#2837 Top Chef S22E09 Part One: Mission Gayle-possible

Summary

Watch What Crappens Podcast Summary
Episode #2837: Top Chef S22E09 Part One: Mission Gayle-possible
Release Date: May 12, 2025

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Introduction

In Episode #2837 of "Watch What Crappens," hosts Ben Mandelker and Ronnie Karam dive into the latest installment of "Top Chef" Season 22, Episode 9, aptly titled "Mission Gayle-possible." This episode blends their signature humor and candid commentary as they dissect the culinary challenges, contestant performances, and unexpected twists of the episode.

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Episode Overview

The "Top Chef" episode under review centers around a themed challenge inspired by the "Mission Impossible" franchise, aptly renamed as "Mission Gayle-possible" to incorporate the presence of Gail, a recurring judge known for her sharp critiques.

Key Themes:

• Creative Culinary Challenges: The chefs are tasked with integrating "muscles" (mussels) into their dishes under the time constraints resembling high-stakes missions.
• Guest Judges: Chef and James Beard Award nominee Alona Daniel joins Gail and Kristen to evaluate the contestants' creations.
• Competitive Dynamics: The introduction of new judges adds pressure, leading to heightened competition among the contestants.

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Detailed Breakdown

Initial Challenges and Contestant Strategies

Ronnie Karam (03:20):
"Because we love."

Ben Mandelker (05:06):
"We got a great time meeting you and laughing with you."

The hosts begin by discussing their recent experiences attending "Top Chef" Texas shows, expressing excitement for upcoming events in Vegas, Seattle, and Los Angeles. They promote their Patreon for exclusive content, setting the stage for an in-depth episode recap.

Mission Fixed Theme:
The primary challenge requires chefs to incorporate mussels into their dishes creatively within a strict 20-minute timeframe. The task is humorously described as creating "stunts" on a plate, aligning with the "Mission Impossible" theme.

Notable Interaction:

Ronnie Karam (06:53):
"Look at all these. I've got, I've got Aquafor. I've got raw sugar. I've got this chapstick. Lots of, lots of lip stuff going on over here."

Ben Mandelker (07:00):
"They are on top of Chef. Ugh. Sorry, humans."

Contestant Performances and Host Commentary

Massimo's Approach:
Massimo opts for a traditional yet time-constrained method, aiming to showcase his culinary precision. Ben humorously comments on Massimo's intense focus:

Ben Mandelker (15:03):
"Massimo's like, oh, Pei, muscles are the best muscles in the world, but they're huge. They're delicious, but they're giving us 20 minutes. That is a tough one."

Bailey's Attempt:
Bailey chooses to experiment with bold flavors, integrating mezcal and black garlic aioli into her mussel dish. However, Ronnie critiques the incomplete execution due to time constraints.

Ronnie Karam (23:33):
"Alona's got this down, man. She knows how to shade them. Every time she asks a question, you know they're going down."

Judging and Winner Announcement

The judges deliberate on the dishes, providing critical feedback laced with the hosts' trademark humor.

Ben Mandelker (27:32):
"I love when they do that, when they say, like, it just felt like you just didn't have the time to do everything you wanted to do. I'm like, yeah, because you gave them 20 minutes."

Winner Declaration:
Lana emerges victorious, impressing the judges with her "fish mosaic," which combines aesthetic presentation with the required mussel incorporation.

Ronnie Karam (27:56):
"Another bonus coming out of our road trip between Austin and Dallas, where we just ramble on and talk rap forever. It's For a really long time."

Ben Mandelker (28:12):
"So Alona picks Lana because we know that Lana has at least half of the letters in Alona's name. She's like, I did it really? Because of letter bias."

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Humorous Exchanges and Host Dynamics

Throughout the recap, Ben and Ronnie infuse the discussion with playful banter and witty remarks, enhancing the entertainment value.

Example:

Ronnie Karam (10:42):
"Hey, Lona, great job trying to steal Ileana Douglas's names. Couldn't do it, though. She was my friend when I was alive. Now I haunt her."

Ben Mandelker (13:05):
"So for the quick fire challenge, they have to do something with muscles in 20 minutes. Okay, listen, I know you've got Tom and Gail here, and they're busy people, I presume, and you don't want to make them stay here all day."

These interactions highlight the hosts' chemistry and their ability to keep the conversation light-hearted despite the competitive nature of the show.

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Notable Quotes with Timestamps

• Ronnie Karam (06:29):
  "Here's a stunt. Watching Gail get out of a bathtub without some butter."

