01x09 - Napa's Finest

[bunniefuu]

And I was like, you guys, we're
not going to be able to do this.

Wait, you are Steven Woods?

Are you really just leaving him?

Steven was nowhere to be found.

You've got to be f***ing kidding me here.

Listen, stop f***ing with
the front of the house.

Oh, I know.

I'm so angry I could stay right now.

Next course was Harold's green
papaya salad with salmon.

I think it's kind of flavorless.

It's cold.

It is cold.

Whoever made the salmon happen?

The judge talked about Leanne's dish.

She might have been
mom, but I don't know.

I was sitting too long.

I just disappointed in myself and
everything else that happened with the food.

I've had better from a takeout place.

I'm in more pain about it because
it was my menu to begin with.

Apparently, all the dishes that they
had, it was probably successful.

I'm sorry.

Steven, this is top chef, not top waiter.

And yet you still need to go out
there and deal with the waitstaff.

Steven, please pack your knives and go.

Now four chefs remain.

Guided out for a place
in our Las Vegas finale.

At stake for the winner, a
feature in Food and Wine magazine.

A chance to showcase their culinary talent
at the annual Food and Wine Classic.

A state-of-the-art Kenmore
Elite kitchen provided by Sears.

$100,000 to kick-start
their culinary career.

And the title of top chef.

Steven definitely deserved to go home.

And I feel bad at this point
because I really like the guy.

Oh, it's too early.

But I want to win, you know?

And I think everybody
knows that, you know, I

don't put myself in
position or get involved

in anything that I don't
want to be the best at.

Okay, I got into cooking
down a different avenue.

I was in the technology sector,
and when that took a dump,

I took the opportunity to go
back to school, cordon bleu,

and from there, landed in a restaurant.

It's kind of a late bloomer
as far as a professional chef.

You know, I'm very
happy to still be here.

I've been on the chopping block
several times, but I've been spared.

And this time, I know if I make the
wrong mistake, I will not be spared.

There's four of us, and we're damn
near close to being in the finals.

I don't feel an overwhelming
obligation to be the closest of friends

with the other people in this house.

Tiffany Faison is here to play.

She was not here to mess around.

Another day.

I definitely want to
make the finals, right?

Ideally, who I would like to go
with me would be Dave and Harold.

Tiffany, her attitude sometimes clashes
with mine because she's very aggressive.

She's like a chameleon. She kind of
changes once she gets in the kitchen,

and it's a do or die.

So we walk into the kitchen.
I see Tom, Gale, and Katie.

I don't even know what's going on.

I think we're just all
getting so close to the end

that it was just like
whatever the challenges are,

we're just going to meet
head-on and go with it.

After eight extraordinary
and grueling rounds,

four of you remain to fight for the
three spots in the Top Chef finale.

Our judges, Chef Tom Colicchio and Gale
Simmons from Food and Wine Magazine,

have observed you through
every step of this competition.

As you know, there is no longer immunity

for the winner of the
Quick Fire Challenge.

So they will consider your
performance in both challenges

when making their decision tomorrow

as to who goes to Las
Vegas and who goes home.

I wanted to do well,
especially in this case

because it lays the foundation for a
secure future in the elimination challenge.

Today's Quick Fire Challenge
is all about junk food.

This is the f***ing spread of junk food.

Not right from the get-go.
I'm pissed off about it.

This is not what I'm about.
This is not what I want to cook.

On this table, you will find a
variety of popular junk food.

Your challenge is to
recreate one of these items

and give it your own
unique gourmet twist.

This challenge is about taking something
from the lowest level of the food chain

and elevating it to a higher level.

Harold, go ahead and pick.

Go over to the table. I'm
feeling really f***ing about it.

Ooh, I am partial to Reese's,
but I'm going to go with popcorn.

And I have no idea what I'm
going to do at this point.

I have no clue, but I know that I'm going
to take the healthiest thing up there

and make something hot with it.

Wow. All right. Nachos.

Corn dogs.

I'll take the hot dog.

So you have 45 minutes.

You can use any of the
ingredients in the pantry

and, of course, any of our
Kenmore Elite appliances.

Good luck. Your time starts now.

I was pretty tired. The creative
part is a little burnt out.

So I picked nachos and just thought
I'd do a nice high-end nacho.

I was watching what
everybody else was doing,

and I was going in a
completely different direction.

I just went at it, made an Ecuadorian
style cebiche with a little popcorn cake.

I wasn't really sure how the
judges were going to take it,

but the fact of the matter was
I'm not here to cook junk food.

I didn't want to change
what a corn dog is.

I love what a corn dog is.

