07x03 - Capitol Grill

[bunniefuu]

Previously on Top Chef...

You're looking to do
a school at lunch.

I would do
a chocolate banana pudding.

Doing the dessert.

I'll pass that b*llet
along to someone else.

"take one for the team"

Is not in my vocabulary.

I know Kevin has another
whipped cream g*n.

Come on, pa.
I only have three of 'em.

Angelo wants to use
one of our foam g*ns.

No.

- This is broken.
- Oh, is it?

It is strategy.
Yeah, major.

It's too starchy.

This is actually my idea.

I really have an issue
of you having claimed stuff,

When we did everything together.

The one that stood out
the most was Kelly.

thank you.

Would you have done
celery and peanut butter

If you didn't have immunity?

I can't answer that right now.

I'm not gonna repeat it.

Did you find that you
had to add more sugar?

Two pounds of sugar.

Jacqueline, please
pack your knives and go.

This season,
one outstanding competitor

Will take the title
of top chef

And the grand prize--

A feature in
food and wine magazine

And a showcase
at the food and wine classic

In Aspen.

$125,000 to help turn
their culinary dreams

Into reality.

Furnished by Dial Nutriskin.

Top chef season seven.

Hail to the chef.

Waking up without
Jacqueline there,

The gravity of what
went down the night before

Is just hitting home.

Some of the chefs
said that, like,

I should have been
the one to go home.

But I'm still here.

I'm doing the best
to take the competition

One moment at a time.

I haven't won a challenge
at this point.

I feel like I've been playing
kind of second fiddle.

Have faith, have hope,
have courage.

You know, it's the Angelo show
playing first,

And then it's Kenny second.

Gonna have to switch it up.

"hope everything is going well,

"and you're not embarrassing
the other contestants too bad.

Love you and can't
wait to see you, juicy."

Even though I placed high

And I've won three challenges,

Being on the bottom sucks.

I can deal with the criticism,

But Kenny's reaction,

He did not stand behind
his teammates.

I was thinking
greens with vegetables.

You know, I was immediately
going on that trail.

And unfortunately
sometimes other people

Come up and they make up
other decisions.

It really put a damper
in my mind,

And it makes me want to isolate
myself from everybody.

This is my state of mind.

Last night
after the judges' table,

It became a competition.

It's, like, it's game on.

A lot of people were starting
to throw each other

Under the bus already,
and it's only second challenge.

Come on, guys.
Let's get out of here.

When I walk into the kitchen,

There stands Johnny Luzzini,

And he is hot.

When it comes to pastries,

Johnny is pretty much
the pastry God right now.

Good morning, chefs.

Good morning.

Please give a warm welcome

To Johnny Luzzini.

He's a James beard
award winner,

As well as the pastry chef
at Jean Georges.

Morning, chefs.

Morning.

And of course you know
our lovely Gail Simmons

Of Food & Wine magazine.

Good morning, chefs.

Good morning.

Gail and Johnny are the host
and head judge

Of the upcoming new show
top chef: Just desserts.

Now you have a dessert
quickfire challenge.

Immediately my heart's like--

Desserts! No.

As pastry chefs,

We need to be
much more organized.

For us, it doesn't happen
at the last minute on a stove,

Similar to what you guys do.

A lot of what we do
is about planning,

About organization,
and about measurements.

We're challenging you

With a great American
tradition--

The pie.

It's definitely
in everybody's eyes

That there's two chefs
who got sent home for what?

A dessert.

So I'm a little discouraged.

I'm ready to kind of
make an impression,

And we're doing something

That I don't really have
much experience in.

The winner of this quickfire

Will receive immunity

From tonight's
elimination challenge.

Okay.
Your time starts now.

This is my station.
That one's yours.

That's not--no.

Yeah, my stuff's
all underneath here.

No, no, no.

Kelly, it surprises me
how annoyed I get of her.

It's just really unbelievable

On how seemingly
two-faced she is.

I thought it was where
was.

Have you seen
any rubber spatulas?

Down there.

I'm really excited.

I have some experience
making desserts.

I opened
my restaurant at 27.

And when you own
your own restaurant,

A little 65-seat place
with your husband,

You get good at every job
pretty quickly.

I never cooked a pie
in my whole life.

So I kind of just
tricked my brain,

And I say, "Angelo,
this is not a pie challenge.

Like, see those ingredients
over there?

Why don't you just turn it
into a curry challenge?

I want to take a sweet yam pie
as a concept,

But turn it into
a curry yam pie.

What did I get myself into?

Now they're doing
dessert challenges?

You want to be here?

I was here.
Then somebody moved my stuff.

I'm just gonna
bake the best pie that I can.

