Two of the country’s most talented chefs, John Besh and Michael Symon, compete in kitchen stadium, Sunday Night on the Food Network. FN so secretive about it, even I wasn’t able to procure an advance screening. Damn (thanks Lisa!). And I’m going to be at Book Passage in San Francisco, then en route to Seattle flogging the new book (and so far meeting excellent people, thank you St. Louis and Atlanta, and especially Viking kitchen staffs). Can I catch the finale in an airport?
Will it be the man in black?
Or the man in white?
I heard from several Besh supporters here in Atlanta (and no Symon supporters), and Besh getting a lot of national press (deserved). Judging from comments here, Symon has popular appeal. Both are great chefs and business owners, and most importantly here, superlative cooks. Who will it be? And where does Symon get his pants? And who does Besh’s hair? Can’t WAIT to hear comments on Monday!
@ Shelley: Yes I did know Alton was on TCM tonight, and I love his movie choices, very interesting. Did you mean Boob Tube or Boob Boob?
let’s hope that Symon gets better battles than Dairy, Farmer’s Market and hamburger.
while I wouldn’t mind eating Besh’s food, I want to watch Symon prepare it.
Topic: Besh making a dessert last minute. Good decision? Poor decision? Did it make a difference in how he was judged or perceived? DISCUSS.
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I think it helped him with some, hurt him with others. The willingness to throw it together was very Iron Chef and I really thought he was going to win when he started making it. In fact I really thought he was going to win til they revealed the photo of Symon.
Isn’t there kind of a conflict of interest in the judging anyway given Ruhlmann’s relationship with Symon. Not a big deal anyway though, as ICA has about 1/10th of the appeal of ICJ.
My fiance and I shouted “H*LL YEAH!” as loud as humanly possible as the curtain dropped to reveal the photograph of Michael Symon. *L*
We noticed how Kat Cora tended to make the comments about Symon having “a definite Iron Chef dish!” or how “this dish ROCKS! Iron Chef!” multiple times, and was more honest with Symon than with Besh when critiquing them when making seasoning comments or expectations plain.
We thought Symon would be the popular vote after that – but likely wouldn’t win. I was prepared to troll around the house in my bathrobe for a few hours in a snit.
Minda you, we liked Besh, but felt that while he was steady and kept performing on an even keel, Symon had been steadily rising beyond expectations each time a challenge arose – winning several – and Symon improved and grew exponentially with each passing level.
Boy are WE happy.
Topic: Besh making a dessert last minute. Good decision? Poor decision? Did it make a difference in how he was judged or perceived? DISCUSS.
Posted by: artnlit
I agreed with all three IC judges’ opinion on that.
Still, in the end, I think M-moto was right – taking chances is something an IC should do.
But, again, Bobby’s and Cat’s reasoning was right on too.
Especially if, it’s the last thing served and the last thing the judges taste and remember.
I’m still gonna give Besh some props for doing so, anyway.
Although, his sauce was a bit much, better suited for a dessert made of game or shellfish, and not regular fish.
I wonder if Bonito flakes and Panko on the outside of the wrapper, would have added?
At least he didn’t use the ice cream machine.
Sandy: I’m still in denial and not ready to let go of Mario, or the orange crocs. Let’s all close our eyes and pretend that’s not happening, shall we?
And yes, while I definitely admire Besh’s last minute dessert, I think it hurt him in the long run. Which is really so so sad, and he must be kicking himself for it.
Although, chef-ing is as much strategizing as it is passion, and that might not have been his best strategic move.
I’m guessing we haven’t seen the last of him on TFN, though. He’s such an obviously talented, charismatic guy. They’d be fools to let that go by.
This just in:
http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2007/11/clevelands_michael_symon_wins.html
Sandy: I’m still in denial and not ready to let go of Mario, or the orange crocs. Let’s all close our eyes and pretend that’s not happening, shall we?
*squeezing eyes shut tight* Nothing’s happening. I see nothing.
@dagwood: I wish I had TIVO. And at least Alton Brown picked interesting films for TCM — not the predictable ones that a numb-nut like Donald Trump touts (Citizen Kane? Gone With the Wind? How lame is that, you silly mogul?) But I am a die-hard fan of Alton Brown and know all about his background… so sue me for being interested. Side note: I wish HE would blog about ALL the Iron Chef episodes.
@dlayphoto: It wasn’t the dessert alone that did Besh in. Watch it again and you’ll get it. I always see more in these episodes the second and third time.
Shelley: totally agree on the great pics of AB. I can’t wait to watch them; I hadn’t heard of most of them but was completely intrigued when reading the descriptions. Hopefully I’ll be caught up on them by the end of the year. Also: how freaking cool would that be if AB resumed a blog??? He used to do one (sort of) but then shyed away when some crazies invaded. LET THIS BE A LESSON TO US ALL
EVERYONE: Follow that link from dlayphoto! VERY enlightening……….
The link dlayphoto put up, I think the old timers say “that makes the cheese more binding.”
besh looses 2-4…thats shit..iron chefs didn’t wanna get showed up by besh…thats why they chose symon….notice tho how, 2 of the 3 actual panel judges chose besh to win…the 2 who everyone thought really like symon..but in all actuality…besh came out on top with the actual panel of judges…
Feh, my comments got eaten up by the system some how. I’ll try again after this test.
I’m surprised that the inferior chef won.
Unfortunately, this reduces my faith in the program in general. Symon is not up to Besh’s caliber, and Symon’s demeanor and personality is ridiculous coupled with his lack of equitable skill.
Did he already host a program that already failed on Food Network?
It was a very bad move for the network. So, I won’t be watching the American version of the program any longer. It’s somewhat of a joke now.
Nice job judges on declaring inferior talent the superior choice.
