Recap of Top Chef Bocuse d'Or Episode

Top Chef Vegas: Episode 12

November 19, 2009

It was down to five cheftestants on last night's episode of Top Chef. The final Las Vegas challenge — the next two shows take place in Napa, California — highlighted the Bocuse d'Or, the world's most prestigious classical cooking competition. A plethora of big name chefs including Thomas Keller and Daniel Boulud, guest judged. Ready to discuss? Keep reading.

Eli's mentor is Richard Blais! How cute is that?
Didn't the video footage of the Bocuse d'Or look about 10 years old?
Kevin thinks Michael and Bryan are too ambitious. Do you agree?
Were you glad to see Jen get her game back?
Were the chefs given more detailed, off-camera instructions on how to create Bocuse d'Or dishes?
If you were Bryan, would you have told Kevin how to sous vide?
With each challenge, is Michael getting more and more mean?
How cool was the surprise? One chef gets to compete at the Bocuse d'Or! I totally saw that coming, how about you?
Did anyone else wonder why Thomas Keller wasn't at judges' table?
Who will take the title?

Interested in getting Padma's look from the show? You can find all of her outfit details on CelebStyle.

Photo courtesy of Bravo

TV Bravo Top Chef Bravo Tv Padma Lakshmi Thomas Keller Daniel Boulud Top Chef 6 Top Chef Vegas

12 Comments

Babycakes1234 3 years

I had Kevin and Jen for the finals from day one. Love both of their attitudes. Michael needs to adjust his. He's not scoring any points for life after the contest.

3 years

Does anyone know what books they gave Kevin for winning?

cko444 3 years

1. Very cute. The "Inigo Montoya" comment, cracked me up, although I'm not a giant fan of the Princess Bride. 2. Yep. 3. Guess so. Michael's a showoff, Bryan tends to go for techniques that require a bit more time than is alloted. 4. VERY MUCH SO. Her little meltdown in Vegas (stein of beer, really?) was difficult to watch. My astute boyfriend wondered if there had been a little somethin' somethin' between her and Mike Isabella. She did cry when he got kicked off last week. Although, it was probably just that his departure hit home that the competition was getting serious and she was shaken. 5. Don't know, don't care. 6. Yes. I agreed with Bryan's rationale for doing so. 7. I know the producers edit these things to the nth degree in order to create narratives, but he comes off as a dick, no editing required. Re a couple of weeks ago: If you feel compelled to tell people that you "have the biggest heart" of everyone...you actually don't. 8. Yep and yep. 9. Interesting. TK seems cool. Just heard him on NPR the other morning. He was talking about how he was raised by a single mom and criticized stuff like gourmet ketchup - along the lines of "If I want ketchup, the platonic ideal is Heinz. If I want peanut butter, that's great about organic raw peanuts and all, but I want the taste of Jif." Seems like he has a lot of character, loves food, and feels privileged to be a chef. 10. Probably Kevin. Soullight has an interesting point though. I was assuming that they would seek to AVOID a brothers' showdown, but I'm probably too naive.

mannylove 3 years

I hope Kevin wins, but I am definitely glad Jen has made a comeback finally! Especially after Michael's comments, he is more of a jerk each week, yes.

myfairlady93 3 years

1. No, not really. 2. Totally, that footage looked ancient. 3. They may be ambitious, but most of the time they can pull it off. 4. Absolutely! It was so sweet when Padma told her welcome back. 5. Don't know. 6. Yes. Bryan's a nice guy, and I'm not at all surprised that he helped Kevin. 7. A little bit. He's super competitive and intense. 8. It's a cool opportunity for them and I hope Kevin does well, whether he's just auditioning for it or actually competing in it. 9. No. 10. I think Kevin will. He's been the most consistent and the judges are always pleased with what he turns out. If he doesn't win, I'm rooting for Jen or Bryan.

