by Gina Scarpa

 

Just as the competitors on Top Chef got comfortable in their house, it's time to pick up and move things to Dallas. Their road trip is interrupted by a Texas state trooper, who pulls them over in the middle of nowhere, and directs them over to Padma and chef/restaurant owner John Besh. It's time for a Quickfire in the middle of nowhere! The challenge - use whatever they can in a survival kit to create a dish. With no utensils and basically only canned goods to work with, this is more about just not being the worst than actually pulling off an amazing dish.

 

Dakota, Whitney, and Chris are singled out by John for their lack of heart and inventiveness in their dishes. He did like Edward's soup and Chuy's dirty rice but it was Lindsay's Vienna sausage sandwich that won him over. She leaves the cornfields of Texas with $5,000 and immunity.

 

This week's Elimination Challenge is create a course for a progressive dinner, which is a neighborhood party where guests eat each successive course at a different house. After being placed in teams (oh, how they hate being in teams), they visit their clients who have all kinds of high maintenance, and sometimes strange, requests - everything from banning cilantro from dishes to one guy's love for cooked gummi bears. Don't ask.

 

The courses and dishes are as follows:

 

APPETIZERS
Paul: Fried Brussels Sprouts with Grilled Prosciutto
Lindsay: Roasted and Raw Beet Salad with Chickpeas & Greek Vinaigrette
Chris J: Roasted Chicken Cigar with Sweet Corn, Collard Greens, and Cumin Ash
Sarah: Grilled Roman-Style Artichokes with Date Purée
Whitney: Seared Scallop over Sweet Corn Puree

 

ENTRÉES
Heather: Garlic and Rosemary Grilled Lamb Chops with Garbanzo Beans & Mint Chimichurri
Nyesha: Roasted Filet of Beef with Vegetable Mélange
Ty-Lor: Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Summer Slaw
Beverly: Seared Scallop with Creamy Polenta
Chuy: Sockeye Salmon Filet Stuffed with Goat Cheese

 

DESSERTS
Chris C: Strawberry Cupcake with Banana Custard and Chocolate Icing
Dakota: Banana Bread Pudding, Banana Mousse and Banana Date Milkshake
Edward: Panna Cotta, Cantaloupe Consommé and Raspberries Stuffed with Basil Pudding
Grayson: Chocolate Sponge Cake, Caramelized Bananas and Semifreddo

 

After the party, Sarah, Paul, Grayson, and Dakota are called to Judges' Table first and get to breathe a sigh of relief as they had the favorite dishes of the night! John Besh named Paul the winner, for the focus he had with his dish and for really listening to his clients.

 

Ty-Lor, both Christophers, and Chuy are called in next and are deemed the worst of the challenge.  Chuy's biggest mistake was telling the panel that in order for the cheese in his dish to come out right, the salmon would have to be overcooked.  That just didn't sit right with Tom and the others and it ended up getting Chuy sent to Last Chance Kitchen.

 

Top Chef: Texas airs Wednesdays at 10/9c on Bravo.

 

(Image courtesy of Bravo)

 

 

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