Top Chef Seattle

[dooley_womack1]

Tonight is the premiere (I guess they ditched Top Chef Just Desserts this cycle. Pity. I'm waiting for them to bring Seth back). Here is the cast link: http://www.bravotv.com/top-chef/season-10

Some projections:
--Most likely to be allowed to make me do whatever she wanted: Stephanie Cmar
--Most likely to be IJAG's crush: Micah Fields
--Most resembling a member of sj I've met: Danyele McPherson

And it's Seattle, so....cooking with coffee? Atop the Space Needle? In the rain?
Having said the above, Colicchio has said this edition will be more back to basics. That will be welcomed; I don't really dig the idea of chefs having to shoot a gun to obtain ingredients (tho stunts seemed to add to Around the World in 80 Plates, the non-Top Chef Top Chef edition)

 

[StaggerLee]

Tonight is the premiere (I guess they ditched Top Chef Just Desserts this cycle. Pity. I'm waiting for them to bring Seth back). Here is the cast link: http://www.bravotv.com/top-chef/season-10

Some projections:
--Most likely to be allowed to make me do whatever she wanted: Stephanie Cmar
--Most likely to be IJAG's crush: Micah Fields
--Most resembling a member of sj I've met: Danyele McPherson

And it's Seattle, so....cooking with coffee? Atop the Space Needle? In the rain?
Having said the above, Colicchio has said this edition will be more back to basics. That will be welcomed; I don't really dig the idea of chefs having to shoot a gun to obtain ingredients (tho stunts seemed to add to Around the World in 80 Plates, the non-Top Chef Top Chef edition)

Instead of Top Chef Desserts, they did Life After Top Chef. They followed Fabio, Jen, Richard Blaise and Spike around in their current endeavors.

I'm looking forward to these season, but I noticed the chefs are a little older this season. I wonder if they're running out of the younger chefs, or if having the younger chefs the last few seasons didn't translate to good ratings.

 

[dooley_womack1]

I didn't watch LATC. As much as I like Fabio and Blaise, it just didn't scream entertainment to me, seemed a gimmicky bridge (and Bravo is almost become all gimmick anymore).

And that's a good question, THUMP!; have no idea.

 

[imjustagirl]

--Most likely to be IJAG's crush: Micah Fields

Talk about damning with faint praise ...

I'll have to watch this online. I record too much on Wednesdays. No room for it, and I'm not going to drop Nashville or American Horror Story: Asylum for it.

 

[dooley_womack1]

They did something similar to what they did in Texas last year, eliminating some of the field before they go to Seattle. This time, they started with only 21 and divided them among Colicchio, Emeril, Wolfgang, and Atcheson. The ones with Colicchio had to work an actual kitchen shift while Emeril's had to make only a soup, Wolfgang's only an omelette and Atcheson's only a salad. Doesn't seem fair. I think they eliminated about five chefs.

Unfortunately, according to promos, Top Chef is going the lame rout of Big Brother and Survivor by throwing in three past cheftestants with the newbies. Booo! And I wonder if they'll have anything like Last Chance Kitchen this time.

 

[BurnsWhenIPee]

What's that market where they throw fish and show it as a staple for every sporting event televised from Seattle? Pike's Place or something? You know they will have a challenge from there.

I was glad to hear they are getting back to basics. I thought the Texas season was pretty weak, especially the challenge where they stopped on the side of a country road and had to make a meal out of whatever was in the trunk of the car.

 

[dooley_womack1]

Yeah, all kinds of gimmicks last season, tho it was fun to see that one biotch fall while cross-country skiing

 

[StaggerLee]

They did something similar to what they did in Texas last year, eliminating some of the field before they go to Seattle. This time, they started with only 21 and divided them among Colicchio, Emeril, Wolfgang, and Atcheson. The ones with Colicchio had to work an actual kitchen shift while Emeril's had to make only a soup, Wolfgang's only an omelette and Atcheson's only a salad. Doesn't seem fair. I think they eliminated about five chefs.

Unfortunately, according to promos, Top Chef is going the lame rout of Big Brother and Survivor by throwing in three past cheftestants with the newbies. Booo! And I wonder if they'll have anything like Last Chance Kitchen this time.

I kind of liked the early elimination challenges, although I do agree that Chef Tom's cheftestants faced a much tougher battle.

Seems like it could be an interesting cast, especially with that veteran chef that kind of went downhill after his fame and fortune got the best of him (I'll know the names by the third of fourth episode).

 

[dooley_womack1]

And wouldn't it be my luck that the one I was crushing on didn't make the cut. But on the show, she didn't look nearly as hot as the Bravo site made her out to be.

