‘Restaurant Wars’: What Happened Last Night on ‘Top Chef’ Boston’
Greetings and belated Happy Thanksgiving from yours truly, your faithful and hardworking “Top Chef’’ Boston recapper! While all of you were probably out drinking and celebrating in your hometowns on Thanksgiving Eve, I spent last Wednesday night knee-deep in charts and graphs — think Brad Pitt in “Moneyball’’ — analyzing the season thus far. Why? Because I didn’t know what to do with a Wednesday night off from watching “Top Chef’’ Boston, but also because I don’t have much of a social life.
We started out with 16 contestants and here we are in December with eight contestants remaining. After sifting through countless spreadsheets and plugging hundreds of data points into the Ratty Power Index (RPI) computer, here’s an updated RPI as we headed into Episode 7:
1. Gregory: A bottom three finish in the last episode hasn’t changed my thinking that he’s still the most talented chef on the show
2. Mei Lin: This steady performer tallied another top three finish
3. Katsuji: My boy finally broke through in Episode 6 by winning the Elimination Challenge. He needed that.
4: Adam: Raw talent with a mouth to match. Watch out for him.
5. Doug: In my last week recap I said Doug was “finally finding his groove,’’ and a top three finish in the Plimoth Plantation challenge has me thinking he’s peaking at a good time
6. Katie: Last week’s dish (blueberry stuffing with blue cornmeal cornbread and sauteed lobster) was the first time I actually wanted to eat something she made
7. Keriann: Feeling like I started her too high on this list
8. Melissa: I’ve been saying that I thought she has floated through the season so far. Last week, she was in the bottom three in the Elimination Challenge. She stays at number eight.
Quickfire Challenge
Quickfire? Please! Ain’t got no time for Quickfire Challenges when we’re getting ready for…
Elimination Challenge
… RESTAURANT WARS!
Any “Top Chef’’ viewer worth their salt knows the midpoint of the season means an episode of Restaurant Wars is in the offing. At least in my house, Restaurant Wars is the most popular episode of the season, maybe even more popular than the finale. Why? First, the chefs are tasked doing something that is virtually impossible in the real world: Conceptualizing and creating an actual restaurant from scratch in less than 24 hours. Second, there is always tons of drama, so much so that they forgo the Quickfire Challenge and just get right into the fun stuff. Third, one of the teams usually screws up in a cringe-worthy, so-bad-you-can’t-look-away manner.
But before we get to the good stuff, let’s back up a bit. The concept of this week’s Restaurant Wars challenge was simple: The contestants were broken up into two teams of four. Each team had just under 24 hours to create a pop-up restaurant from scratch. The teams came up with a name and a concept, constructed a menu, purchased the furniture and decor (down to the table cloths and silverware), and then cooked for 100 guests. But in the end, the decorations and the color of the menu and even the food itself is often just window dressing. Restaurant Wars are won and lost in the very beginning of the episode when roles are assigned.
Each team has to designate both an Executive Chef (EC) and a Front of the House (FOH), while the other two team members serve as line cooks. The EC is responsible for the overall vision and execution of the dishes; they are, in essence, the CEO of the team. The EC has to stand by everything that comes out of the kitchen, and also has to expedite efficiently to make maintain a good rhythm between courses. And since the whole team has to approve the menu beforehand, it’s tough for an EC to plead ignorance about a dish at Judge’s Table.
This being a cooking show and all, you would think EC is the most important role in Restaurant Wars — and you’d be wrong. The FOH is historically what trips teams up the most, and it is by far the most visible presence in this challenge. They not only train the waitstaff and decide the expediting process, but they also greet guests and are responsible for the entire dining room. In past seasons, the FOH has often been torn between tending to guests and running to the kitchen to solve problems. On “Top Chef,’’ a good FOH is a polished presence who keeps the diners informed and entertained. And, above all, a good “Top Chef’’ FOH always greets the “Top Chef’’ judges when they arrive. This last item is non-negotiable, as many contestants from past “Top Chef’’ seasons can surely attest.
