06x01 - Sin City Vice

[bunniefuu]

Top chef

Is back.

Go. Let's go, guys.

[Padma]

We've brought



Of the country's best chefs



To battle it out



For the title



In one of the world's



Most competitive food scenes:



Sin city, las vegas.



This season, we've lined up



Our most talented group yet.

I'm here to compete

Because I feel

That I'm the best

At what I do.

[Padma]

There are james beard



Award nominees.

I'm motivated to succeed

And come out on the other end

Stronger than I was

When I started.

I need some feedback

As fast as possible

On whether or not they like it.

[Padma]

Several highly skilled



Executive chefs,



And those that have trained



Under the very best.



[Jen c.]

I was at le bernardin



With eric ripert

We got four stars.

We can have

This conversation later.

Let's talk about food

And focus on this, all right?

[Padma]

Each chef has



Their own reason



For being here.



[Robin]

I got diagnosed



With two kinds



Of lymphoma.

But I'm thrilled for every day

That I get to continue cooking.

[Ash]

Being g*y



In the kitchen is tough,

But it doesn't matter.

We're there to cook.

Four minutes!

[Padma]

And two



Of our chefs have



A sibling rivalry to settle.

Hurry up.

Shut the [bleep] up, bryan.

[Bleep] yourself.

Didn't realize you weren't done

You don't be a d*ck.

[Michael]

I probably talk



More trash



Than my brother does.

But it's been like that

Our whole lives.

[Padma]

This season,



Luck will play



A unique role



Like never before.

-The winner gets $,.

-Whoo.

[Padma]

But to win the title,



They must impress



Some of the world's



Most accomplished chefs.

I think it was

A beautiful ex*cuted dish.

[Padma]

Do they have



What it takes



To prove themselves



As culinary high rollers?

[Eli] I think I should win

Because I'm

The best [bleep] cook here.

[Padma]

At stake for the winner,



A feature



In

Food & wine

Magazine,



$, Of merchandise,



Provided by macy's,



A showcase at the annual



Food & wine

Classic in aspen,



And $,

To help turn

Their culinary dreams

Into reality,

Furnished by the makers



Of the glad family of products



And the title of

Top chef.



[Kevin]

My name is



Kevin gillespie.

I'm the executive chef and owner

Of woodfire grill

In atlanta, georgia.

My senior year,



I got accepted to m.i.t.



And I told my parents



That I was ditching



My full scholarship



To go to cooking school.

I always felt in my heart

That I was supposed to be

A chef.

[Preeti] wow.

So I arrive in vegas



And I'm psyched.



I think it's going to be



High stakes.



It's gambling.

And who knows what is going

To happen this year?

[Kevin] wow.

[Ron]

My name is ron duprat.

I'm the executive chef

Of hollywood beach marriott.

I grew up in haiti,



And my philosophy is



"Keep it real,



Keep it simple,

And let's have fun."

-Nice to meet you, ron.

-Pleasure.

Any idea where we sleep

In this place?

[Laughs]

-Hector.

-Nice to meet you.

-Hi, eve. I'm kevin.

-[Eve]

I'm the only chef

From michigan,

And I'm not too surprised.

A lot of the chefs are



From big cities



Like philadelphia, atlanta.

At las vegas.

You know, but you guys aren't

Fazed by this.

I'm just like,

"Mountains, palm trees."

-I'm jesse.

-Jesse? Mattin.

-Nice to meet you.

-Mattin?

[Mattin]

My name is mattin.



I'm from, france.

And I now live

In san francisco.

I have my own restaurant.

I was going to ask

If you're from pamplona.

[Mattin]

I opened up



My own restaurant



When I was years old.

Seen six years of success,

And I am very happy with it.

-Eli.

-Hector.

[Eli]

My name's eli,



And I currently work

At eno restaurant

In midtown atlanta.

[Eli]

I cook because



I love to cook.



But I really cook



Because I love to eat.

'Cause I'm a fat kid.

So all I wanna do is

Just have fat kid food.

[Jennifer] where's

Everyone from?

-Um, atlanta, atlanta, atlanta.

-[Jennifer] nuh-uh.

[Eli]

Our restaurants are



Literally two miles away



From each other in atlanta.

So having those guys

Around here is,

You know, giving me

A little sense of home.

We're both from maryland.

I'm from baltimore.

-Oh, you're both from maryland?

-Mm-hmm.

-Awesome. I love maryland.

-Yeah.

Been through it.

Drove past it.

-Joking. I've never been to--

-[Laugh]

I quickly realize that I am

The only chef from new york.

These are the boys' rooms,

Right?

[Ash]

I feel like it is



Sort of a big deal,



Because new york has some



Of the best chefs in the world.

But of course, now I'm the only

One here from new york.

And the only one

With a boyfriend.

Same-sex boyfriend.

I guess.

Watch,

I'll unpack everything

And then get kicked off

Tomorrow.

[Jesse]

I'm not formally trained



As a chef.



I think a lot of kids come out



Of culinary school,

Then have these sort of,

You know, delusions of grandeur

And just kind of

Don't know what they're doing.

[Jen] I'm not

Unpacking anything.

I'm, like,

Very, very superstitious.

I feel like it's bad luck.

-[Eve] really?

-Yeah.

I believe

If you put it out there,

Then it's more likely

To come true.

Exactly!

I think you need to unpack.

I can't, I won't do it.

I can't do it.

[Jen]

My name is



Jennifer zavala.

And I'm an executive chef

At el camino real.

I'm very superstitious.

My son is three years old.



He has to go to school.