But typically, the flavors of
corn dogs are a little bland,

so I wanted to introduce some true
reasons, some really rich flavors,

things that I really thought could
work well with the corn batter.

Hooray for food on the stick.

One of my strong points is being creative

and to really take everyday
food and make it your own.

Okay, what kind of time you got? 18.

Some quick fire challenges.
I've done really, really well,

and I've been consistently in the top.

I don't let overwhelming
pressure get to me.

Right behind you. Coming through.

Dave spazzes out a little bit,
and it's not how I like to work.

Coming through again.

In terms of the competition,

I don't really think Dave's going
to be around very much longer.

Right behind you?

If I can be focused and
crazy and run around,

you know, I'll do what I've
got to do to get it done.

I finally need another 45 minutes.

One minute.



How many?

Hey, everybody. Time is up.

Harold, we'll start with you.

Hi, Harold. You had popcorn,
so let's see what you created.

In Latin Russia, you see
popcorn garnished with ceviche.

So I'm taking it a step further here.

I've made a popcorn cake with
my Ecuadorian-style ceviche,

which had shrimp, calamari,
cumin times, lime juice.

Tastes like popcorn.

Mm-hmm. It does.

Got a little pop secret
inside the Kenmore microwave.

You're really, I think,
done a great job here

using the ingredient and
doing a lot more of it.

Thank you, Harold.

So you had corn dogs.

I had corn dogs.

I feel generally amorous
towards any food on the stick.

So I kind of wanted to tip my hat
to the corn dog in the right way.

What I did was I took some
chorizo and some duck sausage,

mixed them together to give them,
like, a really hearty, spicy flavor,

and then coated it in the batter.

Instead of just ketchup or
mustard, because it's so spicy,

I wanted to make, like,
a different condiment,

so I did a camembert cream.

Totally good.

Thank you.

Great. Thanks, Stephanie.

Hi, guys.

Hi, Leanne.

So the gourmet hot dog.

One of the things I like
doing is making sausages,

and so I have a Japanese seafood dog.

On top, I've made a spicy mustard

and some togarashi lotus
chips to go with it.

Mm-hmm.

Great. Thanks, Leanne.

Thank you, Leanne.

Very inventive.

Hi, Dave.

You know, I was seeing what
everyone else was putting forth,

and oh, my God, then we come down
to my sloppy plate of nachos.

I was a mess.

I got a little overzealous in trying
to make everything from scratch.

That's my problem from time to time,

but the flavors are gonna be there.

We have a fire-roasted tomato and
papaya salsa made from scratch,

avocado crema.

I made refried black beans.

Then I took U10 scallops,

and I just cooked them up
real quick, sliced them up,

scantily tried to get them on
the top before the timer rang.

You got them on.

Barely. Barely. Barely. Sorry.

Why don't you choose nachos?

Because I like those flavor profiles.

Thanks, Dave.

So, Tom, Gail, what did you think?

Harold, you know, we really,
really enjoyed your dish.

You sort of went with the
popcorn, worked it into a take.

Flavors are really, really clean.

Seafood was nice and fresh, and
it was really delicious. Thanks.

Thank you.

Tiffany, taking a corn dog and
just completely reworking it

and getting those, you
know, great strong flavors

reinvented what a corn
dog, you know, could be.

I thought it was great.

Leanne, I thought it was brilliant

that you took something
as mundane as a hot dog

and really decided to, you know,
work it into a seafood hot dog.

Garnishes were really great.

The Japanese flavors came
through. Love the idea.

Dave, of the four, you were the only one

who really took a literal
translation from the nachos,

and I just did a seafood nacho.

And I think it was clear by the dish

that you were sort of hurried
and rushed at the end.

But those were Dave's flavors,
you know, that we're used to.

But I really wish that you'd just kind of

reworked that entire idea
of what a nacho could be.

Of the dishes, the three
were really outstanding.

We had to pick a winner and a loser.

Today, our least favorite was Dave.

Your flavors were there, but
it really was a bit of a mess.

The winner today had
really clean flavors,

really elevated it to
something delicious,

appealing, and very beautiful.

And the winner today...

...was Harold.

Thank you very much.

Thank you.

Great job. All of you, really.

It felt good to be back
in the winner's circle.

Sometimes you got to do
**** you don't want to do,

and you got to step it
up and make it happen.

So knowing that I had to step up

while I'm going to
Vegas was feeling good.

Congratulations, Harold.

You've earned yourself
a place in the lead

as we go into the next challenge.

You have a really strong
shot of making it to Vegas

as long as you don't mess up tomorrow.

Just got to bring it.

