Top Chef Gets It's Very Own Simon Cowell, and Scandal Rocks the Kitchen

Top Chef has really been kicking up the drama this season, to good effect. With a sharp-tongued new judge, a romantic scandal, a pair of european goofballs, the only thing lacking drama at this point is the food, really. So that's still a bit of a disappointment, but at least we are entertained!

With Gail off and married, Bravo's introduced a snarky new judge, Toby Young, who keeps the anecdotal, catchphrase-y digs coming ("Ladies and gentlemen, I've found the weapons of mass destruction, and they are in this bowl"). Although he claims he's not trying to be Simon Cowell, he sure sounds like it. Both Brits are renowned experts in their own fields, and have no patience for anything short of true excellence. Yet while Toby's carefully pointed insults are just as cutting, they air more on the side of the intellectual then Simon's. And, he manages to be fun to watch, too.

Also fun to watch is the slow trainwreck that is the romantic scandal between Hosea and Leah. After weeks of overt flirting, the cameras finally catch them making out on the couch this week. They must have found out pretty quickly too, as they both give bleary-eyed morning after confessionals expressing regret and hope that they'll still be in their at-home relationships when the show's over. But - they're both still around next week! Will they put aside their feelings for the sake of their home loyalties, or will they let their attraction win them over again? We'll just have to wait and see!

The Euro Twins Fabio and Stefan also scored another big win this week, as they each helped secure victory for their team in this season's edition of Restaurant Wars. Fabio charmed judges and diners alike in his front of house role, and Stefan served up a few truly knockout desserts. If Leah hadn't grossly undercooked her fish, it may have been a clear home run. Although Radhika's team's food was on par (and perhaps slightly better) than Leah's, Radhika's ghastly performance in the front of house role put her restaurant at a clear disadvantage. Because of the nicer space each team was given to work with, both restaurants looked better than any I've seen in other seasons - but as we could have predicted, each execution was not without mishaps.

In the end, Radhika's nerves got the best of her, and her failure to perform in the front of house and "chef/owner" role got her the boot. Too bad, because her food has been great to this point! But, a whole part of being a top chef is being able to be a leader, to delegate responsibilities, and to know your strengths. Radhika knew this and she realized that she made a few poor decisions. But just as long as she'd learned from them, she'll improve in the future. 

Next week: old favorites return to battle the newbies! And they're so excited to be back on TV that they're juggling all sorts of fruits! This one is sure to be a fan friendly challenge week, probably promoting the Top Chef cookbook (again). And now that LOST is back on the air, I can look forward to several hours of quality TV every Wednesday night for many weeks to come. What a great way to wait out this awful winter! Horray.

Top Toast of 2008

Everyone's doing their "best of 2008" lists this time of year, so I thought I'd throw mine in the mix. Also convenient for me, as I haven't been too diligent about updating in the last... mmm... eight months or so. But that doesn't mean I stopped eating and cooking!

Without further ado, here's my Top Toast of 2008:

10. Homemade Pasta

One of my favorite parts of training for the Chicago marathon was the carbs. Basically, running long distances on a regular basis gives you a good excuse to eat carbs, because you need to build up your glycogen stores to fuel you through the miles ahead. Starting in May, I did long runs every Saturday (and sometimes Friday) morning, which I nearly always proceeded with a healthy carb-rich dinner. Lucky for me, pasta is one of my favorite foods, so that was often my choice - I even learned how to make it from scratch! After a couple of months I've gotten kind of good at it too. Here's a recent homemade meal of Butternut Squash Ravioli with Brown Butter and Sage.

9. Strawberry Shortcake

I was home over the fourth of July this past summer, and my mom made strawberry shortcake. Homemade biscuits. Sweet New Hampshire strawberries, perfectly ripe, in season. Freshly whipped cream - not too sweet. 'Nuff said.

8. Full English Breakfast, Happy Days, London

As far as a full English breakfast goes, it doesn't get more real - or delicious - than this one. Messy scrambled eggs, potatoes, sweet salty beans, grilled mushrooms and tomato, zesty sausages, and buttery toast. No black pudding.

7. Controversial Cupcakes at the Bleeding Heart Cafe

These savory Top Chef inspired creations were quite an experience. While the Wasabi White Chocolate was a kick in the mouth, the Perplexed Green (Curry) Tofu was rather delightful, and the Chicken Stir Fry cupcake was kind of awful but inventive nonetheless.

6. Return to Pataka

My European travels last March took me back through Edinburgh, Scotland, where I enjoyed some of the best Indian food I've ever had at Pataka. Curry is one of the UK's most popular foods - whether sit-down or carry-out (take-away as they say), Indian and Pakistani restaurants easily outnumber all other cuisines in the country. I got my favorite - Chicken Korma. Mmmm.

5. BBQ Chicken Pizza

I've never really been a fan of barbeque sauce - until this year. On a whim, my friend Ian and I picked up the BBQ Chicken Pizza from Homemade Pizza Kitchen (they make it fresh, you bake it), and it was AMAZING. It's essentially a white pizza with mozzarella, thinly sliced red onion, cilantro, and succulent little chunks of chicken, all drizzled with sweet, tangy barbeque sauce. It's all I've purchased from HPK since.

4. Topolobampo

I love it when my parents come to town. First, because since they still live in New Hampshire, I hardly ever see them anymore - it's nice to get some face time. And second, because they take me out to eat. Good places, too. This time around we went to Topolobampo. Mom's always been a fan of Rick Bayless and Frontera Grill, but she'd never been to Topolo, Frontera's fancy sister restaurant. The food was a knockout - wonderfully crafted "dressed up" Mexican, and the tasting menu was a fantastic way to experience it all.

I believe this guacamole served with cucumber and jimica slices may have been inspired by the episode when Rick Bayless guested on Top Chef: Chicago... Richard won the quickfire (thereby getting his dish on the Topolo menu) with a jimica wrapped veggie taco appetizer. The episode aired the night before our meal.

We finished up with Bayless's play on churros - light, crispy Mexican doughnuts served with a rich chocolate dipping sauce.

3. Birthday Dessert at TRU

In celebration of my 25th birthday, Jeanette, Leanne and I decided to check out the dessert tasting menu at TRU, one of Chicago's fanciest, schumanciest restaurants. Dinners here run somewhere around $200 a pop (sans drinks), but the dessert tasting is a slim $35 a person for five courses of pastriatic bliss. The place had a regal, stuffy feel about it, and despite being nearly packed it was surprisingly quiet. The staff were a bit stiff and formal, but our sommelier was really down to earth, and gave us a good deal on a really awesome bottle of dessert wine. The name of course escapes me now, but it was a great pair to all of our courses.

Unfortunately, I wasn't too eager with my camera, but here's a small sample of some of the delights we enjoyed:

A delightful, refreshingly citrusy mini aperitif...

A birthday wish in white chocolate...

And, on your way out the door, they hand you one of these, to "enjoy with your morning coffee". As if to say, "you'll have enough of a food hangover that you'll be needing it". It was a nice bow on a really lovely evening.

2. Stephanie Izard Winning Top Chef: Chicago

Ok, not edible. But still a really exciting moment (and television season) for Chicago foodies - and to top it all off, I got to interview her. Pretty cool. I can't wait until her Wicker Park / West Town restaurant, The Drunken Goat, opens this summer!!

1. Schwa.

I got a lucky seat at the much-sought-after Schwa last spring almost by accident. Considered by many Chicago foodies to be the very best deal for fine dining in all of the city (nine courses for $109 flat - and BYOB), it is nearly impossible to get a reservation. Probably because there are only four guys who work there, plus one helpful girlfriend who occasionally comes in and answers the phone. The brainchild of tortured genius (and Food & Wine Best New Chef) Michael Carlson, Schwa serves eclectic, gastro-molecular creations that challenge the diner just enough, and deliver exciting and unexpected flavors that work. The four chefs do all the cooking, hosting and serving themselves. It's quite an operation to behold, and considering there are only 26 or so seats, it feels like an exclusive dinner party.

Anyway, due to the value and incredible hype, it's incredibly hard to get a reservation. Call the restaurant at any given time, and you'll probably get a message saying that the voicemail box is full. If you're lucky, you'll call at just the right moment and be able to leave a message - which are always returned diligently. And if you're really lucky - like my friend Matt - you'll call at the precise moment when that helpful girlfriend picks up the phone intending to make another call. You'll startle her when you say "hello?" and she's expecting to hear a dial tone instead of a voice. And you'll bite your lip to supress the giant smile when she takes your reservation for just a few weeks away.

But then, what will you do when, just days before your reservation date, the girl you're seeing tells you she doesn't have the time to squeeze you in before starting her residency in Denver? You call me up, of course! And that's how I got my accidental seat at Schwa. But what an excellent twist of fate it was - probably the most etherial and awe-inspiring dining experience I've ever had. Here are a few highlights:

Chimay Beer Cheese Soup with a pretzel puff and mustard rind. Beer + cheese = mmmmm.

Stone crab with banana, celery, and coriander. Sweet, savory, and refreshing.

And finally, pad thai, with jellyfish tentacles subbed for noodles. Surprisingly fantastic.

A delicious 2008, all in all. Let's hope 2009 is even more flavorful.

How Does One Discern a Palate? And Wedding Bells Chime on This Week's Top Chef

Our cheftestants' palates and tolerance were put to the test this week in a smart new "name that ingredient" quickfire, and a bridal shower challenge. Padma wore a beautiful purple dress that I want for my own, and Hosea finally won the berth of my favorite so far this season (which was yet unclaimed). He's talented, humble, and smart. And he knows how to taste a sauce!