Congrats to Symon. Although, I still think Donatella’s breasticles would have beaten them both. Her legs tonight really sealed the deal. Wow! Anyway, from the comments, I thought Besh had it won. I also think he should have been given more props than barbs on his dessert. He heard a judge “request” it, and then made it in, what, a minute? Seems very Iron Chefish to me. That said, Symon will do fine, I just think Besh did seem overall better tonight, and although not a flashy, he does have great moments and is much more consistant. How odd was it to hear Cat complain about flavor. Bwah ha ha! Sorry. I think Chef Irvine (who SHOULD be an Iron Chef) and Tyler will absolutely destroy Giada and Paula in the Holiday Dessert special. I know Paula is the Queen of desserts, and desserts are a speciality of Giada’s, but at the end of the day, I can’t see the ladies pulling it off. As for TNIC, why wasn’t this 90 minutes when the ICA special after it was? TNIC was their PREMIERE show, they had a countdown to the finalé ALL DAY!!! You can’t tell me it didn’t warrant 90 minutes? I mean, while it was great to see all the judging time, but it sucked to only have 30 minutes of cooking time. They should have had the full 60 minutes of cooking time (or as much as reasonable) and then 25 minutes of judging, and 5 minutes of naming the winner. And Michael, thanks so much for this blog, I truly hope your friendship with Symon didn’t weigh into your vote even on a subconscious level. I am giving you the benefit of the doubt that you actually voted for the most deserving. I hope to see you judging the Holiday Dessert special, or at least many ICA battles to come. You clearly deserve to be there more than Mo Rocca. Heck, after only one judging, Bonecrusher deserves to be there more than Mo. Anyway, thanks again for this blog and for a very good job of judging.
To all of those lamenting Mario Batali’s departure:
If we must get honest, besides Good Eats, I’m getting to the point where I don’t watch much Food Network any more. ICA is something I catch occasionally when I’m in the mood, but I’m not a regular viewer. NICA was okay (yes, just okay) but I’m really getting turned off by FN as a whole. I want to know about food. How to cook it, where to get it, even how to grow it. I couldn’t care less about how they make Twinkies. I think you should qualify for government assistance for the mentally disabled by even using the following words/phrases: yummo, sammies, tablescape, evoo, and off the hook.
The “food” is slowly being taken over by the “television.” You don’t have to know anything about food to be on the food network. Just ask Marc Summers. With almost every new show, it is catering more and more to the middle-income housewife who doesn’t know the difference between bouillabaisse and billiard balls and whose idea of great Italian food is Fazoli’s.
For the record, I made it to this blog because of NICA. I was wondering who the judges were. I wanted to know more about Michael Ruhlman from his brief bio. The outcome of NICA is secondary to my quest for better food and a better ability to cook it.
Okay, so M.R. was the only one out of six total judges, to vote for Besh?
Now, I do agree with those here who believe that the ICs’ wish to keep the quo (Besh is a threat on several levels) and that it’s not about personality ruling the day. I like Bobby enough as a chef, but Bobby’s onscreen personality can sometimes be about as engaging as Ina Garten’s.
Anyway, if M.R. voted for Besh, when most (myself included) thought he’d voted for Symon, does that seem strange that, the one person who most believed would have voted for Symon, relieved himself of such a conflict on interest?
Just curious, and not condemning.
Looking forward to reading M.R.’s take as to why he had truly voted for Besh, and not Symon (even though Symon had it in the bag, 5 votes to 1).
I missed it…Please tell me Andrew Knowlton looked as hot as ever!
Chance: Are you daft? MR voted for Symon.
It does not matter who voted for who, it is over and Symon won.
I enjoyed the show and I think that looking back at the winning chef throughout the series, the right Chef won. Congrats Mike! However to those that are dis’ing someone as an inferior chef or this guy sucked, or won’t watch ICA again….how many of you have actually tasted and eaten these guys food? Get a life you losers! It’s a TV show. You should have enjoyed the drama, rather than treating it like some type of bullshit sporting event. No go grab a Big Mac& fries and discuss the presentation of the pickles or texture of the fries. That’s about your speed.
Sorry to see someone lose, but congrats to Chef Symon, and it should be good food televison watching to come!
No go grab a Big Mac& fries and discuss the presentation of the pickles or texture of the fries. That’s about your speed.
Sorry to see someone lose, but congrats to Chef Symon, and it should be good food televison watching to come! Posted by: BAC
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I love it when some people act as if they grew up on Baboy and Balut.
For the Besh fans:
http://www.sundancechannel.com/films/500255238
As far as the perception of impartiality goes, good luck finding qualified food writers and restaurateurs and other judges who *don’t* have some connection with the most acclaimed chefs. This ain’t a gov’t contract they’re competing for.
It seems like finding book reviewers to me – the world gets smaller and smaller.
BAC
Speak for yourself. I personally went out and bought a new smellovision with the tasteovision add-on just so I could criticize those obviously idiotic “judges” and “chefs” when they picked the wrong person.
Chance: Are you daft? MR voted for Symon.
Posted by: Shelley
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Shelley, did I misread the article whose link was posted? I thought it read that MR voted for Besh? I have to stop watching ICA and look for culinary existential possibilities in Guy Fieri
Considering how much Cora poo-pooed Symon’s food, I am shocked that she voted for him. Yeah, I think that Besh would be too much of a threat to them all.
Bravo, Egaeus. You have very neatly and succinctly summed up what’s wrong with the FN. I have been a viewer since they opened up shop, and I remember the glory days of REAL cooking shows with REAL chefs, and some actual representation of the glorious world of world cuisine–that is, shows like Melting Pot, etc. Now, all we get are bimbos with plastic boobs, and cornpone sterotypes like Paula Deen (I watched her show the other day, and she made salad with Rice A Roni! I am not making this up).
