06x14 - Napa Finale, Part 1

[bunniefuu]

[Padma]

This season on

Top chef...

Good luck!

Of the country's most

Talented young chefs

Met in las vegas

For the culinary competition

Of a lifetime.

This is the first season

Where there's

This many badass cooks.

Hurry up!

Shut the [bleep] up, bryan.

That's a lot of people, guys.

Oh, my god.

They faced of the toughest

Elimination challenges ever.

-And the winner is bryan.

-Michael v.

-Kevin.

-Jennifer.

-Michael.

-Bryan.

-Jennifer.

-Kevin.

The remaining four chefs

Converged in napa valley.

It's time to cook

Your [bleep] a*s off.

This sucks.

You gotten

Your plan finalized?

Yeah, hopefully

It all works out.

[Chuckles]

Jennifer, please pack

Your knives and go.

I just wish I did better.

The winner of tonight's

Elimination challenge

Is bryan.

Congratulations, chef.

-Congratulations.

Now, only kevin and brothers

Michael and bryan remain.

[Glasses clink]

At stake for the winner,

A feature

In

Food & wine

Magazine,

$, Of merchandise,

Provided by macy's,

A showcase at the annual

Food & wine

Classic in aspen,

And $,

To help turn their

Culinary dreams into reality,

Furnished by the makers

Of the glad family of products,

And the title of top chef.

I'm absolutely stoked

To be in the finale.

I'm [bleep] pumped to be

One of the last three.

Oh, man, look at that mug.

Dude.

How come mine's always

Bigger than everyone else's?

[Sarcastically] ha ha ha.

I know that I have

The best record going into this.

I've won

Five eliminations, but...

Bryan is an excellent cook.

His technique

Is extremely sound,

And michael is one of the single

Most creative people

I've ever met

In my entire life.

The brothers are gonna

[Bleep] bring it.

I wonder what jennifer's doing

Right now?

Detoxing.

[Laughing] detoxing.

Still sucks that it wasn't bryan

Though, you know?

[Laughing] I was thinking

The same thing about you.

[Laughter]

Bryan has won

So many challenges,

But yet he hasn't

Won a quickfire, I think,

All season long.

So I think he's really driving

For that money right now.

Personally, I feel

Like I'm gonna be able to have

A lot of fun

Cooking this last challenge.

I woke up this morning,

I'm like,

"God, I can't even believe

That it's gotten down to this."

And michael and I both

Wanted to be in the final,

And finally get the opportunity

To see who's the best chef.

You guys ready?

Yep, let's go.

Kevin, you're not

Gonna need those.

-My knives?

-Yeah.

I know, I'm just gonna karate

Chop everything to pieces.

[Laughter]

-Good morning, chefs.

-How's it going?

[All] morning.

And congratulations.

We started with of you,

And now only three remain.

It's time to find out

Who will win $,...

And the title of top chef.

You'll be cooking

A three-course meal,

But we're gonna change

Things up a little bit.

For the first course,

Each of you will receive a box

Filled with identical

Ingredients.

You must use

Each ingredient in the box

To create your first course,

So you really have to show

Your creativity

To outshine

Your other competitors.

[Michael] here's the twist--

That typical

Top chef

Curveball.

Nobody wants somebody else

Telling them what to cook.

After that,

For your second course,

Cook anything you wish

With any ingredient

That you find in the kitchen.

And for the third course,

You must make a dessert.

[Kevin] I'm not really known

For doing desserts,

So it's not gonna be easy.

You'll be serving your meal

At cyrus.

It's a two-star

Michelin restaurant

And one of the best

In the country.

Among the diners

Are some of the most preeminent

Restaurateurs

In the united states.

Trust me, for a young chef,

This is the opportunity

Of a lifetime.

This meal

Can make your career.

For such an important meal,

We've arranged for you to have

A little help.

Who the [bleep] is this?

-Hello, there.

-[Indistinct chatter]

-Chefs, welcome back.

-It's great to be back.

[Kevin] everyone else who's been

In this competition so far

Shows up,

Including jennifer,

Who's a badass.

There are a lot of different

Ways this could work out.

You know,

There are people here

That could set you up

Better or worse.

Recognize these faces?

Well, two of them

Will become your sous chefs.

One will cook

With you tonight,

And the other will cook

With you tomorrow.

Draw knives

For the last time

To determine

Who will be your sous chefs.

[Bryan] you know, I think

There's a couple names

That if I pulled the knife out

And their name was on it,

I'd probably just slit

My throat with it.

Preeti.

I end up drawing preeti,

And I don't know that her

Skill set is very strong.

This challenge--

It's gonna be really hard.

Jennifer.

[Bryan] jen, uh, she's

A tough competitor

And delivered

In a lot of challenges.

She's gonna be there

To help me win.

Jesse.

[Bryan] jesse, she's

A workhorse.

I mean,

In any circumstance,

She'll show up

And fight the fight.

Okay, kevin,

You're up again.

Ash.

Ashley.

Eli.

I'm a little jealous

Of my other two competitors.