Well, you, Dave, you have
some ground to make up

if you want to avoid being sent home.

The judges were not thrilled
about my performance,

but I did what I could.

I'll just have to do the
best I can in the elimination

to not be eliminated.

We started at the bottom
of the food chain.

Now we're going straight to the top.

Tom and Gail have something
to share with you.

Oh, what's going on?

Oh, my God.

Oh, my God.

I'm feeling ill.

My stomach's curdled.

I'm feeling sick.

Yes.

There's only so much
you can kick yourself

in the **** for what you've done.

We started at the bottom
of the food chain.

Now we're going straight to the top.

Oh, my God.

Oh, my God.

This is a bottle of 2001
Schaeffer Hillside Select.

It is very rare and very expensive.

Only a small amount is produced,

so even wine experts and
collectors across the country

find it almost impossible to track down.

These are the ones that
are the most popular

in the world.

These, as I hope you're all aware of,

are the Harley-regarded,

pear-regarded black truffles.

The flavor is really intoxicating.

It has that great earthy, pungent smell.

Gourmand would happily pay

over $1,000 a pound for these.

When I saw the truffles and the wine,

this is why I got involved
in this competition.

This is why I'm here.

Your next challenge is simple.

You'll prepare a dish

with one of the most
expensive ingredients

money can buy to pair with

one of the most sought-after wines

that money can't buy.

You will be preparing this meal in Napa,

the epicenter of gourmet food and wine,

at the Copia,

the American Center for
Food, Wine, and the Arts.

We're going to Napa here.

You're going to cook for
some of the best chefs

in Napa Valley.

This is the most discerning group

you may ever have the
honor of cooking for

in your lives.

I didn't see that coming.

We're going to Napa and truffles

and this unbelievable shaper wine.

The chefs that we were
going to be cooking for

was a treat that was
reserved for the people

who had made it to the top four.

Tomorrow you'll be headed to Napa,

and by the end of the day,

three of you will have tickets to Vegas

and one of you will have a ticket home.

Good luck.

I'm feeling really good about myself.

I won the quick fire challenge.

I got to step up,

and I know that none of these guys

are going to be able to stop me.

I believe I am all those things that

top chefs should be.

I'm respectful of others

and willing to learn from my mistakes,

and I can cook.

We popped open the bottle of shaper

to figure out how we're
going to be able to

pair it with a menu.

That's good.

It's beautiful.

It's got nice legs.

In the same way that it's humbling

to be in the presence of a great chef,

sometimes it is really humbling to be

in the presence of great ingredients,

and that shaper might be.

You could rarely ever see on a menu,

so to have it in a very accessible way

or we could taste it and process it,

what more could you want for it?

I'm not sure what I'm going to do

with these ingredients,

and I'm glad we finally have more than

five to 20 minutes to figure it out.

Good night, guys.

Good night.

I'm a little concerned
because I'm feeling

ill, ill, ill.

I ain't getting sick,

and I don't want to get sent home.

I want to go to Vegas,

but I was not feeling well.

I'm going in as the underdog for sure.

Maybe I can lighten up on myself

and focus more on cooking

and just believing in my idea

and my vision

and executing it the best possible way.

My food is so great,

and I don't get the sense that

unless something drastic happens,

I'm going home.

Napa's known for the food
and wine of the region,

just some really talented chefs

with good, simple ideas,

working with very fresh,

seasonal, local ingredients.

That in itself was pretty exciting.

I was excited to cook for these chefs.

I was excited to go to Napa.

I was excited for the challenge.

The Napa Valley in general

is sort of a mecca for
both food and wine.

It's a great spot.

We drove to the Sunshine Market,

and we had an hour to shop

for all of our ingredients,

and $250.

I'll take it.

Right away, I got in the market.

I picked up six lamb loins,

a nice red meat.

I thought it would have balanced

the wine very nicely.

You're welcome.

Thank you.

Do you have one more

of the rack of lamb back there?

We've done so much beef

that I wanted to do something else,

so I went with lamb.

I'll take two of those.

I had some really
beautiful saddles of lamb,

so I got two of those.

I wasn't even looking

what anybody else was doing,

because I was not feeling well.

Everyone else got lamb.

I can't do lamb.

I knew everyone else was doing lamb,

and my potential leg up

as long as I did everything else properly

was that I had beef.

I think three of us were doing lamb.

I was the first person to hop

on the lamb train,

and then Tiffany behind me

decided to get lamb,

and then Harold decided to get lamb.

I was definitely worried.

Dave, he's sitting really smart right now

because three of us are doing lamb

and he's doing beef.

Now I'm thinking,

I wish I did a vegetarian option.

