The Top Chef: All-Stars Reunion.
Whoo!
The chefs and judges
are back in The Big Apple
and ready to bite
into your questions.
She slammed my ass.
[laughter]
Has Richard forgiven Mike?
I don't steal anything.
What really happened
behind the scenes.
I had two gin and tonics.
[Laughter]
Plus, Tom and Elia
go head to head.
Elia, I buy more
from small farmers
than you will
in your lifetime.
I'm speaking about beef.
- Do you regret what you said?
- Um...
The Top Chef: All-Stars
Reunion starts now.
Hey, everybody,
I'm Andy Cohen,
and welcome to the Top Chef:
All-Stars reunion.
Let's say hi
to our judges.
- First, hi, Padma.
- Hi.
- Tom Colicchio.
- Andy, how you doing?
- Gail Simmons. How are you?
- Hi, guys.
- And the chefs
of Top Chef: All-Stars.
Well, let's start
by congratulating
our Top Chef
Richard Blais.
[Cheers and applause]
Richard, what was
your very first thought
when you heard Padma
say your name?
I was just in shock.
I really--
in my mind, I was saying,
"just be gracious and humble,"
and I was ready to turn
to Mike and shake his hand.
Looking back on
your whole journey on Top Chef,
do you wish that you had won
season four?
Or is it sweeter
having come back?
I wish he'd won season four.
[Laughter]
Then he wouldn't have been
there.
I think I learned a lot
about myself
by not winning season four.
So, I mean, I'm happy
the way things turned out.
Well, it was so close
in the end, Tom,
you know,
what did it come down to
at the judges' table?
We were all on the fence,
I think,
and it was just a matter
of talking through it.
I think at the end of the day
you sort of look
at the meal
as an entirety and say,
"well, what would you want
to eat again?"
Or what--what really moved you,
and I think that--
that's what it really came down
to for me anyway.
Gail, what about you?
I needed the most convincing.
There were just moments
of Mike's meal
that really moved me.
The pepperoni sauce!
I'm still thinking about it.
Well, Richard,
let's take
a look at your journey
to Top Chef.
Watch.
I became a chef
in the first place because
I kind of never really had
a super strong
family structure behind me.
But then I found a kitchen,
you know,
and I found a family.
There we go,
my friend.
Thank you so much.
And I loved it.
Losing Top Chef
the first time around,
it was probably
my saddest professional moment.
You know, I've thought
about not cooking again.
It's haunted me.
And I feel like I,
you know, choked.
Stephanie,
you are Top Chef.
What? Really?
My last taste of this show
was embarrassment.
You know, to come back and have
another chance to do it,
you know,
that opportunity's amazing.
Kupi aioli.
I'm gonna fry the lamb chops.
My mom passed away
about two months ago.
My wife's grandmother
just passed away.
It's been a very rough year
for us.
She's five months pregnant.
She let me go away
for six weeks,
and she puts up with, you know,
the training and the stress.
I owe it to her to win.
This time around,
I'm over creativity
for creativity's sake.
I'm about guest satisfaction.
I'm calling this black sundae.
This is black chocolate
ice cream.
Fried fish and grits
and pulled pork,
surf and turf if you will.
Richard thinks in concept,
which is really hard.
He comes up
with amazing food stories.
There's this amazing
newfound sense of maturity
to Richard.
Richard, if this season
was about redemption for you,
you are one step closer.
You will be cooking
in the finale.
Richard definitely knows
there's a fight on his hands.
I'm gonna punch him in the face.
Mikey, Mikey.
People think I'm the favorite?
No way.
Mikey's on a roll,
and, like, I consider myself
at the moment
an underdog.
We're in service.
We're gonna do it, man.
We're gonna do it.
Okay,
let's bake one off,
and let's cross our fingers
a little bit here.
Winning would justify
leaving my pregnant wife
and young child.
Absolutely justify it.
I would venture to say,
the best food we've had
in any finale.
Richard...
You are Top Chef.
What?
[Cheers and applause]
What?
Oh, my God.
No, I just--
I didn't think I could do it.
You know?
I just--you don't know.
Where there's a will,
there's a way, but...
I willed this.
Congratulations.
- Hello?
- It's me.
I won Top Chef.
It really is about my wife
and my family,
and she's the only thing I've
ever won up until this point.
I just love you, and I'm glad
I did this for us.
[Applause]
What's it like
to watch that?
Very emotional.
Yeah, I mean,
I think it was displayed there
very accurately.
I mean, it's...
Think you'll be
a little easier on yourself?
I'm trying to smile.
I don't know if you've noticed.
[Laughter]
He won,
and he still freak out.
Jesus Christ, Richie.
[Laughter]
Padma,
all I really remember
from the moment
is being in your arms.
Ohh.
And since we last saw you,
big news in your life.
Big news.
There's a new baby Blais, so...
What's the name?
Embry Lotus Blais,
and she's one month old today.
All: Aww.
So, Richard,
you made a promise there
in the final stew room.
Well, I'm so assured
that I'm not winning,
if I do win, I'll give you
some money to open up Graffiato.
I'll take it,
'cause I need it.
[Giggles]
All: Ohh!
Hey!
He did ask
for my business plan.
I sent it to him.
So you're gonna invest?