A palate-testing quickfire has been a staple of the last few seasons, and I really liked the way they did it this time around. The chefs went head to head in a sauce-tasting competition: the competitor who could name the most ingredients accurately advanced. The three sauces were shimp & lobster bisque, thai curry sauce, and mexican mole sauce - all of which have a multitude of discernible and subtle flavors. I think the most flavors named accurately was seven - including salt and pepper - but most contests went to only four or five ingredients. I was surprised at how quickly many of them folded! But it was a really interesting thing to watch, nonetheless. In the end, Hosea won.

And it made me wonder... how does one acquire a "discerning palate"? Surely some people are born with a more attuned sense of taste, but I think it's still something that needs to be developed with time and age. Maybe chefs are kind of "palate proteges" as children - appreciating complex flavors like soy and chili far sooner than their peanut-butter-and-jelly-loving peers. Either way, I would guess that it takes most people at least until their early twenties to start appreciating stronger, more advanced flavors.

I try to think back to the moment when I began to enjoy more "mature" flavors, and I think it started when I was in college. Unfortunately, growing up in small town New Hampshire, I was not exposed to a lot of exotic flavors. But in college I tried sushi and thai food for the first time, and I learned to enjoy stronger, more flavorful chocolate and cheeses. Studying abroad in Scotland, I was introduced to the wonders of Indian curries. With some degree of resistance, I taught myself to love the complex textures of espresso, red wine, and expensive vodka. And then, suddenly, it was like a switch was flipped - there were hardly any foods that I didn't like or couldn't appreciate in some way. I'm still not the biggest fan of caviar or olives, but I definitely have a much more open mind and appreciation for strong, challenging, or otherwise uncommon foods. I don't like to play it safe anymore - I crave something more in the food I eat and cook. 

As I'm sure it is with our Top Chefs, who are supposed to know how to balance advanced flavors in traditional and unexpected ways. Unfortunately, several of them fell short of that standard in this week's elimination challenge, in which Gail pimped out the chefs to cater her bridal shower - which was full of Food & Wine Magazine staff members. My favorite was when Gail said "these aren't the kind of women who get their salad dressing on the side". And she was right. 

Gail's 4o or so guests were pretty discerning about their four courses, and while two were pretty solid hits (the Indian-inspired lamb and the heirloom tomato trio) the other two were clear misses. The deconstructed sushi roll (with nothing sushi about it, really) was a disaster - Danny really shot himself in the foot there, and I was happy to see his cocky badly shaven face go. But Fabio's team and their blue corn flour encrusted sea bass was not much better - the concept sounded about right, but apparently the flavors of the dish didn't wow the diners. One woman said "I feel like I'm eating old people food". Maybe because it lacked impactful flavors? I guess today's savvy thirtysomething women are expecting more out of their food too! As they should. 

So another week of Top Chef rolls on, and it looks like next week, Martha Stewart's got something crafty planned for the cheftestants. A Christmas cocktail party perhaps? We'll just have to wait and see! 

Team Cougar Takes a Victory & Chef Love Blooms

Among the things I learned in tonight's episode:

1. Creme Brulee... not the best thing to make when you've only got an hour.

2. Why Top Chef will always be better than "Next Food Network Star".

3. Eggs benedict, the ice cream cone, and the bloody mary were all invented in New York City. Who knew?

I thought tonight's episode asked a very interesting and relevant question: does a top chef need to be able to do TV? Being on TV -- whether it's doing a small demonstration segment, or a whole TV show -- requires a few essential things. First, the chef must be confident and comfortable presenting their food to an audience. Second, they must be able to bring their style/dish down to a level that the home cook can understand. And third, they must have genuine personality - they must be enjoyable to watch. They must be... entertaining. 

Self promotion and confidence are certainly important things that every real top chef has - they must, or else they wouldn't be top chefs. And having a TV-friendly personality (and skills) has certainly helped many chefs gain superstardom (and super profits). But I don't agree that a chef has to be able to do TV to be successful. Yes, they need to be able to give an interview. No, they don't need to be able to cook on TV. They don't have to be able to bring their food down to a "home cook" level. Some (dare I say, many) chefs just aren't TV friendly, and it hasn't stopped them. 

Key point being - I think there is a big difference between "TV" chefs and real chefs. Don't get me wrong - I love me some Bobby Flay - but being able to create good TV and good food don't always go hand in hand. Which is why - for real foodies - Top Chef will always be better than The Next Food Network Star. Because good, inspiring food is entertaining enough by itself - I don't need the extra entertainment value. Yes, Top Chef IS a TV show and is definitely cast for personality. But the difference is that it centers around the food - not the character of the person who presents it. The best, most original, most inspiring food always wins - hands down. 

All of that said... I do generally enjoy the development of the characters on Top Chef each season. Each year, the heroes, the villians, the token gays, and the crazies emerge. And we love it. This season, I'm particularly enjoying the progression of what I think is the first Top Chef Romance! It looks like love is blooming for Hosea and Leah - for the second time, they've been caught getting their flirt on in front of the cameras. Who knew they could get so comfortable with each other so fast? Carla thinks they're just expressing their "sexual tension". But I'm pretty sure someone called Leah "the flirt with the big rack" one or two episodes ago, so looks like she's living up to it! Can't wait to see what happens...

And for the first time, Top Chef has it's own resident cougar! Ariane, the perky, tan New Jersey mom, took her first victory today after spending the first two weeks of competition on the bottom. Her simple beefsteak, watermelon, feta, and balsamic salad was a hit with the ladies of The Today Show. One of the most simple dishes, it still represented a unique flavor combination that a "home chef" could make. I thought it was maybe a little too elementary, but it must have been good!

Looking forward to more culinary action (and maybe some drama too) next week!

Top Chef Hosts A Couple of Rockstars. Also, Tom is (Not) Gay?!

Bravo's Top Chef is finally BACK with stoves a blazing, and they've wasted no time trying to "kick it up a notch" this season. The show is finally in New York City this time around - why it took them so long to get there, who knows - and they're making the most of their location so far, having already done a neighborhoods challenge and a stint at Tom C.'s Craft. 

The show's producers have done a good job at picking an entertaining cast of characters as usual, although it seems to me that the overall talent level seems slightly lower than last season. My favorite people so far are crazy bug-eyed Carla, total cougar mom Ariane, Danny with his awful facial hair and worse NYC accent, Big Gay Richard and Pocket Gay Patrick. Too bad "team rainbow" got broken up so soon, with two of the three gays already kicked off - now it's up to Jamie to try and carry the LGBT banner to the end. I'm enjoying the budding romance between Hosea and Leah, but she does seem like kind of a flirt "with a big rack" as someone aptly noted at the beginning of the episode (!), so we'll see where it goes. It would be cool to have a real top chef romance, after four seasons. And no, the lesbians from last season don't count cause they were already together when the show started. Where's the drama there? As for actual contenders for the Top Chef Crown, I'm banking on Stefan, Gene, Radhika, Jamie and Hosea to turn in strong performances. Anyway, I'm interested to see how it all unfolds!

While the first two episodes were fairly standard, this week's episode kicked it up a solid notch... but also down one too. I was shocked and pleasantly surprised to see my hometown hero Grant Achatz as a guest judge on the show - FINALLY - after he was snubbed in his hometown of Chicago last season. I was wholeheartedly disappointed with the way his appearance was treated however. As such a prolific and progressive chef, I thought they would have given him a more creative quickfire challenge, and I can't believe they attempted to upstage him by putting him in the same episode as the Foo Fighters! I can only hope that he was enjoying the celebrity company as he shared microwave-and-toaster-oven cooked turkey with Top Chef megafan Dave Grohl. For real "foodie" fans, Grant is superstar enough to have carried his own episode. They should have given him that at least. Either way, it was really cool to finally see him honored with an appearance on the show. I hope they bring him back later in the season for some more legit challenges near the end. 

And finally - apparently head judge Tom Colicchio is gay? How I could be such a fan and not know this yet is beyond me. I was alerted to this apparently well-known fact on tonight's show when Big Gay Richard made a comment about getting nervous when "cutie gay bear Tom" entered the room with the Foo Fighters. Update: Naturally I looked on the internet for confirmation, and found a few articles that lead me to believe it was true. Thankfully, a better informed reader (see below) set me straight - Tom has been happily married since 2001! Oops! I will make sure to do better research in the future!

Coming soon... six hits for six months of absence. Yeah, it was a busy summer. And fall. But it's not like I wasn't still eating... and taking notes! Stay tuned. :)

 

Bravo Honors an "A-List Chef"

"If you're watching this you must be gay or a woman": I'm finally watching Bravo's A-List Awards, which I DVR'd last week. Kathy Griffin hosted and it's pretty funny. I just think its great that little Bravo (well not so little anymore!) decided to host a full-on awards show to salute the best in popular culture whilst pimping their own shows and of course engaging in more shameless product promotion. And as I'm watching it suddenly hit me that Bravo's audience must skew gay. Like really gay. Kathy Griffin should have been my first clue.

Anyway, one of the awards they gave out was for A-List Chef: "presented to a chef who has shown the greatest ingenuity and creativity with his or her culinary creations." The award went to Jose Andres (DC restauranteur and a guest on this season of Top Chef). The other nominees included David Chang (Momofuku/NYC), Suzanne Goin (Lucques and A.O.C./LA), and Michael Psilakis (Anthos/NYC).

