TC News and Information 9.12.11

This week’s Willy Wonka episode of Just Desserts rated inclusion by producers The Magical Elves in their top 10 list of favorite episodes of all the shows they’ve produced, saying it “may be the ultimate episode of Just Desserts. . . ." Click through the slide show for the 9 others, many of which I’m sure our readers will recall.

Have you been reading Just Desserts Season 1 winner Yigit Pura’s Bravo blog about this season? You can also find him “half-naked and sugar-coated,” Yigit says, in a calendar for Meals on Wheels, one of his favorite charities. You can glimpse him in the right-hand sidebar, or purchase one, here.

Were you as glad as I was to see TC Masters contestant Hugh Acheson as guest judge on last week’s episode? He’ll be back as one of the judges on TC9: Texas with Emeril Lagasse, reports Entertainment Weekly.

Frequent TC judge Eric Ripert’s Le Bernadin recently reopened and Feast has before, during, and after videos about the restaurant’s renovation. Meanwhile, Ripert protégé and TC All-Star Jen Carroll has announced she is leaving Ripert’s 10 Arts restaurant in Philly, according to Grub Street.

Three Top Chef chefs make the New York Times list of this fall’s most hotly anticipated restaurants: Masters 3 winner Floyd Cardoz’s North End Grill, Season 3 winner Hung Huynh’s Catch, and All Star contestant Dale Talde’s Talde.

Those Voltaggio brothers are busy too. They have a new cookbook coming out, and Michael’s long-promised LA restaurant Ink. (reported here to be opening in late September) has been upstaged by his new sandwich shop, Ink.Sack, which opened recently a few doors down. LA Weekly’s Jonathan Gold reports here. Yum Sugar has a great video interview with Michael Voltaggio here about his numerous new ventures.

All-Stars winner Richard Blais tells Eater his wife came up for the name of his next restaurant, The Spence, slated to open in winter 2012. He’s also a finalist for Restaurateur of the Year from the Georgia Restaurant Association. Winners will be announced in November.

All-Star Casey Thompson has teamed up with Sam’s Club and is eyeing new opportunities in Napa, according to this interview with Eater. Dale Levitski has been enlisted by Sam’s Club too.

Here's a report of Season 4 of Top Chef Masters filming in Vegas (scroll down to the second paragraph under The Scene and Heard).

Finally, if you’ve ever dreamed of being on Top Chef, you have something in common with Marge Simpson, reports Zap2It. Tom Colicchio will appear in animated form on The Simpsons season premiere on FOX September 25. Is it just me, or does this rendering look more like Hosea Rosenberg?


Posted on AllTopChef.com