• Ben Mandelker (14:01):
  "For my stunt, I have breadstick lasers, and they're going to sit on top of a bowl, and then you're going to have to reach through the laser beams to get the golden key."

• Ronnie Karam (33:27):
  "Well, Kristen Scott Thomas. And then she pulls off her face, and she's just a lasagna. Wait, you're a sentient lasagna? Yes, I am."

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Episode Highlights

1. "Muscles Challenge": Contestants were tasked with integrating mussels into their dishes under a 20-minute time limit, emphasizing creativity and technical skill.

2. Guest Judge Alona Daniel: Her presence added a layer of expertise, with her critiques focusing on the balance of flavors and presentation aesthetics.

3. Lana's Victory: Lana's innovative "fish mosaic" impressed the judges, securing her the $10,000 Quickfire prize.

4. Introduction of "Mission Impossible" Stunt Challenge: The episode teased an upcoming challenge inspired by high-stakes missions, requiring chefs to perform "stunts" on their plates.

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Conclusion and Upcoming Segments

As the recap concludes, Ben and Ronnie hint at more intense challenges ahead, especially with the incorporation of "Mission Impossible" themed stunts. They tease a continuation in Part Two of the episode, promising further analysis and humor.

Ronnie Karam (55:19):
"So, thank you so much for listening to this. Just come back a little later for part two."

Ben Mandelker (55:32):
"We're taking the gold with Brenda Silva."

The episode wraps up with promotional segments and a teaser for the next part, maintaining engagement and anticipation among listeners.

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Final Thoughts

Episode #2837 of "Watch What Crappens" offers a blend of insightful critique and comedic relief as Ben and Ronnie navigate the latest "Top Chef" challenges. Their dynamic commentary not only entertains but also provides valuable perspectives on culinary techniques and contestant strategies. Fans of Bravo reality shows and culinary competitions will find this episode both informative and amusing.

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Listen on Wondery:
Access the podcast on the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. Join Wondery+ for ad-free listening and exclusive content by starting a free trial at wondery.com/links/watch-what-crappens/.

Transcript

[Ronnie Karam]

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[Ronnie Karam]

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[Ronnie Karam]

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[Ben Mandelker]

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[Ben Mandelker]

Who cares what happens when there's so much that happens?

[Ronnie Karam]

Well, hello and welcome to Watch what Crappens everybody. I'm Ronnie and that's Ben over there. Hello, Ben.

[Ben Mandelker]

Hi, Ronnie. How's it going? Did you drop a little pen down there by the side of your desk?

[Ronnie Karam]

Drop some chapstick.

[Ben Mandelker]

Slippery, slippery chapstick. Got to be.

[Ronnie Karam]

Look at all these. I've got, I've got Aquafor. I've got raw sugar. I've got this chapstick. Lots of, lots of lip stuff going on over here. I need a lip liner like Lexi.

[Ben Mandelker]

Watch what craft been brought to you by the fan, by the, the, the chapstick family of products.

[Ronnie Karam]

Yes. Well, I've even got raw sugar, natural lip balm. It's watermelon flavored in case Gail needs a snack. Everybody, welcome to Top Chef day. Here, watch what happens where. We just got back from Texas. What a great weekend. Thanks for everybody coming to Texas shows. We had a great time meeting you and laughing with you. We are going to be in Vegas this Thursday night. We're so excited. We're going to be recovering. Recovering. We're going to be covering Summer House. So come join us for that one this week in Vegas. Also in June, we're finishing up the tour in Seattle and Los Angeles. Go get your ticket links at. Watch what crappens.com Also find our Patreon link over there. That's where you find video recaps like today's hello. And it's also where you find our bonus episodes. We've got a huge three Parter bonus coming out of our road trip between Austin and Dallas, where we just ramble on and talk rap forever. It's For a really long time.

[Ben Mandelker]

It's. We cover a lot of territory. We talk about Doritos, we talk about AI. We talk about slut shaming. Kansas McDormand. Slut shaming dormant.

[Ronnie Karam]

Yeah. Bucky's billboards. It's all there. Yeah, it's all there.

[Ben Mandelker]

Yeah.

[Ronnie Karam]

So join us over at Patreon to get those and Crappens on demand to get videos and video recaps for the first time ever on our bonus. So let. Or. Well, video recaps of a road trip that.

[Ben Mandelker]

Yes.

