By Buzz Byrne
The winner of HELL’S KITCHEN was crowned last week. The final episodes are just to find the stooge who will do what Chef Gordon Ramsay tells them to do at the Green Valley Ranch Resort and Casino. The real winner was Julia, the waffle house line cook who fought and struggled and cut through the finely roasted layer of horse manure that makes up the egos of chefs trained in fine dining. Julia cooked. And she cooked better than most everybody else on the show. Her lack of experience held her back from going all the way and that was lucky for her. Ramsay said she had the talent and was personally sending her to culinary school. This is a bigger gift than being a figurehead/novelty chef at a casino. She has his seal of approval and is set on a path to make her own way. There is no better way to come out of this show.
So who is left? Who is the artist among Jen, Bonnie and Rock? Who is as inspired as Julia? The lot of them are boring and there isn’t a higher crime in any artistic endeavor than being mundane. When these three completed service on tonight’s episode, Chef said, “It was good, but not perfect.” Perfection comes from lunatics. These three want to safely win when they should be exploding past safe. Good luck finding the candidate who will do that.
The reward challenge tonight was to transform an American comfort food to a fine dining dish. “Homemade to gourmet,” is what Ramsay called it. The judges for the competition were the contestants’ mothers. The moms unanimously picked Jen’s Fried Chicken/Chicken Roulade stuffed with goat cheese. Everyone cited Julia’s lack of familiarity with fine dining products but I swear she could have put goat cheese on anything and they would have accepted it as high cuisine. It’s amazing how sour cream cheese can so impress.
When the contestants had to say goodbye to their moms, Rock asked his to pray for him. If God Almighty can spare a minute from directing the action in the BIG BROTHER house I would be shocked. That place is a den of sin and nowhere on Earth is His steady hand needed than over on CBS. God don’t have time for FOX, no matter what Bill O’Reilly tells you.
The final test for the three was during dinner service. Each was to take a turn running the expedition of dishes from the kitchen to the dining room. Working the “Hot Plate,” or “The Pass,” is where Ramsay tells if the contestants have learned the role of kitchen drill sergeant. Part of this test was having the sous chef intentionally screw up a dish to see if the contestant could spot it. The main goal however, was to see if they could command the chefs and the orders. Ramsay told them, “Run the kitchen or the kitchen runs you.”
Jen stumbled by not spotting the Spaghetti ala Crab that was missing the crab but otherwise she ran a tight shift. Rock
caught the monkfish that was missing the country ham wrap garnish but he was less than speedy on the Pass. Bonnie was seen to slip up on her commands but that was it. She nailed the squab that wasn’t crispy and sent back risotto that was poorly seasoned. Bonnie has come on strong and picked a perfect time to impress.
When the verdict was passed down by Chef, the only surprise was how awful my prediction skills remain for this show. I will say it is entirely possible the decision was based on this contestant’s penchant for collapsing out of frame when good news is given. If you are going to be on TV, you’ve got to be “On TV.” The final looks to mirror last season’s with one chef being clearly more experienced but the other demonstrating better raw skills, especially a superior palate.
Who wins? Clearly I don’t know. I do know Julia was a great story and I’m glad to see her blow past the limitations of this show. Of course next week all the contestants come back and she may prove to be a complete fraud. I hope not.