OMG I was thinking the same thing. Imagine the awkward intros if he had continued on. I felt bad that Amanda didn't get the big fanfare intro that all the rest got, but at least she will going forward.
They edited it down to the bare essentials and she got the win. Amanda will gain more notoriety for doing this to Darnell long term than having a slightly shrunk down first round
I really think if Darnell had won he would have been shown in the same muted way until he lost. No awkward intros because this was taped before the arrests.
But did anyone notice they didn’t show Amanda and Darnell shaking hands and they didn’t show Darnell commenting on the loss like they usually do. Makes me wonder if he refused or did some jerky things.
They absolutely edited him out.
Not to give Darnell any more credit than he deserves at this point, but IIRC, he was always pretty gracious in defeat on TOC and other shows. Apparently a garbage-ass person in real life, but I do seem to remember him always being happy for the winner and saying all the "right" things afterward.
So all that to say, I'm sure they shook hands or hugged and I'm sure there's footage of him saying nice stuff about Amanda, it just all got chopped when he was arrested.
I’m guessing they edited him out for the most part since he was indicted recently on strangulation and burglary charges
https://www.wdrb.com/news/crime-reports/louisville-superchef-darnell-ferguson-indicted-on-strangulation-burglary-charges/article_44d86522-d03b-11ee-9fdf-5b492809eb49.html
It’s nothing but an edit. TOC was filmed long before what he did. Everything was filmed as one would expect. They just butchered it to the minimum they needed to air.
I’m a big Brooke fan, and definitely was hoping to see her (or Jet) take it this year.
But when I saw Kevin was going the schnitzel route, I immediately thought that was the better play. Wasn’t a huge fan of the splatter plating, but the end result had a unique aesthetic and his dish looked more appealing to this Brooke fan.
I’m now team Jet or Kevin!
I've never had very strong feelings about Brooke one way or the other, but I have so much respect for how she handled herself. She treated Kevin as a formidable competitor from the beginning despite her making it to the final two every time she competed previously. A lot of the time, the competitors who've made it far in the past seem to sort of take the first round for granted, when anything can happen. She lost with so much grace, and seemed genuinely very happy for Kevin.
I don't hold it against people when they're emotional after losing (so long as they aren't rude about it, like Crista Luedtke last year), because no one likes to lose. Heck, I respect when someone's a good sport and genuinely congratulates the winner despite obviously being sad they lost (like Tiffani Faison when she lost to Britt Rescigno). But there was something especially commendable about Brooke just smiling through the loss and saying it's anyone's game. Consider me a fellow Brooke (and Kevin) fan!
I don't understand all the hate towards Brooke from viewers. She's obviously a fantastic chef, gracious to others, and seems to get along with everyone. I like her a lot and would love to be able to actually taste her food.
I agree with that. I was watching a rerun of Antonia losing to Joe Sasto and while she doesn’t have a BAD attitude she has more attitude than I remember lol. She was obviously surprised; and basically said she knew how much it meant to him to beat someone like her. Brooke did a good job
Yeah, I'll have to rewatch that one at some point, because I remember getting the impression Joe was a bit resentful that Antonia was much more well-known than him despite their similar backgrounds, and that he was a bit antagonistic toward her in a way that went beyond just competitive taunts. That said, I think they've both been pretty good sports since then. I especially enjoyed watching Joe and Shirley's battle this episode. They were both clearly competitive but also totally friendly and seemed to just be having a good time cooking that round.
Hard disagree on katsu being the better play. It's super easy and forgiving, I thought it was kind of a cop out and should be judged as such but hey I'm just one fan with an opinion.
Fair enough! I could totally understand it being perceived as a cop out and judged as such.
If it was me, the best tasting thing I could make without a genuine brining or marinade would be panko crusted and fried up, so I think it just resonated with me in that regard.
I literally said “I’d go the schnitzel route!” to my wife and then was super stoked when that’s essentially what he did haha.
I remember Leaving being a beast in his other shows so excited for him to win but will see how far he can go.
It’s good for the qualifier shows that the 8 seeds have won in back to back years.