[Ronnie Karam]

Okay, so let's go over to one of the oddest themed Top Chefs we've had this season.

[Ben Mandelker]

Yeah, I love. It's always. I always love, like, the first episode or two in May on Top Chef because that's when they try to do a tie in with a. With a summer blockbuster. Like, there was the one where they had to do, like, a Jurassic park themed challenge once. Yeah, that was. This one is gonna be a Mission Impossible. Oh, my God.

[Ronnie Karam]

Well, the Jurassic park one, at least. They were like, make it look scary and bloody. Wasn't that the one where they were putting blood all over the plates and there was like.

[Ben Mandelker]

I don't remember. I probably. Yes.

[Ronnie Karam]

Yeah, that one was, I think, scarier, this one. They were like, make a stunt. What the fuck does that mean? You want to see a real stunt? Watch Gail's digestive system trying to work with everything she shoves into it.

[Ben Mandelker]

Here's a stunt. Watching Gail get out of a bathtub without some butter.

[Ronnie Karam]

Gail. Disclaimer. We love Gail. No gales were harmed in the making of the show. Okay, we love Gail, but ghost Padma. You know, this week, Padma died because she tried to do a stunt off the side of the building and fell off. So she's back as a ghost. Blame Padma, not us. All right, let the chat.

[Ben Mandelker]

The birds. Dubai. I got to the. I got one and a half stories up the burj, Dubai. And I fell off and I died immediately.

[Ronnie Karam]

Yeah. Did you mean to be so tall? So here we are, Season 22, Episode 9, Cooking on the Edge of Glory. Gaga's back. I had to say it as a. As a gay. So, yeah, we're the Magnificent Seven. Massimo. It's like, we're back. So people have just been kicked off, but now it's more important than ever because people have been kicked off. And of course, Tristan just lost his father, so he's Like, I'm not only doing it for me, I'm doing it for you, buddy. And then the chefs come to the test kitchen, where now we have Tom and Gail joining Kristen.

[Ben Mandelker]

Yeah. And Vinny's like, oh, crap. What are we going to get into now? Something intense is about to happen. I'm going to have to make three times as much hollandaise as usual. So Kristen's like, well, you might be a little surprised to see Tom and Gail this morning. Any guesses why? Hmm. I don't know. Was there a sale on pirates booty? That was mainly for Gail. I don't know why Tom's here.

[Ronnie Karam]

Was there a sale on pirates booty and Tommy Bahama hats for Tom?

[Ben Mandelker]

That's better.

[Ronnie Karam]

Tom's like, well, we just don't want to miss out on all the fun, so here we are. Well, I just wanted to come shame you in person, so we're doing that now. And Gail's like, that's right. Because from now on, we will be here alongside Kristen to judge the rest of the quick fires in Canada. The show is tanking. They've brought in the big guns. Gail, now you get to see two terrible patterns per episode. You're welcome, NBC Universal.

[Ben Mandelker]

Yeah. Well, we're going to factor in both the quick fire and the elimination challenge and deciding who stays and who goes home. Unfortunately, my son did not factor in a legacy he could have had by following my footsteps. Instead, he decided to become a mixologist. That's fine. That's fine. He doesn't have to factor in anything.

[Ronnie Karam]

The way we factor in.

[Ben Mandelker]

Yes.

[Ronnie Karam]

Bailey is like, quick fires have been really difficult since I got back from Last Chance Kitchen, but I'm a new Bailey now, and I feel the pressure to get it together. Oh, God. Go make some penne pasta somewhere. I can't.

[Ben Mandelker]

Well, everyone, for this quick fire challenge, you're going to have to flex your muscles. I say that with air quotes. Muscles, Muscles. Does anyone get my joke? Muscles. Muscles. M U S S E L S. It's a homophone. Anyone?

[Ronnie Karam]

The only ones Gail has are in the back of her throat. So Kristen's like, welcome, welcome. Your guest judge from Prince Edward island, chef and professor at the Culinary Institute of Canada and James Beard Award nominee for stepping off the curb while holding a hot dog, a soda, and a side of chips at the same time, Alona Daniel. Welcome, Alona.

[Ben Mandelker]

Oh, that's funny, because I call Gail Alona at Starbucks.

[Ronnie Karam]

So Alona for the rest of her life, Gail Simmons.

[Ben Mandelker]

Lona at Baskin and Robbins or as we call it now, Inns, because Gail ate the baskin and Rob, so.

