Top Chef: Texas Recap
By David Mumpower and Kim Hollis
February 14, 2012
Padma comes to the stew room to get the chefs, and asks to see them all. Tom says that all of the judges were both impressed and happy with the dishes that were produced. Tom tells Paul that his soup was beyond what they’ve even come to expect from him (high praise indeed). Bev is questioned as to how she created her dish, and Tom praises her risk-taking with the wok while Gail Simmons says it was just perfectly done. Both of them are safe for the evening as we speculated, and Paul is awarded the Prius V. (Incidentally, he said earlier that he would have taken the Prius if he had won the Quickfire, and we believe him. Of course, he has already won enough money to buy a car, so he’s just swimming in it.)
One item of note: after Paul and Bev are told they’re moving on, she somewhat inappropriately talks about how thrilled she is to have risen from the bottom back to the top. Needless to say, Edward and Lindsay are not amused. Honestly, we’re annoyed as well. Once you’ve been eliminated, you shouldn’t really be able to compete again in our opinion.
As for the judges’ comments on the bottom dishes, Lindsay is told that her cream was a little off and the seasoning was just not very good. Ed’s oyster sauce is criticized, and Hugh immediately hits on the fact that the oysters were canned rather than fresh. As soon as Tom realizes this, his decision seems to have been made. Lindsay acts like she thinks she has lost, but Tom’s opinion usually carries the most weight here and he is acting like Edward is packing his knives and going home. For his part, Ed is dealing with the situation really well. He’s good-natured and seems to realize that it’s his time. Sure, he’s a little bitter about the whole Beverly thing, but he’s not in a bad place at all.
There is very little drama or surprise here. Edward is sent packing. We’re going to miss his wry sense of humor and hope that he might come back for an All-Stars challenge someday.
The show now moves to…British Columbia? What the hell? It looks like the chefs are going to freeze to death up there, and it also looks like there will be some tears at Judges Table. At this point, the three women had best be honing their skills and planning some extra special dishes, because Paul Qui looks nigh unbeatable.
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