- The chefs get hooked into a fish-fillet contest at an elite seafood restaurant. In a unique Restaurant Wars test that follows, they must establish "one night only" eateries under the stars in New York City.
- A new day dawns. Blais says he's looking forward to an individual challenge because the only time he's been on the bottom was as a team.
Antonia reminds us she was known as "the Black Hammer" on her season because every time she was on a team with someone, they went home.
It's happening all over again this season -- three times so far.
The chefs head to Le Bernadin, Eric Ripert's three Michelin star seafood restaurant. Anthony Bourdain greets them and tells them about Justo Thomas, who butchers between 700 and 1,000 pounds of fish in a few hours every day.
When he goes on vacation, it takes three sous chefs to do his job.
They go downstairs for a demonstration. Fabio says it brings him to tears.
Quickfire
They have to portion one cod and one fluke, which Justo does in eight minutes. They get 10.
Tiffany is an executive chef of a seafood restaurant.
Fabio cuts his finger, but keeps going.
Justo checks it out.
Carla didn't finish. Antonia apologizes for her effort. Tiffany butchered the fish the wrong way.
Bottom: Fabio, Tiffany, Carla and Antonia. Tiffany is embarrassed.
Dale, Mike, Marcel and Richard do a good job. They move on to the immunity part of the challenge, with 45 minutes to make something out of what's left of the fish: tail, rack, head, etc.
Mike spends the first part of his time looking for equipment, which Marcel won't let him borrow.
Dale says this is the way he grew up eating.
Richard tells us his first fish job was at McDonald's, where he sent his first Filet O' Fish out without the top bun. "I was being creative and avant garde way before I knew it was my calling," he says.
Time's up.
Bourdain and Justo come for tasting.
Richard made a schnitzel of the cod belly, ragout of braised collar and fried skin.
Mike made pan-roasted belly, confit cheeks, charred collar and tomato sauce.
Dale made a fluke back fin sashimi with cucumber and a fluke liver sauce. And also a bacon dashi with salt roasted cod collar.
Marcel made a cod mousseline with yuzu chili oil fluke broth.
Bourdain and Justo send the chefs away. Mike just hopes that Marcel "a rude inconsiderate person" doesn't win.
Bourdain tells Richard he made the most of his ingredients, Mike's was "delicious" and "vibrant." Marcel's was tasty, but "texturally monochromatic."
He really dug that Dale used the liver.
The winner is "the person who really got it": Dale. He gets immunity.
They're back to the Top Chef kitchen.
Elimination Challenge
Padma and Ludo Lefebre wait for them. It's restaurant wars time.
Dale is one team captain. He gets to pick the other. "It's really about chemistry for me, who I don't want to work with," Dale tells us as he picks Marcel.
He feels honored. They pick teammates.
Marcel picks first. Richard really hopes he won't pick him. He takes Angelo, then Mike, Antonio and Tiffany. Mike's comment on being picked by Marcel is bleeped out.
Dale takes Richard, Tre, Fabio.
Dale thinks Fabio is the "steal" of the draft for front of the house.
They have 24 hours to open a "pop up restaurant." The diners get to pick the winner.
Marcel nominates Tiffany for front of the house.
Dale suggests a bodega style.
Marcel won't let anyone put their name by a dish until they have a bunch of suggestions. He realizes no one's listening to him.
Fabio thinks Marcel's team is toast.
Back at the house, they game plan.
Marcel suggests Meddi for a name but Mike thinks it isn't a concept. He's already worried.
At the Foundry, they arrive to find the entire kitchen outside.
They start work and Tom stops by. He asks Marcel what his duties are, but Marcel tells him he's too busy to talk. Tom describes it as a "weird energy."
On to Dale. Tom doesn't get how the food fits into the bodega theme.
Tom tells them there will be one winner to the challenge, and they get $10,000.
Fabio starts setting up the tables and talking to the waiters.
Tiffany knows she should be out there, but is still peeling her eggs. Marcel micromanages her. She's angry she listened to Marcel's way of cooking it. They try to come up with a new egg dish. Mike suggests egg yolk cured in salt and sugar. Angelo promises to take it over.
Tiffany goes to talk to the waiters.
Marcel said he wouldn't do foam, but does it anyway.
Dale's team works quietly as Marcel's bickers.
It's service time. The diners arrive.
Dana Cowin, editor in chief of Food & Wine arrives.
Dale tells his servers to "back the f--- away from me right now" as he tries to plate. Fabio intervenes and tries to tell him to be nice to his servers.
Tiffany brings plates of undercooked lamb back. The diners don't like Tiffany's egg.
Fabio wows Dana with his presentation and their concept.
The judges arrive for Bodega.
They begin with Dale's home made potato chips.