After Tom Colicchio presented the award to Jose Andres, Kathy Griffin sprung a QUICKFIRE on them! They have "the commercial break" to make something delicious, which is to be judged by... the Top Chef All-Stars! But, post commercial break, Kathy Griffin choreographically drops the plates and ruins everything.

Bravo also honored an A-List restaurant: Bar Boulud (Daniel Boulud/NYC). Other nominees included: Little Owl (Joey Campanaro/NYC), Osteria Mozza (Matt Molina/LA), and Chicago's own Table 52 (Art Smith).

Third Coast Dish: Steph Speaks

Top Chef 4 winner and new bona-fide celebrity chef Stephanie Izard finds a few minutes to fill us in on her new found fame.

Over here at Third Coast Toast, I've been supporting Team Stephanie from just about day one of this season of Top Chef. She proved herself to be a formidable competitor early on, snagging the very first elimination challenge win and picking up three more in her steady march to the Top Chef throne. There were times when we got nervous (peanut butter and tomatoes! yikes!), but in Chicago, our steadfast faith never wavered.

After receiving the title of Top Chef in last week's finale, Steph's been busy jet setting around the US for a whirlwind photo shoots, appearances, and interviews. Luckily, she found a few minutes to chat with me today via phone about her new found stardom, her trip to Asia, and the plans for her new restaurant.

Third Coast Toast: Hi Steph, thanks for taking the time to chat today. First off, congratulations on an awesome performance this season. How does it feel to be the first female Top Chef?

Steph: It's very exciting. It was a long, sort of difficult thing but in the end it all worked out - I'm super excited.

TCT: You definitely seemed very excited at the finale party last week. Was it hard to keep the secret all that time?

S: It was... in the end I just sort of played it like a little game. It was kind of fun to have a secret and not tell my parents. You know, it's like "I know something you don't know" and, just watching them stress out for the last week was kind of entertaining.

TCT: As the first female top chef, what's your perspective - do you think it's still harder for women to make it as a chef these days?

S: I mean, I don't think so. I think as long as you carry yourself as, you know, just a strong person and a strong chef throughout your career... of course there's gonna be guys that think that just because you're a female that maybe you can't do something. You just have to sort of do your best and be the best chef you can be, and not worry about not being a male.

TCT: How does it feel to be a celebrity chef now - to come from being famous in the Chicago food scene to being famous all over the world? Is it weird?

S: It's very weird. You know, of course everywhere I go in Chicago there's people all around congratulating me, which is amazing, but... yeah, it's everywhere, and it's so interesting to me to see how widespread the show was and how many people watched it... so it's crazy. This whole "famous" thing is sort of weird.

TCT: Cool. So there were a lot of different "characters" on the show this season - some were portrayed as likeable and some not so much, but everyone was definitely really talented. How much do you think personality, or "character" matters versus talent in the real chef world?

S: I think you should always focus on the food, and if you're the type of personality where it's gonna get in the way of making good food then that's definitely a detriment. But there's a lot of really great chefs out there that really aren't very nice at all. So I guess it just depends on what kind of relationships you want to have with your staff, and with people in the industry.

TCT: You mentioned in an interview with Chicagoist that a lot of being a great chef is being able to put together unexpected flavor combinations that work - you were really good about that this season, especially with the braised pistachios and the lamb in the last challenge. What is a great, unexpected flavor combination that you've had or discovered recently?

S: You know, I wouldn't say there's anything I've discovered recently... I'm always just playing around and making new things, but... trying to use fruit in a lot of your savory cooking is a fun thing to do. There's always beautiful fruit especially in the spring and summer and just, you know, playing around with it and trying to involve it in some of your savory dishes rather than just saving it for dessert is a lot of fun.

TCT: This season, what guest judge were you most excited to cook for, and were there any faces from the Chicago scene that you were surprised not to see?

S: I was probably most excited to cook for Anthony Bourdain - I've just been a long time fan, I love No Reservations, and... he's just so intelligent and well spoken, and I was just excited to see him there. I think a lot of people were surprised that Charlie Trotter wasn't there and maybe Grant [Achatz], but I don't think Top Chef is Charlie Trotter's thing. I think that they did find some great chefs from Chicago to participate, and it was a lot of fun to see some of the people I've been working with throughout the years.

TCT: I hear that you're scouting locations for a new restaurant in Chicago. Have you found any winners yet?

S: Not yet, I'm just starting early on in the process and I've seen some beautiful spaces, but I really want to put some thought into what neighborhood I want to be in. I think that's just so important that I want to sort of take my time and find the perfect space.

TCT: Do you have a concept or a specific cuisine in mind yet?

S: It's going to be globally influenced as far as the flavors go, keeping in with my style, but I want to have a restaurant that is the kind of place I want to go. Just really casual, no pretension, but it's all about just good food and wine and beer, and you know, hanging out with your friends and having a good time.

TCT: As you plan a menu, how important do you think it is to challenge diners versus serving flavors that they know and love?

S: I think that there's gotta be a delicate balance. If you have too many things on your menu that are kind of weird or bizarre you might scare away a few people, but I think there's a way to work in some unique flavors and some unique proteins and different items, that you can get people to sort of try something maybe that they haven't tried before. But definitely, it's always nice to have a few things on the menu might not be so scary, to encourage people from all over to come in.

TCT: I also heard that you're planning to keep it affordable. Can you tell me a little more about that?

S: Yeah, you know, there's some great restaurants in the city that are just super expensive, and I treat myself every once in a while to Avenues or you know, I want to try L2O, but I want people to come in on Tuesday nights just because they don't feel like cooking. It doesn't have to be a birthday or an anniversary or something special. I think that a lot of times you just want to have great food and hang out with your friends and you don't want to drop like $75 a person so, yeah, I definitely just want to keep it a little more affordable so it's just sort of a place you can go when you're just in the mood to go out.

TCT: Cool. So in between the Chicago taping and the finale taping, you took a trip to southeast Asia. Where did you go and what kind of inspiration did you find there?

S: I went to Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam, which was amazing. I would say mostly, the food in Vietnam was very inspirational. They just have a way with flavors that really matches my style, where there's always a little bit of a salty and sweet and spicy, sort of hitting every part of your palate. It's just great that when you're over there, even the street food is amazingly seasoned, and it was just a lot of fun to see the different cultures.

TCT: Who do you think you're going to keep in touch with from the show? Is there anyone that's going to go in on the restaurant with you? I know Dale from last season is pulling in CJ and Sara for his restaurant...

S: I'll definitely keep in touch - I still talk to most everybody, but I couldn't see any of us really partnering up for a restaurant. I think that two chefs trying to work at a place just butt heads a little bit and I think that we're all just really strong and want to all go our own paths and do really well on our own.

TCT: When do you anticipate your restaurant opening?

S: I'm gonna shoot for late next spring or early summer - I'd like to do it within a year, so it might seem a little bit rushed, but I want to give people a place to come eat my food, so, we'll see if I can do that quickly.

TCT: Ok, one last question: I have brown curly hair just like you - it was kind of straight at the party last week - but yours always looks so great on the show... what product to you use?

S: Finesse mousse all the way. I go through like a can a week. It's all about the mousse.

TCT: Ok, well that's all I've got. Thanks for taking the time.

S: Thanks, take care!

Top Chef 5: NYC!

A credible source is reporting that Bravo has settled on the impeccible food town New York City as the location for the upcoming fifth season of Top Chef. Even though they've only just wrapped the broadcast run for this season (tonight's Top Chef Chicago Reunion Special will be the last show), filming for season 5 is reportedly set to begin in July and run through August.

As snack says: "I expect the Big Apple blogosphere to bring it."

Sweet Victory for a Summer Night: Dispatches from The Top Chef Chicago Finale

It was a big night for Chicago... and a big night for women chefs everywhere as Stephanie Izard won the Top Chef Season Four crown in a fierce battle against runners-up Blais and Lisa, and thereby made history as the first woman to win the title of Top Chef in the television series' four season run.
As an invitee to the "exclusive" Top Chef Chicago Finale viewing party last evening at Room 21 in Chicago, I got a coveted front row seat to all the drama and excitement -- not even Steph's parents knew the outcome of the show! I also got to catch up with Chicago's other season four cheftestant, Valerie, as well as Season Three's Dale Levitski and Sara Nguyen who were also in attendance.

First off, let me say that Room 21 is an impressive restaurant space... I imagine the only reason I haven't been down there is that it is SO far down south... 2110 Wabash, which is practically ON Cermak. It starts getting sketchy this far south. But nevertheless, it was a beautiful place to have the party and the perfect evening weather only added to the vibrant atmosphere. Smartly dressed guests sipped on champagne and Grey Goose cocktails, and were treated to hors devours including crispy duck rolls, wasabi crusted lamb chops, seared scallops, rice-filled crostinis, savory fried chicken drumsticks, and melt-in-your-mouth himachi. Later on, the passed desserts included assorted candied popcorns, chocolate dipped strawberries, nut-rolled fruit-filled chocolate truffles, and mini red velvet cupcakes. I CLEARLY had to sample one of everything. Mmmm!

