For the 'L' of it

Putting an 'L' back in the weekend...

Nothing to do until TLW's S6 spoilers arrive?
Find 'L' tidbits in these blogs to keep busy.

*no guarantees... but they are unique.


Emmi

Lula

CoffeeM

JDinDC

ThePlanetCast

This is D List

Kathy makes 'D-List' of bloggers...

beggin 4 attention
while my bf was sleeping
faus tosspot
getfame
lou does italy
danny's connah

edub tv
dandy flaneur
sowelu
modern gal
digital meatloaf

going to h--- for this
hey its brett
tv obsessor
tapeworthy
madtypist
pink n blue

Kathy @ bravotv

For the 'L' of it

Putting an 'L' back in the weekend...

Nothing to do until TLW's S6 spoilers arrive?
Find 'L' tidbits in these blogs to keep busy.

*no guarantees... but they are unique.


PCsta

AutoStraddle

UgoEve

TwoMoms

FittingO

Walk This Way

_{*credit for image below: borlandphoto.com} 'Bye, Top Chef!' - I'm shuffling off to new shows.
But fear not, these folks are still dishing up some tasty food fare:

MinxEats
mangoandginger
stickygooeycreamychewy
Cliffieland
BaltimoreSnacker
DogHillKitchen
Dealing in Subterfuges
KarmicKitchen
Singleguychef
FoodNetworkMusings
mymonkeycoulddothat
ericthreethousand.blogspot.com

Even though I'm done food-blogging for the nonce, I know I'll keep reading these blogs - check them out if you haven't already. Now, its on to 'My Life on the D-list' (and perhaps some 'Flipping Out') plus 'WipeOut' and 'I Survived a Japanese Game Show' {video}.

In The Pink

Bravo has a lot to blush about, but does Jen?

Last night's reunion show had some fun moments with the stew room antics and 'Black Hammer' comments. But Jen's deep blush when the host asked about her relationship was quite a surprise. I noticed no such blush on Zoi. What does -that- mean?

Bacon Beacon

Top Chef version of comfort food.


*plus*
A view inside winner Stephanie's old restaurant: Scylla

Meet the Meted Meat

Each chef's available proteins from the finale.

Bravo's Lee Anne said that the chefs were not allowed to trade proteins. Hmm... made me want to see what was available to each chef again.

Stephanie’s protein list: caviar, clams, sea urchin, lobster, hamachi, snapper, poussins (baby chickens) quail, quail eggs, chorizo, bacon, veal tenderloin, and rack of lamb.

Richard’s: abalone, calamari, scallops, tuna, halibut, guinea hen, duck, duck fat, foie gras, prosciutto, pork belly, rabbit, and venison.

Lisa's: oysters, octopus, head on prawns, jumbo lump crab, mahi mahi, organic chicken, squab, pancetta, sweetbreads, oxtails, beef tongue, wagyu strip, and ostrich steaks.

(I'd pick Richard's group.)
--------------

Also, in Lee Anne's blog:
*she sampled every dish
1st course: Stephanie, Lisa, Richard
2nd course: Lisa, Stephanie, Richard
3rd course: Stephanie, Richard, Lisa
4th course: Lisa, Richard, Stephanie
.

For the 'L' of it

Putting an 'L' back in the weekend...

Nothing to do until TLW's S6 spoilers arrive?
Find 'L' tidbits in these blogs to keep busy.

*no guarantees... but they are unique.


RolePlay

LambdaL

TibetteDictionary

Lobal

FreedomTS

Scoop on Steph

Had an email box full of TC links this a.m, so I culled out a few of our champ's quotes to share: (sorry din't keep the links)

What are you going to do with the money? (oy, those interviewers jump right in...)

'Once I get myself out of (credit card) debt, I want to buy somewhere to live, you know, to put all of my new kitchen appliances!' (Now we know how she financed her month in SE Asia... Suppose her GE stuff is sitting in her living room?)

Did you think you came off well on TV?

'They definitely chose to show off my more innocent side, so yeah, I was very happy with how I was portrayed. ' (now wondering if the reunion show will contain 'naughty Steph' bloopers)?

Kept in touch with any of the contestants?

'I do. I talk to Antonia very often.
Lisa and I talk once a week.'

What did you really think of Lisa?
& Did she get a fair shake on TV?

'She can be negative, yes, and they really zoomed in on that on the show. But she can also be a lot of fun too.' (How much fun Steph?... and will that be in the naughty bloopers too?...)

So what was up with her asking you and Richard for congrats when Antonia was eliminated?

'I was a little surprised. It was so late and I was bummed to see Antonia go. Richard and I were both surprised she brought that up. It just felt inappropriate to high-five her at that moment. But I can see how she felt.' (No hi-5 bloopers then...)

Note: A reporter said that at 'Cans' a bar in Chicago: People cheered (including S4's Valerie and S3's Dale L. & Sara) throughout the showing anytime one of the judges on screen gave Stephanie a compliment.

