On Top Chef

Last night, I was (un?)fortunate enough to catch Bravo's BBC transplant, Top Chef. The show aired in my favorite food time slot, from 2:30 to three in the morning. I like to think that the networks cleverly rerun the episodes at this hour for the benefit of those who work in restaurants. In reality, there are only so many times one can replay Emeril or Celebrity Poker. (Plus, people returning from bars alone will watch just about anything with the exception of Roseanne reruns.)
Before, I move on top the premise, I can not resist skipping to some details.
- The show is hosted by Katie Lee Joel, wife of Billie "Martin"Joel; apparently said spouse is her primary qualification as it is the lede in her official bio. Within the parameters of the program, she does not seem to have much of raison d'etre either.
- New York foodie favorite and all-around-good-guy, Tom Colicchio serves as the resident authority, but for some reason, the series is set in San Francisco.
Okay, now, that I've gotten that out of the way... The series pretty much fits into the favorite formula of the reality rage, eliminating contestants weekly via challenges, including of immunity, etceteras. The contestants are the usual assortment of idiots, but admirably, the producers have chosen to stick to the cooking over contrived character conflict to date; however, I have nothing but low expectations for this week's episode which apparently features a "sex shop" (wow, a sex shop! Leather! They're so crrazy out there in SanFran!) (Please!)
That said, I must applaud the educated selection of contestants which clearly manifests a knowledge of fine dining. These characters do not only differ in the defacto experience, race, and gender, but also in the kinds of cuisine and cooking represented. For example, the show features a stereotypical, neo Alice Waters Organic Vegetable delegate, a chef that use bold Mexican flavors, the daring deconstructionist, and of course the classic French fundamentalist.
The panelists are knowledeable enough to fathom the foundations and provide intelligent, if not interesting commentary based on these understandings.
Overall, Top Chef was a worthy watch... for 2:30 AM.

Also of Note...
Eric Asimov jumps on the blog wagon this week, and thus far there is insufficent evidence for a decision, but did anyone else notice this reference, "the Grand Crew, my martial arts food and wine group?"
The Pour