Top Chef Houston: Where’s the beef?

How can you tell spring is in the air? Because a brand new season of Top Chef has arrived for foodies everywhere to watch and talk about. For Season 19 the series has set up shop in Houston, Texas and already the pretentiousness level is dialed up to eleven.

The 15 cheftestants come from all over the country and represent diverse styles of cooking. There are several James Beard Award nominees as well as chefs that have worked in Michelin star restaurants. And already you can see whose ego is out of control, who has the skills to maybe win and who is obviously out of their element.

Unlike last season, there is no clear frontrunner after just one episode. No one chef has already made a mark and stood apart. Overall there were a lot of nerves, a lot of rookie mistakes and a lot of really great looking food.

For the first Quickfire Challenge, the 15 chefs were split into five teams of three. Each member of the team would have 10 minutes to work on a dish and then pass it off to the next chef. The catch? They weren’t allowed to talk to each other. For a group of chefs who barely know each other, it proved way more difficult than you would expect.

The results were pretty much all over the map. The Brown and Yellow teams were given compliments aplenty while the Red Team’s food was called dry and flavorless. However, they were rock stars compared to the Blue Team, who didn’t get anything on their plate. Luke lost track of time and never got their dish plated.

Which cheftestant was sent home this week on Top Chef Houston?

The Yellow Team, which included Buddha, Monique and Jo were given the victory and the immunity that came with it. And they got first choice in the Elimination Challenge which saw the teams stay together as they each had to prepare a dish where beef was the star.

They eventually went with the beef rib while the Blue Team picked the loin, Brown picked the chuck and Green chose the sirloin, which meant the Red Team was left with the round. Once meal planning got under way, it was clear that the Red Team was in trouble. Leia and Jae quickly decided on an Asian-inspired menu which wasn’t what Stephanie, a meat and potatoes type of cook, had in mind.

The Brown Team was up first and they got praise across the board. Despite worrying it would be undercooked, Robert’s braised short rib with gnocchi was the hit of the entire Challenge. The Green and Blue Teams followed but each dish had more misses than hits. However, the Red Team’s menu was a disaster from the first bite.

Leia’s summer roll was an overfilled mess while Jae’s Korean inspired beef dish was lacking in any real beef flavor, a serious problem in a Challenge all about beef. Stephanie had problems of her own as she forgot to add the bok choy to her plate, effectively removing any kind of theme tying her dish to the rest of her team.

By the time Judges’ Table arrived, what was going to happen was already fairly clear. The Brown Team was named the victor of the Challenge and Robert was named the individual winner. The Red Team was chosen as the loser and after some back and forth, the judges sent Leia to Last Chance Kitchen.

Overall there is a lot of talent on display this season on Top Chef. After one episode it’s tough to say who will win and who will go home, but that never stopped us before. So it is with great excitement we reveal the first Guilty Eats Top Chef Leaderboard of Season 19.

1. Buddha
2. Jo
3. Ashleigh
4. Robert
5. Sam
6. Sarah
7. Jackson
8. Damarr
9. Monique
10. Nick
11. Evelyn
12. Luke
13. Jae
14. Stephanie

Buddha came out of the gate strong but can he keep it up? Ashleigh has shown she can think outside the box and Jo seems supremely confident. Can Stephanie and Joe overcome a disastrous start? We’ll find out next week when Top Chef Houston continues.

What did you think of the Top Chef premiere Guilty Eaters? Do you already have a pick for the winner? Leave a comment below and let us know or join the conversation on our Twitter and Facebook pages.