

And now I'm really hungry. Where the heck is my Chinese food?

/tk

I think for now I'm rooting for the tattooed guy, I think it's Eugene. The European guys are assholes but the Italian guy cracks me up. I also was glad to see the two who got kicked go, they definitely didn't seem to be worthy of a Top Chef title.

Yeah, Eugene and Hosea are my early favorites at the moment.

I actually am predicting Eugene is going to be the talented, all around decent guy who gets a raw deal with around 5-7 people left, and gets sent packing. You heard it here first. :)

Eugune is my personal early favorite. It's hard not to root for a guy who has done what he's done and seems nice to boot. The random person I drew in my work's Top Chef pool is Alex, so I will also be rooting for him. I will NOT be rooting for Stephan, who is my predicted victor.

which one is Alex?

the youngish blonde guy from Miami I think?

aaah. if he can get his plating-time down (which i have every reason to believe he can) he could be a legit contestant rather than just a pretty-face

Euro dude #1 (Fabio, I believe) - Douche

Blonde pretty boy - SUPER DOOOOUCHE

I like the tattooed Hawaiian dude, the big gay dude, and the tall brunette chick ('cause I like tall chicks)

The spirits-cook-for-me chick needs to go home rapidly.

I think I'm pulling for Hosea, too. It's early, though.

She's a little odd, I'll grant you, but I'd rather have her than the "I didn't have any cookbooks handy" woman who was facing elimination.

Unacceptable.

/tk

I read a liveblog of the premier and one of the people said "More muppet or human" about her. I thought it was a great description.

The trend of kicking out the relatively decent looking chicks displeases me.

Yeah, it was already a motley group to begin with but the herd is thinning much too quickly.

How Ariane avoided packing her knives last night is beyond me. She was been next to dead last in almost every challenge so far, quickfire and elimination. It seemed like Jill's error was taking an exotic ingredient and not doing anything good with it while Ariane made some basic and still fucked it up.

It is nice to know just how little stock the judges place in Padma's dramatics. I don't know how or why you would spit something out simply because it was too sweet. You would think having someone spit something out would be a bad sign for that dish but I don't think Tom, Gail and the guest judges have much respect for her palate. She always seems to be on the outside, thank goodness. I'd still take Katie Freakin' Joel over the Bollywood pron queen.

Bring on the Foo Fighters!

yeah Ariane should have been the one that went this week. Showed zero confidence in herself and emotionally she's a wreck. Jill's problem was that she has no clue-no defense for her dish, no idea what she's going to do with her culinary career. I think not being able to defend herself is what got her eliminated more than her dish. Though one judge saying it tasted like glue probably didnt help either. I think she should have got a little credit for the use of the ostrich eggs and kept her over Ariane.

I see my choice for the winner nearly was out last night. Great picking there. But I also picked Stephanie early last season and then she was in the bottom 2 the next week. So I'm not worried about him. :) I cannot wait for Team Europe to be heading back across the pond. Loved Stephan's reaction to the judges comment about his hot dog, lol

I think Hosea will be fine. In some ways I think it's a benefit for him. It seems that every year there's someone that uses bad seafood and gets called-out on it (Spike last year with the scallops and now Hosea)...much better to have it happen this early than later in the competition - no way he's going to be using any 2nd-class ingredients from now on.

Yep. I knew he was gonna be on the block the second he pulled that shitty crab out. Dude shoulda known. EVERYONE gets called out when they try and use subpar ingredients.

In the introduction section of the first episode, Rhadika made a point of saying that just because she's Indian doesn't mean she'll be cooking Indian all the time. This is the 2nd time she's done something VERY Indian. I wonder if that will continue.

/tk

Thought the same thing, tk. Ever since she made that point about not cooking Indian and she's been putting curry into everything since then. It seems like she got there and just freaked out and is going to what she knows. Frankly, that's the way to go -- cook what you know. Ilan won season two doing nothing but Spanish dishes.

