"I could do a bread pudding in my sleep."

Yes, he said that about that salmon he made for the BBQ episode and it kind of went the same way.

I think that Tre, being head chef should have delegated the duties better. (Also, shouldn't he have tasted that salad and made CJ do it over?)

Yes, Sara rocked. I am having hopes that there will be a woman in the top four after all. I think that Dale moves up which makes me very happy as I have been rooting for him. He and Sara both took the opportunity to show their leadership skills and ran with it. (Did I say that here before? I believe I said that elsewhere.)

you saw the exact moment she really became the head chef, as she was talking to Hung.

Yeah, absolutely. When Hung was like, "Is that what he wants, or what YOU want, chef?" and she came back with "DO IT AGAIN!" That was awesome.

Also, I still love Harold, and think he must be pissed about how legit all the Quickfires have been this season -- no vending machine, no convenience store, etc.

Well, Frozen Food, ice cream mixers, - that's not all haute cuisine.

Not at all, but at least it's all based on real food!

Not at all, but at least it's all based on real food!

Well, real product placement, anyway.

I still think CJ should have been booted.

I think that if, for example, Tre's salmon dish hadn't been the worst tasting thing in the history of Top Chef (Bourdain mentions that Ted Allen physically recoiled from it) - CJ would have gone. . .but he's on my list. Howie first, then CJ. Then. . . hmmmm. . . we'll see how Casey, Hung and the Brians do.

I still think CJ should have been booted.

I wanted Brian booted. He didn't do anything. If he had made a dish (like say a cured salmon), Tre might have been saved.

To be perfectly honest, if that had been anybody but Tre, I would have been totally supportive of the boot. He was my baby, I wanted him to stay. I really thought that he could win it all. I hoped that his past strong work and his incredible potential would save him, but alas, no.

Somebody over at TWOP pointed out that Tre was doomed when Padma mentioned after he won the first ec that the first two seasons the winner of the first ec went on to win it all. And this will be the first time that the winner of the first ec doesn't go all the way.

oh, one thing that I forgot about Top Chef -- I really liked that they called Dale out of his tacky outfit. When you are the face of a restaurant, you do not dress like you're going to the mall. Even if you are trying to give the impression of a casual restaurant, there's casual, and casual. A button down and slacks is casual, but elegant. polo shirt and jeans is McDonalds, not even Applebees.