I ran into Steph shortly after I arrived. She looked great, and had a fantastic poker face on - her cheery, but impressively calm demeanor gave nothing away. "I'm just ready for it to be over" she said with a breathy laugh. Steph was joined by her parents and sister, as well as a few friends, who all seemed more nervous than her! I wished her luck and headed to the bar to pick up an orange martini - I decided that a classy night deserved a classy drink. And I do love the taste of good vodka. Yum.

After hobnobbing with a few people from Bravo and their contributing media partners, I caught up with Valarie a little later on. Pint-sized and packed with energy, Val shared that she's been keeping busy since the show going the Art Smith route as a private chef in Chicago. She has one main client who she spends most of her time with, and isn't planning on getting back into the restaurant world anytime soon - even as her pal Steph is planning to open a new place of her own. Like the other cheftestants in attendance, she had just returned from the filming of Bravo's A-List Awards (hosted by Kathy Griffin and airing tonight). She said it was a pretty crazy show but that it was fun to catch up with her fellow TC castmates.

With the time of the show drawing close, I found a few minutes to catch up with Season 3 cheftestant and Chicago resident Dale Levitski on his new restaurant and his take on the current season. (Here's me and Dale!)Preparations for Dale's new Chicago restaurant, Town and Country, are well underway, and he's got fellow season three cheftestants Sara Nguyen and CJ on board as sous chefs. Sara's also Dale's new roommate - they recently moved into a new place in the Lakeview / Lincoln Park area. When I later asked if they were settled and decorated, Sara laughed and remarked that no, the place still looks like a college dorm room. Oh well, I guess chefs are not necessarily designers! Dale shared that CJ wasn't out in Chicago yet, but was planning to move out in August. He giddily explained that the concept and design for Town and Country are complete, the space is purchased (in the west loop on Monroe & Canal), and he's already working out the details of the "contemporary diner" menu, which will include variations on his favorite dishes from his time on the show (which are also included in the new Top Chef cookbook) - rack of lamb, seared scallops, seared elk loin, turkey & pork meatballs, and more. "I want to have a fun, relaxed, professional kitchen" he explained, and having Sara and CJ there will help keep this philosophy alive. He said that being on the show and finishing in the final two gave him new confidence and direction in his career as a chef. "As a chef, this is the happiest I've ever been. I know this is what I was meant to do."

When he got to meet the season four cast earlier this week at the Bravo A-List Awards in NYC, he said he really didn't want to like them, but ended up being won over. "I think we were the season that all loved each other and got along" he noted, commenting that the editing of this season definitely exposed more conflicts between cast members. While he was happy with the way he was portrayed, he did add that "some people walk away from the show with regrets. You just have to be yourself" and hope the editors are kind. "One thing Bravo did do a good job of this season", Dale added, "was showing how beautiful Chicago is". We agreed that we did have an exceptionally beautiful fall, but nonetheless - they did get some great shots of the bean, the skyline, and all those other little parts that makes Chicago the gem it is. So cheers to Bravo on that.

But lest we forget, Stephanie was the star of tonight's party. "I'm nervous for her. I'm sweating!" Dale exclaimed as we discussed Chicago's chef-darling of the evening. Dale also revealed a startling connection that I hadn't heard of before tonight: Stephanie used to be Dale's sous chef at Andersonville eatery La Tache. Dale says he encouraged Stephanie to try out when auditions came back around, and as luck would have it - she made it! Dale was out of a sous chef, but as we know, he soon moved on to bigger and better things. I can't wait until his restaurant opens in September!

But back to the main event of the evening: the Finale! As nine o'clock rolls around, the guests of the party gather on the outdoor patio, where the show is being projected on a large screen. Stephanie and Valarie sit flanked by their families and friends in front row seats to the show. It's a perfectly warm summer night - the kind that feels like there's a little magic in the soft breeze - like something extraordinary might happen. The anticipation in the air is palpable.

The show opens and immediately we go into the final challenge which is, predictably, "cook us the meal of your life". It must be a four course meal with seafood, poultry, meat, and dessert (yes, dessert!) courses. In a recycled move from last season, the cheftestants are also met with three prestigeous "sous" chefs for the challenge: Eric Ripert of Le Bernadin, April Bloomfield of The Spotted Pig, and Dan Barber of Blue Hill (a 2008 James Beard Outstanding Chef nominee!). Stephanie gets to choose first and goes for Ripert. Blais goes for Barber, which leaves Lisa with Bloomfield.

Each cheftestant gets to choose from a long list of fine proteins from each of their chefs. They'll have a few hours to prep, and then five or so hours to cook the next day.

They get to work prepping and Eric Ripert is a bit miffed that Stephanie's giving him direction on how to filet a fish. The "studio" audience at Room 21 lets out a presumptive giggle and Steph cracks up at herself.

All too soon, prep time is over, and the chefs must retire for the evening. When they return the next day, it's only half surprising that POOF! they'll have no sous chefs for the remainder of the challenge. "We need to know that you lived and died by your own hands" comments Tom, after he's shared the twist in the rules.

"It's like your sous chef called in sick" Blais remarked. You just have to keep going and pick up the slack. Heads down, they get back into it. Blais is visibly frazzled and scrambling to pull his menu together. When Tom stops by, he remarks "I'm really in the shit right now". Yikes.

Stephanie's feeling the pressure too when Tom stops by. She sounds like she has a solid menu, but she's really worried about her dessert, a ricotta pound cake with salted banana cream. She's delivered (and indeed won) on other desserts, but she's starting to doubt herself. Bad news!

At this point I stole a glance over to Steph and her family, and her poker face was still on. Her family, however, was really sweating it out. But her quiet stoicism gave away nothing!

Lisa's surprisingly the only one in the kitchen who's calm, collected, and focused when Tom stops by. She's laid out a thoughtful menu of her favorite asian flavors, and she's feeling good about her timing and her ability to deliver. Well Lisa, you got this far. Let's see what you can show us tonight.

It's finally time for service - a black tie affair for nine, including Padma, Gail and Tom, Ted Allen, the three former sous chefs, Tom Zagat (yes, of THAT Zagat), and noted Puerto Rican chef (that we've never heard of) Alfredo Ayala.

First Courses (seafood):
Lisa: Grilled prawns with crab, chili-basil sauce, and homemade potato chips
Blais: Barely seared scallops with mango and pineapple vinegar
Steph: Seared Red Snapper with truffled clam and asparagus sauce elegantly served in a teacup.
*Lisa's prawns are excellently prepared, but some of the diners wonder if the chili kick is too intense for a first course. Blais's dish, on the contrary, apparently has no flavor at all. Steph's red snapper is a hit for flavor and elegant presentation.

Second Courses (poultry):
L: Tom Kha Gai (coconut chicken) soup and a dumpling
B: "Which Came First?" Guinea hen with an egg and foie gras
S: Quail breast over lobster ravioli with mango-lobster sauce and a quail egg
*The judges are marveled by the concept of Blais's dish, but feel like each individual component gets lost in the execution. They love everything about Steph's dish except the leeks - they're undercooked (crunchy!) and have no purpose on the plate. Lisa's soup however, is a home run. The judges are practically licking their bowls.

Third Courses (red meat):
L: Wagyu beef with chayote and cucumber salad
B: Pork belly with pickled rasdishes and mirin broth
S: Lamb Medallions with maitake mushrooms, braised pistachios, blackberry and olive tapenade
*The judges LOOOVE the lamb and are pleasantly surprised to see that the seemingly random assortment of ingredients work brilliantly together. Score one for Steph! Blais's pork belly is a flop for being underseasoned. Lisa's beef is cooked well, but the sauce is a little too sweet and the garlic doesn't come through enough.

Fourth Courses (dessert):
L: Thai Black Rice Pudding with coconut and lime and mango cream
B: Banana Scallops with Bacon Ice Cream (really Blais? AGAIN?)
S: Ricotta Poundcake with Salted Banana Cream
*The judges like the texture and flavor of Lisa's pudding, and find Steph's poundcake "average" - the like the cake but feel she came up short on the cream. Somehow they are wowed by Blais's banana-scallop-threepeat. They're acting like Blais invented bacon ice cream. Really guys? You've never heard of this concept before? BEEN done!

All in all, it was a pretty strong performance by Lisa and Steph, and not so much for Blais. For being the "risk taker" of this season, I've got to say that he's played it really safe, especially compared to some of the stuff Marcel was pumping out two seasons ago. Some foam there, some smoke here, a little bit of liquid nitrogen... it didn't really add up to anything ground breaking in the end.

We go next into the judges table, and now people are physically gathering around Steph on the patio - holding her hands in rapt anticipation. She's still got that poker face on. The judges go course for course and point out the ups and downs as noted above. When they ask if there's anything else the chefs want to add, Blais blurts out "I think I choked tonight". The judges are initially shocked at this admission, but later agree with him - he didn't perform up to his potential. OH SHIT! With Steph's lackluster dessert and Lisa's stellar soup, it looks like Lisa might have the edge here. The judges send the contestants away to deliberate to the songs of morning birds chirping. I ask Dale if he thinks the judges are drunk right now. "No. Not this time" he tells me. "But probably most of the other ones!" It still sounds to me like Padma is slurring her words a little bit. Maybe she's just tired.

They finally call the contestants back and the silent hysteria on the patio of Room 21 is at fever pitch. Padma finally, slowly, dramatically utters the words "Stephanie.......... YOU ARE TOP CHEF!" AND the whole place goes nuts! Everyone's crowding around Stephanie. After hugging her parents she leans over a row of chairs to give Val a big hug. And she finally gets to break the poker face and bust out that big toothy grin. It's plastered on her face for the rest of the night.