[Ronnie Karam]

Hi. Hey. Hey, guys. Ilona's here. Hey, loner. Before we do the muscles challenge, can you please explain your contacts? Because they don't really make sense. With your eyes, did you mean to look like you've been holding your face under a chloroform swimming pool for half an hour? You look ridiculous.

[Ben Mandelker]

Hey, Lona, great job trying to steal Ileana Douglas's names. Couldn't do it, though. She was my friend when I was alive. Now I haunt her. So Kristen's, like, just off the coast of eastern Canada is a little place called Prince Edward Island. It's also known known as Canada's Food Island. Is that right? Well, that explains why Gail's always going up there. Am I right, everyone? Food Island. No.

[Ronnie Karam]

Isn't Prince Edward bad? Let me look. Prince Edward. Jeffrey. Jeffrey Epstein. Prince. Oh, that's Prince Andrew. Okay, never mind. You're off the hook, Prince Edward. You go with your Food Island. Okay, so alone is like. You betcha. With 1000 miles of coastland with, we have some of the best lobster, oysters, and our favorites are our mussels. Did you get it, everybody? Mussels. Like mussels.

[Ben Mandelker]

Prince Edward island actually produces over £50 million of mussels each year, and they can be found on the menus at some of the best restaurants all over the world. Thanks, Gail. Thanks for describing what the fuck a mussel is. We all get it. We're on top of Chef. Ugh. Sorry, humans.

[Ronnie Karam]

Wow. 50 million pounds of muscles each year. Sounds like Gail's calorie counter.

[Ben Mandelker]

Our muscles are grown in what we call socks. Oh, don't you mean what Gail calls a dinner plate?

[Ronnie Karam]

That's funny, because Gail calls her socks muscles. Ew, Gail.

[Ben Mandelker]

Have you ever seen Gail stuff a sock full of peanut butter and then try to eat it out? That sounded grosser than I meant.

[Ronnie Karam]

So they grow these in these things called socks because it protects them from being eaten by predators. Wow. You should start doing that with hamburgers. All right, Gail.

[Ben Mandelker]

You know what? When I was living, Tom and I used to trap Gail in a corner and force her into a giant sock. That way she. That way, we could eat our meals in peace. Anyway. Keep going, Kristen.

[Ronnie Karam]

Well, also, socks help keep them tender. Wow, that's funny. That's one thing Gail. That's one thing Gail's never needed help with. Am I right, Gail?

[Ben Mandelker]

I was just telling Orison Wells I have a lot of good sock material that I was so excited to use today.

[Ronnie Karam]

So for the quick fire challenge, they have to do something with muscles in 20 minutes. Okay, listen, I know you've got Tom and Gail here, and they're busy people, I presume, and you don't want to make them stay here all day. I don't want to see shit made in 20 minutes. Like, if I wanted to do that, I don't even. I can't even make a sandwich in 20 minutes. Like, that's. For me, that's not a food challenge just to be like, wow, you've got 20 minutes to do something creative. At that point, you can just steam the and put it on a plate. Come on.

[Ben Mandelker]

Yeah, I agree. Like, let them actually be chefs a little bit. Like, give them that extra 10 minutes. And so Massimo's like, oh, Pei, muscles are the best muscles in the world, but they're huge. They're delicious, but they're giving us 20 minutes. That is a tough one. So Tom's like, yeah, you know, we usually see the white wine, see mussels, but we don't want that. You're gonna be judged on creativity as well as how you hook the mussels. So go after her and don't steam them. The white wine. Because if you steam the white wine, guess who will be the white whiner? It'll be me.

[Ronnie Karam]

So Alona tells them that these kinds of mussels don't take long to cook. But, you know, one minute can be the difference between a tender morsel of oceanic juiciness or a rubber bullet. Wow, that's amazing, because it's really only one glass of wine that can take Gail from a tender morsel of oceanic juiciness. Juiciness. To a rubber mullet. Mariah. Gail.

[Ben Mandelker]

Well, as always, you'll want to impress.

[Ronnie Karam]

I don't really know what that's supposed to mean, but okay. I will not be wearing my rubber mullet anymore. After a glass of wine.

[Ben Mandelker]

As always, you'll want to impress, because the winner of this quickfire challenge is going to take home $10,000 in Quickfire Quick cash brought to you by Glad Glad Bag, a family of Glad Bag products, also in conjunction with Insomnia cookies, as well as John Deere John Deere, the home for when you want to cut down grass.