It's like the two people

I'm most familiar with

Out of everybody

In this competition

Are the sous chefs

For the people

That I'm up against.

Michael, bryan, kevin,

You've combined to win

Out of elimination

Challenges.

But there's one more to go.

We're expecting

Some great food.

Good luck to all of you.

All this has to end up

On one plate?

What's this?

In the mystery box,

I see pacific rockfish.

There's also dungeness crab.

Kabocha squash, meyer lemon,

Matsutake mushrooms,

And anise hyssop.

The ingredients seem

A bit obscure to meld together.

It's not gonna be easy

To develop a dish.

-See you guys tomorrow.

-Awesome, cool.

-See you tomorrow.

-Godspeed.

-Oh, I can't reach that.

-What do you need?

Oranges.

So do you think you can use

That for goat cheese?

Yeah, we could do that.

Yes.

We have three hours

Of preparation,

You know, to get ready

For the next day.

And then three hours

To cook tomorrow.

Okay, chef.

-Lemongrass, ginger.

-Yep.

Fennel would be

A little nice.

Ashley is coming in

g*ns blazing.

I truly believe that she has

This great sense

Of fundamental technique,

And she really

Is a darn good cook.

I think everyone's

Pretty frantic at this point.

The thing that's throwing us

All off is this mystery box.

I'm still all over the place

With ideas on that one.

So I'm starting to get

A little bit concerned.

There's plenty more

Of these pumpkins.

We just need perfect cuts

Out of it.

Preeti's mostly just gonna

Cut some vegetables for me.

She's having a hard time

With some of them.

If it doesn't look right,

Then obviously

You don't use it, you know.

I'm starting to get

Really mad, actually.

I am doing a lot more

Than I thought I would be doing.

I have--my prep list

Has about items,

And I have preeti

Doing of the .

-Guys, one hour left, yeah?

-One hour.

All right, we're gonna do

A stock with it, not cream.

-Let's use chicken stock.

-Yes, chef.

You know, in order

To close this thing,

It's gonna come

Down to execution.

So my strategy is just

To simply stay focused.

It's not the time

To try things new.

How much of this

Do you want reserved?

Yeah, half of it reserved.

Bryan is a little

More conservative than I am.

I just--i kind

Of have a tendency

To just do what I want.

This is grams

Of sugar, right?

Correct.

It's gotten me

In a little bit of trouble

Throughout the season.

But that's me,

And that's me cooking my food.

Bryan, you don't have

A nine-volt battery

For a thermocouple,

Do you?

I do.

Michael says he's

More of a risk-taker.

I wouldn't say

That I'm playing it safe.

I'd say I'm playing it smart.

Minutes left, guys,

Minutes.

Kevin, your sauce, your sauce,

Your sauce, your sauce.

[Kevin] I'm starting to get

A little down,

Because I don't know how well

I can rely on my sous chefs.

So I'm just gonna have to figure

Out what I can make,

And hopefully, tomorrow,

Knock it out of the park.

-Good luck, man.

-Thanks.

-Thank you.

-Yeah.

[Michael] I'm ready

For tomorrow.

I got a pretty good

Game plan.

And I'm very happy

With who I have on my team.

I feel really damn good.

I know that jen

Is very quick.

And, you know, I'm excited

To get to work with her.

Thank you so much.

I appreciate it.

[Michael] bry, we got to figure

Out our situation on our side,

How we're gonna

Split up that range

So that we're not banging

Into each other.

[Bryan] yes, I know.

[Kevin] I'm really mad

At myself.

I've lost half of my prep time

To being pissed off

That preeti

Wasn't doing enough yesterday.

And it might come back to bite

Me in the a*s here.

There's a freezer over here.

I plan to plate my dessert

On one of these sides.

I feel really good.

I have a

Mis-en-place

List

Together.

I even have drawings of how

I'm gonna plate my dishes.

I feel confident

That I'm set up.

You might have to plate

On this side of the pass.

I'm don't have a problem--

We can do that.

Waking up today,

I still have no idea

What I'm gonna make

For that mystery-box course.

This is the first time

In the competition

That anxiety has started

To set in.

I mean,

I didn't come here to lose.

[Knock at door]

There's a knock at the door.

We're pretty much certain

That it's gonna be padma

To deliver us

Our curveball for the day.

We knew something was up.

We could just feel it.

Tons of things

Are going through our mind

At that moment.

"You got another course.

You don't have a sous chef."

I mean,

It could have been anything.

-Hey, baby doll.

-Hi, mom.

Hi, guys!

I look up.

I'm like...

"Who's kevin wrapping

His arms around so excited?"

[Both laughing]

But then right behind her

Is my mother.

I was like, "oh, my god."

Unexpected surprise.

You know,

It was kind of surreal.

But when you see your mother

Walk through the door,

I mean, that was

A really cool feeling.

I'm so glad to see you.

Oh, god.

I'm glad to see you too.

It's a pretty

Pleasant surprise.

That's a lot better than

Who I thought it was gonna be.

It's like sending you guys off

To the first day of school,

You know?

Because of seeing

My mom today,

The reality of the fact

That I'm competing

Against my brother

Is setting in even more.

