66 replies to this topic

[TWoP Nikita]

From Zap2it:

The chefs make meals for the cast and crew of Modern Family.

Edited by TWoP Nikita, Apr 25, 2010 @ 1:44 PM.

[swankie]

Gee thanks a lot Top Chef Masters for spoiling the elimination challenge right before the winner was chosen. On the commercial for the first winners’ show they showed Susur Lee building what looked like one of those bread pyramid thingies. Whoever decided to show that particular promo during this show is an idiot. Anyway, I didn’t want him to win because he seemed like a real asshole, but I guess we’ll be getting at least one per episode. I guess every other show an asshole will win.

[RescueMom]

Bravo, what the hell are you doing showing a preview for next week's episode with Susur clearly shown multiple times before the winner was announced? OOPS!

IMO, the best episode of this season so far - loved it! Would have loved it better if Bravo hadn't fricking spoiled it!!!

[Cookie Mobster]

Ditto on the Bravo bashing. Thanks, Bravo, for showing Susur in next week's episode right before the friggin' judging round! Morons.

Susur seemed a bit surly at first, but I liked him by the end of the episode. His chicken curry looked delicious. All the food this episode looked divine. Too bad the pork belly and apple slaw dish did not work out because that sounded like a really good concept if cooked well.

[ovrdedge]

Gee thanks a lot Top Chef Masters for spoiling the elimination challenge right before the winner was chosen. On the commercial for the first winners’ show they showed Susur Lee building what looked like one of those bread pyramid thingies. Whoever decided to show that particular promo during this show is an idiot. Anyway, I didn’t want him to win because he seemed like a real asshole, but I guess we’ll be getting at least one per episode. I guess every other show an asshole will win.

LOL! You just wrote everything I was going to post. When I saw Susur in the "next week" promo, I just thought no, they did not just do that, did they?? Seriously Bravo, how much more do you want to fuck the show up?

Susur did bug me, especially with the arrogant attitude when his quickfire dish wasn't as brilliant as he thought it was - it did look like a hot mess. And his comment to Maria Hines about how everything tastes good when you're hungry, as he was eating her salmon and calling it good, was such a douchey thing to say. I don't think he even heard her sarcastic response to that.

[EleanorAquitain]

Yeah, I liked all of the chefs in this episode, even Susur. Glad his wife told him to suck it up and get his head back into the game.

[RescueMom]

Susur did come across as a douche, but he grew on me. And I loved when he was talking about how he called his wife to complain about his quickfire scores and she basically told him to suck it up (using many colorful words from the way it sounded). I think it would be fun to be a fly on the wall in their home for a day!

[LetsGoPens]

Total Bravo fail. I cannot believe they aired that commercial with 15 minutes left. Hilarious.

I really like Susur. I don't think he's a douche, I think he's just not bubbly. He's more disciplined and serious. I don't think there's anything wrong with that. Plus, he's clearly amazing and talented. Looking forward to next week.

The person I never liked was Debbie. Something about her just put me off.

Loved Rick. Sad he couldn't go further, I liked his attitude and having him around for the episode.

[joanne3482]

I was glad that Sasur won, especially given the whole "there was a lot of heat" and his reply that he even brought it down from where it would usually be. It always bugs me that there is a presumption that children are incapable of eating spicy foods.

[redvelvet]

I really didn't like Rick. He seemed kind of cocky or smug. And then he served the quick fire fruit dish with those inspirational cards. Too gimmicky for me. Did not like that at all.

[rasalas]

Not only does Bravo fail for showing the winner in a promo before it was revealed on the show, but tonight's episode also showed once again that the editors for Top Chef Masters (and Top Chef) are some of the worst in reality TV. Yes, there might be a desire to "surprise" viewers with who wins, but the editing of the judges' comments never seems to jibe with the actual results.

[diorella78]

I really didn't like Rick. He seemed kind of cocky or smug. And then he served the quick fire fruit dish with those inspirational cards. Too gimmicky for me. Did not like that at all.

I thought the cards were so corny (although I thought they'd be worse full of Jesus-speak. He is Born Again, is he not?) But I also thought it was strange he randomly had Versace cups?!? He also called them his trademark touch? wtf?

I was going to post about the Bravo promo, but it's been well covered. Lame.

Edited by diorella78, Apr 28, 2010 @ 11:22 PM.

[kae71463]

Why were there only 5 chefs instead of 6?