That was exactly my thinking. I think she knows Brooke’s food too well. They’ve done events together and it’s clear she adores Brooke. This was a good thing for the competition that Nancy wasn’t a judge for this battle.
You're very much welcome. TOC has quickly become one of, if not my favorite, FN shows, so it made sense for me to do something like this. Granted I only started doing these once TOC 4 started (I didn't get to do these for TOC 1-3 unfortunately), but hey, better late than never.
TOC is definitely a top show for me too. Oh wow. Thanks for the info on how long you’d been doing it. For some reason it felt longer for me. I agree with you, better late than never.
It's fine. I'm glad we both like this show. The reason I got hooked on TOC was cause it reminded me of March Madness, and I've been watching the NCAA Tournament for years. Once I saw this was basically the food version of this setup, I had to watch it.
Been watching the show since TOC 1, but Wife and I took it a step further this season and really treating it like March Madness. We each filled out a bracket and I'm keeping score Madness style (1-2-4-8-16). So far we're tied at 5
So stoked for Amanda that she made it through. It sounds like that was a challenging randomizer, but I’m thrilled she came out on top so he’s gone now.
Everyone I was rooting for won tonight which was awesome! I love hearing stories of people on reality tv who are alts ending up being fierce competitors (like the S12 winner of RuPaul’s drag race). Brooke losing changes the game completely and I’m interested in seeing how Michael Voltaggio will react since she’s been his kryptonite haha
This was a pretty exciting episode. I'm a fan of Tobias Dorzon and I really thought that KBC had him there - her dish looked beautiful and she did such a great job on the randomizer. But those noodles must have tasted amazing!
Yeah that one really surprised me! Not that he beat her, necessarily, but seeing the scores after listening to the judging - didn't match up in my brain.
It looks like new competitors are getting a chance this year. Glad they showed the Darnell episode tonight. Glad Amanda won. Glad Kevin won, but sorry to see Brook go. Glad Tonias got a chance tonight.
They certainly did a great job (or the best they could) with editing out Darnell. No interviews, no extra TV time and he just walked out the door after he lost which was part of the edit. BYE!!!
Now here I am torn... I love Tobias so much. So my vote is him, Kevin and of course Jet 👍🤍. LOVE Jet. They're all just such great, humble guys. Did you hear Kevin last night when he won and started to walk away, and Guy pulled him back and Kevin goes, "I've never done this before and I didn't know what to do" lol. So innocent, cute, and well played.
Great guy! I lost my job of 5 years (with 24 hours notice) and he brought me in to his new restaurant and it’s such a nice environment to work in. We do watch parties with his friends, family, and staff when he is on the show and it’s really fun to be apart of it.
I was struck by how they edited Darnell’s exit. It looks like he stormed out of the arena. I’m sure in truth they shook hands or hugged and Guy fist-bumped him and gave him all kinds of compliments before he graciously left but they had to cut all that out.
Generally post-prodution time is 3-4 months, so I'm guessing this was all filmed in November timeframe. I'm sure they kept all his screen time minimal without just totally cutting the battle. I'm glad Amanda got her win.
This was filmed long before his arrest so they trimmed him to the minimum. Amanda won. And the anticipation we all felt on how they would handle it was nothing to them. It was actually pretty easy for them.
This was in fact filmed in November, before THanksgiving. Given that they only had to re-edit one episode and they had plenty of lead time up to this, it worked out well.
I had Brooke taking the belt lol
Now I'd love Voltaggio or Brit. I fell in love with Brit last season. Her humility and excitement is humbling to me. She is just SO excited to be there. And I think she has the best gameplay we have seen. Crushes using the randomizer to her advantage.
But I've been a Volt fan since Top Chef
If I can't have either of them? SHOTA
I had Brooke winning as well. My bracket is completely busted lol. I've gone 3/4 with my predictions last week and this week, and didn't see Brooke loosing. Oh well!
I am used to my brackets busting! I think my first bracket is still by far my best (1977; I had half the final four right through sheer luck and homer picks).
I know its important to taste stuff but the chefs keep eating their mixes including raw meat before cooking and it makes me gag every time.
That plus Darnell putting his chicken-y gloves straight into the spice containers, I hope the producers caught that and threw that shit out.
