Jingle Bell Run

 

Hello! Welcome to...whatever this is going to be. We have a long time to wait for more shows. Amazing Race is coming out in March, and Top Chef is coming...next year sometime. They've announced they're going to Canada. But Toyouke, there's already a Top Chef: Canada. That is true. Who knows. And Project Runway is actually coming back next year! It will be on Freeform, which used to be ABC Family, so I think it will also be on Disney+. Supposedly there will be “new judges and mentors” which is too bad. I'm leery of this move because of how wretched the Lifetime seasons were. But we'll see.

Anyway we are here today for a Hallmark Christmas Movie. I know! But Miss Alli posted about it and here we are. If you are old enough to remember Television Without Pity you probably remember Miss Alli. This is a Hallmark Christmas movie that centers around a “race” with teams and “challenges” and “Phil”. Let's go. (click for more)

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Top Chef 6/19/24--"Cruising to a Win" summary

 

Previously on “Top Chef”: the final four arrived in Curacao and had to do a Quickfire combining lionfish and gouda. Basically everyone except for Danny made a crudo with crispy cheese. Dan still managed to win somehow. The Elimination challenge asked the contestants to make an eight course tasting menu of fish, each course with a different technique. No one did very well. In fact, there were major issues with at least one of everyone's two dishes. In the end, Danny had the best dish, with Dan a close second. Savannah just messed up less than Laura, so Laura was eliminated. (click for more)

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Top Chef 6/12/24--"Set Sail" summary

 

Previously on “Top Chef”: we had the blind taste test. They had 26 ingredients in alphabetical order but no one caught on. Manny somehow won but then made a boring dish so he did not win all of the money. Savannah made the best dish. Then the Elimination challenge was the standard “it's the last week here so everyone make a dish that shows how you've grown” only this time they had to have a story about the dish/how they have grown. Savannah made potato pave and said that potatoes have everything they need to be pave, they just need heat and pressure. Just like Savannah needed heat and pressure to become a better chef. So she won handily. Laura made a good dish so she also moves on to the finals. Danny did OK in the Quickfire, so it's between Dan's oversmoked fish and Manny's raw fish. Finally Manny was sent home. Not only was it raw but his story was “I make this dish all the time”? So the judges knew there was no excuse for it to be bad. (click for more)

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Top Chef 6/5/24--"Goodbye Wisconsin" summary

 

Previously on “Top Chef”: Laura returned from LCK and promptly got into the Quickfire, which was to guess what Tom had made based on yes/no questions and the look and smell of the empty plate. People did not pay attention and tried to ask the same question more than once. In the end, Savannah won, partially by noticing the kitchen had woks in it for the first time and knowing that must be important. The Elimination challenge was to serve a dish directly on the table. I don't know. Laura won, because her dessert was impressive but also because it makes her narrative work better. Even though Manny screwed up the cooking on all of his elements, Michelle was boring I guess so Michelle was sent home. (click for more)

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Top Chef 5/29/24--"Leave It All on the Table" summary

 

Previously on “Top Chef”: We said “meat raffle” was a thing, which just means for the Quickfire it was random draw for first dibs on proteins. Savannah made corned beef salad and was the winner. Remember that for later. Then we had to do a fish boil, which is where you boil fish on the beach and then throw kerosene on the fire for no reason other than people are drunk on the beach. Danny won, because he took care to make sure the fish cooked in something other than just salted water. Savannah cut herself, and ended up in the bottom, but “we will consider the Quickfire performance” is translating to “doing well in the Quickfire is basically immunity” because no one wanted to send Savannah home. Instead, Soo was sent home for being too disjointed. (click for more)

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Top Chef 5/22/24--"Door County Fish Boil" summary

 

Previously on “Top Chef”: Tom and Gail made the announcement that from now on, your Quickfire performance would be factored into elimination decisions. First, make a dish with cranberries. Somehow no one made dessert. Danny won with sea bass and a good sauce. Laura, Manny, and Amanda were the bottom three. For the Elimination Challenge, the chefs had to cook with Native American ingredients. That means no wheat flour and no cane sugar and no citrus. Overall this went pretty well. Savannah won, because she wanted to make a cake and when it turned out weird she just went with it and it was great. Michelle, Laura, and Amanda were in the bottom. Since Michelle was actually in the top for the Quickfire, the judges decided to send both Laura and Amanda home. (click for more)

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TAR 36, Recap Leg 11, 5/15/24

 

