Top Chef Just Desserts Exit Interview: Episode 6

If you think we missed an episode, well, you’re right. But did you really need to read more about twice eliminated Heather C? I figured as much. This week Just Desserts subjected us to a Black & White party in honor of LA Time’s 128th anniversary, such a milestone I know.

To find out who didn’t fair so well, keep reading.

ES: Over the last few episodes we witnessed a divide amongst your fellow chef’testants. How did that evolve?
Erika Davis: When you walk into something like this, you tend to find someone who has something in common with you, same kind of flavors and same kind of personality. I think that’s what we did; we split up a little bit. It became high school-ish, a tit-for-tat kind of thing, as you see on the show. It didn’t effect me much except toward this last episode, I think I got overwhelmed with everything, by the personalities and what we had already gone through with Seth, it wears you down a little bit.

You seemed particularly frustrated by Yigit taking the bacon and Eric hogging the mixer.
I’m a bacon person. I eat bacon every day before we walk into the kitchen. It would have been a nice finishing touch on my Quickfire dessert, so yeah, I was upset by when Yigit took the bacon. Later, toward the end of that Quickfire, he did hand over the bacon, but it was a little too late.

Is there anything we didn’t see that could explain Heather’s rice krispie cake tray?
Honestly, I had no idea that she was missing the rice krispie tray whatsoever, not at all until they mentioned it later. I didn’t pay attention to all of that petty stuff, who took this, who took that. To me, Morgan is hilarious, like when he took all the butter in the last episode, I thought that was funny, but it was all in fun and games on that part.

What do you think went wrong with your ice cream?
When I tasted it, it was fine. It was a lemon-tea infused ice cream, which was not shown on the show. It wasn’t a very strong lemon tart flavor, it was a nice smooth and clean flavor, it went great with the white chocolate. I was very surprised when they said it tasted like soap. I make ice cream everyday. I’m known for my ice cream.

Who do you think has what it takes to win?
All of them are really talented, from the very first episode… I’m going to say Morgan, he’s a great, talented pastry chef.

What has life been like for you since the show?
I’ve been very busy, doing a lot of events and getting ready for next year, I have five wine dinners for my non-profit, Culinary Wonders USA. We give out scholarships to minority students who are going to culinary school, who need a helping hand. There was always someone there for me, and it’s always good to pay it forward.

How would you like people to remember you?
I’m a happy person, and I think it shows through in my dessert, the passion and the love that I do for this every day is true to me and true to my heart. I was real to myself and I didn’t budge for somebody else. I was so proud, as is my family. There are no regrets whatsoever.