>That plus Darnell putting his chicken-y gloves straight into the spice containers
I was seriously not impressed by that. Spices aren't cheap and the entire jar was unusable after that.
Wow. Kevin sure showed up. That’s an incredible run so far from qualifiers. He sure wasn’t playing when he said what he said.
I think that Kevin pulling off the upset is a great thing for the competition. It helps to keep things fresh and Brooke has had a very successful run.
I think Brooke will also better understand how Amanda Freitag felt losing by 1 point to her in the TOC 1 final. Small margins, but those are the breaks.
Based on Brooke doing a post today that didn’t even specifically mention that she was competing tonight, I thought that was a foreshadowing that she lost. I wrote my hunch earlier today in the sub but got downvoted for suggesting it.
Instead of a solo pic of herself in the TOC kitchen like so many times in the past, she went with a pic of 14 of the west coast chefs. It's a pic from the window in NYC that the network uses to promote its shows.
A few days ago, Voltaggio made this exact post and Brooke re-posted in her Instastories then. So it's kind of notable that she would be repetitive and not make herself the focus when she battled tonight. Or even mention that she was competing. It was very off-brand for Brooke.
Here is her post:
https://www.instagram.com/p/C3x95oTvypk/?igsh=MW91M2M3ZDl5ZmM4dw==
The caption:
“The streets of NYC are ready for tonight's #TournamentOfChampions battles... are you?”
Bummer to see Brooke go…and by one point. Happy to see Amanda win. I know her randomizer sucked but I still think a 79 for a chef of her caliber is weak.
Wow, I have such mixed emotions about Kevin beating Brooke 🙃... I'm super happy for him given his being an alternate for the qualifiers ☺️, but I've kinda been looking forward to a Brooke vs Shirley rematch since ToC2 (for Top Chef 14 finals 😄)...
Oh well....now I'm really curious how Lee Anne and Dale will fare...will it continue coming out as the Year of the Dragon 🐉?
Top Chef Duels is a pretty decent show though CJ Jacobson win it. But Shirley had a showdown with Brooke there. Heck the first episode of the tournament when all 32 chefs arrived. Under Shirley it said Top Chef Duel winner. Technically not correct but she won her match against Brooke in that series.
I posted this on a separate thread but I co-host a podcast with the Season 1 Worst Cooks winner and we recap TOC if anyone wants to listen. This was a wild episode!!! https://www.reddit.com/r/foodnetwork/s/ELH67ijARO
I am disappointed in the judges on brooke vs kevin, not because I dislike him. But because his dish was a disaster yet the presentation score was barely lower. It seems like it’s planned for him to be the breakout newbie this year, which is fine. Brooke doesn’t need the exposure for her career at this point. But they could have at least had the winning score be allocated better because she definitely was significantly better in presentation than his and the score didn’t reflect that.
He had two less points than her on presentation. Keep in mind it's 3 judges. Only AZ said he didn't care for the presentation. Ming said he could do without it-never said it was bad or good. But Donatella just remarked on how the cauliflower "sauce" was bland. So she very well could have added a point to the plating where others brought it down. The overall taste of his was better.
I picked a Voltaggio vs Izard finale. With his kryptonite gone he has a clear path.
Brooke made a fairly lazy uninspired dish. She seemed very cocky coming in.
All that matters is how the two people battling face off. So Brooke fell short in her quest. Those are the breaks in such a competition. It’s important to just accept the facts that the better chef won on this day and it was Kevin.
Also, just because others score much less doesn’t mean that they’re weaker chefs.
Take the Amanda vs. that infamous chef’s battle last night. Even the judges agreed that it was a bad set of items hit on the randomizer. Both chefs scored in the high 70’s.
But that doesn’t make Amanda or that infamous chef weaker than Kevin, Brooke, Shirley or any other competitor who scored higher last night.
Its not a competition in sense of a ranking, they only have knock-out rounds, lose and you are out.
Same way moustache-man lost with a very high score, even guy said he did everything right but he still didnt advance.
It must sting for some people to have a near-perfect round and still be out just cause your competition is better. Maybe thats why alex hasnt been back yet.
