06x12 - Strip Around the World

[bunniefuu]

[Padma]

Previously on

Top chef...

Hello?

Padma-- she's upstairs,

In bed.

Excuse me.

Excuse me. Excuse me.

I'd rather you

Just be gone right now.

Tastes like cardboard.

Like most people

Who come to vegas,

He has gambled and lost.

The winner is michael.

-Wow.

-[Applause]

I'd never want

To eat that again.

The dish was a failure.

Robin, please pack

Your knives and go.

[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.

[Bryan]

Today will be



The last challenge



In las vegas.



And, you know, $,



Is a lot of money.



My restaurant,



We're slower now.

My phone might not be on

When I leave here...

[Laughs] you know,

'Cause I can't pay my bill.

I'm gonna try

To set that aside,

But obviously

It's gonna be on my mind.

[Kevin]

I'm very glad that I'm still



In this competition,



But I've been missing my wife



For a very long time now.

My wife, callie, is

The cornerstone of my life,

And she gives me inspiration



To win it.



[Eli]

We started with ,



And we're down



To the five strongest chefs



In the competition.



I'm the youngest



Guy in the house,

And my mentor has pretty

Much been richard blais.

I've known him



Since I was years old or so,



Became really close friends



With him.



I was the best man



At his wedding.



And he didn't win it,



But if I won,

I'd be going back

And saying, "hey, look,

I won it



For both of us."

It's kind of a "my name is

Inigo montoya,

You k*lled my father,

Now prepare to die"

Sort of situation.

[Jennifer]

Yeah, I think



The pressure is on me.



I started off strong,

But I think I just

Became unfocused,

And I haven't performed

To what I have expected to.

So hopefully today

I can pull it out.

[Kevin]

So we walk



In the top chef kitchen,



And padma is there,



And she's standing, uh,



Beside gavin kaysen.



Gavin kaysen won



The james beard award



For a rising star chef,

Something that I've also

Been nominated for.

So I am very aware

Of who he is.

We started off

With chefs,

And after challenges,

Five of you remain.

And as you know,

Only four of you

Will go on

To battle it out

In napa valley

For the title of top chef.

Now, I'd like you

To help me welcome

Gavin kaysen.

[All]

Good morning.

[Padma] gavin represented

The united states in

In the world's most difficult

Cooking competition--

The bocuse d'or.

Bocuse d'or is like

Being selected

To represent the united states

In the olympics.

[Loud cheering]

It's the most serious



Competition for cooking



In the world.

[Shouting and cheering]

The bocuse d'or

Tests your fundamentals,

Your technique,



Your passion,



And it really pushes you



To a whole new level



Of cooking.



And it brings together



Literally the best chefs



In the world

To showcase what they know

In classical french cuisine.

[Jennifer]

That is unbelievable.

So I think

Some crazy quickfire

Is coming our way.

So tell us a little bit

About what you prepared

For that competition.

One of the classic dishes

That I did

Was the chicken ballantine

With crayfish in the middle.

We had crayfish

Inside of chicken liver

Inside of chicken

Inside of chicken.

It only took me four months

To figure out how to do it.

[Padma] well, unfortunately,

Here on

Top chef,

You won't have

That luxury of time.

For your final

Quickfire challenge

Here in las vegas,

You'll create your own version

Of gavin's winning dish.

You'll be making a dish

That has a protein

In a protein

In a protein.

You will have minutes.

[Jennifer]

A ballantine is basically

A protein inside a protein

Inside a protein.

So I'm gonna make

A turducken.

[Chuckles]

As you know,

You don't get immunity,

But you do get

A significant advantage

In this last

Elimination challenge.

Your time starts now.

[Bryan]

Those of us



Who have done ballantines,

I think, will prevail.

I'm gonna make

A merguez sausage.

It's gonna be wrapped

Around a loin of lamb.

I know this dish.



It's something



That I've done before.

[Michael]

This challenge is to me,

It's not about

Making a ballantine.

It's about putting



Three proteins together



Inside of each other.



I'm doing a pressed terrine.



But I've got bacon



Inside of turkey



Inside of chicken.

So I really think that I'm going

In the right direction with it.

[Kevin]

I see michael and bryan



Doing things

That I would be like,

"There's no way

I'm gonna try and do that

With minutes of time."

It's risky, and it just



Doesn't seem very smart.

[Eli]

I'm making a scotched egg



With maple syrup.

I don't know exactly

How gavin takes food.

So he's either gonna find

This awesome and great,

Or he's gonna find it



A little ludicrous.

That was good.

Eli and I were already friends

Before we came here,

But we're a lot

Closer friends now.

I think eli and I are maybe



The two ballsiest



People in this.



We are doing home-style food



For top chef,



Because we believe in the food



That we grew up eating.

[Eli] one hour

And one minute left, guys.

[Pounding]

[Jennifer]

I have never done



A ballantine before.

But I'm stronger

In seafood,

So I'm definitely gonna go

With what my strength is.

Wake up.

Wake the [bleep] up.

[Michael]

Jen started out strong,



And then I don't know



If nerves got to her or what,

But she hasn't been putting

Her best food up lately.

And it's great that



We've gotten to know each other



And all that sort of stuff,



But I think

At this point

In the competition,

I really don't think

There's a whole lot left

For her to do.