I'm gonna
do an apple pie.

If this
looks perfect, Kevin,

I'm gonna be
surprised as hell.

Never made a pie
in my life.

American pie, girl.

That's how we do here
in America.

- America, see?
- America!

I am older
than everybody else,

But I can still cook.

And as an instructor,

I have an advantage,

Because I don't need recipes
to do desserts,

So feeling pretty confident.

I don't really like pie.

But I've made
an apple pie before.

So I decide to make
an apple Rosemary,

Bourbon, and vanilla pie.

If I can come out
of this quickfire

Not in the bottom,
I'm stoked.

Tracey, what kind of pie
you making?

I don't know.

It's, like, top secret?

Top secret pie.

All right, whatever.
Remember that.

Where did my pan go?

It's missing.
It's not there.

The thing about being
a savory chef

Is that you can tweak
as you go.

Pastry chefs are more like
mad scientists.

I think pies live in the clouds
with the unicorns.

They disappear magically
sometimes.

There's no fixing
along the way.

So it's a lot of--
a lot of formulas involved.

It's a profession of precision.

Making an almondrust
right now.

And then I'm gonna fill it
with, um...

How I'm gonna fill it?

I'm not quite sure yet.

I'm getting the almonds,

I see this tapioca.

So I said, "hey,
why not make tapioca pie

With an rust?"

I've never heard of this pie.

I've never made this pie.

Alex, he's working
on this dough.

It is so thick.

I'm just, like,
laughing inside.

This too bitter?

I personally
hate chocolate, so...

All right, well...

Alex's thought process
is under-developed.

He is a slob.
He has no technique.

I mean, I can go on
for an hour if you want.

I'm making a, uh,
banana cream pie.

What else could I do

To elevate this pie?

So I'm thinking celery.

Imagine you have
a piece of celery

And you put some
peanut butter on there.

All good, familiar flavors,

And I think Johnny
would respect it.

Tracey. Tracey.

Okay.
Is that yours, no?

Oh, that is mine.

- Okay.
- Thanks.

Shutting the oven, tall guy.

Okay, I pull my pie
out of the oven,

And, uh,
this isn't gonna work.

I'm screwed.

I got way too much butter
in my pie.

It just tastes like butter.

- What?
- Do you think it's done?

Have you made
an almond blueberry pie before?

No.

Measurement
is everything in pastry.

I know this.

I didn't measure
the ingredients.

I don't know
what I was thinking.

I got to start fresh.

I don't even know if I'm gonna
have time to have a pie.

All right, guys,
half an hour left.

I'm making
a bananas fosters pie.

But it's kind of like
a cobbler style.

You have your pie Shell down.

Um, you have all your fruit,

And then you make this batter,

And then you pour it on top,

So what ends up happening is

This batter forms almost,
like, a light cake.

Once it bakes up,
it's firm.

It's very moist
and very definite.

Bake.

There we go. Bake.

Come on, girl.
Bake.

- Yes, ma'am.
- Thanks.

The pie I decide to make,

Curry apple whiskey date,

Is very non-traditional.

At least I don't know anyone
that's had this.

Little Rosemary in there.

Try it.
That sounds good.

I'm really, really happy.

I mean, it tastes good.

I might even
have a sh*t at this.

Ten minutes!

Come on.
Do it for daddy.

Son of a .

After two attempts,

I've made a blueberry
almond crumble.

I hope it flies
with the judges.

Time is up.

Hands up,
utensils down.

Whoa. Hey.
Whose stuff is this?

I had it in there
before anything was in there.

I can't believe you
took it out of the oven.

You're such a...

- Hello.
- How are you?

I'm hungry.

What did you make for us?

I made a, uh--a Twist
on a bananas Foster.

Um, I actually decided
to use some currants

And Chinese five Spice.

Chinese five Spice,

That's not a Spice you see
that often in pies.

I love the balance
of the flavors.

- Thank you very much.
- Thank you so much.

I made an apple pie
with Rosemary and bourbon.

I think that given
that I'm not a pastry chef

I didn't mess anything up
too terribly.

I think it's kind of
a cop-out, though,

To say you're not
a pastry chef.

Like, my grandmother's
not a pastry chef either,

And she can make a pie.

This is, uh, curried apple
whiskey date pie,

With saffron anglaise.

- There's something sour...
- Yeah.

In there.

Have a spiced raspberry and
dark chocolate ganache tart.

Your ganache
is nice and smooth.

You have a great emulsion.

I did a kalamansi
and key lime pie parfait

With a Korean Saki sauce.

What is the green herb?

- It's just mint.
- Okay.

Today we have a takeoff
of the sweet potato pie.

I actually made
my own curry blend.

