Padma With New Boyfriend

Padma on Monday night’s episode of Top Chef spat out Ariane cherry martini dessert in disgust. Apparently she has only spat out once before. This would be something of a relief for Ted Forstmann the CEO of IMG who Padma is apparently seeing. Yes there does appear to be an age difference, but she was married previously to Salman Rushdie. Anyway Dlisted gives a much more articulate account on why beautiful models go for older rich guys than I ever could.

Anyway back to the show, Ariane who serves that dessert in her restaurant still couldn’t get it right, but even though this was her second week in a row in the bottom three it was Jill who was booted due to the misuse of a ostrich egg.

As any avid reality TV viewer will tell you that after watching an Amazing Race challenge where the contestants had to eat an ostrich egg, they are not at all tasty. Why would you serve up an ingredient you had never tasted before? For that stupidity she deserved to be eliminated. Here is her exit interview here.

The elimination was to serve New American food to the chef’s who had applied and had not got on the program in Tom’s New York flagship restaurant Craft.

The extremely charming Fabio won (is charm in Italians genes?) with beef carpaccio which looked delicious, but is it new american food?

Today is the first day of a new America. I hope we get to see great things from President Obama.

Anyway reality TV is all pervasive these day and I have managed to find some links to the inauguration.

Blogging Project Runway has an article about Season 5 Project Runway winner Leanne Marshall showing at the The Presidential Inaugural Luncheon and Fashion Show.

Tim Gunn talks Obama, the inauguration and Washington DC as it relates to fashion.

Also Spike from Top Chef will be getting the party started at his inauguration party at his Good Stuff Eatery. But here he gives some ideas for a menu for an at home inauguration parties.

The Padma way of eating ribs

Stefan the chef from Finland laid down the gauntlet to the other contestants in the first episode of Top Chef New York by winning both the quick fire challenge and and the elimination challenge. In fact Padma came up with an interesting fact at the judges table where she said in the past four seasons bar one the Top Chef winners had been in the top three in the first episode. So on that equation Stefan, Leah or Gene will be the winner of this series.

But first up one of the 17 chefs was not even going to make it into the groovy Williamsburg apartment. The quickfire challenge was not only going to award immunity but also for the first time be an elimination challenge.

In homage to New York it was a three part apple challenge (get it Big Apple), involving peeling, brunoise the apples ( a posh way to say diced up), and cooking a dish with apple in it.

Stefan won the challenge, and Lauren and Patrick two friends were in the bottom.

Lauren one of the more inexperienced chefs at only 24 was eliminated. “I did not even get to see the kitchen,” she lamented.

The elimination challenge was to team up in pairs and sent to different parts of New York to get ingredients to cook a dish that was based on the ethnicity of that area.

You knew Patrick the culinary student, (I thought the show was Top Chef not Top Student) was out of his depth when he bought the black rice noodles to cook.

Stefan won with his middle eastern dish of a tabbouli salad with a lamb chop and a beef onion skewer. While his other team member Ariane a chef from New Jersey was in the bottom with an under cooked cous cous, a yogurt crusted rack of lamb, and a wheat risotto with dates and chickpeas.

However she survived for another week with Patrick eliminated for his chinese dish of salmon with bok choy and black rice noodles. As Tom Colluchio said “putting Bok Choy on a plate does not make it chinese.”

Elimination interviews with Lauren and Patrick are here.

Padma Lakshmi and Tom Colluchio

Padma Lakshmi and Tom Colluchio are back for our viewing pleasure with the commencement of Top Chef New York tonight at 8.30pm on Arena TV.

There are some changes this series as Toby Young will be taking over the judging duties from Ted Allen who has jumped to another show on another network. Young is  a best-selling British author and food critic. Early reviews from the US where the show has started give him the thumbs up.

Seriouseats says Young does not hold back. They sayLondon food criticism and nastiness go hand in hand, and Young was nasty in the best of ways.

Could he be the new Simon Cowell?

In addition, Top Chef: New York will also feature guest appearances by several culinary and mainstream stars including Martha Stewart, The Foo Fighters, Jean-Georges, Eric Ripert, Rocco DiSpirito, Wylie Dufresne, Jean-Christophe Novelli and Natasha Richardson

However what you really want to know is who are the chef’testants.

Cast Of Top Chef New York

The 17 new Top Chef: New York contestants — whose ages range from 21 to 44 — are:
 
- Alex, a 33-year-old executive chef from New York, NY who currently resides in Los Angeles, CA.

- Ariane, a 41-year-old chef and restaurant owner from Verona, NJ.

- Carla, a 44-year-old chef and catering business owner from Nashville, TN who currently resides in Washington, D.C.

- Danny, a 26-year-old executive chef from New Hyde Park, NY.

- Fabio, a 30-year-old restaurant owner from Florence, Italy who currently resides in Moorpark, CA.

- Gene, a 33-year-old executive sushi chef and chef consultant from Whitmore Village, HI who currently resides in Las Vegas, NV.