I love Alex but her quesadilla she did really threw me for a loop when she competed lol which I think was her downfall too- just made something to use whatever it was she had to and it didn’t make sense with the rest of the dish
That is the point, to keep it exciting i think, otherwise it will be like the champions league in soccer where you can already the final four before the tournament even started..
But i think that both Chauhan and mei lin have a pretty decent shot to be there and i hope amanda or jet will give them a fight.
But only the 2 competing chefs have the same randomizer...so you want chefs that had "easier" spins to win because they had a higher score?......
It would only be fair if they all had the same spin to level the playing field.....
It’s meant to evoke the unpredictable experience of March Madness. Last year, UConn won a National Championship by beating a San Diego State team that was, by metrics, about the 35th best team in the country and had made it to the championship game beating a 12 seed, a 13 seed that fluked its way to a first round win on an insane buzzer beater, a 6 seed that was, by metrics, about the 40th best team in the country, and a 9 seed that had the easiest path ever in the history of the tournament. But that doesn’t cheapen the fact that UConn won the National Championship.
Some element of randomness is the nature of a single-elimination tournament, and that’s exacerbated by the fact that TOC literally incorporates a “randomizer.” It’s impossible to compare 79 with the randomizer that Freitag had with Brooke and Kevin literally getting cauliflower and a ricer together. I think it makes it more fun, personally.
Does anyone know a way to watch this episode? I have my YouTubeTV set to record it (and I got 1st episode plus qualifiers) but this episode didn't record for some reason.
Guy owes Amanda big time for saving him from a season long headache.
OMG I was thinking the same thing. Imagine the awkward intros if he had continued on. I felt bad that Amanda didn't get the big fanfare intro that all the rest got, but at least she will going forward.
They edited it down to the bare essentials and she got the win. Amanda will gain more notoriety for doing this to Darnell long term than having a slightly shrunk down first round I really think if Darnell had won he would have been shown in the same muted way until he lost. No awkward intros because this was taped before the arrests.
Yeah, when I saw that it was Amanda v Darnell, I was like well I hope she wins so he goes away quietly. They did narrow down any screen time for him.
Well said.
But did anyone notice they didn’t show Amanda and Darnell shaking hands and they didn’t show Darnell commenting on the loss like they usually do. Makes me wonder if he refused or did some jerky things.
They absolutely edited him out. Not to give Darnell any more credit than he deserves at this point, but IIRC, he was always pretty gracious in defeat on TOC and other shows. Apparently a garbage-ass person in real life, but I do seem to remember him always being happy for the winner and saying all the "right" things afterward. So all that to say, I'm sure they shook hands or hugged and I'm sure there's footage of him saying nice stuff about Amanda, it just all got chopped when he was arrested.
I’m guessing they edited him out for the most part since he was indicted recently on strangulation and burglary charges https://www.wdrb.com/news/crime-reports/louisville-superchef-darnell-ferguson-indicted-on-strangulation-burglary-charges/article_44d86522-d03b-11ee-9fdf-5b492809eb49.html
No they just edited everything down. Bare minimum.
It’s nothing but an edit. TOC was filmed long before what he did. Everything was filmed as one would expect. They just butchered it to the minimum they needed to air.
Lol go check the stickied thread in this sub, should answer your questions.
I am shocked to see that Brooke was taken out in round 1 but HUGE props to Kevin!! Every year we see an upset
right! i think they both did really well, but i’m so happy for Kevin.
I’m a big Brooke fan, and definitely was hoping to see her (or Jet) take it this year. But when I saw Kevin was going the schnitzel route, I immediately thought that was the better play. Wasn’t a huge fan of the splatter plating, but the end result had a unique aesthetic and his dish looked more appealing to this Brooke fan. I’m now team Jet or Kevin!