Welcome to Leg 11! Last time, on Finally Something the Gays Aren’t Good At!, 4 teams continued racing through the Dominican Republic. Ricky struggled on the Roadblock, but Leticia domincated, allowing Team NFL to take first place. Amber and Vinny didn’t know what a Hurricane glass looked like, and that led to their elimination. And then there were three: Ricky and Cesar, the dating couple that are superfans of the show and have never placed lower than third on a leg; Rod and Leticia, the married couple that had early success, but Rod’s competitive nature and their love for each other kept them from falling behind; and Juan and Shane, the best friends who found success in their stamina on the megaleg and never looked back. Who will win The Amazing Race 36? (click for more)

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TAR 36, Recap Leg 10, 5/15/24

 

Welcome to Leg 10! Last time, on Maybe We Should Flip Over the Rocks and See If There Are Things on the Back, 5 teams raced to Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic. Ricky and Cesar continued to dominate the competition and finish in first for the sixth time. Rod and Leticia are very good at laying out cacao beans, and leap frog over the other teams. Melissa struggles at the first Roadblock, causing the girls to be eliminated. Who will be eliminated. . . next? (click for more)

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Top Chef 5/15/24--"The Good Land" summary

 

Previously on “Top Chef”: Apparently the way you do Restaurant Wars with an odd number of people is one team just gets an extra person. The smaller team said they were doing Korean and Mexican fusion, which sounds like a perfectly good, cohesive theme. The larger team said “let's be seafood and vegetable forward” which is not cohesive. And Michelle didn't serve the first judges' table properly. But somehow they had the better restaurant? And then Tom was like “oh smoked whitefish is perfect for your regional seafood concept” which is bullshit. That wasn't their concept, the concept was “everyone does their own thing, but just with seafood”. Whatever. Dan won with said smoked whitefish. The Korean/Mexican team I guess had a boring theme? Didn't do a good job with the theme? Who knows. The worst dish was the one the whole team worked on together, so since Kaleena was executive chef she was sent home. (click for more)

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TAR 36, Recap Leg 9, 5/8/24

 

Welcome to Leg 9! Last time, on We Should Have Made That Left Turn at Albuquerque, 6 teams raced to Bridgetown, Barbados. Angie was very successful on the Roadblock, but then disobeyed a race rule which garnered her team a time penalty. Juan and Shane passed four teams at the Detour, landing them in second. Ricky and Cesar took first. Again. And Angie and Danny were eliminated. Who will be eliminated. . . next? (click for more)

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Top Chef 5/8/24--"Restaurant Wars" summary

 

Previously on “Top Chef”: the Quickfire was somehow both an advertisement for dish soap and a flambe challenge. Sure. Then the twist was the top three (Danny, Amanda, and Kevin) had to make a second dish with char. At least when Danny won he got $20,000. Then the Elimination Challenge involved sausage, sausage races, and the ballpark. It was a team challenge but there was no drama about teams or budgets. Head to head battles featuring various sausages. Michelle made etouffee with Polish sausage and won. I thought for sure they would get rid of two of the three people in the bottom, but then they only got rid of Kevin for making risotto that had too much cheese. So how are we doing Restaurant Wars with nine people? (click for more)

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TAR 36, Recap Leg 8, 5/1/24

 

Welcome to Leg 8! Last time, on Let’s Just Scream At Each Other Until We Win, 7 teams raced to Montevideo, Uruguay. Vinny crushed at the Roadblock, but then he and Amber fought for most of the rest of the leg. Danny’s navigation paid off for him and his mom, and it led to a second place finish. Ricky and Cesar returned to the top of the pack, Juan and Shane stumbled due to Juan’s food poisoning, but it’s Sunny and Bizzy who had horrid navigation this week and are eliminated. Who will be eliminated. . . next? (click for more)

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Top Chef 5/1/24--"Sausage Race" summary

 

Previously on “Top Chef”: both Kaleena and Soo returned from Last Chance Kitchen, which is dumb but I guess we can't not have Soo come through because of this dumb gimmick. The Quickfire involved dairy-based desserts, because Wisconsin, and Michelle won. Then the Elimination Challenge told everyone to make “chaos cuisine”. This phrase was so poorly defined that the host straight up admitted she had no idea what was going on. It seemed to be “make something crazy” or possibly “this season is boring please help”. The winner was Danny, because he made stuffed cabbage with scallops. Is this chaotic? Tom implied it seemed calm but was chaotic under the surface. I mean sure, but no one could shut up about how technical it was. Not the same as “chaotic”. Michelle and Rasika were the bottom two, both for what seem to be execution errors. They sort of implied they might send both of them home, but in the end only Rasika was eliminated. (click for more)

