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Twenty-four stars of the culinary world have come together on a common battlefield to play the Top Chef game for charity Recaps by Chico Alexander, GSNN
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Magic Chefs Tongue... tripe... hearts... to you and me, offal. To the superchefs we met last time... Offal tasty. Only one, Rick Bayless, joins Suzanne Tracht and Hubert Keller in the Champions Round, though. Tonight, another will join them. Your masterclass tonight is...
Quickfire Challenge: Inspired by Chef Excoffier, the father of French cuisine, you'll have to cook one egg. From season 3, you'll have to cook and egg dish with one hand behind your back. They'll be judged by Gail Simmons, regular Top Chef judge, egg rancher Terry Reish, and Monica May, executive chef of the Nickel Diner. Twenty five minutes... starting now! DOUGLAS: Open-faced Corn Cake with
Scrambled Eggs and Ham. Quickfire scores are... Mark: 2.5 stars So Anita has the advantage going into... ELIMINATION CHALLENGE Create a delicious meal for actor and notoriously-fanboyish game show fan Neil Patrick Harris. He's a longtime fan of magic, and one of his friends Max Maven will be introducing this challenge using a deck of cards. Mark: MYSTERY What, besides the same thing, do these mean? They'll have to create a dish inspired by the card you drew. You have $250 and 45 minutes to spend at Whole Foods, two hours to prep tonight, and one more hour to prep at the Magic Castle. No one is willing to divulge anyone's secrets, like a true magician. Anita, on the other hand, will create an illusion of a scallop. She admits to not being the most theatrical of the chefs. She, according to the other three, is the one to beat. There's a rivalry between east-coast and west-coast chefs. This could to be interesting. John will call upon his training as a Marine, which served him well in rebuilding New Orleans. Douglas's mentor: Julia Child. Competition fuels him. Meanwhile, Tom Colicchio from "Top Chef" joins the action for moral support, not necessarily to judge. He says that they've figured out early what most Top Chef chefs don't. Cooking is about telling a story. It's still anyone's game. All of the chefs are pulling out all of the stops to try and knock out Anita. The next day, the chefs arrive at the Magic Castle, an exclusive club in LA that you have to be invited to get into. It's so exclusive that you have to say a magic word to get in. Judging today's magic acts are James Oseland, Gael Greene, and Gail Simmons. Included in the diners section are NPH, Max, and Ed Alonzo. Dinner time. First up is Mark's mystery. Mark: Tai Snapper in Parchmen with Garlic Mashed Potatoes & Leeks served with scallion oil and dassai sake. Things transform in the oven, so Mark doesn't really know what's in it. But it's bold and clean with a bitter finish. Next, John will surprise with... John: Salmon Tartare with Cauliflower Blini, Salmon Roe Salad with Horseradish & Creme Fraiche Sorbet, and Tempura-Fried Lobster wrapped in Smoked Salmon. A lot of surprises in the presentation. Next, Anita has an illusion... Anita: Braised Dailon with Kombu Caviar & Steak Tartare. It's supposed to look like a scallop, but it reminds of the famous sawing-a-lady-in-half trick. Finally, we go to Douglas's spectacle... Douglas: Duck Four Ways - Oyster Ceviche with Duck Broth, Empanada with Foie Gras, Duck Breast, Duck Soup in a Flaming Coconut. Presentation is terrific. It's still anyone's game as we go to the Critics Table. John's dish was about surprise, so he used techniques that he was not known for. The blini was a bit too cold, it was a shock to the system. His lobster was perfectly cooked, though. Gael thought that Anita's dish was like a surrealistic painting. James thought that the broth tied everything together with the daikon. Douglas didn't want to cook anything different than what he was used to. Douglas cooked a classic ceviche. Mark's mystery was less than Mediterranean, but in a good way. All the elements really worked in his dish, especially the sake. It was the perfect contrast. Remember, this is for $10,000 for charity. John had half a star going into the elimination round... Diners give him 2.5. Judges... 9 more for a total of 12. Mark had 2.5 stars going into this round. The diners give him 4 more... and the judges give him 12 more for a total of 18.5 to take the lead. Douglas had 3. The diners... 3. The judges... 7 to give him 13. Not enough to beat Mark. It's all on Anita now. She had the lead going into the Elimination Challenge with 5. Diners give her 4.5. She needs 9.5 to move on to the Champions Round. The judges give her... 13 to win $10,000 for her charity! That Quickfire really put her out of reach. Next time, another four superstars and another possible 25 regular stars will separate one of them from the Champions Round. Until then... don't forget the mint. To see this episode in its entirety, go to www.bravotv.com/topchefmasters. |
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