325 replies to this topic

[dunvegan948]

I was pleased to see Julia ultimately do well with the quail eggs, but wish she'd been a little less "everybody hates me, nobody loves me, I think I'll go and eat worms" about it. I know she tried a little to step in, but she seemed a bit too ready to be relegated to prep. I'm hoping she'll seize on her relative success in Ep. 1 and begin to shine.

[Dale]

I like her so far. I don't think she'll win, but she'll definitely last a few weeks before Chef Ramsay cuts her loose.

[Cherry Wire]

Aside from being really snobbish, the Waffle House comments were just plain dumb because, how do you know she doesn't do more sophisticated stuff in her spare time?

[thuganomics85]

I don't think she'll win either, but I also hope she goes far enough, to prove all the contestants who look down at her, wrong. It may not be the greatest job ever, but I don't see anything wrong with working at a Waffle House. So, Tiffany and the gang can cram it.

[SceneStealer]

I felt sorry for her, but I was pissed that she went to Ramsay with it. Honestly, she could have grabbed an egg or two, cooked them on her own section of the stove, and then given them to the others and said "look. Done. May I finish the rest?" Yeah, the women were bitches, but in that kind of situation, you have to be a bit more assertive rather than crying in the corner and tattling to daddy.

[lmiller42]

I know this is crazy, and I shouldn't admit to it in a public forum, but both my husband and I thought the chicken fried chicken penne looked like it would taste good. NOT that the presentation looked good in the least, because it appeared to be a huge pile of glop, but the idea of it seems appealing. Looks like a 30 Minute Meal thing that sounds disgusting, but turns out to taste pretty good.

[lindseyquinn]

I know this is crazy, and I shouldn't admit to it in a public forum, but both my husband and I thought the chicken fried chicken penne looked like it would taste good.

Ramsay did say the chicken itself tasted good.

[jordonian]

HATE the Waffle House hate. If not for Waffle House, Cracker Barrell, and Steak n' Shake I wouldn't be alive today. There's a large portion of America that loves that kind of short order food and if she can take that influence and infuse it with other gained knowledge (as she's said she wishes to do) that restaurant could become something that's missing in Vegas... and that's a rarity these days. Go Julia.

[Stardancer2001]

While I would like for her to win it all, I would be happy if she outlasts all the other women.

[Channel7]

I'm rooting for her, too. And to her credit, given her surroundings and fellow competitors for this round, she seems neither scattered nor smothered. Plus, if she's anything like some of the more talented folks I've seen working a Waffle House grill, she's got to have the memory of an elephant, which should come in handy in competition.

[joeysynq]

Working as a short order/ line cook is nothing to be ashamed of. Julia is my favorite on the show so far. I understand her tears, no one would give her a chance at all. "She should go back to the Waffle House."
It isn't right to dis somebody who can cook simply because they didn't go to culinary school. Buncha pompous asses.

[isiscloud]

What background does the Nanny/Personal Chef have? That seems a little shady.

It seems like they were tears of frustration rather than poor me. So much for the "Team" concept.

[Bard Sinister]

Julia's experience as a short order cook gives her an advantage in the competition, because a lot of these people have no experience in cooking for crowds under pressure. If she's smart, and figures out to do things like use a meat thermometer to test her Wellingtons, she could go far.

We really have no idea at this point if Julia has experience cooking a wide variety of dishes. She might experiment a lot at home. Personally, I thought the fried chicken and penne sounded awful, but Gordon seemed to like it, except for the excess of pepper. Gordon always emphasizes the needs for the chefs to create simple dishes that are cooked well.

Where Julia needs to step up her game to survive is in assertiveness. Gordon was patient with all the crying this week, but that won't last. I'm not counting on that disatrous first service teaching the teams, particularly the women, that they need to operate like a team. It really is not helpful to have the dessert station person sitting around when the appetizer station has not managed to get one plate out of the kitchen after an hour has passed.

[SceneStealer]

We really have no idea at this point if Julia has experience cooking a wide variety of dishes. She might experiment a lot at home. Personally, I thought the fried chicken and penne sounded awful, but Gordon seemed to like it, except for the excess of pepper. Gordon always emphasizes the needs for the chefs to create simple dishes that are cooked well.

