With the current crop of cheftestants down to seven and tensions rising, yesterday's episode of Top Chef had plenty of bad vibes involving almost all the kids. The opening scenes set the tone, as Spike, Lisa et al. reinforced last week's assertions that Dale is, in fact, "a little bitch." Dale, undeterred, showed off his pot belly in the bathroom and continued to dominate the competition, even pointing out that he's won five of 20 challenges. But we're getting ahead of ourselves. Perhaps the only moment in the entire episode when the negativity took a back seat was when guest judge, season two alum and all-around sweater-wearing dreamboat Sam Talbot showed up, leaving the young chefs (especially Antonia) with stars in their eyes. To the recap:
Quickfire Challenge: It's really too bad that Ryan got kicked off so long ago, because this challenge—make a "modern sexy salad" for Talbot—was pretty much tailor made for the ex-Myth Cafe man who already made salads in every challenge. And he even knows all about sexy dishes. Anyway, Richard's "play" on salad and Lisa's banana salad were the losers, and Spike finally notched his first win, which allowed him to try to screw over his colleagues in the Elimination challenge.
Tonight's episode of Top Chef will once again center on healthy eating. The remaining cheftestants must re-invent the salad for the Quickfire, turn an unhealthy meal healthy for the EC, and Season Two alum and rep for diabetes everywhere, Sam Talbot, guest judges. The above preview clip is once again the product of some sneaky editing by Bravo, but it appears that a storyline involves some good ol' fashioned sabotage! Lisa is in big trouble for her mysteriously-burnt rice, while a flustered Dale and twitchy Andrew scramble in front of the judges.
· Complete Top Chef Coverage [~ESF~]
MINT PLAZA—Three out of the four restaurant spaces in Mint Plaza are now accounted for, as onetime Bong Su GM Peter Greerty has signed a lease at 418 Jessie for something he's calling a "gastro-steakhouse": "The name, and chef, are currently undecided, but look for more details in the coming months since the project is slated to open in late November or early December ... There will be 120 seats total, with 30–40 outside, and 90 inside." We encourage anyone to explain the difference between a gastro-steakhouse and steakhouse, because the way things move down in Mint Plaza, we could be looking at a lot of gastro-steakhouse waiting. [Lady Hopstress]
For those of you Top Chef superfans dying to know how season finale will go down, the Bravo people just sent along the schedule of the final three episodes. Now, we already know that the finale was just filmed over the weekend, meaning that as of today, a couple dozen people have the chance to break their million dollar confidentiality agreements by leaking the news to the press. (All loose-lipped production assistants, disgruntled and otherwise, can drop us a line.) Getting back to the two-part finale and reunion, it looks like the only differences this year are a) the Puerto Rico setting, b) the timing of the reunion show (after the finale instead of before), and c) they aren't doing the live show like they did in Season Three. That said, here's the full release:
Last night's episode of Top Chef might have been the best one yet in the post-Ryan era, and it's about time. Corporate shills were virtually non-existent, actual chef skills were tested, no Uncle Ben's rice was involved, not one but two ghastly monkfish made cameo appearances, and both challenges were wildly entertaining. Since the challenges were team-oriented, the cheftestants picked knives to form two teams, and as it turned out, the teams were pretty uneven. On one side were four ringers: Richard Blais, Stephanie, Andrew and Antonia. And then poor Dale got stuck with the Junior Varsity team of Nikki, Spike and Lisa. Poor Dale. Poor, pissy Dale.
Quickfire Challenge: It was the return of the relay race. The tasks: supreme five oranges, turn two artichokes, filet a monkfish and make mayonnaise from scratch. Even though a gloating Lisa got the JV Team off to a big lead, they still lost after Spike fumbled away the lead with the artichokes and Nikki couldn't make mayo without a food processor (she even stopped to take a break!). In a sign of things to come, Dale got so pissed about losing that he punched a locker.
