Hell's Kitchen and MasterChef Summer 2012 *open spoiler*

[TBG]

Originally Posted by That Don Guy

According to TheFutonCritic, both HK and MasterChef will air two nights a week until just before the Olympics start, then run repeats for two weeks, then each run one night a week until they end. This should allow them to stretch into September. It looks like HK episodes will be paired with Hotel Hell on Mondays, while MC episodes will be paired with a repeat of the previous episode on Tuesdays.

Heaven forbid there be anything else new to watch for people that don't care for the Olympics!


And I'm glad I'm not the only one thinking that annoying red team member is like Caroline Rhea with rabies. Well, maybe I'm the only one thinking the rabies part, but she's quite annoying. So she's probably a shoo-in to at least make it to the black coat team.

[Saint Cad]

"Show them your nipples so we get more votes."

That guy is an idiot. You say for them to show off their tits - not nipples. If you're going to be a male mouth-breather at least get it right.

[Ferret Herder]

Is Ramsay just having fun throwing people out of the kitchen, or are they sucking worse than usual? (Or am I just being jaded after watching Top Chef in between HK seasons?) I don't remember this many people being chucked out of the kitchen individually - versus the "shut it down!" orders for half/the whole kitchen to get out - before.

[YogSosoth]

Originally Posted by StarvingButStrong

Yeah. Previously they've done school yard picks to create the teams each time, and since they named two captains this last show I'm betting they plan to do the same.

It will be very awkward if the blind girl gets picked last.

Yes, it was very awkward

[Lamar Mundane]

Does Gordon Ramsey have a men-in-uniform fetish or is it just military/fireman/police glurge that he fills his shows with? "Do you seriously expect me to serve this dogs vomit to these HEROES? Donkey!"

[Death of Rats]

Earth to Kimmie: You are a white chick from Memphis. You are "redneck", maybe "hillbilly" not "ghetto".

[Jeep's Phoenix]

Originally Posted by YogSosoth

Yes, it was very awkward

I didn't watch the whole show, but I did see this part...her response made the guy who picked Hipster Chick instead of her look like a real douchebag.

[DCnDC]

Christine, the blind woman, is some kind of genius. She can do no wrong. Kind of hard not to be a fan.

[Apocalypso]

Originally Posted by DCnDC

Christine, the blind woman, is some kind of genius. She can do no wrong. Kind of hard not to be a fan.

Yes, she appears to have some serious cooking skills. Far from a "novelty contestant"!

[StarvingButStrong]

Originally Posted by YogSosoth

Yes, it was very awkward

So THIS week they declared her dish best and make her one of next episodes captains -- nice solution to avoid having her picked last again.

[Maserschmidt]

This year of HK feels even more 'Survivor' than it has in the past. I'm becoming bored with Kimmie and Robyn.

[StarvingButStrong]

Originally Posted by Maserschmidt

This year of HK feels even more 'Survivor' than it has in the past. I'm becoming bored with Kimmie and Robyn.

Gods, yes. Also Tiffany. (Who is way too low class for her name.)


So far absolutely no one stands out in a good way.

[fumster]

Originally Posted by Saint Cad

"Show them your nipples so we get more votes."

That guy is an idiot. You say for them to show off their tits - not nipples. If you're going to be a male mouth-breather at least get it right.

I'm surprised they didn't toss him off the show.

[Laggard]

Originally Posted by Ferret Herder

Is Ramsay just having fun throwing people out of the kitchen, or are they sucking worse than usual? (Or am I just being jaded after watching Top Chef in between HK seasons?) I don't remember this many people being chucked out of the kitchen individually - versus the "shut it down!" orders for half/the whole kitchen to get out - before.

This seems to be the most incompetent crew ever. I will never understand why it is so difficult to cook meat correctly. I figured that by this stage in their careers they'd know how to cook a scallop. And do they not look at what they are setting on the pass? How can you not see that your lamb chop is burnt to a crisp??

[Vinyl Turnip]

Originally Posted by Laggard

This seems to be the most incompetent crew ever.

Yeah, I'm pretty sure by now that it's by design. I'm not sure what criteria they use to pick the people, but it certainly doesn't involve a demonstration of actual cooking skills. They seem to take more of a "Real World" or "Big Brother" approach of selecting personalities they know will conflict.

Considering that the prize of "running a restaurant" is essentially a sham anyway, they can pretty much just relax and populate the crew with complete bozos.