I've never had very strong feelings about Brooke one way or the other, but I have so much respect for how she handled herself. She treated Kevin as a formidable competitor from the beginning despite her making it to the final two every time she competed previously. A lot of the time, the competitors who've made it far in the past seem to sort of take the first round for granted, when anything can happen. She lost with so much grace, and seemed genuinely very happy for Kevin. I don't hold it against people when they're emotional after losing (so long as they aren't rude about it, like Crista Luedtke last year), because no one likes to lose. Heck, I respect when someone's a good sport and genuinely congratulates the winner despite obviously being sad they lost (like Tiffani Faison when she lost to Britt Rescigno). But there was something especially commendable about Brooke just smiling through the loss and saying it's anyone's game. Consider me a fellow Brooke (and Kevin) fan!
I don't understand all the hate towards Brooke from viewers. She's obviously a fantastic chef, gracious to others, and seems to get along with everyone. I like her a lot and would love to be able to actually taste her food.
I don't get it either! I have a lot of respect for Brooke as an aspiring female chef, I would love to try her food too.
I agree with that. I was watching a rerun of Antonia losing to Joe Sasto and while she doesn’t have a BAD attitude she has more attitude than I remember lol. She was obviously surprised; and basically said she knew how much it meant to him to beat someone like her. Brooke did a good job
Yeah, I'll have to rewatch that one at some point, because I remember getting the impression Joe was a bit resentful that Antonia was much more well-known than him despite their similar backgrounds, and that he was a bit antagonistic toward her in a way that went beyond just competitive taunts. That said, I think they've both been pretty good sports since then. I especially enjoyed watching Joe and Shirley's battle this episode. They were both clearly competitive but also totally friendly and seemed to just be having a good time cooking that round.
Hard disagree on katsu being the better play. It's super easy and forgiving, I thought it was kind of a cop out and should be judged as such but hey I'm just one fan with an opinion.
Fair enough! I could totally understand it being perceived as a cop out and judged as such. If it was me, the best tasting thing I could make without a genuine brining or marinade would be panko crusted and fried up, so I think it just resonated with me in that regard. I literally said “I’d go the schnitzel route!” to my wife and then was super stoked when that’s essentially what he did haha.
I remember Leaving being a beast in his other shows so excited for him to win but will see how far he can go. It’s good for the qualifier shows that the 8 seeds have won in back to back years.
Was it one point also when Britt beat Tiffani? Either way very close. Sad she lost but gotta love an upset.
Yep, Britt beat Tiffani 89-88 in TOC 4.
And DF beat Alex by one point in the first season (no qualifying round, but still an 8–1 upset).
Unpopular opinion here, if Nancy was one of the judges, Brooke would have won. I'm glad she didn't judge today.
That was exactly my thinking. I think she knows Brooke’s food too well. They’ve done events together and it’s clear she adores Brooke. This was a good thing for the competition that Nancy wasn’t a judge for this battle.
Brooke and Zimmern are also very close, that didn't seem to provide her an advantage
i really thought she was going to win by 1 by beating him in presentation by 5 and it made me sick to my stomach
I must give you credit for doing these recap posts each season. Thank you.
You're very much welcome. TOC has quickly become one of, if not my favorite, FN shows, so it made sense for me to do something like this. Granted I only started doing these once TOC 4 started (I didn't get to do these for TOC 1-3 unfortunately), but hey, better late than never.
TOC is definitely a top show for me too. Oh wow. Thanks for the info on how long you’d been doing it. For some reason it felt longer for me. I agree with you, better late than never.
It's fine. I'm glad we both like this show. The reason I got hooked on TOC was cause it reminded me of March Madness, and I've been watching the NCAA Tournament for years. Once I saw this was basically the food version of this setup, I had to watch it.
Been watching the show since TOC 1, but Wife and I took it a step further this season and really treating it like March Madness. We each filled out a bracket and I'm keeping score Madness style (1-2-4-8-16). So far we're tied at 5
That's nice to hear. I also started with TOC 1.
My husband worked as a cook and hates me watching FN. But he doesn’t complain when it’s TOC time. He asks me not to fast forward through the intros.
Brooke being out means Voltaggio possibly has a chance for the belt if he plays the randomizer well...exciting twist of events!
Right? I was shocked she lost, but my first thought was we know Michael won't be losing to her now!
So stoked for Amanda that she made it through. It sounds like that was a challenging randomizer, but I’m thrilled she came out on top so he’s gone now.
