Work of Art

Geez, the bimbo with the fake boobs who doesn't know Jane Austen from a paper bag is still there. This show is pretentious claptrap.

Top Chef DC! 4

So I'm feeling jeeeaaaalousss of my sister, M, who got to try Richard Blais' new restaurant, Flip. I want stories!

Meanwhile, Tracey gets the best loser award last week. Her farewell was gracious and professional and not at all whiny. Not much else can be said about that episode, except maybe that it didn't do justice to Mount Vernon, which is one of my most favorite places in the whole wide world. If only Maryland doesn't develop the other side of the Potomac, it will remain perfect.

Otherwise, I'm getting bored of all the DC cliches. Bring on the soul food, the Ethiopian community, the farmers' markets, the crabcakes.  

This bunch of chefs is not winning me over. There are way too many sour, dour Lisas in this group and not enough nerdy Blaises or intense Voltaggios.

Baby food, really? Babies don't have much taste. Or at least they can't express their pleasure or displeasure too much. Much like cats.

How is it Padma always gets some thing that is wrong, a stray lemon seed? At least they had to cook grownup food too. Though I imagine any baby would spit out these chefs' food. Doesn't seem baby foodesque to me.

So Tamesha wins! good for the hometown girl who has gotten zero, Z-E-R-O attention thus far. Tim, who actually works in Baltimore, not DC, is a poseur. And I root for Kenny to win over Angelo any day even though he's a bit dour. The back story was sad, though.

I think Lynne might be getting the loser edit. Looked like Amanda was running through Whole Foods with yet another bottle of booze. She does like her alcohol. Even for kids.

A sexual harassment interlude. Lovely. Doesn't Angelo have a new baby?

Hmmm. Foreshadowing last week. Ed was badmouthing Alex. Now the reverse. 

Tiffany carries Tim with her! She's actually someone I'm rather rooting for because she worked her way up from IHOP. Classic American bootstraps story. Too bad her partner was the Poseur.

And rats on Amanda. 

What the frack is gnudi? Sometimes I wish Top Chef would define this stuff.

I don't want Kenny or Kelly to go home, so I guess I have to root for Lynn and Arnold as the losers. sigh. Don't know that sending a team home is fair because there's a lot of strong chefs on the bottom. It would be so wrong if either Kenny or Kelly went home. 

Spike is such a pretentious donkey.

Wow, they made the other chefs hang out and wait for the results. OK, Kelly is safe. If they send Kenny home, will be very bummed.

I love Tom's facial expressions. Arnold's blathering was not selling him. The judges' comments edits are hinting at a Kenny Kevin departure but Lynn got the loser edit, so I can only hope.

Shoo. Kenny is saved. But sorry to see the bottom. That was rough. 

Edited to add: This heat gives me middle of the night insomnia. Even with the fans going, our bedroom gets really hot. So I got to watch TC again.

Lynne is a jerk. She acted as if Arnold lost the contest but it was her fussing about overcooking the pasta that led it to be underdone. Then she points out the pasta is underdone as if it wasn't her fault. Good riddance to her.

Also, they didn't make a big deal of Nora, the guest judge. I didn't even catch her name. I've been to both her restaurants, though prefer Nora Asia. Her restaurant was the first to be certified organic in DC. She's this area's Alice Waters. I didn't know she was German or Austrian, or whatever that accent is.

And finally, Alex is a wanker. How many sex jokes did he cram into his three minutes of on-camera interviews. Methinks he protests too much.

Top Chef DC!3

I got home late from work and didn't get into it first 15 mines, so I must re-watch before blogging. I will say I could have sworn Steven was going home. He was getting the loser's edit.

And I'm sooooo glad Amanda didn't win, no matter how much people liked her ribs. Too close to Leah.

Won't miss Rosie O'Donnell's clone.

Next American Artist

I was typing up my blog for Top Chef while Next American Artist was blaring. Geez, these people are illiterate. Pride and Prejudice a tragic story. Really? Really? Methinks you're confusing it with Wuthering Heights. Neither Darcy nor Heathcliff would wear a derby hat, by the way. Maybe you saw the cover of Unbearable Lightness of Being somewhere.

Got to give the kid credit for sitting up to read Frankenstein. Even though he should have read Frankenstein in school. Or at least seen one of the movie adaptations.

Anyway, I'm rooting for one of the two women illustrating P & P to go home. Jane Austen rules!

Top Chef DC! 2

So some of these chefs are starting to show their colors --- so to speak. And they aren't very attractive.

