Top Chef - Season 4, Episode 1
Previously on Top Chef: Hung's superior culinary skills helped him claw his way to victory, despite his lack of humility and grace. Um...yay? Now, another sixteen chefs are about to descend upon Chicago to start the whole process anew. Padma is back as hostess, of course, along with judges Tom (Ptom) Collichio (boo!), Ted Allen (meh), and Gail Simmons (yay!). Prizes include a "Food & Wine" feature, with a showcase at the "Food & Wine" show in Aspen, a gourmet French Alps vacation, and $100,000. Fine incentives, all. Whose cuisine will reign supreme? Who will be the first to confuse "not here to make friends" with "be a raging dickhead for no discernible reason"? Let's find out!
Opening credits. Rather than spend the credits with the show's chefs, I always like to spend them with the viewing party participants and the yummies they concoct. Shout-outs to Timiffany, LabRat, Panny, Kender, and guest judges including Beebers, who will hopefully drop by when she's not jetting around the country for work. I wanted to make something impressive for the premiere, but was cooking all week for a book club I'm in, and showed up empty-handed. The night was saved by Panny's chicken tetrazzini and Timiffiany's banana rumcakes, though. I never thought I'd gleefully tear into a mushroom-rich dinner, but there it is.
Welcome to Chicago! Oh, I love Chicago. Even when I have to wander around in ass-over-tits cold weather. Contestants start arriving at the airport. Ryan Scott (a "chef consultant" from San Francisco, California) brags that his dad fired two people from the kitchen when eleven-year-old Ryan out-cooked them. How...sweet? Nimma Osman is a line cook from "Utlanta", Georgia. Her parents are over-protective, but her dad is pulling for her to win. Zoi Antonitsas is a chef (and yet another "consultant" -- I'd love to know what the qualifications are for that) from San Francisco, California. She says she'll bring a "softer side" to the competition. Hopeful translation: "I'm not Betty." Mark Simmons is a sous chef from New Zealand. He's got a cute accent and a cute mass of curly hair, so the shallow side of me hopes like hell he's a good enough cook to last for a while.
Contestants begin to arrive at Pizzeria Uno. The shot of pizza after pizza makes me glad I ate before settling down to write this. Richard Blais is another chef/consultant from Atlanta, Georgia. I enjoy his description of Chicago as a blend of awesome street food and avant-garde restaurant cuisine, but I have to say, I'm sick to death of the faux-hawk look. I suppose it's a more palatable hair fad than the mullet or rat-tail, but still. Enough already. He's also a fan of the "molecular gastronomy" thing, so fire up those Marcel comparisons. Jennifer Biesty is the chef of a three-star restaurant in San Francisco, and must have gotten a lot of grief in junior high over that name. And...yet another faux-hawk. Seriously, it's time for something else. How about Afro puffs? Those are cute. Erik Hopfinger is the executive chef at a restaurant in San Francisco, California. Judging by this show, you'd think restaurants only exist in San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Atlanta, and Las Vegas. The rest of us just tackle passing cows and sink our teeth in. Erik promises to be "vocal about his opinions". Oh, one of those. Andrew D'Ambrosi is a sous chef from New York. According to Andrew, food is "fucking part of me. It's like molten fucking lava pouring out for you. There's nothing better than people tasting my passion." Ew.
Tiffany: "I don't want a part of you in my food, thanks."
Stephanie Izard is a chef/restauranteur from Chicago, Illinois. She's one of those friendly types everyone likes, and is thus likely doomed to be squashed under Ptom's "not having enough of a killer instinct" rule. As Richard and Jennifer silently bond over their hair, Zoi pipes up to make an announcement. It turns out she and Jennifer are actually a couple back in San Francisco, and didn't expect both of them to be accepted. The two of them just wanted to get it out in the open, in case someone found out later and thought it was devious on their part to keep it a secret. Probably wise. The other contestants don't know quite how to take the news. Spike Mendelsohn (a sous chef from Williamsburg, New York) has an initial "oh, that's bullshit!" reaction, but eventually comes to the conclusion that they can just get eliminated together. Heh. I'm not sure how to take the couple thing. For the most part, everyone will be doing their own work, so I guess it doesn't matter. It could make a difference in sharing ingredients or team challenges, though. We'll see.
