06x15 - Napa Finale, Part 2

[bunniefuu]

It's the

Top chef:



Las vegas reunion.

Ha ha!

[Andy]

The chefs and judges are



Back to answer your questions.

-[Laughter]

-What?

Plus, a sibling rivalry...

I planned on taking bryan out

Earlier than I did.

[Andy]

...overdue apologies...

The remark about cancer--

-Have you apologized?

-I have not apologized.

[Andy]

...a finalist



That considered quitting...

Yeah, it was

A rough point for me.

...and mama voltaggio.

Secretly,

Kevin should have won.

Hey, everybody.

I'm andy cohen.

Welcome to the

Top chef:



Las vegas reunion.

Let's say hi to the judges.

Gail simmons

From

Food & wine

Magazine.

-Hello.

-Hi, andy.

-Tom colicchio.

-How you doing?

Good to see you.

Padma lakshmi.

When are you due?

-In the spring.

-Congratulations.

-Thank you.

-And toby young.

-Good to see you.

-Good to see you.

And welcome our amazing

"Cheftestants" from las vegas.

Unfortunately,

Jesse wasn't feeling well,

So she's not gonna be

Joining us.

First of all, congratulations

To michael voltaggio,

Winner of

Top chef.

[Cheers and applause]

Now that you've won, what will

You do with your money?

Um, I'm gonna work

On getting a restaurant started

And stuff like that.

Bryan and I have always

Kind of dreamed

About maybe doing

Something together,

So that could

Certainly help out.

Um...

Maybe take

A little vacation somewhere.

Well, let's take a look

At your wild ride

To the title of top chef.

-[Laughs]

-Watch.

I decided to become a chef

Because bryan was doing it,

And I never got out.

[Bleep].

No, I'll fry them myself.

Don't touch them.

Winning this competition,

It's getting a chance

To show people

What you're capable of.

I have a desire

To have my own restaurant.

Winning would get me

One step closer to that goal.

Underneath, you have

A japanese tomato sashimi

And then banana polenta.

I confited the tuna with

Olive oil, garlic, and basil.

On top, there's

An egg-yolk ravioli.

Escargot with veal jus.

A painter paints,

Or a musician plays a piano.

I just express myself

On a plate.

-Mmm.

-Isn't that good?

Really good.

Michael's plates are always

The most composed,

Always the most beautiful.

He's super creative.

I actually encapsulated

The caesar dressing,

So your dressing will

Actually ooze into your lettuce

In front of you.

You have to be a professional

To put that together like that.

Super-mega-delicious.

This is my opportunity

To showcase

That I'm a serious cook.

When they taste my food,

They'll agree with that.

So the winner

Is michael v.

-Michael.

-Michael.

Congratulations,

Michael.

I have such high expectations

For myself.

Michael, you are top chef.

Congratulations, man.

For me to win

And actually know

That people have recognized me

For all that hard work,

I was surprised

And happy and sad,

Every single emotion

At the same time.

[Cheers and applause]

I wanna talk about

The finale meal a little bit.

Tom, what did it come down to

At judges' table

That gave the win

To michael?

I think kevin

Had a difficult night.

At a certain point, we realized

That you were out the running,

Which, in essence, kind of made

It a little easier for us,

Because we were just comparing

Two at that point.

Um, bryan's first two dishes

Were just lacking...

Something as simple as salt,

And that was it,

Because they were

Beautiful dishes.

In fact,

I thought the first dish

Was probably better than-

Than your brother's.

It's maybe a bitter pill

To swallow, but that's it.

Tell me about

What it's been like

At your restaurants

And just for you as chefs

Since

Top chef

Has been airing.

Bryan?

Um, when we first arrived

In las vegas,

There was a time

Where I thought, financially,

The restaurant was-

Was really suffering.

And when I got back,

My business is up %.

It--it's enormous.

Are you guys much more likely

To have restaurant critics

Come around and visit

Your restaurants

After appearing on the show?

Buzz has definitely been

A lot higher.

A lot of people who

I hadn't seen in there before

Are now in there.

I know all of you had

A chance to win big money

This season

With the high stakes quickfire.

Who won the most--

Me, I think.

Yeah.

How much did you win?

Uh, $,, I think.

What?

Yeah, not too bad.

In restaurant wars,

Team mission,

You won

The high stakes quickfire,

And then you went

Double or nothing and lost.

Yeah, it was awesome.

It's not always

The best idea to double down.

That's all I can say.

You really were bummed

At the end of restaurant wars.

Yeah, you know,

I felt like, um,

Once again, it was one

Of those things

Where we tried to be really nice

With each other

And just have a fun, good time.

And we didn't elect a leader,

And it bit us in the a*s.

I hear that you considered

Taking yourself

Out of the competition

After that.

Um...

Chef, we need more fire

On the lamb chop, please.

I got overcooks

And undercooks.

I'm [bleep]

All over the boards.

This is

A medium-rare lamb, right?

Yes, it is.

What I think of as medium-rare

Is apparently

What she thinks of as rare.

Is yours cooked well?

Mine's a little raw.

I'd expect the waiter

To ask me how I wanted my lamb

And not just assume

I wanted it this rare.

This is judges' plate

Right here.

Yeah, it was

A rough point for me,

Because I felt like laurine,

Um, suffered greatly

At the hand of me

In that particular situation.

And when I felt like I had

Put myself in a position

That compromised my integrity,

Potentially, I didn't know

That it was necessarily

A good idea to continue.

