Top Chef Masters-Part 3 (and ENOUGH)

So last night TCM started another season. This season, we have Curtis Stone (who reminds me of Rod Stewart in a younger form), as the host.

Anyway, this show has deteriorated to such a low level (IMHO), I was embarrassed for the chefs.

I understand it's for their charities, however, it is now like Chopped and that's not a positive thing. It annoyed us so much, we shut it off. I think Bravo might be prudent to shut this off.

Watching but with one eye closed. Curtis Stone is the Cat Cora of his day. Could NBC/Bravo be pushing him on the audience any harder? Oy.

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ronnie_suburban wrote:Watching but with one eye closed. Curtis Stone is the Cat Cora of his day. Could NBC/Bravo be pushing him on the audience any harder? Oy.

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Not to mention his print ads in several cooking related magazines.

Think of the gel it takes to get Stone's hair perfectly dissheveled.

I will say that Stone is more polished than Choi's clenched-teeth delivery. But these chefs seem so at a loss as how to cook under pressure, it's like Top Chef Seniors instead of Top Chef Masters.

aschie30 wrote:... it's like Top Chef Seniors instead of Top Chef Masters.

LOL!

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My wife and I were a bit disappointed with the opening episode also. I thought Curtis Stone was fine. He's a chef and seemed to know what he's talking about. I don't care what his hair looks like.

The new Masters was like watching Top Chef All-Stars, but with a crucial difference: if you had been watching Top Chef, you knew the All Stars and it was interesting (at least to me) to see good people from different seasons go up against one another. With a few exceptions, I don't know the chefs on Masters. But it is clear that they are considerably more skilled than the typical Top Chef (non-masters) contestants. That's a good thing: we don't have to go through six weeks of eliminations for people just being very bad. It's a good thing that very good chefs will be eliminated early in the show for minor mistakes.

The problem I had with the show is that was better version of regular Top Chef, and we lost the distinctiveness of the Masters show. I want a show where I can see Hubert Keller cook in a college dorm. That was cool. I presume they aren't doing that format anymore because they couldn't reliably get chefs of the caliber of Samuelson, Bayless, Keller, etc.

So, it seems like I'll enjoy watching this show more than the standard Top Chef, but I wish the original Masters was still on.

Darren72 wrote:The problem I had with the show is that was better version of regular Top Chef, and we lost the distinctiveness of the Masters show. I want a show where I can see Hubert Keller cook in a college dorm. That was cool. I presume they aren't doing that format anymore because they couldn't reliably get chefs of the caliber of Samuelson, Bayless, Keller, etc.

Scuttlebutt is it's the other way around. The big names didn't want to commit to an eleven episode schedule, rather than a couple of days for one episode and a small chance for five or six more if they advanced.

I wouldn't call this reliable information at all, though.

LTH,

Although I swore that I wouldn't watch TCM after such a miserable first episode, I tuned in last evening, only to see one of the contestants crying into her side towel after she was unable to get her food completely plated up.

Top Chef Masters and you can't get your food plated up because you were busy helping others plate up? This is a master? A master what?

I had to turn it off! I mean it this time. Finished.

Sad

This show lost me at cooking with bugs. That's a low-rent, reality show antic. Next week looks like one big advertisement for Biggest Loser. I'll wait for the next round of regular Top Chef.

Yeah, it's surprising that, after a really bad season of Top Chef, the producers hit it out of the park with All Stars and then swung right back down into a lump of white asparagus puree on this one. Gimmicky, cheap and lame. And Curtis Stone sounds like he's reading everything he says, never speaking to the chefs or diners themselves.

I disagree -- last week was awful, but they've improved this week.
Cheese for the quickfire, with only 12 minutes, was an interesting challenge. Cheese can be a protein, a sauce, a flavor enhancer... and they did pretty admirably (I thought the quesadilla was going to win it).
The "Biggest Loser" challenge, aside from being shameless product placement, was an interesting approach to challenging the chefs, make them think differently. I was sad to see end result of who left -- it was the worst dish, but one of the few people I really liked watching.

The basic problem with this series is that with more chefs, and fewer real Big Names, it just feels like Top Chef, and not the "hey, let's have some fun with the other big guns" that we had with the previous two seasons.

I know the timing of the two shows was probably way off (I guess it was for the Biggest Loser concept), but I am shocked that they didn't send the chefs to the LA outpost of Soul Daddy. Where's the synergy, Magical Elves/NBCUniversal?!

Anyone feel like there was some flirting between Danielle and Curtis, and Alan and James? I thought makeout sessions in the drive-thru were imminent.

I know the timing of the two shows was probably way off (I guess it was for the Biggest Loser concept), but I am shocked that they didn't send the chefs to the LA outpost of Soul Daddy. Where's the synergy, Magical Elves/NBCUniversal?!

