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 Top Chef is back! The twelfth season of Top Chef brings us to Boston: The home of clam chowder, the Red Sox, and the kind of thick accent you need a good knife to cut through. Tom Colicchio, Gail Simmons, Padma Lakshmi, and Hugh Acheson are joined by Richard Blais as he ascends to a higher form of existence as a judge. They're promising to continue to add new twists and challenges with this season, such as Sudden-death Quickfires, visits to iconic Boston locations such as Fenway Park and Cheers!, and a "revamped" Judge's Table. Whether these will continue to include the dramatic camera swooping introduced in Seattle or the dramatic slow-motion knife chopping introduced in Duels remains to be seen. Guest judges will include Emmy Rossum, Rob "Gronk" Gronkowski, Dennis Eckersley, George Wendt, Andy Cohen, Todd English, Barbara Lynch, Jasper White, Ming Tsai, Jacques Pepin, Ken Oringer, and Jamie Bissonette.  A picture of Boston I pulled off of Google because the OP looks pretty plain otherwise, and I couldn't find a version of the Top Chef logo with "Boston" anywhere in it. What awaits the eventual victor? A grand prize of $125,000, a feature in Food & Wine Magazine, a showcase at the Annual Food & Wine Classic in Aspen, and (of course) the title of Top Chef. The season begins Wednesday, October 15 at 10/9 central. Until then, a sneak preview of the first Quickfire is currently on Bravo's site. The contestants  Thanks to Toast Museum for the templates used to make this chart!  Aaron Grissom, 27 - Tacoma, Washington Chef, Bow and Truss  Adam Harvey, 29 - New York, New York Personal Chef  Doug Adams, 29 - Portland, Oregon Chef de Cuisine, Portland Penny Diner  George Pagonis, ? - Washington, D.C. Executive Chef & Partner, Kapnos (Run by Top Chef veteran Mike Isabella)  Gregory Gourdet, 39 - Portland, Oregon Executive Chef, Departure Restaurant & Lounge  James Rigato, 29 - White Lake, Michigan Executive Chef, The Root Restaurant & Bar  Joy Crump, 46 - Coatesville, Pennsylvania Executive Chef & Co-owner, Foode  Katie Weinner, 35 - Salt Lake City, Utah Chef & Owner, SLC POP  Katsuji Tanabe, 33 - Los Angeles, California Chef & Owner, Mexikosher  Keriann Von Raesfeld, 28 - San Jose, California Executive Chef & Owner, Exposed Gastronomy  Mei Lin, 28 - Los Angeles, California Sous Chef, ink. (Run by Top Chef alum Michael Voltaggio)  Melissa King, 30 - San Francisco, California Private Chef, www.chefmelissaking.com  Michael Patlazhan, 31 - Brooklyn, New York Private Chef, http://www.cookingwithyouandforyou.com/  Rebecca LaMalfa, 32 - Chicago, Illinois Executive Sous Chef, Trenchermen  Ron Eyester, 40 - Atlanta, Georgia Executive Chef and Owner, Grateful Tables, Rosebud, The Family Dog, and more  Stacy Cogswell, 33 - Boston, Massachusetts Executive Chef, The Regal Beagle Last Chance Kitchen Last Chance Kitchen returns for it's fourth season, where contestants who have packed their knives get the chance to fight their way back into the finale. This year, it will begin with a two-part redemption midseason, and continue on until part one of the finale. Beef Hardcheese fucked around with this message at 19:17 on Oct 11, 2014 |
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Oct 11, 2014 19:14
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 Reserved for Results. Skip this post if you're not caught up! The Contestants (Eliminated chefs are eliminated.)  Progress Chart  What Went Wrong
1 No immunity granted for Quickfire win 2 Eliminated in a Sudden Death Quickfire 3 George won the Sudden Death Quickfire Challenge against Katie and returned to the competition 4 There were no eliminations in Episode 11. Instead the winner was guaranteed a place in the Mexico finals. Last Chance Kitchen Last Chance Kitchen will begin after Episode 8, which will air December 10: http://www.bravotv.com/top-chef/season-12/blogs/team-top-chef/last-chance-kitchen-is-coming Progress Chart  Round 1: "Redemption Royale" - Winner: Rebecca Round 2: "Dry and Slimy" - Winners: Adam, Katie Round 3: "The Kitchen Sink" - Winners: Adam, Katsuji Round 4: "Liverwurst Nightmare" - Winners: Doug, Adam Round 5: "Crudité Redeux" - Winner: Doug Round 6: "The Last Chance Kitchen Finals" - Winner: TBA Beef Hardcheese fucked around with this message at 16:04 on Jan 28, 2015 |
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Oct 11, 2014 19:14
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I've been watching Top Chef Duels lately, been pretty good. Contestants from previous seasons competing. Each competition is just one episode long, so you don't get the drama of the big group living together.