Fine Living now has a much better array of cooking shows–they have repeats of Molto Mario, Napa Style with Michael Chiarello, the always fabulous Ming Tsai, and sommelier/chef Andrea Immer.
That all said, I’m delighted Symon won; I was rooting for him. I laughed out loud when he grabbed that swordfish and cried, “Who’s your daddy?” He’s good tv and a great chef. Really, all the competitors were, but I’m glad Symon won. I’m sure John Besh will go on to more successes, as all the other chef competitors will. The fact is, they were already successful before the show started, and I’m sure that will continue.
If only the FN would get a clue as to what viewers want! They seem to have the PT Barnum attitude at this point.
Yup, Chance, I do believe you misread the article. Let me extract some quotes…
“Cleveland chef and restaurant owner Michael Symon won the Food Network’s six-week “Next Iron Chef” competition Sunday night, defeating finalist John Besh from New Orleans, four votes to two.
“Blah, blah, blah…
“The secret ingredient in the final cook-off was swordfish, not a Symon specialty, and the show’s twist was that three current Iron Chefs — Masaharu Morimoto, Cat Cora and Bobby Flay — were brought in as judges. The new judges saved Symon’s victory as all three voted for him while only one of the other three judges, Cleveland author Michael Ruhlman, voted for Symon. ”
Okay, that’s all from me for now. Watching the repisode to see what subtle nuances I might have missed the first go-round. And I hope after that I will find a 12-step program to relieve my addiction to Ruhlman’s blog.
Forgot to add… I’m surprised no one has mentioned the irony of the Secret Ingredient. Swordfish, swords crossed on a bed of ice, a la Iron Chef knives in the background logo?
I feel like it is graduation day at college and we all splitting up and going our separate ways, let’s not break up the old gang, let’s meet again here in Ruhlman Cyber City. Did everyone sign my yearbook?
Okay, that’s all from me for now. Watching the repisode to see what subtle nuances I might have missed the first go-round. And I hope after that I will find a 12-step program to relieve my addiction to Ruhlman’s blog.
Posted by: Shelley
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Too funny, Shelley
Thanks for posting that snippet. I read too fast, and it must’ve been due to my sugar rush (gelato, madeleine’s, and caffeine 
)
Forgot to add… I’m surprised no one has mentioned the irony of the Secret Ingredient. Swordfish, swords crossed on a bed of ice, a la Iron Chef knives in the background logo?
Posted by: Shelley
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You’re GOOD. REALLY good
Hey Shelley,
You have me thinking of the secret ingredient and its overt and more subtle symbolism.
Any chance that Symon’s use of a particular type of tongue, could be interpreted as the swords’ function as the silence of the lambs?
@Shelley: I did notice the samurai element–the crossed swords of the swordfish, although I thought I was getting a little TOO crazy meta about it! I’ve been WAY too addicted to this show and this blog lately. Gonna be up late tonight–on deadline with an assignment, and I’m going to have to stop blogging and get back to work. (Must…not…rewatch…can’t…touch…DVR
…until…work…is…done!)
@The Professor: I agree! Let’s hang out after graduation day here in RCyber City. I’m excited to have found this virtual metropolis, and don’t want to leave now!
@chance: Silence of the Lambs. Har har har!
Watching the repisode… Besh poured wine, not a special cocktail like Symon… and I heard negative comments on four of his seven courses. Lobster overpowered swordfish? Shrimp not necessary? Dessert unremarkable? (I forget one of the four, but it’s drunk and I’m late.)
I only heard one negative review out of six Symon dishes.
Again, I’m going to stick around to hear Ruhlman’s insights. Did Bobby, Cora and Morimoto vote just on the basis of that night’s food? Did he, Donatella and Breck-boy vote on the overall competition?
And why does he want to know about Symon’s pants? They look like HELL in that first photo. (Or maybe Besh has a better a** for the cameras?)
Ruhlman:
I’d like to get your take on this. That article seems to be written by someone that has inside knowledge of what the secret ballot results were. Otherwise he’s just making shit up.
http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2007/11/clevelands_michael_symon_wins.html
It seemed pretty clear to me that Symon was going to win once we got about 1/2way through Besh’s tasting. The comments simply weren’t as positive.
Symon will be a great Iron Chef, and I’m looking forward to watching him in future IC episodes.
Awesome! Yay Chef Symon!! I was really surprised, the tide really did seem to be going Besh’s way. I just about fell off the couch.
I am feeling very ripped off that we didn’t get a vote rundown. What gives? Mr. Ruhlman please spill!
(Hey: I have that same shirt Rachael Ray is wearing on this stupid show)
Re Cat Cora: er, has she actually *won* a Kitchen Stadium competition since, like, ever?
Re: double entendre/innuendo: Did you guys catch Chef Symon stating he “almost went down on a tomato”?
Donatella looked smashing and I actually kind of like her now. As if that matters.
I think the Rachael Ray/Giada goatdance may have been what put Mario off ICA, now that I think of it.
WTF has happened to Pricilla Presley?! I am going to have to sleep with the lights on now.
Cheers
See everyone, same Bat Time, same Bat Channel…Ruhlman Cyber City.
Cheers throughout our house for Symon. Congrats Mike!
artnlit, I think you summed things up well. The comments of the judges and Iron Chefs were enlightening, and confirmed that it seemed Besh was too reserved, disingenuous, and just wasn’t swinging for the fence like Symon, who brought the kitchen to life with a great personality and great food. He simply enjoys what he’s doing more than Besh /appeared/ to, and that ultimately breeds success (and watch-ability).
I am hoping that FN doesn’t give up on the “losers” as they have been promoting them like crazy for the past few weeks. Now that we all know them so well, I’m hoping to see some shows featuring them in weeks and months to come.