Mother[bleep].

[Padma] utensils down!

Hands up!

-Hello, eli.

-Hey, how you doing?

-Chef, great to meet you.

-Pleasure.

Well, I decided to do

A play on a scotch egg.

Iso I made a little

Breakfast sausage

And there's a six-minute egg

In the center

And then a bacon crust.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

[Padma] hello, michael.

What did you do for us?

[Michael]

This is



A warm poultry terrine.



I used chicken.

And then also the mousseline

Is made with turkey,

And turkey is very lean,

So I did a third of bacon

To incorporate some fat

Back into the turkey.

-Great.

-Chef.

So what I made for you

Is calamari steak,



Scallops, and salmon



With shiitake mushroom



And shiso.

And then we have a side salad

Of cold rice noodles

With a shiso vinaigrette.

Why did you choose seafood?

Seafood is my stronger point.

-Welcome back.

-Thank you.

I feel a huge sigh

Of relief.

It feels really good

To hear that.

Uh, so I made

A merguez sausage.

I wrapped it with caul fat



To hold it together.

In the center,

I used, uh, rack.

[Padma] and what are

All these sauces?

[Bryan] so I have

A puree of carrot,

Curry yogurt,

And a roasted-pepper coulis,

And a date and fig puree.

-Thank you, chef.

-Thank you so much.

And I wanted to do something

Sort of cliche and southern,

So I did fried catfish.

It's, uh, two fillets



Of catfish.



Inside it is scallop



And shrimp.

It's then cornmeal-fried,

Which is very traditional

In the south.

-Thank you, chef.

-Thank you very much.

Bye-bye.

[Bryan]

Kevin has a little bit



Less finesse, you know,



So he continues



To put out a product



That's more simple



Than the plates I've ex*cuted.

But, you know,

Simplicity is okay

If you do it correct.

Why don't we start

With kevin?

[Gavin] I felt like

The catfish itself

Was a little bit overcooked.

I think that the breading

Dried it out a little bit.

[Kevin]

I'm gonna beg to disagree



On this one,

Which is fine, you know.

That's just the way it goes.

Sometimes your taste

Is a little different

Than somebody else's.

[Gavin]

Bryan, the lamb tenderloin,

I thought, was cooked very nice.

It was a risky dish

In the amount of time

That you had,

And I think that you

Pulled it off well.

Thank you.

[Gavin] eli, I liked the concept

Of the scotch egg.

It's something that I would



Put on a brunch menu.

I thought that

Was a great concept.

-Thank you.

-[Gavin] jennifer,

At first, I thought

It was gonna be



A little bit tough



With it being



With the calamari.

I was pleasantly surprised.

I thought it was

A very successful dish.

And then, michael,

You had the poultry

Inside of the poultry.



I looked at that



As a little bit more



Of a terrine.

So I don't know if it

Necessarily captured

Perhaps

What we were looking for

As far as the protein

Inside of the protein.

[Michael]

Don't get



Where he's coming from.

He didn't say,

"Make a ballantine."

And if he said that,



I would have made one.



And I'm pretty confident



That it would have been

As good as the one

He probably made

In bocuse d'or.

So, gavin,

As our guest judge,

Please announce

The winner of this quickfire.

[Gavin]

Well, I feel the chef

That really reminded me

Of what could be

In the bocuse d'or...

Was jennifer.

-Congratulations, chef.

-Thank you.

[Applause]

-[Padma]

Congratulations, jennifer.

-Thank you.

It feels good

To win again.

It feels good

To be back on the top.

I haven't won a quickfire

Since the beginning.



It gives me



A little bit of boost,

But I still know

I need to work really hard

And to be focused

For whatever the elimination

Challenge is going to be.

[Exhales sharply]

For your

Elimination challenge,

You will participate

In our own

Top chef

Version

Of the bocuse d'or.

I'm thinking, "what the hell

Are you talking about, padma?"

You'll each be creating

A presentation platter

With one protein

And two garnishes.

[Gavin] the two garnishes

On the side

Are going to be more

Than just a turned vegetable.

It's gonna be something

That should be very intricate,

Something that should show us

A lot of technique and method.

For example,

Taking zucchini

And weaving it

Into a basket

And then filling that basket

With something,

That would be a garnish.

This is

A heavy-duty competition,

And this is

Our final challenge,

So we have to bring it.



And even though they realize



That we can't put out



The traditional



Bocuse d'or sort of thing,

I think they're fully

Expecting us

To really "wow" them.

You have a choice of lamb

Or salmon as your protein.

And you will use traditional

Bocuse d'or mirrored platters

To present your food

Before you plate

In front of the judges.

[Eli]

I feel excited



About participating



In this challenge.

You know, my biggest concern

Is just, you know,

The elaborate decadence

Of what this is all about.

It's not something I do.

It's not something

I'm familiar with.

And it's just-

It's difficult. It's tricky.

Tomorrow you will have

Four hours to cook

At alex stratta's

Restaurant alex at the wynn.

Jennifer, as you know,

You don't get immunity.

However, as the winner

Of the quickfire,

You get an additional

Minutes to cook tomorrow.

Nice. I need it.