After I gave Steph my congratulations and the crowd arond Steph began to wane, I caught up with Dale on my way out the door. "I'm so happy for her" he glowingly remarked. "It's so great to be there to watch someone's life change in a minute". And it was.

Chicago's Superchef Grant Achatz Takes Top James Beard Honors

Ok so I'm a few days late on this, but the annual James Beard Awards ceremony was held this past Sunday at the Lincoln Center in New York City, and Chicago's favorite molecular gastronomist, Grant Achatz, took the top prize: the Outstanding Chef Award.

If you're unfamiliar, the James Beard Awards are the annual "Oscars" of the American food industry: they are among the highest honors a chef can receive. The "Outstanding Chef" award is the highest prize: it goes to "a working chef in America whose career has set national industry standards and who has served as an inspiration to other food professionals. Candidates must have been working as a chef for at least the past five years." So yeah, it's a pretty big deal. CONGRATS GRANT!!! :) His fellow nominees were:

*Jose Andres of minibar, Washington, DC (and guest judge on this season of Top Chef)
*Dan Barber of Blue Hill, NYC
*Suzanne Goin of Lucques, LA
*Frank Stitt of Highlands Bar & Grill, Birmingham, Alabama

Chicago chef Carrie Nahabedian of Naha took home the regional honor of Best Chef: Great Lakes. Her fellow nominees included Graham Elliot Bowles (for Avenues, Chicago), Bruce Sherman (North Pond, Chicago), Michael Symon (Lola, Cleveland), Alex Young (Zingerman's Roadhouse, Ann Arbor).

My favorite Chicago pastry chef, Mindy Segal, was nominated but snubbed for the second year in a row in the "Outstanding Pastry Chef" category, so that's a bummer! But I'm glad she was nominated and I hope they do the right thing and give it to her next year.

Bravo's Top Chef was honored with a broadcast media award for "Best Television Food Special" for the Top Chef Holiday Special, which aired last December. The show did not however take the "Best Television Food Show" honors, which instead went to a PBS show I've never heard of (but must be good): Gourmet's Diary of a Foodie. However, it's really a credit to the Top Chef producers that this show is taken seriously enough to even be nominated at these awards - notice that there's no Iron Chef, no Hell's Kitchen, no Emiril or Rachael Ray. There's a reason they're not in there and a reason why Top Chef is. And that's the reason I watch.

Read the Trib's full coverage of the event here. The complete list of nominees and winners is here.

Stephanie Sighting!

My baker friend John reports that Top Chef Chicago finalist Stephanie Izard was spotted last Wednesday browsing the treats at Sweet Mandy B's on Racine & Webster in Chicago. Although John was downstairs at the time, tending to the ovens, his co-workers report that she ultimately settled on a chocolate chip cookie. Delish.

Steph's also going plate-to-plate with former Shawn McClain protege Nick LaCasse this Sunday, June 15, at the Drawing Room at Le Passage. The dinner sold out nearly instantly, so the organizers added a VIP post-dinner reception featuring a meet & greet with Steph and complementary seasonal cocktails created by her chefness. As was pointed out on Chicagoist, this event partly overlaps with the annual Food & Wine Classic in Aspen, where the Top Chef winner is to have a showcase, so that may mean trouble for Steph on Wednesday. But as the Le Passage event is on a Sunday night, and looks to have been scheduled after the taping of the finale, it's very feasible that she's doing both in the same weekend. The Food & Wine Classic schedule lists a presentation on Saturday at 10:30am by Padma and Tom, titled "In the Kitchen With Top Chef". It says Tom and Padma will be giving cooking demonstrations... but... is it all a clever ruse??

I guess we'll find out on Wed!

Puerto Rico, My Heart's Devotion (Top Chef Finale Part One)

... and one chef went back to the ocean. It was a night of hot flavors and fierce competition as plantains and pigs took center stage. The scenery was beautiful and the chefs well rested, but once they landed on the island there was no time for vacation - it was right back to the same high-caliber challenges.

Filmed just weeks ago, the chefs had a hefty break (about three months) between filming in Chicago and the Puerto Rico finale, which they all spent differently. Antonia opened her restaurant (Foxtail) and put in 100 hour weeks in the kitchen - yikes! [Sidenote - looks like Foxtail is just about the hottest new spot in West Hollywood - SUPER popular with the celebs! Go Antonia!] Steph traveled around southeast asia. Blais and Lisa spent the time sharpening their skills as well.

Blais, Antonia, and Steph are cheerfully reunited at the airport. They indifferently wait for the arrival of Lisa... no one is particularly excited to see her. Everyone feels like she should have gone home weeks ago.

No sooner have the cheftestants landed when they're thrown back into the fire - or, the Quickfire in this case. The chefs are welcomed to San Juan by Padma and guest judge Wilo Benet, apparently known for his fine Puerto Rican cuisine (...only in Puerto Rico). The challenge: create two kinds of frituras, or "fritters" - ubiquitous fried nuggets of various composition found throughout Puerto Rico, and "enjoyed best with a cold, cold beer" (of course Padma would be the authority on this!). Both must include an element of plantains. The chefs are also offered a full table of produce and a full refrigerator of proteins. Basically, whatever they do, it has to be nugget/bite sized, and it has to be FRIED - very typical of caribbean & central American food. And it's GO TIME!

Steph serves up tostones (flattened, fried plantain slices) with seared tuna, as well as pork & shrimp fritters with brown butter, lime & basil sauce.

Antonia serves crispy oysters with cilantro plantain jam, and fried yellow plantain with spicy slaw.

Lisa offers tostones with pan roasted duck & mango salsa, and chorizo fritters.

Blais has a play on "chips & salsa" with fried green plantain "chips" and a fresh plantain "salsa" as well as pork meatballs with plantain sauce.

The outcome? Wilo doesn't like Antonia and Blais's dishes as much as Lisa and Steph's. Guess the tostones were a good call! But its ultimately Steph who takes the win. And surprisingly it's her first quickfire win! Guess she's just been racking up the elimination wins. Not bad!

After the challenge, Wilo invites the four chefs over to a "classic Puerto Rican party" complete with dancers and live drummers. CUE THE SLOW MO! Over dramatic music, we now listen to Blais and the others remark about how nervous they are while we watch them akwardly dance with the locals and clap their hands. This is a little cheesy, but points for trying to add some gravitas to the finale!

Finally we're onto the elimination challenge and it is: pigs. Four of them. The chefs each get a full pig, and they must make at least two dishes out of it, that will feed 100 people at a very exclusive VIP event in the gardens of a famous Puerto Rican building. But they don't have to do it alone! To the "top chef march" theme, out come Dale, Andrew, Nikki, and Spike! As her "advantage" in this challenge, Steph gets to assign the sous chefs. After taking Dale for herself, its Spike and Blais, Nikki and Antonia, and Andrew and Lisa. Really, no one wanted to work with her. But Andrew-who-doesn't-throw-people-under-the-bus is going to channel his inner mother theresa and try to support Lisa even as she barks in his face.

The chefs get some PM prep time before the big day, and they take full advantage. However, Dale forgets to put the pork belly in the fridge overnight. WHAT AN IDIOT! They find it in the morning and it goes straight into the trash (why wouldn't it? why was there so much discussion about that?) so Steph and Dale need to think of a new third dish. They come up with a salad of chicharrones, fruit and prosciutto which ends up being a hit, surprisingly.

After the guests have left, it's onto judges' table. Blais and Stephanie are the favorites - Blais for his simple, yet elegantly executed dishes (especially the pork belly) and Stephanie for her consistently creative dishes, including the chicharrones salad. And the winner is... BLAIS! And he wins... A CAR!! Wow toyota, you've gone too far! Blais is overwhelmed.

Unfortunately, it's now onto the losers. Antonia gets dinged for her undercooked pidgeon peas and for serving all three of her dishes on the same plate, and the judges note that her dishes are the least sophistocated of the four. Meanwhile Lisa is criticized for poor execution of her tostone bite and overly sweet plantain-potato puree, as well as over-garnishing her dishes in general.

We go to commercial break and see that the fans have texted their votes for who should go home tonight... and it's a whopping 91% for Lisa. Wow. I don't think I've ever seen a margin that large on a Top Chef poll before. Unfortunately for the fans, it sounds like the judges have set up Antonia as the loser tonight... and indeed she is ultimately the one who is told to pack her knives. The collective audience watching around the country consequently groans out loud or shouts obscenities at the TV. Or a combination of both.

To top it off, Lisa's extra bitchy to Blais and Steph when she returns to the waiting room. "You could of at least said congratulations!" she exclaims. Blais decries her poor attitude to the cameras in one of the best lines of the night: "what does she want me to say? Lisa, you've won the bronze medal. Congratulations!" OH SNAP!

Why Lisa is still on - after sliding by week after week - is still a mystery. And all it means is that the finale is clearly a bout between Steph and Richard - although we could have assumed this all along. But its too bad that more likeable, personable, and inventive chefs could have made it this far - at this point, Lisa just makes the show a little difficult to watch... and take seriously.

Looking forward to next week, where the final flames are fired up in Top Chef's Puerto Rico kitchen. TEAM STEPHANIE ALL THE WAY!!!

