Top Chef – Recap & Review – Give Me Your Huddled Masses

photo: bravo

Top Chef
Give Me Your Huddled Masses

Original Air Date: Mar 2, 2011

Ryan O – Two Cents Senior Reviewer
ryano@thetwocentscorp.com

Do you have a friend who will talk for more than an hour about nothing? Even though you like listening to him or her, at the end of the story, nothing is different? That’s the episode. There are quite a few nice moments (two cheftestants find out they’re distantly related!) but at the end, we’re where we were at the beginning of the episode.

What do I mean? Well, keep reading to find out (what else was I going to say?)

Quickfire

Just as Antonia is predicting the next Quickfire will involve Padma showing up in their loft, Padma shows up in their loft in Brooklyn. She tells the remaining five chestestants to meet her on the roof. She then tells them to take the ferry to Ellis Island. When they get on the ferry, there’s a note telling to make whatever they can with what’s on board and have it done by the time the ferry docks. What’s on board is snack-bar type food: potato chips, hot dogs, stuff for nachos and so forth. Cooking equipment includes a hot dog roller and a microwave.

Here’s what everyone made.

Richard: Hot dog and beef jerky sandwich with jalapeno, pork rinds, lettuce and apple

Tiffany: Nachos with cheese, lettuce, tomato, jalapeno, banana pepper and sour cream AND popcorn with candied mangoes and pineapples

Mike: Bread soup with cheddar cheese, sour cream, green chili, and pork rinds (this might be the least appetizing thing I have seen on any episode of Top Chef — it looks like vomit)

Carla: orange and papaya salad with carrot and rosemary juice

Antonia: Grilled cheese with apples and raisin bread

Guest judge for the challenge is Dan Barber, chef and owner of Blue Hill New York and and Blue Hill and Stone Barns.

Dan tells Tiffany her dish was plain and too much like a throw-away (It was essentially just nachos although the popcorn seemed a little inventive but she might’ve used orange zest instead). Richard is told it was tasty and a creative way to use a frankfurter. Mike’s cheese soup is called a ship-sinker. Dan was impressed with how Antonia grilled her sandwich. He thought Carla’s orange salad was refreshing and innovative with the infusion of rosemary. Annnnd Carla is declared the winner. But, she doesn’t actually win a prize which sort of stinks for her.

Elimination Challenge

They’re told this is the last one in New York. The challenge is to create a dish based on their ancestry. The show has hired a top-notch genealogist who researched each of them and has put together a folder of documents on their history. Also, family members are there to help talk about their history. Tiffany’s mom is there and Tiffany couldn’t be happier. Mike’s mom is there. Antonia’s mom, Carla’s husband, and Richard’s wife are there, too.

Richard finds out his family is from Worcestershire and he loves Worcestershire sauce, so it must be in his genes. He is Irish and English. He also learns there’s a chemist and a butcher in there, too.

Tiffany’s documents trace way back in Louisiana. She’s planning on okra even though she knows Tom doesn’t like it. She wants to make what she wants to make and she’ll make Tom like it.

Carla finds out her predecessors were among the last slaves to be freed during the Civil War. He eventually had a printing business and that really impresses Carla.

Mike’s family is pure Italian. His grandmother was a great cook but she passed away and he never wanted to cook Italian because he felt he couldn’t live up to the memories.

Antonia is three-quarters Italian and one-quarter Jewish (I think that’s what she says, anyway). She finds out that she’s distantly related to Mike.

They’re also playing for Toyota Highlander Hybrid.

Along with the judges, their relatives are also at the table.

Here’s what everyone made.

Mike: Potato gnocchi with braised pork shank ragu and burrata cheese

Tom really likes the gnocchi as does everyone else. It’s not heavy, which is the key thing. His mom says he’s topped his grandma.

Antonia: Braised veal, rapini leaf and fava bean risotto

Tom thinks her dish is packed with flavor. Mike’s mom says it’s almost as good as Mike’s dish.

Tiffany: Braised short rib with mustard greens, stewed okra, and oxtail marmalade

Tom says it’s very good. Padma loves the crispy nugget of pigs feet as does Dan. Tom says he doesn’t like okra because of the slime but Tiffany finally made okra that he likes.

Richard: Short ribs, potatoes, fried bone marrow, corn puree, and pickled glasswort (a type of bean)

Tom says it’s all right and clarifies that he means that it’s “All. Right.” Everyone is enjoying the bone marrow.

Carla’s husband reveals they met via match.com. They got married about eight months after they met.

Carla: Braised pork shoulder, fried grits, corn and sweet potato hash and cheddar biscuits

Gail loves the grits. Dan loves the pork shoulder.

Everyone knocked it out of the park. Deciding who is going home is going to be tough.

Judges Table

Padma calls everyone out to Judges Table.

Gail loved Carla’s broth and the cheddar biscuits. Dan loved the pork shoulder. Carla says she used liquid nitrogen to get the grits really cold so they’d stay together in the pan. Gail is shocked she used liquid nitrogen.

Dan loved Richard’s corn puree. Tom says the whole dish was well-thought out, even the beans made sense.

Padma says Antonia was brave to serve risotto. Gail says it had a great texture. Tom says it was the opposite of everything you find in bad restaurant risotto. Gail liked the veal.

Tom tells Tiffany he’s converted on okra. He says that if this is what okra is about then he understands why people like it. He liked the whole dish.

Padma thought the gnocchi was really great. Dan thought the flavor was rich without being heavy. Gail thought the whole dish was terrific.

The cheftestants return to the stew room.

Tom loved Antonia’s risotto.

Dan loved Mike’s gnocchi but he might’ve used a touch less meat. Tom thought it was delicious.

Tom thought the seabeans were perfect on Richard’s plate. Padma wanted more green on the plate. Gail thought he did an exception job of embracing his past but in his style.

Tom thought the broth was the best part of Carla’s dish but the garnish got lost in the broth. Gail loved the grit cake, it had good texture and taste.

Gail thought Tiffany’s dish was warm and homey. Dan liked the oxtail marmalade.

The cheftestants come back. Antonia wins! She’s moving on to the final in the Bahamas and she wins the car.

Mike is in.

Padma tells Richard to pack his knives … so he’s ready to go to the Bahamas. Mean, Padma, just plain mean.

Carla and Tiffany are both in. The judges say they couldn’t decide.

So, an extra long episode and we’re back where we started. But, it really seems like the right decision.

So, who do you expect to win? Was the decision not to eliminate anyone a half-baked idea? Give us your Two Cents below!