We headed to Coquille,

which was a beautiful facility,

and just to be in a place like that,

it was pretty powerful.

All right, guys, welcome to the kitchen.

We've got all your different
mise en place here.

We've got whips,

whisks,

spoons,

tongs.

If you look over there,

we've got all your dry spice needs

at the left-hand side here

is all your stuff.

Plenty of equipment.

Plenty of room.

Kitchen that, you know,

Julia Child gave her name to.

She's the pioneering woman

in this industry.

She made food accessible and fun,

but still elegant.

It was great.

Oh, look at Julia.

I got to meet Julia

before she dies,

no matter what it's doing.

Tiffany and I sort of break the mold

of being women

and getting as far as we did

in this competition.

She has a more abrasive approach.

People take it as being bitchy.

Tiffany started prepping first,

and myself followed by Leanne,

and then Dave just on the cook

and then, you know,

pulled the chefs out.

Without a doubt,

I'm here to win.

There's nothing wrong

with being an aggressive chef,

with being aggressive

with everything that you do.

So I created a truffle dough

foie gras stuffed gnocchi.

I'm tired.

My stomach's k*lling me.

I'm just not feeling well.

I know I need to put together

two hours of really strong cooking

to be able to go to Vegas,

and I can't b*mb.

I got to keep it together.

I did a butternut squash

from black truffle risotto

because I really wanted

to work with a butternut squash.

It's sweet, creamy, very rich.

I thought it would have balanced

the wine very nicely.

Let's get this sh*t going.

Mirepoix.

Typically with truffles,

what you're going to see is

truffle risotto,

truffles and potatoes.

You know, they're very standard

things categorically

that are done with them.

So I decided to do a black truffle

mac and cheese.

I'm making simple food,

but I'm making it

on an advanced level.

Can you get this one for me?

Which one?

This larger.

Can you just be a little quieter?

I like a quiet kitchen.

It's not a time to mess around.

I have a good time

while I'm cooking,

but my joy comes through

the food and the work

and the creation

and the process,

what I'm doing.

Tiffany can be very tough

and abrasive in the kitchen

and, you know,

you're not saving a life.

So it doesn't work for me.

So what are you working on?

Flaw stuffed gnocchi.

Flaw and truffle stuffed gnocchi.

So you stuffed the gnocchi

with foie gras.

We're going to sear the foie

and then season it,

you know, sear it hard

and then stuff the gnocchi

with the foie,

some truffles inside that.

Tiffany's decided to make

a gnocchi dish.

Gnocchi is temperamental.

However, it's something

she's familiar with.

So I'm sure she feels

good about it.

Hey, Earl.

Hey, Chef.

How you doing?

Good.

What are you working on?

Roasted wine of Colorado lamb

with sensual cream spinach.

And how are you working

the truffles in?

It's going to be in the sauce.

Sounds good.

Lian.

Hey, Chef.

I'm actually going to do

a truffle crusted

Colorado loin of lamb

with butternut squash risotto.

You know, we're all doing lamb.

Cool.

Except for Dave.

Three of the contestants

chose lamb.

It's a little risky

and I'm a little kind of

perplexed as to why that happened,

but they're going to have

to live with that choice.

I'm doing a black truffle

and cognac cream mac and cheese.

Mac and cheese.

Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm.

But yummy.

You know, you know me,

though, with the layers.

I'm actually doing these.

Believe it or not,

I got some prime filet.

Dave has separated himself

from the rest of the chefs

and he chose beef,

but he's also decided to do

a macaroni and cheese,

which is kind of

in the Dave style.

It's very homey,

lots of flavor,

lots of earthy flavors.

It's going to come down

to execution.

If he can pull it off,

it could be a strong dish.

The judges we were going to be

cooking for were basically

top chefs of Napa

in Northern California.

The steaks just got

f***ed up in a big way.

I'm watching Tiffany Cook

and she's behind.

She's in the weeds.

Yes.

Give me just a minute.

It was awesome to be cooking

for those chefs

and you want the dish

to go out right.

Here's to Sofia

and top chef.

And to this amazing wine

we're all about beef.

We're hungry and ready to judge.

I know.

It'll be good.

There's only so much you can

kick yourself in the a*s

for what you've done.

And I just didn't have the time.

We have three lamb dishes.

One of those lamb dishes

is going to get knocked out.

They were sick of the lamb

by the time they got to me.

It's like f*** whatever.

I'm done.

It's over.

Either way.

Thank you.

And goodnight.

Our final elimination challenge

is to put together a meal

using the truffles

and the shafer cap.

