Top Chef - Wisconsin

[Biff Tannen 45665]

Fuck everyone on this show!  It's a shell of its former self!  I'm not even sure I liked it then!  

I swear, are you all strapped in the chair from A Clockwork Orange or something?  Find a better outlet for your bitching.

[kevwun 15764]

I can't believe no on asked if it was an aguachile.

[Texzilla588 769]

I’m surprised no one asked if it included Miller High Life the Champagne of Bottled Beers.

I would have asked Tom if he got to fuck Padma.

[Deej 76755]

1 minute ago, Texzilla588 said:

I would have asked Tom if he got to fuck Padma.

She does have a thing for dumpy bald guys. 

 

 

[Nicole44 22059]

Manny is still in there I think because he once made a good Mole. Get in your box, Manny and make a mole. That seems to be what I see the Judges do after having watched every season. 
 

oh you’re from Africa—make an African twist on everything you make. Oh you’re from Mexico…we need a Mexican twist. 
 

the truth is Dan and Danny have been at the top a bunch and like in Buda’s winning season (it’s really not even close to the other contestants) 

I want a season where they just start whacking people off (just kidding) but eliminating people right away after 4-5 weeks. Fuck it just keep the top four or five and put them through rigorous challenges until the end. 
 

my only true complaint is Last Chance Kitchen: just have one winner and have that one winner appear to join the final 6. I think enjoy last chance kitchen and I think Tom loves doing it. Just have one re-entry. One. That’s it. At the end. 

[Deej 76755]

6 minutes ago, Nicole44 said:

I want a season where they just start whacking people off

Quote

Just have one re-entry. One. That’s it. At the end. 

 

Edited May 30 by Deej

[Biff Tannen 45665]

We're gonna bring back Padma for that, yes?

[Deej 76755]

Josie from Season 2

 

[idigTexas 2284]

Michelle is an enigma.  Some challenges really allowed her to show her talent.  In others, she was a deer in the headlights.  She just couldn't get off the rollercoaster.  The worst part of her doing so poorly is that Manny lives to see another day...again.  He has to go next week, right?  Right?    

I really enjoyed both the quickfire and the elimination challenge this week, two things that we hadn't previously seen.  That table plating concept is a great way to test creativity.  

Dan is clearly talented, but for him to win, I think Danny will need to have a subpar performance.  If Danny cooks his best, I do not think any of the others will be able to beat him in a multi-course meal.  With Laura back, I think she edges out Savannah for top three, but Laura sometimes does a poor job of interpreting the challenge.  Also, Manny is still in the competition, so obviously anything can happen.  

 

[Texzilla588 769]

It’s hard to figure out the top 3 as every one of these numbers skulls has shown the ability to make boneheaded decisions and critical mistakes.

I think it’s Dan , Laura, and Savannah. Danny is overdue for a crash. Manny got to go.

Michelle could have done well had she had confidence in her cooking. She really couldn’t grasp the validity of her cooking and just drove into the brick wall.

[DixonHur 11295]

21 minutes ago, Texzilla588 said:

I think it’s Dan , Laura, and Savannah. Danny is overdue for a crash. Manny got to go.

I'd swap Danny and Dan.  

Dan's dishes seem pretty pedestrian to me. 

[closetohumping 17435]

Table challenge thoughts:

Spoiler

Like the challenge.  Creative

 

dan and Danny did well

manny with the risotto is such a loser move.  I suck, I’m gonna lose why not have a built in excuse

 

michelle- embarrassing Texas.  Used 20% of table and 1/4 of her food was potato chips.  1/8 was salmon mousse. Stop.  She choked

 

[shadow_operative2.0 15950]

And fucked up her tiny square 'biscuits'. 

[closetohumping 17435]

11 hours ago, Texzilla588 said:

It’s hard to figure out the top 3 as every one of these numbers skulls has shown the ability to make boneheaded decisions and critical mistakes.