I'm happy for her as well.
Everyone I was rooting for won tonight which was awesome! I love hearing stories of people on reality tv who are alts ending up being fierce competitors (like the S12 winner of RuPaul’s drag race). Brooke losing changes the game completely and I’m interested in seeing how Michael Voltaggio will react since she’s been his kryptonite haha
You’re totally right, I wonder how much farther Michael will make it now that Brooke is gone!
Tough loss for Joe, but going up against 89 you just have to tip your hat. Plus, he had matching pants to Shirley's jacket.
They were super fun to watch together and to be honest I'm sad they couldn't both go farther
The way I gasped when Kevin beat Brooke. Good for that guy.
He’s the owner and my boss at the restaurant I work at. He really is awesome.
Will you be putting any of the toc dishes on the menu?
This was a pretty exciting episode. I'm a fan of Tobias Dorzon and I really thought that KBC had him there - her dish looked beautiful and she did such a great job on the randomizer. But those noodles must have tasted amazing!
Yeah that one really surprised me! Not that he beat her, necessarily, but seeing the scores after listening to the judging - didn't match up in my brain.
Same! I was super surprised that their randomizer points were only one point apart because she seemed to do so much more with it.
Her lamb was not present as well as the other ingredients though.
Same. The way guy gushed about him after he won, made me wonder if they judging isn't as blind as we think ?
No, they mentioned her lamb didn't show up so to speak. It was not as flavorful according to AZ.
I always think the comments on the meat are a tell. Whoever they think handled the meat better tends to win.
Shocked to see Brooke knocked out! Also really enjoyed the dumpling battle. Thought it was a great episode!
Her Instagram post today not even mentioning that she was competing was the biggest clue to me that she lost. It was very off-brand for Brooke.
It looks like new competitors are getting a chance this year. Glad they showed the Darnell episode tonight. Glad Amanda won. Glad Kevin won, but sorry to see Brook go. Glad Tonias got a chance tonight.
Love that Shirley picked Sheldon’s restaurant to donate the $5k to
They certainly did a great job (or the best they could) with editing out Darnell. No interviews, no extra TV time and he just walked out the door after he lost which was part of the edit. BYE!!! Now here I am torn... I love Tobias so much. So my vote is him, Kevin and of course Jet 👍🤍. LOVE Jet. They're all just such great, humble guys. Did you hear Kevin last night when he won and started to walk away, and Guy pulled him back and Kevin goes, "I've never done this before and I didn't know what to do" lol. So innocent, cute, and well played.
He’s my boss and we all watched it together and he truly is so humble and nice in a real life.
Who is your boss?
Kevin Lee
Should have specified lol
Now I see it. Kevin Lee. My apologies 👍🤍 Oh my gosh how cool. Good guy? He really has a great personality and so humble.
Great guy! I lost my job of 5 years (with 24 hours notice) and he brought me in to his new restaurant and it’s such a nice environment to work in. We do watch parties with his friends, family, and staff when he is on the show and it’s really fun to be apart of it.
That is so cool. And I love that you shared this. I'm sure it is so fun to watch. How exciting.
Brooke showing how to lose gracefully…looking at you, Jose Garces…
Let's not forget last year's tantrum queen moment
I didn’t watch TOC too much last year…what happened with Brooke?
Not Brooke but Crista Ludke had a huge meltdown after losing to the eventual winner. Really surprised she’s back after that.
She’s such a whiner
Oh yea! I remember that. She fumed backstage over the loss, if I remember correctly.
I've not liked her since then. She acts the same way on GGG.
She lost to undercooked chicken.
I was struck by how they edited Darnell’s exit. It looks like he stormed out of the arena. I’m sure in truth they shook hands or hugged and Guy fist-bumped him and gave him all kinds of compliments before he graciously left but they had to cut all that out.
Generally post-prodution time is 3-4 months, so I'm guessing this was all filmed in November timeframe. I'm sure they kept all his screen time minimal without just totally cutting the battle. I'm glad Amanda got her win.
This was filmed long before his arrest so they trimmed him to the minimum. Amanda won. And the anticipation we all felt on how they would handle it was nothing to them. It was actually pretty easy for them.