As a poster above noted, FN has become too personality focused, and lost focus on the food. Wouldn’t you love to see a show with Cosentino, Besh, Morou, Sanchez, and the rest, instead of the current roster of FN “personalities?”
wow! i can’t believe Besh didn’t win! i was rooting for him because his dishes looked awesome and he was always calm, collected and professional. you can never tell with reality tv because they try to throw you off track of what’s really about to happen. i too feel that they should have take the whole show’s worth of cooking into consideration instead the last meal.
IMO Besh lost primarily due to the lame dessert for course 7. That dessert was phoned-in. What? A compote and fried phyllo type thing (I forget the name of the dough) with catfish creme?
That dessert just looked boring. If that was on a menu, with or without the fish, I would be disappointed if, after paying $10-15 for a dessert, the chef gave me that piece of shit. Rachael Ray could have made that dessert, complete down to every last detail, including the plating.
A desert featuring some sort of fish needs more thought. Besh went out on a limb and made a dessert that required some skill and imagination (making a ganache is not hard, but it is harder than dunking something in a fryer). It should feature the ingredient more prominently, something Besh’s catfish balls (hah, I slay me) lacked, I felt (even though I did not eat it, of course). Do something extreme! Candy the fins or something. If you make some kind of mousse or paste, form it in the shape of a fish. Dress up whatever you have fried with fins, tails and eyes fashioned from fruit or touilles or whatever.
Besh got cocky, and he made something that was lame. Michael Symon’s learning curve went sky-high since the first episode, even before watching I had already given him a handicap. I’ve eaten at Lola and Lolita. Some dishes are great, inspired.. some are.. well, disappointing. “All chefs have bad days..” True indeed. I think in Cleveland the Flying Fig is consistently better, but I will give Symon the benefit of the doubt. He has shown me that he not only performs under pressure but constantly adjusts and re-adjusts and improves under pressure. I know all cooks and chefs do this, but Symon’s thought process is refreshingly transparent.
Of course, its going to be a bitch to get into Lola or Lolita now, but I’ll try. Better start staying open until 2am, Chef Symon!
Congratulations, you earned it.
Woohoo!!! I’m so happy Symon won. Must say though I was surprised by the vote. If the Iron Chefs hadn’t participated in the voting it appears we would’ve had a different outcome.
Anyway, it’s over and I’m happy. (I feel bad for Besh though.)
I’m sorry to see Besh lose. I’ve wanted to see more of him since his ICA appearance. I really liked his personality. That’s what got me to even watch NIC. While Symon deserved to make the final two on NIC, I can’t stand him (his laugh grates as much as RR’s).
Unfortunately, as any psychology text will tell you, people tend to like those who start out weak and get stronger over those who are consistently strong. I think that is the situation with Symon and Besh. Symon was the underdog. People love the underdog.
But, Symon has been chosen, so, I’ll just end up skipping his ICA appearances.
Hoping that they put Besh on elsewhere.
tom
Out-fucking-standing. Congrats, Chef Symon. More than well deserved. Looks like I’ll have to add Iron Chef to my TiVo season pass from now on.
Congrats to Symon — though I still think Besh is a better overall choice. In some ways, just because I think Besh’s career has crested whereas Symon is an up-and-comer. He should take this as validation and a sign that he should take on the NY market and study under the Bouluds and Riperts of the world. IMO the Celebrity Chef thing is a huge distraction — Bourdian treats it as some kind of semi-retirement (and a disdainful one where Rocco is concerned).
s/catfish creme/swordfish creme/
Also, I’m with Alton Brown, fish has no place in the ice cream maker.
A great series, thanks to FN and congrats to Symon! Of course they’re both so very good, but I feel Symon earned this victory. He’s won more episodes [Besh won only week 1 (co-winner) while Symon won weeks 2 (co-winner), 3, and 4.] and Symon’s dishes earned more superlatives during the finale. Seems a clear victory to me. It’s cool that the current ICs unanimously chose Symon. Very impressive.
I can’t believe that Besh did not win. He has been so consistent throughout the entire competition. I agree with Cat’s comment tonight about him pulling out the dessert at the last moment was a very ICA thing to do.
To me, Symon was flat and not inspired. I will not be watching any of his episodes.
Here’s the web page for Alton’s TCM picks
http://www.tcm.com/thismonth/article/?date=&cid=183307
So, Donatella and Andrew voted for Besh, and Ruhlman voted for Symon.If not for the addition of ICAs at the end (who knew nothing about the earlier challenges), BESH would have won.
So, why did Alton say the voting should be cumulative? Half of the judges never tasted any of the earlier food–and Ruhlman, of course, was Symon’s good buddy long before NIC.
Also, why did Knowlton say Symon was a 2:1 favorite from the very first challenge? That’s a pretty huge lead out of the gate–especially considering that Besh won his ICA challenge (in an excellent battle with Mario) while Symon lost his (against Morimoto).
I like Symon’s attitude (about the future competitions being a catalyst to continue developing his culinary talents and ideas), but, on the shallow side, I hope he’ll shave the soul patch. JMO, but it’s distractingly unattractive.
Oh, and I wonder if the challenger from ICA (who leaked Symon’s win to the Canadian newspaper in, like, the first or second week of the show), has any penalty. (NIC contestant’s apparently would owe $1 million if -they- leaked it.) Just wondering….
