Hootie!

EXCELLENT episode of "Top Chef" last night, wouldn't you say?! Spoilers ahead, so be warned!

First up - my one issue with the episode (and I guess reality tv in general) - the bringing back of eliminated contestants to get their hopes up and get in the heads of the remaining contestants. Don't get me wrong - I love Jamie and really wanted her to be in the finale (I suppose I sort of got my wish), but these people already lost fair and square. Fair and square on the other side, the remaining contestants deserve to be there (thank God Leah didn't make it through either time). Basically, I think it's unfair to those who were rightfully on their way to the finale.

Side note - I definitely fell in love with New Orleans over the course of this episode. My in-laws took a trip there over New Year's and told us how much we would love it. I was already convinced, but this made me start planning a visit in my ol' noggin. Gorgeous. All I can think about are grits and gumbo now.

Let's move on to the Quickfire. Once I got over the initial shock of ridiculous-ness, I was intrigued. Emeril Lagasse was the guest judge and I was expecting the Emeril from tv ("Bam!" and yelling and such). There was none of that. He was simply a great New Orleans chef who is very passionate about New Orleans and its food. The challenge was to cook a Creole dish using crayfish (I would say crawfish, but whatever, they're delicious so what does it matter). It really seemed that they were all successful. Leah, of course, seemed the least motivated, but as Stefan pointed out - she has often had no idea what she was cooking and pulled off a win, so you can never really count her out. Jeff, our friend from Miami, got the win and an opportunity to compete in the elimination challenge. But in a twist straight from "Project Runway" (black and white challenge with Angela and Vincent, anyone?), Padma informs the Final Five that in order to compete in the finale-finale Jeff had to WIN the ENTIRE challenge. In that case, two of the chefs who came to New Orleans originally would be packing their knives. Heavy stuff, man, no pressure.

ELIMINATION TIME - The chefs are taken to a warehouse that stores Mardi Gras floats to hear about the challenge. They must cater a masquerade party at the New Orleans Museum of Art (I would assume thats, NOMA, coloquially) for Orpheus (some group). The catering consists of two appetizers and one cocktail - and one dish must be in the Creole style. They got to do their prep work in the kitchen of one of Emeril's restaurants, pretty cool. So if you win, you're in the final and YOU WIN A CAR. I liked it better when they surprised Blaise with the car last year, but maybe they thought that surprise was blown. I don't know. What follows is typical kitchen drama - will I be done in time? what in the world do they think they're making? I hate this guy, my food is just so much better than everyone's, I hate that guy, blah blah blah.

Party time - the judges arrive in masks. Poor Tom and Emeril, is all I have to say. Padma is kind of dressed like a barmaid, but what does any of that matter because we soon learn that Gail is back!!!! I loved Carla's exclamation of "love you, girl!" As we all know, Carla missed Gail immensely, and so did I. Party food rundown:
Hosea - Gumbo (with a dark roux, this is key), pecan-crusted catfish, and a hurricane
Fabio - rabbit sausage maux chou (?) over grits, pasta of some sort, muffaletta bread, and a bell pepper martini
Stefan - gumbo over grits, apple beignet, and a black cherry and rum beverage
Jeff - fried oyster, Pot de Creme with crawfish, and a cucumber mojito
Carla - oyster stew, shrimp and andouille beignet, and a cranberry lime spritzer
At the end of the party, they all seem to have done a phenomenal job and I had no idea who they would eliminate.

When it's all said and done, the top 3 are Carla, Jeff, and Hosea while the European Duo comprises the bottom two. Carla is announced the winner - as far as I can tell there were no missteps or complaints. Even though her drink was non-alcoholic, Emeril still found it refreshing and her food had soul! I love love Carla now, so I was pretty excited. Jeff was so close on this one, but said he would be leaving with his head held high - and he should, he really stepped it up. Good for him - though it was ok with me because I really thought the other four deserved the chance. I thought they strung Hosea along a bit because he was really in the top, but they left him in there with Fabio and Stefan like he was in the bottom. Ultimately, Fabio was sent packing for the muddled flavors of his rabbit dish and his too-sweet cocktail. Stefan was admonished for his cocky and laissez-faire behavior.

Next week - the finale! with a twist! of course! Soon, I will blog about the best show you're not watching that will also fill the void that "Top Chef" will leave in our lives once it ends next week - "Last Restaurant Standing."