I think it’s Dan , Laura, and Savannah. Danny is overdue for a crash. Manny got to go.

Michelle could have done well had she had confidence in her cooking. She really couldn’t grasp the validity of her cooking and just drove into the brick wall.

Manny wants to go 

[Texzilla588 769]

If you watch the Dish with Kish supplemental show it’s very good. 12 minutes but she invites a guest from the show to do something with the theme. Shes had Izard, Buddha, Amar, Marcel on and Steph Cmar remains the culinary producer for the show. She and Kish are best friends and do well together, and you get some behind the scenes and past season story stuff.

[Deej 76755]

Someone needs to tell Steph to take that stupid hat off.

[Texzilla588 769]

There seems to be an unfortunate trend of lots of chefs to wear stupid wide brim hats. Sorry Steph you’re not toiling in the sun.

[WBT 20561]

On 5/29/2024 at 9:47 PM, Biff Tannen said:

I didn't have a ton of hope for that challenge, but I thought it turned out really well.

I liked both challenges this week. 

With everyone else I'm really tired of Manny.  Too bad Michelle choked away the chance to put him out of his misery.

[Biff Tannen 45665]

Binged all the Dish with Kish episodes tonight. It’s pretty fun, especially seeing some of the behind the scenes stuff about production and whatnot. Marcel actually came off as a pretty nice guy. 

[Deej 76755]

28 minutes ago, Biff Tannen said:

Binged all the Dish with Kish episodes tonight. It’s pretty fun, especially seeing some of the behind the scenes stuff about production and whatnot. Marcel actually came off as a pretty nice guy. 

I found respect for Marcel in 24 in 24. Man cooked his ass off and it seems time has humbled him. 

Edited June 5 by Deej

[idigTexas 2284]

Get your bingo cards ready.

[NoName 16351]

On 5/22/2024 at 10:00 PM, The Ace of Aces said:

I don’t know why but I left it on for the after show with Andy Cohen and Tom and Gail said the dude with the hat this season was the one of the worse people ever on the show. 

who? the guy with the health issues? oh the guy from the first episode, David per the thing spoilered below.

i think we are at the point they kick Manny out. dude has the most low's in the entire show so far (spoilers below)

he won episode 1, and somehow has what has to be some kind of record by being in the bottom 3 on quickfires three episodes in a row and being in the bottom 2 of the elimination challenge two times of the last 3.

Michelle choked big time. if she had done even the minimum he would be sent to the showers.

personally, i can't believe how well Dan has done - consistently well compared to basically everyone else. doubt he wins considering his ceiling isn't where Dannys is specifically, but love that guy.

Spoiler

edit: also, Manny should go home for not making tortillas a couple of episodes ago. how do you do all this stuff and NOT MAKE YOUR OWN TORTILLAS?

edit2: oh it just hit me. he didn't bring a tortilla press. what a joke.

Edited June 5 by NoName

[kevwun 15764]

The first guy eliminated who had the food waste restaurant where they serve garbage.  He threw a fit and refused to do Last Chance Kitchen which is why the alternate guy got in and ended up making the show.

[shadow_operative2.0 15950]

Dude that packed his shit in episode 1. 

 

Aguachile for the Bingo win. 

[DixonHur 11295]

6 hours ago, idigTexas said:

Get your bingo cards ready.

I have no idea what the challenges will be tonight, but here are my predictions..

Laura - Ceviche

Savannah - Scallop

Danny - Elevated

Dan - Rustic

Manny - Mole

[Deej 76755]

[idigTexas 2284]

Got a bingo, but am a bit surprised that only 6 boxes hit, unless I missed some.  

[WBT 20561]

Cook a dish that shows your growth from being on the show.

Manny: I'm going to make a dish from my childhood that I've been making my whole life but I'm also not going to cook all of the fish.

 

I could see any of the four winning it now with Savannah as the favorite.  I thought Dan and Danny were slightly ahead but they both struggled this week.

