Fall TV Blog

He’s brash, fiery and, after Wednesday’s episode, ousted from Top Chef. Mike Isabella was sent home after putting out a vegetarian dish that failed to impress the judges — including special guest Natalie Portman. Calling after his elimination, the outspoken chef says he knew it was his time to go and shares some regrets from the competition. –Brian Orloff

A lot of people were disappointed by your elimination. Should Robin have gone home this week?
I was in the bottom three times total including last night [but] I don’t think I should have been in the bottom at all — except for last night. You have Robin in there about 90 percent of the time and you know she can’t compete at the same level I can complete. I had one dish that wasn’t great and you send me home. Was it unfair? That’s the decision but the bottom line is [my] dish wasn’t a great dish. It wasn’t at the level it should have been, so I went home.

Do you wish you had defended yourself differently at Judges’ Table?
I’m not that person; I’m not going to throw somebody else under the bus in front of the judges. I was the first one to say when we were in teams … what I had to do with [a dish]. I don’t take credit when I don’t deserve it. I’d rather go out the way I went out. I shouldn’t have put out that dish. It’s my fault and I’m going to take responsibility for that. (more…)

Natalie Portman paid a visit to the seven remaining chefs this week — and threw them a delightful curve ball. While the contestants were prepared to cook a meat-heavy dinner in Tom Colicchio’s Craftsteak restaurant, the actress waltzed in before they started prepping, announced she was a vegetarian and that she expected some upscale, creative fare. Jen C. summed up the group’s sentiment. “I’m thinking, ‘Oh s—t,” she announced. Cue the panic!

TV Dinners: First, though, the chefs had a Quickfire challenge to contend with — this one sponsored by TV Guide, which tasked them with re-imagining a TV dinner inspired by a classic show. (Think Gilligan’s Island or, a modern classic, like Seinfeld!) Guest judge Paul Bartolotta and Padma took their seats on a sofa and ate from an elegant tray — none of that plastic-wrapped stuff here, thank you — before declaring Kevin the winner for his Sopranos-inspired meatball dinner. (more…)

There are only eight chef-testants left — which can only mean one thing: Restaurant Wars! But before the epic showdown began, the chefs were split into teams for a Quickfire Challenge that rendered them blind and mute.

Quickfire: With guest judge Rick Moonen, a champion of sustainable cooking and seafood, at the helm, the chefs drew knives and split into two teams led by Jennifer C. and Michael Voltaggio. Jen selected Kevin; Mike Isabella; and Laurine, while Michael V. enlisted his brother; Eli and Robin, who was, shocker, picked last. The teams had 40 minutes to prepare a dish relay-style, with each chef getting 10 minutes to cook. While they weren’t working, they wore a blindfold. Also, there was no talking allowed — sort of like a culinary game of Telephone.
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He’s not one to mince words — and Toby Young has something pointed to say about the team that wins Top Chef’s beloved Restaurant Wars challenge which airs tonight: They opened the best restaurant in Top Chef history. A surprising bit of praise for the usually cantankerous Brit, sure, but Young says this season he’s buckling down and taking his judging responsibilities “more seriously.” Young also opens up — on the phone — about tonight’s challenge and which chefs have impressed him most. –Brian Orloff

Do you think the caliber of contestants is higher this year?
Yes, it is. Certainly the overall standard is higher than it was last year and I said to the winning team [in Restaurant Wars], had I been reviewing their restaurant, I would have given it three stars. The winning restaurant in Restaurant Wars was easily as good as some of the best restaurants I’ve reviewed in my seven years as a food critic.

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He’s been cooking alongside brother all season with little incident — but this week things took a heated turn for Michael and Bryan Voltaggio during a fiery outburst in the kitchen. Calling from Los Angeles, Michael, 30, spoke of the pressures of competition, what he thought of Ash’s praise last week at Judges’ Table and which Voltaggio brother is the better chef. –-Brian Orloff

Was there extra pressure this week because you and your brother worked for [guest judge] Charlie Palmer?
I think there are different judges that come on the show. Some of them are food personalities – and some of them are real chefs. Charlie’s one of those guys who is a real chef. Charlie came up through the trenches, worked in New York and really built his empire from behind the stove. So regardless of the fact that I worked for him, of course you’re nervous — it’s Charlie Palmer. I didn’t want to let him down. For [Bryan and me], I think it was a little bit bigger of a deal.

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Top Chef was all about the pairings on Wednesday’s show -– and we’re not talking about a partner challenge. This week, the chefs had to match a pinot noir with a pork dish and cook for a large crowd at an event with a tough guest judge to boot. All in all, a pretty satisfying episode packed with plenty of drama outside the kitchen too.