I think we can talk
about it.
It's something to talk about.
Either way,
it doesn't make a difference.
- I'm invested here--
- Yeah.
We have a friendship for life.
Mike, you came so close
to winning the title.
What did you take away
from the experience?
It was great to compete,
and, you know,
I made it the distance,
and, you know,
that day Richard b*at me,
and--
but, you know, it was an honor
to go through the whole process,
so I was just really excited
about everything.
I would suggest that probably
you won more than anybody
on this, and I'd go back
to the Ellis Island episode.
Not cooking Italian food
because of the relationship
you have with your grandmother,
and then getting through that
to the point
where you were able
to do that again,
I would say
you probably won more
than anybody else
in this room.
I don't like talking--
I'm not gonna get choked up
about it,
but it's still hard,
you know,
but it's great--
it's great to be able
to do it,
and I think about it,
and I really felt
that she carried me
through the competition.
Well, Antonia and Mike,
the road to the finale
for the two of you
came down to one bite.
And, Antonia, unfortunately,
that didn't go your way.
What was that like,
to lose on one bite?
Actually,
I think it was easier
to lose on one bite
rather than it being
this sort of landslide.
That it was that close.
Yeah.
That it was--you know,
everybody's picking hairs
at the end,
and I was just
sort of out-cooked
in that moment.
Well, Mike and Antonia were
two of the toughest competitors,
but sometimes
seeing them interact
felt like watching
a family feud.
Watch this.
[Laughter]
Are you over there farting?
Ugh, Mike Isabella.
That man just drives me nuts.
[Burps]
- Oh, my God.
- Really?
- [Laughs]
- Mike, he's just loud,
and he farts all the time.
Burps all the time.
I'm dropping a [bleep] chicken
in your basket.
I cannot take it.
Gonna sit here,
are you gonna burp?
- Oh, please.
- 'Cause I'll move. I'll move.
- Me an Antonia butt heads.
- I'm trying to be nice.
It's hard to deal
with her, you know.
I mean, Blais...
She talks a lot.
Probably just as much as me.
Michael, call your brother in.
Dinner's ready.
Your grandmother's coming.
Set the table.
[Laughter]
I could care less
when she went home.
But now finding out
that we're probably cousins
kind of changes things
a little bit.
Mike, we may be related.
That's why we fight so much.
[Laughter]
I'm related to Mike.
That would all make sense.
Like, your cousins,
like, you know,
you kind of harass them
all the time.
That's my cousin.
That's your cousin.
[Laughter]
Is that not crazy?
What is that,
the family cook-off or what?
Family roots definitely
don't go too deep at all.
Mikey gave it to me
twice today.
What do you want me to do?
I don't want to lose to you.
It's a competition.
It's nothing personal.
Go away, Mike.
Who knows?
Maybe next Christmastime,
we'll be cooking together.
You came into this
as competitors;
you leave as cousins.
Aw.
[Applause]
How are you two gonna embrace
your new-found relationship?
Our family
has really embraced it.
- Like--
- More than we did, yeah.
- Yeah, they're--they're--
- My mom and her mom,
they're, like, talking,
emailing.
- Really?
- They're all really excited
about it.
I was like, it's still Mikey.
[Laughter]
Well, there was one chef
who shocked everyone
when she disagreed
with the judges.
Check out Jen carroll,
episode two.
[Laughter]
I'm against you.
You're against me.
Like, we're all
against each other.
The strongest competitor
in my eyes
is Jennifer Carroll.
She's got a massive pedigree,
and she's someone that
I definitely have my eye on.
Guys, grab your knives.
Jen, you seem
really pissed off.
Yeah, I am.
I don't feel
like I deserve to be here.
Why did you guys pile
everything on one plate?
You guys are smart enough.
You're the judges.
Why didn't you say,
"hey, can I get
a different plate for this?"
[Laughter and exclamations]
Jen, the egg whites
and egg yolks on top
were really, really bland.
No. No way.
I will fight
to the death on this.
We're gonna have to agree
to disagree on that one.
I think I yelled at the judges
more than they yelled at us.
Jen, were you always like that
in your season
at judges' table?
Absolutely not.
Welcome to Jen: All-Stars.
Didn't last that long.
Jen, please
pack your knives and go.
Holy [bleep].
No. No.
It's [bleep] bull[bleep].
Not even close
to being even on the--
at the [bleep] bottom.
Not even [bleep] close!
The judges got it wrong.
Wow.
So looking back
on that now,
what goes through your mind?
- Disappointment.
- Disappointed in yourself?
Disappointed at them?
No. In myself.
I was extremely emotional,
and it got to me.
I've been saying for years
that I can't believe someone
hadn't gotten that mad at us.
Not because of our decision,
but because of the passion
that I know you all have.
Like, honestly, thank you.
I thought it was
actually extraordinary.
And it took so much courage.
I fought for it.
I fought for it,
and that's me.
We'll be right back
with more
from the Top Chef: All-Stars
Reunion.
Or I could motorboat Antonia.
- Oh, yeah.
- And later...
Elia, it sounded
like you called him a sellout.
You really want
to talk about it?
Yeah, I do.
Welcome back
to the Top Chef Reunion.
We're here with the chefs
and judges
from Top Chef: All-Stars,
and we're taking
your questions.