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Oct 11, 2014 19:17
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Gonna drunk watch and pretend Ron is Pork Jesus.
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Oct 16, 2014 01:07
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Whizbang posted:Gonna drunk watch and pretend Ron is Pork Jesus. Glad I'm not the only one who thought that. Edit: Cocky dickbag spotted, think that was George who rolled his eyes at the awards that Keriann won. Edit2: maybe it was Aaron. tomapot fucked around with this message at 03:23 on Oct 16, 2014 |
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Oct 16, 2014 03:02
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Wait did that George dude really bitch that the other guy was so slow when he was told he was the slowest?
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Oct 16, 2014 03:20
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Aaron without his hat, in the side interview, looks like Howard Dean.
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Oct 16, 2014 04:05
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It's weird seeing a thread not started by Toast Museum. I'm mildly annoyed that they're subtitling Katsuji, he's perfectly understandable.
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Oct 16, 2014 04:17
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I wish salad lady had gone home first. She's so bland. Katsuji is a godawful trainwreck but I hope he sticks around for a while because his cuisine is hilarious. My early picks for final 3 are Dougie, Keriann, & Gregory.
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Oct 16, 2014 05:28
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I thought that was a nice season premiere. Challenges where they have to prepare a gazillion portions (catering challenges in particular) are often not the most interesting to me, but combined with the theme of the first meal they cooked it was a nice way to introduce the contestants. I already know that Adam will go on my nerves very, very quickly.
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Oct 18, 2014 20:16
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I want Katsuji to stick around since he seems like he's going to be an entertaining trainwreck but I have a feeling that other people are going to be way too annoying. Also I hope Richard keeps that level of bluntness up through the season. Can't let them think they're doing too good. Makes for better TV.
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Oct 18, 2014 20:47
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I know I've seen Katsuji on some other show but I cannot remember which. Probably Chopped. The season opener was a good episode. I like relay prep contests and individual challenges right off the top. Plus they got rid of two people in one episode. Although I don't understand the reasoning for that first guy picking Gregory as his challenger. Whether Gregory won or lost, he was not getting eliminated so revenge for taking the mackerel was a lovely reason. The guy should have chosen someone with poo poo cooking credentials to ensure a win.
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Oct 18, 2014 21:24
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Mei will probably win it all. Padma is starting to become annoying.
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Oct 18, 2014 22:35
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Kung Fu Jesus posted:I know I've seen Katsuji on some other show but I cannot remember which. Probably Chopped. George wasn't making much sense overall. He was up for elimination because he was the slowest, yet he was shown grumping about Gregory being slow and that's why he was in the bottom. It's not Gregory's fault that George couldn't execute his part quickly, and it's not Gregory's fault that apparently he was only comfortable with mackerel. IDK why Top Chef contestants don't practice the stuff in the mise en place relay before they start filming. It happens every season, it's not a surprise at this point. Reminds me of the dude who went to the finals in China but didn't bother to learn what a wok was beforehand. You had months off and you knew where you were going, at least give the local cuisine a cursory glance, dude. ...of course, the guy who didn't know what a wok was still won that season, so I guess that stuff only matters in the sense of not looking like a moron to viewers. Gregory is my early favorite, with Mei, Melissa, Joy and... I think Doug? also of note. Everyone else but Katsuji is still kind of melding together in my brain.
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Oct 20, 2014 01:24
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Pooptimus Prime posted:George wasn't making much sense overall. He was up for elimination because he was the slowest, yet he was shown grumping about Gregory being slow and that's why he was in the bottom. It's not Gregory's fault that George couldn't execute his part quickly, and it's not Gregory's fault that apparently he was only comfortable with mackerel. I always laugh when people are surprised that the first challenge happens right at the beginning. It always happens. ALWAYS.
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Oct 20, 2014 01:26
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Loved the eliminated guy sassing Tom like a petulant child. Good premiere.
