Last night’s Top Chef was ruined for me when Kathie Lee Gifford showed up!!! AAAHHHH! I can’t stand that woman!
Fortunately it wasn’t until near the end, so I got to enjoy the first 40 minutes or so.The chefs were tasked to createa breakfrast amuse-bouche for the Quick Fire Challenge, which was judged by Padma and celebrity chef Rocci DiSpirito (Fabio’s a big fan – no, not that Fabio, the contestant on Top Chef, whose quickly become the fan fave).
Amuse-Bouche – another on of those cool terms I’ve picked up watching this show. It refers to a culinary bite-sized starter (appetizer per se). Some chefs had trouble limiting their offerings to bite-size while others hit the mark perfectly. Leah was chosen the winner, gaining immunity for the Elimination Challenge.
This week’s Elimination Challenged gave the chefs $100 and 30 minutes to shop for ingredients to come up with a 2 ½ minute television presentation creating an original dish.
Fabio went right for the tuna and asked to cut it himself. Eugene and Hosea followed suit cutting their own fish. Eugene for sushi and Hosea for a tuna dish. Melissa, Leah and Jeff went for shrimp. Jamie and Ariane went for salads (salads? Usually the kiss of death on this show). Jamie a frise salad and Ariane a beef steak salad.
Daniel conjured up a ginger soy steak. Leah chose to sear some duck, while Carla and Stefan decided to dish out some soup (tortilla and minestrone, respectively. Alex was the lone holdout for some dessert – choosing to make crème brulee. Fabio immediately thought this was a mistake, due to the time constrictions (they were only given one hour to prepare).
All chefs got an opportunity to make a live presentation for the judges, who were amused when Daniel smoked out the studio. Disappoints wer Jamie, Leah, Alex and Carla, while judges were impressed with Fabio, whom Rocco called “A dream guest,” and Ariane, whose presentation was “perfect.”
Melissa, Alex and Jamie made the bottom three, while Ariane, Fabio and Jeff were chosen to go to the Today Show and present their dishes to the female hosts. This is where Kathie Lee showed up – Ugghh! – and proceeded to spit out Jeff’s shrimp dish. Kathie Lee, as usual, always has to be the center of attention.
In the end, the Top Chef judges chose Ariane as the winner and she received Rocco’s book and some culinary tools. She also got to do a segment on this morning’s Today Show, but I forgot to watch, anybody else see it? I’m sure we can find it on Youtube.
As foretold by Fabio, Alex’s crème brulee proved to be his undoing and he was sent to pack his knives and go … now he can devote all his time to his upcoming wedding. Good luck Alex.Just wanted to add that I’m totally luvin’ Fabio!! He’s definitely the break-out star of the group so far. What do you think? Who’s your fave?
Top Chef repeats tonight on Bravo at 8 p.m.Next week the contestants get to cook for judge Gail Simmon’s bridal shower.

Tonight on CBS at 8 p.m. is an all new episode of Survivor: Gabon! And from the looks of the previews, this is the episode where the family members are brought in. It's getting pretty nasty, can't wait to watch!

And WTH is going on over at Seattle Grace? Find out tonight at 9 on ABC with a new ep of Grey’s Anatomy. According to show creator Shonda Rimes, the Izzy-Denny storyline is leading to a conclusion we’ll never see coming, and it doesn’t involve Denny being there to take Izzy to the other side (remember, Denny a ghost, he died 2 seasons ago). Personally, I hope they keep him around awhile, I love Jeffrey Dean Morgan and have really enjoyed his return, no matter how ridiculous …

JD Morgan, nice

After Grey’s, at 10 p.m. stay tuned to find out who Barbara Walters finds the Most Fascinating People of 2009. Guests will include Will Smith, Tom Cruise, Sarah Palin, Tina Fey, Miley Cyrus, Thomas Beatie and Frank Langella. At the end of the show, she’ll reveal who the No. 1 Most Fascinating Person is …. I’d put my money on Barack Obama, an easy guess.



In Other News: According to today’s NY Post, Real Housewife of Atlanta and troublemaker NeNe Leakes and her husband Gregory have been evicted from the five-bedroom house they were living in when the show was being made. The couple is said to owe more than $6,200 in back rent from an owner who lived overseas, according to the Atlanta Journal Constitution. When asked by the paper where she was living now, NeNe replied via email: “It’s none of your business.”

Naughty NeNe

The Office has been granted that oh-so-important spot after the Superbowl on NBC Feb. 1.

Showtime has renewed David Duchovny’s hysterical Californication for a third season. You can expect it in late 2009.


And totally off the TV topic, but I have to give a shout out – J.K. Rowling, the creator of Harry Potter and the richest woman in the UK, is releasing a new book today.

“Tales of Beedle the Bard” hits the bookshelves with raving applause. It’s a book of tales from the wizarding world, including “The Tale of the Three Brothers,” which figured prominently in Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows, the final book in the best-selling book series in the world (over 400 million copies in 67 languages).
I’ll be picking up a copy!