Can I button it for you?

It's heart-wrenching

At times.

My stomach feels nervous.

You want them both

To do well,

But ultimately

There's one winner.

No matter what happens,

You're still brothers.

And you're best friends.

My mother--she doesn't want

To see our relationship get torn

Because of what we're

Up against here.

I believe in that.

You know, I mean,

That's who I am.

They have to be perfect creases

That are all the same size.

Well, just give me a chance.

Mom can roll your sleeves

However the hell she wants, man.

Yeah.

[Grumbling gibberish]

The three of us

All want to win so bad.

I know, I know.

You know, there's

Only one person that can.

It pulls my heart strings

When I see my child

So emotionally wrapped up

In something.

I'm a little nervous,

Because these guys--

Their technique

Is so strong.

And because their food

Is so beautiful--

Be the real you.

Be the real kevin.

Thank you, mom.

I'm so proud

Of how you have done.

I am not a quitter.

I hope I can climb

Out of the funk,

And I can just--

I can work through it.

You deserve to be top chef.

Got to put this thing on

For the last time here.

Yeah, I think that kevin

Has everything it takes

To beat both bryan

And michael.

Now, of course, you know,

I'm always your best fan anyhow.

-[Laughing]

-I love you, mom.

I love you too, baby.

My mom really inspired me.

I'm feeling a lot better

Going into today.

Let's go, boys.

Winning

Top chef,

To me,

Comes down to a matter

Of personal pride,

And I'm gonna fight

To the very last dish.

All right, let's do it.

So we're leaving

The meritage resort and spa

And heading over

To cyrus in healdsburg

To cook for the finale.

-Hey, chefs.

-Chef.

How you doing?

-Good.

-Good.

We walk into the restaurant.

We're stopped by tom.

I'm thinking,

"Here comes our twist."

[Laughs] you know,

This is it, right here.

Were you surprised

To see your moms this morning?

-Extremely surprised.

-[Chuckles]

Hope you had

A nice time with them.

-Yeah, it was--

-Thank you.

In honor of your moms

Being in town,

We're gonna add a course

To tonight's menu.

The first course

Of now your four-course menu

Should be dedicated

To your mom

And inspired by your favorite

Childhood dish.

Your sous chefs

Will be joining you shortly.

Good luck.

And your time starts now.

The whole challenge now

Is to not create a three-course,

But a four-course dinner.

Grab the vita-mix,

Meet me on my station.

First course inspired

By a childhood memory.

Second course,

The mystery box.

Third course,

Whatever we want.

And fourth course, dessert.

-Come with me.

-Oui,

Chef.

We have three hours

Until the first course

Has to actually be plated.

Guys, I'm doing spot prawns

For my first course.

All right.

It's never enough time.

All right, uh,

Big thing right now--

I'm gonna have you

Break down the fish.

All right,

You're gonna clean it.

Now I got to come up

With the first course also.

Growing up, my parents

Were divorced

At an early age.

You know, it was difficult

For my mom

As a working mother

Raising three kids.

A lot of our

Mis en place

Is right here.

So my first course

Is going to be

A play

On tuna noodle casserole.

Tuna noodle, tuna noodle.

My mom's version had

A lot of flavor and texture,

You know,

Which I really love.

I think it's where I learned

To develop a sense of texture

Early on.

Sardines--i like that.

Then I ran into some sardines

That I thought

Would kind of mimic the idea

Of cured tuna.

It had to be something

Inspired by your mom,

And I hated vegetables.

Growing up as a child,

Broccoli was the number-one

Thing that I despised.

I'm gonna make

A broccoli puree.

As a chef,

I like to take things

That I don't necessarily love

And re-create them in a way

That I like it.

I've got some dehydrated

Broccoli in my kit.

We're gonna fry

And put that on top.

Mom made sure we had dinner

On the table every night.

The food was just

Mom food, you know--

Pork chops

And macaroni and cheese.

It's not so much that the food

Was a culinary memory.

It's the fact that she always

Made sure that it was there.

Pull them out.

And I think that's where

My work ethic came from.

Ash, can you throw me

Another board up right there?

I grew up in

A lower-middle-class family.

Hours, minutes left.

When it was time to apply

To colleges,

I chose m.i.t. And was not

Confident that I would get in.

However, I did.

But I decided that

I'm not gonna go to college.

I'm gonna be a chef.

It was a tough decision,

Because I felt like

I might disappoint my family.

But my mother actually

Was very supportive.

And I'm incredibly thankful

For that.

The new first course

Is inspired by, uh,

Obviously like a sunday supper--

Fried chicken...

My mom is a traditional

Southern woman.

So for this first course,

I'm gonna make

Southern fried chicken skin,

Because that's

What she likes the best--

The outside

Crunchy, salty part.

I'm calling it

Chicken and fixins.

I need to get

Perfect portions.

The second course

Is the mystery box.

You know, the ingredients

That we're given--

The dungeness crab,

The rockfish,

The meyer lemon, matsutake,

And the anise hyssop.

-You want the skin on still?

-Yeah.