Quickfire: That exacting judge was Charlie Palmer who announced this week’s Quickfire challenge. Palmer may be recognizable to foodies — but the restaurant mogul was also very familiar to Bryan and Michael Voltaggio, who have both worked for him before. The other chefs were equally daunted and warned about his demanding palate. As for the challenge, the competitors had to create a dish that would pair perfectly with a snack food. (Think onion rings or chips!) Among the best: Bryan, who made a steak dish that Palmer termed “safe” but still loved; Kevin, whose green bean dish was harmonious with his onion snacks; and Eli, who won the challenge in the end. Less successful: Robin, Ash and, not surprisingly Jennifer C., who knew she overcooked her pork.

A Fractured Family: By now it’s obvious that most of the chefs don’t love Robin. She incidentally, plays off their loathing with a zenlike calm -– and an active morning pilates routine. So it feels little redundant to see the younger contestants still hating on the redhead. We get it: She talks a lot and many don’t feel like she should still be in the competition. But is that an excuse –- Eli, we’re talking to you — to bark at her in the house kitchen? The southern chef, who admitted he lives at home with his parents still because he doesn’t have to pay rent, screamed at Robin, “you’re not my mother” after she offered (maybe a little passive aggressively) to clean up after him. Cue the snickering other chefs as Robin responded that all she wants to be is his “civilized housemate.” (more…)

Love her or hate her, it’s hard not to have an opinion about Robin Leventhal — the verbose chef who has been in the top and bottom this season on Top Chef. Her fellow chefs have been equally vocal about their redhead opponent — with Mike Isabella going as far to call her one of the “weakest competitors” left on the show. (Isbaella, coincidentally, was paired up with Leventhal on Wednesday’s episode.) Calling from Seattle, Robin opened up about her talkative kitchen behavior, her thoughts on other chefs — and why she’s proud she’s still in the competition. –Brian Orloff

What was your approach to working with Mike Isabella?
This is a professional relationship. We have a job to get done and we’re going to do the best we can to make this happen successfully. I’m not interested in power struggles and Mike established his dominance early on in the house — and I think that’s maybe why we butted heads a little. I have a really dominant personality, and I don’t let people walk all over me. He made it clear from the beginning that it was his vision. I tried to put out my opinion a little bit. I certainly wanted to impact our plate … but I also wanted to get along with Mike and not have it be a bad experience, so I let him be the man in charge like he loves to be. (more…)

Top Chef took a homespun — but no less gourmet — turn this week as the 10 remaining cheftestants got to work in the kitchen of the Top Chef house, cooking up a family style dinner party for a spate of celebrity chefs. Again, the chefs were paired up — prompting some heat between several pairs.

Quickfire: Guest judge Tyler Florence presided over the Quickfire challenge. The chefs were randomly assigned three words to describe the “mood, taste and texture” of a dish they would have to cook. In a flashy Vegas twist, the adjectives were furnished via a slot machine — and ranged from the specific (“spicy”) to the abstract (“romantic”) to the possibly new-to-some-viewers (“umami,” one of the five basic tastes which vaguely corresponds to “earthy or meaty”). Among the lowlights: Eli, whose umami mushroom dish was drowning in citrus; Jennifer’s scallop and caviar combo; and Robin, whose curry dish wasn’t Middle Eastern and seemed to Florence to be “elementary.” Better, Mike I., Michael V. and Kevin, who won the high stakes challenge and had the tough decision between immunity or $15,000. (He took the money!) (more…)

A little bit of magic and lots of skill — that’s what the judges demanded on Wednesday’s Top Chef. The contestants were visited by Las Vegas illusionists Penn and Teller — and graced by returning judge Toby Young.

Quickfire: Special guest Michelle Bernstein announced the Quickfire challenge: Create a dish that showcases the “angel and devil” sides of your personality. Bernstein loved Robin’s plate, which featured a salad and an apple crumble. “To walk into that salad was an absolute pleasure,” she said, before announcing Robin the winner. She even bested frontrunner Michael V. and Eli, who made a decadent risotto. This did not make her fellow chefs happy.

Drama Alert: After already complaining about her inccessant talking in the kitchen, many of the contestants bemoaned Mattin’s dismissal (and sported his red neckerchiefs in tribute) and complained about the fact that Robin was still there after serving up toxic shrimp last week. “I’m proud of what I’ve accomplished,” she said. Robin also revealed that she was diagnosed with cancer, which influenced her winning dish. The revelation earned her no pity from fellow chefs like Mike I. (more…)

There’s the adage “if you can’t take the heat get out of the kitchen” — and then there was Wednesday’s Top Chef, where the kitchen was literally an infernal desert. Many of the chefs couldn’t handle 100-degree-plus temperatures — but luckily only one was sent home after serving a meal to ranchers outside Las Vegas.

Quickfire: The cheftestants got a taste of the Southwestern direction the episode was heading when they were asked to cook a dish made from cactus. The slimy item proved to be a formidable ingredient for some, but not necessarily as tough as no-nonsense guest judge Tim Love. The winner of the challenge, Mike Isabella, nabbed $15,000 and praise for properly treating the cactus. (He cured it, by the way, to take the slime out). While the losers, Ash (for his dry tortilla concoction) and Ron, whose dish featured “crab [that] tasted rancid” to Love — earned his consternation. (more…)