From the editing alone, I thought it was quite apparent weeks ago that Michael Symon would be the winner of the NIC. As a fan of reality tv in general, I notice several telling factors. In the still photos and on the commercial for NIC, Symon is in the middle. John Besh is so hidden in the background on the commercial-you can hardly see him. However, Symon has the prominent position of front and center. Besh is the first chef shown in the opening credits. That alone told me he wouldn’t win. Although the most telling factor that verified, to me, that Symon was the winner, was that they had countless interviews on his perspective of how the battle was unfolding even when it didn’t pertain to him. The exposure was excessive. In the episodes where he didn’t do exceptional poor or well, he was still interviewed constantly-like the Food network wanted us to “get acquainted” with our newest Iron Chef. On the other hand, the only time we got to hear from Besh was when he razzing a fellow competitor or boasting about how good his cuisine was, for the most part. From an outsider’s perspective, and in accordance with Judge Donatella, I thought Besh’s food seemed more complex and at a higher level than his competitors, which in turn would be more difficult to beat during competitions. I feel his likeability with the viewers was damaged from the selective editing which made him appear like a loudmouth. Whereas, Symon endeared himself to the audience by looking like the underdog who rarely made any blatantly offensive comments. No way was the Food network going to show snippets of the winner in an unfavorable light. I only wish they would have interviewed John Besh one-third as much as Symon.
As far as the finale was concerned, it was predictable for the most part. I figured the Iron Chefs would judge, although I didn’t know which ones. I knew they would use swordfish (they showed it in the commercial) as the secret ingredient. Besh had received more critical comments, like I thought. The only surprise, and much to my disappointment, was that the Iron Chefs did not use the traditional voting system to choose the winner. That diminished the creditability of the show, in my opinion. It was no longer only about the food but also personality. I had no objection to the original judges being apart of the vote. However, they should have executed the traditional point system. They also should have showed more of the actual “battle” and the former contestants in the background.
Although I wouldn’t say the “knives were out” for Besh, it appeared the male judges liked Symon’s personality more. More of a man’s man, I guess, despite his annoying laugh and atrocious posture. It was all too obvious, in my opinion that Flay didn’t care for Besh and probably didn’t vote for him. In the end, the finale was quite uneventful and we will have to wait quite a while for a new competition. Hopefully, they will edit the next edition better so I won’t know who the winner is three weeks ahead of time.
Questions for Mr. Ruhlman: Although I do believe you were impartial, how meaningful was it to you that your hometown chef was the winner? Also, what happened to Batali? Why is he not participating in Iron Chef America?
I’m interested to have confirmation of the voting. Having watched it twice now, I caught that A.K. thought Symon had a 2-1 advantage coming into this last test. I don’t know if that was amongst all the judges or just him. The Iron Chefs definitely liked Symons food more than Besh’s, IMO. But, as we know from reading this great blog, the editing is telling a particular story and other details are being left out.
I’d also like to add to the voices that would like to see more COOKING on FN. The channel is almost unwatchable during the day and most nights.
Congrats to Chef Symon! And conciliatory handshake to Chef Besh for a great challenge. I knew these two would be in the final; it just seemed destined.
I kind of figured that some Iron Chefs and former contestants would make an appearence. It was kind of funny in that, before they were introduced, you could see Cosentino’s hair in the shadows. LOL.
I thought the dishes were good. Swordfish is rather delicate and was glad to see the use of the cheek and throat. Flay appreciated it and said so. And what dish did he say he was going to steal? I am going to steal Besh’s use of the pasta maker to “bread” the fish.
Two things I found odd. Cat Cora seemed to hate Symonm, at least from the editing. I thought she did everything but grown audibly at him. Her expression and body language were very telling. But, she seemed in love with Besh. Her face lit up. I remember thinking Uh-oh.
Also, the finale must have been shot with both endings. There seemed to be no audience and Besh not only had his hair different, but he seemed to know what was coming. He had a grim look.
Sure was great fun. Thanks for hosting the bandwidth Michael. Hope to talk on here on a regular basis with all of you, and enjoy the new show.
And for the Top Chef fans: I noticed that the show was hosted by not only the completely annoying cellphone company, but Manwich! Thankfully we did not have gratuitous product placement ala TC and force the secret ingredient to Sloppy Joe. Although, seeing the unveiling would have been an ROTFL moment.
Make that growl. Coffee, stat!
The iron chefs were the only ones to TASTE the food prepared in the last challenge, right? That they voted 3-0 in favor of Symon, if that’s in fact what happened, seems quite telling.
Just as a point of interest, there is a difference between colorless and clear. If a consume is a clear soup, all that means is that color can freely pass through. You can have something be colored and clear, something as innocuous as colored plastic wrap is still clear. So perhaps Mr. Ruhlman was a litte too hard on Chef Besh.
Great choice on Michael Simon, I’ve eaten at Lola, and his food is every bit as good as it looks like on TV.
Now that we know how the judges voted, my record-keeping while I watched the replay last night doesn’t mean a lot, but here it is. I kept track of Iron Chef comments positive or negative. By my count, Symon received 9 positive comments about his dishes, 5 neutral or a little critical. The worst critcism lobbied at him was “bland.” Besh received 7 positive comments and 6 neutral or critical. And the negatives were a bit more serious: a dish that featured lobster more than swordfish (a pretty big no-no in IC battles) and a dessert that, while daring, didn’t work. None of the IC judges liked that dessert.
Interesting point about that dessert—Besh won his ICA battle against Batali, and as I recall, his victory occurred because Batali screwed up on….a dessert! I can’t remember the secret ingredient…it was something savory…Batali made a parfait sort of thing with it. I remember Batali saying (perhaps in the Look Behind ICA show) that his sous told him “Don’t do it!” but he when ahead anyway. I remember the judge looking at it skeptically, then taking a huge bite, with a really awful face following.
So, Besh had first hand knowledge that a bad dessert could do him in. Sure, daring is admired on ICA, but only if the result is a good one. Daring that turns out a bad dish…well, in the end, that’s all it is–a bad dish. Besh took a risk. If he pulled it off, he probably would have won.