[Laughs]

[Jennifer]

I'm slower



Than all these guys.



I have no problem



Admitting that.

For me, the extra minutes

Is awesome.

Oh, and there is

One more thing.

You will be cooking

For judges,

Including representatives

From the american advisory board

Of the bocuse d'or.

And one of these esteemed guests

Is the only american-born chef

To have simultaneously

Two restaurants

With three michelin stars--

Thomas keller.

[Michael]

Thomas keller

Is the most recognized

American chef in the world.

[Kevin]

His book,

The french laundry,

Absolutely changed my life.

I just can't help but feel

That I owe him

A debt of gratitude

That I'll never

Be able to pay back.

[Padma] the criteria

For this challenge

Is taste, creativity,

And execution.

Every element

Of your platter

Must be perfection.

[Bryan]

I mean,



We're talking about



Some pretty incredible palates,

People who are

True technicians with food.

It's gonna be very hard for them

To find nothing wrong

With a dish.

[Jennifer]

We jump in venzas,



And we're heading



Over to whole foods to shop.



We have to come up



With a dish and garnishes

And do a huge

Platter presentation

For the bocuse d'or.

It is, seriously,



The olympics for culinary,

And everyone

Wants to win the gold medal.

Where the [bleep]

Is the vinegar?

[Eli]

Let me take, um, all that.

[Michael] give me, like, eight

Of the nicest,

Fattest legs you have.

I have no dish whatsoever

Planned at this point.

I know I'm cooking lamb,

But that's it.

So my focus is



Stick to being very seasonal.

What are you gonna do

Tomorrow, chef?

Uh, I don't know.

Pack a [bleep] suitcase.

Oh! $?

Son of a b*tch.

[Jennifer]

I'm not even sure



What I have.



I'm gonna



Figure it out tonight.

I have two hours to plan

If I plan on sleeping at all.

Thanks.

[Bryan]

When we get home, I think



We're all pretty much tired,

But we need to start planning

Our dishes.

Well, when michael gets home,



He goes right to bed.

Hey, do you want to watch

This bocuse d'or dvd?

[Kevin] sure.

[Eli] I think gavin

Brought it for us.

[Shouting and cheering]

Jeez,

It's like a soccer game.

[Jennifer]

The dvds were definitely



Intimidating to watch.

We got to see

What truly all goes into it.

[Shouting and horns blowing]

[Loud cheering]

[Kevin] I can't believe

They get that loud.

The work involved,

The stress involved is-

Is mind-boggling.

So, hey, I do need

Some help, guys,

If you can help me

With this.

So obviously I need

Those saddles to come out

The exact same,

Which leads me to believe

I need to sous vide 'em.

[Bryan]

Kevin--he asked



About how to cook



Under vacuum sous vide.

It's a technique

He's not familiar with

And something he's never

Done really before.

What temperature

Would I cook those at

And for how long to get

To just under medium, I guess?

Well, it's not

A time thing with that.

It's gonna be

A temperature thing.

-[Kevin] okay.

-I just feel like if...

Somebody asks me

A question like that

And they know

That I know the answer,

If I shut 'em down,

Then I'm more of a prick.

Well, are you gonna roast it

At all after?

-[Kevin] yes.

-Then .

[Bryan]

Even though



This is a competition,



You know, being a chef



Is very much



About sharing information.



Some believe in that,



You know.

Um, some don't,

You know.

My--my brother

Might not have done the same.

-I'm not sure.

-We got a big day tomorrow.

-You guys ready to call it?

-Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

I'm ready to call it.

Let's do it.

The mood in the kitchen

Overall is intense.

Everybody's being quiet

And kind of keeping

To themselves today.

The reality is, is, you know,



This is a game of survival.



And my whole strategy is just



To focus on what I'm doing



And figure out mistakes



Before I make 'em.

When you get a second,

Can we gather

Over here real quick?

Obviously I don't need

To introduce chef keller.

I'm sure you all know him

By reputation.

[Kevin]

It's nerve-racking



To see thomas keller.

It's amazing to even stand

In the man's presence.

Well, good morning,

Everybody.

It's really great to be here.

I know the bocuse d'or

Is really

Probably weighing heavily

On your shoulders right now,

But at the end of the day,

It's just putting your head down

And going to work.

[Tom] we wouldn't have sprung

This on you

If we didn't think

You could handle it, so...

-Go to it. Awesome.

-It's exciting.

-Thank you.

-Thank you very much.

-Thanks.

-[Jennifer mutters]

I'm confident with this one,

Because or years ago,

I did some

Culinary competitions.

And, uh, I always



Did well, so...



I chose salmon, because



It takes a little more finesse



To perfectly cook



Portions and serve it.

Wish me luck.

If that's [bleep] up,

I'm done.

Cooking for thomas keller



Is nerve-racking.



I mean, he is just a genius,

And this is a huge, huge,

Huge opportunity

For him to see my talents.

But it's a little stressful.

[Bryan]

I know I'm pushing



The envelope on this one,



And my biggest concern



Is the braise--



You know, getting the braise



Done within the four hours.



The preparation typically



Takes about ten hours to do.

But I'm confident,

And, you know,

I hope that it doesn't

Get me, you know, in the end.

