Top Chef 4 finale started with the introduction of the chefs to 3 master chefs who would assist them one-on-one as sous chef. Stephanie drew knives with Richard to determine who got first pick. She won and picked Eric Ripert of Le Bernadin. Richard chose Dan Barber of Blue Hill. Lisa was left with April Bloomfield of Spotted Pig. Each sous chef came with a table of proteins:
Lisa - oysters, crab, Mahi-Mahi, Chicken, Squab, pancetta, sweetbreads, Waygu beef strip steak, ostrich steak
Richard - scallops, halibut, abalone, calamari, duck prosciutto, pork belly, venison, rabbit
Stephanie - red snapper, hamachi, caviar, clams, lobster, veal tenderloin, chorizo, quail, quail eggs
It looks to me that the TopChef creators wanted ot have a diverse meal, so they deliberately did not give each chef the same ingredients. I did not spot any gross inequities.
The next day there was 4 hours prep time before serving the tasting dishes. The sous chefs had not shown up when Tom came to announce that the chefs were on their own with no outside help(not even the eliminated candidates). the Do It Yourself principle was prevailing. This put a lot of pressue on all of the chefs, particularly Richard whose cuisine depends on more exacting and detailed preparation. Lisa commented that her food was very simple compared to Richard's. Lisa was going with Thai and Viet food. Stephanie was sticking close to her strengths by using fruits and multiple proteins in most dishes except that she hates to bake and doing a dessert was going to challenge her to the max. All chefs logically had to consider revisions to their recipes and menus, but none of that was highlighted on the show. the final menus were:
Lisa - grilled prawns w/ chile basil sauce, crab and potato chips; Tom Kha Gai soup; Waygu beef w/ chayote and cucumber salad, hot sauce and garlic chips; Black Thai rice pudding w/ lime and mango creme, taro, coconut
Stephanie - red snapper w/ truffled clams, asparagus broth, asparagus salad; quail w/mango lobster sauce, lobster ravioli and quail eggs; medallions of lambw/ braised pistachio, blackberry, olive tapenade; ricotta pound cake w/tropical fruit, banana creme
Richard - scallops w/ mango and pineapple vinegar; guinea hen, foie gras and chicken egg; pork belly w/pickled radish, mirin broth, spring vegetables; bacon ice cream and banana scallop
There were a few more garnishes, but they will have to wait for tomorrow morning's rewind of the tape.
Comments were generally favorable to Stephanie and Lisa, but not to Richard. The only thing thte judges really like about his food was the dessert. He underseasoned and bland. Lisa's beef sauce was too sweet. Stephanie's pound cake was mediocre except for the braised pistachios. When asked, richard admitted that he choked and made mistakes with his dishes. The judges went down a head-to-head comparison of the courses as a way to settle the selection decision.
First course was a tossup between Lisa and Stephanie.
Seecond course went to Lisa.
Third course went to Stephanie.
Fourth course went to Richard.
Summary comment was that Richard was joyful and outrageous in his cooking and that Lisa was totally Asian and that her food reflects her strong personality. On Stephanie Tom had no really significant comments, but she was named Top Chef. I totally agree. She earned it. Lisa did surprisingly well for someone who came late out of the pack.