“Top Chef” serves up an underwhelming Restaurant Wars thanks to uneven teams, lack of drama

Full disclosure: I’m not a huge proponent of Restaurant Wars. (Please don’t throw tomatoes.)

Whenever I settle in for a “Top Chef” rewatch, Restaurant Wars is one of the episodes I almost always immediately skip. It’s a bit too formulaic; I always dislike how the front-of-house role works out (or does not, which obviously, doesn’t rear its ugly head this time around) and I just generally am not a fan of how the episodes — and eliminations — often play out. (Shall we revisit Kristen Kish’s restaurant wars experience?)

Commiserating in the kitchen

I also have another complaint, if I’m being upfront: While doing a rewatch, it’s fun to laugh at the antics of the early seasons, from the yelling and fighting to the early reality show tropes and oftentimes borderline amateurish food . . . but at the end of the day, those episodes are still profoundly more entertaining, if we’re being honest.

While the past five or six seasons or so have been enjoyable and are still classically “Top Chef,” there’s a certain sterility and flatness that the show tends to veer into for me, which feels like it’s becoming more and more tepid as time goes by. Usually, with only seven or eight cheftestants still in the competition, I am very invested, super excited, often even anxious while watching. Unfortunately, though . . . I don’t really feel that much this time around, nor did I last season . . . or the season before that and so on and so forth.

I love the show with all the marrow in my bones, but there was a rawness and a legitimacy that came through in such a direct manner when this show started. Now? It’s . . . nice? Generally, it feels kind of sanitized; there are little, fleeting bits and pieces here and there this season in which you think, “Oh! Conflict!” . . . and then it amounts to absolutely nothing, like this episode’s blink-and-you-miss-it Gabri moments (one with Tom over the cauliflower, one with Nicole over the stand mixer and prep space).

But there’s almost a “Let’s all get along and cook well!” energy that, while definitely ethically sound, doesn’t always make for the most exciting episodes. 

Restaurant Wars No. 20 (give or take, since Season 4 inexplicably did “Wedding Wars” instead)

To get into the nitty-gritty of this particular episode unveils yet another complaint (oops) — the teams are wildly lopsided to begin with. I don’t think Victoire does a great job selecting her team (and she has first pick!) and the unfortunate grocery mishap is just peculiar.

Furthermore, this episode has hardly any suspense or excitement, frankly, because it’s pretty much a foregone conclusion which team will come out on top. The edit attempts to get tricky by making Buddha seem a little forceful (why did Ali and Amar literally say not a word during the planning, leaving Sara totally on an island in terms of discussing conceptualization with Buddha?), but obviously nothing comes of it. Unfortunately, the already uneven teams become compounded even further by the aforementioned grocery mishap and the fact that the ethos of “Roots” isn’t evident in the menu or the dishes themselves, while “United Kitchen” has a clear, obvious theme. 

Good things? The restaurant is gorgeous, Clare Smyth is a really wonderful judge (and what an amazing “get” for the show, truly), I love the “secret restaurant critic” Jimi Famurewa and a lot of the food looks stunning. I like Sara’s leek-wrapped fish, Victoire’s African-inspired tiramisu, Gabri’s colorful plate, Tom’s vegetable-centric dish and practically all of Buddha’s offerings (although I didn’t love the idea of serving his apparently stellar tomato tea in a wine glass that then fogs up? I feel like a mug of sorts may have been a preferable choice). 

Tom Colicchio, Gail Simmons, and Clare Smyth in “Restaurant Wars” (David Moir/Bravo)

The crying game

While I typically love an emotional ending or a particularly charged “pack your knives and go” (and I can’t recall many Padma send-offs that were this heartfelt), I’d argue that this one feels almost somewhat . . . unearned? At least from a viewer’s perspective. 

Aside from her personal story and adoption journey, of course (which, according to a comment on Sara’s Instagram, is unfortunately still not complete), I’m not exactly sure if Nicole’s actual culinary contribution this season necessarily “warrants” such a strong reaction from Padma. Clearly, Nicole makes some real personal inroads with Victoire, who sobs for the entire last five minutes of the episode.

