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Hell's Kitchen 9

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apskip:
franxaverian and TesxasLady,

I am with you on most points. Elise did a decent job of synchronizing the Red kitchen (somebody's got to do it) and she personally has more cooking knowledge than many of her teammates, so she will be around for awhile. A t this point I think she will last longer than Carrie, who is suspected by her teammates of being incompetent. However, once Carrie is gone Elise is dead meat.

Natalie's problems continue and my high regard for her after she emerged on Blue as a leader has faded a bit with her fish problems. 

I do not think that the fish station is the most difficult on Hell's Kitchen. In past seasons that is usually the Meat station (and Beef Wellingtons in particular because of the complexity of that dish). The chefs must not have been paying attention when the fish lessons were handed out.

apskip:
HK9, Ep. 8
The big question for me is how long will Jonathan last? He is such a jerk that I want him to disappear from my TV screen as soon as possible.

Ramsay started this episode by asking each team to nominate its best leader, which was Will for Blue and Jennifer (you’ve got to be kidding that it was not Jamie) for Red. Each of them was then asked to nominate their weakest teammate. Will nominated Tommy and Jennifer nominated Carrie. Ramsay then stated that the challenge would be led by Tommy and Carrie. It was to take one of 5 “American Classics” and update it in 30 minutes. Once the dishes were ready he introduced his mystery guest judge, who turned out to be Wolfgang Puck (wow!).

The dishes presented for this head-to-head Red versus Blue competition were:
Jamie – lambburger vs. Tommy – hamburger                                                                                                    Red 1 Blue 0
Elise – spaghetti and meatballs vs. Will – spaghetti and meatballs                                                                      Red 1 Blue 0
? Soup – Jennifer vs. Paul - Chicken Noodle soup                                                                                              Red 0 Blue 0
Cobb Salad – Elizabeth vs. Natalie - a strange salmon salad that was definitely not Cobb; despite this, Puck preferred Natalie’s salad and gave her the point    Red 0 Blue 1
Carrie – pizza (raw) vs. Jonathon (too ashamed to even bring this up) a total mess of a pizza with honey and truffle oil on it        Red 0 Blue 0

Red team won 2-1 and Carrie felt redeemed as a team leader even though her teammates did not agree. Red team got cheesy limousine rides down the Sunset Strip plus a very positive comedy break at the Laugh Factory. The comedienne there told some good Gordon Ramsay jokes. The Blue team was not used to losing challenges (or winning dinner services), so they all grumbled about cleaning and prepping both kitchens and cleaning both dorms. Jonathon felt that his neck ailments mandated reserving his energies for the dinner service, which provoked major resentment from his teammates who had to do all the work.   

Dinner service started with members of the U.S. Coast Guard at two tables and Ramsay using that as an excuse to get better performance from the teams. Carrie’s garlic bread burned and her pizza dough was not rolled out correctly. Jonathon put 4 spaghetti portions to boil simultaneously, so Ramsay had to correct him that only one is done at a time so it cooks properly. The simple procedure of mixing sauce with spaghetti in a warm pan is also something Jonathon had not mastered. Ramsay stated they could only be served “over my dead body.” Next to him, Natalie also on Blue appetizers cooked mussels too salty.  Jennifer helped Carrie to get out of a jam. Ramsay decided to confront Jonathon and find out what was wrong with him. Jonathan told him he was operating at only 50% but wanted to stay there to help his team. Ramsay told him to get his brain working properly. Tommy was having a bad night on the Meat station, then he laughed for no good reason and Ramsay was quite upset at this; he told Tommy to zip it immediately. Red continued its productive ways under Elise’s guidance and finished out its dinner service without serious problems.

It was obvious that the Red team had won this dinner service. Ramsay singled out Elise as having had an impressive dinner service performance. The only question was who would go from the Blue team. There was no question in my mind of the individual who deserved that. It was Jonathon without a doubt. Blue nominated Jonathon and Natalie. She promised she would not do it again and Ramsay told her that one more bad night and she was gone. Jonathon was given the well-deserved boot. Ramsay was finally tired of his constant excuses that no mistake was ever his fault, so Ramsay accepted the responsibility for sending Jonathon home a bit after he had overstayed his welcome.

apskip:
Please note that if you have been depending on full episode videos from FOX, those will only be available after an 8 day delay after today as a result of a special exclusive deal the DISH Network cut with FOX.

We are now at the halfway point of HK9. I think it's worthwhile to take a look at who's left in this competition and who I think is likely to have staying power. The least talented chefs left are:

Carrie
Elizabeth
Jennifer
Tommy

The final 5 I expect to be:

Will
Natalie
Elise
Jamie
Paul

Editor's note - there's 2 wrong calls above. Jennifer has moved up as a culinary leader and Jamie is gone prematurely.

apskip:
HK9, Ep. 9

The challenge was to conceive, make and plate a sexy, delicious dessert in one hour. The judges for this were outstanding dessert chefs Jordan Khan and Waylan Lucas.  These dishes presented were awarded 1, 2 or 3 points by each judge (except Elise whose dish was judged worst by the Red team and had to sit out):

Carrie - blondie with butterscotch chips                                                                      2 points
Elizabeth – ricotta strawberry Napoleon                                                                      3
Jamie – croissant-fig bread pudding w/ a strawberry-champagne glaze                          3
Jennifer (who went last) - bananas foster w/ chocolate and bourbon flambee                 6
         
Tommy - toffee and Macedonian nut sticky bun                                                            2 points
Paul - banana polenta cake                                                                                        6
Will – cocoa something                                                                                              2
Natalie- chocolate espresso bread pudding                                                                  5

Of course the order of the judging had Jennifer (who I am sure Ramsay knew had a superior dish) going last and letting her snatch victory out of the jaws of defeat. By getting the maximum 6 points Jennifer saved the day for the Red team. Elise’s dessert was tasted by Ramsay after the judging was complete. He agreed it was a smart decision by Red to not offer her berry dish since it probably would have gotten 0 points due to high vinegar level.