To the poster who said Symon was the underdog. I respectfully disagree. Symon dominated Episdoe 3 (cooking outside on the fire) and Episdoe 4 (airline food); Paris–that appeared to be a toss-up between Symon and Besh, perhaps Besh had a SLIGHT edge. To say Symon was an underdog going into the finale is wrong, I think. I think the two were pretty equal going in.
Oh, yes, another observation. I think Symon’s use of sous vide in the final might have helped him a little. It showed he’s willing to try new techniques, and if they work out, incorporate them down the road.
To the viewer who though FN producers manipulated viewers’ opinions by giving Symon more air-time, more commentary. I thought of that, too, and while watching the marathon yesterday, I kept count for 3 episodes of how many “speaking scenes” Symon and Besh got….Ep 1 went to Besh; Ep 2 went to Symon; Ep 3 was about equal. I didn’t do 3 or 4, so I don’t know about them.
Whatever. It’s over. Symon will be fun to watch. I wouldn’t be upset if FN figures out some other way to use Besh. The importance of COOKING won in NIC, that’s the important thing to take away from this. Finally, a show about cooking resutled in what seemed to be a blockbuster hit for FN. I hope that will send a message to FN execs.
Just a side note for JoP – Batali messed up his parfait on battle shrimp.
BTW. Thanks for keeping track of the NIC stats and posting them for everyone.
I hate to be negative but are those new Iron Chef jackets fugly or what?!
Congratulations Symon on the win! And great job Ruhlman helping put Cleveland on the culinary map.
First, a 90 min. show would have been nice, and would have dovetailed w/ the gimicky ICA following.
Why did FN go through all the trouble to bring the other NIC contestants and not ever do anything but show them? What a waste. A few comments would have been nice.
Well, I was pleasantly surprised to see the results. After years of being on the wrong side of rooting for competitors (starting with the Minnesota Vikings in the 70s), I finally have the curse lifted. I was sure I had jinxed Symon by pulling for him but he still pulled it off! Woo hoo!
The only downside is that I am going to be going to Cleveland in the next month or so and wanted to eat at Lola or Lolita but it’s going to be hard to get a reservation. I won’t have more than a couple days’ notice since we’re waiting for some goods to clear customs and it’s always a surprise when they finally call and say it’s ready.
To all the people who felt everything was rigged or set up, come on folks, this is tee-vee. Save your consternation for more important things… Also, it seems to me that depending on whose side a person is on, he will notice the things that play to his prejudices and lend them more weight. I’ve been guilty of it in the past but strive to be open-minded and to let the small stuff slide.
The notion that the IC’s would not place their votes toward Besh because they percieve him as a threat is just hooey. The chefs don’t battle each other, and Cat Cora’s style is similar to Symon’s – Mediterranean/Greek – more of a threat to her directly. She voted pro- Symon.
What a miserable end to the series. While it was great to see a real Iron Chef get some attention (I loved his drawings!), I don’t think I can begin to count the ways this last episode disappointed me.
I’ll have to go back to wishing the real Iron Chef were on again, and watch the American version knowing I could cook circles around Bobby and Cat and Symon. Maybe someday FN will again have chefs who present dishes and ideas that are challenging.
Way to go, Symon! Congratulations, Cleveland! I love Besh and the trash-talkin’ between those two buds, and Besh is certainly as worthy to be an IC as Symon – but Symon has just got that camera-ready edge, with that crazy laugh and loopy sense of humor. He actually reminds me a bit of Morimoto – not only does he have the same ability to think creatively WAY outside the box, but his boxes are pretty uniquely shaped to begin with. I think IC should be a lot more fun now.
OK, so props to Knowlton for finally cleaning up and dresses like a human being – almost. Ruhlman, I’m glad for your sake that you and Knowlton are not permanent judges on IC, or you would obviously have to spend a good chunk of time teaching Knowlton how to buy a freaking shirt that FITS! (Yes, Professor, you called that right.) Jesus. Silk T and a nice jacket, Knowlton. Raid Bourdain’s closet. Raid Tim Gunn’s. But for Chrissake, get some sartorial HELP.
I think it’s most telling that the Iron Chefs all voted for Symon. If it was billed as a “winner take all” battle, then the verdict was correct. (even though I might disagree with the process). If it was supposed to be a “season long compilation”, I still think the winner was correct. Symon won more competitions than Besh, and he did better on the “final exam” (which is usually worth a big portion of your grade), than Besh did.
Lastly, I think the fact that the decision was unanimous by all the Iron Chefs gives a good “stamp of approval”.
Based on some comments from the show, it appears that BOTH Besh and Symon preferred to be judged by the Iron Chef’s. If that’s true, then they were both judged how they wanted to be judged, by whom they wanted to be judged, and cooked what they wanted to cook, so there shouldn’t be any ambiguity here.
It felt like the show finally got to where it should be — battles in chef stadium.
I was impressed, considering how many last second things are going on in a general ICA battle, that both Besh and Symon were plating and finishing way ahead of time. Neither seemed in the weeds at all.
I’ll have to re-watch it though. We decided to take a shot every time Cat Cora said ‘this is Iron Chef (insert anything)’. We were snockered before Besh presented.
To the viewer who asked why Knowlton said Symon had a 2-1 edge going into the finale: it was based on episode victories. Ep 1 (desserts) went to Besh for his catfish truffles, etc.; Ep 3 (cookout) went to Symon for his beverage, polenta and family-style squab? quail?; and Ep 4 (airline) went to Symon for his “perfectly cooked” salmon. That’s 2-1 episode victories for Symon over Besh.
(For the record, Cosentino got Ep 2 for razor clams and shaving cream; no victor picked in Ep 5 Paris).
Congratulation to Symon!
I like the fact he uses offal and isn’t afraid of bold flavors in his cooking. I think he will be an entertaining Iron Chef.
But on a sadder note: “Say it isn’t so”?