*Must've been a riot for Steph - her sis & folks were there too, and she never told'm she'd won so they saw it 'live' that night.

Are you a fan of the Glad family of products?

I actually am. I’ve been doing some catering out of my house, and I use the containers all the time. I have a whole cabinet devoted to my GladWare. I’m hoping that I’ll get a free lifetime supply. They’re not cheap!

Hey, I'll do my best here to pass the word along, Steph! But sadly (not Glad_tmly) I doubt that 'Glad_tm' reads this, since they don't make 'blog-ware'...

(N)ice Cream

Now that we've had our seer-ious discussion of TC 414 we're moving on the the obvious hot topic of the episode:

Isn't N₃ice cream (C)old news these days?

Did I hear that right? Eric Ripert stated that he'd never seen anyone use liquid N₃ in a kitchen before!? - Dude! - you have to get out more, seriously!

While 'old school' hot-cold dessert items like 'Baked Alaska' are fun, N₃ cookery is truly cool. (And no 'molecular gastronomy' chemicals needed.) We just made two versions of ice cream this past weekend when we had a visitor. Its great entertainment -and- its dessert!

opens in new window: Recipe for N ice cream




Have fun, but remember to be careful, possums!

Hail to la Chef

Bravo crowns Chef Stephanie Izard, congrats!

_{*anyone else notice the resemblance?... just me then?... okay}

I'm going to need a moment to digest this TC feast.

Richard* came in third, no doubt in my mind. There's your f'n bronze medal Mr. Banana Scallop Redux. (btw - my father's fav 'asian' place has served them like that for years)
*_{He knowingly served scaly mush fish - he's dead to me.}

But when Stephanie faltered a bit too, I was sitting there thinking 'Gee, I was only kidding when I posted those pro-Lisa stats'... all the while realizing that Lisa might take the title with her 'slammin'(©Padma) soup and dessert.

In the end, I wanted to hear more from Eric Ripert, et al, and their votes. With our regular judges being the only ones whose votes counted, why not a -blind- tasting since those four already had preconceived ideas about the final three?

All along Lisa has reminded me of a braggy jr-high kid: full of bravado, talking before thinking, and utterly lacking in self-awareness. Not anyone's favorite combo in an adult. So this will be an unpopular opinion, but I believe that the judges took until 6 a.m. because Lisa was ahead, and only Steph's previous EC wins finally tipped the balance in her favor.

What's your opinion: Think its true that only Lisa's previous bad behaviour kept her from taking the top toque? (And will we ever find out?)

And, considering how many viewers were supporting Stephanie already,.. were you surprised at the outcome?

Chef-nanigans

Early last October Bravo sent one of their interns w/handycam to ask nosy, oddball (non-cooking) questions of all the cheftestants except Valerie and Nimma. Sample Q&A's below:

Bravo intern: 'What turns you on?'
Stephanie points to Erik: 'Right Here' (joking)
Richard: (tacky rephase of q., then) 'My Wife'
Lisa: Don't think I can answer; what's this rated?
Mark: A clean pair of underwear

Turn offs?
Richard: Not being home
Lisa: 'Spike'
Steph: cockiness
Jen: diarrhea

Favorite sound, what do you like?
Richard: A good fart
Stephanie: Sound of opening a bottle of bubbly
Lisa: 'Silence' (looking at questioner)
Antonia: Dinner Bell

What sound do you hate:
Stephanie imitates dweeb saying her name dopily
Lisa: 'Spike'
Richard: 'Clinkity-clank' sound

What non-chef job would you like:
Stephanie: Olympic Champion
Lisa: Veterinarian
Richard: NFL player
Andrew: Strip Club DJ

What's your idea of a bad job:
Lisa: Lawyer
Richard: desk job
Stephanie: cubicle worker

Assuming God and heaven exist -
What do want hear when you arrive?:
Richard: Good Game
Stephanie: Looks like you had a good time.
Lisa: Welcome

I appreciated Stephanie and Lisa's answers.
Richard's? Not so much. B-minus.
Best reply? Zoi's ''NOYB''
TC's 'odd Q' videos (you've been warned)

Food 4 Thought

Since we're only a few days away from the last part of S4, I thought you'd enjoy seeing some Top Chef Finale statistics.

via TWoP's tripon & healing fish:

All previous TC winners were under 30 when they won.
Both Steph, and Richard are over 30. Lisa is 27.

2 of 3 winners had Asian backgrounds, Harold & Hung.
Lisa also has an Asian cooking background.

All previous winners were sous chefs or line cooks,
both Richard and Steph are Exec chefs/Head chefs.
Who is a sous chef? (Or a line cook) Its Lisa.

2 of 3 winners had 4 letters in their name, Hung & Ilan.
Lisa has four letters in her first name.

All 3 previous winners had short, closely-cropped
hair and did not have big fauxhawks. Bingo.

