The final challenge is for Mike and Blais to each open the restaurant of his dreams. The other fifteen cheftestants return to cook an amuse bouche, and Mike and Blais do a blind taste test. Their top three dishes each will determine their sous chefs for this final challenge. It's tough, because they each obviously have friends and favorites (and non-favorites), but they don't know who made what.
Blais ends up picking the dishes made by Spike, Angelo and Antonia while Mike ends up with Tiffani, Jamie, and Carla. Oh my God, how much do I love that Mike has three women (except he calls them "angels," yuck). Then they have one hour to plan and five hours the day to cook in their restaurants for seventy diners and the judges.
The guest diners are a real Murderer's Row: Hubert Keller (also judging), Lidia Bastianich. Alfred Portale and Bill Terlato (who donated the wine) join Padma to judge Blais first, while Art Smith, Curtis Stone, Gail, and Tom judge Mike first, and then they swap.
Blais calls his restaurant Tongue And Cheek (shouldn't it be Tongue In Cheek?) and wants it to be tasty food with a sense of humor. He almost pulls the amuse bouche, but goes with it at the last second: raw oyster with crème fraiche pearls and salsa verde. The first course is raw hamachi with fried veal sweetbreads, garlic mayonnaise and pickled celery. The second course is pork belly, black cod cutlet, bone marrow, beets, Brussels sprouts and kumquat. The third course is beef short rib with mushrooms, red cabbage marmalade, and celery root horseradish puree. The fourth course (dessert) is cornbread with whipped mango and foie gras ice cream. Yes, you read that right. The first group of judges liked everything except the ice cream, so Blais tinkers with it for the second round of judges and it seems to go over better.
Mike calls his restaurant Iz (for his last name) and calls it pub food refined, with Italian influence. He serves his first course: spiced beets with mozzarella, truffle, and chocolate vinaigrette. The second course takes a bit long to come out, and it's halibut with kumquat marmalade, cauliflower puree, and pancetta crumbs. Where did this dish come from? We've never seen Mike serve anything like this before, right? I mean, kumquat? The third course is braised pork shoulder with pepperoni sauce, roasted cabbage, and turnips. The fourth course, dessert, is rosemary caramel custard and pine nuts with citrus, celery, and apple. The first group of judges cannot praise his food enough, which is making me really nervous, although they're not wowed by the dessert. They don't show a lot of his second round of judges' comments, but what they show is positive.
Tom says that it was the best food they've had in any finale. The judges think that Mike's food was subtle and understated, and this technique was flawless other than his dessert. They loved the strength and assertiveness of Blais's flavors. Mike and Blais both get choked up talking about how much this would mean to them, and Mike drops the swagger for a second and I almost like him, but I still don't want him to win. While they wait to hear the results, their family members (Blais's uncle because his wife is too pregnant to travel and Mike's wife, mom, and sister) come to visit them. Man, they are really jerking the tears.
The judges, from what we see, are really torn and can make a case for either chef to win it all. They bring out all the former cheftestants and the family to see the results, like that doesn't make it more nerve-wracking, and the winner is BLAIS. Oh, thank God. Although I felt a little bad for Mike, but maybe he shouldn't have been such a dick throughout. week, reunion, and Tom and Elia get into it.
I suffered through the horrible, horrible Watch What Happens Live for you people, just so I could find out that the Fan Favorite was Carla, beating out Fabio. You owe me. Mike Isabella was so drunk and braying like a donkey. Ugh.
The episode opens with Mike and Blais in the immediate aftermath of Antonia's elimination. Mike is telling Blais that the judges said it was really close, but Antonia stumbled a bit with the aggressive seasoning. Mike promises us that he's the better cook than Blais, and he will beat him. So that's probably going to happen. End the show! The winner has been crowned. Blais laughs that he was hoping Antonia would knock Mike out. Because she's just a silly girl! Blais doesn't want to go up against a real man who didn't seem to be able to cook his way out of a paper bag until suddenly he came to the Bahamas and was a totally different chef. Blais does make the point that he already beat Antonia once, although that was years ago and presumably both have matured as chefs since then. Blais interviews that he's worried since Mike came back a different chef, so I'm not imagining that, at least.
Padma and Tom walk in to announce the last challenge, and they promise it will have no twists or turns (thank God). The challenge is to create the restaurant of their dreams. Blais has goosebumps. He's kind of a nerd. Then they have a montage of "the journey" which consists of Blais winning tons of challenges and Mike telling us how awesome he is and winning not that many challenges.
