Dale gets eliminated from Top Chef

So self-proclaimed badass Dale got the boot on last night's Top Chef - it should have been Lisa - here's a quick link to a Hyphen post A Letter to Top Chef's Dale Talde.

Can you have two Asian American Top Chef winners in a row?

While there's a part of me that is hoping a woman breaks the mold and finishes as a Top Chef this season - I've wondered this before (and I'm not alone, check chezpim - who also happens to be guest judging on Iron Chef America) - can there actually be two winners in a row who are Asian American?

Would producers allow it? Or would they be thinking "We can't have two Asian American winners in a row, what the hell would people say?".

I think there's an honest to goodness vibe out there that says if you'd have another Asian person winning Top Chef, people would think the show would be overrun with Asians and they might actually stop watching.

There might even be a riot.

And then there would be the quotas.

Not just on Top Chef, but on all reality television shows.

Just for a moment imagine what happens if Dale wins Top Chef, Yamaguchi wins DWTS - and then just for fun, Peih-Gee actually won Survivor, Ron and Christina won the Amazing Race, Brandi Milloy won Oprah's Big Give, and Ramiele Malubay won American Idol.

Are you kidding me?

I just don't have the faith in our society that if Asian Americans ran the table on some of the most watched reality television shows, that it wouldn't be the impetus for some mini race-war that would get totally out of control.

I can't help it. I know it's wrong but I just don't see it happening any other way.

Dale Talde Fanatic

So what are the expectations here - really? You find out he's not married, or gay, or both and then what? I have to bang my head against the wall just a little sometimes when I stumble across things like this:

Is dale talde from top chef chicago married?
I think he's really hot,yes he sometymes comes off as a douchebag , but i think he's super cute. Is he gay?- does anyone know?

Answers? I want answers.

Top Chef 4, Egg Whites, and Filipino American Dale Talde

Season four of Top Chef starts next week - March 12th - and as I was looking over the cast bios of the cheftestants I couldn't help but think to myself how white the cast was in comparison to last season.

It's not that the current crew of cooks don't seem full of personality or talent, or that I mind watching white people (because white people, I've been watching you for a while now) - but I was expecting more diversity, more color, more individuals.

At least Top Chef still had the sense to get Filipino American chef Dale Talde on its cast for this season (and be on the lookout for Manuel and Nimma too).

Here's his Top Chef info:

AGE: 29
HOMETOWN: Chicago, Il
PROFESSION: Sous Chef at Buddakan
CULINARY EDUCATION: Culinary Institute Of America
FAVORITE SIMPLE SPRING RECIPE: Grilled matsutake mushrooms, shaved myoga, spicy truffled ponzu

BIO: Dale, a sous chef at Buddakan, one of New York's hottest restaurants, was born and raised in Chicago, where he helped open the renowned restaurant Jean Georges Vong. In Chicago, Dale worked with distinguished chefs like Carrie Nahabedian and Shawn Mcclain. With his Filipino background, Dale focuses on Asian flavors. "I love the balance that Asian cuisine offers the salty, sweet, bitter and sour and the textures it provides for different experiences in every bite." One of Dale's kitchen favorites is a dry aged kobe rib eye. Dale says cooking meats is one of his favorite things to do in the kitchen and the technique that goes into properly searing and basting a rack of lamb or steak shows a lot of love. A motto that drives Dale is "expect perfection , because if you fall short your left with greatness."

For the full list of this season's hopefuls, check out the Top Chef Season 4 bios here, and if you feel like dropping an e-mail out Bravo's way asking why they decided to take a step back in diversifying their cast, jump on over to their contact page.

Best Trash Talking Asian American Reality TV Show Winner

Hung Huynh



Looking at some of the past winners of Reality TV shows this year, while Apolo Anton Ohno got some MILFs out of their seat to watch Dancing With The Stars, he wasn't a trash talker - not by a long shot - in fact he was anything but a trash talker. And while Victor Lee and his team demolished every team around them in the World Series Of Pop, talking a big game even predicting his team's win (which took a huge set of balls) - it was really more confidence than anything else - he just knew they were better.

But if there was one winner who had it all, and not only blew through the competition but also talked a grand game of smack throughout the process - showing no mercy even to the judges that would in fact decide his fate (and you know Tom Colicchio whispered something Godfather into his ear the night of his win) - it has to be - hands down, no questions asked - Hung Huynh from this season of Top Chef, who was the baddest mofo to step into the kitchen in quite some time.

East West: Hung Huynh

There's a good interview with Top Chef winner Hung Huynh down at East West:

Huynh took out some time recently from his off-TV job at Restaurant Guy Savoy in Las Vegas to answer questions for East West about his surprise victory, his early influences, his guilty snack pleasures and a possible dream showdown on the Food Network’s “Iron Chef.”

EastWest: Did it bother you to be pegged the “villain” of the show?

Huynh: Definitely not because I wanted to be the most
controversial character on the show. You either love it or you hate it, and it’s
a memorable character.

Hung Huynh wins it all and becomes Top Chef

Chalk up another win for another cool Asian-American male on TV.

In addition to not only smashing stereotypes as previously talked about here on Slant Eye (see previous post Add Top Chef 3’s Hung Huynh to the list of reality-tv stereotype smashers) now Hung Huynh the 29 year-old Vietnamese-American can add the title of Bravo’s TOP CHEF to his resume as of last night.

And a cool $100,000 as well.

Top Chef Hangs Title on Hung (E! News):

Never underestimate a finely prepared piece of raw fish.

Buoyed by his delightful hamachi appetizer, not to mention his meticulous attention to detail, 29-year-old Hung Huynh was named the winner of the third season of Bravo’s Top Chef on Wednesday. The Massachusetts-born Las Vegas resident looked beyond thrilled when host Padma Lakshmi informed him that his knives were there to stay during the live finale in Chicago.

“I am so excited!” Huynh exclaimed. “I worked so hard to get here and prove myself…I’m speechless, but I’m sure you’ll hear more from me later.”

More on Hung and his Top Chef win:

• Hung’s MySpace page


• Bravo TV’s Top Chef Bio


• BuddyTV article where Hung talks more in-depth about his family and getting from Vietnam to here


• Reality TV Magazine’s coverage

Say goodbye Sara Nguyen, Say goodbye…

Pic from TOP CHEF: They Cook. We Dish