- Thank you.
- Thank you.

It's a blueberry
almond crunch pie.

It's got a little bit
of light cream

And an almond brittle.

Seems like you've released
a lot of liquid.

Did you put anything in there

To kind of thicken
that liquid up?

- I did not.
- No starch or...

There's no starch
in it at all.

I did a peach cobbler

With a cornmeal crust

And a buttermilk lemon
creme anglaise.

It's really dark.
Did you put a...

I put molasses
and dark brown sugar.

- Thank you.
- Thank you.

I did a mango pie

With a basil crust.

Have you ever made the crust
before with the basil?

No, I haven't made
the crust before with basil.

I remember going over
to my grandmother's house,

And she would always have
a banana cream pie.

But I just added
a couple more things to it--

Salted peanuts
and some celery spuma.

How does it compare to your
grandmother's celery spuma?

Uh, yeah...
I don't know.

That's a good question.
Just checking.

Yeah.

Alex?

What I made today

Was a white chocolate,

Tapioca and chevre pie.

It's an almond crust.

Is there egg in here?

There is.

So it's more like a quiche.

Thank you.

Who had our
least favorite pies?

Alex.

We didn't quite feel
that the texture of your pie

Was quite there.

Tracey.

Your crust
was really too thin.

The top was burnt,

And the bottom
wasn't cooked through.

Well, I don't like
being in the bottom so much.

Nobody wants
to be in the bottom.

I just felt
like I was called out

For something,
and it was embarrassing.

Like living
in a trailer park.

I feel awful.

I need to step it up.

Ed, you were on the bottom
for this one.

I just didn't understand
how you took

The idea
of a banana cream pie

And then just kinda muddled it
with all these extra things.

It just didn't tie together.

I have no idea why
I was on the bottom.

I looked around the room
and I was like,

"you got to be ing me."

The pie that I thought
looked awesome, Eddie's,

Is on the bottom.

Are you freaking kidding me?

Well,
who had some success?

One of our favorites
was definitely Kelly.

It was a beautifully made
chocolate pie.

It just went to show
you don't need

A lot of the other
bells and whistles.

A perfect, simple pie
goes a long way.

Thank you.

Another one that I thought
was really interesting, Stephen.

I have to say, a very
surprising flavor combination,

But it really worked.

Okay, so, Johnny,

Why don't you
announce the winner?

I'd have to say my favorite
was Kenny's.

I mean,
he took something simple

Like a bananas Foster,

And the flavors
were really there,

And it had
a great texture, so...

It was a good one.

thank you very much.

And the prize
goes to not me!

Not me.

So I'm a little disappointed.

I'm hungry for a win.

I really want
to be the guy on top.

Johnny and Gail,

Thank you very much
for joining us

For our dessert quickfire.

Thank you.

- Bye, guys.
- Bye, guys.

Good luck.

I'm excited to win
my first challenge.

I feel like I'm starting
to get into a groove

Where I know that I'm gonna
start to really shine.

And once I get into a groove,

It's over.
It's a wrap.

For your
elimination challenge,

You'll be celebrating
another American tradition--

The summer picnic.

You'll be preparing a cookout

For the interns
of capital hill.

You'll be serving
at George Washington's

Mount Vernon estate
and gardens.

A picnic challenge.
I'm excited.

Growing up, I used
to grill quite a lot.

Mount Vernon,
I've never been.

Home of George Washington.

Plus I have never taken
advantage of an intern.

So it sounds
really exciting.

Each of you will be provided

With your own grill
on site tomorrow.

I'm not a grill guy.

I mean, it'll clog the pores
way too fast.

I'll see you
at the picnic tomorrow.

Good luck and have fun.

Thank you.

My wife and her family
are from Puerto Rico,

And they do a lot
of barbecue picnics.



There's always rice and beans.

There's always flank steak.

So I'm gonna go outside of
a typical l American barbecue,

And definitely use
a lot of Latin influence.

I need 15 pounds.

Is that mine?

Let me look at it?

Why you stealing my cart, yo?

Sabotage. Sabotage.

Nine minutes!

I want to make sausage
to impress the judges.

I'm not gonna buy a hot dog
or a hamburger.

I'm gonna make my own thing.

You know,
I make sausage all the time.

This isn't gonna be hard.

You don't have
any more rolls anywhere?

That's it?

Coming through.

Heaven help any women,
children,

Or old people in my way.

I'm determined
to do my very best.

Sorry. Excuse me.

I was out to lunch
the early part of my mid 20s.

I had a problem
with cocaine and, um, pills,

And eventually anything
I would get my hands on.

But I fought...

Thank you.

And if you survived
all of that,

You can do anything.