[biakbiak]

Speaking of spoiling and my memory maybe faulty but I could have sworn Susan was the recipient of the "extra footage video before the judges table" and I know Jonathan was last week and Sasur was this week was it one of the chef's who advanced every week?

[SunShine Gal]

Bravo, what the hell are you doing showing a preview for next week's episode with Susur clearly shown multiple times before the winner was announced? OOPS!

I saw it and I still have a hard time believing that. Fifteen minutes left in the show and they show us Susur still there next week before we hear the judges discussion. WTH!

After the quickfire, Susur had the attitude like he should have won just because he's Susur. Maybe he figured he'd win just because he was on Iron Chef America. I'm glad his wife told him to suck it up and get over it. She keeps him in check or his ego would get out of hand easily. He focused on words like "master" and said something about "ninja" IIRC. Ninja Kitchen.

At the end of the show, Susur seemed to be nicer and have some positive comments about the other chefs and I liked that. But, I'm reminded that it's easy to be gracious AFTER you know you've won, rather than be gracious while going through the process.

I only recognized 2 of the other chefs. Maria is just so darn cute, I wanted her to do well. I've seen Rick on Top Chef before, but didn't know Jody or Debbie. I wonder how these chefs were chosen to be on the show. At least there seem to be more women this season.

LOVED that they picked to cater for the cast and crew of Modern Family. That guy was so funny. "Chickens have legs, mushrooms don't." I noticed that Gail Simmons talked to the young girl of the cast, including her in the discussion. Points for Gail. I'm glad they remembered to talk to the young actors, too. On a side note, another episode without James and I didn't notice he was gone again until judges table. I wish regular Top Chef would add Jay to the judges panel. He never fails to amuse me.

Edited by SunShine Gal, Apr 28, 2010 @ 11:59 PM.

[red314159]

Yes, there might be a desire to "surprise" viewers with who wins, but the editing of the judges' comments never seems to jibe with the actual results.

I think in this case, Susur Lee so totally smoked everyone else during the elimination challenge, that showing any part of the deliberation would have immediately given it away. It did seem a bit out of left field. I was glad he won, though, simply because curry is a brilliant choice for a catering challenge -- it'll survive in a chafing dish much better than pork or salmon will.

I enjoyed the episode, but I think they exhausted the supply of personable chefs in season 1.

[djuna]

I found Susur weirdly charming, although I also found the plating of his food assertively offputting.

I've been to Tilth a number of times and never had met the chef; I'm shocked she is so young. Her work on the show seemed to me true to what she does in the restaurant; I'm sorry that there was the fruit advancement twist and that therefore coming in second during the elimination round didn't move her on.

ETA: My bad. I still don't like the setup, even if it would have produced the same results either way.

Edited by djuna, Apr 29, 2010 @ 10:30 AM.

[Flashbacker]

I've been to Tilth a number of times and never had met the chef; I'm shocked she is so young. Her work on the show seemed to me true to what she does in the restaurant; I'm sorry that there was the fruit advancement twist and that therefore coming in second during the elimination round didn't move her on.

She was actually third; Jody was ahead of her. I've never been to Tilth for some reason, even though it's walking distance. We will try it.

[DolfinWings]

I was glad that Sasur won, especially given the whole "there was a lot of heat" and his reply that he even brought it down from where it would usually be. It always bugs me that there is a presumption that children are incapable of eating spicy foods.

Yeah, that got to me too. I think that the show has yet to acknowledge that people from other cultures have different ideas of what comfort food is.

IMO I think judging is skewed to like dishes better that come from a Western/ American palate.

[tripsy]

At the end of the show, Susur seemed to be nicer and have some positive comments about the other chefs and I liked that. But, I'm reminded that it's easy to be gracious AFTER you know you've won, rather than be gracious while going through the process.

Tell that to Marcus, who couldn't have been more of a douche after he won.

I wasn't bothered by Susur's attitude. I could understand his frustration at the culture clash, with the photographer judge using his "simple is better" philosophy to put down the exuberant colors and presentation that would have likely been praised by a judge that came from (or at least appreciated more) Susur's culture. Besides, most of Susur's anger seemed directed at himself for not doing better, without ever complaining or putting down any of the other chefs. I was more bothered by Rick talking about how he detected mistakes in Maria's dish and how his dish was awesome, so I was glad when Maria's score beat Rick's.

Overall though, I thought this was the most cordial group from this season, with no real tension between chefs or douches a la Marcus or Ludo.