The only thing

I'm worried about right now

Is the fact that rockfish

Typically can get really dry,

And so I want

To combat that.

So I'm cooking the fish

Sous-vide

With a little bit of oil,

Very low temperature.

-Cut this guy open.

-Oui,

Chef.

Second course--

The dish that I created

On the way to the kitchen--

I'm gonna just slowly cook

The fish in butter.

Poach the crab

In a kombu stock.

What I want to achieve

With this dish

Is kind of a scavenger hunt

Of flavor.

Every time they take a bite,

They're gonna find

Something else

That's like,

"Wow. Like, whoa.

Like, where

Did that come from?"

We're gonna get

All of our meat set up,

And we're gonna execute it

Just like we were doing service.

The mystery box

Is the hardest thing for me.

What I've decided to do

Is cook the fish

-In duck fat, actually.

-Okay.

The biggest problem

Is the matsutake mushroom.

Yeah, they're [bleep] wet.

It's kind of tough,

And so I don't really know

What to do with it.

Some of these tomatoes

Are super ripe,

So I just put extra ones

In there.

Cool.

Ash is taking on

A much bigger load than preeti.

He has about or things

That he has

On his prep list, personally,

And he's knocking them

All out super fast.

-This good?

-Yeah.

It's very, very,

Very helpful

To have him here today.

One hour, guys.

Down there on the right, eli,

On the dry spice on the right.

Third course--

I'm gonna do a squab

With what I called

Real and fake mushrooms.

What I want

To do with this dish

Is do a lot of really

Refined technique,

But in a rustic way.

They'll look at it

And be like,

"Well, this doesn't really look

Like the food

That michael usually cooks."

You can make

Some fennel salad.

But then

When they get into it,

Then they'll find me,

You know, in there.

The belly--

That's what's up here.

I just keep flipping

It over, basically.

Okay.

My third course is pork belly,

Slow roasted.

I'll baste it

With some apple vinegar

And some honey.

Pork is my thing.

That's my jam.

And I think

That I'm going to nail it.

My third-course dish

Is venison.

I want to do a couple

Different preparations

Of each of the vegetables.

I don't have this glaze

That's going over the top.

I have the sears, though.

We need to get some warm water.

You know, I hunt,

Not for sport,

But to get more in tune

With my ingredients,

So venison is a good choice.

Minutes left, guys.

Last dish I'm gonna do

Is a chocolate coulant

With a caramel center.

Eli, put a pot of, like,

Hot water--the small pot.

-Two pots are already on, chef.

-Thank you.

And then basically

Just textures of pumpkin.

♪

Hot bacon

♪

My dessert is roasted banana,

Chocolate bacon.

My clinch garnish

For my dessert right here.

They're flavors that I think

All go together.

And I'm kind of hell-bent

On putting bacon in the dessert.

I'm gonna get a [bleep] award

From the bacon council.

[Laughing]

Gonna pop out

My cheesecakes.

I want to make sure

They come out clean.

My fourth course

Is sheep's milk

And white-chocolate

Dulce de leche cheesecake.

I'm really excited

To make a dessert,

Because to be

A well-rounded chef,

You should have

Your hands in the pastry.

Five minutes left.

It's too hot over there

For this stuff.

You want to cook the sardines,

And I can plate this?

It's time to plate

The first course.

Yeah, go.

Go, go, go, go.

This is it.

No turning back now.

I don't want

To miss the time.

Get that done, eli.

You have two minutes.

I feel pretty good.

My dish is bold.

It's rustic.

This one on the end right here

Is a beauty, okay?

That's pretty [bleep] delicious.

I feel % confident

With my first course,

But it's anyone's game

At this point.

I truly believe myself,

Michael, and bryan

Could all beat one another

On any given day.

It's a crapshoot.

[Woman] I want to thank everyone

For coming,

Especially the moms.

-Thank you.

-Very excited.

But you must forgive

All of us in advance

If we say some critical things

About the plates of food

We're about to receive,

Because that is

Kind of our job.

Tom, I live in vegas.

I know where to find you.

[Laughter]

You're in trouble.

-This isn't fair.

-[Laughter]

[Bryan] so we walk out

To the dining room,

And here's another

Unexpected twist.

You know, our mothers

Are sitting at the table.

So who's--

Who's the judge tonight?

I don't think my mother's

Ever eaten a sardine before

In her life, so...

[Laughing] um...

Had I known she was sitting

There for the first course,

I might have changed my mind

A little bit.

My mom is not afraid

To tell you

Exactly what she thinks

About something.

And I can only imagine

That she's gonna embarrass me

Just a little bit.

Chefs, I'd like

To introduce you

To your esteemed selection

Of diners.

Head judge, tom colicchio

Of craft restaurants.

Gail simmons

Of

Food & wine

Magazine.

Our returning judge,

Toby young.

James beard-award winner,

Douglas keane.

Bill terlato,

President and ceo

Of terlato wine group.

And our restaurateurs--

Donatella arpaia,

Owner of anthos, mia dona,

And kefi.

Steven starr, owner

Of buddakan and morimoto.