And then I grilled
some zucchini,

And then I have
a little green salad.

Wow.
Bull's-eye.

Maybe that bird
knew something we didn't.

Oh.

For this
elimination challenge,

We have to create a picnic
for 150 interns.

I know that, you know,
we're probably gonna see

A whole bunch of barbecue,

But I feel that what
I can bring to the table

Is something different,

So I'm doing lamb meatball,
if you will,

Which is skewered
with lemongrass.

Coming through.
Watch your back.

You know, winning
this challenge for me

Is really important,

Because it translates to
the time spent with my father

Uh, when he was still here
on this earth.

Whenever I think
about a picnic,

Um, I'm always
thinking about him,

You know, being that I started
cooking on the grill

When I was seven years old.

So for me,
it's more personal.

My God.
This is ridiculous.

Like, really, can my,
like, magic ingredient

Be my sous chef in my back
pocket please seriously?

.

Sugar snap peas.

That's right.
Put your back into it.

. I love me.

Look at me go.
Look at me go.

Tracey is next to me,

And she's just talking, talking,
chatting, talking

For no other reason
than she's going crazy.

Put your back into it.

I'm having some issues
with my grinder.

I'm grinding and grinding.

I'm never gonna have time
to stuff the sausage.

No way.

I might get it ground and mixed
and that's it.

Well, I'm not gonna be able
to case this sausage,

But I'm still
gonna have sausage meat,

But I decided, hey, I'm gonna do
an Italian sausage slider

With a vidalia onion
and bell pepper relish.

That sounds great!

I'll get my own sheet pan.

When I grill at home,

I don't just have one meat.

So I bought the ribs,

And I also bought pork loin.

My biggest competition,

I'm surely looking out
for Amanda.

I now see that
she's prepping her ribs,

But I'm not really concerned,

'cause, like,
I got some grill skills.

My concept
for this challenge

Is an Asian picnic.

I've done
the Vietnamese style beef,

And it's freakin' badass.

It's just awesome.

I feel pretty confident
that I'll be in the top again.

Whoa. Hey.
Whose stuff is this?

I had it in there
before anything was in there.

Yeah, but my name
was on it. First thing.

- No, it wasn't.
- Yes, it was.

- It was not.
- I made announcement before.

Hey, chefs.
How's it going?

I yelled.

I can't believe
you took it out of the oven.

You're such a...
Why would you do that?

Because I labeled that one.

Hey, Amanda.

- Hey.
- How's it going?

Good.

Just as I was
walking in before,

There was a lot
of shouting going on.

Um, I labeled an oven,

And there was another
braise going on,

So I took it out.

Okay, but are there
any other labels on the ovens?

Uh, no, but generally
we labeled ovens.

Like, that was mine.

- Just asking.
- Prison rules. You know.

Prison rules?
I've never been to prison.

I don't know
how those rules are.

Well,
neither have I, but...

Okay. I'll let you
get back to work.

All right.
Thanks, chef.

I'm gonna approach
the middle East tomorrow.

Okay.

I'm gonna do a little
Moroccan-influenced

Spiced tuna loin sandwich.

You have tuna.
Okay.

Yup. I'm gonna do a nice
lentil hummus for a spread,

And then a stewed red pepper.

Little lemongrass.
A little ginger.

Lot of stuff going on.

Well, but it all works well
with one another.

They're all--
they're all friends.

Tom comes up to me.

He looks at my table,

And he's like, "you got
a lot of stuff going on here."

And I'm like, "oh, ."

Like, saying in the back
of my head,

It's like, "do I have
too much going on?"

Hey, Arnold.

Hello.

I'll leave if you
don't want to talk to me.

I'm good. I'm good.
How are you doing?

I'm okay.
Little pressed for time?

- Yeah.
- I mean, you didn't expect

That you were gonna come here
and have a sous chef, did you?

- Um, no, not at all.
- Okay.

Is this the type of food
you usually do?

Or you have
experience with it?

At one of my restaurants
that I write the menu for,

But I'm not really
in the kitchen...

Okay. Got it.

Arnold was a little
pressed for time.

He spent a lot of time

Out in front
of his restaurant,

And not as much time
in the kitchen,

So that could be
a little problem for him.

Very hot.

What are you
working on here?

Well, I got a Chilean sea bass
from whole foods.

And, uh, wrapping it
in a little bacon.

My restaurant's
a fish restaurant,

So fish is what I do.

Oh, really?
Okay.

And it's something
I'm more used to pulling.

Cool. All right. Well,
good luck. See you tomorrow.

I'm really confident
about this challenge.

I have a dish
that is tried and true.

I think the only trouble
with this dish

Would be if the fish
just dries out

Or if the bacon
doesn't get cooked crispy.

