Top Chef: "Island Fever"

If Richard fails to take home the All Stars title and decides to turn his back on cooking forever, I think he could find another career in writing show synopses for TV Guide. What better description of Top Chef have you heard than, "Cooking with not enough time, not enough equipment, and a twist." That about sums it up! It was an interesting week in the (outdoor) kitchen, though I suspect it would have been a bit more interesting had Carla stuck around to dive for conch. I've been baking bread and growing a beard, so I feel fully prepared to write about the semi-finals. Here goes nothing!

The Good:

• Mad skills. If you pulled the head chef from your favorite restaurant, dropped him on an island and instructed him to cook a meal, what are the chances it would turn out to be as successful as the contestants' dishes were in this episode? Probably slim to none. Granted, Mike, Richard, Antonia and Tiffany are accustomed to Top Chef's style of cookery, but you have to admit that their feats this week were pretty impressive. Cooking a meal on a beach without getting even one grain of sand in the food? Now that's what I call talent.

• The results. Even though Tiffany served up a pretty decent meal, I couldn't have handled it if she had made it to the top three. I'm already sitting here thinking that it's a crying shame that Dale and Angelo are nowhere in sight, so Tiffany's exit was the saving grace of the integrity of the show, in my opinion. In every reality competition show, there is always the phenomenon of those who ride coattails or get by staying under the radar. I'm not denying that Tiffany is more talented than 95% of chefs in the country, but she just hasn't proved herself enough throughout this season to deserve a run for the grand prize.

The Bad:

• The quickfire. I really liked the concept of the quickfire challenge: testing the chefs' consistency and precision. However, why do a team challenge with only four contestants remaining? I think they could have easily made this an individual challenge by asking them to create only 50 plates instead of 100, so I'm not sure why the producers opted to pair everyone up. It's Top Chef, singular, not Top Chefs, plural (or Top Scallop, for that matter).
  
• Padma's showboating. I think there are two possible explanations for Padma's bikini moment in this episode. One, Bravo is trying to increase their straight male viewership. Two, Padma is rooting for Richard and Mike and wanted to give a blow to the girls' egos right before the elimination challenge. Either way, I'm not sure what the point was of wearing a skimpy bikini to greet the chefs at the dock.

The Ugly:

• Boys' club. The Nassau Yacht Club wasn't the only exclusive group on Top Chef this week. Richard and Mike immediately paired up in the quickfire challenge, and I'm getting tired of hearing them say in their confessionals that Tiffany and Antonia don't cook interesting or challenging food. You would think that, after competing with them (and often losing to them, at least in Antonia's case) all season, the boys would have a little more respect for their female competition. But instead they just complain or make excuses when the ladies are given accolades instead of just giving credit where credit is due. Sour grapes, anyone?

Miscellaneous Tidbits:

• Was anyone else a little surprised that none of the chefs were even a little skeptical about the truth behind the concept of the elimination challenge? After being told last week that they were cooking for Bahamian royalty and then ending up in a fish shack, I think it would take a little convincing that the "Nassau Yacht Club" was not actually code for "aboriginal cannibals who speak only in clicks and pops."
  

Quotable Quotes:

• "Does anybody have a machete?" - On what other cooking show would you hear such craziness? This is why I love Top Chef!

So, who are you rooting for now that it's down to three? Do you think that Richard can combat Mike Isabella's winning streak? Does Antonia even have a chance? Leave a comment and let me know what you think!