Carmen from Tennessee asked,
"Do the guys have stylists,
"or is their hair gel
and tight t-shirts
"their own idea?
"Main offense: Angelo's tight,
tight lavender pants
and ridiculous shades."
Hold on
and take a look.
Avocado time.
[Laughter]
The most fashionable person
in the house
is probably Angelo.
[Laughter]
He's probably the only chef
out there that I know
who's cooking
in 300-dollar pants.
You are kind of rocking
the creepy Pee-Wee Herman look.
[Laughter]
Pee-Wee.
Tight, little jeans
and jackets
and his little walk.
[Laughter]
He's got this whole, like,
euro club thing going on.
[Imitates
pounding house music]
Which works for him.
[Laughter]
Angelo's a great chef.
He just wear his pants
a little too tight
for my own taste.
That's it.
Wow.
Look at your g*n.
Look at that.
Angelo, he's strong,
you know,
he got all these muscles.
And he want to make sure
everybody sees.
But he's really
not that tough.
[Clatter]
[Laughter]
[bleep] damn, Angelo,
you're handsome.
Might a little girly,
but I feel a lot uglier
being around him.
You're so stunningly handsome.
It's bothering me.
[Laughter]
Wow. My heart's pounding.
I didn't wear tight pants
today, so it felt good.
How would you describe
your style?
Aquaman.
[Laughter]
I don't know.
Possibly eccentric maybe.
[Laughter]
Gail, Lucy from Texas
has a question for you.
All right, Lucy.
Would you rather go on a date
with Angelo, Fabio,
or Spike?
All: Ohh.
Well, I've known Spike
the longest,
and we have
a Canadian connection.
As I do with my husband.
So perhaps I find
that we have that in common.
Padma, same question.
Well, I know it wasn't
included in the choice,
but I think I'd like to go
on a date
with either Elia
or Casey.
Wow.
[Laughs]
Or I could
motorboat Antonia.
[Laughter]
Oh, yeah.
That's what I'm talking about.
Give it to her.
Do a motorboat.
I just learned
that word, so...
- You learned that word, really?
- Very eager to use it, yeah.
[Laughter]
Well, Top Chef fans
were outraged
with one chef
whose heart just didn't seem
to be in the game.
Take a look at this.
Oh, yeah, this is me.
- Oh, snap.
- My name is Jamie Lauren.
Honestly, I'm here
to kick ass.
Jamie, you know, I haven't
seen her cook anything.
She's like an octopus.
You know, you never see her.
She comes out
every once in a while,
cooks some chickpeas,
crawls back in their hole.
Take the skin off.
I'm cleaning the skin
off the bacon.
[bleep] damn.
You all right?
My Kn*fe slips and goes
right through my thumb.
To get stitches on my thumb.
What the hell?
Really?
- You get stitches?
- Yeah, I got two.
- Two stitches just really
feels like a cop-out.
Jamie has definitely
skated by.
She's really kind of like,
"Oh, we have to cook today?"
[Laughter]
"Oh, I don't know
what I'm gonna make."
These are hard.
Are you going first?
You're going first, right?
Plate up.
There's no way.
I'm not going first.
I'm hoping that I won't have
to go at all,
which would be nice for me.
Jamie's nowhere to be found.
I think I saw her hiding
underneath the tablecloth.
Your strategy backfired
somewhat here
because, if you think
she had the worst dish,
she's not even up
for elimination,
she's not here.
She snaked out of it.
You know.
Spike, please pack
your knives and go.
I got screwed.
Listen, Jamie,
this is a competition,
and, at some point,
you're gonna have to compete.
All: Ohh.
[Laughter]
Let's get into this.
Lynn from Enfield,
Connecticut
says, "did Jamie regret seeing
the footage of everyone else
"sucking it up after being hurt
and her basically giving up
because she needed
only two stitches?"
Okay, here's--
here's the first thing.
I actually haven't seen
the footage.
I actually haven't watched
the show.
I stopped watching,
because it was painful
for me to watch.
I went to get stitches.
Maybe that was a cop-out...
- This is your career.
And maybe you guys
wouldn't have done that,
but I have a very small thumb.
I mean, you know,
I'm a very small person.
[Laughter]
Fabio had an injury
in his season and--
Fabio always has something
to say about me.
That's Fabio's--
that's what Fabio does.
But you also know
that I love you very much,
and I never--
if Jamie had come back
with eight stitches
instead of two, you guys would
have been like, "all right"?
I think she would have had
to come back without a thumb.
Then it would have been okay.
Yeah.
Before we move on,
Jamie, is there anything else
you want to get
off your chest?
No, I mean, for me,
I don't have any regrets
about doing the show again.
You know, I came in
with the same mindset
as everybody else.
I came in to do the best
that I could,
and, unfortunately,
it just didn't work out
that well for me.
Totally.
Tiffani, how important
was coming back
and competing for you?
There's no secret
about how hard my season was,
and there's no secret about--
I was, like, an [bleep],
and I was
not handling things well,
and I did a bunch
of stupid [bleep].
I was like--
I wrote, like, the manual
on how to not do this
basically.
Yet you almost won.
I mean, you came very close
to winning.
Had I won, it would have been
the worst thing
at could have
ever happened to me.
