‘Top Chef’ Portland names Gabe Erales winner, but controversy casts shadow over wellness season

the “Excellent chef” Portland’s season has been hailed by many fans as one of the best seasons of all time. The Culinary Competition Series was filmed in Portland and other locations in Oregon in September and October, when pandemic security protocols limited some aspects of how the show could be performed. The cast was particularly diverse, with the three chief finalists, based in Houston Dawn Burrell, Based in Austin Gabe Erales, and Seattle-based Shota Nakajima, bringing a rich variety of cooking experiences, backgrounds and styles to the show.

But when Portland’s Top Chef season winner was revealed in Thursday night’s final, the response on social media has been mixed. While many fans praised the choice of Erales, whose Mexican-inspired cuisine had always been praised by the judges Tom colicchio, Gail Simmons and host and judge Padma lakshmi throughout the season, others have referred to the fact that Erales was, following the recording of the season Portland’s “Top Chef”, fired from his position at an Austin restaurant for reasons that remain troubling. .

As the Austin Chronicle reported late last year, on December 15, the owners of Comedor, where Erales was executive chef, announced in an email that Erales was “no longer with the restaurant due to his misconduct.”

The article quoted the email, which read: “As of now, the executive chef of Comedor Gabe Erales is no longer with the restaurant due to repeated violations of our policies and behavior in conflict with our. values. In his absence, chef and Comedor partner Philip Speer will run the kitchen. After the New Year, we will start looking for a permanent replacement.

What prompted the dismissal was not specified. The Austin Chronicle story said efforts to contact Erales, via Instagram and email, have gone unanswered.

Filming for Portland’s ‘Top Chef’ season ended in October, so the decision to terminate Erales from his position as executive chef at Comedor came after the show had already named Erales the season winner. , which meant he took home the prize of $ 250,000.

As the finale aired on the East Coast, Twitter users were posting reactions. Several noted a message from the Portland chief Gregory Gourdet, who was one of the “Top Chef” stars who served as guest judges and diners this season in Portland.

At Instagram, Gourdet posted a series of comments that read: “The restaurant industry has a long way to go and I wonder if we’ll ever get there. First step – stop the abuse of industrial workers. I have been part of systems where not everyone felt well or supported. I fully accept how much my role has harmed people. I work hard to do my part to get things done through communication, life repair, support, team promotion and overhaul of what a restaurant structure can look like…. toxic conditions in kitchens and bad behavior of chefs are exposed, I feel like we are in a vicious cycle with the women in our industry who continually suffer the most. With so many examples of what a male leader hasn’t done over the past few years – lawsuits, empires crumbling, it’s amazing people still don’t get it… I also know how not to make trouble others my problems and focus on keeping my side of the street clean. But that’s still our whole problem if things don’t change. Yes, the media needs to do a better job of controlling people. I have to do a better job of controlling people… The media have immense power in raising voices and the success of institutions. This is the next major change that needs to happen… Our industry has a long way to go and I wonder if we will ever get there, but I am not giving up… Basic human decency is just the point. departure from our survival. So is the end of the power-hungry, abusive and egotistical leader.

Lakshmi was among those who liked Gourdet’s post.

Before Erales was named the season winner, Portland’s “Top Chef” final saw finalists Erales, Burrell and Nakajima return from the Oregon coast to the Willamette Valley. The three met with Chief Justice Colicchio and Lakshmi at Willamette Valley Vineyards. Colicchio and Lakshmi presented the chefs with the ultimate challenge: to cook the best progressive four-course meal of their lives.

Colicchio advised the top three to cook a meal about why they should be Top Chef. Burrell, Erales, and Nakajima were able to purchase whatever ingredients they wanted and were matched with chefs who returned after being knocked out earlier in the season. Burrell got to choose first and she chose Jamie Tran to help her out. Nakajima chose Byron Gomez. This meant that Erales was associated with Maria Mazon, who shared with Erales knowledge and expertise of Mexican-inspired cuisine.

After purchasing ingredients, the three had six hours the next day to prepare and cook at Willamette Valley Vineyards, and had three more hours the next day, before serving their four-course meals at a judges table, and “Top Chef “stars who have returned to act as guest judges and guests this season. The table included chefs from Portland Gourdet, Naomi Pomeroy and Peter Cho.

The three chefs have chosen to prepare dishes inspired by their heritage. Burrell prepared dishes that reflected both Pan-African and Southern cuisine. Erales has prepared dishes inspired by his Mexican roots. And Nakajima continued to cook dishes that were part of his Japanese identity.

Upon serving, Burrell encountered an issue that she struggled with all season, in that she didn’t finish tackling her first dish. But other than that, the process went fairly smoothly. Here’s what the finalists served.

First course: Nakajima made sashimi three ways, mackerel, salted salmon, and tuna with soy sauce and a lotus root chip; Erales made fried pibil cochnita head cheese with habanero ash emulsion avocado mousse and kumquat sauce; Lamb tartare in burrell with tomato and celery salad, beef puff pastry and honey rice bread.

Second class: Nakajima made sautéed water spinach, sautéed burdock root, white miso burdock root mash with octopus karaage; Burrell makes green okra with seafood and fermented rice fritters; Erales made scallop aguachile with fermented pineapple and roasted pineapple oil.

Third course: Nakajima made beef tongue curry with braised turnips and fukujinzuke pickles; Burrell made braised beef cheek, black-eyed peas, and buttered turnips; Erales made short ribs with chichilo negro mole, mushrooms and pickled persimmons.

Fourth course, dessert: Erales made candied delicata squash with Mexicano coffee ice cream; Burrell made yam bread pudding, English pecan butter, with purple yam and applesauce; Nakajima made a Hoji tea cheesecake with cedar ice cream.

At the judging table, Colicchio, Lakshmi, Simmons and stars Richard Blais and Melissa King chatted with the three finalists about their food. Once Burrell, Erales, and Nakajima were out, Colicchio, Lakshmi, Simmons, Blais, and King chatted a bit more, finding plenty of praise in all the dishes, with a few minor quibbles.

While each chef has their strengths, when it came time to announce who would win and take home the $ 250,000, Erales was the winner.

In his interview segment, Erales said he was proud to be Mexico’s first great chef and was happy to represent his culture, his cuisine, as well as a group of people who truly operate the kitchens at across the United States.

– Kristi Turnquist

[email protected] 503-221-8227 @Kristitturnquist

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