Padma and Ptom arrive at the restaurant. Ptom gives a typically poor reading of meaningless reality-show patter. Put more awkward pauses in, and he'd be KatieBot. Padma says that it's time for the first Quickfire, which will have a Chicago twist to it. Everyone grabs a chef coat, and follows her to the new Kitchen, which seems a lot better stocked and organized than in seasons past. Padma tells us that the chefs were allowed to bring along $200 worth of ingredients that they cannot live without, as well as some equipment, which will be stored in their own personal lockers. Interesting. For the first Quickfire, the chefs must make their own signature deep dish pizza in ninety minutes. A huge wad of dough awaits nearby. Ready? And...go!
Chefs scatter. Andrew says he likes busting his ass and running around a lot. Stephanie has a case of the jitters, and cuts herself within thirty seconds. Hmm, I'll take my pizza without the blood clot, please. We meet a few more competitors. Dale Talde is a sous chef from New York City, New York. He starts throwing together some sausage, pickled kohlrabi, scallions, and Sriracha (hot sauce). Valerie Bolon is a personal chef and instructor from "Chicaaaaago", Illinois. She's one of those fine dining chefs who has no idea how to make food for the Great Unwashed Masses, so she's making a "meat and potatoes" pizza. Manuel Trevino is an executive chef from New York City, New York. He's classically French-trained, and is making a classically Italian pizza. Does anyone else get the sense we'll be seeing a lot of classic dishes out of Manuel? Nikki Cascone is a chef and "partner" from New York City, New York. She's going to try and stand out by not using tomato sauce. Rather, she'll prepare a "white pie" with mushrooms and truffle oil. She's never made a deep-dish pizza before, though, and admits she had no idea how much dough to put into the pan.
Mark has brought along Marmite as one of his personal ingredients, and is making it into a molasses for his pizza, alongside chicken and zucchini. Antonia Lofaso (executive chef from Los Angeles, California) tells the camera with a grin that she's Italian, and thus, will rock out on this pizza challenge. Antonia had better learn to watch that Fate-tempting if she's to survive here. Her pizza includes Burrata cheese, prosciutto, arugula, and heirloom tomatoes. Richard is going a bit experimental, making a peach and Taleggio cheese pizza, with a sweet tea sauce. That sounds fairly disgusting, despite the fact that I like everything in it. Spike tells us that everyone calls him that because his real name is Evangelos. He's working on a Greek-style pizza with onions, Feta, olives, and sausage. Ooh, I bet I'd like that. Lisa Fernandes (a sous chef from New York City, New York) likes to "touch people with food". Back off, lady. She likes working with Asian-influenced food, so she's making a BBQ duck pizza.
Some minor drama erupts when Andrew (for whom things were going "fucking peachy peachy keen") cannot find his deep-dish pan. It looks like he has no idea at the time who has it, but has learned in retrospect that Richard was using two. Eep. He runs around "like a moron looking for a fucking pan", and winds up having to use a "fucking cast iron skillet". This does not please him, as it makes him look like "a fucking hack". Using my highly-developed skill of people-reading, I'm starting to intuit that Andrew may like to curse a little. It's just a gut feeling. Pizzas start coming out of the oven. Dale tells us that a bunch of other people's pizzas look horrible, and that a lot of the chefs miscalculated how much the dough was going to rise. He's right, as we get several shots of pizzas that are 80% crust. Stephanie's pizza "fucking" falls apart, but she's confident it will taste good. That's heartening, because it looks like shit. Time runs out.
Commercials. A guy brags that his awesome wireless plan allows him to be one of those douchebags who have no idea how to politely use a phone in public. And we're supposed to be charmed by this?
Evening. The chefs stroll up to the "home of a guest judge". That's in quotes, because the guest judge turns out to be Rocco DiSpirito, who certainly does not live in Chicago. He asks them to go to the kitchen, then serve the pizzas to him and Padma one slice at a time. The chefs are all jazzed that he'll be eating their food. First to serve is Richard, with his peach and sweet tea pizza. Stephanie's pizza is goat cheese with basil and mint, prosciutto, olives, arugula, and a melon-tomato sauce. It does not sound or look very appetizing. Rocco detects a funky smell coming off of her food. Zoi's messy-ass pizza is made of broccoli, pesto, and lamb sausage. It looks like there are hunks of tomato in there as well. Dale's sausage pizza with hot sauce and kohlrabi looks good, presentation-wise. Ryan serves grilled escarole (endives), ricotta salata (ricotta that has been pressed, salted, and dried), and butternut squash. Padma deems it "very nice".