To me, the fried chicken and penne just sounded like some kind of cheap dish you'd get in a chain restaurant. Maybe even a fast food place like KFC. I know that on cooking shows they never seem to care how healthy the food is, but assuming that it was alfredo sauce (which I think it was?) it just sounded like a heart attack waiting to happen. And not even for any good reason - fried chicken in my pasta does NOT sound gourmet or even appealing. I've never been to a Waffle House (we don't have them in the northeast, as far as I know) but it sounded like something I would expect to be on the menu there.

[Bungalow Joy]

Maybe even a fast food place like KFC.

Replace the penne with mashed potatoes as a starch and it's the chicken bowl! I love KFC, but the chicken bowl is so unnecessary. What I thought was bad about it, and about most of the others', was that it was supposedly her signature dish. And that other guy's signature dish included frozen gnocchi? I don't get it.

[Racerex]

But, like being able to master the eggs, she is demonstrating that she has the basic skills necessary to cook. But will she have the skills necessary to be a chef? There is is HUGE difference between the two. If you noticed in the kitchen, she was the only one not trying to take charge (chef), but was looking for direction (cook).

Ramsay is looking for a cook, that he can train to be a chef.

[Auntbeast]

Julia is awesome.

When she was peeling the apples and muttering to herself, it just cracked me up. I'd venture to guess she has big brothers. It was very much a little sister "Oh go ahead, you don't wanna play wiht me, but if you wanna blow up the house, you go right ahead, I'll just sit her and watch, ya dumb boys." A beautiful soliloquy.

I emphatically believe that she will do well. There is a lot to be said for the "I'm ready to learn." attitude vs. the "Let me show my stuff." attitude that so many of them had. It seems that Julia lives by the phrase, speak softly and carry a big stick. I'm supremely glad she didn't get all bitchy and loud with them. I also believe that Gordon is smart enough to know someone who has what it takes to learn whether they are on the grill or washing dishes. That is much more apparent in his KN shows where he doesn't hesitate to pull someone from the dish stand on the line, if they have the spark.

She'll end up working for Ramsey somewhere, if she keeps it up.

[Bungalow Joy]

I think, though, that being able to cook and being able to put together flavors, as a chef with ideas, are two different things. I like Julia, but that part of her talent I haven't seen yet.

[NotThomas]

I'd never watched this show before last night - and I got caught up with both episodes. I immediately liked Julia. I think she let them get into her head with the "we are CHEFS and you're just a lowly Waffle House cook" last week, and didn't push them out of the way with a "I may not have gone to a fancy school, but I know how the hell to fry an egg!" And then they all wanted to send "she's a cook in a Waffle House, for God's sake" home. Hate.

So how happy was I that she totally kicked ass on the prep challenge? It convinced me that she has basic skills, natural talent, and is more interested in learning and working hard than trying to convince everyone how great she is.

Wouldn't it be wonderful if we got to see her grow in confidence and skill until she could be a chef? I can't imagine her winning, but it would be worthy of a TV Movie of the Week if she did!

[Auntbeast]

The ability to listen, learn and do is a vital one. Julia has it. She's also no pussycat. I think she feels out of her league so far, but once she gets her sea legs and honestly believes that she deserves to be there and it isn't some huge fluke, I think she will do even better.

Never underestimate the hungry.

[Packrat87]

I am favoring her to go all the way. In the first episode, she was honest when she responded to Gordon Ramsey that she thought her team lacked communication skills and then everyone proceeded to roll their eyes. She was honest, not delusional like Tiffany with her "fake it till you make it" confessional. She also attempted to help people but got brushed off for working in a Waffle House.

In the second episode, she showed that she could absorb the information from a demonstration and apply it immediately, or she is showing some cooking skills outside of her workplace. And she was shown studying her cooking binder like some of the other woman and again was realistic when she was discussing with Aaron: "You don't have time to be sorry for yourself."

And next week's preview seems promising for Julia.

[hatchetgirl]

I love her. She appears to have the drive and the willingness to learn.

I was wondering what the binder is she keeps looking at. I remember last year, one of the chefs looking at something similar. I was thinking maybe it's one of Ramsey's cookbooks or something. I love that she keeps studying.