[Deej 76755]

They get some time off to regroup before the finale, correct?

[DixonHur 11295]

This season continues to amaze.  

A cruise for the finals? WTF?!  Who's idea was that?

[Texzilla588 769]

The whole thing will be a big product placement opportunity, and they get to house the crew cheap. The show looks first for cheapness.

I’m expecting a buffet challenge.

[shadow_operative2.0 15950]

Let’s all agree to put zilla on ignore. 

[idigTexas 2284]

11 hours ago, WBT said:

Cook a dish that shows your growth from being on the show.

Manny: I'm going to make a dish from my childhood that I've been making my whole life but I'm also not going to cook all of the fish.

 

I could see any of the four winning it now with Savannah as the favorite.  I thought Dan and Danny were slightly ahead but they both struggled this week.

 

Praise Buddha, Manny is gone.  He's a nice guy with an exceptional palate, but the reason he couldn't make a dish that demonstrated his growth is because he didn't experience any.  He cooked safe dishes, often poorly, the entire time.  He was the classic "I don't need to swim faster than the shark, just the slowest person" competitor.  There is one almost every season.  

I agree that any of the four could win, but I still have Danny as the favorite.  Even in the rare instances when he can't get his head around a challenge, he cooks well enough to avoid serious consideration for elimination - "good fails" as Tom calls them.  He'll make it to the final 3 on talent alone, and at that point, it should be all about the cooking with no challenge to navigate.  Savannah crushed it this week, but I think she'll have to be perfect and have Danny make a mistake to win.  Taste matters most, but all things being equal, the judges tend to reward technical skill and creativity, which I think favors Danny. 

Dan needs the break more than anyone.  It's hard to make good food when your brain can't decide what's on the menu.  Lets hope he is able to regroup and bring his A game to the Love Boat.     

If everyone is mentally in it, it feels like Laura is the most likely to misinterpret the final four challenge or to overcomplicate a dish, but she can cook as well as anyone when she makes good decisions.  

We'll see what happens.  It should be fun. 

 

[deac_tracy 516]

This season continues to amaze.  
A cruise for the finals? WTF?!  Who's idea was that?

They did a cruise in Top Chef Seattle when they took one to Alaska. This isn't a new thing.

[shadow_operative2.0 15950]

It’s also amazing Deej is fucking perplexed they have a few weeks to prepare. Stupid fuck gonna stupid fuck. 

[Deej 76755]

8 minutes ago, shadow_operative2.0 said:

It’s also amazing Deej is fucking perplexed they have a few weeks to prepare. Stupid fuck gonna stupid fuck. 

Awww...you have the perfect username, as you probably are Derka's even more regarded little brother. 

[shadow_operative2.0 15950]

Good one. 

[Deej 76755]

There's a reason I get unsolicited PM's from people telling me you're a fucking mental case.

[shadow_operative2.0 15950]

Congrats, bro.

Have you ever seen this fucking show? Do you really not fucking know there’s a break before the final? Are you that goddamn stupid? 

[TonyTexas 10508]

1 hour ago, Deej said:

There's a reason I get unsolicited PM's from people telling me you're a fucking mental case.

It’s a pretty good bet that he’s the most ignored poster on Surly. Quite the feat on a site that’s full of assholes and dumbasses. 

[DixonHur 11295]

3 hours ago, deac_tracy said:

They did a cruise in Top Chef Seattle when they took one to Alaska. This isn't a new thing.

That wasn't for the Finale and the challenge was to work in tight quarters.

I'd think you'd want the finals to be in a 1st class kitchen that isn't rolling with the waves.

Hope none of these contestants suffer seas sickness.

[Biff Tannen 45665]

1 minute ago, DixonHur said:

That wasn't for the Finale and the challenge was to work in tight quarters.

I'd think you'd want the finals to be in a 1st class kitchen that isn't rolling with the waves.

Hope none of these contestants suffer seas sickness.

