Daily Loaf

Sadly, there will be no new Top Chef Las Vegas episode tonight – how will I get my Bryan Voltaggio fix? Luckily, we will be graced with a Top Chef All Stars Reunion! That’s right, now we get to catch up with some of the most loved (and loathed) cheftestants from seasons past.

First of all, I have a soft spot in my heart for the Italian stallion, Fabio (season 5), but why did they choose him to host the show? Yes, his mispronunciation of most English words and phrases is adorable, but we could barely understand him the first time he was on the show. Maybe they chose him to host because of his innocence and aloofness when pushing peoples’ buttons (see videos below) when asking why they were such jerks on their seasons and bringing up past rivalries. That way he might have a lesser chance of getting punched in the face, perhaps?

Be sure to check out the clip (below) where he interviews the biggest jerks (and least favorite contestants) from seasons 1 through 4: Tiffany, Marcel (still sporting the Dragonball Z hairdo), Hung, and Stefan. This is obviously just the beginning of tonight’s drama.

Also notice in the dinner party clip that all of the aforementioned jerks and hot heads from past seasons are seated at the center of the table and the nice guys, like Richard Blais, are at the very end. Who wants to hear from the people who stirred up the least drama anyway? (And why is Dale there at all?)

Finally, I’d just like to say that I’d pay to see Fabio put the smackdown on Marcel. As Bravo’s catchphrase goes: “Watch what happens!”

Tune in to Bravo tonight at 10 pm EST/9 pm C, check out our own live Tweets during the show (Jeff: @TheStew, Katie: @culinarypirate), and listen to our podcast when we return next week! (You can now download on iTunes and check out Jeff’s Top Chef Flickr page.)

Videos after the break:
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You see it on Top Chef all the time. The hobbled, baby wildebeest limping around the kitchen. A chef barely hanging on in the competition. Scared and bleeding. On their last legs. With a few hyena snapping at their ankles. A lions pride, calmly in the brush, watching.Figuratively, Robin is that wildebeest.Literally, though, she’s a true survivor.Eli’s unfortunate comments cast judgment on Robin’s inspiration and victory this week. It was the type of comment that probably had more than one person, including myself, saying “Oh no, he didn’t”.
He did.I can’t defend his choice of words. Even though I can vouch for his character (he happens to be an extremely loyal and family-focused person).But I can help you imagine his mindset.When you’re a young chef, overly ambitious and obsessed with your craft, cancer doesn’t mean much.  When you work in a great restaurant and push hard every day, nothing else means as much.  A tight brunoise or turned vegetable are all that matters.  Life is barely a blip on the radar.
It reminds me of this quote from White Heat by Marco Pierre White.“When boys don’t last the pace that makes me feel good because I can and I will”. – chef de partie at Harvey’s.
That is a ruthless yet accurate comment. Read the rest of this entry »

This week’s Top Chef certainly clarified that the cast’s brothers, Bryan and Michael Voltaggio, are more than just a slick casting call exploited by the show to infuse more drama. Of course, if they were gay, well, that would have been network gold, I’m sure! Happily though, they are short on controversy and big on talent.

Our industry has some significant brother combinations. There are the Adria brothers, and the famed Troisgros family, even though the latter is more like a Jackson family phenomenon. And even as you’re reading this I’m sure you’re noting many more from your own local scene. Here in the Southeast, the Rathbun brothers come to mind.

I started to think about who they collectively remind me of, and lo and behold, it was made clear on Sunday. The Voltaggio boys are seemingly on a course to become the Mannings of the Top Chef universe. Read the rest of this entry »

In the third episode of Top Chef: Las Vegas, both winning teams use one common ingredient. A very common ingredient, but one that I consider quite special. It’s probably sitting on your shelf right now. A container full of swagger and an essential, go-to-bottle for your next company quickfire.

Mustard.
In any form.
I consider it to be in the list of top five things to always have on hand in your pantry.

And as condiments go, it’s the R rated version to ketchup’s PG rating. The beer to soda pop. For that matter, alternative music to pop music…sex to making out. And the reasons why are pretty simple from a pure flavor standpoint.

Mustard’s main role is to add acidity, closely followed by spice. Acid in a dish is a flavor that you hardly notice when it’s right but desperately miss when it isn’t. Where ketchup basks in its simple, one note of sweetness and success, mustard toils in the background. Never getting the press or attention, but confidently showing up in your fridge, day after day. I guess mustard is the offensive line. Or better yet, maybe the infantry is more appropriate for this military-themed challenge.

Last week, Michael Voltaggio, and Kevin Gillespie Read the rest of this entry »

In Episode 2 of Top Chef: Las Vegas, there were a few obvious, spirited political issues included in the plot. One was whether or not a girls versus boys challenge is sexist. And, of course, the legalization of gay marriage.

You’ll all be glad that I’m not going to discuss those issues in this column. OK, well, for the record, I think people should be able to wed whomever they want.

But, what I felt was the biggest controversy of the episode was the comment made that the boys’ food was “contrived” and that mass appeal is as important as the judges’ opinion.