Blais says that he had nothing until he had his wife and family. Does he not have parents? Or siblings? Or friends? Anyway, he says that the kitchen has always been his home. Tom explains that they will create a four-course tasting menu, and Padma says that they'll get the rest of the details in the morning. They are both giddy with excitement. Mike reminds us that he quit his job and missed his honeymoon to do this, so he really needs to win.
The morning, the two men hang out and talk about their role in the competition. Blais thinks he's the underdog, which is crazy, and Mike points that out. Mike trash talks a little and says that Blais is the favorite, but everyone thinks he'll choke in the end anyway. He's kind of joking but kind of not. I don't mind the trash talking in this instance, because they're both giving and receiving. It's not like Mike is being a bully NOW. Blais says he doesn't want to be the favorite, because it's better to be an underdog. Less pressure. Well, he doesn't get to decide if he's the underdog or not, unfortunately for him.
Blais asks who Mike would pick if they get to choose from the entire cast as their sous chef. Unbeknownst to the finalists, the entire cast (minus Gay Dale, whose absence is not explained) is gathered in the kitchen, where Padma tells them that they have thirty minutes to cook an amuse-bouche. Mike and Blais will taste the food and determine their sous chefs based on the food. Too bad they can't pick based on non-douchiness, because Marcel is wearing sunglasses indoors so he'd go right to the bottom. Back to Mike and Blais, Mike says that his first pick would be Jen, because they are friends outside of the show and she's a great cook. He wouldn't want Jamie, not just because of her attitude, but also because she's slow. Blais wants people who want to be there and who will listen.
Time is up and Mike and Blais enter the kitchen to applause from their former competition. Padma explains that Mike and Blais will pick their three favorite dishes in a blind taste test, and the creators of those dishes will be their sous chefs. This is really interesting, because obviously they can't pick based on who their friends are. But will they sort of know who cooked what based on that chef's typical fare? It also sort of assumes that you would want the best cooks to be your sous chefs, and I don't know that it's true. Yes, you want technical expertise and speed, but you also want someone with a good attitude, and someone whose strengths compliment your weaknesses. Like Blais would do well with someone like Carla, who will be positive and lift him up when he has doubts, right?
Blais interviews that he can't figure out who cooked what, so he's just going to pick based on flavor profiles. Mike is hoping to get Jen and avoid Marcel, based on past experience working with those chefs. Blais wants Dale, Angelo or Jen, because he thinks they would all have his back. As they taste, Spike comments that some of them have jet ski reservations and everyone laughs. Yeah, I'm sure some of them are just there for the free (?) trip and would rather not cook. So that kind of sucks.
Blais goes first, and picks Spike's ceviche of squid. Both look disappointed but when Blais asks if he's mad about having to cook, Spike says no. I'm sure Spike will step up. Mike picks Tiffani's yogurt curry. Mike admits that he thought the dish belonged to Jen, but he's happy with Tiffani. Blais picks Angelo's chicken, and he's really happy about it. Mike picks pork tenderloin, which was made by Jamie. Oof. Mike knows that she's cranky and prickly, but he thinks he can handle it. For his final choice, Blais picks Antonia's egg dish, and he knew it might have been her. He's thrilled, but a little worried that she's mentally still thinking about her elimination. Mike picks a salsa that Carla made. So Mike has three women, which is ironic, but then he ruins it by saying that they're his Angels. Ugh. He always has to categorize chefs into female and male; he never thinks of them as just chefs. The unchosen chefs are thrilled that they can go play and don't have to work. I can't really blame them. They wish the chefs luck and take off.
Padma tells them that they have an hour to plan today and five hours to cook tomorrow for seventy diners and the judges. The teams split up. Mike explains to his team that he's going to call his restaurant "Iz," which is a horrible name. It sounds like a bug or something. He explains his dishes, and that he's going to use ingredients that he grew up with, like mozzarella and pancetta. He obviously learned from the family history challenge that he does well with Italian American food. Blais, meanwhile, is divvying up the tasks. He gives Angelo the first course and Spike the dessert, and then also wants Spike to handle front of house. Spike's like, "Only if I can wear a fedora," and Blais is like, "Done."
Mike's team are giving him ideas, and he dismisses all of them. I can't really blame him; I'm sure that he's been planning these dishes throughout the break. They knew they'd have a lot of freedom on the final challenge, so they had a lot of time to think about possible dishes. It's not like he wanted to make fish, and then was told he had to make chicken. Blais interviews that Mike's strengths are confidence and swagger (are those strengths?) but they are also his weaknesses. Because it makes everyone hate him.
