Episode 3- Commander's Palace

This was a really hard week! But first I will say that I thought is was funny that Nick was SO defensive of Jason's leaving. I mean, I know they're friends but this is a competition. Man crush much!?!?! He also is a bit too cocky and has not lived up to it yet...

So the Quick Fire- HIGH STAKES! Food trends that need to go away! There were 4 trends- smoked, eggs, kale and bacon. Ummm, BACON! I have to disagree STRONGLY here. Bacon should be a food group in and of itself! I was also kind of surprised with the "trends" because I don't think they are all that trendy... then again I don't eat fancy very often so maybe I am just out of the loop? Kale I can see, but the rest don't seem that trendy to me, just saying.

So this became High Stakes since it was a Quickfire Elimination! I was shocked at Stephanie's reaction. Nothing should change just because elimination is on the line, you should always cook your heart out. Makes me think a little less of her honestly. 

Here is the breakdown:

Kale: Aaron, Bret, Justin, Patty
Bacon: Bene, Carlos, Stephanie, Travis, Brian
Egg: Shirley, Nick, Nina, Carrie
Smoked: Janine, Louis, Michael, Sara

On top we had Nina, Shirley and Stephanie. Nina is seriously crushing, talk about unexpected!!! And the ladies really came in with their A game! The Winner was Shirley with Rice Congee with Shirred Egg, Soy Sauce, and Sesame Oil

On the bottom we had Bret, Aaron and Louis. I think the judges were spot on here. What were they all thinking??? Aaron was eliminated with his Fried Kale Dredged in Soy, Mirin, Rice Vinegar, and Yuzu Sauce which even he said was too salty.

So after seeing his dish, I don't think anyone was shocked that he was out, his dish was the worst by far. I am shocked at how badly he did though. He was our top choice and I think many people had him near the top of their lists as well. 

Commanders Palace Elimination Challenge! This was REALLY tough!!!!!!

The Chefs got to sit down for an awesome 4-course dinner knowing that they would have to recreate one of the dishes from memory. Shirley was VERY confident claiming that this is what she does, she's a shadow chef (and also had immunity)! Carrie was freaked out claiming she has a hard time recreating her own dishes. Regardless of their confidence and experience, this was a hard one!

The 4 dishes to recreate were:

Shrimp & Tasso Henican: Michael, Travis, Nina, Bene

Black Skillet Seared Trout: Janine, Nick, Louis, Carlos

Veal Chop Tchoupitoulas: Bret, Brian, Patty, Shirley

Trio of Strawberry Desserts: Stephanie, Justin, Sara, Carrie

Team Trout took a VERY different approach prepping each component for one another, then cooking their own dishes. I think this was genius and led to very consistent dishes, but Louis dropped the ball with the seasoning and everyone should have checked that for themselves! It is still early and you can't trust people that much. Plus seasoning is as important as how you cook! It was nice for them all to have a base, but they ALL should have seasoned individually! No one seemed to cook the fish very well either which is as basic as it gets!

Michael turned into a complete ass with Nina!!! She made a very innocent mistake and he was a total jerk about it. He is not living up to the fanfare of being a NOLA chef. 

The Dessert group crushed! I am excited for this season b/c I do love a good dessert and I think Restaurant Wars will be awesome!

I really wished that Hugh and Tom would have battled it out!!! That would have just made my night!

Side Note- Bravo is letting me down a bit with their site- they haven't posted any pics of the main challenge, so my blog isn't has fun as it should be. *ANNOYED*

In the end Stephanie, Justin and Nina were in the top, and Justin took home the win with his amaze-balls Beignets! That is how a NOLA chef does it! I love that they said Stephanie's biscuit was even better than Chef Tory McPhail's! He accepted that humbly though (at least on camera)

Louis, Carlos and Bret just didn't hit the mark. The trout course was just a disaster for everyone who made it, but Bret made the mistake of not getting his chop on the grill early enough. If there is one thing we can be sure of, it's that Emeril likes his meat treated properly, especially when it's HIS dish being recreated! Like last week, it was an obvious mistake that sent Bret home. These guys need to listen to their guts more!

Last Chance Kitchen Oct 23rd

Ep 4: Captain Vietnam: The Vietnamese culture has a strong presence in New Orleans. Judge Emeril Lagasse and  guest judge Eddie Huang give the cheftestants a crash course in these customs and task them with creating a multi-course Vietnamese meal. 

AND for your viewing pleasure since I have so few pics- I give you this little gem! MEDIEVAL LAND FUN-TIME WORLD