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Oct 20, 2014 02:08
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SHUPS 4 DETH posted:Loved the eliminated guy sassing Tom like a petulant child. Good premiere. I love it when they question the judges' pallet.
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Oct 20, 2014 02:20
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Since all the past seasons were added to Hulu, I've been binge re-watching them. Season 5 is by far the weirdest season ever. The goofy drama, the fact that none of them (except Stefan) actually seemed like they could cook, the terrible eliminations/quickfires...it's all so out there. And the best part is still Radikha saying "I didn't come here to cook Indian food" and cooking nothing but Indian food the entire show.
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Oct 20, 2014 19:26
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So is Top Chef on its last leg, or what? I didn't even realize there was a new season until I saw this thread stickied last night. Tuned in to watch and it turns out it doesn't even air till 11pm where I live (Mountain time). Seems like a rough time slot, given that this used to be smack dab in the middle of prime time here. Anyways, I didn't particularly enjoy the episode last night. Maybe I'm just cranky cause I'm tired, but that sure wasn't worth staying up till midnight on a Wednesday night for. The cooking is completely secondary to the drama. I mean, I know it comes with the territory (reality tv + Bravo), but that was drat near unwatchable. I don't even remember who won, since the whole show was focused on the fight between hat dude and blonde girl. And then they both got to stay. Great!
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Oct 23, 2014 20:32
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Krackleburt posted:So is Top Chef on its last leg, or what? I didn't even realize there was a new season until I saw this thread stickied last night. Tuned in to watch and it turns out it doesn't even air till 11pm where I live (Mountain time). Seems like a rough time slot, given that this used to be smack dab in the middle of prime time here. I felt like that during the previous few seasons, but this new bunch seems like they are uniformly pretty good. Apart from a few fuckups, the food has been pretty amazing so far. Personally I think the first dish of the course (the fish one) should have won. It was certainly the most artistic and harmonious. BTW, what's the deal with Pork Jesus? Wasn't he called also Pork Satan at the same time? I didn't read the TVIV forums (as far as I remember) during that season so I have no idea. Do you guys love him or hate him? It's kind of hard to understand. 
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Oct 23, 2014 21:11
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There are a few articles out there if you care to google about how the talent level has dropped significantly due mostly to top-tier talent is unable to leave their restaurant for the needed time commitment, and Bravo caring more about casting for personality/unique mix/Bravo's demographic than cooking talent. Add to this gimmicky challenges that don't showcase cooking skill or rely too much on luck, and you can't even count on the winner being the best chef of that season. Not that it has ever been about educational cooking TV, but you couldn't even piece together enough snippets of clips to show an entire ingredient in the mis en place challenge being broken down. No cooking, all reactions and personalty. To sum it up, Top Chef tells the chefs to cook a memory of their first dish they cooked and then snarkily reply "had enough fried chicken" as if they were expecting truffle-stuffed-guineafowl
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Oct 23, 2014 21:17
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OhYeah posted:BTW, what's the deal with Pork Jesus? Wasn't he called also Pork Satan at the same time? I didn't read the TVIV forums (as far as I remember) during that season so I have no idea. Do you guys love him or hate him? It's kind of hard to understand. Seems like he was pretty well received by goons. Probably any other season, he would be hands down the fan favorite, but that particular season was flooded with talent and had some pretty likeable chefs. I could see some people going against him, say if they were rooting hard for either Voltaggio, or Jenn Carroll, or whoever else. I don't really recall this Pork Satan stuff, but then again that was already like five years ago, and my memory could just be fuzzy.
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Oct 24, 2014 00:46
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Aaron seems like a tremendous jackass and I'm officially rooting against him.
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Oct 24, 2014 02:28
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Tater Love 
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zakharov posted:Aaron seems like a tremendous jackass and I'm officially rooting against him. I am on team Aaron for this very reason.
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Oct 24, 2014 02:50
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zakharov posted:Aaron seems like a tremendous jackass and I'm officially rooting against him. Ask Me For Warez posted:I am on team Aaron for this very reason. I had to look up who Aaron was again. My wife and I have just been referring to him as flat-brim or Not-Spike. That guy seriously sucks. We have been enjoying the instant feedback that the judges are giving this season during tasting and judges table feels more..um..uncomfortable. It's kinda like leading cattle to the slaughter and letting the other cattle watch it happening. I can see that as being an advantage later in the competition as the remaining chefs get a better sense of what exactly the losers are going home for.