It seems to me like they may be taking a cruise to multiple locations and not doing everything on the cruise ship.  We shall see I guess.

[Texzilla588 769]

 
Praise Buddha, Manny is gone.  He's a nice guy with an exceptional palate, but the reason he couldn't make a dish that demonstrated his growth is because he didn't experience any.  He cooked safe dishes, often poorly, the entire time.  He was the classic "I don't need to swim faster than the shark, just the slowest person" competitor.  There is one almost every season.  
I agree that any of the four could win, but I still have Danny as the favorite.  Even in the rare instances when he can't get his head around a challenge, he cooks well enough to avoid serious consideration for elimination - "good fails" as Tom calls them.  He'll make it to the final 3 on talent alone, and at that point, it should be all about the cooking with no challenge to navigate.  Savannah crushed it this week, but I think she'll have to be perfect and have Danny make a mistake to win.  Taste matters most, but all things being equal, the judges tend to reward technical skill and creativity, which I think favors Danny. 
Dan needs the break more than anyone.  It's hard to make good food when your brain can't decide what's on the menu.  Lets hope he is able to regroup and bring his A game to the Love Boat.     
If everyone is mentally in it, it feels like Laura is the most likely to misinterpret the final four challenge or to overcomplicate a dish, but she can cook as well as anyone when she makes good decisions.  
We'll see what happens.  It should be fun. 
 

I’m a believer in trending and Savannah and Lauren have been cooking the best the past few episodes. Danny has been making mistakes and Dan has been scattered. Of course the break lets them rest and reflect and get prepared.

There’s always the break between the location and finale; I’m surprised that seems a surprise to some. Often they show up looking different from weight or hairdos etc. it’s obvious they don’t fly directly.

What we don’t know is how much prep info they get about destinations and possible challenges. I think they get a little info on stuff to work on.

[TonyTexas 10508]

I hardly recognized Morimoto. Did a quick search and didn’t see any reference to recent illness. I guess he just lost a bunch of weight because he wanted to. 

[Texzilla588 769]

Every chef out there except big ol Alex guarnischeli is on the Ozempic. Morimoto has a sushi competition show from a year or two ago that he had lost weight. I’m glad he started speaking English. I ate at his joint in Philly back in olden days and it was awesome; a great fusion of traditional Japanese, new Japanese, and American funkiness. A great meal. What a trip that was. Also ate at Le Bernadin the next night. And some serious cheesesteaks and pork and rabe sandwiches.

[Texzilla588 769]

The ladies had a tough meal last night. I thought all four choked and they should have made them do a shootout.

[Herpa Derpa 6123]

Wide open final as the only consistent thing about the finalists is their inconsistency. I expect there to be a glaring issue for all three with their final cooks. Would only be appropriate.

[Texzilla588 769]

I’m expecting them to fuck up so bad they sink that ship. That Holland America ship. I expect to hear that 500 times next week.
Except when they are shouting to “abandon ship!”

[WBT 20561]

I only started watching about 5 seasons ago or so but it seems there has been more unintentionally raw protein served this season than all the others I've watched combined

The whiplash from your mousse didn't work and was awful to you're the big winner this week was also really something

Edited June 14 by WBT

[deac_tracy 516]

Just watched the latest episode. Pretty pathetic that two of the contestants didn't even know they severely undercooked their proteins till judge's table. Like I understand time gets away from you and a contestant ends up serving undercooked protein due to time management issues but that's not what happened. How hard is it to taste your proteins before to make sure they're cooked? Usually around this time during the finals, the judges are nitpicking and figuring out which contestant's flavor combinations are slightly off to send one home. Not this season. This season they're debating which protein is slight more edible. Extremely pathetic. I'm actually going to Milwaukee in a few months and usually go out of my way to go to a Top Chef contestant's restaurant whenever I'm traveling. Not going to bother going to Dan's spot. I'll watch the last episode just curious to see how bad the chefs fuck up but this season has been pretty bad.