A Bittersweet Farewell to Chicago

Well, it's certainly been a fun run, but all great affairs must come to an end. And this, the last week of Top Chef Season 4 in Chicago, was our fabulous last hurrah. The chefs fevereshly sliced, diced, and sauteed their last efforts toward the finale in Puerto Rico - but only four would last the night. Guest judge and Chicago culinary icon Rick Tramonto was on hand to oversee the action.

After a few "wakeup" shots we are quickly on our way to the quickfire... which is a test in butchering at the famous Allen Brothers meat packing plant (located at 3737 South Halsted on Chicago's south side). And a classic Chciago challenge it is, if we consider that the very heart of Chicago's early industry was the infamous Union Stockyards of the city's south side, which supplied freshly butchered beef, via rail, to a significant majority of the country. And how appropriate that the Allen Brothers' business originated in those very stockyards, in 1893. But I digress.

The cheftestants are presented with large cuts of cow, which they are instructed to butcher into prime bone-in "tomahawk" chopped steaks. 20 minutes later, they're told to pack up their steaks and head back to the Top Chef kitchen, where Rick Tramonto and Padma are waiting. Predictably, Padma announces that the challenge is to cook the perfect steak. And how does Rick like his? Medium rare. The chefs have 35 minutes to get it right.

Spike starts grilling, then throws it in the oven. Antonia's basting away, trying to
"seal in the flavor". Stephanie's planning to let hers rest for at least five minutes. Blais is using a torch. Lisa's pan searing. Time is up and Rick knifes into each chef's steak, but doesn't taste them! Shocking. He simply inspects each steak for the quality of the butchering, and the done-ness of the meat. As Rick moves from cut to cut, his poker face gives nothing away. Stephanie and Blais come out on the bottom for their poor butchering, while Lisa, Spike and Antonia are praised for their clean butchering and precise cooking job - but it's Spike who ultimately takes the win. Padma tells him he'll have a very important decision to make in the next challenge, which is...

... having first choice of protein in the elimintation challenge (sound familiar?). For one night, Rick is handing over the kitchen of his hot new restaurant, Tramonto's Steak & Seafood (part of the Cenitare Restaurants), to the Top Chefs. They are each charged with creating an appetizer and an entree from what they find in Rick's kitchen. The place is fully booked for the night, so it's going to be a telling trial of each chef's true restaurating potential. Let the flames begin!!

As the sun sets, we see the Rav 4s powering up Lake Shore Drive to the suburbs (the restaurant is in the north suburb of Wheeling, IL). When the chefs arrive, it's up to Spike to choose his protein. He goes for the tomahawk steaks (trying to coast off his quickfire win, perhaps?) and a bag of frozen scallops, which the other contestants shun. I guess frozen scallops are NOT such a good idea. Lisa goes for shrimp and a whole New York strip steak, with peanut butter mashed potatoes... questionable. Antonia chooses a bone-in ribeye with mushrooms and potatoes. Stephanie decides on sweetbreads and a beef filet. Finally, Blais chooses hamachi and sweetbreads, and a beef tenderloin. MMMM... MEAT!

After making the rounds, Tom announces that he'll be "expediting" the meal. At first, this sounds like a cruel twist. But to the contrary, Antonia explanins giddily that this simply means that he'll be timing out the meal for the chefs, as is the custom role of an executive chef. Antonia is excited that Tom is expediting tonight! Oh yes she is.

It's almost time for service, and OH SHIT! there are VIP guests! And they're... THE WINNERS FROM THE LAST THREE SEASONS! This is a lovely surprise. Harold, Ilan, and Hung offer words of wisdom to the chefs as they're sweating it out, and take their seats. The stakes are duly (triply?) raised. The judges decide that they want "tasting portions" of all the dishes - and the chefs have to whip it together quick.

It's time for service and Lisa is up first. Her chilled shrimp appetizer is not a hit, and neither is Spike's scallops and hears of palm or Antonia's warm mushroom & artichoke salad. The sweetbreads appetizers are a hit, however - both for Blais and Stephanie.

Next up it's Blais's entree - and he's taking his time plating his beef filet with potato puree, red wine, turnips and pickeled brussels sprouts. The presentation elicits a "wow" from Gail. Nice work! Harold notes that all the flavors work well when eaten together. The overall vote is positive.

Lisa's NY Strip steak with spicy apple caramel sauce and peanut butter mashed potatoes is next. Rick's digging the flavor profile, but in the general opinion, the beef is not cooked quite right.

Up next is Spike, and his tomahawk steak with sweet potato puree, blanched brussels sprouts and cipollinis. The sweet potatoes are too sweet, the meat is "just ok" and the judges aren't "blown away".

Stephanie comes next with a beef tenderloin with wild mushrooms and an apple sauce. Georgeous presentation, well constructed, and a hit with the judges. Yum!

Antonia lets us know, again, how much she loves having Tom "in the kitchen" with them, doing the "expediting". Her bone-in ribeye with toasted fennel & cipollinis and a potato gratin goes over well - the judges like that its rounded and rich... if a bit too rich.

Service is finally over, and it's on to the last Chicago judges table. They love Blais's sweetbreads appetizer, but felt his entree was a little undercooked (even though it was plated beautifully!). Steph's sweetbreads are praised, but her entree is questioned. Predictably, Lisa's chilled shrimp is slammed, but her peanut butter mashed potatoes are a hit. Antonia's whole menu is praised as being "perfect steakhouse". Spike's meat is cooked well, but he gets slammed for choosing the frozen scallops (you'd have to be blind not to see that coming) - but he tries to blame it on Rick Tramonto for having them there in the first place!! OH SNAP!

When the chefs have exited, Gail expresses how happy she was to taste clever and delicious dishes that she's never had before. I love this comment, because I believe the hallmark of a top chef boils down to just that - to make truly original dishes, combining new flavor profiles, that taste great. And that's probably what I love most about food - maybe even the reason I'm a "foodie". Nothing compares to the thrill of ordering something you've never had before... say, coconut curry ice cream, or a wasabi-white chocolate cupcake... and the experience of that first bite. It's not always great - that's why you have to take risks! But when it hits, it hits. And you know that the person who dreamed up that dish has some kind of genius about food. That's what it takes to make an authentically original dish shine.

So who's hit it tonight? The chefs are called back, and while Blais has the best appetizer, and Antonia has the best entree, it's Steph who nets the win for having the most well-rounded, best executed dishes overall. It's then down to Lisa and Spike... and although we ALL want to see Lisa go, it's Spike who gets the axe, ultimately for his poor choice of scallops.

And there we have our curtain on the Chicago chapter of Top Chef Chicago. What a ride it was. I am still sorely dissappointed to see that Grant Achatz has been left off of the guest judge roster, and less so about Charlie Trotter... although I suspect that either or both of them may make appearances in the finale. Mindy Segal has been passed over completely, it seems. Pity. But there are still two weeks of action in store for the chefs, so who knows who will show up. And the gender odds are good: with three women and one man in the final four, it's highly likely that America's Next Top Chef will be a woman.... and that her name will be Stephanie. :)

Until next week... keep up the TC spirit! TEAM STEPHANIE ALL THE WAY!!

Top Chef Week 11: Restaurant Wars is BACK!

They really couldn’t keep Top Chef’s most anticipated challenge – Restaurant Wars – off the menu this season… although they did give us a scare. Padma and the cheftestants exuberantly welcomed the return of the well loved and historically crushing challenge, and in the end, one team – in the words of Simon Cowell – delivered “a knockout”.

I have to admit, this is the challenge I most wish I had been invited to (thanks Bravo) but maybe they were too worried that I would spill the beans. Either way, whoever attended it definitely honored their confidentiality contracts because not a peep was leaked prior to the show’s airing. But I’m getting ahead of myself… let’s start at the beginning.

In a classic move, Tom shows up at the Top Chef house pre-six AM to deliver a warm, friendly wake up call to the contestants. They are off to… Chicago breakfast institution Lou Mitchell’s (565 W. Jackson Blvd, in the west loop) to work the egg station for the morning. Although I’ve never been to the original, I have a Mitchell’s (opened by Lou's brother) near my apartment in Lincoln Park, and it is truly excellent diner breakfast cuisine. If Lou's fluffy, creamy double-yolk eggs are as delicious as this brother's, the chefs have quite a challenge on their hands.

The hallmark of a good line cook is to be fast yet accurate, and to be able to manage multiple orders at once – very different from the careful, artistic cooking that the chefs are used to. And eggs are one of the most difficult foods to cook just right - leave them on an extra few seconds and they turn dry, brown, and rubbery.

Spike boasts of his line cook experience, but fails to deliver when its his turn in "The Hole". Stephanie and Richard struggle too... while calm, collected, methodical Dale and Antonia come out on top. Antonia is crowned the winner – her fifth win! Suddenly someone’s gaining a little more legitimacy.

After the challenge, Tom announces that he’ll be absent for the evening’s challenge, as he’ll be attending a charity event. In a secret-agent style move, he gives a slip of paper with a hand-written address to Antonia and tells the chefs to go there – bidding them good night and good luck. Stephanie, the token local, announces that she’s never heard of the street, so we know that it must be pretty far off the beaten path.

The chefs arrive at an empty warehouse, to find a large, wood-floored empty space, and a beaming Padma. As if we couldn’t guess what was coming next, Padma announces “Restaurant Wars is BACK!”. As the winner of the quickfire challenge Antonia gets to choose her team. Barely flinching, she calls out Blais (BOOM!) and Stephanie (BOOM!). Can I get a DREAM TEAM? Of course this leaves Dale, Lisa and Spike to decide what creative ways they are going to drown each other. It allmost seems unfair.