And I want him to go



To yale and harvard.



And so for me, this isn't



So much of an opportunity.



It's more of a have-to.

I love my son

And I love cooking.

[Jesse] I brought

Too much [bleep]

To not unpack.

In what city?

-Philadelphia.

-Philadelphia?

-Yeah.

-Oh, that's--

[Man] are you the pastry chef

There? What do you do?

No, I'm the chef there.

[Jennifer]

My name is jennifer,

And I work at arts

By eric ripert.

I can be a freakin' b*tch



In the kitchen.



I've made enough boys cry.

Seriously.

-Hey, man, how's it going?

-Hey. Kevin.

-Bryan.

-Nice to meet you, bryan.

-Hey.

-[Bryan]

I'm bryan.

I'm a chef and owner

Of volt restaurant

In frederick, maryland.

I try to make sure that,



You know,



Every day



I'm learning something,



Every day I'm moving forward.



You know, 'cause if you're not,

You don't really

Improve yourself.

Pleasure.

Nice to meet you.

-[Bryan] hey, who are you?

-[Chuckles]

You guys know each other,

It seems.

-A little bit.

-What's your name?

-Michael.

-Michael what?

-Nice to meet you.

-Michael what?

-I realize that michael

And bryan are brothers.

So I'm kind of like, whoa.

Like, what's that all about?

Like, I'll be interested to see

What they're like

When we get in the kitchen.

-Where'd you fly in?

-I flew in vegas

And stayed at mom's last night,

And I had dinner without you.

-[Bleep]

-[Both laugh]

[Michael]

I decided



To become a chef



Because bryan was doing it.



And I sort of got into it



And I never got out.

I mean, bryan and I right now

Live , miles

Away from each other.

It seems that we're going

To be seeing each other



A lot more.

This is the first time

That we've lived together

In what, years?

[Michael]

Bryan is



A little more conservative



Than I am.

I think I'm a little bit more,

Uh, likely to take some risks.

You know, I'm gonna forget

Half the names,

-But I'll remember shortly.

-Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Holy [beep]

[Mike]

Right away I recognize



Mike voltaggio.



I helped him open up



The bazaar in l.a.



We both worked



For jose andres,

And I'm like, "well, maybe...

I shouldn't have came

This season."

[Laugh]

I just think we need

To go get our chef coats

And, uh, head on out of here,

It sounds like.

[]Mattin already?

-Nice. Hey, awesome.

-[Ashley]

I've never been



Here before.

And las vegas

Is a huge food mecca,

So I'm really excited



About it.

[John] hello, chefs.

Welcome to las vegas

And the beautiful new

M resort hotel and casino.

Right this way to the kitchen.

I wish you all

The very best of luck.

[Everyone] thank you.

[Kevin]

We walk into



The

Top chef

Kitchen,



And there's so much cookware



It puts my restaurant



To shame.



If you can't make good food



Out of

The equipment

That's in that place,

Then you have no business

Calling yourself a chef.

I was when I started

My catering business,

And I am completely overwhelmed

And a little intimidated

By the whole situation.

-Hello, chefs.

-[Everyone] hello.

[Hector]

As I see tom and padma,



So I was starting to feel



A little bit nervous.

Trust me, padma is

More beautiful in person

Than she is on tv.

Welcome to las vegas

And to your

Top chef

Kitchen

-Here at the m resort.

-This is a city of extremes,

Excess, and great talent.

You're in for quite a ride.

-Good luck to all of you.

-[Everyone] thank you.

So the kitchen's been decked out

In the newest

Ge monogram equipment

And has everything you need

To make the best meals

Of your life.

And now, it's time for

Your first quickfire challenge.

-[Nervous laughter]

-Oy.

To get started, of course

We have to do a little

Mise-en-place,

So you're gonna break it up

Into teams of four.

And you'll be competing

In the mise-en-place relay race.

And believe me, this is

A challenge you'll want to win.

[Ashley]

I have seen the relay



Challenges before on

Top chef

,

And I'm really excited

About the relay

And that being

Our first challenge.

This season, we're going

To add some of the things

We love about las vegas

Into the competition.

Expect twists and turns

Like no other season.

-[Bells jingling]

-[Padma] ta-da!

[Chefs cheering]

[Padma] please welcome

The stardust showgirls.

[Mike]

Seeing



The showgirls walk in



Was just, like, very exciting,

Inspiring, and also let me know

That I was really in vegas.

This hat contains

Different color poker chips.

They will determine your teams.

So pick your chips.

Green.

-Black.

-Blue.

-Green.

-I got the jackpot. Green.

-Blue.

-Red.

-Black.

-Yellow.

[Robin]

And I'm standing there,



And I'm the only one



With a gold chip.



I realize



I'm either in trouble,

Or I just got the biggest

Blessing I could've asked for.

[Padma] so robin,

You drew the gold chip.

Lucky me.

Or maybe not lucky me.

Well, yes, lucky you,

Because you get

A very big advantage.

You don't have to compete

In the relay race,

And you get immunity

For the elimination challenge.

-Damn.

-[Laughter]

I'm just, like, "oh!

Why didn't I get

The gold chip?"

Chefs,

You'll be working with some

Of the most popular ingredients

In las vegas.

For the first leg of your relay,

Shuck clams.

For the next leg,

You'll have to peel

Spot prawns.

After that,

Clean up lobsters.

And for the final leg,

The chef will have to butcher

Chops from this prime rib.

When you think

You've completed a leg,

Put your hands up

And yell "check."

I'll come over,

I'll check your mise-en-place.