It's interesting that you

Were gonna put yourself

Out of the competition.

I read something recently

Where laurine actually thought

That jen should have been

Eliminated that night.

-Da-da-dah!

-[Laughter]

You did say that.

Well, um, you know,

To put jen executing two dishes

Was a bad idea on our part.

She bit off

More than she could chew.

You have to also remember

That we really,

In every scenario,

Are diners just like the diners

In your restaurants.

It doesn't matter if you have

A bad night in the kitchen,

Because as a diner in

Your restaurant, I don't care.

But when you have

A general manager

In the front of the house

That can't pull their weight

And the communication's off,

You're not gonna come back

To that restaurant,

And, you know, it's because

Of your experience as a diner.

Well, chefs, the fan favorite

Hasn't been revealed yet,

But I'm curious,

Which one of you--

Who do you guys think

Is gonna win?

I think bryan's

Got it in the bag.

I don't think

You have a shot, mike.

No, I don't think

I have a shot.

-I gave up on episode one.

-[Laughter]

You call it here.

All: kevin.

I think it's my beard,

Actually, but...

[Laughter]

I think jen

Has a good shot too.

-Me?

-You know, jen,

You did have so many people

Rooting for you

And really upset people

When you went out.

It upset me

A little bit too.

Yeah.

Well, let's show you

Why people were so upset

When you left.

Take a look.

Jen, she's a badass.

She is, like, a total force

To be reckoned with.

Jen.

Jennifer.

Anyone who spends five years

At le bernardin,

There's no way you can survive

In that kind of atmosphere

Without being able to kick a*s

And take names.

[Bleep]

Maybe I act like a guy and

Speak like a guy sometimes more,

But I still like

To get dressed up.

I like to, uh, wear heels,

All that stuff.

I like being a girl.

Jen is a little soft-spoken,

But that is only

In the day-to-day.

We can have

This conversation later.

Let's talk about food

And focus on this, all right?

Thank you.

My personal strategy

Is just to work hard

And be focused.

Ron, as soon as you're done,

Wash it out,

Give it back to ashley.

Thank you!

When I'm cooking,

I just get really intense.

Yes or no? You have it now.

Make the decision.

Jen is phenomenal.

Jennifer is definitely

Here to win.

Your sauce was the best part.

Congratulations.

[Applause]

I think the boys don't wanna

Pretend like it's possible

That one of the girls

Might actually beat us.

But she's really, really good.

[Cheers and applause]

Jen, you seemed so hard

On yourself.

I mean, it seemed like

Every episode

Started with you saying,

"I'm in the weeds.

I gotta come back.

I gotta come back."

That was my whole strategy,

To screw with everyone's head.

Well, you actually were not

The one one who was hard

On yourself.

Um, jonathan from

Grand rapids, michigan,

Writes about everybody

Else's self-doubt.

"I don't think I've seen so many

Negative nellies in one room.

I thought chefs were supposed

To be egomaniacs."

Let's take a look at what

Jonathan's talking about.

This is a [bleep] dish.

This looks like

A pile of [bleep].

Oh, I forgot flavor.

It wasn't the right sauce,

And it looked like [bleep].

Mother[bleep].

I think we're all harder

On ourselves

Than anybody else would be.

Oh, I [bleep] hate myself.

I [bleep] making [bleep]

[Bleep] rustic [bleep]

Pieces of [bleep]

[Bleep]sucker.

Not a good showing.

[Bleep] dish.

Well, I hate losing.

I mean, I hate it.

I'll be [bleep] shocked

And amazed if I don't go.

They're probably like,

"What's this pink blob

Of [bleep] on the plate?"

I do really tend

To beat myself up.

And I'm just like,

"God, like, stupid me.

You know, I hate me."

I don't even want

To serve the dish.

I feel pretty [bleep]

About my dish.

I don't feel good

About the way service went.

I feel pretty crappy.

It was a disaster.

I would be heavy

On critiquing me.

I don't know why people

Even hang out with me.

I've embarrassed and

Disappointed everybody I know.

I, like, mess it up

For everyone.

-I suck.

-My custard sucked.

My palate just sucks.

A great, big pile of suck.

[Laughter and applause]

Great, big pile of suck.

That's me.

Ashley, why were you so hard

On yourself?

I mean, I'm--i grew up

With two brothers.

I played college basketball.

I think, by nature,

I'm a really,

Really competitive person

And, just by nature,

Very hard on myself.

I always wanna do better.

Judges, were you surprised

By the level of insecurity

This season?

I don't think

It's a sign of insecurity.

I mean, I think

The best people in every field

Hold themselves

To very high standards,

Because they know

That they can do much better.

And that's, in some ways,

A symptom of being

Very confident deep down.

We're back with more

From the chefs and judges

Of

Top chef: las vegas.

Earlier in the season,

You were faced

With a monumental challenge,

Cooking for a group

Of french chefs

That included joel robuchon.

How intimidating was that?

Probably the most stressful,

But most rewarding

Cooking event for me.

Kevin,

I have a question for you.

You had immunity,

So you joined us for dinner.

-Would you have rather cooked?

-Oh, absolutely.

Sitting at that table

Was one of the most intimidating

Experiences of my life.

I mean, I think

The first question that--

That joel asked me was,

"Do you speak french?"

And I said no.

And then the last thing

He said to me

Of the entire day

Was, "pity."

[Laughter]

Well, kevin, we thought

It would be funny

To actually get

Inside your head

When you were sitting there

At that meal

Listening to all that french.