They will be for the judges

and a panel of some talented chefs.

The chefs that we were cooking for

were like the heavy hitters

in Northern California.

It was a little daunting.

Mr. Shafer was also there

which was such an honor

to have that kind of exposure.

It was not lost on me.

Thank you.

Good evening.

Pardon me, Chef.

Thank you.

It was a pleasure.

What you were eating

is a rosemary

and thyme seared lamb loin.

On the bottom,

you have a little bit

of cauliflower puree

cooked out and seasoned properly

with a little bit of thyme,

some butter,

salt and pepper pureed

to a nice smoothness.

So that balances well

with the gaminess of the lamb

and then the smoothness

of the cauliflower.

There's also a black truffle

and foie gras stuffed gnocchi.

And then all of those

are paired together

with a lamb peri-jour sauce.

What was the dough

for the gnocchi?

Gnocchi was classic potato dough.

Eggs in it or?

Yeah, a little bit of eggs.

What's their chopped
truffle or something?

Their also was, yeah,

exactly shaved truffle

and the gnocchi dough as well.

Great.

Thank you very much.

Thanks.

My time management today

was not spectacular.

My technique suffered

because of my time management.

But I stand by my food

and I stand by what it was

in the time that was allotted

and the resources that I was given.

I think it works well with wine.

The truffle in it was working

but the sauce and the cauliflower

it brought out the acid of the wine

as opposed to bringing out

the roundness of the wine.

I'm up next.

I need to just boom start
laying out the plates.

I'm a little nervous

but I was making a good time

and I was feeling good about it.

It's going much faster than you need.

It's so delicious.

Good afternoon everyone.

Good afternoon.

So what we have in front of you

is roasted Colorado lamb wine

with sun choke cream spinach,

sauteed chanterelles

and the black truffle,

I made a sauce to accentuate

the flavor of the black truffle

and I actually used a little bit

of the shaper in it, lamb jus.

I'm sorry, with the spinach

you said it was what?

I made a sun choke puree.

Oh, sun choke?

Yeah, and I cream the spinach

with the sun chokes.

Nice.

I personally love sun chokes

and I like to use them

in a lot of different ways

and I thought that was a great idea.

Where did you first start using

sun chokes or get the idea?

I really like cream spinach

but I don't like to use

a lot of dairy in my cooking.

Dairy in general,

it just kind of sticks to your palate.

I was throwing around ideas.

I was thinking about maybe

using yuca at one point.

I tried making it.

It was just way too starchy

and then I used the sun choke

and I was really happy with it.

There was some grit on the mushrooms.

Really?

Yeah.

The flavors were great on everything.

It just kind of takes away from it.

Yeah, that's not good.

Sorry.

Thank you.

They're tough out there.

Yeah.

I f*cking flicked them down

and I got serious game faces

from everybody.

The fact that they felt

my mushroom jabirdi is bad

because that's an amateur move.

That's what my chef should be doing.

Each individual component

has clean flavors.

It's much cleaner than the last dish.

Don't you think the sun choke

on the spinach

helps it with the wine?

Yeah.

I do think this one's

working better with the wine

in general.

I don't think so.

I don't think so.

I was nervous.

I was very critical.

Thirteen people

with very experienced palates

and I was cooking to win.

I think Leanne completely overshot.

She had too many ingredients

on the plate.

Is this lamb?

They smell bacon.

We have three lamb dishes.

So most likely one of those lamb dishes

is going to get knocked out.

Unless the beef dish

is a complete disaster.

Hi, Leanne.

Hi.

There she is.

You guys took a lamb?

We're getting there.

I was the first to get lamb.

The market I bought.

I'm the third to go

so they were sick of the lamb

by the time they got to me.

So what I've done today

is I've made a butternut squash

and truffle risotto

served with braised traviso

and forest mushrooms

with a pistachio and truffle

crusted Colorado loin of lamb

and a cherry red wine demi-glace.

How did you flavor the sauce?

I started with red onions

and cherries and some garlic

and thyme and caramelized that

and then I added red wine

and some pork.

A little bit of brown sugar.

Brought that down.

It's fruity.

The cherry idea with the wine

was really good.

Thank you.

The wine has some cherry tone

or berry tone.

It's nice to cope with it.

I think so too.

I like that.

If you're going to do risotto,

I think you need to...

This is kind of a starchy mess.

I don't know.

I went out there

and as I stood out there

I heard a cold eel saying,

through me lamb dish,

you'll leave some one of them home

unless the beef dish is a disaster.

I was like, f***.

You know, it is mac and cheese

but those flavors really work

with the truffle.

Dave's food is never really

all that refined.