Take care.

Thank you, chef.

Does anyone have the tape?

I hear Amanda
running and screaming a lot.

I don't know
if she don't pace herself

Or if she doesn't
think about it.

.

I don't know.
I have to stop looking at her,

'cause she'll start
stressing me out

If I see her
running like that.

If I go home,

At least I go home

Knowing that I ran
my ass off and I tried.

Time.
Let's get out of here, guys.

How far is mount Vernon?

It's only 35,


Oh, that's it?

What are you doing?

I'm doing, uh, ribs.

Do you steam your pork?

No. I seared it off

And I braised it with,
like, orange juice, white wine.

Can you pull the bones out?

Um, no.

Amanda's not a great chef,
but a good chef.

She's actually very smart,

But could Amanda b*at me?

No, she--she cannot b*at me.

I don't think people
take me seriously as a chef,

And I'm going
to prove them wrong.

So we arrive at mount Vernon.

It's everything
that you think it's gonna be.

The white, huge house,

And the finely
manicured gardens.

It's just picturesque.

I don't have
a lot of grill experience,

And there's a weber grill
to the right of me.

There are two bags
of coal,

And there's a grill
that's not started.

And I know that Kenny's
kind of a grill master,

So I kind of look down
four tables

To see what he's doing,

And everything that he does,

I end up doing
in two-second delay time.

His flame goes poof
and my flame goes poof,

And I know I'm all good.

There's one of two ways
you can do it.

The women by far are not
really excited about grilling,

But the men,

It's, like,
we got our chest poked out

And ready to have
a cold beer and barbecue.

How do you turn
this grill on?

It ain't no turning it on.

I'm thinking I'm gonna
nail the challenge.

Time?



Right now, Angelo is doing
a lot of just Asian food.

I don't know that he has
a lot more technique.

It's a picnic challenge,

And I think that Asian food
is kind of a bad idea.

People are coming.

My sister's been an intern,

Um, which basically means you're
somebody's bitch for a while.

I've never been...
The bitch.

I know that my dish isn't a
traditional, American barbecue,

But I know that what I did
tastes good, looks good,

And, you know,
kind of makes you feel good.

I brought with me,
you know,

A special rub that we use at
prime steakhouse in Baltimore.

It's gonna seal the deal.

No doubt. The rub.

That rub.

Four minutes.

Get out here, girl!

Finally my grill
is perfect temperature.

These patties
are grilling off perfect.

I get a whole
bucket of lemons,

And I think I made
some good lemonade.

Showtime.

Time!

- Time!
- That's time!

That's time.

Hi there.
How are you?

Let me tell you
what I got here.

Over here,
it's a little polenta

With blue cheese
and goat cheese.

How's it going today?

- Good. How are you?
- Fantastic.

The people were coming up
to the table.

Then you have
to play the part.

"oh, yeah," you know.

"oh, it's such a great day.

Oh, you guys
playing hooky from work?"

Have to be, like,
slap-happy ed.

Enjoy.
Thank you.

Thank you very much.

Hi, Arnold.

Hi. How are you?

Well, I'd like to introduce
you to Jonathan Waxman.

Hi, how are you?

He's the chef and owner
of Barbuto restaurant

In New York City,

And he's also
the Obi-Wan Kenobi

Of top chef masters.

Awesome.

What did you make for us?

A sesame lamb meatball,

And a roasted garlic
and Rosemary gazpacho.

I did
a fennel and citrus salad

With mint, basil, jalapeno,
and some orange.

And then I have
my marinated skirt steak.

Thanks a lot.

Kind of a little thrown off,

'cause, you know,
Jonathan Waxman

Is famous for grilling,

But I think
my meat is really good

And it's gonna go over
quite well.

Today we made a Vietnamese
style lettuce wrap

And a smoked egg salad.

My favorite thing to cook
for barbecue is pork butt.

It's really affordable.

Any family can do it.
Thanks, Alex.

Appreciate it.
Thank you.

I think
I have the winning dish.

I loved my dish.
I think it was really tasty.

I would want to eat the ass
out of this pig all day.

This is Arnold's
lamb kofta.

- I like it.
- It's seasoned really well.

This is talented to take
this kabob and grill it.

Arnold's barley salad
tastes really fresh.

It'll stand up well
in the heat of the picnic.

The lamb meatball
is awesome.

Yeah, it's really good.

This is--to me, it's just
grilled, marinated skirt steak.

I like the steak.

Honestly, for me,
it's a little overcooked.

Skirt when it's overcooked,
it's chewy.

No complaints.

It's delicious.

I really like Alex's pork.

I think it was
beautifully cooked.