[Kevin]

I choose to sous vide



In this challenge,



Because it's a more



Appropriate way



Of cooking



What I want to cook.

You know, I hope that I picked

The appropriate technique

For the end result

That I'm looking for.

[Michael]

Kevin's been consistently



Cooking good food,

But nothing too amazing

Or elaborate.

And the food that kevin cooks

Is the food that I cook

On my day off.

-Hey, bryan.

-Chef, how you doing?

I'm good.

How you doing?

Uh, good.

[Chuckles]

So I'm working

On shank braising.

-Shank braising?

-Yeah.

-I'm gonna make

A crepinette with--

-Ok.

I'm gonna use

Sheep's milk cheese

To make a little

Macaroni and cheese,

-Just gratin and orzo.

-Okay.

And then last, I'm going to do

A parsley-crusted lamb loin.

Okay, how are you doing that?

Um, I'm going

To cook it sous vide,

And then I'm gonna make

A butter crust over the top--

If all does--goes well.

[Laughs]

[Tom] hey, kevin.

How you doing?

-Hey, chef. How's it going?

-Good.

What are you doing

With the lamb?

I'm sort of going

For a different approach here

With a little bit more subtle

And clean kind of flavor.

That's kind of a very

Different approach

Than you usually take.

[Kevin]

Tom gives me



Really funny looks



When I tell him



What I'm doing.

But at this point,

It's too late to change it.

So I'm just gonna do

What I'm gonna do.

What are you

Preparing for us?

-I'm, uh--i've got salmon.

-Okay.

I'm gonna go

With mediterranean flavors

All the way

Across the board.

I've got a tzatziki

That I'm gonna make with this

And then a little chickpea

And cauliflower tart

And then garnish with a little

Cauliflower couscous

And some caviar.

Very traditional,

Very classic.

-Hey, jen.

-Chef.

-Hey, how you doing?

-How are you?

What are you preparing?

Atlantic salmon

With caviar,

And basically I'm gonna be

Cooking it unilaterally,

So it'll be cooked

On the bottom,

-But still rare on the top.

-Got it.

I'm brushing it

With a little barmonte

And, um...

I need my prep list out, chef.

-[Both laugh]

-I have a lot of things

Going on my mind

Right now, um...

-Good luck. See you later.

-Thank you, chef.

Hey, eli.

So what are you preparing?

-Obviously lamb, but--yeah.

-Lamb.

[Eli] so I'm cleaning up

These loins,

And I am making a sausage

Out of a bunch

Of the other parts.

I'm trying to just do things

That I would normally do

And just make 'em

Small and sexy and tight.

-Cool.

-Alright.

Take care.

[Tom]

The chefs,



They've gone through a lot.

This is the last hurdle

They have to get through

Before they actually

Leave las vegas

And compete



For the finale.



Kevin is doing something



That he normally doesn't do.

I'm not sure why

He's deciding

To do something



That's so off his game.



Jennifer,



She seems a little nervous.

However, she did win

The quickfire.

So you hope that



That gives her some confidence



Going into the elimination.



Eli just started butchering



When I got back there.



He's got to pay attention



To the details.

Really the details are gonna

Separate a good dish

From a great dish.

Hey, chefs.

I know the pressure's on.

I'm gonna add a little bit

More pressure right now.

The winner of the challenge

Will also receive...

$,.

Are you kidding me? [Laughs]

Okay?

That's furnished

By the m resort.

[Jennifer]

I think all of us



Are having small heart attacks



Right now.

Grand--

That's freakin' crazy.

[Laughs]

So hopefully it'll make

The victory a little sweeter.

-Good luck. We'll see you later.

-Okay.

[Kevin]

That's a lot of

[Bleep]

Money.

I'm a new owner

Of a restaurant,

And many people think



That means

You're, like, rolling in money.

It's exactly

The opposite of that.

[Bryan]

Yeah, there's a lot



Of added pressure

On this challenge.

I mean, we're cooking

For all of these great chefs.

There's a chance



To win $, from m resort.

There's a chance

To be eliminated.

There's-

There's, you know,

So many different things

That are going on

In this challenge.

It makes you quite nervous.

Of course

They will win grand.

Why wouldn't something

Like that be the case?

[Laughs]

-[Michael] bryan?

-Yes?

-[Michael] are you

In the [bleep] right now?

-What do you need?

-Just pull my fish

Out of the water?

-Yeah.

-Thank you, sir.

-In this pan here, right?

Drain pan?

[Jennifer]

Our elimination challenge

Is to compete

In a mini bocuse d'or,

And none of us



Besides michael



Have ever done any competition



Of this sort.



Attention to detail



Is absolutely key,

But still having everything

Taste good

And look absolutely

Visually stunning--

It is just

A battle of perfection.

[Kevin]

I know that the bocuse d'or



Is usually about



Super-elaborate presentation



And this and that



And the other.



But I'm not gonna do that.



Instead, I'm gonna give them



Complex flavor

Wrapped up in a very nice,

Neat, simple bundle.

-All good?

-Yep.

Good luck, everybody.

[Kevin]

The judges for today



Are tom, padma, gail,



And jerome bocuse,



The son of paul bocuse--

The person who the competition

Is named after...