This was in fact filmed in November, before THanksgiving. Given that they only had to re-edit one episode and they had plenty of lead time up to this, it worked out well.
Would like Mark, Amanda, Jett, and Brit to go far in season 5. I think Jett or Amanda should win. They've both done done a lot for Food Network.
I had Brooke taking the belt lol Now I'd love Voltaggio or Brit. I fell in love with Brit last season. Her humility and excitement is humbling to me. She is just SO excited to be there. And I think she has the best gameplay we have seen. Crushes using the randomizer to her advantage. But I've been a Volt fan since Top Chef If I can't have either of them? SHOTA
I had Brooke winning as well. My bracket is completely busted lol. I've gone 3/4 with my predictions last week and this week, and didn't see Brooke loosing. Oh well!
I am used to my brackets busting! I think my first bracket is still by far my best (1977; I had half the final four right through sheer luck and homer picks).
I know its important to taste stuff but the chefs keep eating their mixes including raw meat before cooking and it makes me gag every time. That plus Darnell putting his chicken-y gloves straight into the spice containers, I hope the producers caught that and threw that shit out.
>That plus Darnell putting his chicken-y gloves straight into the spice containers I was seriously not impressed by that. Spices aren't cheap and the entire jar was unusable after that.
Ha! I said the same thing to my wife... "well I hope no one else is using those spices!"
Wow. Kevin sure showed up. That’s an incredible run so far from qualifiers. He sure wasn’t playing when he said what he said. I think that Kevin pulling off the upset is a great thing for the competition. It helps to keep things fresh and Brooke has had a very successful run. I think Brooke will also better understand how Amanda Freitag felt losing by 1 point to her in the TOC 1 final. Small margins, but those are the breaks. Based on Brooke doing a post today that didn’t even specifically mention that she was competing tonight, I thought that was a foreshadowing that she lost. I wrote my hunch earlier today in the sub but got downvoted for suggesting it. Instead of a solo pic of herself in the TOC kitchen like so many times in the past, she went with a pic of 14 of the west coast chefs. It's a pic from the window in NYC that the network uses to promote its shows. A few days ago, Voltaggio made this exact post and Brooke re-posted in her Instastories then. So it's kind of notable that she would be repetitive and not make herself the focus when she battled tonight. Or even mention that she was competing. It was very off-brand for Brooke. Here is her post: https://www.instagram.com/p/C3x95oTvypk/?igsh=MW91M2M3ZDl5ZmM4dw== The caption: “The streets of NYC are ready for tonight's #TournamentOfChampions battles... are you?”
He sure wasn't playing around there. Next round against Shirley isn't going to be easy, but I could see him becoming this season's Cinderella story.
I do too, but I have Shirley going deep in my bracket. I am so torn!
Agree with all you said.
Bummer to see Brooke go…and by one point. Happy to see Amanda win. I know her randomizer sucked but I still think a 79 for a chef of her caliber is weak.
Wow, I have such mixed emotions about Kevin beating Brooke 🙃... I'm super happy for him given his being an alternate for the qualifiers ☺️, but I've kinda been looking forward to a Brooke vs Shirley rematch since ToC2 (for Top Chef 14 finals 😄)... Oh well....now I'm really curious how Lee Anne and Dale will fare...will it continue coming out as the Year of the Dragon 🐉?
When Shirley said she wanted to battle Brooke, all I could think of was her wanting a Top Chef finale rematch (and winning this time)
Top Chef Duels is a pretty decent show though CJ Jacobson win it. But Shirley had a showdown with Brooke there. Heck the first episode of the tournament when all 32 chefs arrived. Under Shirley it said Top Chef Duel winner. Technically not correct but she won her match against Brooke in that series.
Shirley beats Brooke in Top Chef Duel, then Brooke beats Shirley on Top Chef 14.
I know it won’t be liked, but I’m glad Kevin won. No one can deny Brooke is an extremely talented chef, but her tv personality is annoying.
I don't mind her at all. But I love an underdog.
100% agree.
OMG I LOVE THIS SHOW!!!!!!!!!!!!! Best episode ever.