Nikki's "white pie" is the one that is all crust. It's made of Comte (cheese), ricotta (complete with pretentious pronunciation), Pecorino cheeses, and mushrooms. Andrew manages to serve his smoked marinara, prosciutto, onion, heirloom tomato, and cheese pizza without saying "fuck" once. His mother must be so proud. Jennifer's doesn't get much comment, but her "harvest pizza" is made with grapes, bacon, Fontina, and rosemary, which sounds intriguing. Erik's seems to be a more usual take on pizza, with mushrooms, onions, peppers, and sausage. Spike serves his Greek pizza. Nimma's "hunter-style" pizza has different types of mushrooms, along with some onions, Stracchino cheese, thyme, and rosemary. Rocco and Padma say that it's really lacking the salt it needs. Nimma nods sourly. Mark serves the Marmite-infused pizza.
That's all the ones we see, so we head straight to the kitchen for judging. Rocco congratulates the chefs on getting through such a tough challenge, even if all the results weren't up to par. Padma asks for the chefs named to stand at the far end of the kitchen: Lisa, Nimma, Valerie, Manuel, Andrew, Stephanie, Nikki, and Zoi. These eight chefs had the judges' least favorite pizzas. Nimma rolls her eyes. Stephanie's gamey prosciutto and Nikki's dry dough are specifically called out. Over in the Top Eight, Richard's peach pizza seemed gross, but turned out good, proving that "there are no rules in cooking". Well, except "Label your damned salt". Mark's Marmite was also surprisingly good. There isn't an individual winner, which also means no immunity. Padma says that the Quickfire results will have an effect in the Elimination Challenge, which the chefs won't hear about until tomorrow. In the meantime, she lets them know that the house is actually theirs for the season, though Andrew expresses it by saying she was all like "Yo. Casa, motherfuckers!" I'd love to hear Padma say that.
The house seems nice. Dale plays pool, while Mark whips something up to eat. Sure, it's not like there are sixteen pizzas lying around or anything. A lot of others sit outside with some drinks and socialize. Nimma's not having that, though. Upset over the Quickfire, she decides to just hit the sack. She wants to stay to herself, and "isn't here to have fun". Man, what a pill. We just sat through Victorya sucking a lemon through a whole season of Project Runway, and now we have her equally sour (if more melanin-enhanced) sister. Meanwhile, we find out that Dale's playing pool solo because he wants to remove himself from the "human" side of the competition. Translation: "Nobody likes me, so I'm going to pretend that being aloof is a strategy." There's always one. He says competitors have to have an "I'm better than all you motherfuckers" attitude at all times. That's bullshit, of course, but I wanted to record it so that I could say I think I've heard the word "fuck" more in this episode than in Pulp Fiction, and we're only through the Quickfire.
Morning. The chefs stream into the Kitchen, where they are met by Padma and the knife block. Padma can certainly look good, but I'm not sure what she's aiming for with this cowl neck, magenta, thigh-length dress. She looks like she's about to dip into the post-Shabbat sherbet punchbowl. Sorry, I'll try to keep the Jewish inside jokes to a minimum. She's standing by a blank chalkboard, and asks the Top Eight from the Quickfire to draw knives from the block. They draw. Padma then explains that the Top Eight must each select a member from the Bottom Eight that they'll cook against head-to-head for the Elimination Challenge. Not only that, but the member of the Bottom Eight they select gets to choose the dish they'll be preparing from a list on the other side of the chalkboard. Padma flips it over to reveal: lasagna, duck a la orange, crab cakes, chicken piccata, eggs Benedict, steak au poivre, shrimp scampi, and souffle. Erik frets, because he pulled the #8 knife, and knows he's going to wind up with the hated souffle. Yeah, I've heard they're hard to make well. The chefs are free to do a classic take on the dish or reinvent it entirely. Whoever has the best of the two dishes in each of the battles will be safe from elimination.
Richard picks Andrew, who picks crab cakes. Andrew thinks it's funny that the person who "fucked" him has now chosen him, which he knew the "motherfucker" was going to do, so "come on, motherfuckers -- let's battle". Andrew, Andrew, Andrew. You're just trying way too hard. Mark picks Stephanie, who picks duck a la orange. Jennifer picks Nikki, who picks lasagna. Antonia picks Nimma, who picks shrimp scampi. Spike chooses Lisa, who picks eggs Benedict. Dale picks Manuel, who chooses steak au poivre. Ryan chooses Valerie, who picks chicken piccata. Looks like Erik was right. He and Zoi are screwed into making souffle. I wonder why Jennifer didn't pick Zoi. I guess because no matter who wins the battle, one of them would be up for elimination. This way, they could both remain safe, as long as they cook well. That could be rough going for Zoi, as she's just as uncomfortable with the souffle as Erik is.