[Dingbang]

I keep wondering while watching HK if a real restaurant would throw away so much food, even if it's not up to standard. I know that Ramsey has his incredibly high standards for everything, but I cringe when I see them throw away so many scallops that weren't cut exactly symmetrical, or weren't browned just perfectly, or Wellingtons that aren't done exactly right. I'm thinking, damn, just put it in the fucking fridge and let the staff eat it tomorrow. It's not bad, it's just not perfectly right for for the paying guest. I can't stand seeing all that perfectly good food thrown in the garbage.

And as for Master Chef, I am SO in love with Felix. Damn, she's hot.

[Death of Rats]

HK is in it's 10th season. Honestly, I think it would be boring to see night after night of finished services and close matches. Sure, I would like if they got away from the clichés that dominate the show now (men v. women, every challenge coming down to either a complete meltdown by one team or an easily predictable, down-to-the-wire tie), but in the end, I watch it now for the complete collapse of the chefs. Much like watching racing for the wrecks or hockey for the fights.

[Vinyl Turnip]

Originally Posted by Dingbang

I keep wondering while watching HK if a real restaurant would throw away so much food, even if it's not up to standard. I know that Ramsey has his incredibly high standards for everything, but I cringe when I see them throw away so many scallops that weren't cut exactly symmetrical, or weren't browned just perfectly, or Wellingtons that aren't done exactly right. I'm thinking, damn, just put it in the fucking fridge and let the staff eat it tomorrow. It's not bad, it's just not perfectly right for for the paying guest. I can't stand seeing all that perfectly good food thrown in the garbage.

"TONIGHT on the most SHOCKING Hell's Kitchen EVER... nobody cooks a SINGLE burnt scallop or raw Wellington!"

[Laggard]

Can someone who knows explain to us if it is that difficult to cook a scallop?

[garygnu]

Originally Posted by Laggard

Can someone who knows explain to us if it is that difficult to cook a scallop?

I find it pretty easy, it's more a matter of timing. Scallops go for 1:30 each side, tops, and get overcooked quick if youre not careful. They also don't keep, so they're best served skillet-to-table, to-order. I saw the one guy was cooking them before the restaurant even opened. Was there more to it than that?

[smoke]

Could anyone here please get my back that Robyn is a dead ringer for Steven Van Zandt? It's ridiculous, like she's actively trying to do an impression.

[River Hippie]

Originally Posted by Dingbang

I keep wondering while watching HK if a real restaurant would throw away so much food, even if it's not up to standard. I know that Ramsey has his incredibly high standards for everything, but I cringe when I see them throw away so many scallops that weren't cut exactly symmetrical, or weren't browned just perfectly, or Wellingtons that aren't done exactly right. I'm thinking, damn, just put it in the fucking fridge and let the staff eat it tomorrow. It's not bad, it's just not perfectly right for for the paying guest. I can't stand seeing all that perfectly good food thrown in the garbage.

And as for Master Chef, I am SO in love with Felix. Damn, she's hot.

Agree whole-heartedly with this entire post!

[Saint Cad]

Originally Posted by Laggard

This seems to be the most incompetent crew ever. I will never understand why it is so difficult to cook meat correctly. I figured that by this stage in their careers they'd know how to cook a scallop. And do they not look at what they are setting on the pass? How can you not see that your lamb chop is burnt to a crisp??

I don't know if it the fact that they can't cook meat, but rather you see your salmon is burned or chicken so raw you can tell on the TV it's not cook - yet you still bring it up to the pass and try to sneak it past Chef.

[Duke of Rat]

HK has the absolute bottom of the barrel contestants this season. Usually there's at least a couple of fairly competent cooks in the mix, I don't think any of this batch can actually cook.

At least on Top Chef they generally stick a few accomplished chefs in there, and MC has a few cooks with some promise, but HK is just a joke in regards to cooking.

I'd like to see HK stack the deck with good cooks and make it a race to the top, not populate it with bozos for a shot at last idiot standing.

[not what you'd expect]

Ryan on Masterchef is a dick. I hope he is booted soon. I like Monti, though she did freak me out a little bit when she was cutting the testicles.

[StGermain]

I don't like criers. Monti can go at any time. I was surprised that Ryan didn't get any kind of official dressing-down for his nipples comment. Tim Gunn would've thrown him out (in the sweetest way possible, being TG).

StG

[Laggard]

And does everyone on HK smoke? Not sure why you'd ever take the chance of deadening your taste buds.