I would have been validated
for my bull[bleep].
You know what I mean?
So, for me,
it was not about coming back
to win the whole thing,
it was really
about didn't want to
go back to the person
that I was.
To win.
Well, Monique
from New Jersey says,
"Chefs, how many of you
would want to come back again
to see if a third time's
the charm?"
Blais would do it.
You guys...
- I would do it.
- I would do it.
It all depends
on who was competing.
I would rather kind of do
maybe Masters or something
like that just to compete
with some different people.
[Overlapping chatter]
Go. Get out of here.
[Laughter]
Well, interesting
you should mention Masters
because, joining us
via Xbox Video Kinect,
it's Top Chef Masters host
Curtis Stone, everybody.
Hey, Curtis.
How's it going, guys?
Hi, Andy.
What's up?
It's going great.
So you have a question
for our chefs.
I want to know
from all of you
if you could send one of the
chefs up to Top Chef Masters
to compete
with the master chefs,
who would you send?
Jen carroll?
I'd send myself.
Ohh-ohh.
- Redemption, baby.
- Oh, I'm sorry.
[Laughs]
Dale?
I think you'd have
to take the winner of this
and send Richie.
I'll send you.
- Really? You'd send me?
- What'd you say, Spike?
- No, I said I'd send Marcel.
- [Bleep] you.
[Laughter]
I love it.
Well, guys, congratulations.
Great season. Thanks so much
for the delicious food.
- Thanks, Curtis.
- Bye, Curtis.
While this competition
was the most heated ever,
some of the chefs got even
hotter outside the kitchen.
Check this out.
We didn't do anything.
This is not a mild crush.
It's called a bromance.
Richard and Fabio,
they are a new-found love.
Angelo and Mike,
they are roommates.
They cannot be separated.
They've got to stay together.
- Okay, you drive.
- I drive for you.
I don't want you
to worry too much.
You know I love you.
You know that.
I think he's a great chef.
And I think
he's even better personality.
Maestro, why are you
so good to me?
'Cause I like you.
Mikey's awesome.
He brings out definitely
the playful side of me.
Complaining
that you want a spice--ow!
[Laughter]
It's the big one.
It's [bleep] Moby d*ck.
I got Moby d*ck here.
[Laughter]
Richie.
Richie.
[Speaks indistinctly]
I'm not gonna apologize.
It is what it is.
Everybody loved it.
Fabio has kissed me
at least a few times
on my cheek.
I'll never forget each one.
His stubble gently brushing up
against mine.
You go first.
You just want somebody
to be there with you.
But everyone has to go home
eventually.
- Bye, guys.
- What?
You?
Man, I'm sorry.
The last glass
of the maestro.
You're so impressive.
He gives me his apron,
and I'm gonna wear it.
And I'll rock it for him.
Love you, man.
Richard, regardless
of how it's gonna end,
you're the winner in my book.
Now shut the [bleep] up. Go!
Bromance.
What's going on, bromance?
I love you.
- Wow.
- Aw.
- There it is.
- Oh.
Richard, does your wife know
about you and Fabio?
My wife does know
about me and Fabio.
- We have an agreement.
- What's the agreement, Fabio?
That she can keep him
on every day basis.
Whenever he's coming
on the West Coast, he's mine.
[Laughter]
- Do you two ever double-date
with Mike and Angelo?
Uh...
We're gonna double-date
tonight.
We gonna double-date tonight,
yeah, I guess.
Angelo's gonna put
some tighter jeans on, though.
[Laughter]
We'll be back with more
with the chefs and judges
from Top Chef.
So who believes
Antonia has an actual curse?
[Laughs]
"You guys want to move
into my room?"
"No."
There's no such thing
as stealing an idea,
period,
when it comes to cooking.
It's food.
Welcome back to the Top Chef:
All-Stars Reunion.
Marvin from Iowa writes,
"How many of the chefs
"believe that Antonia carries
a real curse?"
Before you answer,
let's take a look
at the Black Hammer,
All-Stars style.
- She slammed my ass.
Hi.
Ohh, the Black Hammer
is back.
You know,
the Black Hammer is scary.
She will send you home.
Black Hammer, dude.
The hammer lives.
I got the nickname
"the Black Hammer"
from my season.
Nimma, please pack
your knives and go.
For some reason, every person
who works on a team with me
ends up going home.
Valerie, please pack
your knives and go.
I am obviously going home,
because the undertaker
is in the house.
Zoi, please pack your knives
and go.
So now it's actually,
like, a running joke.
I was on a team
with Dale Levitski.
Congratulations, Antonia.
I win the competition.
He ends up going home.
And, Dale, pack your knives
and go.
I'm on the team
with Jamie and Tiffani.
It's a double elimination.
Jamie, Tiffani...
Double hammer.
Please pack your knives
and go.
[Exclaims]
I have to wear black,
because I'm the Black Hammer.
Oh, it's not a legend.
She's like the kiss of death.
Jen and I,
we were on the same team.
Jen, please pack your knives
and go.
Holy [bleep].
And then I helped Casey
with the chicken feet.
Who made your dish
when you had to be upstairs?
Oh, mostly Antonia.
Casey, pack your knives
and go.
[Laughter]
Divide yourselves into pairs.
