"Top Chef All Stars" Season 8, Episode 15: Who is in charge here?

As we near the final episode of Top Chef All Stars, we replay the win and loss of last week. Tiffany is gone and Mike comes out on top. Antonia and Richard join him seeking the grand prize of $200K along with the holy-grail title of Top Chef. This season has had some funny moments, some heartbreaks, some Pea Puree type incidents, but remained entertaining throughout.

Padma and Wolfgang Puck, a restaurant marketing master, greet the last three cheftestants with the final Quick Fire challenge. There are a number of challenges from season’s past and beginning with Mike, each chef chooses a challenge and assigns it to one of their fellow competitors. Mike hands cousin Antonia the canned and dry goods challenge. Antonia in turn gives Richard hotdogs. Richard awards Mike with a one-pot meal. With 45 minutes from beginning to end, the three race to the pantry. Antonia compiles a curry coconut soup. Mike spins pork and beans utilizing a pressure cooker. Richard, stuck with store bought hotdogs decides to make a spicy catsup sauce the main event. Padma makes a return appearance, announcing the chefs get to throw a monkey wrench their competitors’ way. The options are, one handed cooking, no utensils and the adorable double apron twist. In reverse order, Richard designates Mike with no utensils. “God bless you,” remarks Antonia. She let’s Rich know he’ll be working with one hand and she takes Carla on as her left-handed twin.  Wolfgang announces Mike as the winner. He receives another $5K that he will use to purchase a new 30-gallon hat. Richard is preparing to give birth to a calf and Antonia knows there will be no living with her newly discovered cousin if he wins.

They meet up again with Padma, Wolfgang Puck, Michelle Bernstein and Masaharu Morimoto. The Elimination challenge is to prepare the vision of these icons, a last supper if you will. Mike’s Quick Fire win gives him first choice. He also gets to assign the other chef’s. Richard is paired with Wolfgang and Antonia rounds out the field with Masaharu. Mike has something to prove to Michelle from his past season. Is this the wisest strategy or is Mike so hell bent on crushing his cousin he is ignoring Rich? Mike admits he wants Antonia out of the picture so he can crush Richard mano y mano. There is of course, a twist on the competition. Padma holds a Top Chef Top Secret Agent envelope to be revealed later.

Richard and Wolfgang get together and discuss his Austrian cookery roots. Apple strudel is on the menu. Mike gets the history of Michelle’s first taste of fried chicken, biscuits and gravy. Antonia is challenged with miso soup and sashimi. With any luck Angelo or Dale will drop from the sky to take the role of sous chef. Japanese cuisine is hardly her strong suit.

With three hours to service, the pressure cookers are secondary to the pressure the chefs feel. Tom Colicchio drops by and to his credit Tom’s calm demeanor keeps the contestants on an even keel. As soon as he leaves Antonia discovers her fish is 10 minutes away from going rancid. Richard can’t get the lid off his pressure cooker and Mike is whistling while he works, watching Richard sweat.

The seven judges arrive, including Melanie Dunea, author and photographer of “My Last Supper,” a coffee table book encapsulating 50 chefs and their visions of their favorite meals. Antonia is up first, with the daunting task of recreating Chef Morimoto’s mother’s version of his prized childhood meal. The menu includes Tuna sashimi, Asian pear/pickled daikon, mushrooms and eggplant. miso soup and polished rice. The miso is too salty. The rice gets a good review as does the eggplant. The pepper overcame the tuna, much to Gail Simmon’s dismay. Tom believes Antonia missed the mark on subtlety.

Mike is up next with his fried chicken on a layer of pea puree. (OK, don’t groan yet,) egg yoke empanada with mushrooms and mustard gravy. Tom isn’t happy with the chicken coating, but Michelle enjoys the overall flavors. Richard’s meal consists of Beef goulash, spaetzle with sour cream, and apple strudel with tarragon cream. Wolfgang assures the other judges his mother would have approved, but hopes it’s not really his last dinner. Tom nitpicks the onions as undercooked. Michelle insists Mike took the ball and ran. Wolfgang believes as his last meal he wants to be reminded of hearth and home, not a reworked version. Masaharu points out that Antonia’s dishes were flawed.

With the contestants standing before the firing squad, Mike discovers his breading on the chicken was soggy and not what Michelle wanted. Wolfgang nails Richard’s spaetzle for being tough and Antonia receives the “it was interesting” kiss of death from Masahuru. Tom announces Richard is moving on to the finale. He’s not named the winner of the task, but it’s rather obvious. Padma then turns to Antonia and Mike and waves that Secret Agent card about. Is it a golden ticket? Will they be forced to arm wrestle with cleavers? Nope, the two are now forced to go head to head in a 45-minute challenge. They must create a single bite dish. Seven judges…  seven bites. At this point I can feel fans around the country screaming for their favorite.

Mike chooses lobster, Antonia leans once again toward a curry coconut grouper. Didn’t she just do this for the Quick Fire? If short-term memory serves, she lost that challenge. This time around the judges admire Antonia’s fish. Gail is still holding out as the school marm who simply isn’t satisfied with anything. Masahuru wants another piece. The judges deem Mike’s bite as subtle v the wham, bam thank you ma’am they got from Antonia. Oh the dilemma. With a split decision and let’s not discount Tom’s vote as head judge who gets to override everyone as he’s done in the past, Wolfgang tosses the win Antonia’s way. Cut to commercial. Will Tom override the four who vote for Antonia? He’s done it before. (Tapping toe moment.)

We reenter the judges’ table and Michelle can’t even look up. Tom blah, blah, blahs and it is Antonia who is leaving. Gee, didn’t see that one coming Tom. Four to three in her favor, still the ringmaster gets his way regardless. Been there, done that, won’t buy the tee shirt. Why bother bringing in other judges? Am I out of synch here, only wanting the best to move forward? Four to three says Antonia pulled through. Last I heard from Tom, the competition is dish to dish, not drama to drama. This episode flies in the face of the competition being more about the actual food v Bravo ratings.

Next week, is the finale.  Big whoop. 

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