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Oct 24, 2014 03:26
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If Aaron had the skills to back up his mouth he might be worth rooting for. I'm putting everything on Patrick Swayze tattoo guy.
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Oct 24, 2014 03:53
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boscoman posted:I had to look up who Aaron was again. My wife and I have just been referring to him as flat-brim or Not-Spike. That guy seriously sucks. Yeah I just hate the guy's black hat. I mean I guess they probably made him wear a hat with no logos but it just looks dumb. As for the instant feedback I hate it. It makes things more uncomfortable and I don't think that really makes the show any more enjoyable.
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Oct 24, 2014 04:19
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The thing about Aaron wearing the hat makes sense if you look at it from a "publicity-building" point of view. I think Spike actually admitted somewhere that he was just looking for a way to stand out in the crowd, when otherwise he might just be generic white hipster #4. You also had Josie wearing that "CHEF JOSIE" headband all the time, which was loud and annoying (not coincidentally  ).I'm not sure if I like the new Judges' Table. Maybe it's the editing, but I didn't notice a Stew Room / Judges Discussing Amongst Themselves segment in either of the episodes so far. One of my sadistic pleasures about the show is watching the arguments between teammates about throwing each other under the bus, and the funny and caustic comments the Judges make when the chefs aren't there. Especially when a team thinks they did awesome and get ripped to shreds, or when there's other drama and infighting going on.
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Oct 24, 2014 04:30
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OhYeah posted:BTW, what's the deal with Pork Jesus? Wasn't he called also Pork Satan at the same time? I didn't read the TVIV forums (as far as I remember) during that season so I have no idea. Do you guys love him or hate him? It's kind of hard to understand. I think Pork Satan is a bearded, wax-mustachioed dummy from another season who constantly talked about bacon, pigs, etc. but was not very good at most of what he did (yet somehow went pretty far in the show). This a-hole: http://www.bravotv.com/people/joshua-valentine/bio
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Oct 24, 2014 05:28
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Naet posted:I think Pork Satan is a bearded, wax-mustachioed dummy from another season who constantly talked about bacon, pigs, etc. but was not very good at most of what he did (yet somehow went pretty far in the show). Oh hell, I never even watched that season. I never knew there was a Pork Satan. v v
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Oct 24, 2014 05:59
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Hat Guy is going to win this season and prove that molecular gastronomy is the true future of cuisine.
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Oct 24, 2014 07:42
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Aaron will never realize that the reason a lot of people don't like the idea of molecular cuisine is because of people like him.
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Oct 24, 2014 14:55
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Red Warrior posted:Aaron will never realize that the reason a lot of people don't like the idea of molecular cuisine is because of people like him. Commonly called Marcel Syndrome.
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Oct 24, 2014 15:13
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I assume those 19 people quit that restaurant because of Aaron.
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Oct 24, 2014 17:44
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I think Pork Jesus was universally liked, and on any other season would have won going away, but as was mentioned, that season was loaded with talent, maybe the most of any season. He has a relatively new restaurant, by the way. I don't live in Atlanta, but I plan to eat there immediately next time I'm there: http://www.gunshowatl.com/
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Oct 25, 2014 03:26
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Did you guys know Mei works for Michael Voltaggio?
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Oct 26, 2014 09:05
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Grem posted:Did you guys know Mei works for Michael Voltaggio? Yeah I think that was mentioned in the first episode.
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Oct 27, 2014 12:11
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Grem posted:Did you guys know Mei works for Michael Voltaggio? I'm reading this as sarcasm, because it seems like they've managed to squeeze his name into every scene she's been on camera. "You don't get to make the sauce! I make sauces for Michael Voltaggio every day!"  Or basically something like that.
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Oct 27, 2014 17:06
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Well, she does work for Michael Voltaggio
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Oct 27, 2014 22:22
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Grem posted:Well, she does work for Michael Voltaggio Yeah but so what. Michael Voltaggio is a good chef (and Top Chef winner which is maybe why they highlight that so much) who until very recently worked for Jose Andres (along with Mike and Ilan I believe). When Jen would reference Eric Ripert that was one thing (although that got a bit repetitive too) but this guy is just starting out on his own and she's acting like she just stepped out of the kitchen of El Bulli. George had an equally impressive group of chef's he worked for but that didn't seem to help to save him from elimination.
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Oct 27, 2014 22:33
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