Antonia is my cousin,
but she's also known
as the Black Hammer.
Coming into the Bahamas,
kind of want to stay away
from that.
Yeah, it's ready to go.
Okay.
I pick Antonia.
- Tiffany...
- Then I realize,
this is not a good idea.
Please pack your knives
and go.
[Laughter]
Oh, no, three weeks in a row.
Honestly, I think
it's hilarious.
[Laughs]
Thank you, Antonia.
So who believes
Antonia has an actual curse?
She really doesn't have
a curse.
It's just other people
not holding up to their--
I will have to disagree
with you, Michael.
I don't do anything.
It just happens
to be a coincidence.
- It's a curse.
- It's a coincidence.
It was even in her room.
All the ladies
that was in her room.
Every person in her room,
gone.
"You guys want to move
into my room?"
"No."
We were like, "no!"
[Laughter]
I don't know.
Tabitha from Reno,
Nevada says,
"Dale, does your girlfriend
now have the ring
you said she deserves?"
I'm still waiting
on the check, man.
[Laughter]
So once I get that check,
I've already picked out
the setting.
I got the ring.
I got the stone.
I got the setting.
Everything's picked.
I need that money first.
All right, you'll get it.
[Laughter]
Well, but 97%
of our women viewers wrote in
and demanded to know,
"Does Fabio have a girlfriend?"
Oh, God.
I do.
I do have a girlfriend,
but private life
is called private for a reason.
[Laughter]
Come on, guys.
Really?
Well, Fabio,
it's so easy
to see why the ladies
are enchanted.
Take a look.
Better get on the grass.
You understand?
You don't want
to scratch your feet.
Fabio, the guy just continues
to fascinate me.
He's like the most interesting
man in the world.
Used to work
for the national team of Italy.
Driver says,
"hey, turn the [bleep] around.
We're going back."
These guys come out
and just grab me.
I have memories
that I did butcher
a lamb, though,
when I was nine.
That what I do, you know.
Fabio's
like the smooth talker.
It has a little bit of crap
along with that smooth talking.
A really good swimmer.
I can make a tuna
look like a schoolgirl.
I'm a good fisherman.
My dad was on national team
for fishing in river.
It's true.
I believe you.
Any time Fabio's faced
with a challenge,
someone in his family's
done something
for the national blankety-blank
of Italy.
How about that?
Not bad at all, huh?
Fabio's like--
like Rico suave.
Thank you, amore.
Thank you for your support.
Enjoy.
He's a "smoozer."
He is a charmer.
- Wow.
- I didn't do--
- You just made my day.
- I didn't do--I didn't do--
my english is not perfect.
Doesn't matter to me.
You said burger, so I don't know
if you like cheese.
I like the way
he says burger.
[Laughter]
The service
was frog-ass tight.
[Laughs]
I always honest.
I'm not gonna win
the challenge,
but I will drive the boat
to the win.
End of the story.
[Laughter and applause]
Fabio, come clean.
Are your stories
all true,
or is there
a little exaggeration?
They're not.
You know, again,
the hard part for me
is to translate some memories
in a language
that doesn't belong to me.
You actually walk your turtle?
I walk my turtle.
Well, summertime.
No way.
No way.
- I swear.
- Guys.
How many times a day?
Well, not many.
It's a freakin' water turtle.
It's not like a dog, so she
doesn't need to walk every day.
We got so many emails
from viewers
wanting you to say
the word "burger."
- [Giggles]
- Here we go, guys.
You got the camera on?
One, two, three. Burger.
All: Wow.
He's been practicing.
But it is very pleasing
listening to you talk.
Thank you. I can call you
any time you want.
[Laughs]
Well, Mary from Boston
writes in,
"Nowadays there's a big emphasis
to keep our children healthy.
"What does Antonia think
is the biggest difference
between cooking for kids
versus cooking for adults?"
I actually don't think
there is a difference.
My daughter,
since she was a baby,
eats what I eat.
The one thing
that infuriates me
that restaurants do
are kids' menus.
It's treating children
like they're idiots
and that they don't know
how to eat properly.
It drives me nuts.
Well, some of
our most famous guests
wouldn't go a day
without spending time
with kids.
Roll cameras.
Rolling!
Give me some music going in.
You add music
in post-production?
All: Sesame Street!
[Laughter]
Really?
Sesame Street's here
at Top Chef kitchen?
Like, it was unbelievable.
Probably the most famous people
to ever hit this set.
This is so exciting.
- This me kind of place.
- Yeah.
Hey, guys, stand by.
What do you want,
prima donna?
[Laughter]
They were, like,
snarky, sarcastic.
- How nasty can we get?
- No, you can't, Telly.
- No, really.
- No!
[Laughter]
Cookie, Cookie,
Cookie, Cookie, Cookie, Cookie.
Cookie.
No!
Hold me back.
Hold me back, Elmo.
Hold me back.
Cookie Monster's kind of got
this, like, Cheech and Chong
thing going on.
Cookie Monster,
you messed up the set.
That's okay.
It's all right.
Oh, that's much better,
Padma.
[Laughter]
You do good work.
It's hilarious. They were
totally dissing on Padma.
Well, they grow
in Guatemala,
and they also grow in Asia.
Boring.
[Laughter]
We got to hurry up.