Alex stratta-



He's an amazing chef,

Tracy deshordian,

Daniel boulud,

As well as gavin



And tim hollingsworth.

Tim was the american

Representative

To the bocuse d'or

After gavin.

He works



At the french laundry



With thomas keller.

Hello, everyone.

How are you?

Hello, hello.

So what I have here

In my presentation

Is lamb loin

That has been poached

In caramelized lamb fat



And olive oil.



The two garnishes



That you see--



One is a sherry-glazed



Golden beet with parsley sauce



And pickled



Swiss chard stems.



And in the back here



Is baked asparagus



With sunchoke cream



And buttered toast.

I have a little bit

Of pepper lamb jus

That I'll be topping it with

When I plate it up.

My decision in using lamb

Over atlantic salmon

Was for sustainability

Reasons.

And in doing lamb,

I still wanted to make

The dish light and fresh,

So that's why I've chosen

The vegetables that I have.

Does the lamb

Come from a sustainable farm?

Um, yes, it does.

This is an all-natural

Colorado lamb

According to the packaging.

Please enjoy.

Thank you very much.

Thank you so much, kevin.

Mmm.

The swiss-- you really

Taste the swiss chard.

It's such a small little

Bite, but it really--

Between the swiss chard

And the parsley, it pops.

I like the lightness

Of the garnish

Of asparagus and sunchoke.

I think,

To be very critical

From a bocuse d'or

Point of view,

He did a great job.

Just a little elementary

For the amount of time

That he had

And, I think, the quality

Of chef that he is.

[Michael]

I'm a little bit nervous.

This panel of people

Is pretty intimidating,

Just in the sense

That you've got

Some of the best chefs



In the world,



And they're here to look



For flaws in the food.

And I think that

Would make anyone nervous.

[Indistinct chatter]

Here comes

Our next platter.

-Hello, michael.

-Good evening.

-Hello.

-Hello, michael.

Good evening, chefs.

This is a mediterranean-inspired

Salmon platter.

What I have in the front here

Is a cauliflower



And chickpea cake.



Here you have



The loin of salmon



Hat's been cooked sous vide,



A little bit of crab



And zucchini on the outside.



Around the outside,



I have tzatziki,



Which is basically



Just cucumbers

Stuffed with a tartare

Of the belly.

The sauce that I have here

Is a champagne-tomato ganache.

Do you have a direction

In the harmony of the dish?

-I mean--

-Just mediterranean flavors.

[Padma] thank you, michael.

[Traci] I thought it was-

It was pretty,

And there were a lot

Of different components,

But I thought the flavors

Were really disparate.

And the whole

Mediterranean thing,

I think, kind of threw him

Under the bus.

Where do you get

Cauliflower and caviar

In mediterranean flavors?

Unfortunately, I found

A little bone in the fish,

Which would-

At the bocuse d'or

Would blow you

Right out of the water.

Michael had

A total lack of harmony

In--in his composition.

By taking the cucumber

And hollowing it out

And putting something

Inside it--

Giving the judges

Some sort of surprise.

Yeah, "surprise.

It's not seasoned."

-[Gavin] right, exactly.

-[Laughter]

What the-

Oh, god.

You're looking at /.

-Um...

-[Jennifer] you need help?

What do you need me to do?

Uh, grab me

Two identical spoons.

And I got garlic chips

In the back oven on the top.

That would be awesome.

[Jennifer]

I have an extra



Half an hour

.



So if anybody needs help



Right now,

I want to be there.

And I'm worried for bryan.

-Garlic chips behind, bryan.

-Thank you.

[Bryan]

The last ten minutes feel



Like five minutes, actually,

'Cause it feels

Like it's going quick.

Alright, just let me wipe

A little bit here.

What a mess.

And we go.

As I'm going



To present this platter,



I see mistakes.



So it's very frustrating,

Especially, like,

Giving the temperature...

I'm like, "ohh..."

So what I did was

A crusted loin of lamb.

I took the saddle,

I deboned the whole thing,

And stuffed it back



With the tenderloin,



Crusted it with parsley.



And then next I have



A crepinette



Made with the, uh, shank.



And it's finished



With a caponata.



And then lastly



Is an orzo pasta



That's, uh, stewed



With sheep's milk cheese

And made a gratin.

So it's a play

On macaroni and cheese.

Interesting garlic chip.

How did you do that?

I pureed the garlic

And then spread it

Over acetate

And then

Dehydrated it slightly.

-Nice technique.

-[Bryan] thank you.

-Thank you so much, bryan.

-You're welcome.

[Jerome] I like the way

He plated his dish.

You know,

He has some technique.

He has some strengths.

I was very impressed

With bryan's platter.

I really wanted to enjoy it.

I was looking forward to it.

But unfortunately, I think

Bryan made the critical mistake

Of undercooking his lamb,

Which resulted in something

That we all felt

Was a little bit tough.

If all of these components

Had been well ex*cuted,

The dish makes a lot of sense.

So obviously

He ran out of time.

Timothy, how coachable

Do you think he is?

I do think

He's very coachable.

I think that his demeanor,

The way he talks about food--

I think he's knowledgeable.

-Yeah.

-Yes.

-[Whistles]

-Away.

Thank you, guys.

-[Jennifer]

Good luck!

-Thank you.