This is gonna be a blast.

Walking into

Restaurant joel robuchon,

I see all of these people

Who I've admired

For so many years.

But I don't speak french,

And these are all french chefs.

They don't care

To speak english at all.

[Speaking french] do you know

The origin? American?

Joel robuchon was voted

Chef of the century.

So this is really

[Bleep] awkward.

[Speaking french] the execution

Is a little simple.

It deserved more.

It's missing a little bit

Of "oomph." Just a bit.

I feel horribly out of place.

[Speaking french] in france,

We'd say, "you're cool."

This is not as awesome as I

Thought it could possibly be.

[Laughter]

[Laughter and applause]

How uncomfortable were you

At that table?

I think I would have been

Significantly more comfortable

To be on that side of the stove

As opposed to where I was.

In the same challenge,

Mattin,

You were so overconfident

About your ability,

Because you are french,

To cook for those french chefs.

-I'm basque.

-You're basque.

You were still

Really overconfident.

Were you surprised

That you wound up

In the bottom

Of that challenge?

Yeah, I was surprised.

You seemed like you

Were always surprised

When you wound up

In the bottom.

[Laughter]

Always surprised.

Well, we had some amazing

Guest judges this season,

From thomas keller

To joel robuchon

And on and on and on.

How intense was that

For you guys,

Having your chefs

Cooking for them?

I know daniel walked away

Going, "wow, that was just--

There's some great food."

For me,

It was always important

That our industry embraced

The show.

And when you have chefs

Of that caliber coming out,

This show has been embraced

By our entire industry,

And it's important.

Well, every season

The cheftestants

Seem a little surprised

By just how tough

Our judges can be.

Watch this.

Good job.

[Bleep] good job.

I always think the judges

Will love my food,

But the judges were brutal.

This is horrible.

It looks like a couple

Of bull's testicles.

It's a sad, sad

Bowl of food.

I'm making

A three-way ceviche.

I thought it was, you know,

It was a really nice dish,

So I'm feeling pretty good.

I know.

Tom's walking away.

Laurine and I made

This pasta salad.

It's the vegetarian item.

I'm sure

That's the type of food

That the judges

Are looking for.

It sort of feels

Like it's from the s.

Just because

You're feeding the military

Doesn't mean you can do

A half-assed job.

So I have a chocolate sauce

For the doughnuts.

And I put bacon

In the doughnuts.

So we all feel good?

I feel good.

I feel like

It's a no-brainer

That I'm gonna win

This challenge.

I think of the doughnut,

You can take it

And throw it at somebody

Just like a ping-pong ball

Or like a--

You just k*lled one

Of our grips.

This is a gulf shrimp

And avocado ceviche.

I think this is a good dish

For this challenge,

And I feel we have

A good chance of winning.

I mean, it's

So unappetizing-looking.

That was pretty nasty.

I almost wanted

To spit that out.

Cheers.

I'm glad that it's over,

And now it's

In the judges' hands.

It was disappointing.

I think this was a disaster.

It was like, you know,

The difference between

A shaved armpit

And a hairy armpit.

I feel like I'm in provence

Sucking on a bar of soap.

Called.

They want their garnish back.

I say cat food.

They shouldn't be

On this show.

They should be

On

Dancing with the stars.

[Laughter]

Are you guys surprised

When you see the show

And you hear these guys

Kind of loving on their dishes

That you thought

Were horrible?

No, because there's

Plenty of times

I've made dishes, and, uh,

They weren't well-received,

And I thought they were great.

I think it's often

When you see the show

And you've eaten

Something horrible,

You realize just how much

Pressure they're under.

So when you see you guys

Kind of sweating back there,

It does explain

How you can sometimes make

The mistakes that you do.

Okay, well,

On that note, danielle

From gainesville, florida,

Has a question for the judges.

Which

Top chef

Season

Did you honestly think

Had the best overall food?

Before you answer,

Watch this.

[Overlapping chatter]

[Woman] there are some guys

And girls here

That are just

Hugely talented,

And I'm just honored

To be a part of the group

That is here.

It's rare when you see food,

And you get really jazzed by it.

Keep up the great work.

I had no idea

The caliber of people

That would be here.

I've been on the long list

For the james beard foundation.

I was a semifinalist

For rising star of the year

For james beard awards

This year as well.

I was nominated

For rising star chef award.

I've been nominated

For best new restaurant,

James beard.

When I was ,

I received one michelin star.

I think this is

The toughest season yet.

Maybe I shouldn't have came

This season.

I don't think

We could've had this dinner

With all of you,

With people in the game,

At this point

In any other season.

It was a perfect translation.

Quite well ex*cuted.

[Speaking french]

I like it a lot.

Really delicious.

Taste and texture,

Good combination.

That is so good.

People ask, like, you know,

"Do you ever take any

Of the dishes and try

To use them?"

Up until now, no.

But there's some stuff here

That I would use.

I thought it was

A delicious dish.

-Thank you.

-Thank you very much.

A very,

Very strong group here.

I love this.

I would order this.

Across the board,

Best restaurant we've had

In six seasons, by far.

You guys should be

Really proud of yourselves.

-Really great stuff.

-Whoo-hoo!

Does vegas win the prize?

-Hands down.

-Hands down.

And I hope

Season seven's better.

It's not gonna happen.

All I can do is hope.

I have to eat this stuff.

Ash, I read on the blogs

That you think that padma

Does not like you.