The day, both teams head to the kitchen and start prepping. Mike knows that he couldn't have handled this challenge on his season, but he feels that he's grown a lot as a chef. He adds that being a chef in this circumstance doesn't just mean vision and cooking skills, but he also has to manage his team and the front of house. I like this challenge. I think it's more realistic than cooking a dream meal. The judges are saying, "We're giving you this money to start your own restaurant, so prove to us that you can do it first."
Blais, meanwhile, thinks that he lost his season because he tried to tell too much of a story instead of just cooking delicious food. He also wants to show the judges that he no longer makes creative dishes just to show off his imagination; that he understands that they need to taste good. I'm glad to see it. I felt that was always Blais's weakness. Blais also thinks his experiences have made him a better leader in the kitchen.
Mike is cooking and sweating. A lot. Then he goes out and gives instructions to the front of house. Then he picks the wine pairings. Then he tells Jamie how to plate one of the dishes. He explains that Tiffani will be working on the fish station, Jamie will be working at another station, and Carla is doing desserts and front of house. What?
He's not putting sour Jamie in the front of house? Shocker!Blais has a lot going on in his kitchen. He explains that for some reason, he decided to cook a lot of different proteins, which is obviously time-consuming, and he also decided to do an amuse bouche, which was not required. He wonders if he's taken on too much. Angelo is doing mise en place, Antonia is doing the vegetables, and Spike is doing dessert. Angelo shows someone (a waiter?) how to prep oysters while Blais chooses his wines. Then it's time to make dessert. At the last minute, Blais decides to make foie gras ice cream instead of Cap'n Crunch ice cream. Will that be his downfall? Foie gras ice cream sounds disgusting.
Tom goes in to visit the chefs. Mike is a little in the weeds, so he's trying to talk to Tom while he cooks. He gives credit to his sous chefs. Tom says that he doesn't know if anyone would have picked Mike to make the finals. Mike doesn't let the implications of that statement bother him, and says that he believed in himself the whole time. Blais talks to Tom and says that he's trying not to think about the pressure and the gravity of the whole situation, and just concentrate on making tasty food. Good idea. I hear that the judges like tasty food as opposed to gross food. I think that's a winning strategy.
Tom gives an interview where he says that Blais has to overcome the pressure of expectations and avoid the mistakes he made in his last finale, while Mike claims he's not feeling pressured but Tom thinks he is, based on body language and facial expressions. Who knew Tom was an expert in that? Anyway, Tom explains that this challenge is all about organization and leadership in addition to cooking, so the better chef or boss will probably triumph.
Blais loves that his sous chefs are working together to improve his dishes, and he's taking their suggestions because he trusts them. Meanwhile, Mike is answering questions and giving orders. Blais can't decide whether or not to serve his amuse bouche, and Spike gives him a hand. If you wondered whether or not Spike will be wearing a fedora, he is. Because that's who he is.
The judges are split into two groups. Each group will go to a restaurant, and then swap places. So the first group goes to Richard's restaurant, which is called Tongue & Cheek. I don't know if he mistakenly meant to call it tongue-in-cheek and got it wrong, or it's supposed to be a play on words. It bothers me that it's never addressed.
Blais comes out to meet the first group of judges. We have Padma, Lydia Bastianich, Hubert Keller, Alfred Portale (owner of big restaurant group), and Bill Terlata (owner of wine sponsor). Blais tells them that the concept of the restaurant incorporates whimsy, and that is exemplified by his amuse bouche: raw oyster with crème fraiche pearls and salsa verde. The judges think it's creamy, delicious, and sophisticated. Spike totally stands nearby and listens in, and Blais interviews that he's counting on Spike to get feedback from the dining room. Ooh, Spyke. Clever.
Blais presents his first course: raw hamachi with fried veal sweetbreads, garlic mayonnaise, and pickled celery. The judges like the different elements, which they feel work together well. The cheftestants that didn't have to work are there to eat, and they just make "mmmmm" noises. Spike reports that the judges licked their plates, and were very happy with the dish.