If it's up to snuff,

I'll blow the whistle,

And you can continue.

The first team to finish

All four tasks wins.

So chefs, you have two minutes

To determine

Who of you will take

Each leg of the race.

I'd like to do the lobster.

-I'm gonna be an animal.

-Okay.

[Jennifer] I'll do clams

Or shrimp.

I can do the prawns, then.

[Preeti]

Kevin says,



"I'll do the beef."

And michael and eve pick

The other two things,

And so I'm like, "okay,

I guess I'll do the clams."

It's the same as an oyster,

Right? Clams?

No, no, clam's different.

Okay, chefs,

Please put on your aprons

And take your positions.

[Preeti]

I've never shucked



Clams before.



Since it's only ,

I'm thinking

I can figure it out

And just push through.

Your race starts now.

[Whistle blows]

It's like

The backup version--

-Come on, mike.

-You got it.

You got it, mike.

You're bangin' it out.

Keep it inside--

Keep it inside the clam.

[Kevin]

Preeti is trying



To open clams



Like you would open an oyster,



Which is not at all



How you open a clam.

And that's when the reality

Of our choice

Has hit home for me.

Have you ever

Opened a clam before?

[Preeti] no.

[Jen] I just cut myself.

The hardest part

About shucking clams is

Knowing how to do it.

And I hadn't done it



In a while



'Cause I just took, like,



Two years off



To be a mom.

-[Eli] come on, push.

-[Ashley] come on, mike,

You got it.

[Eli] let's go, black.

Come on.

-Let's go, mike.

-Black team.

-One more down.

-There you go, that's it.

[Mike]

I look next to me,



And jennifer has,



Like, the same amount of clams.



And I'm like,



I'm doing something wrong.

There's no way--

No offense,

But a girl shouldn't be

At the same level that I am.

-Let's go, dude. Push.

--[Jennifer] one more.

-Come on, mike.

-You're in.

Not there yet.

They're not there yet.

Got an extra shell,

Top right corner.

-[Eli] yeah!

-[Mike] check.

[Blows whistle]

All right, fine.

-[Blows whistle]

-Go ahead.

[Jennifer] I'm like,

God freaking [bleep].

He freaking beat me.

Check!

-[Tom] all right, you're good.

-[Blows whistle]

-[Tom] go ahead.

-[Michael] all right,

Change it over.

[Mike] come on, here we go.

Here's a trend.

Don't worry about that.

Just keep pushing.

Don't worry about the shells.

Leave 'em on your board.

Just get them out of the shell,

On the plate.

On the plate.

Like back when you were

A dishwasher, baby.

Like back when you were

A dishwasher.

That's good, catch up.

Catch 'em, catch 'em--

-Check!

-[Blows whistle]

-[Tom] stop.

-Check!

That's good.

[Blows whistle]

It'll open up,

It'll open up.

Make sure you've got

Your towel on there.

You don't want to slip

And cut yourself.

-Check.

-[Blows whistle]

-[Tom] go ahead.

-Go, go, go, go.

[Mike] keep it going,

Keep it going.

Let's go, baby.

Go, baby.

[Jennifer]

Mattin has the heads



Off those lobsters



Faster than I can even blink.

He had all the knuckles

And claws coming out perfectly.

[Jennifer]

I looked down



At the other tables.



My team and the black team are



Neck-and-neck,

And it's really just

Between the two of us.

The other two teams...



Not even close.

You got it, you got it.

You got this.

There we go, there we go.

We're almost there, couple left.

-Couple left.

-[Jesse] yeah, yeah, yeah.

That's it, that's it.

[Mike] there you go.

There you go, there you go.

Top two knuckles, baby.

Top two knuckles.

-Check.

-[Tom blows whistle]

It's all good.

-[Cheering]

-[Blows whistle]

[Mattin] go, go, go, go!

[Jesse]

In the final leg



Of the race,



Rib eyes need to be frenched



And cut off



Of the whole rib.

So bryan goes into the rib eye.

[Mike] you're

All mentally ready?

You're mentally ready

On how you're going to do it?

[Hector]

Bryan went in the--



The way that I wouldn't go.

[Jesse] yeah, bry.

So I think that I can

Catch up to him.

-Come on, bry.

-Check.

-Check.

-[Blows whistle]

-That's good.

-[Blows whistle]

Back up, we wipe down.

Back up, we wipe down.

Back up, we wipe down.

[Jesse] yeah, let's go!

-Go, go, go.

-[Applause]

[Eve] you can do it.

Come on, girlie.

-[Kevin] go, go.

-Come on.

[Kevin] right back up, baby.

Right back up.

Right back up, there you go.

Finish it off.

Make it happen, baby.

Make it happen.

[Ashley] hector, you got this.

Hector, you got this.

-[Eli] get 'em small, now.

-Push it out.

-Come on, hector.

-Push it out!

[Jennifer] beautiful,

Beautiful.

[Eli] you got this, chef.

Go for the bone.

Go for the bone.

Get that.

[Ashley] get the end

Of that bone,

Get the end of that.

[Mike] yeah, go time.

Back of the knife.

-Check.

-[Blows whistle]

[Mike] french, french.

-That's good.

-[Blows whistle]

-Blue team wins.

-[Cheering]

[Blue team laughing]

[Mike]

We lose, and it's, like,



So disheartening.



When I was running in the race,



I was winning.

This is not how I want

To start the challenge.

This is-- not at all.

[Padma] but hold on, blue team.

We're not done yet.

Robin will get immunity,

But to determine the winner,

We're going to do

A cook-off.