Elmo has to pee.
[Speaks indistinctly]
I think this
is like one of those stories
that you'll be telling forever,
like, to your grandchildren.
I have a little girl
named Riley.
Hello, Riley.
Elmo loves you.
Oh, wow.
That was the coolest thing
I've ever done on Top Chef.
Elmo?
Big time.
Beautiful.
That's a wrap.
- Shut the gate.
- I love elmo.
[Applause]
Aw.
Richard, what was
Riley's reaction
when she saw Elmo say
that Elmo loved her?
Ear-to-ear smile.
I mean, you know,
she's almost three.
Just--you know, we'd say,
"Elmo just said--Riley,
Elmo loves you."
And she just smiled.
And so we replayed it, like,
of course, 20 times.
Aww.
Well, when cooking
for children,
it didn't seem like love
was the most important
ingredient
when it came to our chefs
preparation and service.
Watch.
[Cheers and applause]
Having
a kids challenge sucks.
These kids are tricky.
They will look you in the face
and say they hate it.
Hey!
Whenever possible, I try
not to talk to children.
I have no interest
in having children. Ever.
I hope that doesn't
end up on the show.
[Kids shouting]
I love my kids,
but others,
I'm like,
"please don't touch me."
[Laughter]
[Kids shouting]
Shh!
One second, u guys.
The most
entertaining thing to me
is the look on Padma's face,
because I think she just saw
the next ten years
of her life
flash in front of her face.
[Kids shouting]
Just a cute, adorable
little baby now,
and all of sudden, now she's
gonna have one of these.
[Kids shouting]
[Laughter]
That's awesome!
I thought we were
gonna get mobbed.
We'll be right back
with more from the Top Chef:
All-Stars Reunion.
My point is you're wrong.
We still serve
grass-fed beef.
Okay.
Do you regret
what you said?
Umm...
For the first time
on primetime television,
here is put it on a plate.
Here's the [bleep] deal.
I embrace the challenges.
I read the [bleep] rules.
And I make food
for the [bleep] people.
♪ And I put it on a plate ♪
You made [bleep]
We must've mad [bleep] 150.
♪ 150 ♪
So what the [bleep]?
You won the [bleep] challenge?
Whatever!
♪ Whatever ♪
I'm gonna b*at
your [bleep] ass.
- Whatever.
- Put it on a plate.
You know what?
That's why they call it
a [bleep] game.
♪ Game ♪
- If you want to cry about it...
- ♪ cry about it ♪
Then get the [bleep]
out the game. Rargh!
I've noticed that Marcel
is kind of an ass[bleep].
- ♪ For the people ♪
- Rargh!
[Laughter and applause]
That was brilliant!
Awesome.
Oh, man.
And we're back with
the chefs and judges
from Top Chef: All-Stars.
Well, Richard, your competitors
may call you paranoid,
but it seems like
some of your worrying
could've been justified.
Take a look at this video
via Xbox live.
Xbox, play.
Fried chicken oysters.
It's the piece that's attached
from the thigh to the body.
I decided to do a little spoof
and serve it
in an oyster shell.
Mike's dish
sounds very much like something
that's in one of my notebooks.
And I know that, you know,
he's seen that before.
You're very organized,
Blais.
It all goes to hell once
the challenge starts, though.
I think the winner is gonna
have to be...Mike.
Wow.
Thank you very much.
Mike wins,
and it stings.
I inspired it.
So I'm kind of
just disappointed.
You also won yourself $5,000.
Richard, it's not your dish.
It's my dish,
'cause I won the 5 Gs.
Thank you very much.
Richard had the dish
written in his book.
That's chef law, man.
I didn't know that, ma'am.
There is man law,
and there is chef law.
You don't take
another chef's idea.
That's a no-no.
[Thunder]
[Laughter]
There's no such thing
as stealing an idea,
period, when it comes
to cooking.
It's food.
Everything has been done before
some way, somehow,
some similarity.
You cannot copyright dishes.
Richard, you agree?
You know, I think maybe
there was a little,
you know, inappropriateness
under the circumstance,
but that all got settled
with those winks and head nods
that you saw.
Would you have done it
the same way?
No, I wouldn't have.
I wouldn't have done
the oyster gravy
that he did with it.
So, Antonia,
do you think now
that Mike broke a chef law?
- Umm, no.
- She didn't like me
at the time because she
didn't know we were cousins.
Right.
And now it's all fine
because we're related.
Are you gonna say is it
in bad taste that you saw it
that morning and did it
that night?
I mean, he needed to execute it
at the end of the day.
So you two have kissed
and made up
and are all good.
- Yeah. We--you know.
- We're all inspired.
What are you gonna do,
not go out to eat
or not look in cookbooks
anymore?
And I plan on stealing
Michael's pepperoni sauce.
So we're--
we're all good.
[Laughs]
Well, while the competition
was sizzling
in front of the camera,
the judges were trying
to maintain their cool
behind the scenes.
Check this out.
[Overlapping chatter]
- Here we go.
- This is what we're looking at.
Picture's up.
Rolling.
No tweeting.
Roll cameras.
Padma, we're gonna make
some television now.
- Ooh.
- I had two gin and tonics.
[Laughter]
You're a stupid doo-doo head.