The two remaining chefs on each team, the Line Cooks, generally have it pretty good on Restaurant Wars. While the EC and FOH roles come with a lot of responsibility and scrutiny, the Line Cooks — save for an unforeseen disaster with a dish — are usually able to stay out of the line of fire.
And that, in a nutshell, is Restaurant Wars.
For this season’s edition, the pop-up restaurants were located at the Revere Hotel’s Space 57 in the Theater District. The show doesn’t mess around when it comes to guest stars for Restaurant Wars, and this week they trotted out a trio of local A-list talent: James Beard Award-winner Barbara Lynch, owner of a burgeoning local empire; “Top Chef’’ Season 10 winner and part-time model Kristen Kish; and Stephanie Cmar, a popular contestant on “Top Chef’’ Season 11, were among the diners. (Kish worked for Lynch at Menton, and Cmar worked at Lynch’s No. 9 Park.)
To pick teams, the chefs drew knives, with Melissa and Katie drawing the responsibility of picking the rest of the teams. Melissa chose Doug, Mei and Adam, while Katie chose Gregory, Katsuji, and Keriann.
The awkward conversations about choosing the roles on each team were, well, awkward. Adam’s lively Manhattan-by-way-of-the-Borscht Belt personality made him an easy choice for FOH , and he in turn not-so-subtly pressured Doug into being the EC.
On the other side of the aisle, Keriann’s bubbly persona made her the unanimous choice for FOH, and Gregory nominated Katie to be EC. Katsuji, in a subsequent aside, questioned the choice because she had never held the role before at a real restaurant.
Because creating a pop-up store means building the entire enterprise from the ground up, the teams were dispatched to Arhaus Furniture, Peterson Party Center, and Restaurant Depot, to buy all of the decor and materials for their respective restaurants. After Melissa found four piggy banks in one of the stores, her team became “4 Pigs.’’ Katie’s team didn’t want to be tied to one style of cuisine, so they came up with a global concept and the team name “Magellan.’’
With 4 Pigs’ family style comfort food and Magellan’s global menus set, it was time to cook. There wasn’t a lot of drama in the kitchen before the diners arrived, with a couple notable exceptions. Adam’s dish was on schedule until his tray of 150 clam shells magically disappeared, probably thrown away by mistake. After a panicked search, the team regrouped by shucking another batch of clams so Adam could change and prepare for his FOH role. (To my knowledge the clam shells were never located, but maybe Sarah Koenig could look into it?)
The other drama was on Team Magellan. Keriann had a difficult time training the waitstaff on the expediting process and the layout of the tables, and seemed in over her head from the beginning. She also confused her teammates by preparing room temperature crepes the day before so she could focus on being FOH the day of the competition.
When both restaurants opened, things started very inauspiciously when Adam missed his chance to greet the judges at the 4 Pigs host table. How on earth does this happen every single season? (Also, how did the server who greeted them not recognize Padma?) To their credit, the judges took it in stride and the mood seemed to leaven when Adam brought them the first dishes. The judges also immediately took note of the jovial mood in the room and the consistent rhythm of the courses.
Over at Magellan, the expediting problems compounded as diners waited, duplicate orders were brought to tables, and Keriann clashed with Katie outside the kitchen. And when things go wrong in Restaurant Wars, they tend to snowball. Because she was busy tending to problems and trying to find out why her crepes were taking so long, Keriann wasn’t at the host stand when the judges arrived. Yes, that’s right, neither team greeted the judges. (Zero for two; I give up.) And after all the service problems, there was still one more shoe to drop. Katsuji decided — smartly, in my mind — to heat up Keriann’s crepes instead of sending them out cold. Keriann, as you might guess, was none too pleased that her dish was altered without consultation.
