Here we are at the Finale of Top Chef 5 with our four finalists: Fabio, Carla (Go Carla!), Stefan and Hosea. After last week’s dinner of the stars, Leah was sent home packing.

This week we find ourselves in New Orleans a city rich in culture and food. Time has passed since the last episode. I’m not sure exactly how much time, but I’m guessing a month or two? The guys pretty much look the same (except for Fabio’s new mowhawk) and Carla has straigtened her hair (I think she looks absolutely fabulous!).

They end up at the Houmas House Plantation as Padma, Tom and Emeril Legasse await their arrival. They notice there are only three tables setup. After introductions and an acknowledgement of New Orleans rebirth after Katrina, Padma announces that it is time for the Quickfire.

Remember, there are only three tables. Tom said that for the Quickfire, the final four will get to relax. They look over their shoulders and out come Leah, Jamie and Jeff! 

They are in their chef’s jackets, while the final four are still in their street clothes. Tom says that the three of them have consistently been in the top and they are giving one of them a chance to get back in the game! 

What?!? Here’s the whammy, that means two chefs will be going home after today’s elimination round. One of the final four and one of the chefs who wins today’s Quickfire. Our challenge is to cook crawfish. They have 1 hour to create a dish that will gain them a spot in the finale.

Leah opts for making a Crawfish/Andouille Sausage “Soup”. Jeff makes Crawfish & Grits with Andouille and Beer. Jamie did a Corn Cake, Greens, Poached Egg with Tasso, Andouille & Crawfish Cream Sauce.

The three await the announcement of the winner. Emeril announces that Jeff wins. Here is the kicker, to make it to the finale, Jeff has to win the elimination round, otherwise he goes home along with one of the Final Four. So Jamie and Leah go home, or do they?

So tonite, the five head over to Emeril’s Delmonico for a wonderful dinner. They talk about what they would do if they win. Carla starts to doubt herself and says that she is doing this for her husband and step-son. They know she can do it, when she thinks no one else does. We are ALL ROOTING for you Carla!

The next morning they pull up to to a warehouse. In the warehouse they find an assortment of Mardi Gras floats. They chefs are catering the Orpheus Masquerade Ball. They must create two dishes and one cocktail for about 100 guests. Of the two dishes, one of them must be in he style of Creole. The chefs have five hours to prep. Prep will be at Emeril’s Delmonico.  From there they will move over to the New Orleans Museum of Modern Art where they will have 1 hour to prepare for service.

So the winner of this challenge also has another perk, a new Toyota Venza. It surprises me that Fabio says he drives a piece of “poop”. Fabio, let me introduce you to my “poop” car… I win!

So here we go!

Hosea’s menu will consist of Duck, Andouile & Chicken Gumbo; Pecan-Crusted Catfish and a Hurricane with Grand Marnier & Rum.

On Carla’s menu we have an Oyster Stew; Shrimp & Andouille Beignet and a Non-Alcoholic Cranberry Spritzer.

Stefan will be making a Duck & Rabbit Gumbo with Grits; an Apple Beignet and a Black Cherry & Rum Cocktail.

Jeff will do a Fried Oyster with Homemade Sausage; Crawfish Pot de Creme and a Cucumber Mojito.

Last but not least with have Fabio doing a Sausage & Rabbit Maque Choux with Grits; Crawfish & Crab Stew with Caserecci pasta; a Muffuletta Bread and a Bell Pepper Martini.

So Carla is still shucking oysters and the chefs finish up with prep and prepare for guests to arrive. So joining the judges, we welcome back Gail Simmons! It’s good to see you Gail. 

The guests arrive with their gowns, tuxedoes and their masks and beads. They all start making their rounds. So far we haven’t seen responses to Carla’s dishes.  The judges make their way and they all love Carla’s dishes. Overall, they seem happy. They criticized others’s gumbo. I think overall they all did well. The guests start heading home and the chefs start to clean up their stations. 

So here we come to judges table. Here’s what they had to say. First up is Jeff. If Jeff doesn’t win this, he goes home. They all loved his mojito and they said it was their favorite of the night. THey loved the crawfish pot de creme and appreciated that he made his own sausage. Fabio’s maque choux runned together. They loved the pasta but they wanted some heat. When it came to his drink, it was too sweet, but they wanted something more. He defended himself saying he likes sweet things. So here we come to Stefan. He seems so cocky. Emeril starts off by saying that in his 25 years in New Orleans he has never seen gumbo over grits, but he liked his grits. They criticized the color of his gumbo and that it lacked depth, while still flavorful. Tom wanted to point out that he seemed over-confident. Now we come to Carla. She starts to criticize herself, but the judges stop her and said they loved everything. She was the only one who didn’t do an alcoholic drink and thought that would hurt her, but it was refreshing. Finally we get to Hosea. Emeril liked his gumbo. They seem to have enjoyed it all.

The judges send the chefs out and start to deliberate. Emeril called Carla’s dishes a HOME RUN! The judges all complimented Carla. They also loved Hosea’s dishes. They are now down to Stefan and Fabio. They said Stefan didn’t care and that Fabio’s dishes didn’t seem authentic enough. 

Who will it be? Who wins this elimination challenge and which two chefs are going home??

They are all back and they all felt there was a CLEAR winner. Emeril addressed balance, flavor, temperature, simplicity yet creative.

Emeril announced that the winner is Carla!!!!

WAY TO GO CARLA!!!!

YOU ARE AWESOME!!! She wins the car, she wins today’s elimination round. I am so pleased that I have had the pleasure to cook alongside Carla and that I can call her a friend and colleague! CONGRATS CARLA!

Since Jeff did not win the Elimination challege, he is going home. So who else is going home? Fabio? Stefan? Hosea? 

Hosea also wins and is safe. They are down to Fabio and Stefan. They bring up Stefan’s cockiness again. With Fabio they talk about how they appreciate that he brought some of Italy to the night, but that it missed the mark with the New Orleans feel that they wanted. team Europe will be broken up tonight.

In a weird twist, Fabio is sent home. Why didn’t they send the cocky guy come. Fabio should have stayed. 

So here we have it. Carla, Hosea and Stefan are the Top 3 and one of them will be Top Chef next week. I am on pins and needles!!

GO CARLA!!