Oh, [bleep].
Okay.
The challenge is to--
look at this.
I can't even [bleep] talk.
- My breast--
not my breast.
The breast.
The breast...
- Your hands are freezing.
- Sorry.
Against my nice, big,
fat [bleep].
[Laughter]
God.
- No.
- No.
[Laughter]
Excuse me.
Higgins and I have to...
I'm worse.
I'm an egg whore.
That means you get paid
to eat eggs?
First I did it
for a few friends.
Then I do it for money.
[Laughter]
Sh...
[Clears throat]
[Snorts]
[Laughter]
Padma!
Take a deep breath.
[Laughter]
We also have to figure out
who's winning this challenge.
Yeah. Usually that's the way
this works.
- Shut up.
- Thank you.
[Laughter]
Thank you.
I will take my [bleep] knives
and go.
[Laughter]
Pack your [bleep] knives.
Wow.
[Laughter]
Did you say gins and tonics?
I'm sure I did.
I, you know...
She actually mixed two gins.
Two drinks
is two gins and tonics.
Padma, Phil
from Moraga, California, said,
"was Tre your favorite?
"You seemed
noticeably more upset
at his elimination
than at others."
Tre, please pack your knives
and go.
Okay.
- I'm sorry, Tre.
- It's all good. Thank you.
I-I do have a sweet spot
for Tre.
But I'm always upset
whenever anyone goes home,
'cause I hate telling people
to pack their knives.
It's just the worst part
of my job.
Aw.
All: Aw.
Judges,
Jenny from Philadelphia said,
"Was there one dish
that really surprised you
this season,
and what was it?"
Dale, the dish he made
at Wylie Dufresne's.
I thought that was awesome.
The egg in the dumpling
was fantastic.
I had three favorites.
Comfort food--
Carla's chicken pot pie.
Both: Oh, yeah!
A complete reworking
of a classic.
I think
the hamachi sweetbread.
- Who made that?
- Richard.
Richard did that.
The vitello tonnato takeoff.
And Michael's dish on the beach.
The fishooked
in the banana leaf
I thought was amazing.
Tom, Megan from Ohio said,
"How did you feel cooking
in front of the chefs
for the first time?"
I didn't feel--
I mean, I don't know.
It's hard to say.
In this pan, okay?
Time's up.
[Applause]
Come on.
You were a little bit nervous.
Not nervous cooking
in front of you.
Nervous cooking in front of,
like, you know,
how many millions of people
on TV.
Welcome to our world.
[Laughs]
Well, one of our chefs ranted
to the press
about Tom Colicchio
and her unfair treatment
on Top Chef
after she was eliminated
the first episode.
I want to remind everyone
what Elia said
to the papers
about Tom.
Elia, you said,
"He has become someone
"who is not
all about the food anymore.
"He's not all about supporting
farmers' markets.
"He's all
about high-fructose corn syrup.
"And there's only corn-fed beef
on all of his menus now."
Talk to me a little bit about
why you said what you said.
It came from going
to have dinner at Craft
in Las Vegas,
and they told me
that there was
only corn-fed beef.
And after the release
of the interview
and I read Tom's rebuttal,
I went again,
and I grabbed a menu
to see, like, maybe I was wrong.
Maybe it was just for a season.
And it wasn't.
It sounded like
you called him a sellout.
- Yeah.
- Why do you think
he's a sellout?
Do you really want
to talk about it?
Yeah, I do.
After the show aired,
you came out with
some really strong statements,
and I want to talk about it.
Okay.
Why did you say
that he's a sellout?
I don't know.
There are certain things
that I don't
especially believe in.
Like, the diet coke.
You don't think
he should have done
a commercial for diet coke?
I think
that product has a lot
of bad stuff in it.
I just think,
for a chef of his caliber,
that didn't belong.
Who here sells diet coke
in their restaurants?
I drink diet coke every day.
I think the core
of the issue
of what Elia is trying
to express
is Tom Colicchio
is an icon.
When you get
certain endorsements,
where is the line in where
you sacrifice certain levels
of integrity?
I draw the line on things
I don't use.
I actually drink diet coke,
and I actually sell it.
Okay? So there is no reason
to draw the line there.
That's how I sort of decided
to do that.
Again, I buy
from small farmers.
This is something
that I've been doing
for 20-something years.
It's not a trend for me.
It's something
I really believe in.
I have no problem.
I haven't spoken
a bad word about what you said.
Since I've arrived
to this country,
I've really admired you.
And I heard amazing things
of you.
And I saw the kind of animals
that were brought into that
place and were broken down.
But--so let me ask you
a question, though.
You haven't been back
in that kitchen?
I went back,
and that's when they told me,
"we only serve
corn-fed--
No, in the kitchen.
Did you go back
into the kitchen?
Yes.
Into your kitchen?
Into your kitchen?
No.
So you didn't see the animals
that are coming in
that they're breaking down?
No.
When I went...
You're going on something
that a waiter said.
No.
I went to the kitchen,
and I asked, "what's going on?"
And you speak to who?
I spoke to your sous chef,
which wasn't Sergio anymore.
- No.
- I don't--
- Michael?
- I don't remember.
- Did you speak to Matt?
- They're like, "no.
It's been a while."
Someone's getting fired.
