Top Chef Power Rankings (02/23/11)

Well, my Power Rankings get rocked again. #1 from last week was sent packing. I was surprised he did so poorly in the challenge. When he choose Angelo I felt good for him since they basically cook the same food and Angelo would be a great chef to have since he is very quick at prep work. Alas, Dale got overwhelmed by the amount of people at the event and undercooked his potatoes while over seasoning his crouton. He was sent home and we have a new #1 this week.

Overall I didn’t think the challenge seemed too hard. The southern style might have thrown some people off, but I think it was the amount of food the chefs had to prepare in the short amount of time that really hurt them.


In the Finals


1. Richard Blais



Richard, who apparently reminds Fabio of his ex-wife, won the elimination challenge and conceptualized the quickfire’s winning dish. Based on his good performance, he has vaulted to the top spot. If I could gamble on this, I would put my money on him. If I could choose the field or him, I’m taking him. With Angelo and Dale knocked out in consecutive weeks, I see no real challenger to him. I am a little worried he is too intense and is going to over think one of his dishes these days. I also think he needs to lay off the liquid nitrogen a little bit to show he has a more rounded set of cooking techniques.


2. Antonia Lofaso



Anotnia had another top finish this week. She has been making good and simple dishes and is looking like a lock to make the finale. I think she’s the only person who has a shot to knock off Richard, but I don’t think it’s a very good one. I do think she’s a better chef then she gets credit for. She makes simple dishes that lack some of the pizzazz that the other chefs have. However, her simple dishes taste good and that’s the only thing that matters.


Pretty Sure they’ll make the Finals


3. Carla Hall



Carla had a 2nd bad week in a row including her performance in the quickfire challenge. I still think she has a good shot of making the finale, but she can’t keep making dumb mistakes. I think she was too worried this week that she was cooking southern food which is her comfort zone. She was worried that everyone was expecting her to knock it out of the park, and honestly, she should have. Maybe not a challenge win, but at least a good showing. If you can’t do well in your comfort zone, what are you going to do well in? I see her making the finale, but not a serious contender to win.


Might miss the Final


4. Mike Isabella



Congrats to Mike for winning his 3 competition ever in Top Chef history. All 3 have been quick fire challenges. the first quick fire he won was a cactus challenge, and he was the only chef to have worked with cactus before. This win, he was “inspired by” (blatantly stole) an idea that Richard had discussed with him that morning. I’m sorry, but Mike is no way clever enough of a chef to put the oyster part of a chicken in an oyster shell without being inspired by someone else. I’m glad all the other chefs know, I just wish Richard was man enough to call him out on it. On top of all that, Mike wouldn’t have won the quickfire if Antonia wasn’t an idiot and forgot to make a second plate. So this will go down as the lamest victory in Top Chef History (Is there a worse one?).Mike finished in the top for the 2nd time this season (lowest of the remaining 5 chefs and lower than 4 chefs who have been eliminated). He has cruised along only make mistakes twice to put him in the bottom. I see him having enough talent to outlast Tiffany, but not enough skill to beat any of the other 3 chefs in front of him.


5. Tiffany Derry



Tiffany was on the bottom again. She still hasn’t won and has been surprised the past two weeks when her name wasn’t called. She made it exactly this far last season, 1 episode short of the finale (and Singapore). I think this is where she stops again. I hope she makes it and Isabella doesn’t but not the way they have been performing.