The first course is Richard's raw tuna belly with friend chicken skin with chilies and lime. Then Dale's Bacon Egg and Cheese with home made focaccia.
The diners seem to like them. Tom notices how Fabio checks in with the judges and the servers and manages.
The second course is Richard's chicken-fried codfish, with Brussels sprouts cooked like sauerkraut. And Tre's pork shoulder with cheddar cheese grits and a corona and lime sauce.
Padma loves Tre's pork. The diners love the sauce.
For dessert, Fabio made amaretto cake with candied lemon peel and cappuccino mousse. Carla made blueberry pie with dry milk ice cream.
Bourdain says he "f----- loves Fabio's dessert."
The judges head to Etch. Tiffany is chatting with a table of diners when they arrive. A waiter seats them and see makes it to give menus.
Marcel asks Mike to talk to him more in the kitchen.
Ludo looks around and thinks it's not organized at all. A waiter stands around with plates. Padma thinks Tiffany thinks front of the house means schmoozing. Padma tells her they're hungry.
They serve Angelo's crudo of fluke with grapes, pink peppercorns and lemon zest and Tiffany's frisee and shaved asparagus salad with egg and chorizo.
They all find fault with Tiffany's salad.
One of the diners complain that his whole lamb plate is cold. Marcel and Mike get into it and Angelo says that if Mike behaved that way in his restaurant, he would send Mike home.
The second course is Marcel's roasted monkfish with kalamata olives, peperonata and parsley. The other is Mike's braised pork belly with octopus and cannellini beans. Ludo and Bourdain think Marcel's monkfish was mushy.
Tom likes Mike's dish.
In the kitchen, Mike and Marcel try to smooth things out but Marcel ends up referring to Mike as the peanut gallery and telling him to keep working.
The third course is Antonia's homemade ricotta gnudi, braised oxtail ragout and lemon zest.
Also Mike and Angelo's slow-cooked lamb chop, cauliflower puree with honey. Padma thinks Antonia's was too salty, but a diner raves.
Antonia tries to expedite and shuts up Marcel when he repeats her orders.
The fourth course is Marcel's duo of peaches with unripened peach and sweet peach with coconut foam (he couldn't resist!) and powder.
Bourdain calls it a "perfect storm of f----- awfulness."
Dana says the Bodega food was head and shoulders above Etch.
Back in the stew room, they're impressed with Fabio, the front of the house master.
Padma comes for team Etch.
They were the diner's least favorite. Only 17 out of 76 diners favored them.
Marcel says they had issues with last minute tweaks. Tom says they lacked a plan of execution. Antonio says it was a lack of calmness. Angelo says someone should have organized.
They ask Angelo how his crudo was Mediterranean. When he says pink peppercorns are found in the south of France, French Ludo says not really.
Tom tells Mike he wishes the pork belly had more flavor.
They tell Antonia her sauce was too salty.
Bourdain asks Marcel "Why foam? Why now?"
They tell him they all didn't like his dessert.
Tiffany's salad lacked flavor.
For front of the house, Tiffany says it's hard when there are arguments on the line. Tom latches onto the comment and she realizes she's said too much.
Mike offers that he and Marcel got into it and Antonia stepped in. Marcel tries to defend himself and that opens Mike's floodgates, saying that Marcel screwed them up plating dessert in the middle of service because he "wasn't strong enough" to handle two dishes.
"You did a poor job, nobody wants to say anything because you're a time bomb," he says.
Marcel tries to say he told Antonia not to add more salt and that leads her to say he was in charge and should have stepped up.
Angelo says they acted like children.
The judges send them away.
Padma congratulates Bodega. Tom tells them they killed it. Bourdain compliments Richard for the potato chip idea. Carla says he helped everyone elevate their dishes. Ludo raves about his food.
Tom tells Fabio his service was fantastic and his dessert was great.
Bourdain tells Dale his egg dish was "stoner food at its finest" and he means that in a good way.
Ludo announces the winner is Richard. He gets $10,000. "Thank you, an hour ago I thought I was going home," he admits.
The judges discuss the ways Etch screwed up. Tom thought Marcel's dessert was terrible. Angelo's was boring. Padma asks if Tiffany should go home for a bad dish and bad service.
Verdict Time
Tom recaps, saying they failed miserably.
The knife packer is: Marcel.
"First time I heard you say those words," he says. He says he shocked to be leaving so early and didn't actually make mistakes, except picking the wrong team.
Mike says Marcel's a good guy, he just doesn't know how to talk to people, but that comes with age.
"I'm probably known as the most notorious, diabolical contestant of Top Chef history. But also the most misunderstood. I'm actually a nice guy, and I'm a personable, likeable person," he insists as they clap him on his way.
"I'm sure this isn't going to be the last time you're gonna see me," he says.
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