I don't feel like anyone

thought he was being an innovator.

So one dish to go

from our friend Dave.

From our friend Dave.

This is definitely the wild card.

Dave is the wild card.

I will be quiet.

Watch what happens.

Hi Dave.

Thank you for not doing lamb.

You're welcome.

You're welcome.

The highlight of the plate,

hopefully,

is the black truffle

and cognac cream macaroni and cheese.

The beef is prime filet

that just simple pants here

and then just a little bit of

collard green and radicchio

just for a little bite

to kind of balance

because I know we had some

heaviness with the cream.

It's been an intense challenge,

you know, because I'm just

such a freak about food

and I love sharing.

You know, it just was crazy

getting it out and done

and when you've been up

for the last 20 whatever days

with a bunch of crazy people

in a house.

The things that I tasted

in the wine actually,

I tasted a little bit of chocolate,

a little bit of cherry,

but I didn't want to

do a chocolate sauce.

I did eat some candy bars

when I was drinking it,

but I was shaking.

I tasted the wine maker.

I was tasting the chocolate first.

Chocolate's very nice.

Thank you.

The cream is infused with truffles

so it has lots of flavor.

You chose a nice cheese with it.

Yeah.

In general, there's a lot of pepper.

I think it's a black pepper monkey.

It's like whatever.

I'm done.

It's over.

Either way, thank you

and good night.

First off, again,

I want to thank Victor

for hosting this great tasting

and for John for supplying

some great condiments

to the food.

Obviously, the featured ingredients

for black truffles

and, of course,

the hillside select.

We can judge

how much truffle flavor

was in the dish

but also how it worked

with the wine.

Tiffany's dish,

it's a great dish.

The plates look nice

and except gnocchi I didn't care about.

It was too soft

and soft.

Right.

Tender lamb.

I wish that she'd really

caramelize the fat

so we had something crispy

in there to react to everything else.

I think it would have been

a better dish.

I thought the idea

of the gnocchi was neat.

I've never seen

stuffed gnocchi

so I thought it was kind of

innovative

although it didn't quite work.

Gummy and tasty

although I'll give her credit

for something a little bit different.

But the flavors I thought

were pretty good.

The cauliflower purée

I'm not sure was

a great item for the wine.

In terms of really thinking

about pairing food

with wine,

Harold got the idea.

I think he showed

the most restraint

and I think his flavors

were very focused

and there was a lot of

more technique.

I would imagine that he's probably

maybe the most experienced

of all the cooks.

And the spinach and the sanchoke

is really interesting.

I'm going to steal the idea.

I didn't like the comment of

I don't use cream or butter.

I mean, I'm French so...

No, you know.

In fact, what's the point?

Harold's dish.

Everything's cooked properly.

The technique was there

except for one small thing

and the prepping of the mushrooms

and that really kind of

soured the whole dish.

Leanne I think had the best sauce.

She had a beautiful sauce.

The cherry flavor was amazing.

It was a little too sweet

but it really brought out

good flavors in the wine.

To me she had too much going on.

There was the pistachio

and the crust there

was the squash and the risotto

and the little piece of Trevisio.

It was just too much going on

for my palate.

But it was clear that she also

has some technique

and I just think, you know,

that's being a young cook.

It's hard.

I was a young cook myself

and I still am young

so it's hard to really,

really falter that way.

The pepper monkey at the end, David.

You know?

It made sense to me.

He used way too much pepper

and it was a little bit too much

and he was so vibrant

and his food was very vibrant.

I really liked the truffle

at the bottom of the mac and cheese

because I think the warmth

and the heat of the dish

brought the truffle essence out.

Whereas the other ones,

it was just a slice.

Across the board I thought

it was kind of interesting

that I don't know that anybody

except for Dave

really showcased the truffle.

I actually liked the entire

concept of it

but I think he fell apart

on the seasoning of it

because the pepper was aggressive

and the salt to me was just lacking.

If you're going to use cream

you're going to add salt.

I didn't like the pepper.

I thought it was way too much pepper

and it was too spicy for me

with the wine.

Even though the flavors were very intense

I thought the wine carried it

and I was very enamored then.

So we're going to kind of

work our way around the table

and go over what was your favorite dish

and what was your least favorite?

I appreciate it all

and we'll definitely take your comments

to consideration when we choose

who is going to Las Vegas

and who is going home.

Thank you all.

Thank you so much.

You know, I never let my ego

get ahead of myself

in this competition.

I've been really...

I've let my food step first

and be second

in terms of flavor profile

and concentration of flavors

and pairing it with the wine.

It felt like I did a good job.

