TC News & Information 7.10.2012

Changes are afoot in Top Chef-land....

First, the Chicago Tribune is reporting that everyone's favorite Top Chef Texas competitor, Beverly Kim, is leaving Aria and headed to Bonsoiree...

...and then there's speculation that season 6's Jennifer Carroll is looking to open her restaurant, Concrete Blonde, in New York, rather than Philly.

Richard Blais, still pretty firmly entrenched in Atlanta, competed against Hector Santiago recently on the Top Chef Tour. Blogger the Arriviste has written a fun post on the event.

And congratulations to Mike Isabella, who was recently named Chef of the Year by DC Magazine!

Posted on AllTopChef.com

TC News and Information 3.14.11

Wanna eat at Restaurant Wars for Season 9? A table is being auctioned off for the episode, to be filmed "sometime in July or August, 2011," reports Eater. Estimated value: $20K, to benefit the Endometriosis Foundation of America.

Season 2 Finalist Sam Talbot’s new restaurant, Imperial No. 9 at the Mondrian Hotel in NYC has finally opened, and the New York Times offers up a lengthy piece in - of all places - its Fashion and Style section. If you’re looking for info about the food he’s cooking, you won’t find much here. What you will find is an assertion by the NYT’s writer that Sam “is among a new breed of celebrity chefs who have coasted into culinary fame, less by grueling dues-paying, and more on their telegenic brand. The group includes the brothers Bryan and Michael Voltaggio, Ludo Lefebvre, Spike Mendelsohn, Sam Mason, Fabio Viviani and Marcel Vigneron.”

Ouch! Both Michael Voltaggio and Top Chef Masters’ Ludo Lefebvre took issue with inclusion on NYT list, and contacted the LA Times with their own rebuttals.

If you are actually interested in Sam's food, Eater has a round-up of early blogger buzz about No. 9, some of it from fans who find the chef a hunk and are perhaps not too discerning in the food department. On the other hand, there seems to be something about those cauliflower fritters . . .

In other news, Richard Blais does baby food, partnering with organic baby food maker Jack’s Harvest. Their first product offering, featuring cauliflower and quinoa, debuted March 1. (What is it with cauliflower?)

We reported previously that Top Chef Master Rick Bayless has opened a spot in Chicago's O'Hare airport. Now comes news that his fellow Masters contestant, pop-up king Ludo Lefebvre may open a "chicken shack" at LAX.

Starting tomorrow, Season 6’s Preeti Mistry launches a weekday lunch pop-up in San Francisco called Juhu Beach Club featuring Indian street food, according to this item.

Floyd Cardoz of the upcoming Top Chef Masters 3 is slated to helm a new Danny Meyer restaurant in NYC to open near the end of the year, according to NYT and Grub Street.

Finally, although I haven't read anything official about this year's traveling Top Chef road show yet, Season 6's Hector Santiago posted on facebook: "TC 2011 tour starts in ST. Louis , on April 15,c you there Y'all ...their will b quick fire challenges this time aroud , fun fun ;)" Let us know if you hear about the Top Chef Tour coming to your city.

TC News & Information 10.1.09

Our condolences to chef Hector Santiago on the death of his grandmother Sunday morning.

Fabio Viviani has been a busy guy. For one thing, he's taking on a new restaurant in the San Fernando Valley. Firenze Osteria (formerly Barsac Brasserie) will have a grand opening on October 24th with complimentary wine and hors d'oeuvres from 4:30 PM to 7:30 PM. The public is invited to attend. In addition, Fabio will be doing two cooking shows on November 21st at the Lake of the Torches Resort Casino in Lac de Flambeau, WI. Information on tickets can be found here.

Have you read the rumors swirling about Padma? Well, it's true - Padma is pregnant!

Season 1 finalist Dave Martin has put out a cookbook, Flavor Quest Volume 1, which is available here.

Interview with Hector Santiago

Chef Hector Santiago took the time to answer a couple questions for All Top Chef about his experience on the show.

ATC: Why do you think it took so long for the meat to cook? Chef Boulud said it should take half an hour. Was it a problem with the equipment? Did it not go into the oven early enough?

HS: Let's start with the fact that the "Chateau" was cold out of the cooler (no time for tempering the meat). As I hit the kitchen floor, I went first to sear the meat, after seasoning it with Kosher salt and a peppercorn mix. I seared all the sides on a wonderful plancha in Joel Robuchon's kitchen. They went into the oven on a sheet pan lined with a rack and topped with a "jacket" of beef fat to melt over it as it roasted (I think this is where my problem started... the fat melted over it, making it tasty, but it also insulated the heat, especially the center part of the loin, thus leaving the end cuts slightly exposed and cooking at a higher temperature.) My other mistake was to rely on the thermometer I used. I waited for it to come to 125° (I should have done the old lip test when I first realized it was taking a long time.) After I was eliminated, I boiled water to check my thermometer for accuracy and it was 208° or 4° under, so my meat got to 129° instead of 125° . From there the rest is history.