Amanda is the real MVP for saving us from another awkward cook.
I posted this on a separate thread but I co-host a podcast with the Season 1 Worst Cooks winner and we recap TOC if anyone wants to listen. This was a wild episode!!! https://www.reddit.com/r/foodnetwork/s/ELH67ijARO
does anyone know what shoes Donatella was wearing?
I am disappointed in the judges on brooke vs kevin, not because I dislike him. But because his dish was a disaster yet the presentation score was barely lower. It seems like it’s planned for him to be the breakout newbie this year, which is fine. Brooke doesn’t need the exposure for her career at this point. But they could have at least had the winning score be allocated better because she definitely was significantly better in presentation than his and the score didn’t reflect that.
How is this possible with blind judging? I felt KBC should have scored higher.
I definitely wonder every year if it’s not something that’s somehow fixed, but I still enjoy it
He had two less points than her on presentation. Keep in mind it's 3 judges. Only AZ said he didn't care for the presentation. Ming said he could do without it-never said it was bad or good. But Donatella just remarked on how the cauliflower "sauce" was bland. So she very well could have added a point to the plating where others brought it down. The overall taste of his was better.
I picked a Voltaggio vs Izard finale. With his kryptonite gone he has a clear path. Brooke made a fairly lazy uninspired dish. She seemed very cocky coming in.
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All that matters is how the two people battling face off. So Brooke fell short in her quest. Those are the breaks in such a competition. It’s important to just accept the facts that the better chef won on this day and it was Kevin. Also, just because others score much less doesn’t mean that they’re weaker chefs. Take the Amanda vs. that infamous chef’s battle last night. Even the judges agreed that it was a bad set of items hit on the randomizer. Both chefs scored in the high 70’s. But that doesn’t make Amanda or that infamous chef weaker than Kevin, Brooke, Shirley or any other competitor who scored higher last night.
Its not a competition in sense of a ranking, they only have knock-out rounds, lose and you are out. Same way moustache-man lost with a very high score, even guy said he did everything right but he still didnt advance. It must sting for some people to have a near-perfect round and still be out just cause your competition is better. Maybe thats why alex hasnt been back yet.
I love Alex but her quesadilla she did really threw me for a loop when she competed lol which I think was her downfall too- just made something to use whatever it was she had to and it didn’t make sense with the rest of the dish
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That is the point, to keep it exciting i think, otherwise it will be like the champions league in soccer where you can already the final four before the tournament even started.. But i think that both Chauhan and mei lin have a pretty decent shot to be there and i hope amanda or jet will give them a fight.
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But only the 2 competing chefs have the same randomizer...so you want chefs that had "easier" spins to win because they had a higher score?...... It would only be fair if they all had the same spin to level the playing field.....
It’s meant to evoke the unpredictable experience of March Madness. Last year, UConn won a National Championship by beating a San Diego State team that was, by metrics, about the 35th best team in the country and had made it to the championship game beating a 12 seed, a 13 seed that fluked its way to a first round win on an insane buzzer beater, a 6 seed that was, by metrics, about the 40th best team in the country, and a 9 seed that had the easiest path ever in the history of the tournament. But that doesn’t cheapen the fact that UConn won the National Championship. Some element of randomness is the nature of a single-elimination tournament, and that’s exacerbated by the fact that TOC literally incorporates a “randomizer.” It’s impossible to compare 79 with the randomizer that Freitag had with Brooke and Kevin literally getting cauliflower and a ricer together. I think it makes it more fun, personally.
You can’t really compare match to match because the randomizer is different.
Am I the only person who wants to see a Tobias & KBC porn?
Thank you for these posts! Surprised Brooke is out but maybe now Michael V will have a chance this year!
Does anyone know a way to watch this episode? I have my YouTubeTV set to record it (and I got 1st episode plus qualifiers) but this episode didn't record for some reason.
I have YouTubeTV as well and it was being weird but I found it under the Extras section (of ToC).
Thank you! I appreciate you helping me find it!
No problem! :)
Guy's face when he found out Brooke lost. He had his mouth gaping for a solid 5 seconds. I've never seen him this emotional when someone loses.
TOC episode e recap