Yeah, I was baffled when Hosea went for that crappy crab. Most people wouldn't know the difference but those judges absolutely would. He just locked in on a dish and wouldn't change his mind once he realized he couldn't do it.

I realize not all Whole Foods are the same, but I'll admit it bothers me that make these chefs shop at a run-of-the-mill grocery store. Guess it's part of the challenge. The Whole Foods I've shopped at here is awful -- their produce is the worst. I needed some garlic and the only ones they had were in a jar. Everyone jar on the shelf was two months past its expiration date. One had mold growing inside. The manager seemed surprisingly unconcerned when I brought it to their attention.

I enjoyed the Quickfire challenge this week but I thought the elimination challenge was kind of silly. I understand about improv and such, but how likely is it that chefs of this caliber will be doing that kind of service in their careers, without kitchens?

I wish Danny would've gone home, I'm tired of him, and I thought his error was as big as Richard's.

Has it become the new "in" thing to say things are prepared al dente? The beans last season, and now twice this season people have said they prefer their stuff "al dente," things that aren't traditionally served al dente.

Edit to add: I love how they're all pretending it's really Thanksgiving. Foos played in Rochester in late July, if I'm not mistaken. If it really WERE Thanksgiving in NY, they may have been able to use the out of doors as a "natural fridge/freezer" instead of worriking that they didn't have one.

/tk

Dola,
Which season was it that the person that won the first elimination challenge didn't win the overall title?

/tk

I agree with pretty much everything you've said. I'm fucking sick of Danny "Donald Trump is the most richest and powerfulest New Yorker" and his uncooked potatos.

I thought the elimination was a bit silly - they could have done something else to make them "think on their feet" more.

We laughed about the "Thanksgiving" thing a ton over here as well.

I actually didn't like the quickfire or the elimination. They've gotten a bit too "extreme" with challenges ... I wanna see these guys be creative and cook. I don't care who can use the microwave the best, and stopping people halfway through a quickfire to do a complete 180 is kinda lame in my book as well.

they stopped them 10 minutes in, not halfway

Season 3. Tre one the first elimination, Hung won everything.

You might be surprised. I've worked with some local big-name chefs and some nationally known chefs including Dave Martin from Season 1 with our consumer shows. For the show Dave was at, we built a "kitchen" on a stage with a refrigerator and a donated stove. Very low end. We didn't have running water at the stage and had to use buckets.

Wal-Mart also hosts their annual meetings the the KC convention center. The hall catering company holds exclusive concession rights and they are not a high-end outfit. Wal-Mart will bring up some celebrity chefs and use other great chefs for their catering and when those guys come in to cook, the exclusive clause means they cannot cook inside the convention center. Wal-Mart builds a big kitchen outdoors on one of the docks under tents in the middle of winter for the chefs. They bring in more equipment than the folks had in this episode, but I wouldn't be surprised at all if the scene in the show was pretty common at arenas and convention centers when a company holds exclusive catering rights and the Foo Fighters want a fancy chef cooking for them.

One interesting item from the episode: I've often seen people correct people for calling the band "The Foo Fighters" instead of "Food Fighters." When the band introduced themselves on the video, they said, "The Foo Fighters."

Kind of like whether it's an A-T-A-T or an AT-AT ...

My god.

That guy. Was. An. Idiot.

Well, it's different because they are the Foo Fighters. They have never been anything other than that. It's not one of those things where it could be either or...

My god, this is the ugliest group of chefs I've ever seen. Every last one of them is horrifying.

And the fat ass with the fucked up beard that got voted off tonight looks just like Fez Marie Whatley

I'm sorry, anyone who says anything sounding like "spooge" when describing what they were trying to do with a dish deserves to be sent home--nevermind that he lasted way too long in my opinion.

Ariane shouldn't have won, she was basically a kitchen helper, and almost blew it entirely for her team.

/tk

I don't think I've ever heard Tom flat out said he wished he could send all three of those folks home, either.

That entire dish was a clusterfuck from the start.

