'Hell's Kitchen': My fault? Couldn't be.
I think tonight's episode represented a turning point for Hell's Kitchen this season. Things seemed really different than they had previously. All the chefs looked competent, all the food looked delicious, and there wasn't one bad word said by Gordon Ramsay. Yeah... right.
Nope, it was business as usual and incompetence abounded this week. Did you really expect anything else?
The challenge tonight focused on the chef's timing (and lack thereof), with three dishes having to be cooked by each kitchen over the course of 18 minutes. The catch was that only one chef could be in the kitchen at any time and each chef only had 6 minutes. On the handoff from one chef to the next, the chefs had 15 seconds to talk to each other about what where things stood.
It was a great idea, a challenge I don't recall having seen in the past, and I really liked it. Or, I liked what we saw of it, because the 18 minutes was hugely condensed and one couldn't get a good sense of which chef did something they shouldn't have. Sure, the chefs did a lot of talking to the camera after the fact about how the other ones messed up, but that's not so much proof as redirecting blame.
The best thing to come out of the challenge, by far, was yet another ludicrous comment by Jen. Upon Ramsay telling her that the scallops she cooked were raw, she looked into the camera (during her one-on-one) and said that she had no idea what Ramsay was talking about. She said that the scallops were perfectly cooked.
Does she think we actually would take her word over Ramsay's? She can't, can she? Add to that the fact that she didn't put sauce on two of the three dishes (she had the anchor leg of the relay and so that fell to her) and it becomes even more obvious what her word is worth.
Oh don't worry, it got worse. She refused to apologize for messing up with the sauce. She cost her team the win, but she refused to apologize. Does she actually think that with her attitude she could possibly be chosen by Ramsay at the end of the competition?
She certainly seemed to believe so tonight and she continued to try and bully her team when the chefs had to come up with their own menu for dinner service. Red actually worked really well together on their menu, but over at Blue it was "The Jen Show," and the rest of the team was ready to change the channel.
I have to admire Bobby, Louross, and Petrozza for not tearing into her. I would have, and while it would have been fun to do, it wouldn't have gotten the team anywhere. It would have been like talking to a brick wall.
When the menus were presented, Ramsay hated Blue's and, when asked, Louross said he wasn't happy with it either. Ramsay was further perturbed to hear that it was about 60 or 70 percent Jen's ideas. He actually thought so little of the menu that he made them redo it (and Jen thinks that she can win).
During dinner service, it wasn't actually the menu on either side that was the problem, we heard no complaints about those at all. Mainly, the issue was Matt's inability to cook the pappardelle appetizer. It was sent back repeatedly for everything from it being too salty to being undercooked to being bland. He was booted from the station and then proceeded to show he couldn't cook vegetables either. Corey was ready to boot him from the kitchen, but opted to just kick him off veggies instead.
Now, I'm no big fan of Corey, but it was nice to see someone on Matt's team boot him as needed. He ended up with the responsibility of cleaning up after the actual chefs and that seemed much more his speed.
On the other side, to be fair, things weren't great tonight either. Louross couldn't be bothered to cook steak and sent more than a few out of the kitchen nearly raw. It was Jen though who was told to stop cooking after trying to serve a raw soufflé. She again, somehow, said it wasn't her fault. She was working on the dessert station. The soufflé was a dessert. She was the one who was supposed to cook the soufflé. She was the one who brought the soufflé to the pass to be served. How was it not her fault? The woman is clearly delusional.
Blue ended up on the losing side tonight and Petrozza was given the task of nominating people for elimination. He put up Louross and Jen, kind of an obvious pair of choices, but, the right ones too. Approving of Petrozza's nominees, Ramsay gave Petrozza the responsibility of actually firing someone as well.
Some may take that as a sign that Ramsay really likes Petrozza. I disagree. I think it means that Ramsay hated both Jen and Louross to such a degree that he couldn't care less which one actually left. Petrozza chose Louross, Ramsay agreed, sent Louross packing, and then yelled at both Matt and Jen for the exact reasons we've previously discussed (gross incompetence and terrible attitude).
He then sent Matt and Jen back to their original teams. I can't imagine that it will make much of a difference in terms of their competence levels. It may lead to more fighting and yelling, but not more competence. We'll find out next week.
Other tidbits and tidpieces:
- Corey suggested that Matt might be better as a used car salesman than a chef. She's right, but let's face it, Matt might be better at a lot of things than being a chef.
- Petrozza complained that Louross didn't speak up about not liking Jen's menu. But, neither did Bobby who hated it, and Petrozza himself, who I can't imagine liked it.
- How funny was Ramsay throwing Jean-Phillipe into the water at the beach? Ah, good times.
You know where else there are good times? Yup, The TV and Film Guy's Reviews. Good call.
I nearly spat out my drink whilst reading that first paragraph! :) I think once Matt and Jen have gone then each of the remaining four will have an equal chance at winning. I still remain unconvinced that ANY of the contestants have what it takes to run their own kitchen successfully.
I've worked in restaurants a long time and it puzzles me as to why these line cooks were choose to compete for a head chefs position. I'd only eat in a small boutique restaurant with food by Corey or Christine, the rest of the players seem beyond hopeless.
SPOILER****
Previews indicate Jen next gone. Everyone seen in Black jackets but her.
Arggie: I have a co-worker who graduated from culinary school and is not in the food industry now, and he was told that he had too much experience to be on the show.
That should give you some idea about the types of "chefs" they want on the show.
Whatever happened to the mystery chef that they said in the previews? I think it might be Vanessa with a healed hand.
What Don said above has to be true. Anyone with any real experience and talent would not be allowed on this show. If they were, we certainly would not be getting chefs still serving raw food after the 8th week.
It says a lot about the sleaze level of the show that they've kept Matt around for so long. Clearly the producers have been hoping for the kind of mental breakdown that the previews of next week's episode promise. This is a man who is barely competent enough to wash dishes, let alone cook, and he is one of the top six? It might make for "entertainment" but it leaves a bad taste in the mouth (much like Matt's cooking -- if we are to believe the extras sitting in the diner room).
I'm not surprised Jen might be gone next, simply because FOX showed a promo with Matt melting down yet again, so obviously he won't be booted. Imagine him in the Top 5? Unreal.
Yes, Louross sent out raw steak, but Matt has sent out raw food and rotten pasta EVERY WEEK and he still survives. How? If Josh from last season could make the final 5, I'm sure Matt can live up to that standard. Hopefully, Matt exits in the middle of a service. How Ramsey didn't boot him is beyond me.
Also, anyone notice, despite the chefs "making their own menu" what's the first appetizer ordered at dinner service? Risotto!!
i didnt see any bandages on matt's finger after it being sliced off the day before. i guess it wasn't as bad as it first appeared.
why is there always pots of boiling water in the kitchen during the elimination.
Also Matt's facial expressions during the challenges are brutal. He looks like he's trying to force a crap.
@ wednesday
LOL! the boiling pots must be there for dramatic backdrop, mirroring the turmoil the contestants are feeling.
josh -- dunno, but i think the show is trying to set up ramsay liking petrozza. wasn't it last week or so that he called petrozza a gentleman for putting himself on the chopping block? what was with that?
save me from horrible contestants. who would have thought at the beginning of the show that i would be rooting for corey and christina in the final two?
I read on EaterLA.com that the position for head chef at the London West Hollywood is already filled by a competent chef, while the winner of this season's Hells Kitchen will be placed in a glorified sous-chef position. Thank God.