[Ronnie Karam]

This week, your challenge is to make something in 30 minutes created out of KY Jelly, our sponsors. Have fun. Like, what the hell? What are these challenges?

[Ben Mandelker]

So Massimo's Massimo is like, muscles are not as easy as people think. 30 seconds is not. Is enough to overcook it. 30 seconds of undercooked can make someone violently ill. I'm like, yeah. She just said the whole rubber bullet thing. Come on. We understand.

[Ronnie Karam]

So they're like, I'm from New York, and I really. You know, in New York, we love our subs, our Italian subs. So I don't think anyone else is going to want to do something like an Italian sub, so it's going to be me.

[Ben Mandelker]

In fact, when I was growing up, my parents got me an entire refrigerator just for Italian subs. They said, please, why do you eat such stinky food? How many refrigerators do we need to get you? Thanks, Mom.

[Ronnie Karam]

When she said this, I was like, gross. You're gonna do an Italian sub of mussels? I don't think I want that. It turned out to be great, though. It just goes to show, you don't judge. Don't judge prematurely.

[Ben Mandelker]

Yeah, exactly. Don't judge until the judges have judged. So Bailey is gonna do something with, like, green app, apple, jalapeno, agua, chile, which doesn't really make much sense. And Tristan is going to do something with zucchinis. He's just going to, like, wrap them in zucchinis and have fun with it. And Vinnie is like, well, I think that what I'm going to do is cook some mussels in the hollandaise and serve it on a plate that's in the shape of a. One's going to be on an N. One shape is going to be an O. One shape is going to be on an M. You get it? It's going to spell Nomad out. And muscle plates. It makes a lot of sense.

[Ronnie Karam]

Unsesara's like, 30 minutes is tough. 20 minutes, it's like, come on, man. And then you hear you jump under a table. I got scared that was my own clap. I'm gonna start myself, but I think that I'm gonna do muscles with beets, because, you know, beets, maybe that'll blend well with mussels. I was like, wow, this guy really lucked out with his dill pickle ice cream, because everything since then has just sounded completely nuts and not good. Although I don't think dill pickle ice cream sounded good either. And they like that, so I don't know. I don't need beats with my muscle.

[Ben Mandelker]

Yeah, I love beets. I love muscles. I don't really see them as being a. A great duo. So Schwai is making a station, and he's gonna do, like, basically a stir fry that he, you know, he's gonna Use techniques he learned from his mom, his grandma. And then why is nailing it the right way, though?

[Ronnie Karam]

I have to say, I get kind of bored with this kind of cooking. I get bored when the chefs are like, this is how I grew up. And so now I'm gonna cook everything the way I grew up. Like, I don't like that. I like it to be, you know, sometimes. But he's really leaning into it, and this show loves that. I mean, every meal he makes now he's like, I'm doing this for my grandmother and my mother. Like, that's. That's smart. It's a winning strategy on this show. They love that. They eat it up.

[Ben Mandelker]

They do literally eat it up. But anyway, Vinnie's actually not doing anything with hollandaise. He's making a larb, which is unlike Vinnie. And then we find out Massimo is also using zucchini blossoms, which could be an issue with Tristan. But of course we know Tristan's going to do the better version, cuz he always does. And then Lana's working on her. Her sub and everything, and they're just cooking, cooking, cooking, and it's all going.

[Ronnie Karam]

I thought that was pretty weird, that it was two people putting a muscle inside a zucchini flour and frying it.

[Ben Mandelker]

Yeah.

[Ronnie Karam]

Who copied weird?

[Ben Mandelker]

I'm going to say. I'm going to say Massimo, copy Tristan, because Tristan is. Tristan's kind of like the one to beat this season. So people would copy him.

[Ronnie Karam]

I would say, yeah, someone copied somebody. So Bailey's like, I wish I had more going on here. The one day I decided not to do pasta for some inexplicable reason. And I couldn't believe she didn't do it. I thought she was going to be like, and here, here's a ravioli with mussels in it.

[Ben Mandelker]

Yeah. Why didn't anyone make a soup? I'd make a soup. Does that. Is that too close to just like white wine steamed with white wine? Because I would. I would think. I think a mussel soup would be lovely. Like a chowder. A mussel chowder?

[Ronnie Karam]

Yeah. I don't know. Hers kind of looked like a soup on her aguachile stuff. But anyway, it looked like it just jumped from a really high ledge into a, like an aguachile sidewalk and just kind of splattered all over it. It's time for a commercial. It's time for a crappin's commercial.