I agree, I was shocked when she won for basically cooking the lamb correctly. They always harp on them when they don't cook meat enough or too much because they expect a chef to be able to do that correctly every time. The woman (Jamie?) who came up with the idea, used her special ingredient and was basically the team leader should have won.

And Eugene probably should have gone over the guy who did though both deserved it. It was his idea to do the surf and turf sushi, then overcooked both the rice and the shrimp. And didn't explain to the ladies how to make their own sushi. If you're gonna reward the woman for cooking the lamb correctly, you should be harsher with the guy who overcooked two things.

Tom C brought this point up in his blog. The judges don't get to see the behind the scenes planning, etc, etc. They only got to judge on the food and what they see/say, and Jaimie didn't speak up and say she ran the show.

On a different note, I'm surprised how much ire was drawn over the use of the Chilean sea bass. Last year, in the wedding, they made it for the groom (iirc it was something he mentioned he liked), but I didn't see much disparaging on the blogs or on the show about how overfished/virtually extinct it is, so it's almost a gauche choice. This year Gail and Tom's blogs both mentioned it, as did TWOP. Maybe there was some outcry last year?

/tk

That was how I saw it on the show too. I thought they determined what dish they like best and who was in charge of the the most successful component. If a team is making a lamb dish and the dish wins, the person who cooked the lamb is going to win. You're not going to win for making the carrot purree.

I think Jamie tried to play the game and simply lost. It was her concept but she handed off responsibility for the most important component to Ariane. It was almost as though she was hoping that if the dish won she would win for coming up with the idea and if they lost she could blame Ariane for screwing up the lamb.

They do harp on the chefs for poorly cooking meat but when the chefs perfectly cook meat, they fall for it everytime. They went on and on when Elia perfectly roasted a chicken, for crying out load. And they even fell for Howie when he finally perfected his pork.

Anybody see the Holiday Special they filmed in Chicago? I don't remember seeing it before, but it could be that I missed it. 8 chefs from seasons 1-3. Elimination is to cook a 3-course holiday meal, 2 chefs eliminated after each course. They showed it this morning, and according to my FiOS box, will show it again on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

/tk

It originally aired last Christmas. It was enjoyable though I enjoyed the one they did before Season 3 more.

the more episodes go by the more i am convinced Hosea will be MINIMUM in the final 3. guy seems to consistently bang out things the judges enjoy.

I was pretty annoyed with the Top Chef staff for not making sure the refrigerators were closed. You're supposed to be on an even playing field for these challenges, and to have people's food ruined like that was inexcusable. In the end I think they did the right thing by not sending anyone home (not because it was in the Christmas spirit like they tried to make it look like). Josea's and Radka's original dishes would have tasted quite different from what they eventually served and who knows if they would have been liked or not.

I feel bad for Jamie who seems to be in either the top 3 without winning or the bottom 3. But she really needs to stop making scallops like it looks like she might do in the next episode. They also need to stop rewarding Ariane for making simple dishes and then telling her simple dishes won't win the competition. I mean her beef and cauliflower puree didn't look like anything special yet it won, and then they nailed her for devilled eggs. This is the kinda things she makes, if you think they aren't Top Chef worthy because of their simplicity then stop having her win challenges and kick her off.

Next episode should be really good because apparantly there will be no limits on what they make. No stupid restrictions like 12 days of Xmas themes. It's either going to be a triumph or a complete disaster I think. :)

And DT, I picked Hosea to win from the start so I'm with ya there. :)

Oh I thought Hosea would be great from the start too - it's just nice to see that he's living up to it (minus the canned-crab debacle, but like i speculated, i think that actually helped him to realize he had to "step it up" sooner than others).

And you're right - it's pretty bush-league of Top Chef to not make sure the fridges were closed. And you know what, they could have just as easily scrapped the challenge because of that (well not scrapped it, but not show it on TV and just replace it with another). So I agree, in the end, sending nobody home was the right thing to do.