However, when the chefs start discussing their themes and menus, it does sound like Dale, Lisa and Spike’s asian-flavored Mai Buddha is going to be a formidable competitor. All three have extensive experience and confidence cooking Asian cuisine, and they sound like they have a pretty solid menu. However, as fill-in head judge Anthony Bourdain notes, Asia is a pretty big place, and there’s a lot of cuisine to cover. Are they going to be able to do it all, and do it all well?

Blais, Antonia and Steph start in on their upscale gastropub concept Warehouse Kitchen (real creative name, guys), and their menu looks to be simple yet promising. Looks like the proof will be in the dishes.

It’s time for service and both sides unveil uncharacteristically impressive décor and cohesion of their restaurant concepts, except for Mai Budda, which feels a little like a Prince video. Thanks, Spike. The judges, including guest judge Jose Andres (a spanish chef credited with bringing the "tapas" (small plates) concept to America), stop by Warehouse Kitchen first, where they are treated to a menu of fresh linguine with clams & sausage, goat cheese and beet salad, and gorgonzola cheesecake. They love it – hardly a bad thing to say about any dish. A beaming Stephanie is front-of-house and delivers a pleasant performance.

Next it’s over to Mai Buddha, where the experience is less impressive. Spike has cleaned up and performs well in his role as front-of-house, but the dishes fail to deliver. Lisa's laksa is a pungent smoky mess, as is her mango sticky rice with toasted coconuts, and Dale's butterscotch scallops (which actually look pretty tasty to me, but did not impress the judges). Spike's short ribs (recipe) is one of the only shining moments on Mai Buddha's menu.

As we could have predicted, Warehouse Kitchen delivers the knockout, winning the challenge with flying colors. Which is, to be noted, a feat all on its own - if we can recall how truly flawless they were in their execution compared to all of the Restaurant Wars of seasons past. Good job, team. Stephanie is handed the win for her excellent dishes and her leadership. She gets a trip to Spain! Lucky Steph.

Now it's Mai Buddha's turn on the chopping block and it's not pretty. Dale and Lisa have a supremely ww and unprofessional squabble, which prompts Jose Andres to comment that he can't see either of them working with people in a restaurant. Ouch. By a stroke of luck with his short ribs and front-of-house role, Spike slides by. Finally, despite the fact that Lisa committed the most horrid culinary crimes of the evening, it is executive chef Dale that is asked to go. The cutting of the executive chef is a characteristic move, but goes against the grain of this season's judgements, which seemed to favor those with the best dishes, no matter what the consequences. Lisa survives to see another week. But her days are clearly numbered. No one with that kind of attitude can be a Top Chef!

Next week, it's REALLY going to be the Cenitare challenge, with full on shots of guest judge Rick Tramonto in the previews. This will likely be the last show that was filmed in Chicago, as I suspect that they will fly the top four finalists to Puerto Rico for the finale. Boo hoo! I am still so dissappointed that it seems like neither Grant Achatz or Charlie Trotter or Mindy Segal are going to make an appearance. We better see at least one of them in the caribbean!

Next week: check back for the Top Chef's Guide to Chicago!

Top Chef Week 10: Sexy Salads & Luxury Lunches

A curious choice in guest judge, and another simple-yet-tricky elimination challenge faced our cheftestants on this week's installment of Top Chef Chicago.

This week's guest judge was the famous, the award-winning, the accomplished... Sam Talbot from Season Two! Ok maybe not award winning (unless you count being named one of NYC's ten sexiest chefs), or particularly accomplished (unless you can call running the restaurant at The Surf Lodge in Montauk, NY "making it"), but he certainly is famous and he certainly is HOT! In all seriousness, I'm sure Sam's a great chef and obviously a rising star in the NYC scene. It's just that with seven contestants left, and reports of a finale-filming in Puerto Rico last weekend, there can't be more than two episodes left in the city of Chicago. So I'm hoping that Bravo chooses to bring in big Chicago talents for those at least. [Update: It's official, the Top Chef Chicago Finale was definitely filmed in Puerto Rico last weekend. AND just to tease us, Bravo darling (and Senior VP of programming) Andy Cohen even has a video up about it on Bravotv.com. Here's Andy and Tom in Puerto Rico.]

This week's show opens yet again with a morning-after montage. Really, this is getting old. I don't need to see a barechested Spike wrestling his pillow, Dale permi-waxing his hair, or Stephanie plucking her eyebrows. Week. After. Week.

Anyway, when the chefs arrive to their quickfire challenge, they are greeted by aforementioned lovely Sam from season two. Sam challenges the chefs to "bring sexy back" to salads (ok, sexy chef, sexy salads. kind of cheesy, but I like it). The chefs get a whopping 45 minutes to prepare their creations - yet this is still not enough time for some. Stephanie goofs by leaving her asparagus chips off of her "poached pear and artichokes fall duet" salad and lands in the bottom. Along with her are Blais (for a poorly executed and curious "fruit and vegetable ceviche"), and Lisa (whose seafood - banana salad failed to deliver). On the flip side, the judges favorites are Antonia's wild mushroom salad with a poached-egg topper, Dale's predictably-asian poached chicken with nori paste and sake, and our winner this week: Spike with his "Sensual" beef salad featuring pineapple, cucumber and skirt steak.

Spike doesn't get immunity but he DOES get an "important" advantage in the elimination challenge. Hmm, guess there's no new guest judge for this challenge -- Sam's still hanging around. The chefs are charged with creating a healthy, microwavable lunch for the candidates at the Chicago Police Academy. Their dish must include one each of the following food groups: vegetables, fruits, whole grains and lean protein. The catch? Spike gets to shop first, and he chooses to knock out the easiest lunch choices: bread, lettuce, chicken and tomatoes (a fruit, apparently! I'm still on the opposite side of that debate, but I'll let this one slide). The competition is on!

Back at the kitchen, the chefs get to creating their lunches. Rice is a popular grain: Antonia uses jasmine rice with her filet mignon, and Dale and Lisa both use brown rice - although "someone" turns the burner up on Lisa's, causing it to burn. Hmm... suspicious. Andrew should have used rice as he's making sushi (for whatever delirious reason). However he subs pureed parsnips and pine nuts for rice. Yikes. This can't be going anywhere good. Steph uses barley in her hearty mushroom and meatball soup, and Blais uses quinoa and lentils in his rice-paper "burrito". To be honest, none of it really looks all that appetizing to me. Which means that the average Chicago cop would probably NOT be amused.

The chefs pack up and travel to the Chicago Police Academy (1300 W. Jackson) where they share their dishes with the police-in-training. Steph's is a hit, as is Dale's bison wraps and Antonia's beef.

Andrew's sushi is a disaster, Blais's "burrito" apparently tastes better than it looks, Spike's chicken salad was a dissappointment, and Lisa's rice isn't done.

In the end, Dale and Steph end up in the top two, and Dale takes the prize. He is cocky.

Lisa, Spike and Andrew are all called in on the losing end. Lisa decides it's appropriate to point out that Andrew didn't have a whole grain in his dish. She's clearly not making any more friends. And she still looks like she's ready to smash in someone's face. Although Andrew tries to argue in favor of the nutritional attributes of his dish, the bottom line comes down, as I expected: It didn't TASTE good! As the challenge was to create a satisfying, healthy lunch for people who usually eat fast food, Andrew is the clear loser, and is asked to pack his knives and go.

I was kind of shocked that Andrew made such a massive misjudgement in choosing his dish - he seems like such a smart guy. But maybe his choice was a product of the fact that he has limited versatility - when you only cook top-of-the-line fine food at a place like Le Cirque, perhaps it does become hard to ground yourself in the reality of cooking for a more general, "common man" audience. However, likely none of this matters because reportedly Andrew's already back in the kitchen at Le Cirque, plotting his next move.

Next Week: Restaurant Wars is BACK! But this time it's three-on-three. I would guess that they're probably using Cenitaire restaurants for this one, as I reported last week in my Top Scoop. This is the challenge that sent Tre home in last season's biggest shocker, so it's anyone's game to lose at this point. Look for Rick Tramonto as a guest judge!

Top Scoop

Looks like an upcoming episode of Top Chef will feature Gale Gand and Rick Tramonto's Cenitare Restaurants as a location for one of the elimination challenges. Cenitare is made up of four restaurants offering different dining experiences and price points, so a little something for everyone. It's located on the first level of the Westin Chicago North Shore in Buffalo Grove, IL (a north west suburb of Chicago). No word on what the challenge will be, but former Cenitare Executive Sous Chef Ian Swope had this to say on his blog, in an entry dated Oct. 31, 2007:

"Our kitchens were taken over this week by the producers of Top Chef to film an episode. Pretty chaotic but all in all pretty fun. The restaurants looked beautiful made up for television and the kitchens shined after staying up all night polishing everything. Met Tom Colicchio and thanked him for the wonderful meal. Nancy and I had on our honeymoon at Gramercy Tavern. That was way back when he was still actually in the kitchen there. I also set up a demo for Gail Simmons to film and now my knife is famous. Oh well."

Update: Ian also reports that the episode specifically used Osteria di Tramonto and Tramonto's Steak and Seafood, which I believe are the two nicest restaurants in the complex. He also reports that SURPRISE! Rick Tramonto is the guest judge for the episode. Thanks, Ian!