Meanwhile, the other group of judges arrives at Restaurant Iz. Mike greets them and meets the judges: Art Smith, Curtis Stone, Gail, and Tom. I know people go both ways on Curtis Stone (who may also go both ways for all I know), but I like him. He's personable and easy on the eyes, but seems to know food. Anyway, they taste Mike's first course: spiced beets with mozzarella, truffle, and chocolate vinaigrette. The chocolate sounds weird, but Tom says that it's subtle and Gail mentioned in her blog that it wasn't sweet, but more of a cocoa flavor. Curtis thinks it's a composed dish. The second course takes a long time to come out, presumably because the fish isn't done yet. They don't really explain what the hold-up is other than Mike touching something in the kitchen and saying that it's still cold. Finally, the judges are served the second course: halibut with kumquat marmalade, cauliflower puree, and pancetta crumbs. This is a perfect example of Mike's transformation as a chef; when have we ever seen him use kumquat or cook a fish dish like this? He studied up, for sure. The judges note that the fish is cooked perfectly and Tom says that he doesn't think he's ever had fish cooked this well on the show, ever. Curtis says that the dish made him forget the wait. The other cheftestants also have nothing but praise for him, but you guys, we have to take a minute to talk about Jen's hair. I can't tell if it's a terrible haircut or bad extensions but she looks like a crazy person. What happened to Jen Carroll? I'm worried about her.
Back to Blais. He thinks the food is coming out as he hoped, and it's the prettiest food he's ever made. He tells the kitchen that they're getting behind and tries to get them to push as the second course is served: pork belly, black cod cutlet, bone marrow, beets, Brussels sprouts and kumquat. He calls it "food you want to eat." Well, I guess. It's more like "food I would try if Blais made it but otherwise not my cup of tea." The plating makes a good first impression, and Dale T. calls it "Richie at his best." Spike tells Blais that the judges loved it, as they get ready to send out the third course: beef short rib with mushrooms, red cabbage marmalade, and celery root horseradish puree. It's delicious, according to the judges, if not super creative. Spike tells Blais that they thought it had a lot of restraint. Interesting that they show the diners making comments but we don't see what the actual judges have to say.
Moving back over to Mike, he is getting ready to send out his third course: braised pork shoulder with pepperoni sauce, roasted cabbage, and turnips. Mike knows that Tom's big thing is when braised meat isn't glazed enough, so he made sure to glaze the hell out of his pork. That sounds like a euphemism, but it's not. I hope. Gail is REALLY REALLY excited about the pepperoni sauce. She can't stop talking about it. Everyone else talks about how great the food is, but Tom. Finally, he delivers his verdict that this is as good as anyone's finale food, and better than most. Things are looking good for Mike and I'm starting to feel the bile rise.
Mike brings out his fourth and final course, dessert, which is rosemary caramel custard and pine nuts with citrus, celery, and apple. The judges think it's just okay; the custard was cooked too quickly so the texture is off. They agree that it's Mike's weakest dish.
We go back to Blais to see the reception on his fourth and final dish: cornbread with foie gras ice cream and whipped mango. You guys. The ice cream really, really looks like cat food. If you've ever opened up a can of wet cat food and smushed it with a fork, that's what this ice cream looks like. Let's hope it tastes better than it appears. The judges are not impressed, although they like the cornbread and mango parts. Spike goes back into the dining room and says that the only part the judges don't like is the ice cream, so maybe they could tinker with it and make it better for the round of judges. Hubert Keller says that Blais did well, and built with each course, so the dessert seemed like even more of a letdown. In Restaurant Iz, the judges think that Mike did a great job, and the only complaint was the wait between the first and second courses.
Now they have to do the whole thing over again for the other group of judges. Blais says that he's exhausted, but he needs to rejigger his ice cream to make it better for the second group of judges. All these changes during service are making me very nervous. It seems like a bad sign.
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Weird interstitial features the sous chefs talking about how awesome Blais and Mike are, and how much they deserve to get to the finals. We get it, editors. We're already either convinced or not convinced. I like it better when they do weird interstitials that are more like bloopers. At least then I feel like they deserve to be recapped.
The judges swap restaurants. Mike's group have nothing but compliments for his food. They don't show as much detail as they did in the first rounds. The only new information we get is that they think Mike's dishes showed a lot of range, and the judges were impressed with the number of components that Blais included. Blais serves the revised ice cream, and it gets much higher marks from the judges. It looks way better -- it looks like ice cream instead of cat food. The people who will be on the panel at Judges' Table leave.
Mike and Blais enter the makeshift Stew Room to wait. They agree that their teams were excellent and gave them no problems. Mike says that he cooked his heart out and he thinks it will be close. Mike is all giggling and awkwardness and Blais is all inner turmoil and it's killing me.
They head out to face the judges. Tom says that it was the best food they've had in any finale. Take that, Mike Voltaggio! Tom asks Blais how he felt right before service started, and Blais says he was thinking about taste, and he wanted to throw up. I hope those two aren't related, like he thought about how his food tasted and he thought of vomit. When the last plate went out, Blais says he was near emotional breakdown. He really needs something to even out those moods. He should start smoking pot, maybe. I think it would help. And then he could eat his own Cap'n Crunch ice cream. It's a win-win. Mike says that he was happy when his food went out, because he thought it was good.
