Rating Top Chef Boston Food

What does the food taste like on Top Chef?

Let’s talk Top Chef Boston Food. I was in Episode 5 Watertown Arsenal of Top Chef Boston. The food was abundant, the cameras were rolling. There were ten dishes and believe me, I tried all of them. Here are my top three, middle four, and bottom three.

My top three dishes:
1. Katsuj Tanabe’s Tostada with Charred Cauliflower, Olive, Date & Goat Cheese
My Bite: It tasted like one of the best tostadas you’ve ever had. And it didn’t even have meat! When Padhma said it was a little oily, she’s right. The tostada was cooked in oil so it was a tad greasy. But it was a cocktail party, and that tostada was the perfect party popper!

2. Adam’s Salt & Pepper Grits with Cheddar Cheese, Poached Egg, Bacon & Onion Jam.
My Bite: Adam’s grits was all the flavors of a great breakfast rolled into one delicious bite. Yeah it was a bit heavy for a hot day, but that egg ran all over those delicious, savory grits. Eggs, bacon grits… it was a fan favorite for sure.

3. Doug’s Beef Tartare with Ginger Aioli, Radish, Chili Oil & Cilantro.
My Bite: I’m not a huge fan of raw meat but Doug’s tartare was delicious. It was spicy, sweet, and not too heavy or oily. Perfect bite for a hot day in May. He only lost the battle because he went up against Adam’s home run grit dish.

My middle four dishes:
4. Stacy Cogswell’s Marinated Beets, Pecan-Sage Yogurt, Horseradish Brittle & Fresh Horseradish.
My Bite: I’m half Greek so I’m a sucker for beets! So obviously I was totally into Stacy’s beet dish. If you go to Regal Beagle in Brookline, MA you’ll find similar tasting dishes. This wasn’t a mind blowing dish, but it had some nice contrasting flavors. Kind of a safe dish for a war battle but I’d eat it during war or peace. ]

5. Gregory Gourdet’s Shiitake Mushrooms & Coconut Milk Broth, Turmeric, Green Curry & Dill.
My Bite: A lot of people at the taping loved Greg’s broth, as did I. It tasted clean and aromatic. But is curry broth a cocktail party pleaser on a hot afternoon in May?

6. Mei’s Kimchi Vegetables, New York Strip Loin & Scallion Salad.
My Bite: This was a solid bite of steak. The steak had a kick to it. Paired with the scallion salad, I didn’t think the dish flowed as well as the front runners. Overall it was a solid dish. Did I go back for seconds, you betcha!

7. Katie’s Imperial Stout Chocolate Cake with Smoked Sour Cream & Pomegranate-Molasses Strawberries.
My Bite: When you saw Katie’s cake, you got the impression that she bakes a lot. She had so many interesting components to her chocolate cake, some sweet, some sour, some tart. Maybe its the five year old inside of me, but I needed some frosting! Damn good cake otherwise though!

Bottom Three Dishes:
8. Melissa’s White Gazpacho with Cucumber, Green Grapes, Marcona Almonds & Mint.
My Bite: Melissa told me that she lived in Spain, as did I, so we love gazpacho! Her white grape gazpacho was pretty nice. It had some sweetness and crunch from the almonds. It was a simple delicate tasting dish that represented Spain well. But this is wartime, and her dish was a little Switzerland if you know what I’m sayin’!

9. Kerianne’s Herb Meatball with Red Onion Jam, Ginger Mustard & Port Reduction.
My Bite: Tasting Kerianne’s dish reminded me of the sausages you get at Fenway Park. It was the meat and mustard that popped out the most. Tasting her dish was basically tasting a dry meatball, along with mustard, a sweet relish and another sweet port wine reduction. So those two sweet flavors didn’t really flow for me. Don’t get me wrong, I ate it!

10. Aaron’s Pork Meatball & Scallop Noodles
My Bite: Worst dish for me was Aaron’s pork and scallop dish. Some people at the taping liked it. I didn’t get it. I took a bite and thought to myself, “what’s wrong with that noodle?!” I find out it was scallop noodle. Do I need to say more? Pork meatball doesn’t go too well with scallops. I will give Aaron credit for one thing though. His meatball trumped Kerriann’s meatball. So he won the meatball war!