[DCnDC]

Everyone in the food service industry smokes (yes, I know, not everyone, but it's very common). When you only get breaks of a few minutes at a time, there's nothing else to do.

[FlightlessBird]

Originally Posted by Duke of Rat

HK has the absolute bottom of the barrel contestants this season. Usually there's at least a couple of fairly competent cooks in the mix, I don't think any of this batch can actually cook.

At least on Top Chef they generally stick a few accomplished chefs in there, and MC has a few cooks with some promise, but HK is just a joke in regards to cooking.

I'd like to see HK stack the deck with good cooks and make it a race to the top, not populate it with bozos for a shot at last idiot standing.

I'm not so sure. During the challenges they seem to prepare good dishes. Ramsay and the mexican food 'celebrity judges' seemed to like their flavor profiles. I don't think anyone had a real failure on that one. The real problem comes from dinner service, and I'm still convinced that the producers have some ability to adjust the heating on all the equipment in that kitchen just to screw with them.

[Laggard]

Originally Posted by DCnDC

Everyone in the food service industry smokes (yes, I know, not everyone, but it's very common). When you only get breaks of a few minutes at a time, there's nothing else to do.

Maybe you could sit and enjoy the fresh air. Maybe bring a book and read a couple pages? Smoking cause there is nothing else to do seems like a lame reason to do it.

[Saint Cad]

Originally Posted by DCnDC

Everyone in the food service industry smokes (yes, I know, not everyone, but it's very common). When you only get breaks of a few minutes at a time, there's nothing else to do.

And it makes Ramsay's blind taste-test so entertaining when they get tuna and say it's mango.

[Laggard]

Originally Posted by FlightlessBird

I'm not so sure. During the challenges they seem to prepare good dishes. Ramsay and the mexican food 'celebrity judges' seemed to like their flavor profiles. I don't think anyone had a real failure on that one. The real problem comes from dinner service, and I'm still convinced that the producers have some ability to adjust the heating on all the equipment in that kitchen just to screw with them.

Yeah, I was going to say that they seem to be create decent looking and decent tasting dishes. It's when they cook for dinner service that the wheels fall off.

Last nights challenge was lame. The three designers they chose seem to know as much about food as I do about fashion. What a vapid waste of space those three were.

[MovieMogul]

Originally Posted by not what you'd expect

Ryan on Masterchef is a dick. I hope he is booted soon.

Yeah, it's hard to believe someone can be so lacking in self-awareness when it comes to how a big a douchebag they come across as. He may have some cooking chops, but nowhere enough to justify his inflated sense of importance. And his hostility toward some of the others is pretty bewildering, because the rest seem pretty innocuous (except for his one sidekick with the hat; Tally?)

He won't end well, but probably won't end soon, alas.

[garygnu]

Yeah, Ryan is shockingly arrogant and an asshole to others. A contestant got an angry lecture last season for disrespecting his competitors. At least Ryan had the decency to compliment the dish he was directed to taste (Christine's crab, which he was visibly impressed by), the last season jerk only dissed a dish the judges had just finished praising.

It doesn't make strategic sense to be an active, loud jerk. If you're nice to everybody else, they won't be so keen to give you that awful ingredient. Sure, take the opportunity when you win the chance, but be subtle with it. There are more of them than there are of you, and the only way to truly "take someone out" is to outcook them.

[YogSosoth]

Does anyone think Monti is hot? It can't be just me right?

[not what you'd expect]

I can see it. She's quirky, which can be attractive.

[TBG]

Ryan should stay for a while, he's this year's villain. He's more of a tactless doof than last year's full blown asshole, but he'll be around to keep people rooting against him.

I think people are overreacting a bit to his nipple comment. It was clearly a joke. Bad taste, sure, but not any more so than Monti saying the offal balls were her ex's.

One of these episodes had a challenge where the choice was wellington, clam chowder, or rissotto. I was really hoping they'd pick clam chowder, as I've actually made that before, unlike most of the stuff on these shows, but no, had to go with the rissotto. It would've been very interesting to see what they could've done with the chowder.

Over on HK, damn, that red team is the cattiest bunch of hens this show's ever had. They're absolute proof that they need to rethink the whole boys vs girls mentality and just have mixed teams to start.

[Covered_In_Bees!]

Why? So they can work together as a mature collection of adults? On Fox? I think not!

[TBG]

Originally Posted by Covered_In_Bees!