There was a shot of James Oseland driving up in his car and I swore for a second that it was the Chipotle guy as a special guest judge. They do look a bit alike.

For some reason, this is the first TC season I have zero interest in. I am about to drop out on it.

There was a shot of James Oseland driving up in his car and I swore for a second that it was the Chipotle guy as a special guest judge. They do look a bit alike.

Oseland and the guy from America's Test Kitchen are identical twins. I know this because my wife gave me a facial recognition test and I got almost 60% correct. Throw the Chipotle guy in and we've got a nice conspiracy theory.

aschie30 wrote:Anyone feel like there was some flirting between Danielle and Curtis, and Alan and James? I thought makeout sessions in the drive-thru were imminent.

LOL, my wife and I picked up on that same "tension".

jvalentino wrote:

aschie30 wrote:Anyone feel like there was some flirting between Danielle and Curtis, and Alan and James? I thought makeout sessions in the drive-thru were imminent.

LOL, my wife and I picked up on that same "tension".

LOL...just watched the episode and have to say that it was so noticeable, it was uncomfortable. I believe at one point "Clive" called Danyelle a "healthy hushpuppy." That was totally cringe-worthy.

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Ruth Reichl is this season's Tony Bourdain -- promised as a guest judge, gone by episode three.

Why did they bring in this weenie-looking intern type?

Why did they bring in this weenie-looking intern type?

The 12-year-old Grub Street waif? I believe that they said he was a protege of James Oseland, in some manner. I hear tell that was his last appearance this season, though I will believe that when I see it - or don't see it, as the case may be.

i<3pizza wrote:Ruth Reichl is this season's Tony Bourdain -- promised as a guest judge, gone by episode three.

Why did they bring in this weenie-looking intern type?

He's the senior editor of Grub Street. I hear that's a pretty popular site, but I guess if you are in the business of criticizing every bit of minutiae, it would have been better if they found someone with classic good looks (no spiky hair) and completely unknown to the outside world, except for their 4500 tightly worded posts on this website.

On larger matters, I find this show growing increasingly boring. Most of the show has little going on and I find myself at the ready to hit the fast forward button.

You're right, he probably knows what he's talking about. I think it was just the way they set it up as him being James's 'protegee' that made it seem nepotistic or something to bring him on.

Man, if you can't safely snark about reality tv, what can you snark about?

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ronnie_suburban wrote:

jvalentino wrote:

aschie30 wrote:Anyone feel like there was some flirting between Danielle and Curtis, and Alan and James? I thought makeout sessions in the drive-thru were imminent.

LOL, my wife and I picked up on that same "tension".

LOL...just watched the episode and have to say that it was so noticeable, it was uncomfortable. I believe at one point "Clive" called Danyelle a "healthy hushpuppy." That was totally cringe-worthy.

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Thanks to your wife he is "Clive" at our house!

Ditto for- chipotle guy for Steve Ells (given by jesteinf).

I read an article in the Toronto newspaper about the backlash "Top Chef Canada" is getting for using horsemeat in an episode focused on preparing real French cuisine. The show debuted in April.

tcdup wrote:I read an article in the Toronto newspaper about the backlash "Top Chef Canada" is getting for using horsemeat in an episode focused on preparing real French cuisine. The show debuted in April.

http://www.toronto.com/article/685442

I'm sad to see Hugh gone. At first I thought he was totally weird and creepy, but he grew on me and, I think, proved himself to be one of the most talented on the show.

Do you think that's Naomi's real eye color?

Well, I did stick with it, not sure if anyone else was watching.

Frankly, I was certain Mary Sue would win; after my house guest stayed with me last week for NeoCon - he extolled Mary Sue's virtues, and is a culinary trained guy that grew up in SoCal, my opinion of her grew more favorably.

I was quite surprised when Floyd won - but thought he really deserved it and enjoyed his time on the show. I was also happy that he won the big prize, as he lost out to Mary Sue in so many challenges and quick fires, it was kind of a nice balance.

Anyone planning (or have started) to watch Rocco's Dinner Party? I watched yesterday - not quite sure about it yet. Chicago Chef Ryan Poli (formerly of Perennial, opening new spot Tavernita) will be on an upcoming episode. Looks like each episode is independent - and each episode picks a winner that receives $20K.

miss ellen

Watched it ... TCM that is ... and was disappointed until the final episode which was really quite good with actual ... cooking! The three finalists all were impressive and interesting to watch, their good spirits were particularly nice and we got some nice tales thrown in. Now if they could just make the whole run as good as that finale, I'd consider watching next time.

The Rocco show ... watched, disliked ... can't stand him and the whole show felt like another of Bravo's second tier low rent options. I did like seeing Marcus Samuelson with the winning chef - it clearly meant a lot to him so that was nice ... but the whole Rocco bit just makes me cringe.