Top Chef finale Part I

Loved the steak eppy in previous season and I wish they had had more challenges like that this season. There were waaaaay too many team challenges this season. I noticed that with Project Runway as well. And I learned something about scallops. And my second least-favorite person left. Didn't like Dale either, but did believe he deserved to be in final four. I can't believe Lisa is there.

Lisa looks better with short hair. Puerto Rico is getting some great free advertising. I love plantains, so cool challenge. Wow, Stephanie has never won a QF before?! She's won so many elimination challenges.

Richard made one of his rare catty remarks and it came back to bite him in the patootie. I don't know all that much about plantains, but I kinda think you are supposed to cook them, so definitely a mistake on Richard's part.

Oo, Richard is being v. negative. I thought the producers pulled a nasty trick on the cheftestants by having their sous chefs go buy the produce while they butcher. I think if I were Richard, I'd rather have Spike do the butchering.

Dale is a flake. Forgetting to put away pork belly? of course, Steph should have checked on him. but what a professional. Instead of assigning blame (Lisa, cough, cough) she works through it. I hope that works.

Rice seems to be the bane of everyone's existence.

Please, please, please let Lisa be the one that goes home. My peeps are Steph and Blais though. People like to make fun of him because he's a total dork and he's been uncharacteristically bad-mouthy, but overall he's been pretty classy. So has Stephanie. Had she been Spike, she would have paired Dale with Lisa, Richard with Nikki. I think she must have forgotten about the clash between Lisa and Andrew, was probably trying to avoid clashes. Then again, Dale was the best of the losers. How did Nikki make it that far again?

Yay! the rumors aren't true about Richard getting eliminated! yay!

I wish they had had more judge discussion about winners because you didn't get any real sense of what they liked and didn't. that actually has been a problem all season long.

Lisa has the bouncer defensive look again.

She's from South Florida? Really?

Heck, it's looking grim for Antonia. No more Lisa!

The question is will Antonia's undercooked beans and undersophisticated cooking send her home or will Lisa's panoply of mistakes?? argh.

Ack, ick, bleh, yuck, pooey. It's like Wendy Pepper of Top Chef is in the final three.

Addendum: Lisa, you are a sore, sore, sore winner. I hope you go down in flames.