The sauce is a little
on the sweet side.

Put a little habanero
under there.

Go for it.
Have some fun with it.

This is Angelo's Asian taco.

This is
a magazine cover dish.

I like Angelo's egg dish.

I think it had flavor.
It was smoky.

You know, just really clean,
sexy flavors.

What did you make for us?

I did pork two ways.

You can have it dry,
which is the pork loin,

Wet, which is
the baby back ribs.

And then I grilled
some zucchini,

Eggplant,
and portobello mushrooms.

And then I have
a little green salad.

Oh!

Wow. Bull's-eye.

They say that's good luck,
though.

That is good.
That's good luck, baby.

I did dry rubbed
baby back ribs.

Grilled asparagus
with Meyer lemon, smoked bacon,

And hazelnut vinaigrette.

I made you a bison burger.

It's served with a nice,
dry, sharp cheddar.

My wife's family
is from Puerto Rico,

So I'm doing something
that is inspired from there.

I have a grilled flank steak,

Rice and beans,
tomato and avocado salad.

- Thank you.
- My pleasure.

Thanks a lot.

So this is Timothy's pork
two ways.

I think the pork's
pretty good.

But the sides are just...

Really...
Beans are way overcooked.

Maybe that bird
knew something we didn't.

ouch.

I thought the ribs,
they weren't that tender,

And they were a little dry.

This is Kelly's bison burger.

I think the burger's
a little bland.

It's a super simple
presentation,

And nothing a home cook
couldn't do easily.

I heard good things
about the bison burgers.

- Really?
- Mm-hmm.

That doesn't mean
the judges will like them.

This is Amanda's rib,
grilled asparagus.

If I may compare,

I like Amanda's rib much more
than I like Tim's rib.

Well, I totally agree,
but I'll tell you,

Grilled asparagus gets
my heartstrings every day.

- There you go.
- Thank you.

This is grilled
flank steak by Kevin.

It's got rice and beans
with green Spanish olives.

Is anyone else noticing

That the texture of the beans
is very strange?

Yeah, they're undercooked.

Um, anybody notice
how bland the rice is?

Hi, Lynne.

Hi there.

What did you make for us?

Leg of lamb.

I rubbed it
with ras el hanout,

With a zucchini spaghetti.

Um, I did a little harissa
marinated pork loin.

I did a quinoa salad.

Today I made, uh,
Italian sausage slider burgers.

Tomato, cucumber,
and bell pepper relish.

Thanks, Tracey.

This is Kenny's pork.

I like the idea
of the harissa.

I thought it was well-cooked.

It's really pretty.

- Thank you very much.
- Thank you.

Lynne's lamb
feels very heavy,

Even though
it looks very light,

Because of the cheese.

I totally agree
about the cheese.

All right.
Now, for all you meat-eaters...

So this is Tracy's
sausage and fennel slider.

It isn't bad.
Maybe a little too much fennel.

Yeah.

It's too big.

It ain't no slider there.

It's a little under-cooked.

What'd you think
of my burger?

It was spicy.

Least it had something
going on with it.

Hi, Tiffany.

I did wild sockeye salmon

With a little bit
of a tamarind glaze.

And then Israeli couscous.

I have spicy root beer-glazed
skirt steak

With a little
picnic potato salad.

Well, I have couscous

Flavored with pine nuts
and olives.

Then I took some bass

And I wrapped it in bacon

To keep it nice and moist.

Right now, what I made
is a spiced, grilled tuna loin

With a lentil hummus.

Is this something
you'd serve

To your family for a picnic?

I would definitely
do something like this.

Thanks a lot.
Appreciate it.

All right.
Enjoy.

I definitely
feel better today

Than the way I felt yesterday.

I shouldn't have
to worry about the food.

I'm confident in my dish,

Because my father
was an executive chef.

He never thought of doing
half the

That I've done
in my life already.

And he told me years ago

That I already surpassed him.

Ed's dish is really
kind of picnic friendly.

You know,
you could eat a few of these.

This dish
has a lot of flavor in it.

- Yeah.
- Yeah.

And that tuna
is perfectly cooked.

Rare on the inside.

This is Andrea's spicy
root beer-glazed skirt steak.

Boy, that is root beer.

I do think the root beer
is too sweet.

Wouldn't
have expected root beer

To taste good on meat.

This is Tiffany's
wild sockeye salmon.

With Israeli couscous.

Israeli couscous.

Just bland.

I mean, to have a glaze
that has no flavor

Is a little sad.

- Looks really good.
- Awesome.

I don't think Stephen's
sea bass is good at all.

It's sort of stringy inside,

And it's really chewy
and hard to get through

On the outside.