It appears that “Mario the Great” has been put out to pasture by FN and I for the life of me I cannot figure out why. Even if they wanted to take Molto Mario out of rotation, and continue with their heinous mission to dumb down the craft of cooking with it’s insipid programming, there is no reason to cut loose it’s best, and in my opinion, most charismatic Iron Chef.
Batali’s passion for Italian cuisine and iconoclast image served as the impetus for my now fanatical interest in cooking. He is one of the chief reasons I am now paying my dues in the restaurant business and trying to make a career change.
His good humor, gargantuan girth, and even those hideous orange Crocs will be missed by many.
So long Mario!
Symon may be a great chef, but I can’t stand to look at the guy! He reminds me of Uncle Fester.
Let’s go Ruhlman! We know you’re out west but it’s time to drag yourself away from the breakfast buffet and give us the scoop.
Michael, So sorry you didn’t get to taste that food. The Chairman can be so mean! But congrats to the other Michael. It was close, obviously, but maybe the fact that he was the more interesting to watch won out. (This is TV after all.)
@Shelley: I thought you might like that play on symbols Sometimes, offal is so awful (or should that be the other way arond
)
Nice citing of certain ingredients and libations…
Personally, I think wine is more elegant and was appropriate in general, but also as a companion and not a distraction to cuisine.
Lobster overpowering (the swordfish)? Yeah, I do not agree with this either, even if s-fish is rather tasteless without herbs & spices. Lobster, on its own, just boiled, can be rather tasteless or ordinary too, so I did not understand the ICs opinions of this particular one of Besh’s dishes.
Was that the dish with the stock of shrimps heads & s-fish bones? If so, maybe that is why?
I still think that dessert was a bold move by Besh. If the “customer” in this last episode was really the ICAs, then, IMO, you cook to please your customers, even if you may disagree with their desires and demands. The key to not acquiescing (while providing the illusion that you have – since the customer is always right) is, to make the dish your own, and not their way – that exudes confidence and trust in one’s knowledge and skills.
Also, Shelley, I loved this part of yours:
(I forget one of the four, but it’s drunk and I’m late.)
And, I think someone was wondering why Batali the Great is gone? IIRC, FN mothballed (or refused to renew) Molto Mario.
I loved Molto Mario, and I loved the ingredients he used. Highly instructive, and elevated while not being snobbish or exclusive. But, most of all, it made one want to either to try and cook some of these dishes, or to go out and try them. Batali is inspiring.
dlayphoto: Hahaha, I thought I’d see you pop up in here. This is your friendly neighborhood drunkenlawyer
Yes, I totally agree with your Symon and R.R. battle (only this time, she won’t have the greatness of Batali to back her up, like she did when Giada De Laurentiis was f-ing ROBBED by having to work with that culinary hack and Food Network puppet Bobby Flay).
I just saw this on FN.com:
“The Next Iron Chef winner Michael Symon is challenged to a Turkey Day battle Sunday at 9 pm / 8c.”
Cool!
“I’ll have to go back to wishing the real Iron Chef were on again, and watch the American version knowing I could cook circles around Bobby and Cat and Symon.”
I’m sorry, but this made me actually laugh out loud.
sure you could…
@ JoP: “The Next Iron Chef winner Michael Symon is challenged to a Turkey Day battle Sunday at 9 pm / 8c.”
Cool!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Interesting that it’s Turkey.
chance- I think their comments about the lobster/swordfish dish had more to do with there being too much lobster and not enough swordfish, not that lobster itself has an overpowering flavor.
Tech issue/question: Does anyone else have trouble with the comments field when it gets this long? I’m having a problem seeing all the comments–sometimes none of them display, other times the last few dozen come up blank. (The same thing happened to me with the last TNIC entry with a long comments field.)
Note to Michael: others might be having this problem too; maybe start a fresh blog entry for discussing TNIC finale. Clearly we all can’t wait to hear what you have to say, and will want to comment on that!
Thanks!
Lisa
“I’ll have to go back to wishing the real Iron Chef were on again, and watch the American version knowing I could cook circles around Bobby and Cat and Symon.”
Okay, start with Poland, then move on to the Benelux countries, no, wait, sorry, Austria first.
Once you nail down Belgium just move right through the Ardennes and on to Paree.
And, for crying out loud, leave Russia alone!
still LQTM
JoP: I’m pretty sure that Knowlton’s “2:1 favorite going in” comment was about Symon at the start of the competition, not the
finale.
Bobby Flay always seems very likable and constructive in judging situations. Who knew?
Got to admire Cat Cora staying on message so well (message being, for whatever she was tasting, “The dish has some potential, but you’re not IC caliber–like me–yet”.)
I think Besh got some (hypothetical) points for taking a chance with dessert at the last minute, but lost some because it almost seemed disrespectful to think you could produce a battle-worthy dessert in 5 minutes. Nothing special about mascarpone (+ choose ingredient) fried in brik and dipped in fruit. Nice try, but I think he should have stayed focused on “quality”.
Morimoto was quite humorous–and that drawing of the final dishes with Japanese notation would be a fun souvenir. Wish he’d auction it on eBay….
Glad they lost/won in KS, under real ICA situations, judged by real chefs.
And Iron Chef Symon, now’s a good time for that pep talk with the Browns defense. It worked for Indy last year.
Treat Coach Dungy to a lush multi-course dinner, get him loaded at Velvet Tango, and casually ask him what he said to the Indy D last year that moved them to improve from 31st to Super Bowl caliber.
From Lolita’s last night.
http://blog.cleveland.com/pdmultimedia/2007/11/homegrown_iron_chef.html
I predict Chef Michael Symon will win. You read it here first!
” ‘I’ll have to go back to wishing the real Iron Chef were on again, and watch the American version knowing I could cook circles around Bobby and Cat and Symon.
