Last night on the second episode of Top Chef All-Stars, Jen Carroll — the prickly, Asberger-like chef with the abrasive personality and the poor attitude — was kicked off, as much for her inability to acknowledge the weaknesses in her dish as for her flavorless eggs.
What seemed significant in her being kicked off to me was how local and gay chefs all dodged a bullet. There were eight chefs on Team T-Rex: Three who are queer, and three from Dallas. So, only Jen and Antonia could have gone without causing a minor stink in my office.
Still, it was a whew! moment for local Tre Wilcox, who was tagged for over-salting his sauce and Tiffany Derry (of the recently shuttered Go Fish) for inconsistency in her frittatas.
Ultimately, though, it was the right decision to axe Jen — not really because she sassed the judges (as Tom Colicchio said, being the nicest chef won’t sway them if the food is bad), but because her arrogance combined with ignorance about her own abilities made her, to me, someone not deserving of “top” titles.
