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Things are not going so well with Brooke, who always knows when a dish isn’t coming together. She has a braised pork shoulder and pork tenderloin with radishes and an egg yolk - all elements from challenges she won. The judges pepper her with questions - how did you cook your pork, why did you add the egg yolk, what went into the sauce, etc. It’s clear that while the dish doesn’t necessarily taste bad, the judges have a couple of hang-ups about it.

Sheldon is last, which gave him enough time to perfect his noodles. He offers the judges chow fun noodles (which don’t look ANYTHING like chow fun noodles) made from Carolina gold rice with pork belly, okra, and an annatto seed and turkey neck broth. It’s a huge hit. Tom ate the okra, an ingredient he detests, and Guest Judge Sean Brock says he’s going to steal the noodle idea.

It’s no surprise that Shirley and Sheldon are on top of the challenge and are on their way to the finale. Tom declares Shirley’s dish to have been “just perfect,” and Gail loved the way Sheldon used different vegetables to bring out the flavor of the noodles. Tom goes even further, predicting that Sheldon will, at some point, take a place among the greatest of the American chefs. I cannot remember higher praise coming from Tom for any chef on the history of the show.

And with that said, Sheldon ends up winning the last Elimination Challenge before the finale - his first for the season. He’s been close many times, but he won the most important one and goes into the finale with tons of momentum. As does Shirley.

But who will join them? Tom compliments John’s broth but really wishes he’d peeled his bell peppers to avoid incorporating bitter notes—this is just a pet peeve of Tom’s. As for Brooke, she made a big mistake sous-viding the pork tenderloin, which stripped the meat of all its juices. Her sauce was also too sweet, having used Coca-Cola as part of her braising liquid.

In Bravo fashion, Padma asks John and Brooke what it means to be standing where they are - so close to the finale but not yet assured of a spot. Brooke breaks down, tearfully telling the judges that she didn’t want to come back to Top Chef and not do better, and confessing how frustrating that she might not be able to make it as far as she did last time. In an attempt to diffuse the situation, Padma sends all the chefs back to the stew room without giving John an opportunity to answer the question.

But when the chefs are brought back before the judges, the expected happens. Having made just a few more missteps than John in her cooking techniques and ingredients, Brooke is going home. Brooke stoically shakes hands with the judges and hugs the other chefs goodbye. Though Tom had declared just moments ago that there were no losers in this challenge, just someone not moving on, it’s clear that Brooke views herself as the loser.

She was close last time, and she’s no closer this time around - at least, not yet. There’s still Last Chance Kitchen, and how ironic would it be if Brooke were to follow Kristin’s trailblazing path and win after making it back through Last Chance Kitchen. The door isn’t closed just yet. We’ll have to see if Brooke can fight her way back and rejoin the competition in Guadalajara.

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