[Jennifer]

We just went



From best friends



To enemies right now

In about seconds.

[Padma] this season, you'll have

More chances to win big

Than ever before.

So for the first time,

This quickfire will be

For high stakes.

The winner receives this chip.

It's worth $,.

-You kidding me?

-From the m resort.

Top chef

Has never done this

Before, you know.

There's so much at stake,

And this season is

Just chock full

Of surprises.

[Chuckles]

[Padma] the blue team

Will have a cook-off

To compete for $,.

[Eli]

This money for



A quickfire thing is new,



And I'm pretty excited



About it.

But I feel disappointed

I don't have an opportunity

To compete for $,.

[Tom] robin,

You have immunity.

But if you choose to,

You can actually trade that in

To compete for the $,.

[Robin] tempting.

No, I'm staying--

I'm saving my immunity.

-I'm gonna be safe.

-Wow.

[Mike] robin not competing

In this quickfire shows me

That she's not confident

In her skills

And she's nervous about it.



And to me, it's just like,

This is one less old lady

I have to worry about.

So blue team,

To win the $,,

You must each complete

A dish in minutes

Which features the ingredient

You each worked with

In your leg of the race.

[Jesse]

I've been cooking



For about years.

And, um, I can't remember

Anything I've ever done

With prawns in my life.

[Padma] so your quickfire

Starts now.

Good luck.

[Bryan] I worked

At charlie palmer steak

For five years.

So you know, I'm thinking light,

Tart flavors,

Cut through the fat

Of beef,

And, you know, some--

I'm thinking something quick.

[Jennifer]

My idea



With the clams is



To do just a simple,



Straightforward, clean ceviche.

I wanted to do something

Lighter and refreshing,

And we are in vegas,

So...

[Mattin]

I have lobster.



You can't really



Go wrong with lobster.



It already tastes good



On its own.



I went to french school



For cooking,

So I want to stick with my--

My style.

Ten minutes, guys.

[Jesse]

So I decide to do



Shrimp and grits,



Only using polenta.



It's sort of the food



That I have

A tendency to lean towards,

Um, and it was the only thing

I could think of.

:, Kids.

Is bryan your older

Or younger brother?

He's older.

[Michael]

So I'm watching



My brother cook.



I want to see him do well.

Unless I'm competing

Directly against him,

I'm his biggest fan.

[Padma] okay, time's up.

Utensils down, hands up.

[Jennifer]

Everybody else's



Plates are beautiful.

I don't know if I got it.

Might've went too simple.

So what did you make?

So we have just a simple,

Clean and fresh

Clam ceviche

With lemon and lime juice,

A little bit



Of citron vinegar.

-[Padma] thank you very much.

-Thank you.

Hi, mattin.

I cooked lobster

With, uh--

In bay leaves

And star anise.

I had the spot prawns,

So I just made a little, uh,

Shrimp grit

Using the polenta.

Don't forget to suck the head.

-[Laughs]

-That's where the best part is.

[Laugh]

-[Padma] hi, bryan.

-Hi, how are you?

Hey, bryan,

So what did you make for us?

A fennel, coriander,

And black pepper crusted



Rib eye,

Also a puree of golden raisin

And chive.

[Bryan]

I see a lot of mistakes



On my plate.



Normally I wouldn't serve it,

But that's working

Against the clock.

[Tom] this was tough

Because they were

All very good dishes,

But if I had to pick two

That could've been better--

I think, bryan, I actually, uh,

Loved the caramelized celery.

What I didn't care for was

The puree.

It was really bland

And a little gritty.

Mattin, I thought the lobster

Was perfectly cooked.

You had mentioned star anise

And bay leaf,

And I didn't get

A lot of that flavor.

If I had to choose a favorite--

Jen, I liked

That the flavors were

Really nice and clean,

Nice and tender.

Jesse, I thought

For a / an hour,

You managed to develop



A tremendous amount of flavor.

It was just

A big mouthful of ocean.

I wish I could choose both,

But I'd have to say, um...

Jen.

Yours was my favorite.

[Applause]

-[Padma] congratulations.

-Thank you.

You have won the first

High stakes quickfire.

I'm running to this.

[Padma] I would be too.

-Well done.

-Thank you.

-Congratulations.

-Thank you both.

[Padma] well done.

[Jennifer]

I win the $,



From the m resort.



I want to win everything.

I want to win every challenge,

Every quickfire,

No matter what.

[Padma] so in the spirit

Of sin city,

We want to find out

About your dark sides.

So you'll each be cooking a dish

Based on a vice

That you're each guilty of.

[Tom] for this challenge,

Your teammates are

Now your competitors

And you'll be cooking

Against each other.

One chef from each group

Will be up for the win,

And one will be up

For elimination.

Robin, you can pick which group

You're cooking with.

Well, I think I'd choose

The blue team.

[Robin]

It really didn't matter



What team I was on,



'Cause I had immunity.

But I chose the blue team

'Cause I wanted to be a winner.

Joining us as guest judge is

A pioneer

In the las vegas dining scene.

Tomorrow we'll be cooking

At cut restaurant,

And the guest judge is

Wolfgang puck.

[Nervous laugh]

[Ashley]

Wolfgang puck is



The founder of, like,



New american cooking



In this country.



Knowing that he's going



To taste my food,

It's priceless feedback.

You'll each have $

And minutes

To shop at whole foods.

And then tomorrow,

You'll have two hours to cook.

Good luck. We will see you

Tomorrow night at cut.

-Go.