[TVFreak]

I grew up about 15 - 20 miles away from the very first Waffle House, and though I have lived in other states/regions with other local diners - WaHo is still the shit (regrettably, I did give them up as my hangover diner or choice for a bit because they didn't start taking credit cards until late last year - so Denny's and IHOP got my business instead because when you are blitzed out of your mind, you don't want to worry about having enough cash for WaHo, especially if you are in a bad part of town where you don't want to risk an ATM visit) - so all those bitches hating on her skills are already kind of dead to me. And yes, I have had some shitty, shitty ass Waffle House food (usually in the suburbs - the really, really ghetto neighborhoods downtown usually have awesome cooks cos they have to call the cops like 5 times on Saturday night because of drunken rednecks or schitzo homeless people anyway, you can't add bad food to that or you would seriously have gun fights - that's not even a joke), the people that work there work harder than almost anybody else. A few of my classmates in high school worked at WaHo, and one of my good friends in college - and like, no it isn't a glamorous job, but it is hard work. I certainly wouldn't want to do it -- and I don't think I could. Working 24-hour shifts, oftentimes with customers that aren't the type of people you want to sit next to on a subway, let alone serve -- having to cook all kinds of shit FAST when the place can overcrowd quickly, having to hear the same songs on the jukebox a million times (because assholes like me put $10 in and play the Waffle House jingle 40 or 50 times in a row - ahh, high school), getting shitty or no tips half the time - even if you are awesome, having to call the cops a few times a night on the weekend - dude to me, if you can handle that, you have the makings of someone who could survive HK (I'm not saying win, but survive) more than someone who wants to pretend they are on Top Chef instead.

[SunShine Gal]

IMO, Julia is easily likeable. I loved it when she said, "what a shame" in her southern speak on the first episode. She was acknowledging Chef Ramsay without sounding argumentative. Julia isn't pompous or suffering from a superiority complex like Tiffany and Joanna.

I look at the person and not the circumstances. So-what that Julia's a cook at Waffle House! She might have HAD to take that job and that's all she thinks she can do. This show might be fabulous for her and she come away knowing that she can do more than she ever thought. Good on her.

Tiffany shouldn't have bad-mouthed Julia and thought of her as lowly. Tiffany couldn't even cook an egg properly and she was the first to get booted from the show. Her bad behavior came back to bite her in the butt.

I don't think Julia will win the show, but I hope she goes far.

[MizSurguri]

I love Julia; I think she just has it in her to be a chef. Some people can't manage to bake a cake out of the box, but Julia is the type who can probably pick things up fast. Those women were WRONG to underestimate Julia, just because she didn't go to school, doesn't mean she's dumb and at least she's not full of herself like Tiffany was.

[cherry malotte]

I thought the fried chicken and penne sounded awful

*mock indignation* I make that! Well sort of, chicken breast pieces with penne. Maybe I'm just trying to stave off my eventual grabber by not breading the chicken. Was it fried chicken for sure? I could swear though, my amazon aunts down in Texas used to do something similar, but they are gone now so I can't ask.

If you haven't, watch the couple of out takes with Grr and Julia off the Fox site. One time she's cooking and absentmindedly whistling, which is something I do, and it's annoying him. He grouses at her that he can't hear and she stops. On the other one he's grousing about something else but also compliments her on the perfect Wellington. He's not vicious with her, more like a bothered parent griping at their kid.

I can't wait to see her do omlettes for the troops next week.

[monef]

I think Julia is all kinds of awesome. It was IMO impossible to assert yourself with someone as biased and passive-aggressive as Tiffany without it turning into the sort of bitchy catfight situation that was already causing enough problems in the kitchen. I think she handled it beautifully while proving herself and showing Tiffany up. I am definitely rooting for her, she has heart.

[karashi]

I like Julia, she seems the nicest of the bunch. However, if her teammates are too dumb to let her cook the damn eggs, she should have stated calmly:

"I worked at Waffle House - do you KNOW how many eggs I've fried? Step aside and stop screwing up the damn eggs!"

Her penne dish basically sounded like Chicken Parm without the cheese. It's often served with pasta, so I can see where it would taste fine. I also think that GR's tolerance of black pepper is on the low side - I think he feels that it should subtly enhance, and not be a dominant spice.

[ghettoghostman]

I don't know...there's something about Julia that just tugs at my heart strings. I really love her and hope that she goes far to everyone's surprise.

She seems like the around the way girl that I would hang out with and have good conversation with on the city bus transit ride home.

Edited by ghettoghostman, Jun 13, 2007 @ 4:20 PM.

[Dale]

Well, here's to hoping Julia doesn't go the way of TC2's Elia -- sweet girl who suddenly turns totally, completely, irreversibly odious at the end.