I love Victoire’s general openness and authenticity, but the entire ending makes me wish that the editors had let us see a bit more of this clearly very close friendship as it progressed throughout the competition. These are the times I question editing decisions: Do we need a few quick joint confessionals of Ali/Amar for a quick chuckle here and there? Their friendship gets a moment in nearly every episode. Couldn’t there have been a deeper exploration of this Nicole-Victorie connection that apparently ran so deep to produce a truly tear-soaked farewell? In addition, Ali’s goodbye to Nicole is really jarringly beautiful, too.

(I will also note, though, that it is very sweet when Amar excitedly says, “We won together, Ali!’ after Padma announces their team’s win).

Tom Colicchio, Clare Smyth, Padma Lakshmi, and Gail Simmons in “Restaurant Wars” (David Moir/Bravo)

Regardless, I truly hope Nicole is well on her way to call a child her own and that the exceedingly steep paperwork and delays are nearing their end. She — and her soon-to-be child — deserve nothing less.

---

Want a daily wrap-up of all the news and commentary Salon has to offer? Subscribe to our morning newsletter, Crash Course.

---

After-dinner mints

I’m thoroughly rooting for Charbel in “Last Chance Kitchen”! I’m also rooting for Sara in general, but I think a Charbel-Ali final might be one of the best from a storyline perspective, especially after Ali’s opening confessional in this episode. Of course, I also just love Victoire overall and would love to see her in the finale (I really love the idea of that terrific tiramisu — with cassava flour and plantain? Amazing!) 

I love that Sara coins Charbel “onion boy” to align with uber-likeable Sylwia’s “potato girl” moniker. 

I also really appreciate Buddha’s genuine appreciation and his amazingly kind words to Clare after his (well deserved) win.

It is interesting to see Ali falter a bit for the first time.

Tom continues to be a fascinating cheftestant; his arc is totally unique. I also love his vegetable cookery — he really has a talent for it. His leek and chestnut with black garlic dish sounds and looks superb.

The judges enjoying Amar’s dish surprises me, actually. I wouldn’t think those contrasting temperatures would work, especially if the butter sauce coagulates or thickens as it cools due to the cold scallop. 

Amar Santana, Ali Al Ghzawi, Sara Bradley, Buddha Lo, Tom Goetter, Gabriel Rodriguez, Nicole Gomes, and Victoire Gouloubi in “Restaurant Wars” (David Moir/Bravo)

I feel like Gabri often gets the short end of the stick in nearly every episode, but I love his incessant resilience.

Sara’s underdog confessional is interesting . . . I’ll be keeping that one in mind. 

I obviously get a kick out of all the promo for the MasterCard touchless or touch-free card.

I’m a sucker for a palate cleaner, so I did love that sorbet-and-grapefruit idea!

I am struck by two phrasings at Judges’ Table: Padma’s “glaringly naked” in regards to Ali’s under-sauced lamb dish and Tom C.’s “absolutely pristine and beautiful,” which is maybe the most effusive I’ve heard Tom speak (although I think that was in reference to the quality of the scallop itself, not necessarily the dish at large).

Side note: Why is Tom *so* quiet and almost tuned out at Core? I get a kick out of how every shot of the cheftestants discussing their food shows Padma, Gail and Clare listening intently and smiling pleasantly . . . while Tom fervently eats eats and drinks, paying little-to-no-mind to the cheftestant. Also, the way he later (silently) “checks” on Ali? Odd!

Disagree with my (myriad) gripes? Feel free to argue with me (or as “Real Housewives of Potomac” star and “Drive Back” singer Candiace Dillard-Bassett might say, “Drag me, Monique!”)

Next week, everyone does their darnedest to impress Padma with Indian food. Iconic! 

“Top Chef: World All Stars” airs Thursdays at 9 p.m. on Bravo and streams next day on Peacock.