-[Cheering]

[Kevin] have you seen

Planet earth,

Where the walruses are

Trying to, like,

[Bleep] make it--

It's going to look

Very similar to that.

[Kevin]

Everyone was trying



To get me



To try the water slide.

I thought that was

The [bleep] coolest [bleep]

I'd seen in a while.

Listen--

[Ashley] just stop [bleep]

Talking about it.

-I want to see some action.

-Throw it down.

[Eli]

The last thing



You want to see is

Kevin wearing

A bathing suit poolside.

You're going face first

To the wall.

Oh!

[Eli] dude,

That is how you do it.

[Kevin] that [bleep]

Pretty sweet.

[Jesse]

We've got minutes



And $.



Our elimination challenge is

We have to choose

One of our personal vices

And base a dish

Around that.

[Jennifer] ginger, ginger,

Ginger, ginger, ginger.

Ginger, ginger, ginger.

Me too.

Where's unsalted, uh,

Good butter?

[Bryan]

Oh, I want to win bad.



I mean, of course I do.

I mean,

It's our first challenge.

I just lost the opportunity

To win,

You know, in the quickfire.

Three of the last five seasons,



The winner of the first



Elimination challenge



Went on to win top chef.

So I want to regroup

And prove that--

That I'm here to--

To win.

Minutes, guys.

[Ron] do you have, like,

An island station?

My journey to the u.s. Was



Days at sea.



It was very dangerous,

Because sometimes

They threw people overboard.

I can't find

Half of my stuff.

Some of the guys

Caught some fish.

And I cooked the fish.

That kept me alive.

Can I have, uh,

Three pounds

Of chilean sea bass,

Please?

It's not easy



To let that go,



So my vice gonna be



A fish dish.

My objective, it's to do

What I do best.

And the end result will speak

For itself.

Jalapenos, jalapenos,

Jalapenos.

[Jen]

My vice is I have



A hot temper.

I'm making a chile relleno,

Which is a stuffed pepper

I'm stuffing with seitan,

Which is a wheat gluten.

I work with this stuff



All the time,



So I feel very confident



Using it.

I'm trying to stand out

A little bit.

[Kevin] ten minutes, guys.

Thank you, sir.

[Scanner beeping]

[Indistinct chatter]

Thanks.

-[Hector] okay.

-Yeah.

[Ash]

Wolfgang puck's



Restaurant, cut,



At the palazzo in las vegas,



Blows my mind.

You could fit my entire

Restaurant in that kitchen.

It is absolutely gorgeous



And spotless.

Oh, yeah.

It's happening.

[Kevin] I'm just going to

Leave these right here.

Tell me if they're in your way,

And I will move them.

I'm cooking with michael



And eve and preeti.

And even though

We're a team,

We're cooking

Against each other here.

Coming around, coming around.

Coming down.

My dish is based



Around procrastination,

So what I've chosen to do is

To cook this arctic char

In a method

That is very slow.

I'm really excited

To be cooking

And not shucking clams.

[Preeti]

After yesterday



With the clams,

Part of me feels like,

Okay, I gotta go into this

Elimination challenge

And really bring it.

My dish is a fennel-crust



Pork tenderloin



With a maker's mark manhattan



Scented sweet potato puree.

[Ron] what are you

Making,

Mami?

-[Laurine] donuts.

-[Ron] oh, okay.

[Laurine]

I have ron, ash,



And jen in my group.

My vices are donuts, bacon,

Chocolate, and beer.

I came up with it

In, like, on a whim.

Just like, I'll put seitan

In it, and it was delicious.

Jen has picked a dish

That is super ballsy.

I mean,

Why cook with seitan?

Like, fermented,



Compressed soybean--

Nobody [bleep] likes

That stuff. It's yuck.

How we looking,

Green team?

[Indistinct]

-[Speaking haitian creole]

-[Laughs]

Sugar, sugar,

Sugar, sugar.

I got sugar.

[Jennifer] I am with bryan,

Robin, jesse, and mattin.

My vice is going out to the bar

After work

And having too many choices



Of alcohol,



So I'm going to be making



A super intense lobster stock

With all of the alcohol

Infused into it.

Mmm.

Taste this, jen.

[Jesse]

My vice is alcohol



And excess.

So I'm making a dish

I'm calling "the whole bird"

Or "tipsy chicken."

It's pretty good chicken.

It's a little dry right now,

But I'm gonna sauce

It a little bit.

I'm really worried



About my chicken breasts,

And I'm wishing

That I would have put it

On the wood grill instead

Of braising it.

So I'm a little concerned.



[Mike]

So I'm competing against



Ashley, hector, and eli.

I hate to lose, you know.

I want to be the best.

I've always worked for some

Of the best restaurants

In the country.

-[Hector] I'm smoking, baby.

-Oh, [bleep].

[Hector laughs]

[Hector]

I cook from the heart,



And I cook with cojones,



Like we say in puerto rico,



You know?

So I'm actually going to smoke

A rib eye steak.

I'm gonna deep fry it.

It seems a little unusual,

But I think--

In our culture, we fry anything.

Steak and potato,

Latino way.

[Laughs]

[Mike]

And hector fried



A rib eye.



In a steakhouse,



For wolfgang puck.



And I'm like, oh, wow.



This is

A little bit easier

Than I thought it would be.

Um, but we'll see

What happens, you know?

[Mike] keep going, baby,

Keep going.

Minutes.

-.

-[Mattin] whoa, sorry.

-Y'all heard?

-[Jennifer] yep.

-Whoo-hoo.

This oven right underneath

The flat top is

Going down really low.