UNION SQUARE—Flying under the radar lately is Urban Tavern, Donna Scala's upcoming restaurant within the friendly confines of the Hilton on O'Farrell Street. Background reading on the $13 million, 240-seat gastropub can be had here, and a possible interior rendering (pictured, right) is available on we believe to be the future online home of the restaurant. As of today, Urban Tavern is slated to open in three weeks' time, with the moving target date being May 29th. [EaterWire]
FOOD TELEVISION—More proof that all your dreams can't necessarily be achieved by winning a reality show, as Food Network shan't be continuing at least one more show next season: "Amy Finley--season 3 winner of The Next Food Network Star--has finally come forth and said that there will be no more new episodes of her show, The Gourmet Next Door. 'I will not be back for another season. The producers offered me more shows, but with my family I decided it was time to move on to other projects,' writes Amy." We didn't even know her show had already started. [FNA]
The above sneak peek from tonight's Top Chef episode starts off with just about every cheftestant yawning following a long and exhausting wedding challenge. A number of power players—including Dale, Richard and Andrew—get defensive in front of the judges, Nikki plays the victim, Lisa looks very very pissed off (0:16 mark, yikes!), and Spike is Spike. Also, this episode will also bring back the relay race, the quickfire challenge that showed last year's Top Chef viewers that Hung Huynh is actually superhuman. Who will be the fastest chef this time and who will drag their teams into the mire? We're putting out money on Dale and Andrew having some serious fast knife skills. Bonus fun: the winner this week will not get immunity.
· All Top Chef Coverage [~ESF~]
Eater LA has it on some very good authority that the finale for this season of Top Chef will be taped this weekend: "We don't know who is in the finale, and we don't know for sure where, but rumor has it Big Tom, Pads, Gail, Ted and the happy band of guest judges are heading out to the Caribbean (think: sofrito, arroz con pollo, Salsa, J-Lo). Also unconfirmed but assumed: The finale will be taped, but the winner will be revealed on live TV." [Eater LA]
Throughout last night's episode of Top Chef, there were several moments when we stopped, paused, and wondered why Alice Waters wasn't the guest judge. After all, so many of the classic elements of the Waters manifesto were present: children in the kitchen, simple preparations, family meals. Then we remembered that Ms. Panisse would probably never be found on a reality show on cable, and Uncle Ben's Ready Rice—ready in 90 seconds!—is almost assuredly not locally grown. For that matter, a $10 budget isn't exactly Waters territory either.
As for the show itself, we believe the mothership put it best: "The ongoing shitshow that is Top Chef Season 4 ensued last night, reaching all-time lows in both product placement and child exploitation." Art Smith reigned as the guest judge, and —in the most blatant shill of the season so far, the Quickfire Challenge gave the chefs only 15 minutes to concoct an entree using Uncle Ben’s Ready Rice (ready in 90 seconds). Antonia's rice salad ended up winning immunity, and then it was off to the Elimination Challenge.
San Francisco's favorite wacky celebrity Robin Williams guest-starred on last night's episode of Law & Order: SVU, and in a true showing of hometown support, his character's alibi is that because he's a locavore, he couldn't have possibly been at the fast food restaurant where the crime took place. And the rise of the locavores continues.
· Robin Williams' Deranged Character on 'Law & Order: SVU' Is Locavore [SE]
San Francisco may be gone, but the coverage goes on. This week's sneak peek of the upcoming episode of Top Chef depicts the cheftestants embracing the mounting pressure as the group thins out: a "fired-up!" Antonia continues to gain confidence in her ability, Mark shares his big dreams while shaving, and Lisa, uh, smokes a cigarette. James Beard award winner and personal chef to Oprah—cue the oohs and aahs—Art Smith is the guest judge. We also know that for the quickfire, chefs only have 15 minutes to make a meal, Uncle Ben's rice is somehow involved, and naturally, they can only cook their dishes in the microwave.