Drew nieporent, owner

Of tribeca grill and corton.

Sam nazarian,

Owner of bazaar and katsuya.

This is

An incredible opportunity.

What could be at stake is that

One of these restaurateurs

Might pluck up one of us

To work with them

In the future.

And, of course,

Your lovely moms,

Kathy and sharon,

Are joining us to taste

Your first course.

Please tell us

What you've made.

We'll start with you, kevin.

What I have here

Is my favorite dish--

Southern fried chicken.

On the bottom

Is liquid-squash casserole,

Uh, just a little bit

Of fresh tomato,

Because my favorite side

For fried chicken

Is fresh seasoned tomatoes.

Oh, delicious, son.

-[Laughter]

-Thanks, mom.

Bryan.

My mother was the queen

Of the one-pot meal

And, um, was very good

At a tuna noodle casserole.

What I decided to do

Is take sardines.

Uh, I served it simply

Over german butterball potatoes,

Heirloom tomatoes,

Shaved fennel.

On the side,

I took panko bread crumbs

And then just simply toasted

Them in duck fat.

-And, michael.

-I was actually

The pickiest eater

In the family.

So my mom told me if I ate

My dinner every night

For a month,

I would get a trophy.

And she gave me a cup

That said "champion eater."

But the thing I didn't like

The most was broccoli.

So I call this cream

Of dehydrated broccoli.

You have broccoli that's been

Fried to taste like popcorn.

And then with that is just

A lightly flashed

Santa barbara spot prawn.

-Thank you all.

-Thank you.

I would not want

To be the judges.

Mm-hmm.

Why don't we start

With kevin's?

Everything together

Worked nicely.

The squash--

I keep going back to it,

And I keep tasting it,

And it's interesting,

Because it's almost

Like tasting wine.

You keep finding

Flavors in it.

I felt it really taking me

Back to exactly the south.

Yes.

And that's what

It intended to do.

I want to know what kevin's

Mom thought about this dish.

I don't think kevin

Has ever served a dish to me

That I did not like.

Does this remind you

Of the dish he was speaking of?

Yes, it does, very much.

Bryan's dish.

The only thing

My dad could cook

Was sardines on toast.

The combination of sardines

And bread crumbs

Really brought

That back for me.

Bryan's dish was probably

The least seasoned.

Especially when

You see a sardine,

You're looking for acid.

And there was just nothing

There, and it was a shame.

Actually, that's the first

Time I've ever eaten sardine.

I was concerned I was gonna get

A real fishy taste,

But I didn't.

And I like

The panko bread-crumbing.

Michael's prawn

Did not work for me at all.

My shrimp were undercooked.

I thought it was cooked

Quite well.

I think a little bit

Undercooked is fine.

As a person that did not

Like broccoli,

He made me like it.

And I thought the story

Was beautiful.

The fried broccoli--

I loved it.

I just like that crunchy

Little popcorn-y thing.

Did he really hate broccoli

That much?

-Michael hated everything.

-[Laughter]

Which dish

Did you like better?

-Better?

-That's mean.

I plead...

-Yes, plead the fifth.

-I take the fifth.

Moms, I want to thank you

For joining us

-For the first course.

-Thank you so much.

It's been a pleasure

Having you.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

Bye-bye.

-Hey, guys. Bye.

-Hey.

Hey, guys.

Love you.

Good luck.

Did they beat us up, or what?

Afterwards, I was worried

About how michael was feeling,

How bryan was feeling.

Like a mother duck,

You know?

You just kind of want

To scoop them in.

-Love you.

-I love you.

One of the things that I

Have been looking forward to

Was kevin showing the world

What a southern boy can do--

How you can take

Simple food

And turn it

Into something fabulous.

Bring it, bring it,

Bring it, bring it.

Tell us what you made.

I have a lightly cooked

Pacific rockfish,

On top of that, roasted

Kabocha squash with celery.

Inside the bowl is a roasted

Matsutake mushroom.

My dish is a rockfish.

I served it over

The kabocha squash

That I lightly seasoned

With curry.

And there's a dot

Of meyer lemon

On top of each

Piece of the fish.

What I did

Was a warm rockfish.

It's glazed with a dashi,

And then with the squash

And the meyer lemon,

I made a salad

With sweet and sour crab.

Okay, thank you all.

See, now we're getting

Into it.

This is the good stuff.

What did you think

Of kevin's?

The broth

Was clearly the star.

It was so rich.

The essence of the flavors

There were fantastic.

And then I bit

Into that mushroom.

[Laughing] and I was like,

"Ohh, jeez."

I agree.

He didn't nail the matsutake.

It was tough.

It looked like

I need a hatchet to cut it.

The fish was nicely cooked.

Um, the others were better,

But it was a good dish.

Bryan's dish

With the curry.

I guess I would have liked

A little more seasoning,

But I'm starting to see maybe

He's not an aggressive seasoner.

God, it's like a blind date

You just don't want to go on.

The plating is bland.

I thought the fish

Was the best cooked.

I loved the curry flavor.

I think bryan's dish

Was the safest

Of all the dishes.