Dishes
“4 Pigs’’
Adam: Salt-baked clams, ramps, bacon and sunflower seeds
Mei: (1) Chicken liver toast with plum purée, and (2) fried brussel sprouts with anchovy-olive vinaigrette
Melissa: (1) Seared scallops and radish salad with grapefruit, and (2) buttermilk biscuit cobbler, apples, mixed berries, and cardamom cream
Doug: Braised pork shoulder, baked beans, pickled red onion and mustard seeds
“Magellan’’
Katie: Roasted beets, Sri Lankan curry, toasted coconut, and pickled cauliflower
Katsuji: (1) Hamachi sashimi, roasted poblano, blistered tomato, citrus-habanero salsa, and garlic chips, and (2) dry pozole, chili, dungeness crab, and chicharrones
Gregory: (1) Seared haddock, spiced tomato, garam masala, and pickled mushrooms, and (2) hoisin-glazed pork tenderloin, bay scallops, broccolini, and XO sauce
Keriann: Vanilla crepe, burnt banana mousse, macerated cherries with ginger and pistachio
Judge’s Table
This was one of the most clear-cut Restaurant Wars decisions that I can remember. There was no doubt the judges were going to pick 4 Pigs as the winner. Adam owned the FOH role from beginning to end, from choosing the restaurants decor to charming the diners and even the judges. His diners had full stomachs and smiles on their faces, and their concept clearly worked better than Magellan’s. The judges went out of their way to commend Adam’s FOH performance, not something you see very often. As I said, in Restaurant Wars the food is sometimes a second thought. The 4 Pigs restaurant came together as a fully formed concept, while Magellan’s dishes were disjointed and not well executed. With every aspect of their restaurant getting high marks, Doug was picked as the individual winner for his role as EC.
Once Magellan was picked as the losing team, the more intriguing question was: Is Keriann or Katie going home? On one hand, Keriann was clearly a disaster as FOH. In addition to not being at the host stand when the judges arrived, her demeanor was the opposite of what you want in a FOH. She didn’t have much of a poker face when problems arose, and she was frequently squirreling off to the kitchen to check on problems. Those long absences were noticed by Padma and the rest of the judges. They also made note of how many tables didn’t have food at them.
On the other hand, Katie also failed in her role as EC. As often happens each season during Restaurant Wars, Katie didn’t speak up when she needed to and didn’t show much of a backbone when the judges questioned the decision to heat up Keriann’s crepes. You could almost see this coming from the beginning of the episode, when Katie picked Keriann last and did so a good dose of apprehension about her performance thus far in the season. You could argue that the expediting was the source of Keriann’s problems, but Katie did keep it together for the most part, even while correcting the waitstaff and fixing problems.
Keriann seemed to be on her heels the entire episode, from the minute she started making those crepes to the moment the judges had her dead to rights for serving the last dessert and not knowing any changes had been made. This challenge clearly threw her for a loop, as evidenced by her emotional goodbye after being eliminated.
“Top Chef Boston’’ Cheat Sheet
Who Should’ve Won
This was a toss-up between Adam and Doug and it could have easily gone either way. While Adam’s charm put his team over the top and left the judges smiling, Doug’s management of the kitchen and skillful expediting is what put them in a position to win. Good for you, little Doug!
Who Should’ve Been Eliminated
The judges got this one right. From her long absences to her aw-shucks body language, Keriann sealed her team’s fate. More than a few readers told me two weeks ago that I had Keriann too high in my power rankings, and those opinions were validated this week.
Boston Eye Candy
Hanover St. in the North End, The Public Garden, The Zakim Bridge, The Rose Kennedy Greenway, City Hall Plaza
Insider Info
As one of the brains behind the Party of Two restaurant group, who better than Stephanie Cmar to judge Restaurant Wars this week? If you’re not following her company on Twitter and Facebook, you are missing out on pop-up events featuring mouth-watering homemade donuts and pop tarts. You should rectify that.
Weekly 45-Second Interlude During Commercial Break
Adam turning on his New York charm, admitting his Yankees fandom, and entertaining the crowd with purposefully botched pronunciations of “scawllup and “cawd.’’
This Week’s Lesson
“Around the World in 80 Plates’’ — Portlandia
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