There are a lot of
people who came in here

with some hidden agendas

and obviously multiple personalities

and that's not me.

I know my food is good.

The point was I didn't
need to come out on top

as long as I didn't
come out on the bottom.

I owe a lot of big shots out there today.

It's been a lot of work.

I've been up and down

and done a good job, done a bad job

but I don't know.

I don't know what I'm going to choose.

At this point,

the adrenaline rush is over

and I'm just out of gas.

I don't think any of us

are really talking about who thinks

who's going home.

They did not like my mushrooms at all.

They felt they were gritty.

You know, they're going to say

the mushrooms are gritty.

That's not looking good.

The lamb was slightly overcooked.

It seemed like a bit of an afterthought.

Unfortunately, one of you has to go home.

Three chefs will be going to the
Top Chef Finale in Las Vegas,

and one of you will be packing your bags

and going home.

Obviously, the idea of curating

the Jerusalem artichokes

and using that as a thickener

for this finish was really awesome.

But we are in Julia's kitchen.

She was all about butter and cream.

But I also think when
you cook with truffles

and in cooking in general,

there is a place for butter and cream.

Of course.

Of course.

I'm not saying I don't use any.

Harold, I think you really did

put your best foot forward.

The one exception that a lot of

the chefs at this table had

was that your mushrooms
were a little gritty.

Yeah, it's not good.

It's no good.

And it ruins the experience
for a lot of people.

Yeah, I was a little
frustrated, you know.

I'm really enjoying competing.

I just hope that my performance today,

along with when the quick fire yesterday,

is enough to put me in a spot for Vegas.

I love that you put yourself out there

and you weren't going to
sort of take a step back

and say, I'm going to play this one safe.

You really pushed it.

For me, the lamb was slightly overcooked.

Yeah, and I knew that.

I knew that right away.

I just got a sense that risotto

was probably cooked 20 minutes before

you were actually ready to plate.

And it was sitting there

and sitting there a little bit.

Leanne, this dish really
summed up a lot of you.

And a lot of that's great.

And a lot of it was really tasty.

That sauce tonight, I really enjoyed it.

But there was something like

seven or eight ingredients on that dish.

And when you want two
flavors to really shine,

the wine and the black truffle,

everything else detracts.

I did my best.

You know, those are definitely ideas

and opinions that, you
know, maybe you're right.

I could have done less on the dish,

simplified it, a little less
of this, a little more of this.

I hope that I did enough things right

that would also secure
me a place in Vegas.

I mean, I love competing,

and I'm sad to see anyone of us go.

But honestly, I hope it's not me.

Tiffany, I thought the
flavors were great.

I mean, foie gras black
truffles in Inyaki.

It's a little piece of paradise.

The dough tonight fell
a little bit short,

but the idea was lovely.

And a lot of chefs here
were really impressed

but some had never heard
of doing such a dish.

A few of the chefs here didn't care

for the pairing of
cauliflower and the wine.

And the wine.

It was fine to me in my head

on my way back and tasted it again.

And I very rarely, like,
when I'm wrong, I'm wrong.

But on that one, I don't
really think I was wrong.

Dave, finding that little
surprise black truffle

at the bottom that had
been simmering in there

really was wonderful.

But I thought the other
two pieces in your dish,

this seemed like a bit
of an afterthought.

I tried to put my best
foot forward today.

Whether I did that or not, it was a...

The panel of judges, it was so
good to be able to cook for them.

Do I want to go to Vegas? Yeah, for sure.

I mean, P.S., yeah, that
was the whole point.

But, you know, if I have to go home,

I'm going to take it in
stride. It is what it is.

All of the chefs that were here
today had two clear favorites.

Carol, I thought it was a great dish.

I thought it was perfectly cooked.

The meat was butchered really well.

Personally, it was my favorite.

You are packing your bags for Vegas.

Thank you very much. You're in.

You're in. Excellent.

Going to Vegas, feeling good about it.

I'm really happy, you
know, I came this far.

I mean, I'm ready to kick some a*s.

Dave?

You've really come a long way
since we first started this.

You know, you keep talking
about layering these flavors,

and before this challenge,

it was always about
layering spicy, big flavors.

And this time, you
layered subtle flavors,

which was nice to see.

I think that you really show that
you can take an expensive ingredient

and still make it soulful.

They all loved it.

They loved it.

Overall, they loved your dish.

You were the number one
choice for this evening.

Congratulations. You
are heading to Vegas.

Hearing this, it was
one of the best dishes.

From the most elite panel
that we've had the whole time,

that feels pretty good.

I was very happy to not have to
go defend myself to go to Vegas,

but instead, you know,
I'm going free and clear.