It didn't inspire me

In any way.

And what about michael's

Sweet and sour rockfish?

I thought the combination

Of meyer lemon and squash

Was just amazing.

His fish was also

Perfectly cooked.

The matsutake he used

Was very thin.

It was crispy,

So it was nice.

-The balance of the sweet

And the sour was great.

It kind of made it pop

In my mouth.

This was my favorite dish

Of this course.

Watch out, guys. I'm coming

Out of the salamander.

Super [bleep] hot--

Watch your sides.

Watch your face.

Okay, kevin,

Tell us what you made.

I like to cook pork a lot.

Um, so it's slow-roasted

Pork belly.

It's over very quickly roasted

Brussels sprouts,

Broccoli, green onion,

And it sits on top

Of a caramelized ham jus.

So I chose

The venison saddle,

Served it over a puree

Of sunchoke.

And the sauce is finished

With a little bit if juniper

And orange.

I did a fennel-scented

Squab breast.

Underneath, you have

A cassoulet of pistachio

With a confit

Of the squab leg.

And then you have three

Different textures of mushroom.

Thank you very much,

Gentlemen.

I don't think you can say

This course of bryan's

-Doesn't have any seasoning.

-There you go.

It's come to a whole

Another level now.

-That's delicious.

-There's talent here.

The meat

Was cooked perfectly.

It was a really nice,

Rich, pungent flavor.

He did a tremendous

Amount of work here

By using each vegetable

Two different ways.

Michael's, uh, squab.

This was excellent.

It had

The different complexities

Of all the different textures.

The mushroom puree

That he molded into a mushroom,

I didn't taste

Mushroom enough.

It's a gimmick,

And we don't need gimmicks,

Not at this level.

What did you think

Of kevin's pork belly?

I didn't think

It was cooked long enough.

It was hard.

I loved the richness

Of the sauce.

He did quite a reduction.

The sauce had a little

Sweet and sour going into it,

And I thought

He did a great job

Of balancing the fat

With acid.

-Eli, how's that plate?

-I have it right here, chef.

[Bleep].

I realize

At this point that,

"A," eli sort of filled

The molds of the cakes

A little bit too high,

And they came out of the top.

Those cakes are filled up

A little too high, man.

Just puffing up?

But, "b,"

That I overcooked them.

[Bleep].

Okay, kevin,

Please tell us what you made.

What I have

Is roasted banana,

A chocolate and bacon mousse,

And then that's bacon brittle

That's sort of strewn

Across the plate.

Bryan.

Mine is a sheep's milk cheese

And white-chocolate

Dulce de leche cheesecake,

And it's served over

Dried caramel with a fig sorbet

And then basil.

Michael.

I did

A chocolate-caramel coulant.

On the inside,

There's a caramel sauce.

To the left

Is a butternut-squash brulee,

A butternut-squash ice cream,

And then some

Candied pumpkin seeds.

Thank you so much.

Well, kevin's dish--

And I know that chefs

Like this,

But I don't want pork

In my dessert.

I loved the bacon crispies,

Because they had

A lot of flavor,

And they had great texture.

The banana was,

I don't think, enough.

I think if you were gonna do

A dessert like this,

Give me bananas

A few different ways.

Michael's--

I love these little buggers.

The pumpkin seeds--

I love them.

That made the dish for me.

The cake

Was a little dry to me.

I thought

It could have used more fat.

Yeah, when you cut into it,

It needed more

Of the creaminess inside, yeah.

I know this dessert

Very well.

It needs to be served

Immediately after it comes

Out of the oven,

Because what happens

Is the caramel starts to absorb

Back into the cake,

And it kind of dries out.

It was almost

A very good dessert.

And bryan.

Cheesecake was pleasant.

It was a nice end

To the meal.

It was obviously

Really finessed.

It was beautiful

To look at.

The fig sorbet, to me,

Was heavenly.

And, to me, this was

A pastry chef's dish.

It showed a lot of skill.

[Applause]

I want to thank

All three of you

For a great meal.

And we'll see you back

At judges' table.

Thank you all very much.

Thank you all very much.

I really, really liked the food

That I served tonight.

I would be happy to sit down

And eat it, for sure.

-Good job, buddy.

-Yeah, dude, you too.

I feel really good.

I feel like every dish

That I plated today

Expressed what my philosophy

And my food is about--

You know, a blend of modern

And fundamental cuisine,

And I think I really expressed

Who I am as a chef.

I'm not feeling like I did

As good as I could have.

I'm realizing that

The worst thing that I served

Was the last thing

That I put on the table.

I liked all of my dishes.

I thought

It was all very flavorful.

Michael and bryan

Both had a good night,

But I think that I ex*cuted

My dishes most seamlessly,

So I feel really great.

I felt pretty good about

Everything I put on a plate.

I'm really excited.

There's $, on the line.

And I feel

Extremely confident

I could be the winner.

That cake was dry.

I'm nervous.

I messed up one dish.

I should've been on that.

Hopefully

I am still a contender here.

Last time.

We'll see.

Thank you, chefs,

For a wonderful meal.