· All Top Chef Coverage [~ESF~]
NORTH BEACH—Add another empty storefront to the North Beach streets, as Nua has closed after less than two years, despite for the most part, favorable reviews: "...according to the building's landlord, Gigi Fiorucci, the restaurant has closed. Although Nua owner David White declined to comment, Fiorucci says he is negotiating with new operators who plan to open an Italian restaurant in the space." Just what the nabe needs. [Scoop]
On Monday, all types of local chefs, reality television hopefuls and Sean Penn lookalikes (Absinthe's Nathan Carter is a ringer for the actor, no?) showed up for the Top Chef casting call at Postrio, and to everyone's delight, 7x7 was there to spy on the situation, see who showed up and ask the TC wannabes some questions. Check out the entire piece for more juice on the hopefuls; in the meantime, some of the more entertaining Q&A follows, and our locals seemed like a happy bunch:
"Why do you belong on Top Chef? Because I'm going to win? Because I'm competitive? Because Elizabeth [Falkner] sent me here?" —William Pilz, Chef de Cuisine, Citizen Cake
"Signature dish? I cook a lot of halibut. Roasted halibut?" —Nick Cobarruvias, Sous Chef, Hotel Nikko
"Why do you belong on Top Chef? I actually don't even want to be on the show but I was told to come here by my boss. I said I'd never sell out, but I'll see what happens." —Johnny Nguyen, bowtie-wearing Executive Chef, First Crush
"Who would you like to be a guest judge? Rachael Ray, just because I hate her."—Jamie Lauren, Executive Chef, Absinthe
The show could certainly use someone with a bowtie, and if we were to put the hopefuls into character molds, Lolo's Ricardo Garcia fits the "guy with the weird hair" profile (besides, by next year, faux-hawks will be old news). And now that San Francisco has been so quickly eliminated from Season Four, we're agreeing with 7x7 and totally hopping on the Jamie Lauren Top Chef Season Five bandwagon, starting...now.
· Calling All Top Chefs [7x7]
Last night's episode of Top Chef was full of comedy improv, weird sexual innuendos, Padma bowl-licking, some very arbitrary (and highly questionable) judging criterion and svelte pastry judges (well, only one of those, but still). With Zoi and Ryan packing their knives in the last two episodes, the original SF Foursome was down to good ol' faux-hawked Jennifer, who did her best to break the San Francisco losing streak. Sigh. Now, on to the recap:
Fallen Comrades: Per normal, the episode started off with the Bravo editors reminding viewers that Jen misses Zoi and is still, in fact, doing "this" for her. Meanwhile, Ryan was missed too, in his own special way, as elfish Andrew mourned the loss of everyone's favorite metrosexual: "The room got a lot uglier. Ryan pretty boy left."
Quickfire Challenge: For the QF, NYC pastry icon Johnny Iuzzini relished his role as guest judge, and the chefs had to make a dessert, "the Achilles heel" of many a cheftestant. Jennifer whipped up some innocuous chocolate cake with chocolate-dipped bananas, and once again, Richard—anyone else notice that everyone simply calls him Blais now?—scored a win, this time with "banana scallops with guac."
The seventh episode of Top Chef airs tonight, and with Mr. Scott's untimely departure last week, the San Francisco Quartet is already down to one. We're hoping Jennifer doesn't make it three losses in a row for SF, but the above sneak peek doesn't exactly alleviate any anxiety. Another product of clever editing from Bravo, the clip features Jennifer joking about packing her knives, and later, she's looking nervous in front of the judges along with Spike, Stephanie, Antonia, and a smirking Richard. Jean Georges pastry chef John Iuzinni (supposedly a looker) is the guest judge, which means that it's dessert time tonight for the cheftestants.
· All Top Chef Coverage [~ESF~]
The polls get more ridiculous; now, they're just messing with us.
In so many ways, the sixth episode of Top Chef was the most intense, most entertaining, and dare we say, the best one of the season. Mostly, this was due to the fact that the competition has been narrowed down enough to afford significant screen time to all cheftestants. We finally got an individual elimination challenge with all the usual follies and flops, and above all else, San Francisco's Jennifer and Ryan both stole the show, albeit in very different ways. So, let's get down to business, shall we?