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TAR 36, Recap Leg 7, 4/24/24

 

Welcome to Leg 7! Last time, on Alliances on a Megaleg Seems Like a Good Idea Until It Isn’t, 8 teams raced to Córdoba, Argentina. Rod and Leticia, Amber and Vinny, and Angie and Danny formed an alliance that gets all teams help from the other ones. Angie overheated again. Juan and Shane pulled ahead of the pack and snagged a first place finish, while Derek and Shelisa fell behind and are eliminated. Who will be eliminated. . . next? (click for more)

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Top Chef 4/24/24--"Chaos Cuisine" summary

 

Previously on “Top Chef”: the contestants had to shop at the farmer's market without knowing what their Quickfire would be. Turned out they had to draw cards for a sauce recipe to pair with whatever they bought at the market. Charly got creole sauce so he won easily. The Elimination challenge was to divide into two teams and cook for a supper club. Sadly I learned that the “40 supper club enthusiasts” were a lot of journalists and not regular people. Dan won this challenge, of course, and it's implied that it's because he's the local but I think it was just because he didn't screw up. The budget screwed a lot of people over, especially Danny since Laura spent almost double her share. But also no one told her to put things back, they all just kind of stood there. Sadly no one involved in this drama was sent home. Instead, Charly cooked his fish nearly a half hour before service, so it was ruined, and he was sent home. (click for more)

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TAR 36, Recap Leg 6, 4/17/24

 

Welcome to Leg 6! Last time, on Maybe Giving These Teams Tools and Small Parts To Work With Wasn’t a Great Idea, 9 teams raced to Santiago, Chile. It is discovered that Danny is good at navigation, so the nurses and NFL started following them around. The firefighters once again ended up in last, only to make a comeback on tasks and finish not last, which is a task accomplished by the cousins, Kishori and Karishma, who were eliminated. Who will be eliminated. . . next? (click for more)

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Top Chef 4/17/24--"Supper Club" summary

 

Previously on “Top Chef”: we skipped the Quickfire to travel to Madison, and to visit several sites designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. The Elimination challenge asked chefs to pair up and make a duo of dishes showcasing “duality”. In general, it wasn't terribly exciting and there did seem to be a lot of mistakes. Rasika and Danny made two plates that looked identical but tasted wildly different, and were named the clear winners. Alisha and Kaleena both had big errors and they just kind of gave up and did their own thing. The judges didn't even pretend anyone else had done as poorly so they were eliminated without any deliberation. (click for more)

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TAR 36, Recap Leg 5, 4/10/24

 

Welcome to Leg 5! Last time, on The Amazing Race Is Not the Time to Figure Out Your Relationship, 10 teams raced to Medellin, Colombia. The dating nurses fought their way through the leg. The firefighters didn't understand rebus puzzles, but had no problem with maps and passing other teams. Danny decided he’s a nice person and tried to work with everyone. The boyfriends ended up in first again, and Michelle and Sean, the aerobics instructors, were eliminated. Who will be eliminated. . . next? (click for more)

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Top Chef 4/10/24--"The Wright Way" summary

 

Previously on “Top Chef”: there was a Quickfire that involved cherries and other random ingredients. Rasika won (again) for making a balanced dish with cherries and onions. Then since we are front-loading all the stereotypical challenges, we had a cheese festival. Nearly everyone made croquettes, because the random diners were choosing the winner and I guess everyone thought they would want fried cheese. Michelle made saag paneer with collard greens (and a croquette, to be fair) and she won. Kenny got gorgonzola cheese and thought “crab rangoon salad” and then didn't save any of his relish for the judges, so he was sent home. (click for more)

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TAR 36, Recap Leg 4, 4/3/24

 

Welcome to Leg 4! Last time, on Cooking Versus Tetris Should Not Be This Hard of a Decision, 11 teams raced to Gautapé, Colombia. Juan is back in his birth country, and reminisces. The nurses fight their way to second place, while Sean can’t handle all the heights. The boyfriends finish in first, and the twins Anthony and Bailey are eliminated for not choosing a Detour and sticking with it. Who will be eliminated. . . next? (click for more)

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Top Chef 4/3/24--"Take It Cheesy" summary

 