I was thinking of rooting for Tamesha since she is so young and works in a top DC restaurant, but dang, girl. Gnocchi, for kids? Are you kidding me? Don't get me wrong, I love gnocchi when done well. But not for kids.  Sherry jus for a chicken dish doesn't seem very smart to me. So maybe Tamesha was right.

And Kelly's got an ego almost as big as Angelo's. At least he can walk the walk. Can she?

Tracy was nicer this week. I think her "hick" joke last week was just that, that she wasn't serious. She just makes stupid jokes. She did seem to enjoy having her arm around Angelo.

The best thing is no one griped about cooking for kids, unlike the original TC eppy umpteen years ago. Of course this time, they had middle schoolers who aren't quite as picky.

The expression on Sam Kass' face when he asked Amanda about affording sherry but not being able to afford chocolate and her clueless response was priceless. If I already didn't want Jacleeeeeen to go home, I would have been rooting for Amanda to get the knife.

I was rooting for Tiffany to take the prize home. I mean, sweet potato and sorbet and getting kids to like it is pretty awesome. Then again, pork carnitas are pretty tasty too. With oatmeal tortillas, too!

At least they didn't off Kenny and Ed for Angelo's "gamesmanship" as Tom put it. Tom's a pretty shrewd judge of character.

Adios, Jacleeeen!

Top Chef DC!

Coming to my town, wh00t.

So the Newseum for the first challenge. Of course. It has fantastic views. I've been to meetings on the top floor with the gorgeous glass views of Pennsylvania Avenue and the Capitol, though I've not been on the deck. We tried to have a meeting there once. But catering had to be by Wolfgang Puck and that was too rich for a small nonprofit.

I love the mise en place race. It gives you a good idea who the top players are going to be. And what is it about this particular competition that someone always slices open their palm. Gross.

Kenny is da man! Geez, he finished first on every single one. will have to check out his bio. Skillet Doux ranked Angelo as one  of the top 3, but I don't think Kenny was there. Just checked. Kenny was ranked 13. His company is described as helping restaurants become "synergistically sound." Wev.

Angelo won the first quickfire. And he's number 4 on the Skillet Doux rankings. Ed Cotton, the guy he sent to Kenny, is number 1. Or was it Stephen. I'm having a hard time distinguishing between the two.

So the house they're stayed in is in northern Dupont Circle. Back when we lived in the area I used to walk by it all the time. It's down one of these sweet one-block tree-shaded streets that pervades the city.

Oh, wow. The kitchen is at the Washington Hilton. That's the hotel where Reagan was shot. It's pretty much a one-block walk (albeit across busy Connecticut Ave) from the Place du Chefs.

They definitely telegraphed three of the four bottom people. Which is why I can confidently predict that Stephen will not go home. It's probably Crazy Hair John or Jacqueleeeeen. If they choose by personality, they'll keep John. He's got some  whacky eyes going. Nope, he went home. The hair didn't save him.

And I hope this is not going to be a snooze fest where Angelo wins every match. That would be boooring. It would make a yawner of a season, which would be bad for DC rep.


PS While Top Chef was filming, I saw Gail at SweetGreens. She wasn't wearing makeup, nor a decolletage evening/cocktail dress, so she looked like a fresh-faced college student.

Project Runway 7.7-8

Last week I brought a bad chest cold home from Phoenix. I felt worse than when I had the flu.

So catch-up time! The hardware challenge was fun. Though headache time from hearing all that smithying in the workroom.

Emilio should have lost. That ranks up there with Wendy's candy bikini. He's a major whiner, besides.

And Maya should have won. Though I'm not upset by Jay's win. And Amy should have taken Mila's place for the top 3 looks.

On to the new challenge.

People have some weird concepts about air and fire. Seth thinks 'sky' instead of air, though I suppose it could be the same. And Anthony thinks of black, charred remains instead of flame? He must have woke up depressed from being on the bottom 3 again.

The Garnier dude is a walking, talking ad/product placement, isn't he?

Jay is a sweetheart. Worried for Amy. ugh, I think she's going home. That is a disaster. But Ben's was worse. That's too bad because he's had a couple of lovely pieces. But those pants were atrocious in soooo many ways.

Jonathan's dress is absolutely gorgeous -- and airy. Seth Aaron's was cool, though I still don't see air.

And once more, the concept -- except air -- invites color. An absolute lack of color once more abounds. Emilio, who is not my favorite, at least tries to incorporate something outside of neutral. Even Anthony went subdued.

They're finally calling Mila on her white-black blocking thing. Yeah, track pants. That said, I like the vest.

Too bad it's Ben, but glad it's not Amy.

And Jonathan totally swung that one out of the park. Didn't know he had it in him.