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Get Breaking News on your cellTop Chef Season 3 ... hmm
11:47 AM Thu, Mar 27, 2008 | Permalink |
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What are y'all thinking about Top Chef thus far? I'm kinda tepid myself. Project Runway is so much more satisfying a reality show to me, maybe for obvious reasons: Fashion is about the visual, and food, while also being visual, primarily involves other senses . So the intensity of the competition and the judge's scrutiny never translates as well in cooking as it does in fashion. (Warning: spoilers start after the jump) Example: Eric's corn dogs last night. We heard over and over again that they were soggy, but they were just plain ugly to begin with: You couldn't tell from seeing them whether they were soggy or not. The audience can only understand what went wrong through what the judges on the show were saying. On Project Runway, at least you can see that someone didn't finish a men's shirt or that there are hem threads trailing off a skirt. I'll not belabor that point. And, hello, it's all about the editing on these things anyway ... Otherwise, it seems like a testosterone-fueled bunch thus far. The obnoxious guys (Andrew and Spike being the leaders of that pack) get more camera time than the women this go-around, or if feels that way anyhow. And, to go back a ways: If you've watched this show at all in the past three years (which you think contestants would before they start their own experience), you KNOW that someone always messes up the off-site cooking challenges by making something that is supposed to stay crisp but doesn't. So, even though I think Eric is a talented chef, and that maybe Zoe should have instead gotten kicked off for a lousy pasta salad, it was a lame mistake on his part. Rick Bayless made a great judge, at least. No Midwestern friendly there when it came to tasting poorly made food. I want to go on one of his annual trips to Oaxaca sometime ... |
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Comments
Posted by Donna @ 12:54 PM Thu, Mar 27, 2008
I started watching Project Runway this past season because I was missing my Top Chef Wednesday fix, but now that Top Chef is back on, I find myself missing Project Runway. Then again, I'm not all attached to the chefs this season yet because there aren't any from Dallas and only 3 episodes have aired thus far. I imagine the addiction will resume in full force when I get deeper into the season. Out of the cheftestants, my favorites are Antonia and Jennifer (because they make dishes that I see myself wanting to order at a restaurant). I think Richard is a strong contender because he thinks outside the box and Stephanie has that "I'm a nice girl who cooks sweet food that reminds you of home" thing going on. To make it to the top, Stephanie needs to get more confident and be less nervous. My wild card pick would be Mark, but he seems a little too inexperienced (does the cool accent make up for the inexperience?)
Posted by Shannon Sutlief @ 1:00 PM Thu, Mar 27, 2008
I'm loving the guest judges this season: Bourdain and Wylie and Rick Bayless. But except for my curly-haired, chubby-cheeked soul sistah Stephanie and a growing fondness for Richard and his fauxhawk, I'm pretty meh about this season's cheftestants. I kinda wanted Erik to stick around a little longer, but I really didn't *care*. Maybe when there's fewer people, it will get more interesting. What I'm not digging? The snobbery about tacos as fine dining and the block party comments about cooking for the "common people."
Posted by Leslie Snyder @ 4:01 PM Thu, Mar 27, 2008
I'll still be watching, but the chef-testants do seem a bit bland this year, except when they're obnoxious (Andrew). And not in a fun way. Our house is rooting for Mark and his accent.
Posted by Jayson Bales @ 4:47 PM Thu, Mar 27, 2008
You gotta love Andrew. Whether he can cook or not, is irrelevant. He actually told Tom Colicchio last night, "This is my house." And the lesbian couple adds some nice drama. And despite all of that, I do believe the judges are serious about judging good food. The drama just makes it more watchable.
Posted by Jami @ 9:22 PM Thu, Mar 27, 2008
I find the Velveeta product placement to be a little annoying - particularly in a contest that is "all about the food" as the judges are prone to say.
Posted by Jamie @ 9:33 PM Mon, Mar 31, 2008
This is the first season I've watched from the start, and the product placement really bugs me. Must everyone buy Toyota Highlanders, cook something with Velveeta and use a Glad product to package it? And don't forget to visit mealstogether.com. Although that is an excuse to see Dallas' Casey, who's doing some things for the site.