So far, my food's coming out

The way I wanted.

It doesn't have the level

Of precision

That I'm hoping for,

But, um, my strategy is just



To carve tableside.

So I decided to do

A little lamb sausage

I wrapped around three



Of the different loins.



They're all put together



And then rolled



The sausage around it



And then encrusted



In pistachios.

And my two garnishes

Are a ras el hanout

And carrot puree.

I will finish it with

A little bit of yogurt foam.

And then there is a tomato

And piquillo pepper marmalade

With a little caper berry

On top of a little

Brioche crouton.

[Jerome] what's the green sauce?

Arugula and tarragon coulis.

[Daniel] were you satisfied

With the lamb?

I was able to let it rest

Just long enough

That, uh, I feel like I got

The results that I wanted.

-[Padma] thank you, eli.

-[Eli] thank you.

I mean, I don't know

How he cut this lamb.

But this is thin on this side.

It's thick on this side.

[Jerome]

The lamb is undercooked.

You can clearly feel

The raw fat of lamb,

Which is very, uh,

Unpleasant.

It's a shame, you know.

It was a beautiful piece

Of lamb.

And none of us

Really enjoyed it,

So it's kind of sad

In that respect.

[Padma] I mean, I think that,

You know,

He has very distinct flavors

That--that are nice.

Even that foam

Was very flavorful.

I thought that foam

Had more flavor,

For instance,

Than michael's tzatziki.

I think he had

Some very good ideas,

But he failed

On his technical production.

It's tense in there.

It is dead silent.

And they start

Asking questions

That you don't want them

To ask you.

[Jennifer]

Right now there's five



Great chefs left.

At this point, it's coming

Down to execution.

It's coming down

To any little mistake

Is going to let you

Go home.

Great.

Shaking already.

I think my salmon



Is % there.



I don't think it's %.

And with these judges

And this competition,

Not being % is critical.

So what I made for you

Is lightly poached salmon



Topped with caviar



And enoki mushrooms.



And in the front



We have a shrimp flan



Topped with a cold salad

Of snap peas, chervil,

And truffles.

And then in the back here,

We have celery root

That is cut into squares

And shiitake mushrooms.

How did you

Poach the salmon?

I just cooked it

Unilaterally--

A little bit

Of water and butter.

Did you feel

You had enough time

To accomplish everything

You needed to?

[Jennifer] yes, I did.

I was okay with time.

-[Jerome]

Have you done competition?

-No.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

-[Padma] thank you, jennifer.

-Thank you very much.

[Tracy] everything tastes good.

You know, the flavors are nice.

But to me, the dish isn't--

It's not really well

Thought out.

What do you think

Of the salmon?

It's almost undercooked.

[Tom] yours is much less

Than most.

Much less than yours?

Is yours over?

-No, I can see--

-Mine is perfect.

-[Tracy]

Mine's a little bit under.

-[Tom] I agree with tracy.

The dish is kind of

All over the place.

But it--you know, most of it

Tastes pretty good.

The best thing

About the dish that I like

Is the custard that she did

With the shrimp.

-Mine is undercooked.

-There's a good flavor to it.

Is yours undercooked?

Yeah. So...

I kind of feel

Like the vision of this dish

Is at a dead end.

I felt like bryan's food,

If he was given more time,

His vision

Would be ex*cuted.

This is, to me,

One of the more interesting

And impressive platters.

This plate, to me, was

The most intriguing visually.

-[Pans clatter]

-[Quietly sighs]

I would just like

To raise our glass

To the father

Of jerome bocuse.

For setting an example

For us all.

-Yes, cheers.

-Extraordinaire.

[Gail] when you think

That they had hours

From the moment they heard

The words "bocuse d'or"

Till the time they had

To present us

With what they had

To present us with,

I'm very proud

Of our chefs today.

Hats off to

All five of them back there,

'Cause it really takes

An enormous amount of courage

To cook for us.

It is a great accomplishment.

[Applause]

[Padma]

I want to congratulate you

On a beautiful meal

And for making it this far.

But we have

One more surprise for you.

Thomas...

Well, one of you

Will be awarded tonight

A spot to compete for the

Bocuse d'or in lyon.

One of you will be able

To hopefully represent the usa.

Damn,

That's a huge door

To be opened for you

If you win this.

That's something that people



Aspire to do for years.

-Thank you all.

-Thank you, chefs.

-Thank you very much.

-[Tom] great job.

[Kevin]

And it would be an honor



To represent my country.



I can't even honestly



Put it into words



How that would make me feel.

But it would scare

The ever-living [bleep]

Out of you too.

-[Bryan] uh, eli.

-[Eli] chef?

-I'll scrub if you...

-Cool, give me a towel.

Here.

If you make that disappear.

This could be it.

Maybe the last time

We cook together, huh?

[Laughs]

For now.

Why, do you think

I'm going?

[Bryan] no, no. Me.

[Michael]

You know, I haven't spent



This much time with my brother



In years, so...



I'm proud of everything



That bryan and I



Have gotten to do



Since we've been here.



I mean--to make our mom



Proud of us too, you know.



It's hard to explain



To your parents

What you do for a living

When you're never around.

You know, it's not really,

Um, evident,

Uh, the success

That we have

Until she can actually

Physically see it for herself.

