After last week's episode, and after viewing the "next week on" snippet, I had a pretty clear idea of what I was going to write about this week. And veterans of TCFL probably could have guessed as well. I had planned on devoting this space to bashing Graham. Trust me, we'll get there, but in the meantime, I want to talk about a conversation I had last week.
Former TCFL member Kim decided to take a hiatus for this season. Her husband Jon still plays (and is doing quite well, t-11) and Kim still watches the show and reads the blog, so we still talk about Top Chef stuff regularly. During this conversation it was revealed to me that Kim just plain hates Padma. "Hates"! I felt very attacked. This is a pro-Padma publication. The conversation went in multiple directions, but the crux of it was that in Kim's eyes, Padma is too fake and too disingenuous.
TCFL member Katie (t-8) and I tried to argue against. Katie brought up Padma's well written/funny Twitter page. I brought up this really great piece from Vulture. Mrs. Commish read and loved her memoir. But it was all falling on deaf ears. "I like Gail way better!" (I actually have no problem with this take.) "Tom should host instead!" (This is ridiculous. Who would host LCK?!) "She wears terrible outfits!" (Um, her dress this week was a banger.)
So I ask you all, faithful readers: Where do you stand? What do you think of our host? Have I been too pro-Padma? Would you rather have forgotten Season 1 host Katie Lee? If not either of them, then who? Feel free to hit the comments. And Kim, if you want to elaborate on your position, please feel free to do so as well (even though it will continue to hurt my feelings). On to Random Thoughts:
Former TCFL member Kim decided to take a hiatus for this season. Her husband Jon still plays (and is doing quite well, t-11) and Kim still watches the show and reads the blog, so we still talk about Top Chef stuff regularly. During this conversation it was revealed to me that Kim just plain hates Padma. "Hates"! I felt very attacked. This is a pro-Padma publication. The conversation went in multiple directions, but the crux of it was that in Kim's eyes, Padma is too fake and too disingenuous.
TCFL member Katie (t-8) and I tried to argue against. Katie brought up Padma's well written/funny Twitter page. I brought up this really great piece from Vulture. Mrs. Commish read and loved her memoir. But it was all falling on deaf ears. "I like Gail way better!" (I actually have no problem with this take.) "Tom should host instead!" (This is ridiculous. Who would host LCK?!) "She wears terrible outfits!" (Um, her dress this week was a banger.)
So I ask you all, faithful readers: Where do you stand? What do you think of our host? Have I been too pro-Padma? Would you rather have forgotten Season 1 host Katie Lee? If not either of them, then who? Feel free to hit the comments. And Kim, if you want to elaborate on your position, please feel free to do so as well (even though it will continue to hurt my feelings). On to Random Thoughts:
- It was the first of three episodes in Macau, and we didn't really get a sense of the place in much detail, so I went back and re-watched this episode of Parts Unknown. Tony gets into more detail about the influence of gambling and the Portuguese colonialism left behind.
- I was super shook after the Padma conversation. So I wondered if I was being unfair about Graham. After reviewing his website, I think I'm right on point. Two big takeaways:
- 1. The restaurant he has in Macau is actually his only restaurant.
- 2. He has glasses worse than what he regularly wears:
- In our house, there were two audible "UGH"s during this episode. One was me when Graham showed up. The other was Mrs. Commish when Adrienne showed up.
- Good on Sara for trying to learn some Chinese before getting there. If there's one thing we've learned over the years, if you make the finals, try to learn some of the language to get by, and have a dessert recipe in your back pocket.
- It was cool seeing the chefs really embrace the market for both the Quickfire and the Elimination Challenge. Specifically Kelsey who ended up having a suki in the market. Suki is a Filipino term that describes a symbiotic relationship that you develop in settings like a market. At the base of it, it's you always shop at my stand and I'll hook you up.
- Taking away the ingredients they were holding, who would you have chosen to be your helper chef? I think I would have gone with (in order): Eddie, Brandon, Justin, David, Brian
- Speaking of the helpers, the helper points matter! Brian's -2 knocked Amilcar out of payout position from 3rd to 4th while Brandon's +2 helped Sumita solidify her 2nd place position.
- Even though the dish wasn't successful, I'm glad Sara kept the head on her shrimp.
- Old man Tom taking a shot at Instagram (photo-friendly food in general) was a bit random but interesting.
- If we are grading my Power Rankings from two weeks ago, we're doing... okay. #1 Eric had a bit of a misstep this week. #2 Michelle and #3 Kelsey both had great weeks. #4 Justin and #5 Adrienne are both gone. #6 Sara remains... can she make the Finale?
- As always, scoring can be found here.
With only two episodes left, there are still a bunch of people who can take home the Cutting Board and even more people who can finish in the money. Here's a reminder of the payouts. Good luck!
1st Place: $200.00 & ownership of the TCFL Cutting Board Trophy for one year
2nd Place: $50.00
3rd Place: $25.00
Mr./Ms. Irrelevant (Last Place): $10.00
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