[Laughter]

Yeah, what--

How many people here think

That padma doesn't like them?

-Oh!

-Padma--

But I have to--

It's show--

It's true in his case.

It's not true.

You know, over the course

Of the season,

I get to know each of you

Through your food,

And that's all I wanna know.

Afterwards, of course,

I'd love to get to know

Some of you more.

Toby, on the other hand,

Hates of of you,

And gail loves all of you.

Aww!

Yay, gail!

[Applause]

With such a talented group

Of people,

There were chefs who went home

Early in the competition

Who many felt

Should've stayed.

Any of the rest of you

Feel that you went

Before your time?

-You, mike?

-Yeah, without a doubt.

I felt I only had

One bad dish.

There was a leek dish

In the vegetarian challenge

At craftsteak.

I thought it was a bad dish.

But I felt like

If I would've taken that back

Or if I would've rethought it,

I feel like

I would've been

In the competition farther.

Am I saying I'm gonna win?

No, I'm not saying that at all,

But I felt like

I still had further to go.

Hector, you were really angry

When you went.

I felt that it wasn't

My time at that point.

I was angry, and I didn't wanna

Show my anger to anybody

Or whatnot.

It is what it is.

Loyal

Top chef

Viewer sandra

In abilene, texas, says,

"Were their any scandalous

Romances this season

In the

Top chef

House?"

Anything?

Well, there was me and ash,

For sure.

Absolutely.

You both switched teams

For each other?

It was tricky at first.

At first, it was tricky.

-Let's move on.

-Okay.

Well, maybe there wasn't

Any scandalous romance

To be had in the house,

But there seemed to be a lot

Of scandalous behavior.

Take a look at this.

Oh, crap.

[All cheering]

Life of a chef is hard.

It's because the hours.

That, and then you have

Stressful days.

And stressful days

Sometimes lead to drinking.

What's up jenny from the block?

[Bleep] drinking already?

Jerk-offs!

You know how we roll.

Do I need a drink?

No, I had three liquors

On my station.

I've been drinking all day.

There's

A big, giant pool there,

And we figure,

"What the hell?"

-[All cheering]

-Come on, ladies!

A few of them maybe shouldn't

Have taken their coats off.

Take it easy with the bottle.

There's still champagne

In there. I wanna drink it.

Everyone is just having a beer,

Drinking some champagne.

[All] oh!

Kind of unwinding

And relaxing together.

I'm a little drunk.

[Laughing]

I just drank

A little bit extra,

Because I had a lot more time

To drink.

We get back to the house,

And things get a little wild.

Oh, I got it!

Oh, you [bleep].

-Long story short--

-The goal is to be drunk.

It's mattin's birthday.

To drink

As much as possible.

-I'm gonna throw up.

-You're what?

I'm gonna throw up.

Okay, go do that

Somewhere else.

[Retching]

[Man] mattin, you okay,

Papi?

Mattin was feeling

That he wanted to get in his

Birthday suit on his birthday.

-My boxers!

-Oh, no!

I got out of there

Pretty quickly.

[Laughing]

[Overlapping shouting]

Yeah, chase him, bro!

I try and get in the house

And go to bed.

I don't wanna be

A part of it.

[Overlapping shouting]

And then we start getting

A little crazy with each other.

You know, we couldn't let

Her slide.

She was clawing at the walls.

[Laughing and screaming]

-Aah!

-You [bleep].

[Laughter]

I was showing

A little crack over there.

That was awesome.

I forgot about that.

Top chef

Fan in california

Wanted to know,

"How do you guys

Get up and cook

When you're so hungover?"

It's just the normal,

Everyday life living as a chef.

[Laughter]

We really didn't get drunk

That much.

I mean, we would have

A couple drinks.

I think in the beginning,

When the competition

Just started,

I think that's

A couple nights we started,

But after that it kind of slowed

Down real quickly.

Erin, in columbia,

South carolina,

Has a question

For the voltaggios.

"Was it harder to compete

Against each other

Versus the other chefs?"

I knew when I arrived

That there was definitely

One good chef here that I was

Gonna have to compete with.

And then, you know, you meet

And cook with everyone else,

And you realize

That the competition's

A little bit harder

Than you think.

But I planned

On taking bryan out

A little bit earlier

Than I did, so...

You know, you guys,

In addition to being

The first siblings

To compete on

Top chef,

You also have the distinction

Of having had both season two

Winner, ilan,

And season two

Runner-up, marcel,

Have worked for you guys.

-As well as hung.

-As well as hung?

And so then what did you think

Watching them on the show?

I mean,

Marcel was my sous.

And I think what he played on tv

And who he is in real life

Are two completely

Different people.

Hung, uh, I worked

With years ago.

When I was down

In naples, florida,

Um, he was a line cook

In the restaurant,

And, uh, I would always

Taunt the two of them.

So we ended up together in l.a.

One day, and they're like,

"You should do it.

You should do it."

So I think, more or less,

Because of them,

That's why I'm here.

Bryan, you signed on earlier

To the season, is that right?

No.

I went through

The application process first.

Okay.

They were like, "do you have

A brother named bryan?"

"Yeah."

And they were like,

"Does he own volt restaurant?"

And I'm like, "yeah."

"Can we have his phone number?"

And sure enough, I arrived

In vegas, and there he was.

Well, the voltaggios

Are both very talented,

But that's actually one

Of the few things

That they have in common.

Watch.

Hey, who are you?