Was this up here?

-Uh, I think so.

-Okay.

I want to win.

I don't want to lose.

But whatever happens,

I don't think any of us

Should walk away



From this challenge



Ashamed of ourselves.



This is beyond hard,

And I think this is something

That we can all be proud of

To have even reached this point.

[Slaps hands]

Yep.

[Bryan] we all got to be proud,

Because the five of us

Have cooked for the best chefs

In the world.

Sounds sort of [bleep]

Stupid to say it,

But I'd be proud to lose

To [bleep] any of you guys.

The five of us

That are left

Are all very close

With each other.

We've all leaned on each other



The whole way through.

We're competitors,

But we're friends more

At the end of the day.

I love you guys.

[Laughs]

Good evening, chefs.

-Hi, padma.

-Hi, padma.

We would like

To see all of you

At judges' table.

Thank you very much.

-Let's go.

-Let's ride.

This is our final

Judges' table

Here in las vegas...

And we need to determine

Who will be moving forward

And who will be going home.

We'll start with you, michael.

What about salmon and caviar

Speaks mediterranean

To you?

Everything that I made

I thought would eat well

With the salmon.

And then as I was composing

The platter,

It naturally

Came together to me,

That like, "wow,

This is pretty mediterranean.

So that's gonna be the theme

Of my platter."

I know couscous

Is of the mediterranean,

But it's not couscous,

It's really cauliflower.

And that's the flavor

That you're playing with.

In a competition that has

This much gravity to it,

It doesn't give you

A lot of poetic license

To play around like that.

Chef alessandro stratta

Found a bone in his piece.

That said, some parts

Of the dish were really great.

I just don't understand

The direction.

Yes, chef.

[Padma] bryan.

I think the lamb

Was a little underdone.

It was a rare

To medium rare,

Because it was great,

And it had some great marbling.

I didn't want to take it

Past that point,

And I do apologize

If it was, you know, underdone.

I think we all agreed

That with more time,

It would be a different dish.

Thank you.

Kevin, your dish

Was being very simple.

Do you think

You could do something

A little more technical,

Maybe using

More culinary skill?

Had I made it significantly

More complex than it was,

I don't know

That I would have achieved

What I deemed

To be the balance

Of all the "componentry"

Together, um...

Is it fair to say you think

You played it really safe today?

If anything,

It's a risky decision

In choosing to use

Less obvious technique

In favor of something else.

The chefs

That were at the table

Felt that, in four hours,

It maybe was

A little too simple.

[Padma] jennifer.

Walk through the cooking

Process of the salmon.

The salmon is cooked

In hotel pans with water,

So it just cooks

Very, very slowly.

It cooks from the bottom up

And heats all the way through.

I'm listening to you say

That it should be cooked slowly,

And I don't think

That really happened,

Because a hotel pan

Is very thin by nature.

It also transfers heat

Very quickly,

And so all the fish

Cooked too fast.

Just by looking

At the cuts of your fish,

Some were a little narrow,

Some were a little thicker,

And they're gonna start cooking

At a different rate.

And I think that's

Why some were undercooked

And some were-

Were done a little better.

[Padma] let's move on to eli.

[Gail] I think the idea

Of the sausage

Could have been great

And very appropriate

To this type

Of competition.

Unfortunately, there were

Big pieces of fat

In the sausage,

So it made it hard to eat.

You know, it was

A beautiful rack of lamb,

So I didn't think

That it needed to be cooked

All the way through--

It was just

Really undercooked.

If it was just

Very lean meat,

Maybe you could get away

With it.

The fact that there was

A little bit of fat in there

Was a little hard

To swallow.

That said,

I've had absolute pleasure

Watching each of you cook

Throughout the entire season.

And after tonight's challenge,

I'm left with just

An incredible respect

For each of you.

Thank you.

-[Kevin] thank you.

-Thank you very much.

It means a lot

To hear you say that,

By the way.

-Thank you.

-Thanks.

[Kevin] I knew I didn't use

Enough technique.

I wasted a lot

Of [bleep] time yesterday

Being frustrated

And upset about it

And [bleep]

Squandered it away.

[Gail] I love the influences

Of eli's dish,

Especially the two sauces

That went on that lamb.

They made me want to taste it



As that lamb



Was meant to be tasted



If that lamb



Had been cooked properly.

I thought that was

The worst lamb we saw today.

It's hard to see

The dish as an overall

When you have a big piece

Of it that's not right.

With jennifer,

Very different dish.

I liked her garnishes.



But although my salmon



Was cooked well,

It was completely inconsistent

Across the board.

There was no precision.

The cutting was very sloppy

And uneven,

And that leads

To uneven cooking.

[Padma] tom, what did you think

Of kevin's dish?

You know, I thought kevin's



Dish was well-ex*cuted.



I thought it was



A little simple.

If that dish were offered

In a competition,

It would be dismissed

Immediately.

But just the fact

That his dish

-Was cooked correctly...

-Mm-hmm.

He took an advantage

Over the others.

It bums me out,

Because this was my chance

To show that I can cook

Better than I can.

And I feel like I kind

Of let myself down.

[Tom] I thought michael showed

A tremendous amount

Of technique.