Was also great to see Jeff up there at the top - I think he could go far too, and he at least seems to be a natural leader and to not be afraid to take risks with what he's cooking and really step it up.

Jamie & her scallops and her gay-pride are starting to get annoying.

Leah has sort of seemed to tail-off as Radika has come on strong (but I'd sure love to see some versatility from her also)

I liked that Jeff tried to make something that wasn't lame like deviled eggs.

The whole idea of letting them off with no one kicked off was built into the show so I hope it doesn't fool anyone that they were being nice.

I expect to see Stefan win although Jeff and Hosea both can cook well. Ariane seems like a great caterer, no more. Fabio is annoying as hell.

I can see the final 5 being: stefan, hosea, jeff, radika, leah. The rest of them are pretty "meh" IMO

Second week in a row Tom has basically been disgusted by the overall quality of the dishes served. Interesting. Very very interesting.

Lawsuit Accuses a Top Chef of Wage and Tip Violations - NYTimes.com

Tom is being sued. I really think its generally BS. I can't imagine him ordering managers to withhold % from various people.

Jeff?? really??....Potato risotto with brussel sprouts?Honestly,i could have told you it would be startchy.I don't think this guy is very good.

I started off hating Fabio, but he's grown on me. He's goofy and funny. Stefan, on the other hand, is annoying as fuck with his Ed Norton smirks...

Everyone's favorite episode of the season premiers tonight

Let the fusterclucks begin!
/tk

With a special dose of soft core porn between Hosea and Leah!

Sometime this season someone mentioned that Leah was "stacked" so every time she's on screen I'm straining to see, since I'm a big fan of that kind of thing. So far, I have been unsuccessful at seeing anything that would warrant that adjective. A little help? Encouragement to stick with my quest, or is it hopeless?

In the hunt for Leah photos, I also discovered this nugget for the episode right before the finale:



As for Leah:


She's got a little something going on, although I think she's a little too lovey-dovey flirty for me.

She's not Gail stacked, if that's what you want to know. I'd do a quickfire with her anytime.

Damn. The next person I wanted gone was SO close to being axed.

Cannot WAIT for next week.

After the season two fiasco when there was too much inexperience and immaturity, the did a great job with seasons three and four in getting excellent chefs. This group strikes me as some outstanding cooks, but only a couple of great chefs. I didn't have any real issues with Radhika, but I didn't see anything great with her. Same with Carla and Leah.

Right now I'd take Steffen vs. the field. His a tool but he's never once been on the chopping block. I like Fabio and Jamie (who I keep thinking of as Kara "Starbuck" Thrace's lesbian older sister) but I don't know if they can pull it off. Everybody else can go, although I'd like to get rid of Carla and the two love birds next.

I think Jeff has become the dark horse....he talks a good game, but his food has really yet to impress anybody, yet I could see him sneaking into the final simply by not being the person bad enough to get kicked off every week.

Leah is damn lucky her team came through or she would have been the easiest decision to "pack your knives" in Top Chef history. Perhaps the worst two possible people to lead the teams I think, both shy and not good leaders. Too bad about Radka-she deserved to stay a bit longer given her performance until this last show, but can't argue with her going. Carla is also one lucky chef. I think you get rid of Leah and Carla and the rest of the chefs are good ones, not great. I still think Hosea will win-it will probably be him, Steffen, and Jamie in the Final 3.

I think Stefan and Jamie seem like consistently good chefs, and near-locks for the final, and that third spot is wide open.

Wow, the bottom 3 surprised me this week. Not sure who I thought should've gone home, between Fabio and Jeff. I liked the idea of Jeff's dish though he didn't make a good case for himself, and he ALWAYS does too much that doesn't fit well together. The salad on Fabio's plate looked gross, and overcooked venison is nasty. I guess were I on the panel, I'd have voted Fabio home.

Equally surprised by the winner, though. She's so weird.
/tk

She (Carla) really needs to go home, and I'm with you - I was very much expecting Fabio to go home.