You guys know

Each other it seems.

A little bit.

-What's your name?

-Michael.

-Michael what?

-Nice to meet you.

Bryan and michael

Interact like

You would expect

Any brothers to interact.

Oh, [bleep].

You better lose some weight

While you're here.

Michael and bryan

Are extremely competitive.

Six is open, okay?

I probably talk more trash

Than bryan does.

I have a tendency to say things

That might offend people.

Just [bleep] fry them

At this point.

Don't be a [bleep].

Don't be a smart a*s.

That dish didn't work.

Whoa, easy.

They have

Their little spats

And sibling issues

Every now and then.

Why are you so angry

Right now?

-I'm not angry, man.

-You're angry.

Dude, you're so confused,

It's funny.

And I know what he's trying

To do, and it doesn't bother me.

It's like he's setting

A time b*mb, you know?

Like, he's putting something

In his head

That's eventually

Gonna explode.

I'm not finished.

I'm not finished!

-Hurry up!

-Shut the [bleep] up, bryan.

Go [bleep] yourself.

I'll take my time now,

You [bleep].

Now, boys, play nice.

You better tell him

To behave, mom,

-Play nice!

-Because I'm gonna--

I'm gonna crush him

If I have to.

Oh, whatever.

You know,

The voltaggio brothers,

They bicker a little bit.

[Bleep].

But they also, like,

Really do, I think,

Adore and love each other.

I don't want my brother

Going home, trust me.

My favorite part

Of being here,

You know, was the opportunity

To work with my brother

And, you know,

Work side-by-side

And have that opportunity,

You know,

We haven't had in years.

-What's yours?

-I'm not telling.

I just said I would tell you

So you would tell me yours.

There's certainly a level

Of sibling rivalry

Between bryan and i.

And I think as much trash

As we talk with one another,

I think it makes

The other one stronger.

By far, that corn cake

Is the best polenta cake

I've ever--

Well, second-best polenta cake

I've ever had.

Thanks. You know what?

I'll take that.

[Laughs]

[Applause]

Michael,

Did you have any guilt

About beating your brother?

Definitely.

I've been

Looking up to bryan

Ever since he got

Out of culinary school

And was working in new york

For charlie palmer.

He inspired me to, like,

Wanna work

In good restaurants.

I think bryan probably

Motivated me to do that.

Growing up, were you guys

Always competitive

With each other?

My mom likes to tell a story

About when we were kids.

I had this tv show

That I loved to watch,

And I got grounded

Because I was harassing bryan.

She sent me to my room.

So I'm upstairs in my room

Just kind of laying in bed,

And she felt bad.

So she calls me, and I come

Walking down the stairs.

And she says, "michael, if you

Can stop harassing your brother,

You can watch your show."

And I said, "I can't stop

Harassing my brother.

I'm just gonna go ahead

And go to bed."

[Laughter]

-What show was it?

-Alf.

[Laughter]

Okay, well, it's time to bring

Out a very special guest,

Someone who's

Known michael and bryan

Since they were very small.

Please welcome their mom,

Sharon mangini.

[Applause]

Welcome.

Congratulations

To everyone.

As their mom, what has

This been like for you,

Watching them compete

Against each other?

Almost like going through

Probably what padma's

Going through right now,

The hormonal,

Emotional ups and downs.

You know, the tears.

I laughed a lot.

I called them

On certain thursdays going,

"You did not say that

On television."

Which one of your sons

Were you rooting for?

[Laughter]

I plead the fifth.

Well, come on,

You can tell us.

You were secretly rooting

For kevin,

Because this way,

It would've been easier for you.

[Laughter]

You know, you had

To have been in my head.

I think it goes

Without saying

That you did an amazing job

Raising your two boys.

-Oh, thank you.

-Thank you.

[Applause]

Before we let you go,

I understand

That there's something

That you have been planning.

And this is probably why,

Secretly, kevin should've won.

[Laughter]

When this all first started,

Bob and I decided,

Because of certain things

That we have in our garage,

That if you had taken the prize,

Michael would get the harley.

If michael had taken the prize,

You would get the corvette.

That's awesome.

[Laughter and applause]

Yeah, sorry.

Hey, he got a prius.

I got a corvette.

[Laughter]

What year is that corvette?

We have a ',

Fully restored,

And we were

Gonna get rid of it,

But the kids really all wanted

To keep it in the family, so...

Was there a bet between the two

Of you as who was gonna win?

-No, this was--no. No, no.

-[Laughter]

-Well, congratulations.

-Thank you.

And congratulations

To all of you.

You were wonderful.

-Thank you for joining us.

-Bye, guys.

Everyone was pretty sad

To see ron go home.

Let's take a look at why.

What, what? What you got?

What you got?

-Big ron.

-[Laughs]

Ron has this really

Awesome laugh.

[Laughing]

[Imitating ron's laugh]

Anybody have

A [bleep] sword?

I don't know what the hell

He needs a sword for.

Come on.

[Bleep].

Jesse, I'm gonna skin a cat

Alive tonight.

Are there any cats out here?

I will find one.

-Yeah, he's a wack job.

-Boo-yaka!

Boo-kala.

I just wanna boo-yaka

Somebody.

Can we get one last boo-yakasha?

Like boo-yaka!

Boo-yaka!

[Applause and laughter]

We have a question for eli

From bill

In pierre, south dakota.

"Like you, I still live

With my parents,

"And I'm fine with it,

"But most people look at me

Funny when I tell them.