 

[BurnsWhenIPee]

They did something similar to what they did in Texas last year, eliminating some of the field before they go to Seattle. This time, they started with only 21 and divided them among Colicchio, Emeril, Wolfgang, and Atcheson. The ones with Colicchio had to work an actual kitchen shift while Emeril's had to make only a soup, Wolfgang's only an omelette and Atcheson's only a salad. Doesn't seem fair. I think they eliminated about five chefs.

Unfortunately, according to promos, Top Chef is going the lame rout of Big Brother and Survivor by throwing in three past cheftestants with the newbies. Booo! And I wonder if they'll have anything like Last Chance Kitchen this time.

I kind of liked the early elimination challenges, although I do agree that Chef Tom's cheftestants faced a much tougher battle.

Seems like it could be an interesting cast, especially with that veteran chef that kind of went downhill after his fame and fortune got the best of him (I'll know the names by the third of fourth episode).

The "Bad Boy Chef" from Dallas or something, right? It looks like with him around, there will be a natural villain and some good tension to be had. I liked the challenges that the non-Colicchio contestants had in the opener. You always hear chefs on the Food Network say how they test their new chefs by having them make something simple, like they did with soup, salad or omelettes. Seems to be a pretty good measuring stick.

 

[StaggerLee]

I may not have the best taste buds out there, but to me, all soups and salads are the same. I don't know the difference.

But I will say that a good omelette is hard to find. I love omelettes, but I always am scared to order them because I often get the omelettes that are undercooked and runny on the inside.

 

[imjustagirl]

Unfortunately, according to promos, Top Chef is going the lame rout of Big Brother and Survivor by throwing in three past cheftestants with the newbies. Booo! And I wonder if they'll have anything like Last Chance Kitchen this time.

This was weak.

 

[dooley_womack1]

The only one I had heard of among the three brought back was Stefan; sounds as if the show just wanted to stick a villain into the cast, and no one who auditioned apparently had the chops. I'm not surprised they edited it to make it look like they were being hardasses to the vets, or that the vets team was one of the two on the bottom. I'm also not surprised they edited it to make it certain that the fish would be considered the most poorly done thing, thus merely teasing us with Stefan being "in jeopardy."

What I would have maybe been on board with is the three vets voting out one of the five newbie teams in the quickfire, really ratcheting up the drama. Also, 18 seems like a lot of chefs to go forward with; 15 would have seemed better logistically.

 

[imjustagirl]

You didn't remember CJ? Did you not watch it back then? He was a fan favorite, I believe.

 

[dooley_womack1]

Nah, the first season I watched was with Kenny and the great pea puree scandal.

 

[StaggerLee]

I don't like the old chefs coming back to compete with the new cast. I mean, I don't necessarily hate the premise, but I don't like that they brought back chefs who all advanced pretty far in their season. I think that gives them a huge advantage because they know what the experience is all about.

I think if they're going to bring chefs back to compete again, they should bring chefs that were eliminated in the first round.

 

[Matt1735]

Not sure I'm going to like this season. No one yet to really like. And I can't deal with Stefan for a full season again.

 

[dooley_womack1]

That was kinda bizarre, acting as if it were Thanksgiving time when it was clearly about 2-3 months ago. Man, Kuniko had to have had the most fail-soaked episode of Top Chef ever. First she doesn't get her food plated in the quickfire, then she commits the Top Chef deadly sins of undercooking and underseasoning in the elimination challenge. Yet if things are truly on the up and up and the veterans aren't given the Big Brother treatment, Kuniko would have survived and Josie would have gone home if Josie wouldn't have had immunity. Undercooking turkey has to be automatic elimination in a Thanksgiving-themed episode.

And it looks like Carla will be this year's Chef Who Hangs On Way Longer Than Her Talent Would Dictate Because She Adds Drama. She and Stefan just need to get in the Jell-o tub and duke it out. And the last bits of the episode indicate that there'll be several firestorms stoked by Carla and the Texas bad boy that CJ will have to put out. I would welcome more edginess and fewer gimmicks. Also, I don't really have a strong sense of which chefs are the ones to beat. And not surprised at double elimination next week; cast is still too large.

 

[Buck]

Carla was the head chef at Rao's. I'm sure she's very talented.

 

[StaggerLee]

Didn't even make it through the first half of Wednesday's episode. I think the holiday, combined with no general interest, kept me from being eager to watch.

It was pretty pathetic to watch them pretend it was Thanksgiving. It was very similar to when they hosted that "Christmas" party and had to pretend it was cold. I remember reading one of the blogs (maybe Chef Tom) saying it was actually 70 degrees or so, and the party-goers had to dress the part anyway.