[RescueMom]

I think that the show has yet to acknowledge that people from other cultures have different ideas of what comfort food is.

I think by all three judges giving him the full five stars, the show gave pretty good props to this last night. :)

I know what you mean though - I was honestly worried for him given that his food most likely wouldn't be what a lot of his audience would consider comfort food from their childhoods.

[AriAU]

But I also thought it was strange he randomly had Versace cups?!? He also called them his trademark touch? wtf?

Rick has a reputation for using unusual serving pieces (he did a cavier service on a painter's palate and another of mini mirrored staircase). He has used Versace cups ever since he was at Trio and still uses them at Tru,usually to serve a cappucino styled soup (the mushroom is unbelievable), and it is his trademark. I am not surprised he took a couple with him.

This was a REALLY boring episode. Susur was the only one with any spark of life. Rick came off as a little abrasive, but I think it was the editing and the 3 women came off as blah. This is not a comment on their skills, but instead their TV presence. I think someone up thread was right-maybe they used up the all the interesting Beard award winners who qualify as Masters!

I missed the Bravo preview goof since I dvr'd it while I was enjoying one of the true gastronomic pleasures-the 31 cent cones at Baskin & Robbins yesterday!

[zmulls]

I think they were really trying to give Susur the villain edit, but for the first time this season I think they overreached. When you looked behind the edit, he was not quite as full of attitude as it seemed.

The “This is BS” comment on the Promo was taken entirely out of context. And his “WTF” after he lost the elimination was followed up by him saying he called his wife, who quite spousally talked him down and told him to get his head back on straight and do his best. Sure he was pissed, but not absurdly so.

I think faux blackberry ravioli was an extraordinary choice. I do think the plate was too busy, though there were many wonderful touches. One of the problems with the Quickfire is that judging panels are gimmicky and not necessarily the best judges of the food. And the judging is a wild card as it’s always a different dynamic (as opposed to the Elimination challenge which has a more consistent set of judges and criteria). Susur’s plate only got 2.5 stars, but on a different week with a different Quickfire panel, he might have won. Luck of the draw.

Lots of chefs are driven and headstrong – sometimes they cross the line into Ludo-land but I didn’t get that from Susur, even looking behind the edit. Yes, the comment on the other chef’s dish was not as gracious as it should have been. But by and large this was the most drama-free episode we’ve seen and I really appreciated it.

There was a *lot* of respect and cooperation in that kitchen and we were able to really concentrate on the food. Thank you, Bravo, though you lost those points for the ill-timed promo.

(And I liked Tramonto, and his willingness to step in the ring after his “I’ll take the shot, bro” appearance – but I thought the inspiration cards were gimmicky. And not edible.)

[screamapiller]

After the quickfire, Susur had the attitude like he should have won just because he's Susur. Maybe he figured he'd win just because he was on Iron Chef America.

most of Susur's anger seemed directed at himself for not doing better

Susur is Susur's worst enemy. The man is a meticulous perfectionist, and he totally gets into his own head. The one time I worked with him, he gave himself a "time out" because something wasn't going exactly the way he wanted, and he needed to get out of his own head and regroup. He's astounding to watch, and his food is incredible.

I adore Maria, Debbie, and Rick, they're all so very different and all fun people. Jody... is a bit of an odd bird. The handful of times I've dealt with her, she's been somewhat difficult to work with and she runs hot and cold on how she interacts with people. Perhaps I caught her on off days, but she's been more cold than hot when I've been around her.

Add me to the list of those who did not like the "automatic in from the quickfire" twist. I want to see them all swinging for the fences straight through (regardless of Jody saying she was going to try to win both the QF and elimination challenge), if they're going to do that they might as well go back to counting the QF scores in their totals like they did last year.

ETA I did like that Gail & Kelly included the young stars of the show in the conversation and asked them how they were enjoying the food. Extra points for them!

Edited by screamapiller, Apr 29, 2010 @ 9:36 AM.

[hoodooznoodooz]

I agree with the posters who thought Susur redeemed himself by telling us how his wife gave him a verbal bitchslapping over the phone. But I didn't love his underhanded compliment that everything tastes good when you're really hungry. Still like the guy, however. But kicking off your shoes when you're cooking? Isn't that extremely risky and/or a violation of the food sanitation health codes? People break glassware all the time, someone might drop something heavy or even a knife? And it must make it more difficult to run around (in Top Chef challenges), can't get a grip in socks.