Commercials. Elizabeth Berkley hosts a dance competition. Showgirls is just that good a credential.
The chefs shop for ingredients at Whole Foods. Erik knocks some produce down and chases it across the floor. Dale wants to do a twist on steak au poivre, because the original is too heavy and rich. He "knows what the fuck" he's doing. Lisa's had a lot of experience cooking breakfasts recently, so she's confident that making eggs Benedict will be no sweat. Ryan -- you know the chef who was blowing adults out of the water when he was eleven with his culinary prowess? -- Yeah, he's not sure what chicken piccata really involves. Ooooooookay. A chef's not going to know every recipe in the book, of course, but chicken piccata? That's like an English Lit professor being like "Romeo and Who-liet?" Ryan's got a vague idea of what he needs to do, so he grabs some eggs, flour, pasta, bread crumbs, and tomatoes. BZZT! He mutters "fuck" to himself as he searches for his shopping list. Zoi wants to make a sweet souffle as opposed to a savory souffle. Andrew disdains Richard's choice of crab, and goes for a mixture of different types of crabmeat. Everyone checks out.
Back in the Kitchen, the chefs spring into action. It looks like they've got an hour and a half. Richard will be making not only the crab cake, but a smoked mayonnaise and a play on coleslaw that involves a cider reduction. His ideas intrigue me, and I wish to subscribe to his newsletter. Antonia is confident in her ability to make shrimp scampi, as she should, it being the easiest dish on the list. She's concentrating on making an amazing sauce. Nimma and her Olivia-Newton-John-purple-headband are going to make a cauliflower custard, and...she's already lost me. Ryan sets about making his own chicken stock, and then some gnocchi. Speaking of hand-made, Nikki is busy making her own pasta, which looks so good, I can't even tell you. Stephanie wants to use the entire duck in her presentation, and gets worried when she sees that Mark's will be a lot more intricate than hers. Goofy music accompanies the Oddball Adventures of Andrew, who "for some fucking strange reason", believed that mayonnaise would be available in the Kitchen. Not so. Richard has bought his own for the crab cakes, and Andrew goes about making his own with egg yolks and oil (the combination of which he didn't even know about until Richard told him -- such a master chef, that one). Richard offers Andrew his mayonnaise, and Andrew refuses it, saying it won't be necessary.
Erik and Zoi are still anxious about their souffles, and although they're in direct competition right now, they have a sweet bonding moment over the fact that all the souffles seem to be rising without incident in the oven. Nimma's cauliflower flan hasn't set properly, so she throws it on the oven and turns it into a scramble, instead. Richard whips out some of the equipment he's brought from home: a hand smoker. He smokes a spice blend and talks about wanting to incite comments with his cooking, "What the fuck did that guy just do?" among them. Time winds down. Stephanie is so nervous, her hand shakes wildly as she sauces her duck. I'm glad she's a cook and not a surgeon. The judges walk in, and time runs out.
Commercials. Clearly, the classiest way to serve wine is out of a refrigerated box. Clearly.
Four place settings have been laid on a table in the Kitchen, and the judges come in to decide the winner of each head-to-head battle. Padma, Ptom, and Rocco are all there, along with always-full-of-free-time-and-ready-to-lend-a-cranky-attitude Anthony Bourdain. To the battles! First up is Mark vs. Stephanie, with the duck a la orange. Mark's is a very deconstructed plate, with enoki mushrooms, squash, tangerine, and soy-glazed duck breast with a sake martini. No, I will not use the phrase "sakitini" like the show, nor the phrase "Sake it to me!", which LabRat now joyously yells over and over. You can thank me later. Stephanie's duck breast is served with mushrooms and bok choy, and she's used the rest of the duck in spring rolls with an orange-soy glaze. Oooh, that's a good idea. The judges aren't fans of Mark's deconstruction idea, and choose Stephanie's fully-composed plate as the winner. They shake hands on their way out. Next up is Andrew vs. Richard, with the crab cakes. Andrew's is composed of different types of crab meat, but looks fairly basic. He's jazzed it up with a cilantro-basil pudding and some orange sauce, and yammers on about making his own mayonnaise. Richard tells the judges that he wanted to keep things simple.