[Kevin]

The last minutes is



Hectic because then I realize

That I actually should not be

Going as slow as I am.

I've slowed myself down



Too much,



So my plan is backfiring.

[Eve] does anybody have

The white wine?

-[Preeti] nope.

-[Eve] there's no white wine.

My vice is a little bit more



Of, like, a fault



Or something I struggle with,

Wishing I was a little bit

More of a simple,

Kind of easygoing person.

Are you kidding?

I am preparing a curry cream

With shrimp, scallops,

English peas.



And I'm disappointed,

Because I was out

Of the white wine

And had to use the cream,

So it was completely unbalanced.

And I was attending to that



While my seafood was



Overcooking.

Eight minutes, guys.

-[Mattin] eight.

-Eight?

[Jen] I gotta figure out

How I'm going to plate this.

How do you think I should put it

On there? It's so huge.

[Jen]

The only issue



That I'm having is



That the breading is starting



To come off.



It's really big,

And I'm totally disappointed

With how this plate looks.

I just hope

The flavors are good.

Oh, my god.

All right, guys, one minute.

One minute.

[Hector] get out of the way.

Seconds.

[Mattin] anybody have

The vinegar?

-Nine.

-Damn it.

[Robin]

I am so thankful



I have immunity,

Because I don't even have

The sauce on my plate.

[Mike] hector, let's do it,

Big dog.

[Padma] hello.

[Mike]

I'm kinda stoked, yeah.

I mean, wolfgang's

One of the biggest

Celebrity chefs ever

To be known in america.

And to cook

For someone like that, to me,

Is, like, awesome.

And hopefully he'll enjoy



What I do.

Mike, tell us about your vice

And your dish, please.

Okay, today my vice is

My, uh, foul mouth.

I started off on top with



An olive oil-poached halibut

To represent a bar of soap that

My mom would stick in my mouth

When I would get in trouble

As a kid.

-[Padma] eli.

-I wanted to get

My arrogance

In there a little bit,

My drinking in there

A little bit,

And my bitterness

And jaded quality.

So I did

A "buttered" scotch,

Scallops with, uh,



Pulverized cashews

-With some beer powder.

-[Padma] thank you.

My vice is my fondness

For red wine and bourbon.

It's a chicken liver ravioli



With a red wine demi-glace.

The filling has chicken thighs

In there.

My vice is smoking,

So I smoked a rib eye

With applewood and cedar,

And then a ceviche of celery

To also bring

The whole thing together.

Try it.

[Wolfgang] certainly a lot

Of things going on on here.

Some of them show promise.

For example, the scallops.

I thought he cooked them



Really right.

I just think eli thought,

You know, more is more.

Put a little powder on here,

Put a little gel on here.

You don't need that.

What about hector's steak

With carrot puree

And potatoes?

[Tom]

It looks like he actually



Deep-fried the steak,

Which is sort of bizarre.

If you walked into your kitchen,

You saw one of your chefs take

A steak and throw it

In the fryer?

I would throw him

With the steak in the fryer too.

Mike, to me, showed experience

As a chef on this plate,

And I liked that it was just

Focused and concise.

It was a really nice

Presentation.

I mean,

We'll see what happens.

I mean...

[Chuckles]

-Hello.

-Hello.

[Padma] bryan?

Uh, well, my vice is,

After a great steak,

Is a bourbon

And a cigar.

So what I did was

The new york strip steak,

Finished it over



A parsnip puree,



And also, I took



A bourbon reduction caramel

And brushed the outside

To represent

The cask that bourbon is

Aged in.

[Padma] mattin?

So I am a taurus,

And taurus are known

For, like, being stubborn.

So I wanted to use cow,

In the same family.

And this is buffalo.

We have a rib eye steak



And a madeira sauce



And zucchini with mashed potato



And garlic.

Jennifer.

So my vice is alcohol.

I tend to do really stupid

Things after a lot of it.

And it's usually

Whiskey, bourbon,

And I threw a little scotch



In there,



Black peppercorn sauce,

Poached alaskan halibut.

My vices are whiskey

And, um, excess.

So my dish is the whole bird.

Some yukon gold potatoes

That were fried

In the chicken fat,

A reduction of the whiskey,

And a fried egg.

Well, I'm a bad jew,

And pork would be my vice.

I chose to do

A pork tenderloin

And I stuffed it with chorizo.

And then the bacon red eye

Gastrique did not make it.

[Everyone] thank you.

[Gail] there's a few really good

Things on this table right now.

Everything on bryan's dish

Was actually

Very well ex*cuted,

I think.

A little too much

Puree drizzled around.

I think jennifer's

Halibut is beautiful.

The sauce had so much



Depth of flavor.



I thought it was delicious.

We won't get a better halibut

In las vegas, I don't think so.

That I will tell

My chefs in the kitchen.

What did you think

Of the chicken?

[Gail] I thought it looked great

When it came out.

Sort of fun and different,

And jesse's explanation

Of sort of over-the-top,



Whole bird, so to speak.

But I thought

The flavor fell short,

And I definitely think

That breast was overcooked.

I can't get past

That dry chicken.

-[Padma] thank you...

-Wow.

[Padma] so ash, why don't we

Start with you?

Well, my vice is

Procrastination.

My dish is a poached halibut



On top of, like,



A vegetable ratatouille

With eggplant

And a parsley coulis.

My vice is

I'm a little hot-tempered.

So I have stuffed



A poblano chile with seitan,

Accompanied by

A grilled tomatillo salsa.

It's a little spicy.

My vice is, uh,

Me let those days I spent

At the sea from haiti go.