Previously on “Top Chef”: the first Quickfire asked the contestants to cook with hops. I guess you could have seen that coming. Laura made a rice pudding which gave her the win and the money. For the Elimination challenge, everyone had to get into two teams to elevate bar snacks. Specifically, popcorn, pickles, pretzels, mixed nuts, potato chips, olives, and Corn Nuts. Some people were very successful at this and some people just made more snacks which apparently was bad. The point of the bar snacks was so we could have a Miller High Life sponsorship. Rasika made pretzel cake with honey mustard sabayon, which sounds amazing, and was declared the winner. Valentine made corn soup, but it was not great and also tasted of “corn” and not “Corn Nuts” so he was eliminated. (click for more)

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TAR 36, Recap Leg 3, 3/27/24

 

Welcome to Leg 3! Last time, on This Leg Was Not Intended for the Colorblind, 12 teams continued racing through Puerto Vallarta. The cousins and the double dutch coaches ended up at the Roadblock too early and had to switch gears. The twins switch Detours when they don’t realize how intelligent they are not. And everyone struggles with the heat. Rod and Leticia finish in first again, and get a prize this time, while Chris and Mary are eliminated. Who will be eliminated. . . next? (click for more)

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Top Chef 3/27/24--"Living the High Life" summary

 

Previously on “Top Chef”: We began the new season in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, with Kristen Kish as host and Tom and Gail showing up right away. No immunity awarded for Quickfire wins, only for Elimination challenge wins. Also no Quickfire for this first episode. Chefs were divided into three teams and given a different challenge, based on which judge's name they pulled. Kristen asked her group to make soup, Tom wanted roast chicken, and Gail asked for stuffed pasta. In my opinion Gail's group got shafted. Anyway, Manny won with a great pozole soup that no one could stop eating. The bottom three, Kenny, Amanda, and David, have to have a LCK-style battle immediately using whatever's left in the kitchen to make anything they want. David (a very cocky person who insulted Tom's hats) dumped a ton of salt into his broth and then put two green sauces together in a bowl so he was eliminated. (click for more)

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Top Chef 3/20/24--"Chef's Test" summary

 

Previously on “Top Chef”: it was technically an All-Star season, because they had winners and finalists from international versions, and they went to London. Buddha won again, so hopefully he won't compete again? I think he's writing a column for People or something. It was also Padma's last season, so Kristen Kish is the host now. (click for more)

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TAR 36, Recap Leg 2, 3/20/24

 

Welcome to Leg 2! Last time, on Maybe This Time Thirteen Teams Won’t Be Too Many, 13 teams started Amazing Race 36 in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Chris and Mary have a slow start, but Maya and Rohan get their car wedged between curbs. Juan and Shane get lost, but are able to catch up on the Roadblock, in no small part to Karishma forgetting her bandana. In the end, though, Maya and Rohan were unable to recover and were eliminated. Who will be eliminated. . . next? (click for more)

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TAR 36, Recap Leg 1, 3/13/24

 

Welcome to Leg 1 of The Amazing Race 36! It’s only been a few months since we last saw the amazing Phil, but this season was filmed almost a year and a half ago, so back to COVID restrictions we go. Phil introduces us to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, which apparently is the friendliest city in the world, and we get to meet the teams as they run up the Playa el Salado at the Westin Resort and Spa.

So the thirteen (!) teams for The Amazing Race 36 are: (click for more)

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TAR 36, Recap Leg 0, 3/6/24

 

Welcome back to the Amazing Race! It’s season number thirty-six. We only had to wait three months for this one! The reason for that is that TAR36 has been taped for a while now, as it was supposed to be TAR35, and so charter flights are back since old TAR35 (now TAR36?) was still in COVID restrictions. Thankfully, EVERYTHING will be back to normal with TAR37, which should be taped or being taped. Oh, and I brought Toyouke along for the snark. Aren’t you lucky? We’ve read the bios and watched the videos, so let’s get to this shall we? (Toyouke: “I’m very annoyed they don't have good bios or individual videos this year.”) The thirteen teams (because it worked so well last time!) for TAR36 are: (click for more)

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New posts are on the way

 Hi everyone,

It has been a few months! I am not missing, there just hasn't been anything to talk about. But that is going to change soon with a new season of The Amazing Race and a new season of Top Chef. TAR is airing the seasons out of order. This one that starts next week was filmed before the last one, so Covid protocols are still in effect and that means charter flights and probably very little public transportation. Top Chef is in Wisconsin, and it is the first season without Padma. But I expect lots of cheese and beer and I hope they make everyone make a hot dish so someone can get pissed off because it's not fancy enough. Top Chef begins during spring break so I will be out of town (in New York, cross your fingers I can go somewhere cool to eat). So that recap will be at least 3 days late. Sorry! But I hope to see you all soon!

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