Overall, I'm still reiterating my overall disappointment with the quality of the chefs this season. It still feels like nobody comes up with dishes that wow the judges, and there's very little feel of creativity and originality going on.

I dunno if it's due to the setup of the challenges this season, or the relative talent level of the chefs. Feels like the chefs more than anything though.

I can't wait to hear what new and exciting monkey ass dish Fabio will come up with!

Monkey butt on a clam shell
Monkey ass stuffed with fried bananas
???

I started out hating Fabio and lumping him in with Stefan, but I've eventually come to love him. "Of course I love-a hot-a-dog, but I no can cook a hot-a-dog." Indeed.

I had my fingers crossed and was saying "on my god, oh my god" when Padma called Stefan's dish and abomination. I hate him more than Hung and Marcel combined. I want Jaime to win; I can't wait for Eric Ripert next week, and I really miss Gail. She was sooooo hot. The new judge is a total joke and looks like a damned nonce.

And yeah, Fabio is really growing on me too.

I am so jealous of Carla, getting to go to the Super Bowl. Of course she knows nothing about football, but at least her husbamd will be happy. Can't believe she won, but she did pick a good regional dish for New Orleans. Shocked by the bottom 3 and was pulling for Stefan to go even though I knew they wouldn't get rid of him given his track record and villain status. I would have been fine with Fabio or Jeff leaving. I like Fabio, but he really hasn't done much successfully on the show. Jeff is probably the most talented chef in terms of ideas/techniques but is stuck up and arrogant-criticizing his opponent's dish like he did and god forbid having to serve his dish on a football team paper plate-so I'm glad he's gone.

I was really pulling for Leah to lose her battle though and be eliminated. She's had some success here and there but man she's been awful the past couple weeks.

It's interesting. I'm definitely in the "didn't like Fabio at first, but now he's my favorite" camp. I really can't imagine him actually winning, though.

I like Stefan more and more as the season goes on. Fabio also. Opposite for Hosea though -- he's coming across as more of a whiner to me.

I thought it was hilarious that Andrea beat Stefan. The moment I saw their dishes and saw she went with a Tex Mex chili for the Dallas theme, I knew he was toast.

Stefan is a tool but doesn't annoy me as much as Marcel and Hung did. I think the difference is that all three are bastards but Stefan acts like a cranky old bastard while the other two acted like immature little brats. I tolerate a tool who acts his age much more than a tool who acts like a four year old.

I get to sleep on the bunky bed!

The fact that I'm liking Leah less and less is making me like Hosea less and less. He was among my favorites early on but he's slipping.

Barring a major stumble, Stefan and Jamie look like locks to cruise to the final. Carla is a loon and has the crazy eyes, but if she stops trying to cook healthy-earthy crap and stays away from desserts, I think she might be my sleeper. I like Fabio but he seems to be fading. I don't think Leah is that impressive but she just keeps sliding along.

It looks like from the previews that they are cooking at Eric Rippert's restaurant next week and someone ends up wetting themselves.

We have come full circle on Carla. In the beginning of the show, we were like, just get her out of here already. Now every interview clip for her is an unintended sound bite. She is so batty, she is worth watching.

P.S. I am so jealous of Draft Dodger for getting to go to the Super Bowl.

Hootie!

That was hilarious.

Carla is a muppet. I don't know how you sustain hatred for muppets over any period of time. Plus you get all sorts of great quotes in the bargain. I love the muppets.

LMAO

I haven't watched this week's episode yet but am looking forward to doing so. That being said, I'm in the Fabio camp as well and really am hoping (although it's not likely at all) that the final three be Carla, Stefan, and Fabio. I can't stand Jamie, Hosea, or Leah. And I really can't stand the blonde guy who, everytime they show the name of his restaurant, I think it says Dildo resort rather than Dilido. Plus he looks like the guy from house that I hate.

I always read "Dildo" for his restaurant, too. I just assumed it was my subconscious.. ;)

/tk

Hoo!