1) The Quickfire: The contestants created a dish to pair perfectly with beer. Not only did this challenge offer a convenient and attractive outlet for more product placement, but Jennifer's island beer-inspired dish (shrimp and scallop beignets) won Padma (and special mute judge Koren "poker face" Grieveson of Avec), marking San Francisco's first victory of the season.
Sometimes, announcements are just so good, they need to be presented in full: "FOOD NETWORK IS LOOKING FOR AMAZING STORIES FOR A GROUNDBREAKING NEW SERIES!!! Do you or someone you know have an amazing food related story to tell? Do you know someone who has gone from being homeless to the owner of their own restaurant, makes pop art out of pineapples, or eats nothing but peanuts? Do you know someone who is battling food fears or phobias? Has food helped to cure an illness, changed the course of your life, or helped to inspire you in some dramatic way? We are looking for all types of stories even those that are odd or humorous to feature on and upcoming series for the Food Network. Casting is underway, so Email a brief description of your story with your contact information and picture of yourself ASAP to michaelraptis@alroker.com." [~E~]
All the day's news and notes go in EaterWire. Your tips appreciated at sf@eater.com.
POLK GULCH—Shuttered since that fatal December fire next door, the new owners at Pasha have, obviously, taken the opportunity to go beyond "smoke damage repairs." Hoping to reopen in about a month, they are redoing everything, from the interior to the menu, which will abandon the traditional Moroccan menu for a fusion version. And you thought fusion was dead. [EaterWire]
Episode 6 of Top Chef airs tomorrow night and we've got a sneak preview of the first minute of the show. Taking place the morning after Zoi's departure, the clip shows the cheftestants as a whole getting serious about the competition. Spike shows off three of his pretty hats in a 15-second span, a somber Jennifer misses Zoi, Dale and Lisa still have issues, and ladies, Ryan does morning stretches. Chicago chef Paul Kahan is the guest judge, and the challenge puts our heroes in another situation only tangentially related to being a chef: tailgating for a football game.
· Complete Top Chef Coverage [~ESF~]
SHUTTERSVILLE—This weekend marks the end of the road for two high-profile restaurants, Myth and Palmetto. Preparing for a renovation, overhaul and ownership change, the finale for Myth will be tomorrow night, with the closure expected to last a little over two months at this point. Palmetto, on the other hand, will shutter after Sunday service, and it shan't be returning at any point. [EaterWire]
NEW ORLEANS—That Top Chef rumor mill just refuses to stop churning:. The latest is that conspiracy theorists are abuzz because Bravo is currently holding open auditions in New Orleans for next season. Of course, a casting call in a city is by no means an indicator that the entire fifth season will air there, but still, it would be a pretty marketable concept. The first four seasons were shot in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Miami and Chicago. [Nola]
SOUTH BAY—Let's close out the week with some adventures in marketing, courtesy of the San Jose Airport, which is ready to welcome an exciting restaurant lineup, including the following two concepts straight from Reno: "A home-grown answer to the Hard Rock Cafe - San Jose Rocks ... There will also be a Sharks-theme eatery, team CEO Greg Jamison confirmed. There's a rumor it might be named The Sharks Cage and feature a bar that looks like ice." [SJMN]
It's safe to say the only people who could really appreciate Top Chef, The Cookbook are rabid Top Chef fans, which the LA Times reviewer is not: "The charts (a handy elimination bracket that even a kindergartner would appreciate), the quotes ('I've got a false testicle, and I'm ready to cook'), the trivia (the second-season winner's favorite piece of equipment is the short plancha spatula) and graphics ("Top Coif") are ridiculously hilarious (emphasis on the ridiculous). But can you actually cook from it? Would anyone want to?" The one recipe she tried, the vending machine veggie loaf from season 2's Carlos Fernandez, "was wretched." True fans probably wouldn't get passed the Top Coif page (which is absolutely brill, btw) anyway. [LAT via Eater LA]
This year, they're letting third-graders write the polls. Or Padma.