ATC: This was the second time you ended up on the bottom three for beef preparation. How do you feel about that particular protein now?

HS: I love beef, so I've got no problem with it. Maybe beef has a problem with me??

I felt it was mere coincidence and if luck has any part to play, maybe beef is not my "lucky" protein.

ATC: Overall, what did you learn from your experience?

HS: I know that my food it good enough, but for these timed competitions maybe I needed to simplify it a bit and not try to put "so much" on the plate. Maybe I try to overcompensate - for my accent, or heritage, even though I'm proud of it.

ATC: What was your favorite challenge? Your least favorite?

HS: My favorite quick fire was with Chef Todd English, where we had a limited number of ingredients to work with (by rolling the dice). My least favorite... I can't think of one. I went to cook in many different situations and with many restraints.

ATC: What did you think of the other cheftestants? Who was your best friend?

HS: I liked them all. We were so different from each other that it made it interesting in a freshman at school kind of way. I made good friends with Jessie and Jen, and Preeti, since we spent a lot of time together. Also Mattin and Ron and the boys from Atlanta. They used to call me "Papi".

ATC: What would you have done with the prize money had you won the title of Top Chef?

HS: It probably would have gone to finance the kitchen for my next work in progress - "Bodega Gastronomica", and the rest into my existing restaurant, Pura Vida.

ATC: What are you up to now?

HS: My restaurant, Pura Vida, keeps me busy, as always. Not even winning would have changed that. I also have Bodega Gastronomica in the works (Latino Luxe restaurant with only 12 seats). I've got an on going project and future book on chilies (one of my favorite ingredients). You can catch my progress on www.thecapsicumproject.blogspot.com or follow me on www.facebook.com

Thank you, Chef Santiago! Catch you on Facebook!

TC News & Information 9.14.09

Here's an interview with TC 5's Leah Cohen, "one of the most popular Top Chef contestants ever." :::raises eyebrow:::

For you C.J. Jacobsen fans: here are a couple of photos of him doing a cooking demo at the farmer's market in Tacoma, WA.

Here are excerpts from the day-after conference call with this week's eliminees Hector Santiago and Jesse Sandlin.

Check out this week's Creative Loafing Top Chef podcast here.

TC4's Ryan Scott did a cooking demo for...a beauty school. Details here.

Finally, Las Vegas Weekly lays odds for episode five here.

Exit Interviews - Jesse Sandlin and Hector Santiago

ATC Love to Chef Santiago

In the second part of this week's double elimination, we said goodbye to Chef Hector Santiago. Though Chef Santiago had impressed the judges in earlier challenges, they were unhappy with his unevenly cooked and roughly, quickly carved Chateaubriand.

The judges described Chef Santiago's Chateaubriand au poivre, on which he partnered with Ash, as "lacking refinement," which he blamed largely on timing issues. He took responsibility for the problems, saying he should not have trusted the meat thermometer.

This post is only for positive words for Chef Santiago. If you have anything negative to say about her or another chef, please click here.

TC News & Information

Seems like Rick Bayless is causing a stir. Or rather, this person has been. (Yes, one of us pesky bloggers.) Other bloggers weigh in here and here and here. And Teresa Puente defends herself here. What do you think - is Rick Bayless too white to cook Mexican food? Or is this one of the most ridiculous things you've ever read?

Interviews with TC6 Cheftestants: Here's one from Grubstreet with Jennifer Zavala, and another one with fellow Philadelphian Jennifer Carroll. Atlanta Magazine talks to Hector Santiago.

Pretend you're in Las Vegas when you're really in New York: the NBC Experience store is featuring virtual slot machines until the end of August.

Gail Simmons and Toby Young dish about the upcoming season.

Top Chef 6 Bio - Hector Santiago

AGE: 41
HOMETOWN: San Juan, Puerto Rico – currently resides in Atlanta, Ga.
PROFESSION: Chef-Owner, Pura Vida ~ Latino Tapas Restaurant & Bar
CULINARY EDUCATION: AOS Culinary Arts, Culinary Institute of America
FAVORITE SIMPLE SUMMER RECIPE: Charcoal Grilled Skirt steak with a Vegetable Ceviche (celery, radishes, tomatoes and whatever else is available from local farmers)

Hector was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, where he started his cooking career working under chef Gioanna Huyke at the El San Juan Hotel & Casino. His cuisine combines classic and avante garde cooking techniques with Latin American ingredients and inspirations. Since opening his own restaurant, Pura Vida, in Atlanta, he has received many awards, including "Best Tapas or Small Plates" by numerous publications, being named a "Rising Star Chef" for Atlanta by StarChefs.com in 2007, and making it onto the "Long List" as a James Beard nominee for "Best Chef, Southeast” for the last two years (2008 & 2009). A constant student, Hector has done stages with chefs Jose Andres, Wylie Dufresne and Andoni L. Aduriz. His goal is to bring to light Latin American products, culture and cuisine. He is currently working on a project on hot peppers, and their new and different culinary uses like "taming the heat.”