Episode 11- Giving It The College Try

This was a rough one! We started out with Questlove from the Roots in the Quickfire- and I must say, I love him and the drumline performance was fun. Apparently he had a fried chicken restaurant- Hybrid that closed last month- Questlove Announces Closing of Hybrid

It was cool that they used all different types of protein... I am not a dark meat fan, so I never eat drumsticks, but some of them sounded awesome!

I thought Justin's was ambitious, but he has been getting weaker and weaker; Carlos cutting the bone was insane and hilarious; Nick just fell flat with his teeny tiny bites- I liked his concept though.

Brian making a soup was weird for sure, but that risk paid off for him; Nina brought just the right amount spice; but in the end Carrie took the win and immunity with her Squab Legs Marinated in Thyme, Juniper, and Cocoa Powder with Fig Mostarda:

I think Questlove did a good job as a judge- it was a good mix-up!

The Elimination Challenge this week was high-stakes as the winner got a new Rav-4! The challenge was to serve lunch to 500 LSU freshman, cafeteria-style- and what a challenge it was!!!

First off- those dorm rooms were HUGE right? We didn't have a whole living area/kitchenette. They must have been in the nice ones.

It was interesting to hear about some of the chef's college experiences. Carrie was a culinary school dropout which I didn't realize! Brian seemed to have a bit too much fun in college and Shirley got a taste of what she's like when she is excited- too funny.

This challenge seemed really hard to me- the chefs didn't have that much time to prep/plan their dishes- they had to show up and roll with whatever they had; plus serving 500 is a LOT. Carlos pissed me off from the beginning- Shirley called that flat-top right away for fried rice. He was making fish- I think he could have rocked it in the "pizza" oven, but instead he had to prevent Shirley from making the dish that truly needed that tool.

THEN he had to throw Nick under the bus and claim "his" oven was stolen! Nick is the most organized chef I think I have ever seen on Top Chef, and he marked the oven as his. How many tools do you need to make some damn fish! Be a team player dude!

Carrie used her immunity to her advantage making that broccoli. I understand you have immunity- and talk about being a team player taking the cold station no one else wanted, but come on, you can do something a bit more than some broccoli with yogurt sauce. The judges wanted a veggie, you could have done SO many things! At least she was able to escape the bottom, so I don't think it was bad, just not up to par.

On top we found Shirley, Brian and Carlos. All 3 dishes looked really good, but I agreed with the judges, Shirley's Roast Beef With Potato Puree and Fire Roasted Tomato Relish looked awesome and it won her a car! Take that Carlos!

This week Stephanie, Nina and Justin did not get a passing grade! It was hard to see Nina in the bottom. Even though she's not my chef, I find myself rooting for her. I think the concept of the corn was great, it just sucks that it fell flat. I also did not love how closely her dish resembled the QF- fried chicken, I dunno. Stephanie's dish was weird- if you don't have the right cheese, don't make grilled cheese... I mean- common sense right? Cottage and Feta do not a good cheese sandwich make young chef! But in the End it was Justin's Marinated Gulf Shrimp, Cauliflower, Asparagus, and Garlic Puree that flunked out!

I understand not "cooking down" to anyone, but even if Justin was being too "chefy", the judges didn't like it, and they are not in college. I am really glad to see him gone. He is too cocky and does have some anger issues. Sad that the NOLA chefs couldn't represent a bit better- oh well, off to LCK!


Episode 12: Mississippi Mud Bugs-Chef John Besh returns to judge the cheftestants versions of the New Orleans classic, etouffe. Next, the cheftestants are tasked with honoring the local bounty from the gulf by preparing dishes made with two different types of seafood along the shore of the Mississippi River.