"What's your reason

For doing it,

And how does it affect

Your dating life?"

Uh, well, I'm really happy

You brought this up, andy.

I was looking forward to this.

You know, honestly, for me,

It's I've made a lot of moves

And done a lot of weird things

Over the last few years,

So it's always been like,

"Oh, well, I'm gonna go

On

Top chef ,

"And I'm not gonna get paid

For so many weeks.

Um, [bleep],

I would have to pay rent."

So it's been stuff like that.

It's not like eli's

Some sort of, like, shut-in

Sitting down in his parent's

Basement at : in the morning,

Eating cereal

Or something like that.

He's a normal person.

Uh, I've been

To where eli lives,

And--and it's not, uh,

Not that situation at all.

I just think

It's really funny.

Well, many

Top chef

Fans

Enjoyed watching

The budding friendship

Of kevin and eli.

-Let's take a look.

-Aw.

-I love you, man.

-[Laughter]

Kevin, you gonna go

To the pool today?

I will [bleep] cannonball

The [bleep] out of the pool...

Right now.

Somebody get this man

A pair of swim trunks.

Eli and kevin, they're like

Two pickles in a jar,

In their own little world.

If it's water consistency,

You go % versawhip,

% Xanthan gum.

We've known each other

For a long time,

And being rednecks

With a slightly higher

Than average i.q.,

We're able to make

A connection.

Put it in the [bleep]

Kitchenaid

With the versawhip

And some xanthan,

And it'll go right up.

Eli, you know, he's like-

All he talks about is science.

Like, why are you cooking?

You know, you're in

The wrong field. Do my taxes.

How einstein basically

Figured out the fourth dimension

Was that matter causes

Other matter to move.

-Bryan, you okay?

-How's your brain? Is it blown?

-It's gone.

-[Laughter]

It's not a simple matter

Of putting a liquid

With a powder in a blender

And turning it on,

And all of a sudden, you're

Like, "poof, there it is."

-No, I know.

-I definitely agree.

Kevin, you know, he can hold

A conversation on anything,

But sometimes I'm like,

"What are you talking about?"

They work

With chemical science

Before they decide how they're

Gonna alter the components.

-You know?

-Right.

What?

When you do it like that,

It makes sense, you know?

Definitely.

Yeah, I'm with you on that one.

Alright, I have to... Eat.

I'm extremely scientific.

If I had not become a chef,

I would've been

A nuclear engineer.

-What's so special about it?

-It's just a supersonic--

It was the first

Supersonic jet

That was, like, um--

I mean, it's still

The only one, right?

Hello.

Flew it to paris,

From paris

To [bleep] new york,

And then new york,

Another courier jet--

-Um...

-No.

[Laughs]

[Laughter]

That is hilarious.

You guys were kind of

A nerd herd.

That's okay, though.

It's fun to be smart.

That's my--i'm gonna get

That on a t-shirt.

You were actually accepted

With a full scholarship

To m.i.t.

Yeah, I didn't actually go

To m.i.t.,

So it really, to me, doesn't

Count as an accomplishment.

And you didn't go because you

Wanted to be a chef.

And because I realized I'd be

The coolest person at m.i.t.,

And I just wasn't ready

For that yet, so...

[Laughter]

And mike i.,

I hear you have some big news

Since the show wrapped.

Yeah, I just got married

At the end of the summer, so...

[Applause]

It's possible I really am

A nice guy, you know?

I'm not malicious.

I just speak my mind.

Why, do you come off

As not a nice guy in the show,

You think?

-Hello?

-[Laughter]

People just don't understand

That, you know, being--

People just don't understand

People from jersey,

That's what it is.

Well, mike, you never seemed

Like you wanted any help

From anybody,

So we put together

A little tribute called

"Nobody's better than me,

The mike isabella story."

Take a look.

-What's up? Mike.

-What's up? Bryan.

Bryan, nice to meet you.

Let's start the competition

With the elite,

And I feel I'm one

Of the elite.

And I think that everybody

Around me knows I'm elite.

I feel I have

Very good butchering skills,

Especially when it comes

To fish and stuff.

Obviously, I think

I can beat everybody.

Good job.

I feel like I'm gonna be

A force to be reckoned with

As the competition goes on.

Mike i. Probably has

Every single

Individual character flaw

That you can think of

-In a person.

-[Passes gas]

[Belching]

He's super loud.

He's jersey.

Jersey's

That small little city

That kind of controls america.

-Mike is a loud talker.

-Loud.

-Loud and brash.

-I'm [bleep] real, doggy.

You know what I mean?

I'm just living

The dream right now.

You know, certain people

Don't like it,

But I like to push

Some buttons sometimes.

Fur coat, doggy.

[Yips]

[Laughing]

I am who I am,

And I do what I do.

I'm ready to cook.

I am a very competitive person,

And to me, second place

Is the first loser.

Come on, mike.

You're real close.

No offense,

But a girl shouldn't be

At the same level

That I am.

I've cooked

With everything before.

I'm from jersey.

I want to let everyone

Know around me

That I'm gonna be

One of the toughest to beat.

My execution was the best

Of this dish.

My octopus is one

Of the best in the country.

I'm one of the best guys here.

I feel I should be in the end.

I'm not worried.

I'm not concerned one bit.

Mike, please pack

Your knives and go.

[Scoffs]

[Laughter]

[Applause]

Where'd you get

Your self-esteem?

-Uh...

-Jersey.

From jersey.

