View All PostsGael Greene
Hiccups! Cocktails and Pub Grub
Gael Greene describes judging alongside some Real Housewives of Orange County.
April 21, 2010I eat. I drink. I’ve been eating and drinking professionally for 42 years now so I always have an opinion. But maybe I wasn’t the best person to join the Orange County Housewives in judging this week’s Masters class reunion Quickfire, The chefs had to dream up a dish that went with a cocktail.
First of all I knew there were Orange County Housewives and their plots and spats were a big hit on Bravo, but I had never watched a single show. I’m a Top Chef fan and loyal to Jim Lipton at Actors Studio but never tempted by Housewives. Assigned to judge with them, I assumed they would be gorgeous, skinny, have lots of hair, and be covered with jewels. What I didn’t expect was how simpatico they would be, especially Lynne. In three minutes I felt I’d known her forever.
Maybe the real killer was that I rarely like cocktails with food, except for margaritas which I like straight up or on the rocks or frozen in classic form or fruity frou frou. Watching the show, I see Wylie anticipated that cocktails might not be my strength.
We judges don’t see the chefs of course when they’re cooking. And I didn’t know how enthusiastically they’d been sampling the mixologist’s blendings. From what I saw on the show itself, I imagine they were all really loose. For me, most of the drinks were just too sweet. And mulled cider with fish. Oh no. I don’t think so. The excessive sweetness made it even tougher to pair the fanciful drinks with food although the masters certainly tried.
The lemongrass mojito was the exception – really tart, pleasant to drink, and it worked with its dish: the perfectly cooked shrimp with twist of pork tenderloin.
I had no idea whose dish it was. Unlike the challenge where the judges talk to the chefs about their dish and give them the ratings eye to eye, in the Quickfire, the chefs can watch the judges tasting and commenting but almost always, the judges can’t see them. I thought yes, this is a delicate snack, perfect for an Orange County gabfest or lunch at the pool. What a surprise to discover later that it was Jonathan Waxman playing it cool. Seeing the kitchen action for the first time as I watched the show, I laughed at Jonathan playing the lazy grasshopper to everyone else’s scurrying ant.
Next day in the pub was fun, full of good vibes, being surrounded by locals chugging beer and calling out critiques. I gave Wylie credit for his straightforward and delicious sausage with smoked mashed potatoes and snow pea consommé. Rick’s aristocratic fish and chips with chicken-fried Alaskan black cod and lemon confit and tarter sauce won big points from me. Granted his twice-cooked fried potatoes could have been thinner but I liked them better than the usual too salty chips.
I agree with some of the other posters. First of all, Top Chef contestants have been chewed up and spit out in past seasons for using store bought sausage products instead of producing their own. Also, the OC Housewives are definitely not the best choice as guest judges in the scenario given. And I was surprised that Vicki was not there as I would say she might be the most 'well-rounded'.
To be honest, in comparison to some of the dishes of have seen on this season's Top Chef Masters I was a bit disappointed in the effort put forth by the chefs in this episode. While Ludo is French, I don't think that excuses him from having just plain good manners!
Hi Gael: I also felt that the OC housewives were completely unable to tell a good dish from a bad one. Please, Bravo, quit trying to cross promote your shows. The housewives need to stay where they are.
It is really unfair to have these chefs dishes judged by someone who wouldn't know good food from a pile of you know what!
Missed James this week. I do appreciate your insight into the dishes served and keep up the good work!
@FanFare56
I would recommend that you watch the video that demonstrates how to cook Jonathan's dish. It is actually a very complex dish with a very thoughtful approach to melding a lot of different flavors together. The appearance may not be up to your standards but the taste is what won the judges over.
I must say Gael that although you are utmostly qualified to judge, your disdain for Wylie's cooking and the field of molecular gastronomy both last season and in this recent episode has made me lose some respect for you.
I was very surprised that Wylie was not called out about his store-bought sausages. He would have been reamed for that by the judges on Top Chef.
I must say that these two challenges were two of my all-time favorite challenges (I've watched every season of TC and TC:M) and I was overjoyed to see them tackled by the Masters!
Kudos to Bravo!
Hello Gael,
It was great to see you judge the QF with the OC women. Their opinions seemed swayed by your experienced palate. I felt they were undeserving of being judges of food because they rarely eat what is served and have no taste buds, dulled by the many cocktails or wine that they swig. Ludo was right that they were not real judges. They came off as giggling idiots. Thank goodness you were there to counterbalance their lack of food knowledge.
The elim challenge was supposed to be pub grub made great.
I didn't see anything come close to greatness. None of the plates were pretty. None of the dishes went far enough to transport the mundane comfort British junk into gourmet fare. Jonathan slathered whipped potato glop over lamb chops. Big deal!
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