Why? So they can work together as a mature collection of adults? On Fox? I think not!

Oh heaven to betty no, they just need to come up with other ways for them to constantly get into conflict than the same old same old.

[DCnDC]

MasterChef is really good tonight. The team being run by the blind woman had some problems at the beginning but has pulled it together and the other team is falling apart.

Good times.

[DCnDC]

Gordon Ramsay: "The person I'm saving is: Josh ...it's not you. Monti, get upstairs!"

Gordon is such a dick, but I still love him anyway.

[YogSosoth]

So Gordon has another show coming out on Fox later this year, about hotels this time. Is there a reason he's got all these shows but nothing on Food Network? Is there some kind of grudge between the two or something? Just seems weird that he's one of the bigger names in food but I can't remember him being on that network. I'm actually curious if he can teach people in a normal setting rather than cuss them out for burning scallops

Originally Posted by not what you'd expect

I can see it. She's quirky, which can be attractive.

I like that deep red lipstick contrasted against her fair skin. And the way she does her hair, it looks like she has cat ears, which is cute

Good on Christine for pulling the team together. And I was really interested in the pressure challenge. I can tell from firsthand experience that it is so hard to get the timing down on that molten chocolate cake. To pull that off with a different oven and unfamiliar kitchen is pretty good

[Covered_In_Bees!]

I think Christine got extraordinarily lucky she was the team captain for this particular challenge. How would she do in an unfamiliar kitchen with half a dozen other people running around her and under a time constraint?

[Dewey Finn]

Originally Posted by YogSosoth

So Gordon has another show coming out on Fox later this year, about hotels this time. Is there a reason he's got all these shows but nothing on Food Network? Is there some kind of grudge between the two or something? Just seems weird that he's one of the bigger names in food but I can't remember him being on that network. I'm actually curious if he can teach people in a normal setting rather than cuss them out for burning scallops

My guess is that it's just that Fox pays more than Food Network can. As for whether he can teach in a normal setting, this only happens on the Fox shows. He's done several shows in the UK (including Hell's Kitchen and Kitchen Nightmares) and there is no yelling or cursing there.

[gotpasswords]

Originally Posted by YogSosoth

So Gordon has another show coming out on Fox later this year, about hotels this time. Is there a reason he's got all these shows but nothing on Food Network? Is there some kind of grudge between the two or something?

I can't find specifics, but GR does not like the Food Network. For all I know, he doesn't like Bob Tuschman as a person, or maybe it's because Mario Batali is a FN favorite - there's some alleged bad blood between them where Mario supposedly said GR's food was boring or whatever and has banned GR from visiting any of his restaurants. Mr Batali denies this, saying he hardly knows GR, and that the "feud" was cooked up by some journalists.

[TBG]

Originally Posted by Dewey Finn

My guess is that it's just that Fox pays more than Food Network can. As for whether he can teach in a normal setting, this only happens on the Fox shows. He's done several shows in the UK (including Hell's Kitchen and Kitchen Nightmares) and there is no yelling or cursing there.

He curses and yells plenty on the UK version of Kitchen Nightmares (never seen UK Hell's Kitchen). It's just the UK show's edited like a documentary instead of a reality show so it's not one of the key focuses.

[Jeep's Phoenix]

There's also The F Word which, despite its name, doesn't contain the frenzied, shrieking behavior you're used to seeing on Hell's Kitchen. Yes, there's swearing, but it's rare to actually see Gordon lose it with one of the competitors on that show.

[Dewey Finn]

And as Gordon Ramsay says in the intro to The F Word, the "F" stands for "food." It's an interesting show. Almost every episode involves him going on some macho adventure involving something like hunting and killing a bear armed only with a paring knife. And in each of the series, he raised some sort of animal (turkeys, pigs, sheep, calves) to be killed and butchered at the end of the series. The idea was to show his children where food comes from.

[Jeep's Phoenix]

Oh, the pig series. He was visibly shaken up by that.

The turkey slaughter was just bizarre...I wonder if that's the technique used in the U.S.

[amarinth]

This is the first year I've ever watched any of MasterChef at all, I haven't caught every episode or even every minute of the episodes I have seen parts of.
What's with the one judge who doesn't know how to say "espresso"? Is he an actually known chef or is he just a reality show judge? Repeatedly screwing up that severely damaged his credibility for me. Everything else he said about authentic Italian tiramisu didn't really matter as much coming from someone who can't correctly pronounce the ingredients.