Bacon just kind of
crisped up on the grill,

But didn't render its fat out.

I'm just not
a fan of the fish.

Do you want
to taste my ribs?

Is that why you're here?

Wow.
Holy .

The one dish
that is sticking out,

Hands down, is Amanda's.

I think it's--
I think it's the best--

I think it's even better than
mine, to be honest with you.

That's excellent.

- Thank you very much.
- Really.

Thank you.

That's the best thing
I've tasted.

Thank you.

- Taste her ribs, man.
- Whose?

- Amanda.
- Are you serious?

Holy .
She k*lled it.

You know, I taste my dish
together, and it's good.

I mean, the flavor's there.

I mean, you can't call me out
on that. That's for sure.

That is so tender.

Well, you know
I wanted to try this.

And I start tasting
some people's dishes.

Everybody's food is good.
Everybody's.

There's not one bad dish.
Nothing.

You know, I didn't taste
anything worse than mine.

Well, I think we know

Who we need to talk to
at judges' table,

So let's head home
and get to it.

Part of being a top chef

Is that when things go wrong,

Figure out how to fix it.

Show us great food that
a professional chef would make.

Step it up.

I can probably tell you
things about your past,

Things about your present,

And things about your future.

Yeah, I'm psychic.

"psychic" is a broad word.

I'm clairvoyant.
I'm not psychic.

Three major issues.

My psychic readings
are probably I would say



Your husband is going to go
in a new direction.

You are freaking me out.

- What did she tell you?
- Nothing.

Sorry. I'm sorry.

No, I'm sorry.

- Did you just read her palm?
- No.

- Yes, she did.
- No, not completely.

The other chefs love
that I'm psychic.

How entertaining is that?

You asked me.

Well, dude,
how could I not ask you

After you laid it out
like that?

You baited me.

I heard good things
about your fish,

But I didn't taste it.

But everybody's food
was really good, though.

I feel good.
I think that I should be on top.

The only thing
that could have gone wrong

Is overcooking the fish,

You know,
and it could dry out.

But that was the whole idea
of the bacon.

- Was your bacon crispy?
- It was.

Yeah.
Yeah, I think I nailed it.

I think I nailed it.

It was different.

Can we please see

Arnold, ed, Amanda,
and Angelo?

Thank you.

The four of you
had the picnic's winning dishes,

So congratulations.

- Whoo!
- Yes!

Thank you.

Ed, had you made
this tuna sandwich before?

I have a lot of experience
making tartines.

I thought your dish
was very bright.

It's a bold choice
using tuna, I think.

Thank you.
I appreciate that.

- Arnold.
- The lamb itself

Was full of flavor.

It was a nice surprise.
It was like, wow, okay.

There's some food here.
There's flavor here.

Cool.
Thanks.

- Amanda.
- Yes.

You k*lled me
with those asparagus.

I love them.

The ribs, I really liked
the rub.

I liked the way
they were cooked.

The salad didn't need
to be there.

Angelo.

It was nice.
I liked the flavors.

It was nice and crisp, and
I enjoyed the dish very much.

Thank you very much.

So, Jonathan,
as our guest judge,

Why don't you
announce the winner.

Arnold,
you did it for me.

Thanks for letting me do it.

wow.

Surprise.
I win.

It's nice to be recognized

For being who you are.

I have to stay focused

And try to use this momentum

For my benefit

And just continue doing
what I do.

And now I'm afraid
I have to ask you

To call back
some of your colleagues.

Thanks.

I didn't win the challenge,
but being in the top four,

For me,
is just as good as winning.

I think I've proved
that I can cook.

Who is it?

You're the winner?

The judges would like
to see Tim,

Stephen, Tracey,
and Kevin.

Good luck, guys.

The four of you had
the most disappointing dishes

Of today's picnic.

Stephen, had you ever done
this dish before?

Definitely not for a picnic.

But there was something
really unappealing

About the bass,
unfortunately.

And when you cut into it,

It became very hard to cut.

You know,
it just didn't come together.

The bacon itself had no char
on it at all.

It needed to spend more time
on that grill

Developing some smoky flavors.

That aside, the couscous
was really, really just greasy

And had very little flavor
at all.

Timothy, let's move on
to you.

Pork two ways
with white beans

And some greens.

I didn't care
for the vegetables.

Some were cooked.
Some were not cooked.

Everything has to be good,

Everything has to be seasoned,

And you had plenty of time
yesterday.

And you had plenty of time
today.

I think you shied away
from the dish

Rather than push it
to a limit.

And that was my disappointment.

Kevin.

I must say
that your plate

Was the safest Puerto Rican food

I've ever had.

I don't feel
that it was safe.

