TV cooking contest shows

[katyseagull]

I can do a quick recap for you.

Last night was not the finale. The finale is next week.

On last night's show the two finalists, Bonnie and Rock, were given the opportunity to design their own restaurants (tables, floors, wall decorations, ...even server outfits) as well as design their own menu for next week's finale. To me this seemed like a lot of fun.

Bonnie really shined in this area. She totally got into planning her own menu and had very definite ideas what she wanted her restaurant to look like: classy, hard wood floors, no booths, servers dressed entirely in black. Jean-Phillipe seemed pleased. Her menu had some different sea food dishes and pasta dishes as I recall.

Rock really struggled and was made to look kind of dumb. He seems to have a terrible time making decisions. How he could get this far in the competition and not be planning out a killer menu for the finale is beyond me. I can't tell you how stupid they made him look. The only thing that really came to his mind for his menu was fried chicken, if you can believe that. He also did not have a clear vision for his restaurant design. He wanted the booths to remain, wanted it to be like southern Americana and said he prefered waiters in jeans. Jean-Phillipe frowned at this suggestion. After Jean-Phillipe explained to him that it simply would not do, Rock changed his mind but look completely bewildered.

Right now, Bonnie looks like she is definitely in charge and kicking ass.

Chef Ramsay surprised them by taking them to Vegas and throwing them a party. In the middle of it he announces to them that they have 30 minutes to prepare their signature dish to be judged by some famous chefs as well as the last 2 season's winners of HK. They looked really happy to be there. The winner got first pick for their kitchen team for next week's finale, choosing from the last 6 contestants kicked off the show.

The way it played out, Bonnie has an all female crew, Rock has an all male crew. Julia confided to the camera that although she's on Bonnie's team she would like Rock to win. Should be very interesting!

[Ron Burgundy]

Thx guys. I know I can count on The Lounge for instant summaries of TV shows I missed. [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[ QUOTE ]
The way it played out, Bonnie has an all female crew, Rock has an all male crew. Julia confided to the camera that although she's on Bonnie's team she would like Rock to win. Should be very interesting!

[/ QUOTE ]

In last season's finale, one of the eliminated chefs got picked by the finalist he didn't want to win. So he demanded $10K to give his best effort.

[Blarg]

Holy crap, you're kidding me? How did that get discovered, if it was even hidden, and how did it turn out?

[Ron Burgundy]

[ QUOTE ]
Holy crap, you're kidding me? How did that get discovered, if it was even hidden, and how did it turn out?

[/ QUOTE ]

Not kidding. They never made any attempt to hide it, it was in the episode. The finalist agreed to it IIRC. But they never said if she paid up or not. Her team lost. But I doubt it had anything to do with that guy tanking it. She was obviously the weaker chef throughout the competition.

Edit: Last season's HK finale thread.

She ended up offering each of them 1K.

[Blarg]

Man, how lame. Now I wonder I'm wondering even more if Julia is going to pull her weight.

[Blarg]

Agreed on how bad Rock looked. I was surprised how flustered he got about, basically, everything. I could see him not being clear on restaurant design ... that seems pretty natural to me, especially for a guy. Something it couldn't hurt to know, but not really his department.

But suggesting his waiters wear jeans -- just how "down home" is it really necessary to go? Would spitoons be a nice touch? I'm not exactly sure how Rock's vision of "American South" works, it seems there's a little too much barbecue joint in there for someone who aspires to run a nicer restaurant. I guess the guy is at cross-purposes with himself.

I'm really surprised how tight Bonnie's game has become and how loose Rock's has.

When Rock tried to psyche her out by telling her she didn't have what it takes and wasn't a finisher last night, and she told him flat out to "Shut up, Rock," I laughed and really respected her for it. And Rock reminded me of those idiot hustlers who are really digging being sly and getting one over on you, but are actually so hilariously clumsy they don't have a chance and just make themselves look, well, like idiot hustlers. Rock seemed out of his league the whole show, except in one respect -- he looked like the crowd favorite in Vegas. If being susceptible to the crowd has anything to do with the finale, Rock probably has an easy win. Otherwise, I'm surprised how much it seems Bonnie has a very real chance.

Btw spoiler: earlier threads in OOT say word got out early in the show about who won. We'll see.

[Blarg]

Here's a question: Who should win for most-improved? I'm thinking either Julia or Bonnie, but I'm not sure which one.

[katyseagull]

Bonnie for sure.

[Blarg]

I tend to agree also. Probably my memory is just dim, but I can't recall anything Julia did that would qualify as elegant. Her big win was over a chicken sandwich judged by kids in the school cafeteria. Bonnie getting great marks from the Vegas Chefs would have been impossible for me to imagine at the beginning of the show. She seems to have transformed into a different person in just a couple months.

[katyseagull]

Bonnie

before: couldn't cook an egg under pressure, always looked flustered, cried a lot, didn't communicate as well as she does now, wandered around looking confused.

Now: has become assertive, can get her ideas across, can communicate her needs to her crew, has maintained her kindness and great spirit while becoming a leader, can now cook well under pressure, has actually earned respect.