Or as I would say it... 'Uh Oh'

----------------
A one-minute Padma cooking interview.


Its from Google video, hopefully it will work...

For the 'L' of it

Putting an 'L' back in the weekend...

Nothing to do until TLW's S6 spoilers arrive?
Find 'L' tidbits in these blogs to keep busy.

*no guarantees... but they are unique.


LadiesWho

MayDay

BlowersDau

ThinkTLW

CableBox


-------

*I'm posting five different L-links,
every weekend, all summer! ;-)

Extra Crumbs

A few more thoughts about this week's Top Chef.


Saw this week's web video of the Sous Chefs at judges table - why didn't Bravo air any of this? Yes they want more web-traffic, but at least let tv viewers know that the judges were aware of Dale's pork snafu.

And thinking of that, I realized that I will never eat at a restaurant where Dale is in charge. He was willing to use raw pork that had been uncovered, unchilled fly-bait. Yuck. 'Bravo' to Stephanie for 86'ing it. I'll go to her restaurant instead.

And I was impressed with Andrew's demeanor and attitude. Turns out he was right when he said he had honor, because by all accounts he did a fine job as sous for Lisa, and then praised their efforts to the judges. And he refused to be a weasel when Gail prodded him about his earlier fracas with Lisa. Quite classy, dude.

Too bad he wasn't Antonia's sous. He likes color and texture too much to have let her present those dour dishes. (And unlike Nikki, he might have noticed that the peas weren't cooking before it was too late.) *Antonia, why didn't you skip the cliche rice/beans and just use pig bits to make nifty pizzas like at the wedding?

TC now 'Trio Chef'

Beatrix Potter never got to Puerto Rico, and sometimes fairy tales don't quite come true.


Poor Antonia. Thanks for the fun, loved
your quirky comments: 'Andrew cannot
speak to guests, seriously' & 'Then you
won't be going to Puerto Rico, Lisa'.
'Good Luck' with your new place!

(Just have to say I wonder why the Bravo editing monkeys let us hear Antonia's whisper 'Kick their asses!' to Stephanie. Is it an anvil?)

.... And before I head off to bed, I have to say that I would be stunned into silence if someone handed me an entire pig and said 'go to it'. So 'Way To GO, Richard!' - a car is a great trade for that pig!

Stephanie, you are a much better person than 99% of us to be able to say 'That's okay' when Dale left your pork out overnight. I couldn't believe you didn't wring his neck until his Spike-hat-holder fell off.

And Lisa? You're right; TC isn't a personality contest. Which is lucky because the one you've got needs a bit of repair, if we can believe Bravo's editing monkeys.

Weeping Wilo

'Top Chef' Chicago/Puerto-Rico:

''Local chef Wilo Benet ('celebrity-chef'), known for making gourmet Puerto Rican cuisine, will serve as guest judge.''

I know nada about this chef or his food. But I do know that not one of our final four (Stephanie, Antonia, Richard, or Teflon-Lisa) has ever mentioned any Caribbean cooking skills, much less Puerto Rican.

So this episode should be an interesting taste challenge for our poor guest judge. *Think we'll get a product placement for the Spanish version of 'Tums'?

JW Knows Squat

This ep proved that Jackie Warner may know how to do squats, but she doesn't give one about others.

First she shows up 1-1/2 hours late for a meeting. Notice her fresh beverage w/ice? That means she was -already- an hour late before she decided to stop off for a cool one. So not cool. Then its obvious that JW hasn't prepared a thing for her DVD yet, even tho that's what this meeting was about.

Later on she proves once more just how inconsiderate she is when she sorts her staff on-camera (for their DVD potential) and she then proceeds to show up unprepared -again-, this time for the actual DVD shoot itself. Turning it into an endless sweaty trainwreck. (Those four trainers get hazard $$ ?)

The exit scene is Jackie reading her girlfriend's private phone message, and then complaining that her gf doesn't respect their relationship! What a classy way to set up next week's finale... where I'm hoping her staff and her gf wise up and flee.

* Regardless of how I feel, ratings appear to be up: 'Work Out', a reality series, 927,000 viewers Tues night, up 19% from the prior week' (link)
Still way less than 'Top Chef's 3 mill.

Top Chef = 'Top Ratings'

The Top Chef ratings climb.

Reported after May 28th ep:

'Top Chef: Chicago' - leading the way as the second-most viewed cable program among adults 18 to 49.' (link, #1 was a crime drama)

'... up 20% this season, surging from 2.24 million to 2.69 million viewers.'

* This means Bravo's only food show beats the pants off of every show on 'Food Network'... 'Burn!'

Workout Wearout?

Yes its true, JW's original clothing partner was Paiva until they closed their doors: 'Seems upscale women’s clothing retailer Paiva, a subsidiary of FinshLine, is game over.' (Opens in new window: Link )

...So, is JW funding her fashion wear all alone now?