These are both issues I take pretty seriously. The former is an issue we battle every day in my kitchens.

I’ll be honest, I’m fed up with the whole Read the rest of this entry »

This week, we were fortunate enough to get Jeff Houck back in the studio to join the old gang so we could rag on the new season on Top Chef.

This season we have 17 fresh faces, many of them with titles and accolades under their belts – not to mention all of the tattoos and piercings all over their bodies. During episode one, we meet the new cheftestants, get to see the new Vegas style twist to the show (winning $15k and/or immunity for every Quickfire Challenge), and learn that a seitan-filled chile relleno just doesn’t cut it to stay on this show.

During episode two, the remaining 16 got to have a battle of the sexes challenge and cater for a bachelor/ette party. While the girls talked a big game, it turns out that they just couldn’t stand up to what the guys dished out and another female got sent home.

Personally, I’m somewhat disappointed with the females this season, besides “Ceveech” (Jennifer C. – but she annoys me anyway). I wanted to see some more Jamies (last season) or Elias (season 2). Luckily, we have some really talented male chefs (3 from Atlanta) who are all executive chefs and sous chefs – with awards out the wazoo – who are rockin’ it out every week.

Highlights: Todd English’s sex appeal, the Gay List (we’re up to 3 now), Rule #1 in Top Chef, the Cain and Abel of this season, and the chefs get all wet.

Check out season 4’s Richard Blais’ post on his thoughts about the episode and cast (he’s totally blogging for us now).

Hear the hilarious podcast after the jump:
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As I cover Top Chef Season 6 in Las Vegas for Bravo, I take a few seconds of action each week and throw it under the microscope. I often find one or two moments each episode that either reveal a industry insider’s secret or, as a former competitor, something I have a behind the scenes take on.

In episode 1 of Las Vegas, both of these moments came together in the same sequence. It was the kiss that Jennifer Carroll gave Tom Colicchio. And the facial expression that Tom made immediately following.

I’ve read on a few blogs that some people feel the kiss was inappropriate.

I don’t think so. Read the rest of this entry »

This is it — the final episode, where we learn who is the Master of the Top Chefs.

I was quite impressed with this episode because they did away with the drama and really focused on the food (well, there was some nail-biting drama at the final judging). The chefs had to cook a four-course meal that told a story about their culinary career: Their earliest food memory, the experience that made them want to become a chef, their first restaurant, and where they’re heading in the future with their career. Their dishes were gorgeous (except for Michael’s whole fried fish) and made me want to reach through the screen to taste them.

Tom Colicchio, Padma Lakshmi and the five former Top Chef winners joined the judges to feast upon the cheftestants’ dishes (yes, Hosea is still alive). We also got to see some old pictures of the chefs, from childhood to their early career days — not pretty pictures, these guys definitely were late bloomers.

Highlights: Rick Bayless’ orgasmic mole (mo-lay, as in, the sauce) which took Jay Rayner’s “mole [mo-lay] virginity”; our fantasy Padma-on-Kelly chick fight; Keller’s former life as a dirty hippie; Chiarello’s diss at James Oseland; Jay wanting to bathe with Gail in Chiarello’s food; and the revelation of the winner.

At the end of our podcast, we discussed the new season of Top Chef and ragged on the newbies (and their crazy body art), but tune in next week to hear our rants on the first and second episodes of the season. Yes, we’re continuing this podcast — much to your delight.

Hear the exciting podcast after the jump:
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What a steamy episode this was! I think the title says it all, but you’ll have to listen to our podcast to hear it for yourself.

The Quickfire Challenge this week was the infamous blindfolded taste test. Kelly Choi blinfolded each cheftestant and they had a variety of ingredients to taste and guess – hoisin sauce, ketchup, peanut butter, dashi, poppadum, etc. Surprisingly enough, Mr. Italian himself, Chiarello, took the win for this challenge. I especially enjoyed the blindfolding part, and apparently so did Keller.

Surprise! A bunch of old Top Chef has-beens enter the scene to team up with the chefs and help them cook a buffet spread for 200 “Hollywood insiders” (who or what they were inside, I had no clue). To my happy delight, we got Fabio (”This is not Top Scallop!”) and Jamie from the last season, Elia and Ilan from season 2, Richard, Spike and Antonia from season 3, and some other guys I only kind of remembered. Each chef picked their teams and got to work. But an even bigger surprise was in store for them (go figure) – they had to not only move their buffet outside (read: not good for a raw bar) but also lose a team member before service. Of course the show is going to try to screw everyone over by the final episode!

Highlights: Dale getting all up in Chiarello’s face while Chiarello tries to keep it together and not curb stomp this dude, Anita Lo cursing for what I think was the first time on TCM, the power duo of Bayless and Blais combining their powers to whip up a creamy avocado ice cream, Chiarello being a douchebag throughout most of the episode, Keller smoking out the night before the challenge, and Jay Rayner is badly in need of an extreme makeover. Drama! Action! Excitement! (And the podcast is even better.)

Hear the steamy podcast after the jump: Read the rest of this entry »