Swope also writes about how he auditioned for this season of Top Chef, but didn't make it past the first round because "the initial interview with the producers is way more about personality and how you would work on television and has nothing to do with cooking experience or your resume." Casting people for personality over skills? How Bravo.

But perhaps Swope is most famous for creating this Top Chef Drinking Game, which has consequently spread across the internet. Enjoy:

The Premise: There are two teams, although more are likely. One team are the Judges, i.e. Tom Collichio, Gale Simmons, Ted Allen and whomever the guest judge is. I am also grouping the host, Padma Lakshmi, in with this since although she’s not a judge, nor qualified to be one, she nonetheless offers up plenty of fodder for the game.

The second team are the contestants. These are the actual “chefs” in the competition. The season starts out with 15 contestants and week by week they are whittled away until the final chef remains.

The Rules: Here is where we start the game. Any alcoholic beverage could be used but for the sake of simplicity we will consider one drink to be one ounce of spirits, i.e. vodka, tequila, gin, etc… Everybody picked their sides? Okay, let’s go.The Game:

For the Judges, take one drink …
Whenever the host, Padma, says anything that she is totally unqualified to talk about. This usually ends up being anything that comes out of her mouth so be careful here. You might want to leave this one out of the game or you could end up passing out before the first commercial break.

Whenever head judge Tom Colicchio makes a remark along the lines of “This is Top Chef not Top (whatever)”.

Whenever the guest judge happens to be a chef who’s probably not very well known outside of his cooking region. Take two drinks if he thinks he’s famous now that he’s a guest judge on Top Chef and feels the need to act like a dick.

Whenever judge Gale Simmons mentions Food and Wine magazine, her real employer.

Whenever the guest judge is Anthony Bourdain. Take one additional drink for every pithy comment he says that the other judges are merely thinking.

Whenever head judge Tom Colicchio remarks about how he only cares about the food and not about whatever drama happens to be ensuing.

Whenever any judge asks a contestant what their inspiration was for the dish they’ve prepared.

For the Contestants, take one drink …

Whenever a contestant says something along the lines of “I don’t care if others don’t like me because I’m here to compete, not make friends”.

Whenever a contestant says they should have no problem with a particular challenge because it’s in their area of expertise. Two drinks if they fail the challenge.

Whenever a contestant attributes their poor performance to being so far away from family and friends. Two drinks when the show is filmed in LA and they happen to live in Santa Monica.

Whenever a contestant expresses concern that they’ve never had experience with an ingredient or applience that anyone who’s worked in a restaurant should know how to use… like a charcoal grill.

Whenever a contestant makes a “trio” of something. Two drinks if it’s a “duo” or “quartet”.

Whenever a contestant gets excessive with the adjectives in describing their dish. Two drinks if the adjectives sound like they came from a mid 1950’s copy of RedBook, such as “succulent”.

Whenever a contestant accuses another of stealing their ideas, style, ingredient, etc…

Whenever a contestant completely misses the entire point of the challenge. This includes, but is not limited to, the following: Serving poached lobster as your dish in a grilling challenge, creating an amuse for an entree challenge or using the featured ingredient as a garnish at best.

Whenever any plate garnish is purely decorative and inedible.

For both Contestants and Judges take one drink …

Whenever the product placement reaches obscene levels. Just like including Padma in the hosts, this might be dangerous… Apply at your own risk.

Whenever all contestants express complete shock at finding out what a particular challenge will be. Two drinks if it’s completely unwarranted; “This challenge is cooking shrimp?! No!! I’ve never done that before!”

These are just the most obvious. I’m sure there will be more and we will all thank Bravo for keeping us inebriated.

For this season, I would also add:
Whenever there's a gratuitous shot or mention of "the Glad family of products".

Whenever Padma appears to be drunk.

Whenver Spike changes his hat.

Whenever a lesbian chef gets angry.

Whenever Nikki talks about or makes pasta.

Whenever there's a cut to Stephanie to intro some Chicago restaurant or chef.

Top Chef Week 9: Ring the Bells

And then there were eight.

This week on Top Chef, we got it all: drama, fire, desperation, romance, a Casey look-alike and even a fairy tale wedding. Well, if your heart's wish was to have Top Chef cater your wedding. And one lucky Chicago bride and groom got just that! A friend of mine actually attended the wedding (he's a friend of the groom) so keep reading for the insider scoop... it's not what you'd expect!

We open with a classic relay challenge. From now on, the winner(s) of the quickfire challenges will no longer get immunity! But they WILL get a special advantage in the elimination challenge. Teams are drawn and it's Stephanie, Blais, Antonia and Andrew versus Spike, Nikki, Lisa and Dale. The cards seem to be stacked, but Lisa starts for her team and gains a huge advantage in the orange peeling & supreming task. However, her teammates promptly lose the lead for her in the following events of artichoke cleaning, monkfish cleaning & filleting (gross!), and mayonaise-making. They come into the last task even, but Steph goes into wisking hyper mode and whips out a quart of mayonaise in a flash. Nikki couldn't get hers to break, and thus Stephanie and team with the challenge.

But the sweet taste of victory fades quickly when Padma drops the elimination challenge bomb: instead of Restaurant Wars (waaah! I LOVE that challenge!), this season it's Wedding Wars! Which doesn't really add up to Restaurant Wars at all, but oh well. We'll take it. So we meet JP and Corey (who is totally a Casey look alike! Anyone?), the blushing young couple who also happen to own and operate a restaurant and wedding venue in Chicago, Galleria Marchetti.











Casey and Corey: twins separated at birth?

The chefs' task is to cater the reception - for 125 guests per team, one to the bride's tastes and one to the groom's. Oh yeah, and the wedding is happening THE NEXT MORNING. I smell an all-nighter coming on (not that we couldn't have figured that out from the previews!).

The big advantage for the quickfire winners? They get to choose the bride or the groom. And it's the bride, "because it's her day". Aww, nice speech Blais. But did you think about the fact that she's going to flip if everything isn't perfect? Then again, maybe this groom will too... he looks like a "detail oriented" guy. The chefs harredly take down their client's wishes and requests, and set off to Whole Foods and Restaurant Depot (correction - not wedding depot, although I think Antonia called it that) to spend their $5000 budgets. Then its back for a rousing all-night session at the Top Chef kitchen. Nikki's on the groom's side and he's super Italian (Marchetti!), so they hit it off. Nikki's making pasta again, and refusing to take a leadership role on the other dishes - clearly she doesn't want to take responsibility if they turn out badly, but really, she's already in the driver's seat, so she might as well take the wheel. She avoids it.

Blais seems to be the natural leader on the bride's team, but everyone is getting to their individual tasks. The bride likes meat & potatoes, so the team is going with a down-home, southern comfort food theme, that hopefully will work well for them. Stephanie takes on a massive wedding cake (scary move!) but when its finished, it looks AWESOME, and looks supremely professional next to Lisa's boring, amateurish square mess of a cake.

Our guest judge for the evening is Gale Gand (Executive Pastry Chef & Co-Owner of Chicago's fantastic Tru). Stephanie is spooked that she's making a cake for one of Chicago's top pastry chefs. But she needn't worry!

The outdoor ceremony looks beautiful, and the banuqet tent lovely as well. The chefs have a round of appetizers go out, which include bruschetta, mini pulled pork sandwiches, and fillos. Then the party moves inside and the chefs serve their buffet.

Even though the bride and groom seem to be psyched that Top Chef is filming their wedding, my friend who was at the event was not amused by the presence of the production. He also wasn't impressed by the food - he could tell that it was made in a hurry and that the chefs weren't experienced with catering. No dish really stuck out for him, and he spent more time ducking around cameras than hanging with his newly married friend, which he regrets. So maybe it's NOT the best thing to have Top Chef cater your wedding. But dear Bravo, hear me now: when I ever do get married, if the timing is right, and the show is still running, you are MORE than welcome to come cater the event!

Once the reception is over and the champagne buzz has faded for all except Padma, it's back to judges table. Man, the cheftestants likely haven't slept in a day and a half. Intense.

The bride's team comes out on top. Although the chicken and creamed spinach were weak, the judges love the brisket, pizza, and especially the cake! Gale gives a beaming Stephanie high praise for the cake, which she said "would take her three days to make". The judges hand Blais the win, but he decides to give it to Stephanie, for her victory on the cake. Aww.

Then its over to the groom's losing team. Spike is safe because of his excellently executed Chilean sea bass. Lisa is good because the judges liked the taste of her cake (if not the presentation). Dale worked his ass off in the kitchen, and is safe for all of his efforts there. So it's Nikki who is sent packing, because despite her Italian expertise, she refused to take a leadership role on the team. But she ended up in a directive role anyway, and because she didn't embrace it and help create a thoughtful, coherent menu, she's out.

Next week, Ted Allen is back, and it looks like the remaining chefs are cooking for the Chicago Police academy. Oh, and it looks like Sam from season 2 might also be making an appearance, especially considering Antonia's comment: "tall, dark, handsome, AND he can cook? Sign me up!" A budding romance on Top Chef? The kitchen is heating up!!

Things I'm still waiting for this season: the appearance of Dale Levitski from season 3 (when is his Chicago restaruant going to open?!), guest turns from Grant Achatz (I feel like they're waiting to bring him out) and Mindy Segal (of course), and the challenge where the chefs cook for Charlie Trotter and all of his closest friends - the top chefs of the world. His big twentieth anniversary happened while Top Chef was filming... it has GOT to happen. I have no proof yet but mark my words... just wait. :)