Top Chef - - Page 20

by Bliz

Top Chef Masters: Finale Round 1

Leave it to Bravo to extend the Top Chef Masters franchise and add at least one more episode to the series finale. But hey, I’m not saying that’s a bad thing. The final six has been whittled down to the final five and so for the first time all season, we have the same gang making a reappearance. I don’t know that I’ve ever appreciated how important a returning cast is until now. I know it’s cheesy, but I’m happy to see that we’re finally starting to become more familiar with these chefs.

The final champions round consists of the winners of the last six episodes: Rick Bayless, Anito Lo, Susanne Tracht, Hubert Keller, Michael Chiarello and Art Smith.

So this week no Wu-Tang lyrics, no letters to chefs, no rants about the host.. ah fuck it, Kelly Choi still sucks. But seriously, this week let’s just talk food, because last night TCM put front and center what we all tune in for every week: food porn.

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by tvff

Cheflebrity Smörgåsbord: Food Network Gets Animated

Have you been watcing Next Food Network Star? I have.

Well, technically, I’ve had it on in the background as I try in vain to beat my mom’s top score in Bejeweled Blitz on Facebook. How does she get so many damn points?!?!

So I’ve been kinda paying attention to this season. I know that Debbie is gone, which means we won’t hear the word “Korean” every 14.7 seconds. Anyway, the fact that I’ve not been 100% focused doesn’t mean that I’m not pulling hard for Jeffrey. Why? Because he’s just a severe overbite and some bright yellow skin away from being a Simpsons character, and I think the Food Network needs to diversify into animation.

Seriously, they don’t have a single cartoon character on the network — unless you count Paula Deen.

Zing! Pow! Smörg!

– Bourdain does Baltimore and a local complains about the hatchet job, saying he should have sat down with Duff Goldman. Yeah, that would have gone well.

– Food Network is still going gangbusters during the recession despite dips in restaurant revenue. This is because staying home and licking your TV screen is significantly cheaper than the prix fixe at The French Laundry.

After the jump…so close yet so far with Giada, “Is that Emeril losing at video poker?” and everyone’s favorite Italian cheftestant woos you with wine.

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by Russell Warnick

Behind the Scenes

Nothing pleases me more than waking up on a weekend morning and switching on the Food Network. I love watching marathons of Iron Chef America or Food Network Challenge, hours and hours of great entertainment. I’ve always wondered what it actually takes to make a food show (even though we’ve all seen behind the scenes footage of our favourite studio audience sitcoms).

A few weeks ago I gate crashed was invited to the filming of Kelsey & Spike Cook, a show of roughly five minute webisodes from Food2.com. Kelsey & Spike Cook is a fun spin on classic dishes. Kelsey, of The Next Food Network Star, tends to go by the book, while former Top Cheftestant, Spike, in true form, turns it around and breaks from the norm of conventional cooking. I actually witnessed him rolling out pastry with the handle of a broom.

Check out those shenanigans and a few behind the scenes secrets after the jump.

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by Bliz

Top Chef Masters: Episode 6

Left to Right: Jonathan Waxman, Michael Cimarusti, Art Smith, Roy Yamaguchi

Well, the producers have been holding out on us all season, but just when it looked like the 6th and final round of TCM was going to be the most civil, respect-fest episode yet to air, we finally, finally get a little competitive dickishness. Thank god.

I have come to realize that shows like Top Chef need the assholes and backstabbers to a limited degree, much like college basketball needs the NCAA Tournament bracket system. You pay attention to the events because you love to subject, but if you don’t have someone to pull for, sometimes you just don’t give a damn how the game plays out. I know I wouldn’t pay attention to half of the NCAA teams (looking at you Sunbelt division) if I didn’t have money on a team on my braket list. With Top Chef, I want to take a side, I want to see my favorite win, and more importantly, I want to see the least favorite suffer brutal defeat.

Now I’m sure the producers helped craft this little drama leaving selective tidbits on the cutting room floor, but last night you had Old Pappa Bear Waxman strategically fuck over his main competitor/protoge Cimarusti. But lets back up to the Quickfire challenge before we get ahead of ourselves.