There was a lot of work

Going into that dish.

[Padma]

In the past, when he's done



Those elaborate preparations,



He hasn't lost on flavor.

Today, I do think he did.

To me, his protein

Was perfect.

-Mm-hmm.

-His garnish was weak.

Mm-hmm.

You know,

Alex pulled a bone...

-That's true, that's true.

-Out of michael's salmon.

And that would disqualify

You immediately, right?

Yes, it would.

Bryan used a lot

More technique in his dish.

But some of the cooking

Wasn't properly done.

You know, I think that dish

Is definitely on the bottom,

-In my opinion.

-Yeah.

[Padma]

He tried a little



More complicated technique.



He could not execute it.

Had he cooked

Everything properly,

I think we'd have a very

Different discussion right now,

Because bryan wins

On technical merit

-Because he did more.

-That's true.

What's frustrating

About mine

Is I know exactly

What it was when it went to--

I knew everything that

Was wrong with my platter.

[Kevin] whether the execution

Was perfect or not,

It was obvious that you knew

What perfect was

And you just messed up.

Like, people mess up.

It happens.

It was certainly difficult,

But I think

We've come to a decision.

-That's right.

-Alright.

Let's get them out here.

The winner will not only

Have the opportunity

To compete

In the bocuse d'or usa,

You'll win $,,

But more importantly

You will move on

To the final round

Top chef.

Jerome,

You have the honor

Of announcing our winner.

The chef

Who was above the rest is...

-Kevin.

-Thank you.

[Applause]

And of course,

$, From the m resort.

You are also heading

To the next round of

Top chef.

Thank you.

To be ready

For his, uh, next step,

We have the bocuse d'or jacket

For him to train with

And some reading material.

-[Applause]

-[Kevin]

It's an amazing honor



To be able to compete



For the bocuse d'or.

That's amazing.

Like, I'm gonna cherish

Something like that.

Not only do you

Get all of this,

But you get grand

From the m resort.

Thank you. The m resort,

My favorite place on earth

At this point, like...

That's a lot



Of [bleep] money.

That's almost

What I make in a year.

Good luck, everyone.

You did a fantastic job,

All of you.

I guess what top chef



Has taught me



Is to trust my instincts.



Every time



That I trust my gut,

It comes out

A lot better.

And I think that

I'll take that home with me.

Oh, my god.

[Chuckles]

[Tom] I say this

With all sincerity

That it's gonna be hard

To see one of you go.

But unfortunately,

There were issues

With each of your dishes.

Eli, conceptually,

I think your dish was solid.

You had some problems

With execution.

Overall, we were impressed

By the amount of work

That you put into your dish.

Jennifer,

Your dish had great flavor.

The cooking

Was a little uneven.

But again,

You definitely showed

A tremendous amount of work

In your dish.

Bryan definitely reached high.

Some of the lamb just being

Slightly undercooked,

But again,

All the chefs applauded

The amount of work

That you put into your dish.

Michael,

We weren't so impressed

With the cucumber tartare

Side of your dish.

It wasn't up to the level

Of proficiency

That we would like to see

In this type of competition.

Thank you, chef.

It's really tough

To see one of you go,

But unfortunately,

It has to happen.

Eli, please pack

Your knives and go.

Guys, thank you so much

For the opportunity.

Good luck for the future.

[Eli]

I could stomach



That I got this far.



You know,



I'm not in a situation

Where i, you know,

Pooched it

And went out early

Or anything like that.

Like, I think my family



And friends



Are just gonna be proud of me.



You know, I made it



Up to this point,



And the people



Who beat me, you know,

I definitely think

Are fantastic chefs,

So I don't harbor

Any negative feelings about it.

I'll give you a call

When we get back home, man.

[Eli] I'm not as reactionary

Of a person.

I take a lot more time to

Compute and think about things.

And the reality is,



I'm going home,



So, you know,



It's a mixed gamut of emotions.



I know I'm not happy.

I'm coming to terms

With the fact that that's it.

I know it's difficult to see

Someone who you admired

And worked with

For such a long time go,

But you guys are all heading

To the finals,

So congratulations.

[Applause]

Thank you very much.

[Scattered applause]

Don't be all sad.

Be happy for that guy.

-Congratulations.

-Thank you.

I'm the last one that goes out,

And you guys are behind me.

I'm good with that.

See you around, guys.

I'm totally okay



With going home



Because of who is going forward



Instead of me.



You know, I feel okay

About getting this far

Through the competition

And not making it

To the final four.

You know, I feel as if,

Uh, I did my best,

And i, you know, succeeded



On so many levels,



Um, that I'm okay with it.

Yeah.

[Padma]

Next on

Top chef...

[Jennifer]

It's been a really long road.

Now it's time to cook your

[Bleep] a*s off.

Look at what

You're playing for.

Oh. Okay.

The brothers are gonna [bleep]

Bring it.

There's definitely

A sibling rivalry.

Twenty? Are you kidding me?

I'm the older brother.

Of course I'm wanna win.

Is this gonna be hot enough?

It's definitely a bloodbath.

There's no lack of salt

In this.

It's hard to get through it.

I am not looking forward

To judges' table.

[Tom] I wish all four could go

To the finale,

But unfortunately

We can only bring three.