You know, honestly,

It's just, like,

Kind of like

A motivational thing,

Where I'm always like,

"Yeah, I'm gonna win.

I'm the best.

I gotta do it."

And that kind of motivates me

To work hard,

And that's kind of just my-

My take on everything,

You know what I mean?

Laura in boston

Has a question for jen.

"You appeared to be good friends

With mike i.,

"Yet mike i. Said he could cook

Better than a girl.

That's pretty sexist."

We got a lot of emails

About you being sexist.

Jen, take care

Of this one for me.

[Laughter]

Mike is actually

An extremely nice guy,

And he sometimes doesn't edit

Himself before he speaks.

Sometimes I just say things

Because I'm very intense,

And I just say it,

And then I'm like,

"All right, maybe I

Shouldn't have said that."

You know,

It's nothing personal.

I didn't take any offense.

I thought it was pretty funny.

Ashley, we got

A lot of emails

After the bachelorette/

Bachelor challenge

When you said on the show

That you didn't like the idea

Of cooking for an institution

That you couldn't be a part of.

And then afterwards,

We did a military challenge,

And they wondered why

Or if you had been upset

About that challenge.

I mean, to be totally honest,

I was surprised

That stating the obvious

Was such a big deal.

By no means do I have

A problem cooking

For weddings

Of any kind at all.

As for the military,

Obviously I think

That don't ask, don't tell

Should be repealed,

But I would never refuse

A customer of any kind.

That would be

Totally unprofessional.

And it's a cooking show,

And I'm there to cook.

But I felt like it was

My responsibility

To say something when asked

Point-blank about it.

I mean, getting married

In vegas

Is as vegas

As showgirls are.

And if two showgirls

Want to get married,

They ought to be able to.

Okay, yeah.

I agree.

[Applause]

Mark in new york city

Wants to know,

"Does robin ever

Stop talking?"

-No.

-Before you answer--

I haven't heard her

Say anything all night.

I know, but before you answer,

I want to take a look

At you on the show.

I should pour this in

Over there.

I know better.

Peas--garbage.

Where's the garbage can?

Looks like right there.

I think some cocoa nibs

Would be good in the--

Oh, yeah, cocoa-nib mole.

Robin does talk

To herself a lot.

She knows it, I know it,

Everyone knows it.

Sherry vinegar.

Plates, brain.

I've got minutes left.

She's a really nice person,

But she talks a lot--

A lot, a lot, a lot, a lot.

Just not the same

Without cumin.

Like, she's a little

Out there.

Oh, [bleep].

That's off.

Stop.

I talk to myself

Because I'm thinking out loud,

Because if I hear it,

Maybe it makes more sense to me.

And of course I'm doing

Something tedious,

Which is stupid.

It's distracting,

And it's annoying.

My mandolin's missing.

Is this yours, or can I use it?

I guess she never worked

For a chef that told her

To shut up.

[Robin's speech overlapping]

I just want to stick

My clog in her mouth.

[Laughter]

I'll let my spokesman

Speak for me.

So, robin, is that the way

That you work?

I think it's been a little bit

Maybe exaggerated.

-No, I mean, obviously I talk--

-No, it hasn't.

No, it hasn't.

We joke about it

In the kitchen with my cooks.

You know, they're always-

You know, it's sort of like,

"Was that meant for us,

Or was that just robin

Talking to herself?"

And I'll usually just say,

"Don't worry.

It's just crazy me talking."

You know,

It's how I process.

John in atlanta

Emailed and said,

"Why didn't one

Of the cheftestants

"Take the mature approach

"And ask robin

To be quiet for a while?

"Some of the chefs

Have leadership roles at home.

They could have handled

The situation if they chose."

That was my question.

Why didn't someone just say,

"Do you mind?"

You know, like,

Make me aware of it,

Because I definitely

Was in my own realities

When we're in this chaos

Of trying to produce a dish

On, you know...

Mike i.,

It seems like you really

Had a beef with robin.

No.

[Laughter]

I didn't really talk to her

The entire show,

Because she always talked,

So I just tried to ignore her.

But she would get

Underneath my skin,

Because she would never

Shut up.

Whatever, I'm loud too,

You know?

I'm loud and obnoxious, so--

And that's probably

What it was.

She talks a lot,

And I'm loud and obnoxious,

And poosh!

And for the record, mike, I

Didn't have any beefs with you,

Because you told me

How you felt,

And to me, that's honesty.

And I'd rather hear it

Direct to my face.

Well, robin,

It seems like

Things got

A little difficult for you,

And the other chefs

Weren't treating you

With a lot of respect.

Take a look

At how it all went down.

Oh, great.

-I'm saying--

-[Robin] are you guys talking

Without me?

No.

I was part of this team

A minute ago.

I just cleaned this

So that I can cut.

It's alright,

I'll [bleep] clean up after you.

Fine.

Be a [bleep] martyr.

Don't get [bleep]-

Robin, robin,

If you wanted me to clean it up,

You could say, "clean it up,"

Without copping

A [bleep] attitude.

Robin likes to get

In everybody else's [bleep]

For absolutely no reason.

I'm not best friends

With everyone,

And if I'm not

One of the group,

Then it's not

The end of the world to me.

You [bleep]!

You pushed us out of the car

And closed the door on us.

Hey, no pushing.

Security.

What are you pushing me for?

I'm the nicest person here.

Why are you pushing me?

Robin--i don't know

What she's doing.

That was disgusting,

What she served.