Harold, Dave, congratulations.

You're going to the Top
Chef Finale in Las Vegas.

You can go back to the kitchen,

open a bottle of wine, relax.

Yes, yes. You're safe.

Thank you.

You all right? Congratulations.

Thank you.

Happy you're here.

Likewise.

I'm going to go on the walk-in.

I just want to hit the button.

Leave me out.

Incredible. Incredible.

F***.

Yes.

Give me those f***s. I can do them so.

I'm going out.

All right. Sorry. It feels good in there.

I've come a long way, and
I'm really proud of that.

I've been true to the food,

and I'm not trying to be someone else.

So that's what I'm going to focus on,

staying true to myself.

And I think that may take me somewhere,

maybe further than it's ever
taken me my entire life.

Who do you think is
going to be joining us?

Leigh-Anne.

Hope so.

I hope so.

So Leigh-Anne and Tiffany,

one of you will be going to the
Top Chef Finale in Las Vegas,

and one of you will be packing
your bags and going home.

It was a bit of a shocker that Leigh
-Anne and I were together at that table.

I think going in, everyone expected
Dave to be in the bottom two.

Tiffany, why shouldn't you stay?

I've been absolutely true to myself
through this entire competition,

and what that means is that I bring
a fiercely competitive nature.

I bring humility.

You know, I'm the first
to say, like, when I

screw up or when I've
misrepresented myself.

So I learned a lot about what it means to

step up by stepping
down just a little bit.

My food's been good all the
way through this competition,

and I stand behind my food.

I'm very proud of the
things that I've done here.

So for those reasons, I think that
I've earned my ticket to Vegas.

Leigh-Anne, why should
you come to the finale?

You know, I'm very competitive, but I
don't have to be mean to be competitive.

I've been me the entire way,

and I haven't had to put
anybody down because of it.

It's about being Top Chef, being
able to learn from your mistakes,

and I've learned a lot
of good lessons here.

I would really love to get my
head together, focus on my food,

and then come back and bring it in Vegas.

I want to win.

Unfortunately, one of you has to go home.

Tiffany, Leigh-Anne,

one of you will be going to the
Top Chef finale in Las Vegas,

and one of you will be packing
your bags and going home.

I just really want to say I
really enjoyed both of you.

Listening to your comments reminded
me of what I love about what we do.

So thanks.

Leigh-Anne, you've been a solid
competitor all the way through.

You're very organized back there.

You check off your list,

and it's just great to see you work
from the joy that you get out of it.

Tiffany, I would imagine
that when you started,

you just kind of said to yourself,

there's absolutely no way that
someone's going to outwork me

or outperform me in the kitchen,

and then you just kind of put
your head down day in and day out.

Passion that you bring to
the kitchen, it's infectious.

Thank you.

You know, it's a really, really
tough call amongst the Napa Chefs.

Unfortunately, one of you has to go home.

Tiffany, congratulations.

You're going to Las Vegas
for the Top Chef finale.

Thank you so much.

Leigh-Anne, I thought there were
some great things about the dish.

You know, the chefs all just really
thought execution felt a little short.

Leigh-Anne, please pack
your knives and go.

All right, thank you.

Thank you all.

It's been a wonderful experience.

Thank you so much.

Go home.

Go home.

All right.

That's really sad.

I mean, you know, it's
one of my girls here.

You know, I really want her
to come to Vegas with us.

Leigh-Anne's been someone that's
been so great and supportive,

and she's done a great job all the way.

It's all the respect in the world for me.

Leigh-Anne and I have very,
very different philosophies.

I get knocked for being somewhat harsh,

and the thing is, I'm a good person.

I'm a nice person, and I don't feel
like that's what I came here to prove.

I came here to prove that I can
cook, and that's what I did.

I wish you guys the best in Vegas.

Come and see me in New York.

I mean it to the Final Four,
and that's a long way to come.

I've been a strong competitor
throughout the game.

I've done it without
having to badmouth anybody

or beat up on anybody like some people.

Anybody who knows me
knows I'm a great chef,

so I think that there will be a
lot of opportunities coming my way.

Next week on Top Chef.

All 12 chefs are reuniting to relive
the rollercoaster that is Top Chef.

It's about putting people and food
together, and that's why I cry.

So grab your apron. This might get messy.

Why don't you stop?

What would you rather eat? Sand or sh**?

Don't even start.

You lied. Period. Let's end it.

Do you have a problem?
You shut the f*** up.

You don't like me nothing?

I'm not going anywhere. I don't do this.

Get on with it!

I don't think that she
deserves to be here.