- Hosea, a 26-year-old executive chef and restaurant owner from Taos, NM who currently resides in Boulder, CO.

- Jamie, a 30-year-old executive chef from New York, NY. who currently resides in San Francisco,
CA.

- Jeff, a 30-year-old chef du cuisine from Niceville, FL who currently resides in Miami, FL.

- Jill, a 28-year-old executive chef from Latrobe, PA who currently resides in Baltimore, MD.

- Lauren, a 24-year-old chef tournant from Cincinnati, OH who is currently stationed at Fort
Stewart in Georgia.

- Leah, a 27-year-old sous chef from Scarsdale, NY who currently resides in New York, NY.

- Melissa, a 28-year-old sous chef from Maryland who currently resides in Boulder, CO.

- Patrick, a 21-year-old culinary student from Quincy, MA who currently resides in Hyde Park, NY.

- Radhika, a 28-year-old executive chef from Chicago, IL.

- Richard, a 27-year-old executive sous chef from Long Island, NY who currently resides in San Diego, CA.

- Stefan, a 35-year-old chef from Tampere, Finland who currently resides in Santa Monica, CA. 
 

By the way Bravo TVare now selling I heart Padma t-shirts for $24.95.

Don’t worry hubbie I have got one ordered for you for Valentine’s Day.

Top Design 2 a fantastic reality TV show where interior designers  compete against each other also commences tonight at 9.30pm on Arena. As does the Australian made series The Phone which debuts on Fox 8 at 8.30pm. This show is like The Amazing Race where a person is given clues by phone that they have to follow to win the $25,000 prize money.

Jessica Mauboy Is Now Single.
Adelaide Now says that Jessica Mauboy three year relationship with her boyfriend Abdullah is now over. Time apart is the reason given. However she can console herself with the news that her single Burn is number ten on the charts. Source The West.

Simon Cowell Judgement Gets Clouded By Sex
Now Mag quotes Simon Cowell’s ex girlfriend Sinitta who says his judgement is clouded by sex. Personally I think this is way to much information.

Sinitta appears to keep her media profile high by gibbering about her famous ex all the time. He must not care as she is holidaying with him in Barbados. I wonder what she will divulge from there.

Kara DioGuardi The New Judge On American Idol Has Hit The Publicity Trail
New judge Kara DioGuardi is now out spruiking the show that will be commencing next week. She thinks the male contestants may have the edge this season. Full interview here.

Top Chef Chicago Chef Spike Is Holding a Burger Presidential Inaugeration Party.
Spike, who really should get his own show with his off sider from Top Chef Season Four Andrew. Who would ever forget Andrew saying about Spike “I am not gay but I would let him bang me.”
Anyway he is holding a more relaxed inauguration party at his Burger Joint in DC.

If you are lucky enough to be in Washington at that time the details are here.

Updates On What Top Chef Contestant’s Are Now Up To.
People mag has an article which outlines what some of the chefs are now up to, and where they are cooking.

Also Adventurous Tastes Blog reviews Top Chef Chicago runner up Richard Blais’s new burger restaurant in Atlanta, and gives it the thumbs up. I am not sure about the Krispy Kreme milkshake.

America’s Next Top Model Cycle 10 Winner Whitney Thompson Honoured.
Whitney who was the first plus size model to win ANTM has named as one of MSN Lifestyles Most Influential Women In 2008.

Natalie Bassingthwaite To Perform At Mardi Gras Party.
You know you have made it in Sydney when you are asked to perform at the Mardi Gras party. Congratulation to So You Think You Can Dance Australia host Natalie Bassingthwaite as she will get to shimmy and sing there. Full story in here.

Update On What Former Australian Idol Marty Simpson Has Been Doing
I’m With The Band has an update on he who went much further then he should have, Marty Simpson, and what he has been doing post Idol, apart from smoking pot.

An article from blogger Amuse-biatch (this is the best blog name I have seen in at least six months) states that Anthony Bourdain does not think the gorgeous Padam Lakshmi is the sharpest tool in the shed.

The Miami Herald News said:
“…Bourdain said he was a huge fan of host and fellow chef Tom Colicchio but snubbed co-host…Padma Lakshmi. Jabbing at the beauty’s intelligence, he said she wouldn‘t be his first choice for Barack Obama’s cabinet…[sic]or to host a show.”

Gee Anthony comparing her to other female reality TV hosts she looks like she is a member of mensa.

In other Top Chef news last night on Top Chef Season 4, Nikki was eliminated after the horrendous 24 hour catering for a wedding challenge. The only person who was excited by the challenge was Andrew who said he had a “culinary boner”.

Here on Yum Sugar is an interview with Nikki talking about her time on the show and what her future plans are.

For the menu and review of her restaurant 24 Prince click here.

Being a vigilant Top Chef, and Hells Kitchen viewer the thing that amazes me is how many of the chefs smoke. It has got to be around 80% of the cast. Oh and they like a bit of a drink as well.

No wonder Gordan Ramsey yells at them, as smoking kills the taste buds it is a wonder they can taste the food they send out.