doogirl 3 years

1. Eli's mentor is Richard Blais! How cute is that? When Richard Blais was on Iron Chef America, Eli was his soux chef, so I figured that they knew each other. 2. Didn't the video footage of the Bocuse d'Or look about 10 years old? Yes it did! I said that same thing to my husband! 3. Kevin thinks Michael and Bryan are too ambitious. Do you agree? Maybe ambitious wasn't the right word, competitive might work better. 4. Were you glad to see Jen get her game back? Yes I was! I always root for a woman, so it's nice that the only one I can root for is back! 5. Were the chefs given more detailed, off-camera instructions on how to create Bocuse d'Or dishes? I don't know, because none of them did a side dish that I thought sounded like the instructions they were given, the zucchini bowl filled with something. 6. If you were Bryan, would you have told Kevin how to sous vide? Yes, just because it's a competition doesn't mean you have to be an a$$! 7. With each challenge, is Michael getting more and more mean? I just think he's very competitive, like he is with his brother, and it's getting old man, I was disappointed to see him stay and Eli leave. 8. How cool was the surprise? One chef gets to compete at the Bocuse d'Or! I totally saw that coming, how about you? Since I had never heard of this, I don't think I truly understand the honor. But I thought they got the chance to audition, not actually go, to this thing. 9. Did anyone else wonder why Thomas Keller wasn't at judges' table? Not at all. 10. Who will take the title? Kevin, he's been the most consistent. But I wouldn't be heartbroken if Bryan or Jen won either. I'd stop watching if Michael wins, after the stupidity that was Hosea winning last year, that would be the nail in the coffin for me and Top Chef!

soulight 3 years

I can't keep the number and questions straight so I'll just say that I'm rooting for Kevin all the way. Too say the Kevin is too simplistic is being short sighted. What is the top requirement for well done food? That it tastes good. Kevin provided dishes that were well executed and they could actually finish. In my opinion that trumps some faux Mediterranean dish if it executed well. I guess I just like Kevin because he seems like a genuinely nice guy like when Padma said "welcome back" to Jen, he gave her a nod and wink as a sign of encouragement. People like him deserve to win. I was also really glad to see Jen do really well again. It was so hard to watch her hit a wall, but it seems like she's back in the thick of it. I'm rooting for a Kevin, Bryan, Jen finale but I know that the producers would go gaga for brothers showdown so I know I won't get my wish.

AmberHoney 3 years

I'll just say - I enjoy the show.

Dana18 3 years

1.No 2.yes, very. 3.yes, they sabotage themselves by trying to hard to be the best. 4.yes. 5.Don't know 6.maybe as long as I have enough time for my plate. 7.he has been mean the whole show. 8.Very cool. 9.yes 10.Kevin, he keeps proving him self time and time again.

ann418 3 years

1. I think that's awesome, however Richard needs to teach Eli some manners. 2. Yes! And like Relli80 said, totally PBS! 3. All Michael cares about is technique which means nothing if it doesn't taste good. Kevin will prove that this season. Well, he already has but I think he's going to win and ultimately prove that taste is more important than technique. 4. Yup - love Jen! I loved Padma's "Welcome back" during the quickfire. 5. I think so. Although it may just be known. At the beginning the chef who competed in the competition said that a side dish might be something like zucchini that's been weaved into a basket with something else inside the basket. No one did anything like that, they just had fancy side dishes. 6. Absolutely. Bryan's such a good guy. I got scared for Kevin when he talked about sous videing (totally not a word!) his lamb. I got flashbacks of Carla's demise last season. 7. Yes! I can't stand him! "Kevin cooks the food that I make on my days off" - such a douchy comment! He's just bitter because Kevin's food tastes better. 8. Saw it coming, but it would scare the living sh*t out of me! You could tell the chefs were freaked out by that. 9. Not really. That's cool that he doesn't like to critique other chefs. 10. Kevin. I love Jen and would love to see her take it, but it'll be Kevin.

Relli80 3 years

1. Yeah I read that somewhere, maybe Eli's bio on Bravo. But i loved his reference to the Princess bride 2. YES and like they got it from pbs or bbc stock photos. 3. No, I think they maybe get too fancy and loose sight of taste. If you read Tom's blog he says about the same thing. 4. Were you glad to see Jen get her game back? 5. Yeah I thought so too but also it might be one fo those industry things you just know. 6. Brian is a stand up guy and awesome at that. Personally i would like him to win because of his attitude and talent. I really thought he was going to take this one the way they were all talking that he could be taught. 7. Yes. 8. Cool 9. Come to think of it i didn't even notice until you said something 10. KEVIN. Tom has mad love for this man, you can read it in his blogs and all over his face.

finbar devine 3 years

1. Didn't Richard Blais once cook fish laden with bones, but got a pass anyway? I remember people complaining that bones in fish is a serious issue, but the judges then didn't seem to think so. 2. Yes 3. Bryan and Michael may be ambitious, but Kevin is a bit simplistic. 4. Yes!!! 5. Don't think so 6. Bryan is a nice guy. I think that is the way he is. 7. Michael is very competitive and a trash talker. So was Eli. 8. Saw it coming. And he doesn't get to compete at the Bocuse d'Or. He gets to compete for a spot on the team. 9. Read Tom Colicchio's blog. Thomas Keller was not there because he does not like to be critical of other chefs. 10. Kevin

Link Love

12 Comments