Gail tells Mike that his food was understated and almost had a femininity. I get what she's saying, but it bugs me that subtle food has to be feminine and food with in-your-face flavors has to be masculine. I mean, look at Antonia -- she got eliminated because her food was almost TOO flavorful. Mike says that his strongest dish was his fish. Tom is impressed that he steamed the fish and made it awesome, because it would have been easy to make it taste institutional. Gail once again can't stop talking about the pepperoni sauce and Mike laughs that it was a risk. Gail tells him that it was a serious dish, and Hubert Keller says that he needs to include that dish when he opens his own restaurant. Tom says that the custard wasn't perfect, but overall, it's the best food they've ever seen from Mike. And no one finds this suspicious? Just me? That he's suddenly on the level of Blais out of nowhere? Sigh. Maybe I've watched too many crime procedurals lately.
Moving on to Blais, Gail compliments him for having extraordinary flavor in every course. Tom says that the hamachi was his strongest course, and Richard says he wanted to start strong. Padma thought the black cod was flawless, and Tom adds that the beef course was safe but well-executed. Blais admits that, if he'd had another thirty minutes, he might have come up with something more exciting. Or if he'd skipped the amuse-bouche, no? Tom asks what happened to the foie gras ice cream between the servings. Blais says that he reworked it after the first group ate, because he heard that it wasn't well-received. He doesn't mention SPYke, but he should.
Padma comes to the final question: why do you deserve to be Top Chef? Mike says that he feels like he's shown them the chef he's become through this food, and his wife supports him, and he's going to break down, and it's everything he wants in life. That doesn't really answer the question. He deserves it because he wants it? Blais says that he hopes his restaurant showed creativity, whimsy, and that he's learned that the food is about the guest and not him. He gets tears in his eyes and then goes on to say that this would give him an opportunity he wouldn't otherwise have, due to money. Aw. Blais.
Mike and Blais head back to the Stew Room. Blais immediately states that he thinks Mike will win. Mike is more measured, and thinks that it's a tie. If you throw out the desserts, Mike thinks that Blais won the first course and he won the third, and the second is a toss-up. As they wait, some people come into the room: it's Blais's uncle and Mike's mom, sister, and wife. Those are three different people, of course. Blais explains that his wife couldn't come because she's really, really pregnant. I am so curious about his family situation. It's none of my business, but where are his parents, siblings, or whatever?
The judges deliberate. Gail thinks that both chefs really stepped up, and Tom says that he's truly on the fence. Hubert Keller thinks it's remarkable. Then they start going through the courses. Blais's amuse bouche gets high marks but I don't think it really counts in the overall scheme of things. Tom points out that Blais's first course, the hamachi, was great and Mike's first-course salad was the weakest (non-dessert) dish of the night. So point to Blais, there. For the second fish course, it seems like the judges are leaning towards Blais. Padma reminds Tom that he said that Mike's fish was the best he'd ever had on the show, and Tom says he said that before he tasted Blais's fish. So I guess point to Blais? For the third braised meat course, they thought Blais's was good, but Mike's was better. So now we're at 2-1 Blais. The judges are split on the dessert; basically, those who had Blais's first version didn't like it, and those who had the second did like it better. Tom sums up that the first two courses are going to Blais and the second two are going to Mike. So who will win? Each of the judges states that they are divided and then somehow they come to a decision. I hate that we're not privy to it. I get that you can read the blogs, but it would be kind of nice if, after the winner was announced, they did a flashback to show what exactly swayed the judges, especially for the finale.
Blais and Mike come back out to find out who is the big winner. Their family members and the previously-eliminated cheftestants are all there to see what happens. They all look really nervous. Padma draws out the suspense as long as she can. Tom reminds them that Blais was steady all season long and Mike came on strong at the end, and he thinks they are both worthy of the title of Top Chef, though only one can win. So who will win? Oh come on. You know it's Blais. He is shocked. He really thought he was going to lose. He starts crying and everyone runs over to hug him (and Mike, sort of). In an interview, Blais says, "Where there's a will, there's a way. I willed this." He is just naked emotion. As much as he bugged me at times, I am happy for him. And then they show him call and tell his wife. Sweet. Mike thinks that he should have won, of course, but whatever. Blais looks so, so, so happy. I hope he can get rid of some of his self-doubt now. week: reunion. And it looks contentious!
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