[Kathira]

d me to the list of those who did not like the "automatic in from the quickfire" twist. I want to see them all swinging for the fences straight through (regardless of Jody saying she was going to try to win both the QF and elimination challenge), if they're going to do that they might as well go back to counting the QF scores in their totals like they did last year.

Yeah, although I thought it was great that she came in second and so would have advanced anyway. That way someone who might have otherwise advanced wasn't done out of their spot, which would ahve been very disappointing. Although now that I think about it, the judges could have arranged their scores so that it worked out that way, using their advance knowledge of the diners' scores and a quick consult with each other.

This season is OK, but I really miss my French sugar daddy, Hubert, and his magically delicious food.

[MariaArg]

My favorite part was when Gail said "You have a very sophisticated palate". That was probably the best compliment Gail could ever pay to a kid.

I hated Susur acting like the stereotype of an Asian.

[Fukui San]

Delightful show, overall. I disliked the Quickfire being "high stakes" because what was the damn point? It undermined the Elimination challenge's drama, and it's not as if these chefs needed the additional pressure. At least it wasn't the Real Housewives deciding the outcome. After initial dislike, I now like the Quickfire counting as its own bonus and not factoring in Eliminations.

To answer a question above, two of the shows so far had 6 chefs, and two had five for no discernible rhyme or reason whatsoever.

I was salivating over the salmon with the almond milk sauce. Very creative and interesting.

Glad to see a hometown chef of mine advance in Jody Adams, although I sadly have never made it to Rialto. Also, I don't think it's just the fact that he's Asian that Susur Lee reminds me of George Takei. They're voice clones, aren't they? His recounting his wife's rant was hilarious and humanizing.

This season is OK, but I really miss my French sugar daddy, Hubert, and his magically delicious food.

I'd be surprised if the three finalists don't return as judges later on this season, probably for the final meal.

I wasn't bothered by Susur's attitude. I could understand his frustration at the culture clash, with the photographer judge using his "simple is better" philosophy to put down the exuberant colors and presentation that would have likely been praised by a judge that came from (or at least appreciated more) Susur's culture.

Susur's fruit plate didn't strike me as terribly Asian so much as it seemed an attempt at being avant garde. When he started talking about his knife skills I thought he might do some Chinese carving to make food resemble a pagoda or a bird as Iron Chef Chen did so many times on the original Iron Chef. Or he could have carved a design into a hollowed out melon which he could have used as a container. One amusing difference between this and the original Quickfire is that in the original one, the judge didn't have to eat the plates. Stephen admitted that he made it to look good, but that many of the actual dishes probably didn't work as dishes.

[screamapiller]

Also, I don't think it's just the fact that he's Asian that Susur Lee reminds me of George Takei. They're voice clones, aren't they?

I wasn't going to mention it unless someone else did, but I still remember trying not to laugh the first time Susur said anything to me because my immediate reaction was that he might say something about phasers or warp speed! He totally has the same inflection/cadence as George Takei, and when a few other people said "he reminds me of someone when he's talking..." and I didn't say anything because I didn't want everyone to be thinking the same thing I was!

[Miss Sargent]

I think they were really trying to give Susur the villain edit, but for the first time this season I think they overreached. When you looked behind the edit, he was not quite as full of attitude as it seemed.

Yes, I also think that a lot of times, the chefs who seem like total a-holes actually just have an outrageous, potty-mouthed sense of humor. It's not that they aren't cocky--they are and they deserve to be--but mostly they're just being funny and overblown on purpose. I thought this about a couple of chefs in the last episode, and I definitely think this about Susur. It doesn't come off well with the editing monkeys. Chefs like Hubert come off way better.

I'm so glad I didn't watch this on Bravo. The spoiler-ad would've wrecked it for me. Watching it online, I was really surprised to see Susur sweep the challenge.

I was disappointed that the chefs didn't get to explain their fruit QF dishes to the judges (e.g., the one that was an appetizer, entree, then dessert), especially with the stakes so high. And puzzled that Susur got such low scores--I thought his crazy-mixed-up fruit salad was actually beautiful, and I don't see why minimalism has to always be the rule. Maybe it wasn't tasty?

The Modern Family cast was pretty articulate about the food, especially compared to the Pathetic Housewives of Desperate. I did get a sense of the flavors, textures, and flaws.

Kelly Choi has completely grown on me by now, and is here to stay. I was skeptical at the beginning, but now I find her an improvement over Padma. She's unassuming, clear, un-annoying, and professional.

Good episode.