It was an amazing end

To an amazing season.

Let's talk about the dishes.

Bryan, let's talk

About your mystery-box course.

The fish,

I simply brined

With some

Of the meyer lemon.

And then cooked it sous-vide

In olive oil.

I thought the fish

Was very well cooked.

But there wasn't

Enough contrast.

There weren't enough

Different textures in it.

I guess the hallmark

Of many of your dishes

Is a kind of restraint.

I don't call that a fault.

Everything's

Very well ex*cuted.

But nothing

Feels particularly bold.

I was really happy

With your venison.

Um, well, the venison dish

Was the story of my style--

A blend between modern

And traditional cooking.

This dish was seasoned.

The flavors were great.

It was perfect

For the season.

It was your most

Successful dish,

And I really enjoyed it.

Thank you.

Kevin...

Please tell us

About your first dish.

My mom likes

The chicken skin.

Like, she will detach the skin

From the chicken,

Eat that,

And maybe eat the chicken.

Your dish had

A lot of flavor.

It was rich and beautiful,

And I really enjoyed it.

The skin was crispy.

The squash

Was a lot more than squash.

There were some citrus notes

In there.

And I kept going back to it

And trying it

And finding new flavors,

New flavors.

What about your pork dish?

The way that I do it

Is that I cook it slowly

And to cook it sealed

So that it kind of--

Actually,

It sort of like steamed.

You're a self-professed

Pork lover.

You have a pig

Tattooed on your body.

I thought, "this is gonna be

An absolute knockout."

And it wasn't.

It almost seemed

Like you could have taken it

A step further.

It would have been

A good addition

To have a roasted piece of pork

With the belly, you know.

That would have been

A more complete pork dish.

I don't know, I actually

Really liked it a lot.

Michael, how did you deal

With the mystery box?

-Matsutakes,

I actually do use a lot.

So I just fried it

Until it got crispy

And used that to add

Some texture to the dish.

You absolutely nailed

The matsutake.

I mean, it was great.

I thought the pickled tomato

Was like a flavor b*mb

That detonated in your mouth.

And I liked the boldness

Of that choice

And the fact that you

Were prepared to take that risk.

I wanted to do that today.

Like, I wanted food to,

Like, surprise you.

I thought the fish

Was well cooked.

I appreciated the piece of crab

On the plate.

But what I liked

About the dish is--

Is it kept revealing

Different layers of flavor.

I thought

It was very successful.

Thanks, chef.

Tell us about your dessert.

That particular cake--

I make it all the time.

And I didn't set

My timer today.

I mean, I cooked

The crap out of it.

I know that.

I thought it was a--

A mixture of good and bad.

I really liked

The pumpkin seeds--

A nice seasonal touch.

The cake

Was super dry, but...

The flavor combination

Was totally great.

And I could see how...

It was almost

A great dessert.

I'd like to hear

From each one of you,

Starting with bryan,

Why you think

You deserve to be top chef.

There has been

A lot of dishes

That showed a lot

About my style

And a lot

About what I believe food is.

And I felt like I expressed

My--my cuisine.

And, you know, for me,

That's what means

The most to me.

And I hope that

That's good enough to win.

Michael.

I just don't want bryan

To be top chef.

[Laughter]

Good answer.

You know, food, is--

It's me.

It's how I express myself.

It's--my emotion is in it.

And I didn't get good grades

In high school.

I cooked after school,

And that's--that's--

I've never gotten a paycheck

For anything else.

Like, this is all I've ever done

My whole life.

It's all I know how to do.

It's all I'll ever do.

I just--i love what I do.

That's it.

Kevin, same question.

I love food.

I love that it has

This ability

To comfort people

And bring people together.

I put a lot

Of really great food out,

And I think that I cook,

Hopefully,

Food that's soulful and speaks

To the person that I am.

Thank you.

That'll be all for right now.

-Thank you.

-Thanks, guys.

You know, I don't think

Any of us are, uh...

Completely stoked on what we did

In the kitchen today.

I know you don't want to count

Your chickens before they hatch.

You had a damn good season,

And you cooked

A great meal tonight, so...

If I was a betting man,

That's where I'd put my money.

This is a really

Hard decision to make.

Let's start

With the first course.

Kevin was able

To create a dish

That had the most flavor,

That was

The most interesting to eat.

And bryan?

You know, bryan's...

I thought it was a good idea.

I couldn't get past

The fact that it was so bland.

See, I like

Bryan's the best.

I didn't mind the fact

That it was underseasoned.

I could really

Taste the sardine,

And I liked the different

Textures in there.

Michael's-- I wasn't

A fan of his either.

Spot prawns are one

Of the most delicate things

You can work with.

And I think that

That fried floret

Just completely overpowered

The spot prawn.

Let's move on

To the mystery-box course.

I thought michael managed

To use those ingredients

Better than the other two chefs.

I thought

It was more imaginative.

He was willing to take

That extra chance, and--

And so it comes through,

And you feel it.

I think everything,

Actually, on michael's dish

Worked nicely.

Except the tomato, for me,

Was a little strong.

