by Michael J. Lamp

"Ready For Their Culinary Closeup"

The chefs are drinking at the brick-walled bar with no name where they sometimes hang out. In reality, I'm sure it has a lovely name, but we may never read it. Amid the boozing, Dale is still upset about his bland pancetta. Nearby, Antonia is arguing with Mike and Fabio about her winning mussels from the last challenge. Neither gentleman thinks her dish is truly Italian. Antonia doesn't seem to care. Get 'em, girl.

There's no guest judge with Padma this week. Not for the Quickfire Challenge, at least. That's because the chefs will judge each other, a scenario that almost never ends well. Their challenge is to create a unique fondue meal.

After the chefs taste each other's dishes, Fabio, Tiffany and Mike are deemed culinary outcasts. Meanwhile, Antonia, Dale and Angelo are sitting at the popular table, with the sometimes mean and sometimes not as mean Dale claiming the victory. Immunity is no longer up for grabs, but Dale wins a trip to Napa Valley as a consolation prize. Not too shabby.

Before unveiling the Elimination Challenge, the chefs are driven to an undisclosed location that turns out to be 30 Rock, and more specifically, the set of Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. The challenge is to cook one of Jimmy's favorite dishes for his birthday lunch. On a personal note, I'm thrilled to hear that like myself, Jimmy loathes eggplant and mayonnaise.

At the conclusion of his birthday lunch, Jimmy lets the cheftestants know that the challenge winner will be welcomed back to do a cooking segment on his show. Most of the dishes were well received at lunch, so the winning dish is anyone's guess.

After their deliberation, the judges invite Antonia, Angelo and Carla to Judges' Table. An ecstatic Jimmy Fallon thanks the chefs for an amazing meal after Padma informs them that they are the top three. Jimmy announces Carla as the winner, and my heart skips a beat. She's riding the hooty hoo wave right now, friends. She also wins a trip to Tokyo - her third trip!

The bottom group is Dale, Tiffany and Fabio. Between Fabio's gross cheese sauce with a capital G, Tiffany's dumpling that wasn't really a dumpling and Dale's plate of salt, disguised as a Philly cheese steak, they all missed the mark this week.

Jimmy is devastated about having to send someone home. Unfortunately, Mr. Nice Guy has no choice. Lucky for him, Padma always delivers the bad news. She tells Fabio to pack his knives and go. In what is becoming a trend in the later stages of this season, Fabio leaves like a professional, without any cussing, crying, finger pointing or food throwing. Ciao, Fabio. It's been real.

Top Chef: All-Stars airs Wednesdays at 10/9c on Bravo.

(Image courtesy of Bravo)

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