Someone's getting fired.
This is ridiculous.
I just want to get
to the core of this.
We still buy
the same products.
- Very uncomfortable.
- I feel like this subject's...
Hold on.
Hold on. Hold on.
- The horse is dead.
- Hold on, you guys.
No, no, the horse is dead--
my point is you're wrong.
We still serve grass-fed beef.
We never not served corn-fed
beef in that restaurant.
I think
that if such
a successful businessman
and chef like you
would only buy
grass-fed animals--
- Why?
- Just listen to my--
can I finish?
I think
you could make it happen
for all the small farmers
that are doing this,
and people buy it--
I buy more
from small farmers
than you will
in your lifetime.
I'm speaking about beef.
I buy grass-fed beef.
It's a steakhouse.
And you cannot operate
a steakhouse if you're
not serving corn-fed beef.
No one will come.
Now I understand that you're
upset, and that's fine.
And I'm okay with it.
Being the first person to go,
obviously,
it was difficult.
There are four people
on the panel.
Four judges.
This was something
that was a unanimous decision.
Okay.
This wasn't personal.
But you chose
to make it personal.
I think as cooks that want
to emulate you,
there is a responsibility
in questioning the--
is that integrity
being maintained
throughout the career?
And I think that's what
the core of this is.
That wasn't a question.
That was a statement.
It's--
I don't think it's--
Let me just say one thing.
I have been to some of
your restaurants.
I've eaten your food
off the show.
I've never commented
on any of that stuff
off the show.
That's just the way
I look at it.
You consider it off limits?
I consider it off limits
commenting on what you're doing
in your restaurants.
This is a good lesson
as a young chef,
be careful what you say
in the press.
Do you regret
what you said?
Um...
Elia, you don't have
to comment.
- No.
- Oh, man.
I stand--I stand by it.
"How come Carla doesn't say
'hootie-hoo' anymore?"
Hootie!
All: Hoo!
Welcome back to the Top Chef:
All-Stars Reunion.
Let's take a look at our
Top Chef: All-Stars judges.
I keep poking it
to make sure
that actually I hate it
as much as I think I do.
And I really, really
hate it.
Damn. I mean, the judges,
they're not playing around
up in here.
Crap.
It tastes like the floor
of a movie theater.
Pretty gross.
Unspeakably
[bleep] awful.
Howard Johnson's called
and they want
their garnish back.
Nothing worked.
These hairy things does not
interest me to eat.
You know those
clingy little bits
that cling to your underarm
hairs, you know,
when you do--you know
the roll-on deodorant?
Ah, oui-oui!
It's kind of like that,
only coconutty.
Only coconutty.
Heading into judges' table,
that's the scary part.
I think it was like lead.
My mind was drifting back
fondly to my last colonoscopy.
Like salt lick
on top of salt lick.
- Horrifying-looking.
- Oh, my gosh.
I'm gonna cry.
I swear sometimes I don't
know how somebody
hasn't passed out
embarrassed.
I'm not doing this today.
The rigatoni was hard
to swallow.
I'd rather have
a gasoline enema.
- Oh!
- I just don't get it.
I don't understand this.
[Laughter]
A gasoline enema.
So do you think you were
maybe tougher
on these guys because it was
their second time around
and they are so talented?
No, I think it's a curve.
It just depends on what else
is on the table.
Well, we have a question
from Sonja from Detroit
who says,
"How come Carla doesn't say
hootie-hoo anymore?"
Hootie.
All: Hoo!
[Laughter]
My husband Matthew was
on the show on Ellis Island.
Someone said,
"oh, we didn't hootie-hoo."
But we were there together.
We saw each other.
Right, and hootie-hoo
is for finding someone.
Exactly.
Well, Carla,
your hootie
wasn't the only reason
you were voted fan favorite.
Watch this.
♪ You can make great cookies ♪
♪ you can make
great cookies ♪
♪ you can do it,
you can do it ♪
♪ yes, you can,
yes, you can ♪
Carla's awesome.
She is just, honestly,
a beautiful person,
and she lets it show.
- Chicken pot pie.
- [Shrieks]
[Laughter]
I've been talking about
chicken pot pie for a week!
I think she's hilarious.
What?
Aah!
[Shrieking]
Oh, yes!
Aah!
[Ululates]
[Laughter]
Sorry for your eardrums.
Tom, what do you think
of Carla's pot pie?
Too busy eating.
[Laughter]
The winning dish
is Carla.
Carla.
Carla.
Yeah.
- You've won a six-night trip
to Amsterdam.
To Italy.
Tokyo.
Oh, my God!
[Laughter]
[Exclaims]
Oh, my God.
[Laughter]
Mwah.
Thank y'all.
Aww.
[Applause]
- Whoo!
- Bravo!
Well, Carla, if you give us
one more hootie-hoo,
we have a gift
for all the top chefs.
Hootie.
All: Hoo.
All right, everybody gets
Top Chef fleeces,
available at shopbybravo.com.
Let's congratulate
our winner Richard.
Richard.
Congratulations.
Thank you for joining us.
See you next time.
Good night.
Bravo! Bravo!
08x17 - Reunion Special
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Show features chefs competing against each other in culinary challenges.
Show features chefs competing against each other in culinary challenges.