So the fish is what we ate,



And whatever, when we stopped



In cuba, they gave us.

So I put it in the dish.

So maybe I can let that go.

I put all my vices

On the plate for you guys.

So I have a chocolate sauce



For the donuts.



And I put bacon



In the donuts.



And then finally



A belgian beer sauce.

-Thank you, guys.

-[Wolfgang] thank you.

[Gail] dessert first for me.

[Padma] all right,

Let's start with ron's dish.

-I like his story.

-[Tom]

But I'm not quite sure



-How it's a vice.



-[Wolfgang]

I thought

The fish was cooked

Pretty well.

-The fish is cooked well.

-[Wolfgang] yeah.

Jen's, uh, chile relleno...

[Tom]

There's really



No flavor to it.

There's, you know,

Big chunks of product in here.

I think this dish

Was so clunky.

If you cooked that at home,

These people will never come

And visit you again.

-[Laughter]

-That's right.

[Ash] I have no idea.

I don't know.

Laurine's sauce is beautiful

With the beer.

What did you think

Of the donuts?

-They're terrible.

-I think the donut,

You can take it

And throw it at somebody.

This is like a football.

You just threw a donut

Across the room.

[Laughs]

Good job, green team.

-Good job, guys.

-[Laughs]

So let's start

With you, mike.

I don't know

If it's my vice,

But I went with a tribute

To the plastic surgery

-Here in las vegas.

-[Padma] oh!

[Michael]

With



A nice rack of lamb,



Served with sauce that I made



From taking the juice

From two nice coconuts

And some cauliflower gnocchi.

Preeti?

My weakness is

A maker's mark manhattan.

I braised the sweet potatoes



With bourbon cream,

And the pork tenderloin.

What is your vice?

Sometimes I wish I was

A little bit simpler,

Less complicated.

The sauce has a lot



Of complexity,

And then just really

Simple sauteed shrimp

And scallops.

My vice is procrastination.

So I've taken arctic char.

It's cooked very slowly.

On top of that,



A salsa verde out of turnips,



Something that's traditionally



Braised for a very long time,

And topped it with

Some celery salad,

So that hopefully

Once it all comes together,

-I'll actually be on time.

-Thank you.

[Kevin]

If I don't win,



Then I'm going to be worried.

Because

That was my technique,

My skill at doing what I do

Coming out.

What is in there, like,

Alcohol?

Tastes very alcohol in there.

What about this arctic char

Of kevin's?

I loved his story.

I love the dish.

[Gail]

It was cooked

With a very delicate touch

In a way that was interesting.

I thought

It was really well done.

All right.

[Laughs]

Eve's dish.

[Gail]

She chose to show us

How complicated she could be,

And nothing was in balance.

Yeah, and the scallops

Aren't seared nicely.

-No.

-[Padma] mike's dish here.

I thought the lamb was cooked

Really well.

A lot of good flavors



With it too.

You have to be

A professional

-To put that together.

-Absolutely.

[Padma]

All right.

Well, we have to get back

To judges' table,

Make some important decisions.

So let's get to it.

Good evening.

We would like to see ron,

Mike, kevin, and jennifer.

[Padma] thank you.

Congratulations.

Each one of you had

The best dish of your groups.

-Boo-ya!

-[Clapping]

[Padma] mike,

Let's start with you.

The flavors were really,

Really wonderful.

Seasoned well.

You did a really nice job.

-Thank you.

-[Gail] I really liked

How it was...

Super focused.

Every flavor worked

Off the flavor

That I tasted before it,

So I thought

That was really great.

Thank you, thank you.

Wolfgang, you had

Some very strong feelings

About jennifer's dish.

The fish was cooked

To perfection.

It was a delicious dish.

Thank you very much.

But I don't know why

You have to drink scotch,

Bourbon, and cognac

At the same time.

I don't know, I said

It makes me do stupid things.

Drink a glass of white wine

Next time with it.

[Padma] ron,

Let's move on to you.

I definitely got

Those typical island flavors.

I think your ideas were great,

And I thought the fish was

Really nice.

-Thank you.

-[Tom] you know, it's great

Hearing your story--i'm not

Quite sure how it's a vice.

But we're happy

That you lived through that

To be here with us.

Thank you.

[Padma] all right,

Let's move on to kevin.

First of all,

I love arctic char.

But also, the salsa verde

With it went really well.

All in all, I think it was

A beautiful ex*cuted dish.

Thank you.

I appreciate it.

[Padma] so wolfgang,

Who is the winner?

[Wolfgang] the one who was

Our favorite is...

Kevin.

-Thank you.

-[Applause]

Winning the first one

Feels really good.

It's a tough competition,

And, you know,

Everyone is sizing people up.

[Cheers and applause]

I think it's important

That they know that

I'm a force to be reckoned with.

Thank you.

The next person is hector,

Jen,

Jesse, and eve.

Good luck.

[Ash] good luck, guys.

-[Ashley] good luck, guys.

-Good luck.

[Padma] the four

Of you had

The least favorite dishes

Of your groups.

Hector, let's start with you.

[Tom] you know, the idea

Of deep-frying a steak,

I'm not sure

If it works out well.

[Wolfgang] where could you get

More flavor,

The smokiness--

In the french fryer

Or on a wood-burning grill?

Well, in-- in the grill.

Obviously.

But, uh, I wanted to do

Like a chicharron style,

So I wanted, like,

A crunchy outside.

I wanted the fat

To be well caramelized.

I think frying the steaks

In america,

It's not a good idea.

[Padma] okay, eve.