[C]

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[Ronnie Karam]

She was not getting the text. So I went to Instagram.

[Ben Mandelker]

She has no Instagram anymore.

[Ronnie Karam]

And Facebook. No Facebook anymore.

[C]

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[Ben Mandelker]

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[C]

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[Ben Mandelker]

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[Ronnie Karam]

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[Ben Mandelker]

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[Ronnie Karam]

They are lost.

[C]

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[D]

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[Ronnie Karam]

So Shuai is the first to present and he's like, I call this did it for Grandma. Okay. It's a little bit of scallion ginger mussels that are good little boys and get candy when they behave. Okay. There's Chinese cooking wine, which is not the same as white wine, Tom. Okay. Because my grandma used it.

[Ben Mandelker]

Gail's like, well, there's some nice heat in here. Yeah, well, Gale always says that, especially when she goes to Burlington Coat Factory and finds a nice trench. So then Kristen is like, all right, Cesar, it's your turn. And he has his beet juice thing. And Ilona was like, and how was it with the 20 minutes on the clock? Which was her way of saying, this tastes like garbage. You clearly ran out of time before you could make it taste good. Yeah.

[Ronnie Karam]

And it was weird. I don't know how he presented it. He's like, these mussels are steamed in beet juice and coconut fat. I don't think I'VE ever heard the term coconut fat before.

[Ben Mandelker]

And I don't think people say it's in muscles. Well, there is, like, the. I guess, like, with a coconut cream. There's like, the. The on the top. But that's. I thought the coconut cream part. I don't know. I think.

[Ronnie Karam]

I don't know. I've just never heard someone specify, like, yeah, did it with coconut fat Just sounded so.

[Ben Mandelker]

Yeah.

[Ronnie Karam]

Alone. I think you're right. Was totally shady. She's like, wow, with 20 minutes on the clock, how did that feel that you failed? Right. God. Unfortunately, we're never gonna get that back. Okay, so now it's Vinnie, and he's like, I did mussels in the style of larb mad. Okay. It's dressed in just a little bit of vinaigrette. Sorry if that's not a wine either, Tom. Okay. And then I took the mussels and roasted them in a bed of all these herbs and garnished with some nomad pickled chilies. Nomad. Okay. Hope you enjoyed that.

[Ben Mandelker]

All right, Bailey, tell us about your dish. And she's like, I cook the mussels with onion and mezcal, and then I used some of the liquor and made a black garlic aioli and then chilled apple broth. And Ilona's like. And how long did you cook your mussels in this combination of flavors that don't go well together? Two to three minutes.

[Ronnie Karam]

Alona's got this down, man. She knows how to shade them. Every time she asks a question, you know they're going down.

[Ben Mandelker]

I know, but by the way, I feel like two to three minutes to cook mussels is very short. I feel like mussels take seven or eight minutes. Right?

[Ronnie Karam]

Well, they said these are quick mussels, so I don't know. These are modern mussels that we cook. I think it's because I'm in a sock.

[Ben Mandelker]

These are. They're very sock motivated. They're like, we spent. We spent our whole lives in a sock. It's time for us to break free. I'm opening up quickly today.

[Ronnie Karam]

So then Tristan serves his zucchini flour with the muscle in it, and he's like, guys, underneath, this is muscle emulsion. Gross. That sounds disgusting. I don't care what anybody says. And then he goes. And then there's a zucchini salad, and it's dressed with mussel juice. Okay. No, none of this is okay. I wouldn't even eat this if you told me muscle emulsion and muscle juice. That's like, what is it? It's like when you open tuna fish. And what are you going to drink? The water. I don't want that. Wash it. Wash it off.

[Ben Mandelker]

Have you ever made anything like this before, Tristan? Wow, gal, That's a tough question from someone who wears culottes on her head. So then, wow.

[Ronnie Karam]

Muscle emotion. How did you get into Gail's perfume stash.

[Ben Mandelker]

Which is her way. Which. Never mind. So Tristan is like, no, I haven't made this. And they, like, sort of giggle. And then Lana has. She. She presents her. Her muscle. Her muscle subway sub. And so they're like, okay, Massimo, what about you? He's like, smoked mussel sandwich with tomato motion. And of course, zucchini blossoms. So Alona's like, so why did you go with the zucchini blossom on this one? Which is my way of saying, why did you make such a shitty zucchini blossom? Do you know that we're judges, right?