But that tomato to me

Wasn't as low a point

As the mushroom

On kevin's dish.

I recognize that he messed up

That mushroom.

Um, but I thought

His broth was so good

That it compensated for it.

But mushrooms,

Incorrectly cooked--

It wasn't used properly.

But that was an easy fix.

You just didn't eat

The mushroom.

But he put it there

To be eaten.

Then there was bryan's dish.

And although it didn't have

Any major highs or lows,

To me, it had

Absolutely no texture.

It was a very one-note dish.

Let's move on

To the third course.

I could not find

An actual flaw

In bryan's dish.

Every piece of it

Was seasoned well.

The flavors worked together.

The venison

Was a beautiful dish.

I mean, I think

The workmanship was great.

It was really flavorful.

I thought bryan's dish

Was easily the strongest thing

Bryan did.

But I still don't think

It was as memorable

As michael's squab.

There were two things

In michael's dish

That failed for me--

That mushroom, of course,

And then the texture

Of his pistachio cassoulet.

-Yeah.

-And then there was kevin.

I just know that kevin

Is capable of so much more.

I always found his flavors

To be very sophisticated.

I found his flavors tonight

To be not so sophisticated.

Yes.

And dessert.

You know, what bothered me

About michael's dessert

Is that

He didn't make it right.

Yeah.

And he knew

He didn't make it right.

Although michael's dish was dry,

There was something about

The boldness of his flavors

That I really liked there

And that made

A lot of sense to me.

Yeah.

I thought kevin's dish was,

Again, disappointing.

And don't get me wrong--i think

Kevin is on the fast track

To becoming

A culinary superstar.

But he had a bad night.

I liked all the flavors

Of the dish,

But I just thought,

As a complete dessert

And something

I'd want to eat again,

I liked--i liked bryan's.

I would agree with you, tom.

I totally agree.

I think that bryan's, to me,

Was the most restrained,

Subtle, sophisticated,

And that's how

I like my dessert.

And I think he did a lot of

Really interesting stuff there.

I think, with tweaking,

Michael's

Could have been the best.

But tonight,

From what we ate,

Bryan's was the best to me.

Well, I think

We have our winner.

Agreed.

All right,

Let's get them out here.

[Suspenseful music]

One of you is top chef.

You'll win $,,

Furnished by the makers

Of the glad family of products.

Chefs, this season took us

From the glitz and lights

Of the las vegas strip

To the pastoral beauty

Of wine country.

And along the way,

You've thrilled us

With some amazing dishes.

Bryan, you put together

A stellar roster of dishes.

They were well constructed,

Beautifully presented,

And you wowed us

With a great dessert.

Michael, you put together

Some amazingly creative dishes.

You reached high

And often delivered.

Kevin, you stayed true

To yourself

Throughout

This entire competition.

You showed us

That southern food

Is about more

Than just biscuits and gravy.

Kevin...

You are not top chef.

Thanks a lot, guys.

I appreciate it.

It was fun.

I had a bad day,

And it just sucks

That one day ruined it

For me, you know?

Boys...

-[Clears throat]

-Kick a*s, man.

I'm proud of making it

This far,

And I'm proud to lose

To people

As good as michael or bryan.

I was the underdog

From the very beginning

That managed to rise up

And show that if you fight

Really hard,

That you can make it.

And it just didn't

Go all the way.

-You did a good job.

-Thanks, mom.

-I appreciate it.

-Yeah. I love you.

-I love you too.

-It's all good, baby.

I've got to say that,

Throughout this entire season,

It's been a pleasure

To watch both of you.

You're both

Very professional,

Uh, very passionate.

And it's got to be

Really emotional

Having the two of you here,

Sort of the last two standing.

I can't think

Of a prouder moment

In probably both of our lives

Than right now.

Yeah.

I think

He deserves to be here,

And we both cooked

Our hearts out all season long,

So I think we accomplished

What we set out to accomplish.

Michael...

You are top chef.

Congratulations, man.

Congratulations.

Congratulations

To both of you.

That's super.

Good job, man.

I'm more proud of the fact

That bryan and I made it

All the way to the end

Than I am about winning

The entire competition.

It was probably

One of the hardest moments

Of our lives.

I wish both of us could win.

There's the emotion

You've been waiting for, padma.

-Amazing.

-Thank you.

Congratulations.

-Nice work, really great.

-Thank you.

I mean, I'm disappointed

A little bit

In my--

You know, in myself.

I set out to win

The whole thing, you know?

So, I mean,

Coming in second place,

That's tough.

But I'm proud to see

My little brother win.

I mean, obviously,

It was against me,

But rather him

Than anybody else.

-Cheers.

-Cheers.

-[Laughing]

-Thanks.

You know,

I'm really exhausted

And surprised and happy

And sad and--

Like, I didn't know

That you could actually feel

Every single emotion

At the same time.

It's been a rough road.

It's been, um...

A pretty strange process.

But it was worth it,

And I would do it again,

Because it definitely

Got me in touch

With who I am as a person

And who I am as a cook.

And for that,

I'll always appreciate

My experience on

Top chef.