I’m sorry, but this made me actually laugh out loud.
sure you could…’ ”
I think my black lab could cook circles around Bobby Flay and Cat Cora. Than again, so could a half-eaten ham sandwich.
I think Bobby Flay secretly likes to wrap his dick in lettace and hide it in people’s salads.
They’re flying to Turkey to battle on Sunday??? Whatever for?
;]
Batali’s not totally out yet, y’all. They say he’s in at least two more battles next season. Look it up on da web… and catch him at 1pm Eastern on the other, better Scripps channel, Fine Living.
The right man won.
Congrats to Michael Symon. I thought he was much more creative throughout the show, which I think is the quintessential characteristic of an Iron Chef.
The format of the judging to determine the winner surprised me. I thought the final battle would be winner-take-all, with only the three judges determining who won the battle. Did I miss something or did they not even show the scores from the three Iron Chefs?
Claudia
When has Andrew ever worn a shirt that doesn’t fit? He always seemed to me to be the most polished one on the entire series. The guy looks like a male model.
Just to clear up a couple of uninformed posts. All of the judges tasted the dishes. We just didn’t get to see Michael, Andrew and Donatella tasting the dishes. Also, Besh lost to Symon 4-2 not 5-1. Andrew Knowlton shares this information in his blog. Here’s a link…
http://www.epicurious.com/bonappetit/blogs/editor
KC Rube – No, you didn’t miss anything. They didn’t show scores. The battle was not scored like normal ICA battles are. The judges simply wrote down the name of the person they wanted to win.
@ Ava:
Claudia
When has Andrew ever worn a shirt that doesn’t fit? He always seemed to me to be the most polished one on the entire series. The guy looks like a male model.
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Ava – as much as I do not care for Knowlton’s critique, his narcissism (and personal attacks not so well veiled by his “professional” knowledge), I have to say that he’s quite the fashion maven. He looks very Chelsea (as in NYC, not London) and Heaven forbid, I wouldn’t want for any one in that business to dress like, say, Tyler Florence, in all of his awful frathouse and Northern Exposure attire. Knowlton has style, no doubt. Rather Dandy-like.
Thanks so much for the link to the video Markfromcleveland! It made me tear up a bit at the end. Great stuff.
@ Allie:
chance- I think their comments about the lobster/swordfish dish had more to do with there being too much lobster and not enough swordfish, not that lobster itself has an overpowering flavor.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thanks a lot, allie. I am feeling dense (not as dense as that lobster, though
) and so, I guess it had to do with the amount, as M-moto pointed out, of lobster.
Hindsight is 20/20, but instead of the concept and riff of and on the roll, maybe, instead, Lobster medallions or coins would have been more to the ICs liking? Who knows. But, I do hope Besh gets to do something, somewhere on television (without abandoning his mothership of restaurant and cooking). He’s vital, even if not the next crowd-schmoozer that Emeril is, and his personality: I do like his “over-confidence,” since it’s backed by knowledge, skill and ability.
Also, Besh’s dry humor and on the outside looking in gaze is a nice contrast to the more “personable” and crowd pleasing chefs. It’s not like Cat lights up the stage, as much as she may be okay etc.
And, last but not least, Besh is suave, dresses like the type of man he is, and is much more worldly than most of his fellow chefs.
Yowsa, I digressed (but stayed on topic about chefs!)
Anybody else cringe at Cora’s talking about what is and isn’t iron chef cooking?
I found Andrew’s “2-1″ comment very interesting. I too feel like it pertained to the fact that Symon was the Golden Child entering the competition. Despite having a judge in his pocket during the competition, Symon did deserve the win. I think having the competition judged with IC parameters (Originality, taste, plating) would have been much more fair and appropriate (this is, afterall, Iron Chef).
Listening to Morimoto speak makes me weep for the state of Iron Chef. FN killed it. Too much production and very little emotion. Best wishes to all the contestants. I hope they encounter much more fairness on their road to success.
Chance
I definitely agree with you said about style. I hate the frat boy look.
I also understand there were times Andrew came across as harsh, but why do you think he’s a narcissist? He simply gave his opinion like the other judges. I’m just curious why everyone seems to think he’s such a jerk. I seem to be his only fan.
Correction to my post to JoP: You’re right. Knowlton said Symon was favored “going into” the final, which does make more sense.
He also said he thought the original three judges–who’d tasted ALL of the food from the beginning–should have made the final decision. (But they didn’t, since A/D were 2:1 Besh).
He also said that he thought Besh CLEARLY won the final, no question.
I wonder if NIC changed the final judging rules midstream, or if the final vote was always supposed to be decided like that? (And, if so, would AB have broken a tie?)
>>>I’m just curious why everyone seems to think he’s such a jerk.
Could it be that almost every opinion he expressed involved an insult to another judge or competitor? I’m sure that he was editied to some degree to come off this way, but read his blog…he is dumbfounded that he was outvoted and thinks it was unfair that other Iron Chefs had a say…how arrogant. He may have tried all 50 dishes, but how many have the IC’s cooked and been sucessful with? To disregard their greater perspective is pretty over the top, he seems to believe that his opinion is the only correct one. I did agree with him most of the time, but he definately rubs the wrong way. As a judge he is worse than the close minded Karine Bakoum who was a perenial judge during the first few seasons, and that is saying something.
Nice to know from Knowlton’s blog that the original judges did taste the food. Yes, I would have liked to hear their comments in the broadcast. But obviously Knowlton would have been just as whiny as ever.
Ava, I don’t get what you see in that boy. Is there an echo in that big empty fan club room?
As for Cat Cora, she’s not THAT bad an Iron Chef, y’all! My young daughter is her biggest fan. We always root for her, even though she’s not as strong as the others.