LabRat: "That's why you hand-smoked everything."
His crab cake incorporates blue crab, brussels sprouts, and an apple coleslaw with smoked ras el hanout. Those smoky flavors work in Richard's favor, while the panko Andrew has used makes the cake too bready. Richard wins, which puts Andrew in the losing category for two out of two challenges. Huh, I thought he was going to outcook all those other motherfuckers. He's welcome to start doing that any time now. Jennifer vs. Nikki, with the lasagna. Jennifer's is made with autumnal vegetables, a meat sauce, and a mint verde. The judges dig in, and discover that the rutabaga is raw. Nikki says that she had a lot to prove after the pizza Quickfire, so she made a more classic lasagna with sheep's milk Gouda and that hand-made pasta. The judges like both of them, but Jennifer loses a point for the rutabaga, and Nikki gains one for the pasta, so she wins. Antonia vs. Nimma, with the shrimp scampi. Antonia's is a parpadelle with shrimp, lobster, tomatoes, and squash. Man, there's a lot of squash being tossed around this episode. The judges make yummy noises, which is a good sign. Nimma's shrimp scampi is marinated in garlic, thyme, and lemon zest, and is served in a parsley butter sauce. The cauliflower scramble is on the side. Padma finds it way too salty; the exact opposite of the issue Nimma had in the Quickfire. Rocco goes one step further, saying that if he were served this in a restaurant, he'd have to send it back. Antonia easily bags the win. Nimma sucks a lemon.
Spike vs. Lisa, with the eggs Benedict. Spike's has poached egg with bacon, mushrooms, and a lemongrass sabayon on a crouton. Take out the mushroom, and it would be ideal. Lisa's eggs (Well, not her eggs. I assume they come from a chicken) are served on toasted challah, and are topped with lobster, spinach, hollandaise, and bacon. Mmmmm. Both dishes are deemed delicious. Lisa's poaching technique was slightly better and her food was stacked a little more neatly (no, really), so she wins by a hair. Dale vs. Manuel, with the steak au poivre. Dale's meat is extremely rare. He's done a traditional New York strip steak with candied peppercorns. There's also a parsley puree and some bok choy. This is what he calls a twist? Manuel has really given it a twist, Mexican-style. He serves the sirloin in a mushroom ceviche, and a scallion-cilantro sauce. Manuel is told his is a bit greasy and that he went overboard with the sauce, so Dale is given the win.
Ryan vs. Valerie, with the chicken piccata. Ryan serves chicken cutlets with lemon-potato gnocchi, and a warm herb salad. Valerie's is more traditional. She's substituted orange for lemon, but the rest is all there. She serves it with some potato and a haricot vert salad. The judges have problems with both, in that neither one was a true piccata. So much for Padma's assurance that "you may reinvent the dish entirely". When will they stop springing this asinine trap on the contestants? Ryan had no business using bread crumbs, and neither of them provided an acidic butter sauce. Since Valerie provided a better-tasting dish, she's picked as the winner, though the judges aren't wild about it. Ryan rightly worries that everyone at home is going to think he's a giant flop for not knowing his way around a classic dish. Erik vs. Zoi, with the souffle. Erik's is made with pepper jack cheese and is topped with pico de gallo salsa. There is avocado creme fraiche on the side, as well as a black bean puree that literally looks like poo. Zoi has made a rice pudding souffle. There are candied figs and fennel on the side, and a cup of espresso. Neither souffle is applauded as a souffle, though both tasted fine. Zoi's was a better plate of food overall, and she's awarded the win.
The new Bottom Eight fret. Nimma wishes she could cook the food all over again. I have no doubt that's true, as Nimma is one of the few cooks who have been in the bottom for both challenges (Andrew and Manuel being the others).
Commercials. Why won't Ryan Phillippe go away?