[Ronnie Karam]

Yeah. And he's like, I thought it would be clever. Apparently, I wasn't the only one. All right. And so Luna's like, well, I like that it played on the sweetness of the muscle, and it worked with that umami. It was very interesting. He's like, do look like a wolf at night. Can people still see your eyes?

[Ben Mandelker]

Yeah, I think the. They definitely flexed their culinary muscles. See what I did there? Culinary muscles.

[Ronnie Karam]

They sure did, Tom. They sure did.

[Ben Mandelker]

I already made that joke, Tom, but that's okay. Okay, well, I love it when you do, dad. Tom. That's just one of my favorite things. So let's start with some good news. We're gonna start with good news this time. Alona, who had one of our favorite dishes? No one. Okay, well, Alona, I'm gonna need you to just pretend. Fine. I really enjoyed Lana's dish. There was a. It was really wonderful intensity of brininess. My favorite part was when I got to throw it all out in the trash.

[Ronnie Karam]

So Tom loved Lana's Italian sub idea because it was a toast. It was basically like a muscle toast. And he's like, who doesn't like an Italian sub Girl almost married one. And so Kristen's like, gail, who had one of your favorites? And she's like, vinnie, I love that you had an idea of larb. Really, really good. It was perfect. Easy on. It was so easy to eat on that endive. I thought it really worked. I love eating things on endives. Gail. Oreo cookies are not endive leaves.

[Ben Mandelker]

Well, we asked for something different and unique, and you delivered on that. Tom, who Else had one of our favorites, Tristan. It was crispy, as advertised, and the muscle was nice and juicy and plump. Also, I love the fact that you took the mussel juice and turned it into an emulsion and a vinaigrette. A real good use of the product. You're really inventive. I only wish I had a son who could do half as many things as you did in that one bite. Thank you so much.

[Ronnie Karam]

They also loved Schwize flavor wise fantasta. And so who muscled their way to the top of this quick fire challenge? And guess what? That this dish had the briny, delicious ocean flavor that she wants. So Ilona picks Lana.

[Ben Mandelker]

But mainly because we know that Lana has at least half of the letters in Alona's name. She's like, I did it really? Because of letter bias. So, Chris, Lana wins her first. Is this her first, like, individual thing that she's won? She won $10,000. She's very excited.

[Ronnie Karam]

And it was 125 thousand all total. So she's. She must have won some other stuff.

[Ben Mandelker]

Yeah, I think that was group stuff, but I could be wrong because honestly, I do not pay attention to this, and I don't even know why I'm asking about it. So then on the bottom were Caesar, Massimo, and Bailey, and they felt like the bulb of Caesars, the beet in the coconut, it just didn't work for them. And then Tom's like, massimo, good idea with zucchini. But unfortunately, Tristan did the same thing and just did it better. So something I would say, you suck. And then. Yeah. And Alonda felt it was under seasoned and stuff.

[Ronnie Karam]

Yeah. And Bailey cooked her muscles well, but it was just incomplete. Like, you didn't have time to fully give us what you had envisioned. And she's like, pasta. Yeah, pasta. I could tell when I ate this muscle that you wanted to really make a muscle lasagna. I just really wish you had the time.

[Ben Mandelker]

I love when they do that, when they say, like, it just felt like you just didn't have the time to do everything you wanted to do. I'm like, yeah, because you gave them 20 minutes.

[Ronnie Karam]

The sad part is Gail took 20 minutes to get ready today too, and she actually came dressed as she was envisioned. Fix your vision, gal.

[Ben Mandelker]

So then they're like, okay, Ilona, you can go now. Go back to your island. So now they get the judges leave, and Kristen's like, well, you all flex your muscles really well.

[Ronnie Karam]

All right.

[Ben Mandelker]

Muscles.

[Ronnie Karam]

Get the hook.

[Ben Mandelker]

Muscles. It's a muscles. What I'm Saying is, so you have these things in your arms. When you flex your arms, you get the muscles. Okay, so now it's time. You might find for the next. The next challenge, you might find the mission slightly impossible. Give me one second to really illustrate this pun. I'm going to leave the room, and we are going to really, really sell this pun in a big way. Okay, bye, everyone.

[Ronnie Karam]

So Kristen leaves Mission Impossible. What are we gonna try and get Galen to spanx again?

[Ben Mandelker]

Mission Impossible. What is that? Like going into shop right after Gail's been there and trying to get anything so they. The room gets dark.

