TOP CHEF – Guilty Pleasures

TELEVISION You scream, I scream, and the chef-testants screamed when told that the Quickfire Challenge involved Cold Stone ice cream. They were to create original mixes to work with the sweet cream flavor of this week’s promo product. Some kept it simple and others scooped up as many ingredients as possible.
Tonight’s guest judge was long-braided chef and author Govind Armstrong, owner of Table 8 in Los Angeles and Miami. He and Padma thought Casey’s Sriracha Sauce with Poblano, Dried Apricots and Potato Chips had too much going on but her dish actually made Chef Govind shudder. Thinking too far outside of the ice cream carton again instead of perfecting something simple that any monkey could love was Hung who offered white chocolate, candied pistachios, mint, tempura flakes and, surprise, a cauliflower foam. Not singled out was Tre’s Candied Hazelnuts with Raspberry Ginger Sauce that I would love to have tasted. Howie was favored with his Balsamic Mixed Berries but Dale won immunity with his Flambéed Peach Cobbler with Candied Pecans.
For the Elimination Challenge, Padma announces that the chefs are off the hook for now and to go out and enjoy the Miami nightlife. So everyone goes back to the hotel, gets dressed up and is driven in a white limo to Café Nikki, where CJ says their dreams came to a crashing halt. Padma is standing with Chef Govind and tells them they are to split into two teams and create a late night bar food menu to be prepared in and served from mobile kitchens. Some, particularly Casey and Sara N were not amused by the bait and switch. On the one hand they should expect the unexpected. On the other hand, not only are they not wearing protective clothes, they are in high heels which could be dangerous even if they took them off and went barefoot.
Dale totally lucks out and learns he has the night off to share a romantic, uh, make that a private four-course dinner with Chef Govind. The two seem to become fast friends as Dale holds the door like a perfect gentleman and the two clink wine glasses together. Maybe there is a challenge in there somewhere. (But what briefly appears onscreen is another fake out as it’s been reported that Chef Govind has recently proposed to his girlfriend.)
The Black Team, consisting of Hung, Sara M, Tre and Brian, seemed to fall right into place by first assessing the kitchen space then appearing to go into their comfort zones. Brian ran the raw bar spotlighting Oysters with a Watermelon Mignonette. Sara M’s Jerked Soft Tacos didn’t look appealing to me and Hung got called out for his Teriyaki Chicken Wings. But the team won and Tre took the top honors pleasing everyone with his Bacon Wrapped Shrimp over Cheesy Grits.
Everyone senses from the beginning that the Orange Team will have problems. The judges eventually told CJ that he should have pulled the team together, and being the most levelheaded of the four he could have. But our bulldog Howie jumps in and is allowed to dictate since he had experience creating bar food. That’s too bad since his Media Noche Cuban Sandwiches were called a big doughy mess. Casey’s four cheese quesadillas looked scrumptious and I wasn’t sold on CJ’s ceviche tacos, and didn’t seem appetizing after a night of cocktails. But Sara N had the most problems, especially with Howie. First he was breathing down her neck while making Sliders (mini hamburgers that seemed dry and unoriginal) and thick Milkshakes, and then called her the baby of the house in front of the judges. She may be the youngest but his words sliced like a knife, which she was asked to pack and then go.

It seemed as if the judging happened right after the challenge. The chefs bought food at around 10:45pm and started serving it at 1:45am. Was the judging happening at 5am?

The text poll for this episode asked which chef would you most like to share a midnight snack with. Brian and Casey each got 16%, Tre was a close second with 32% and CJ led the voting with 36%. But would you really want to eat his ceviche tacos at midnight?