Ryan soothes himself with the fact that ninety minutes is not a lot of cooking time. Well, that's true, but his loss has nothing to do with a time crunch. At any rate, Padma comes back to the Kitchen and summons Antonia, Nikki, Richard, and Stephanie to Judges' Table. Dale says "fuck" and rolls his eyes. Oh, shut up. Once out at the table, Padma tells the chefs that they are the top four this week. Antonia showed great technical skill and "an ability to restrain [herself]", whatever that means. Stephanie's duck had great flavor, composition, color, and texture. Nikki's lasagna was light and tasty. Richard's crab cake was excellent and forward-thinking. Ptom is more overtly pleased than he usually is. He actually throws out some compliments that sound genuine. Rocco gets to announce the winner of the challenge, which is Stephanie. "How fucking cool is that?" she asks us. Pretty fucking cool, Stephanie. Now go set up a swear jar back at the house. You guys will be able to buy a Jaguar within two weeks. She wins only the pleasure of sending out the bottom four.
Stephanie's win is applauded back in the Kitchen, and she tells everyone that the judges want to see Ryan, Erik, Nimma, and Mark. The bottom four enter Judges' Table, accompanied by the ever-mysterious Odd Asian Music and its attendant gong. Padma informs them that they had the least favorite dishes, which I think they've probably figured out by now. Erik's souffle had mashed potatoes as a base, which certainly didn't lend any lightness to the dish. The tortillas piled on top weighed it down even further. Anthony tells him that he was clearly working outside of his comfort zone, which sounds to me like he doesn't want to throw too much blame on him. Erik isn't proud of making "glorified nachos". Nimma is asked if her shrimp scampi was good. Her answer? "I think the cauliflower scramble was great." Oh, Nimma. I'm afraid you get the first one of the season. That's a terrible answer, and Ptom gives her a dirty look. He calls her on the fact that it was originally supposed to be a flan, and the fact that it didn't work out as such seems to count against her. Her other problem was the poorly-seasoned shrimp, which is "Shrimp 101", according to Anthony.
Mark wanted to make a deconstructed dish, and Anthony says that it came off as silly and pretentious. How's he's able to say that without instantly being struck by lightning is a puzzler. Not that he's incorrect, but if there's one person who doesn't get to call someone else silly and pretentious, it's the guy who uses his food expertise to spend half of his time on-call to say nasty things to reality show wannabes and the other half ridiculing celebrity chefs. Anyway, Mark would have done better to make a fully-composed dish. Ptom says that the duck was overcooked, and Rocco takes issue with the fact that Mark cut out a lot of the duck fat, which is why people eat duck to begin with.
Tim: "Eat it, Kiwi!"
Ryan says he didn't want to drown his chicken in starch. Which is why he threw a bunch of bread crumbs in? You're losing me, Ryan. Padma says something along the same lines, mentioning that making gnocchi is not the best way to cut down on starch. Ptom's biggest problem is that his chicken piccata wasn't a piccata, and that the breadcrumb layer was way too thick. Ryan says he didn't want to make the dish that classic (read: "I don't know how to make piccata, so I'm going to pretend I didn't want to"). That's the defense I'd employ in his situation as well, but Ptom points out that you can't put a new spin on a classic dish until you understand what you're spinning off of.
The chefs are dismissed. Deliberations. Ryan doesn't know the basics, and Anthony couldn't understand his ramblings at Judges' Table. Nimma's salty shrimp was way over the line, and her cauliflower scramble was like baby food. Back in the Kitchen, Nimma tells Lisa that she needs to learn how to zone out of her nervous state, and fast. Oh, I wouldn't worry about it now, Nimma. The judges found Erik's souffle pretty terrible, even allowing for inexperience. Mark's dish was weak and overcooked. Anthony didn't like the sake martini. The judges make a decision.
Commercials. Well, there's a note reading "[LabRat] is great!!!!!" written here. I must have jotted that down. Even though it's not in my handwriting.
Elimination. Ptom allows for some early show jitters, but rightly says that the chefs are going to have to get past that. Ryan has to know the classics if he wants to cook modern food. Mark's dish had too many competing elements. Nimma's dish should have been simple, and neither component worked out. Her shrimp was so salty, it was inedible. Erik should know how to make a souffle. Who will be forever burdened with the shame of First Person Out? Nimma. Please pack your knives and go. Well, no surprise there. She thanks the judges for the opportunity. In her final interview, she says it's unfortunate that nobody will ever know how good a cook she is. The other chefs hug her and applaud. She closes by saying that cooking is a God-given talent of hers. You'd think He could have refined it before handing it down. Nimma's going to go on cooking and go on learning. And she'll have plenty of lemons and sour grapes stocked at all times.
This season on Top Chef: Limecrete skips this show's previews, because they give away far too much.
Overall Grade: B
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