She packed in ground beef,

So there's a hole in the center,

And she put an egg,

And then baked it.

Mike points at the dish

And goes, "what is that?"

And I said, "e coli."

-[Laughter]

-...is robin.

That's a pretty good way

To win a quickfire,

Just tell people

You have [bleep] cancer.

"When I had cancer,

I could eat this,

And when I didn't,

I ate this."

It's like, "oh, okay."

She has somehow managed

To last longer

Than she was meant to.

I think, america,

You can all see

Who's flying

Under the radar.

This is my dessert.

[Bleep] you,

This is my [bleep] dessert.

Yeah, then can you

Cut them smaller?

And don't cuss at me

Again like that, okay?

Don't cuss at me like that

Again, do you understand me?

Robin really pissed me off.

I'm helping you.

This is a restaurant, okay?

You know what?

This is my dessert.

Like, shut

The [bleep] up, robin.

It's my dessert.

It seems like it turned

Into high school a little bit.

Felt like high school,

That's for sure.

And I may not have been

The best cook here,

But I definitely felt like

What I tried to do

Was move forward and be true

To who I was as an individual.

Did you feel like

You were bullied a little bit?

You know, I felt like

I was a convenient scapegoat.

Eli, bernard

From hartford asked,

"Why was eli so mean to robin?

"Robin is inspiring,

Not someone who uses

Her lymphoma as an excuse."

I mean, I think specifically

In the reference

To the cancer comment,

You know, I'll say

That heat of the moment,

You know,

Being in the situation,

I said something

That I regret saying.

In terms of my relationship

With robin,

Like, I didn't get along

With her.

I mean,

It's really that simple.

And, you know, outside

Of personality conflicts

And things like that,

Like, sometimes you just

Don't get along with people.

Eli, if you regret

The remark you made

About cancer,

Have you apologized?

I have not apologized.

She and I have not had

Really any face time

To speak of

Since we've been here.

My interactions with robin

Were mostly kitchen-based.

Robin, as a person,

You know, if you look

At the kind of mothering quality

That she brought to the house,

We can also all appreciate that.

I mean, she did actually clean

The kitchen up

After us every single day.

And to be honest, like,

Robin, as much [bleep]

As we gave you,

She was not shy to deal it

Right back at us.

I think she's phenomenal

For that.

I mean, at the same time--

That's nice of you, michael.

You know, robin,

If I offended you, I'm sorry.

No, you're straight-up.

That's the stuff that happens

In the kitchen,

And, for me,

That's what this was about,

And that's it.

Yeah, I just want

To add one thing.

Robin,

I do want to apologize

For any terse interactions

We've had.

I do apologize

If I offended you.

You know, I hope

We can walk away from this

And be civil and all that.

And, you know, like I said,

I do apologize.

And that means a lot, eli.

Wow,

I can't get a housewife

To apologize

To another housewife.

[Laughter]

Do you guys ever forget

That the cameras are rolling?

I don't know, do we?

Well, kevin, watch this.

-[Laughing]

-We rolling?

-Yeah.

-[Bleep], let's go.

Sometimes things

On

Top chef

Are not gonna come out

The way you want it to.

Ah!

[Dishware rattling]

-Oh, [bleep].

-[Woman] five-second rule.

[Whistle blows]

[Bleep].

Whoa, yeah.

Where's your headdress?

My headdress?

I left it back

In my dressing room.

Do you need some fries

With that [bleep]?

Ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh.

Ooh, [bleep].

Oh, [bleep].

You--oh, [bleep].

Oh, [bleep].

I'm not sure if I'm--

Am I exiting out of the frame

On this one?

-[Chuckles]

-Uh...

You'll be the only chef

From this season

To have one of his recipes--

Sorry, let me do that again.

You suck.

[Chuckles]

That was

Exceptionally cruel.

Do we all agree?

Yeah, we all agree.

I'm gonna talk now.

sh**t, tell me.

What am I saying?

What the--what?

I'm sorry.

What the--what?

Okay.

The popcorn was really popped

To an amazing degree.

It was the best popped popcorn

I've ever had.

You can return

To your beloved stew room.

I just can't get enough

Of that place.

-I'll see you guys later.

-[Laughter]

Derek in greenville,

South carolina, emailed,

Wanting to know

What it was like

Serving padma

Breakfast in bed.

And, padma, "what did you

Have on under the robe?"

Nothing, andy.

Yeah, it was

Slightly awkward.

-[Chuckles]

-Oh, hello.

Hi, kevin.

How are you, ladies?

We're, like, five feet away

From two women

Laying in bed,

And you're like,

"Hi, how's it going?

Here's your breakfast.

I'm gonna walk away now."

Is that the day

You got pregnant?

Oh, my god!

I did eat a lot

Of

Huevos,

But, no.

What?

[Laughter]

That is emmy.

I thought that just we'd deliver

It to your room.

So I apologize for whatever

Shade of red I turned

-At that moment.

-We did have robes on.

I mean, we weren't, like,

In negligees

When you walked in.

I think it would've been

Better if you were, though.

[Laughter]

Well, listen, once again,

Congratulations,

Michael voltaggio,

On winning

Top chef.

[Applause]

Great job.

And congratulations

To all of you.

What an incredible season,

And it was amazing

Watching your talent.

Well, thanks again, guys.

We're sending you all home

With a bottle

Of the new

Top chef

Quickfire wine.

Thanks for everything.

Give yourselves

A round of applause.

-[Applause]

-Great season.