Their reward was a trip to Las Vegas and stayed overnight in a high-roller suite at Caesar’s Palace, each of the 5 Red team members with their own bedroom and bathroom. The doorbell rang and they opened it to find Holly Madison. She brought in addition to her impressive personality tickets to her Las Vegas concert, books and also plane tickets and accommodations for each of the 5 Red team members to return to Las Vegas at a later date and enjoy it again.

The punishment for the Blue team was the usual prepping and the unusual ice carving. When the Red team arrived back the next morning, it would be DATE NIGHT for that evening’s dinner service and a lavish raw seafood bar prepped by the Blue team.

Dinner service began with Elise and Carrie at it again, Carrie trying to do her appetizers assignment properly and Elise deliberately not communicating. How can Ramsay and sous chef Andi miss this sabotage behavior? I don’t believe that they can, so they are deliberately looking the other way to keep this rivalry going and avoid having to get rid of Elise.

Tommy appeared asleep on his feet when required to cook scallops, followed by cooking 2 separate orders of scallops ahead. Tommy next started to cook sea bass ahead when the Blue team was nowhere near to finishing appetizers. Ramsay could not ignore this and banished Tommy out of the kitchen (but not upstairs, signaling that he would return). Tommy flirted with some pretty patrons and then went back. In the meantime, Will, Paul and Natalie were getting the appetizers out and later the entrees with that reduced staffing.

Carrie brought burned sea bass up and got banished upstairs despite vigorously arguing that he wanted to stay and finish out. Jamie was having a bad night, with one of her hairs found in a dish sent to the pass. She appeared listless and uncaring about what that would mean. She compounded that by burning zucchini yet presenting it to the pass. Paul had raw chicken. Always a cardinal sin, this caused him to be banished. Elise brought vegetarian capellini to the pass with lobster in it that also got her banished. Ramsay’s comment was “bon appetite, princess” to Elise. 

Ramsay declared the Blue team the winner. Red had to nominate 2 and the obvious candidates were Elise and Carrie. However, rather than breaking up that dynamic duo that is improving HK9 ratings, he elected to make a surprise move and eliminate Jamie instead. I could not see how she had earned that. He claimed that “she had given up,” always a serious sin in his book.         
           

apskip:
HK9, Ep. 10

This episode started with a blind taste test. The overall performance was sub-standard, but here are the details:
Item        Anchovies   Carrots   Egg Yolk   Mango                                         Blue 1
Tommy                                                                           OK                                            Red 1
Carrie                             OK

Item          Cauliflower Lobster    Pumpkin         Mushy Peas                           
Will                                           OK                            Blue 1                        
Elizabeth                                                                                                                          Red 0   

Item        Turkey          Asparagus    Pecans           Cheddar cheese                                                                                   
Paul                                  OK                                                                                            Blue 1   
Jennifer                                                                            OK                                            Red 1

So the Blue team led 3 to 2 going into the last pairing. Elise remained confident that her excellent palate can still lead to a Red victory:
Item         Filet Mignon Brussels Sprouts Coconut     Sour Cream                         Natalie                         OK                                                  Blue 1   
Elise               OK              OK           OK                                           Red 3

The final tally was Blue 4 Red 5 and Red was the winner. The Blue team had to prep both kitchens for that evening’s Steak Night, which was a two-seating operation due to high bookings. They also had to unload 200 pounds of grapes, then wash, deseed, peel and finally make grape jam out of them.  The reward for the Red team was horseback riding up a nearby peak overlooking Los Angeles, with lunch and too much grape-based product thrown in for good measure. The Red team can definitely thank Elise for her skilled palate, which Ramsay highly values. That alone could keep her in this competition when other factors indicate she should be out.

The Red team as winners chose to cook the later 90 minute seating, which put them as servers in the dining room for the first seating. The Blue team cooked first and served at the second seating. James told all servers that if a steak order was for medium rare there was no need to note that, but for any other doneness it needed to be specified on the ticket.

Natalie had problems cooking steaks and Tommy on fish was a disaster. Carrie appeared to enjoy her work as a server and have a natural affinity for it. Natalie’s problems with steak forced the blue team to close 5 tables short of completing their full service.  After the teams switched for the second half, Elise had a raw sea bass. Carrie’s garnishes were poorly cooked. One example appeared to be mashed potatoes that were hard (how could that be?) Elise’s sea bass problem recurred when she dropped one on the floor. Red wound up with a disastrous service even worse than Blue’s although neither was the winning team. Jennifer was really pissed that the opportunity to perform well had eluded the Red team and she let the rest of her team know that. Elise got into an epic battle by accusing Tommy of a poor job of scoring the Wellington pastry when she had done that herself. She was trying to deflect blame, but this backfired on his, as it exposed her as a total liar.

Jennifer got in the best line of the night by likening her teammates to Manny, Moe and Curly (the Three Stooges for those who might be familiar with them).

As dinner service finished Ramsay asked Red to nominate the one person they wanted to get rid of to improve their team and the same for Blue. For Red it was Carrie and for blue Tommy.  Ramsay stated that Carrie had a great future but not in the kitchen, as a server. He eliminated her.

Since at this point there were 4 Blue team members left and 3 Red team members, there is a really good chance that the next person eliminated would be on the Blue team, s Ramsay does not like to disrupt the team chemistry any more than the minimum necessary.

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