Recap Roundup - Top Chef Masters 4.2

A Just Recompense on Debbie Gold's salad: "This is a lesson in poor adaptability; she wanted to make a green papaya salad but could find neither papaya nor mango so she used cabbage and unripe nectarines instead of reconceptualizing. She loves to grill lettuce for the acidity; she doesn’t want to serve a sweet salad as a starter. Kerry helps her char it, and she’s adamant that she wants it really charred; he isn’t playing tricks on her at all, he’s following her instructions. I’m dubious about the value of charred cabbage, even mild napa cabbage. The judges do not approve. James calls it one of the weirder things he’s ever eaten. The bride, however, likes it. Maybe she’s just really agreeable. Given how her last two attempts to get married turned out, she’s probably so glad she actually got the deed done, she’d be happy with anything."

Mary Alice from Charm City Cakes for the Baltimore Sun on name dropping: "Art relays the sweet story about his wedding to his husband Jesus and how they ran from Art's restaurant to the Lincoln Memorial for their ceremony. There's an adorable shot of the two of them in front of their wedding cake, which in the interest of full disclosure I must point out was baked and decorated by Charm City Cakes. There, I said it. Who's name dropping now?"

LA Weekly on the betrothed: "In walked Jay and Christine, a lovely betrothed couple who let it be known that they were getting married the next day, and that the crew was responsible for the entire wedding menu. Now, Top Chef has had their contestants cater large events with hundreds of people before, but usually that entails a few hors d'oeuvres and small plates. A well-catered wedding includes real entrees as part of several courses, and one big honkin' cake, so this was no easy task."

Grub Street on relationships: "Once they get to cooking, it’s business as usual, except no one needs a skin graft this week. Art and Chris jump right back into the role of bickering couple, turning prep time into a therapy session. “Communicate, don't give me crap!” Chris pleads. (Do these two have a secret past we should know about?) The lovers’ quarrel ends in time for Art to tell the bride-to-be that (OMG but not really) her cake is going to be a variation of the one he JUST MADE for Lady Gaga’s 25th birthday. Kerry gets a chance to boast that Tom Colicchio was his best man, and Mark talks about wanting to marry Clark after 25 years together moments before Clark has a freak-out because someone moved some lettuce or something and Mark has to deal with it. Ah, love."

The Zagat Blog on weddings: "A fun part of this episode was getting to hear about the chefs' weddings. Chris Cosentino did all the food at his own wedding and his bride had to pull him out of the kitchen with his blue-spiked hair (fun fact: blue hair looks totally normal in black and white photos). Art and his Venezuelan husband (like Lorena Garcia, those Pisces just connect) ran (in full running gear) from his restaurant Art and Soul to the steps of the Washington Monument and got married there. Fedora's wedding cake had five tiers with a bridge to Croque-en-Bouche, his wife's favorite. Tom Colicchio was Kerry Heffernan's best man and caterer. Ah - so now we know why he's on the show.... "

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