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by BS

Breaking! Padma Lakshmi to Star in Food-Centric Sitcom

Big news! Variety is reporting that Top Chef host/ES mascot Padma Lakshmi is going to be flexing her funny bone in an upcoming half-hour sitcom currently in development at NBC:

Building on her “Top Chef” credentials, the show will star Lakshmi as a woman working in the culinary world. (One possible title being mulled: “Single Serving.”)

Variety notes that Padma wouldn’t be the first cheflebrity to try turning basic cable fame into sitcom stardom. But she would be the first to succeed…

Despite the popularity of food-centric TV, attempts to translate it into sitcom form have been mixed. Fox’s “Kitchen Confidential,” based on Anthony Bourdain’s book, was critically acclaimed but short-lived. And NBC’s move to turn Emeril Lagasse into a comedy star fell flat.

What do you think, ESers? Does Padma have the comedy chops to break the chef-com curse? And will you tune in to watch Single Serving, Padma and the City, the Padma Chronicles, or whatever they end up calling it? And what time should we start live-blogging?

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by tvff

Cheflebrity Smörgåsbord: Welcome to the Rock

Let me start off by making something perfectly clear: I don’t give a rat’s ass who wins on any reality competition show. For the most part, I think the contestants on these shows are the equivalent of tissues — made to be used and discarded as quickly as possible. I don’t find these people in the least bit interesting and if your most impressive “skill” is your ability to get chosen to appear on American Idol, or that sewing show that used to be on Bravo, I have no interest in following your exploits after the season is over, even if you are the big winner.

And although I pretty much feel this way about Top Chef Masters, I’d say I only have about 99% apathy. Why? Because I totally want Hubert Keller to win this thing.

Two reasons:

He’s a PBS show host and I always like seeing those guys get props.
He looks exactly like Sean Connery at about the 14 minute mark in The Rock. After he washes off the prison grime but before getting the full make-over by the barber.

I figure this as good an excuse as any to root for him. Oh…brainstorm! We need a Michael Bay-directed food movie. Given his love of fire and slow-motion, that is going to be one AWESOME crème brûlée scene.

Enough silliness…on to the smörg.

– I pray to you, oh Flying Spaghetti Monster, let there be a reality show involved: Human Train Wrecks Rocco DiSpirito and Jeffrey Chodorow could hook up again?

– How can you tell that a controversial issue is reaching the mainstream? Shaq tweets about it. Er, I mean: When the folks in the industry embrace it. Chipotle will be screening Food, Inc. at locations around the country.

After the jump…the vocal stylings of Mr. Mario Batali, a link to a story that includes the words “Giada” and “testicles,” and confirmation that Food Network and a former Olympian are completely in on the joke.

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by Bliz

Top Chef Masters: Episode 5

: Left to Right: Michael Chiarello, Nils Noren, Lachlan Patterson, Rick Moonen

Dear Top Chef Masters Contestants,

First of all, congratulations on your recognition. After years of toiling in ungodly circumstances, shedding blood and tears, and doing so before there was any prospect of becoming a celebrity chef, you’re finally getting some well deserved attention in the national spotlight. What’s more, you’re donating your time to helping out a charity that you care about and I’m sure those organizations sing your praises for your hard work. If I may make one humble suggestion though. And this is a minor thing I’ve come to notice with the TCM cast, could you guys please.. for the love of God.. PLATE YOUR MOTHER F$%#ING FOOD before time runs out?! Is it that hard?! Do you see that clock with the numbers on it? When there is only the number 00:15 shortly followed by the the number 00:14 then followed by 00:13.. you see where I’m going with this? Just take what you have and put it on the damn plate.

Is it because you hate your charity or charities in general? I mean don’t get me wrong, I hate babies with cancer as much as the next guy, but I always own up to it. Sometimes it’s the first thing I tell people about myself when being introduced. You’d be surprised, there’s dozens of us out there. Dozens! Go ahead, say it chef.. you can do it. Say, “I hate cancer babies.” How much do you hate cancer babies chef? Say, “Almost as much as I hate Kelly Choi and her dead goat fetish.” Wow chef, that’s a lot of hate. Doesn’t that feel good to get that off your chest? I know I feel better. Glad we had this little talk. Let’s discuss this week’s TCM episode shall we?

More cancer baby hate after the jump..

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