Roughly 24 hours ago, after seeing the juicy preview clip from Bravo, we had a quick discussion with Eater LA about the upcoming fifth episode, each California contingent fretting that local chefs—SF's Zoi and LA's Antonia—looked like they were on the chopping block (yet again). Plus, there were teasers of some serious drama in the stewing room. As it turned out, Zoi and Antonia were indeed among the losers, and the last two minutes of the episode somehow turned into a parody of the Real World. Up ahead: a quick episode summary, followed by our local recap.
The fifth episode of Top Chef airs tonight, and from what's seen here and at the end of last week's show, it's going to be a doozy. Last week's previews featured a little tiff between Dale and Jennifer, and the sneak peek above suggests that Zoi might be on the chopping block, so it looks like we're in store for some drama surrounding our local chefbians. Now usually, the Bravo folks send us a preview clip featuring something innocuous (like a quickfire intro), but today's clip is just a strange exercise in elusive Top Chef editing where it looks like every single chef (Zoi and Antonia especially) is under fire from the judges. Bonus info: For the quickfire, cheftestants will have to determine which ingredients are most expensive during a blind tasting and celeb chef Ming Tsai will be the guest judge.
· Complete Top Chef Coverage [~ESF~]
With the current crop of cheftestants down to seven and tensions rising, yesterday's episode of Top Chef had plenty of bad vibes involving almost all the kids. The opening scenes set the tone, as Spike, Lisa et al. reinforced last week's assertions that Dale is, in fact, "a little bitch." Dale, undeterred, showed off his pot belly in the bathroom and continued to dominate the competition, even pointing out that he's won five of 20 challenges. But we're getting ahead of ourselves. Perhaps the only moment in the entire episode when the negativity took a back seat was when guest judge, season two alum and all-around sweater-wearing dreamboat Sam Talbot showed up, leaving the young chefs (especially Antonia) with stars in their eyes. To the recap:
For those of you Top Chef superfans dying to know how season finale will go down, the Bravo people just 
Last night's episode of Top Chef might have been the best one yet in the post-Ryan era, and it's about time. Corporate shills were virtually non-existent, actual chef skills were tested, no Uncle Ben's rice was involved, not one but two ghastly monkfish made cameo appearances, and both challenges were wildly entertaining. Since the challenges were team-oriented, the cheftestants picked knives to form two teams, and as it turned out, the teams were pretty uneven. On one side were four ringers: 
UNION SQUARE—Flying under the radar lately is Urban Tavern, Donna Scala's upcoming restaurant within the friendly confines of the Hilton on O'Farrell Street. Background reading on the $13 million, 240-seat gastropub can be had 
Throughout last night's episode of Top Chef, there were several moments when we stopped, paused, and wondered why Alice Waters wasn't the guest judge. After all, so many of the classic elements of the Waters manifesto were present: children in the kitchen, simple preparations, family meals. Then we remembered that Ms. Panisse would probably never be found on a reality show on cable, and Uncle Ben's Ready Rice—ready in 90 seconds!—is almost assuredly not locally grown. For that matter, a $10 budget isn't exactly Waters territory either.
On Monday, all types of local chefs, reality television hopefuls and Sean Penn lookalikes (Absinthe's Nathan Carter is a ringer for the actor, no?) showed up for the Top Chef casting call at Postrio, and to everyone's delight, 
Last night's episode of Top Chef was full of comedy improv, weird sexual innuendos, Padma bowl-licking, some very arbitrary (and highly questionable) judging criterion and svelte pastry judges (well, only one of those, but still). With Zoi and Ryan packing their knives in the last two episodes, the original SF Foursome was down to good ol' faux-hawked Jennifer, who did her best to break the San Francisco losing streak. Sigh. Now, on to the recap:
SHUTTERSVILLE—This weekend marks the end of the road for two high-profile restaurants, Myth and Palmetto. Preparing for a renovation, overhaul and ownership change, the finale for 