My wife calls her Beaker, and she absolutely LOVES her. Carla is her third favorite contestant all-time, behind Andrew and CJ. I certainly agree that she's entertaining...

I'm also in the "started off hating Fabio, but now love him" camp. I just don't know how much longer he's going to last, he's been struggling lately. And I was praying that Stefan would go home last night, but I knew I shouldn't have gotten my hopes up.

Watched this for the first time today (the season recap/repeat on Bravo) and was stunned by the lamb fuckup at the farm. Look, even I know how to butcher and tie up a lamb for cooking (ideally rotisserie on the BBQ)! Shocking.

Stefan's cleverness finally caught up with him in the Super Bowl challenge, but Jeff's caught up with him more.

Not at all happy with Jamie being the one to "pack her knives and go". Leah quit a challenge and showed she didn't understand the dish she was supposed to make in the second challenge. She really needs to go. Surprised Hosea had trouble with his fish dish given his experience and Carla shows more levels of competence than I thought possible. :)

I agree, wasn't happy to see Jamie go and thought that Leah was just as "culinarily sinful." Alas.

I think this pretty much means that Stefan is going to win it all. We'll see, but I think he's probably one of the more talented--if arrogant--chefs. He reminds me a lot of Hung in terms of his arrogance.

Happy to see Carla doing better than expected.

/tk

leah should have gone home, no doubt

i wonder if part of hosea's thing was that he ran out of time, or got worried about time? he even said he knew monkfish had to sit - so you have to think he would have let it sit as long as he could - maybe he just panicked or he used up too much time earlier? shame about him and the spice and all, but oh well. at least he's still around. i think he's stronger than leah (who definately should have gone), and probably on-par with Jamie, so between the two of them leaving i woulda been fine with either.

Stefan vs Hosea in the final....they have been editing the show this way the whole time.

Every challenge all Hosea talks about is beating Stefan.

bbor does have quite the point there

Agree with everyone else. Leah gave up and should have been booted after falling into the bottom 3 afterwards.

I see a Fabio/Stefan showdown for the title.

Stefan's an ass, but he's been head and shoulders above everyone over the course of the show.

Unless they do a 3-man final again. In which case, I'm guessing Carla/Hosea/Stefan.

I think Leah's next to go, and then it's a toss up between Fabio and Carla.

Not sad to see Leah go as I hated her HOWEVER I can't believe it wasn't Leah. She quit and was awful, this was a blatant decision to keep the romance drama for another week. UGH.

Tom's blog states that the only one they really discussed booting was Jamie and that the other 5 dishes were good. I didn't catch that from watching, in fact, I thought Tom tried to defend Jamie, saying that the fish was done well. I thought the new judge was the one that really pushed for Jamie and that Tom was going to go after Leah.

lol

yeah PB I didn't get that either that they thought Leah and Hosea's dishes were good. But Jamie kinda shot herself in the foot on this one now that I think about it. She was the only one who didn't get the guest chef's advice when she was making her dish because she didn't have the time she said. Well I would have made time and let him taste it and and ask how to braise celery while she was at it. :)

I got the impression that Ripert was limited on what questions he could and could not answer when he was tasting the trial runs - he was kinda cagey on some of those.

Leah has been pouty and sulking ever since she made out with Hosea. I can't believe she didn't get booted.

I would have like to see Leah go because I'm done with her -- she has indeed been pouty since the makeout session. But I thought all signs pointed to Jamie. They really didn't seem to hate Leah's as much as Jamie's.

I'll buy the Stefan vs. Hosea setup bbor suggested. It does seem to be going that way. I'll give Carla props -- since she decided to start cooking and playing to her strengths instead of going all wacky and trying to fake desserts, she's been nails. She's a sleeper pick to go to the finals right now.

Fabio continues to appear on a downward slide while Carla and Hosea seem to be finishing strong. No one has ever dominated Top Chef the way Stefan has. He's virtually unstoppable, especially since he got the ego check last week. Of course, Richard flamed out against Stephanie in last season's finale.