Jeff Houck

The Tampa Tribune’s food writer since 2005, Jeff Houck covers the way people live through their food. He also hosts the Table Conversations food podcast and believes that everything crunchy is good.

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Last Night on ‘Top Chef’ [TV’s Culinary Kevin Federline Hangs On]

Posted May 8, 2008 by Jeff Houck

Updated May 8, 2008 at 11:22 AM

So, Clearwater Beach native Spike Mendelsohn survived another elimination on “Top Chef” last night. Nikki took a bullet for the team after she failed to take charge of an Italian menu for a wedding reception despite her expertise in cooking guido cuisine. Judges said they liked Mendelsohn’s Chilean sea bass recipe, but didn’t care for his lack of, um, industry in the kitchen, which forced Dale to do most of the cooking.

Speaking of Spike, this cellphone poll ran last night during the show:

Yes, once again, Spike is in the bottom three.

The results were a little surprising, but then maybe not when you consider that Dale has a hair-trigger temper:

If the previews are any indication, Spike becomes the official bad boy next episode. There are some inferences that he turned up a burner on Lisa’s stove top.

Next Wednesday, the guest judge is Sam Talbot the runner up on Season No. 2 (pictured above with host Padma Lakshmi). The previews show Mendelsohn arguing with chef judge Tom Colicchio about his opinion of a dish he made. “Unfortunately for you, my opinion is what counts,” Colicchio says.

Last guy to do that was Mark, who got tossed off last week. The clock appears to be ticking on Spike. Stay tuned.

To read an interview I did with Spike, click here. To listen to a podcast I recorded with Padma Lakshmi, click here.