The Rake Magazine

Dale's Huge Save

Well, well, well. Brian was eliminated from the final four in tonight's Top Chef. On one hand I am sad that he didn't get to advance and showcase some of his other skills, but on the other hand I am glad to know that his restaurant gets to keep him for a little while longer.

As for the others ... let's review the top three.

Wow, guess who stepped up? Dale looked like he was headed for the bin when he dumped his tart, but then turned it around with some simple cauliflower and potatoes. Doesn't Ripert look like he'd be an asshole if you crossed him? Well, he loved Dale's dish and that's saying a lot: Le Bernardin sets the bar high. I still think Dale is the dark horse in the final ... we'll see if he can pull it out.

There was no way Hung wasn't going to make it to the finals, right? He's the front-runner, the master of technique, the favorite and the bad-guy at the same time. I hate the way the judges didn't take him to task more for admitting he was cooking for them first and foremost, and the eaters second. I have no doubt that his dishes will be perfect in the final, but like Marcel before him, will they lack heart?

Casey is all heart and simple flavors. If she can make her food sing, create a dish that can WOW the biggees on board next week, she might carry it.

My least favorite part of tonight's show was the softee-huggy-feely portion when the finalists monologued on why they should be allowed to stay. Dale nearly wept, God love him. Casey showed us her youthful exuberance, and talked a lot with her hands. Hung oddly mentioned how much soul he puts into his food (just moments after being told he's not present in his food). And Brian just said how much he'd like to keep cooking for his friends. Throughout the whole thing they kept panning to Colicchio and his sappy awww-shucks expression, except for his stone-face when Brian was talking. Shocking surprise.

pork your pork and eat it too....

Yuck.

And that's all I really have to say about that.

This is the perfect weekend for an orchard run. Damn the bees, deal with the crowds and get out to support a local farm. Some of my favorites:

Deardorff Orchards
Out Waconia way, dontcha know. It's a big farm with 5000 trees and a cool old barn built in 1900. I remember a cold weekend with a giant bonfire at this orchard a few years ago.

Emma Krumbees
It's the Las Vegas of apple orchards. You'll really have to fight crowds if you go on a nice weekend, but they have a ton of family crap to do. You'll have to pay admission to get into the Great Scarecrow Festival, but it's cool.

Fall Harvest Orchard
This real working farm is my family's favorite. We feed the cows with big ears of corn, we play with baby pigs and pet chickens and goats. The wagon ride is one of the best, they actually talk to kids about flax and amaranth.

Afton Apple
Drive down to gorgeous Hastings for the corn maze and fall harvest raspberries before the frost!

Sponsel's Minnesota Harvest

Deer Lake Orchard
Always hopping with live music/entertainment on weekends. Save this one for October 13th so you can check out the bluegrass Whistle Pigs.

Pine Tree Apple Orchards
I haven't been to this one, but I have WBLaker friends who go every weekend. They swear it is WAY better than beating back the throngs at Aamodts.

Minnetonka Orchards
There were too many tchotchkes last year and not enough food, but just for the brats with cider onion relish alone....

And so we're down to the Top Chef Final Four: Hung, Casey, Brian and Dale.

Here's my basic take on the whole banana ... Dale is there by luck, he seems the most susceptibe to pressure and in the final countdown, he might crack. Hung is being set up as the front-runner, but he's being cast as the Tin Man: the robot without a heart. Will his ego and desire for technical mastery overpower the necessary quest for flavor and appeal (remember the cereal wonderland)? Casey has an amazing palate, which they keep telling us. She keeps calm, seems directed, but does she have enough spark and zip to produce some WOW food? She could be the contender to beat. And then there's Brian, who I think has the skill and the personality to slip in and split the difference.

I spent the last three days hanging out with Brian and I have to say, I think he's got all the tickets. Granted, I haven't had the chance to run around Universal Studios with the other contenders, so my comparison may be weak, but whatever. Don't let the stupid hat fool you, Brian is a smart cookie: he listens to what the judges say. He has great technique and a beautiful sense of flavor, but he also possesses the understanding that he can always improve. Plus he knows how to use his huge personality to motivate and inspire his team. A true top chef needs to be able to manage a whole kitchen staff, not just one dish.

The Malarkey Machine is hitting town this week. While he's here to preside over a relative's wedding (yes, the ordained chef is also known as Prophet Brian Malarkey ... ahhh, the internet) he'll be making the rounds on Andrew Zimmern's show and KARE 11. Of course he'll be dining at our own Oceanaire with a cadre of local chef buddies (Steven Brown among them), but you might catch him prowling around the hot spots like Brasa or one of his old favorites like Azia.

Next stop ... Aspen.

Yeah, they bug me too ... like when I'm sitting on a sticky hay bale trying to shove a cider-brined brat with apple-onion relish into my face at my favorite orchard, and there's nothing but the buzzing and the swatting.

But.

Have you heard about the bee paradox? It's a full-blown mystery worthy of some reading.

Read this.
And then this.
And finally this.

And if you go into Figlio and catch Chef Rex, well he'll just about talk your ear off on the subject.

But I think yellow-jackets are still fair game.