TCFL 18 Portland // Episode 13 Recap

And it all comes down to this.

We've arrived at Finale night. Going into the Finale, I honestly have no idea what's going to happen. Out of the three Chefs remaining -- for various reasons -- I can't choose a favorite. But without even getting to that... Should tonight even be about three Chefs? We touched on this after LCK ended. There's been a phantom "open" slot ever since Byron couldn't make it back. You would think (or at least I did) that if they were to pull the trigger on a "no elimination" Episode, it would have been right away. Does this mean that they were always intending to do this, but couldn't find a right time? Wouldn't it have made for a super feel good story if they did it during Jamie's weird plea for Maria? Would they have done it if Jamie didn't put sea bass with her cheddar and did a better job at Tillamook? Did they go into this Elimination knowing that they could do this or that they would do this?

In my mind, you could make a very convincing case that Gabe should not be cooking in the Finale. Under normal circumstances a cold dish served hot and a missing tortilla could have and might have gotten him eliminated. And under normal circumstances Dawn missing yet another component on her dish could have and might have gotten her eliminated. It was clear that Shota blew everyone away with that braised daikon, but even he had his missteps.

Some odds and ends:

• What time did Padma have to wake up to be looking fantastic at 5AM?
• Gaper clams are... phallic.
• I'm starting to wonder why they used/are staying at this specific resort. The balcony/patio set up for the Quickfire felt super slapped together.
• It feels like there's been a lot of bleeding this season.
• Fan Favorite is between Dawn and Shota. I'm a little surprised that Jamie or Maria didn't make it further.
• Crab Hats! I couldn't believe they made the marina guys wear those, but then I checked out their website:

• If you are unfamiliar with Viet-Cajun, please watch this episode of Ugly Delicious, then go find a restaurant that does it, ASAP.
• The table arguing about whether Dawn's messy plating was intentional was hilarious.
• We're going to have helpers come in for the Finale (Byron, Maria, and Jamie), but really they needed to come in for this Episode. None of the Chefs were happy with their dishes, and a lot of their time was lost processing the crabs.

Speaking of helpers... the TCFL Championship is going into the Finale undecided. And it all comes down to... Jamie! If Jamie helps her Chef win tonight, she earns a +2 and makes Mr. Consistency our first two time champion and the cutting board will need to be shipped to NYC for the first time. If not, Duck Duck Beaver will take home the cutting board, keeping it in the DMV for the third season in a row.

Remember that the TCFL Chat Room will be live for the east coast airing of the Finale tonight! Come hang out and talk trash. Until then...