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Let’s get to the food. Josh’s concept is Bistro George, named after his father. He produces a gorgeous plate of food. It is a seared eye of rib eye with cauliflower puree & mushroom red wine sauce. As a steak guy, I’m biased but this is one of the best looking plates all season. The judges are impressed by the comfortable nature of the dish. Josh is safely in the middle if not in the top group this week.

Lizzie presents a Northern Italian Farmhouse Kitchen. It’s quite as catchy as Chili’s, is it? Her plate of food is a mustard green canederli with fonduta & crispy speck. The bowl looks like that thing that walked off the table in Better Off Dead, only now it has wings and it is sitting in a dirty bowl. I…wouldn’t eat that. Dan Meyer thinks she has missed the mark while Tom likes the flavor but finds the dish too heavy. Gail Simmons points out the unappetizing nature of the food. Lizzie probably won’t win but she also should be safe from the bottom group.

After the Quickfire challenge disaster, Sheldon really steps up his game. His concept is Urbano, a modern Filipino restaurant. Like Josh, he is honoring his ancestor, his grandfather in this case. His presented bowl contains sour tamarind soup with pork belly, shrimp & snapper. The judges love the appearance of the dish yet are even more wowed by the flavor. Sheldon is going to finish in the top group tonight.

Stefan continues his befuddling run of indecisive cuisine. This time, he presents the judges with two dishes rather than the one requested. The idea for his German Thai restaurant is simple. He has a spicy Thai lobster bisque with shrimp dumplings, potatoes & radishes. It is followed by a cooling Bavarian cream mango lollipop. The presentation goes poorly. Gail is confused by the presence of two dishes. Then, Padma realizes that the lollipop is the same one he prepared in the Top Chef finale of season 5. Stupid Stefan is screwed. I fully expect him to finish on the bottom.

Up next, Micah’s concept is Raw. The dish he presents looks like garbage. I mean this in the literal sense. I took one look at it and my first instinct was to go get the mop and broom. What he has done is pile a bunch of foods on top of one another. The meal is salmon, snapper, himachi, squid, scallop & mackerel with raw vegetables. I have never said this before but I could recreate 95% of this dish. All that a person has to do is take the stuff out of the refrigerator and haphazardly throw it on the plate. The judges agree with me to the point that I fear Micah is in real danger of going home.

Kristen never disappoints and this is the latest example. The concept is classic French with a spin. Her dazzling plate of food is an onsen egg with camembert-mustard sauce & buttered radishes. I literally enjoy none of these flavors yet the dish is so beautiful that I would eat it. Every week, Kristen distances herself a bit more from the rest of the competitors. She receives compliments such as “wonderful," “nicely done” and “perfectly cooked." Kristen will be one of the captains of Restaurant Wars. I am 98% sure of this.

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