I mean, the Puerto Rican people
that I'm familiar with,

That's the food
that they would do.

- Are they chefs?
- No.

Exactly.
You are.

- Yes.
- So show us

Great Puerto Rican food
that a professional chef

Would make.

Step it up.

Tracey,
are you surprised

To be here?
No.

I'm not surprised
to be here.

When you were doing
your mise en place,

Did you taste it?

- I tasted it.
- And did you think

You should have crushed
the fennel first

With the spices?

Maybe I should have crushed
the fennel.

I did taste it.

There were probably,
you know,

Burgers that had a lot
of fennel seed.

There was probably burgers

That didn't have
a lot of fennel seed.

My Patty also was actually

Really pink.

I mean, not even pink.
Really raw.

You know, if that's
what you call Italian food,

Then it's almost insulting
to Italians.

Me being one.
Sorry.

Part of being a top chef
is that, when things go wrong,

That's when you pull inside
yourself and figure out

How to fix it.

You kind of stopped trying,
basically.

And chefs should never do that.

We'll call you back in a bit.
Thank you.

It's time to stew.

Who's gonna miss me
the most?

- What'd they say?
- They thought, like,

That's not realistic that
somebody would wrap a fish

With bacon and, like,
do that at a picnic.

They were like, "dude, you know,
like, it's a picnic.

You know, like, hello."

There certainly were
a lot of mistakes made today.

In Stephen's case,
I think it was a bad choice.

Basically, what you got was a
steamed piece of bacon and fish.

Yeah. Steamed bacon?

It was kind of waved
over the grill last second.

Ooh, here you go.
I think that the fish

Was really,
seriously inedible.

It was almost raw bacon
and overcooked fish.

And, to me, that wasn't even
the worst part of the dish.

I thought the couscous
was worse than the fish.

I'm sensing
a lack of confidence.

Timothy was very happy
to use the grill.

He mentioned to me
that grill's his thing.

And then he had
this grilled zucchini.

They were at least edible.

- Tracey.
- I think my 10-year-old son

Probably could have made
that Patty.

You know, give him some meat,
give him some spices,

And he'd probably form it
together.

That's kind of what
it looked like.

It did not look like
a professional chef

Made that Patty.

Ah, whatever.
It sucks.

What about Kevin's
Puerto Rican rice and beans?

I thought his meat
was grilled nicely.

Yeah.
I did too.

I had no problem with the way
he grilled his meat.

I think
that he thought

That was the worst part
of his dish.

That's why he didn't give us
very much.

Rice and beans.
It's rice and beans.

There's nowhere to go.

The rice was overcooked,

And the beans were undercooked.

I think what we got here
was a watered-down version

Of Puerto Rican food.

Let's get them out here.

So today we cooked
at mount Vernon,

One of our most iconic
historical landmarks.

Your challenge was to create
the all-American picnic.

Unfortunately, none of you
really created history today

With your food.

Stephen,
you gave us a dish

That was more in keeping
with a restaurant,

Not of a picnic.

You also paired it
with a dish

Of kind of oily couscous.

Timothy,
pork, beans,

Ham hocks,
salad--

That dish
should have been soulful.

It should have been
full of flavor.

And, instead, we got
watery beans and wilted greens.

Kevin, love where you got
your inspiration.

But the inspiration has
to come through on the plate.

Didn't see it.

Tracey, you started out
with an idea

To do Italian food

And left us
with white bread

And slimy onions and peppers.

All in all,
it wasn't a good day

For American chefs.

Tracey, please pack
your knives and go.

Luck to you,
Tracey.

Thank you
for the opportunity.

The judges, you know,
they critique my dish,

And they're pretty harsh.

But it's fair.

I'm leaving.

Oh, trace.

I deserve to go home.

I'm okay with that.

It was the experience
of a lifetime for sure.

Nobody wants to come with me?

Had I better prepared myself
emotionally for it,

I think I'd still be here.

I'd still be doing well.

But I don't think I left

Because I'm a bad chef.

I think I left
because I had a bad day.

And I'm gonna be okay.

Next on top chef...

Two chefs will be going home.

Double elimination,
that's rough.

Two people in one night,
whew.

We're not gonna use
that much, are we?

Cooking in a team, for me,
is extremely challenging

Because I'm used
to being the boss.

Listen, don't with me,
okay?

That's enough.
That's enough.

Hollandaise doesn't even hit
the plate.

How many mistakes
can we make?

.

I got Bay leaf.

Okay, what's
the star anise for?

I'm anxious
at this point

Because Eric's known
for fish.

I would have sent it back.

I would never send it.

Did she say
she used canned beans?

- Yes.
- They didn't have enough time

To cook them?
Right.

A bag of beans?