I thought

The sauce was blobby.

No flavor.

No complexity.

It felt like you didn't use

Any spices.

I actually toned it down

A little bit.

I really tend towards, like,

Really big, bold flavors.

And I didn't want it

To be too complicated,

But I obviously

Toned it down too much.

Uh, i-i'm just confused.

The idea was that

You overcomplicate things.

But then you just said

That your curry sauce,

You played it down

To make it less complex.

In the final seasoning,

I added probably too much cream.

To me,

The bigger issue I had was

The scallops weren't

Seared properly,

The shrimp were overcooked,

And the sauce was weak.

[Padma] okay, jen.

I found the dish

Really clunky.

There must've been a way to have

Given it a bit of refinement.

-Right.

-And unfortunately,

We just didn't get

What you were trying

To accomplish.

-Right.

-[Tom] I don't know

If you sort of...

Knew what you were

Trying to accomplish.

No, I definitely disagree

With you.

This is a dish

That I've made before,

And I've-- I've thought through

It really well.

With those ingredients?

With those

Exact ingredients.

I guess what I want to say,

It is-- I am hot tempered.

I mean, I get--

I get really mad. But--

[Gail] we wanted

To feel that heat.

And I wanted to use the seitan

As like, you know what?

I'm mad as hell,

But I'm really good for you.

I wanted to make sort of like

A grand entrance

And just using something

That you wouldn't forget,

And unfortunately,

I guess you want to.

-So I mean...

-[Gail] I don't think that

Using seitan

Was what we didn't like.

It was that you didn't cook it

In a way that tasted good.

[Padma] jesse.

[Tom] the idea was great.

The-- the breast was

The problem.

-[Jesse] was it dry?

-It was completely dried out.

That's-- that's my fault.

I pulled it

Out of the braise early

And let the legs go longer.

And, um, i--

You know, just--

Just when you braise something,

And when you cool it down,

It has to be in that liquid

-Or it just dries out.

-Yeah.

[Jen] just so you know,

That sucks.

[Jesse] no, I don't know yet.

[Jen chuckles]

We don't know yet.

I was happy to see

That most of them,

Had full comprehension

Of why they were here.

I think jess, I mean, I thought

Most of that dish was good

Except for that--

That chicken breast.

I thought

It was conceived well.

-Yeah-

-[Tom] and a good idea.

I think she just messed up

By taking it out

Of the braising liquid,

And it just got dry.

Hector, I thought

He had some imagination.

You know, every--



Cultures cook differently.



But I think



It's just bad execution.

Yes.

[Tom] the big problem

With jen's pepper--

I don't care



If she used seitan,



If she used chicken,



If she used beef--

It didn't matter.

The thing wasn't seasoned.

It wasn't cooked right.

That would've been terrible

No matter what she used.

The last thing I ate was

Eve's dish.

It just turned me off,

Because the shrimp looked

So overcooked and so sad.

And I think in cooking,

If you cannot even season

The simplest thing,

Why cook?

-It's okay.

-[Eve sighs]

[Padma]

Okay, then.

I think we have

Our decision.

I am convinced

We made the right one.

I think we made

The right decision.

Let's get them out here.

[Tom] so, chefs,

It's your vices

That actually got you

In a little bit of trouble.

Hector, your vice

Was that you smoke too much.

Unfortunately,

That smoky flavor

Didn't really come through.

Eve, your vice

Was that you complicate things.

And quite frankly,

We were confused by that dish.

Jen, your vice was being

Hot tempered and angry,

And somehow it just wasn't

A very good dish.

Jess, your vice was excess,

And quite frankly,

You were just

Too excessive when it came

To cooking that chicken.

It was just really overcooked

And dry.

The distinction of being

The first to leave is

Always a difficult one,

But somebody has to go first.

Jen, please pack your knives

And go.

Thank you very much.

Thank you all.

[Jen]

I did not feel



Like I would go this early.



It was bold,



And it showed I'm not afraid

To try something new

And do something different.

Peace.

-Oh...

-Oh, really?

[Jen]

Being on

Top chef

,



I put myself out there.

And right now

It feels like [bleep],

But to even be considered to--



For doing something



Like this is pretty phenomenal.



There's a million people that



Would love to be in my shoes.

[Eve] I'm gonna see you

Back on the east coast.

[Jen] hell yeah.

I'm out of here.

-Bye, jen.

-Bye, baby.

I think I'm more, like,

Disappointed...

That I didn't get



A chance to show my son,



Like, what your mommy



Can do.

I hope he's proud of me

No matter what.

Do you want some, uh,

Mushroom sauce with it?

Every challenge,

There's someone going home.

[Bryan]

We're going to be



Cooking for



Of america's finest airmen.

It was a "holy [bleep]" moment,

You know?

This is my idea

Of a living hell.

I'm prepping on a table

In sand in -degree weather.

[Padma] please welcome

Penn and teller.

[Penn] hello,

How are you doing?

My mouth is still burning

A little,

But not unpleasantly.

It's an honor to be

In your presence.

[Speaking french]

To be cooking for

The chef of the century,

It's like,

I'm literally speechless.

[Mike] [bleep] I don't like

When people

[Bleep] talk [bleep] to me.

Why are you so angry

Right now?

Be a [bleep] martyr.

I don't give a [bleep].

-[Shouting]

-[Eli] robin, robin.

[Eli]

She told everybody



She

[Bleep]

Had cancer.

That's a pretty good way

To win a quickfire.

[Eli] cut it out.

It was a bad dish.

It was a bad idea.

Whatever, you know?