[Ronnie Karam]

I love that. This is so awkward. She's like, I will be right back. So they. She leaves and then they make it dark and put smoke in the room and then put lasers so she can crawl back into the room over the laser. So it's like, smooth, smooth transition. Guys, you could edit.

[Ben Mandelker]

I know you could. You could just have your prop that she needs to bring in. I don't know. Ready?

[Ronnie Karam]

This is being filmed. You know what I mean? She could have just been in the lasers. Like, guys, we don't. We don't need this in real time.

[Ben Mandelker]

This might be an impossible mission. Okay, give it 10 minutes. Just think about. Just remember I said impossible Mission the last. That was the last thing I said. Okay, I'll be right back.

[Ronnie Karam]

So now a screen comes down and we see the actor Greg Tarzan Davis. Impossible.

[Ben Mandelker]

And he is so actory. He's like, what's up, chefs? It's your boy Greg Tarzan Davis here from Mission Impossible. And your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to create a dish that delivers on that impossible mission because of Mission Impossible intensity. And it features a stunt kind of like the movie Mission Impossible, which I'm in. In theaters soon, if you can get there. Or maybe that will prove to be a mission to impossible for you, but hopefully not.

[Ronnie Karam]

Yeah, he is very like, I was in a movie. I'm currently in Hollywood where I make films. We do stunts. You should see Tom Cruise do stunts. It's crazy. So flex those muscles and get ready to do some stunts. So he's like, this message will self destruct in five seconds. And the girl's like, oh, my God. And then the explosion just happens on the screen, and it's kind of a letdown.

[Ben Mandelker]

They all think that there's going to be a real explosion.

[Ronnie Karam]

Sorry, guys, we gave Gail her cheese too late. So we'll have to put the explosion on the screen.

[Ben Mandelker]

Well, everyone, as Tarzan just mentioned, yes, his name is Tarzan for this Elimination challenge. We want to see your stunts on a plate. So I'm looking forward to all of you interpreting the word stunt in a very lame and sad way. All right, see you all later.

[Ronnie Karam]

Yeah. So, as Tarzan just mentioned. Stunt, stunt, plate, plate. So this whole stunt thing, no one really explains it. They're like, okay. And so they're trying to figure out what. Well, Kristen reads the literal definition, obviously requires great skill or daring. But is it that you make your plate slide down a building? Is it that, you know, your salmon flips over? Like, what is it? No one really knows. So they have to come up with their own version of a stunt, which is, I think, a problem in the challenge. So go ahead.

[Ben Mandelker]

Yeah, I'm sorry. I think that, like, when I think of, like, food that has, like, a stunt, my interpretation is that there's something kind of, like, theatrical about it. Like something tall or big. Maybe something has to be cracked, and then you reveal something underneath or whatever. Or, like, I'm imagining, like, I don't know, like, maybe a flame or, like, something. I think the stunt should be, like, a visual thing, a visceral thing. It's something sort of interactive that you have to do.

[Ronnie Karam]

And, like, you name your Tom Cruise and then have it marry a straight person, like Katie Holmes or something like that.

[Ben Mandelker]

Yes. I think publicity stunts are totally allowed. They didn't say what type of stunt.

[Ronnie Karam]

My.

[Ben Mandelker]

My plate is wearing a dress. This. What sort of. What sort of stunt is this?

[Ronnie Karam]

Yeah, or something like you want to put a shrimp in a soup, so you have the shrimp sitting on a spoon that's balanced on something, and then to get it into the soup, you have to, like, hit the spoon, and then it flips. I don't know. Something. Yeah, I was expecting that too, but it was not that. So Lana's like, I mean, to stunt on a plate, I already made an Italian sub out of mussels, so I feel like all my food's really straightforward. So, you know, no stunts involved. Like, no animals were harmed in the making of. Well, I guess animals are harmed. The making of it. I suck at this challenge. I'm just gonna say it right now.

[Ben Mandelker]

Literally killed and eaten. Just like no animals were harmed. Oh, actually, we actually ate the animals, so it's actually way worse. Way worse. It's like. Okay, well, and now for the fun part. Like Tarzan mentioned, there are two advantages available, and they are both going to entail braving the edgewalk of the CN Tower here in Toronto. Does anyone not like heights? And they're like, why Are we talking about heights in a culinary competition?

[Ronnie Karam]

Why we got to get a bunch of out of shape people to go do something on ropes around a tourist attraction? Why?

[Ben Mandelker]

I know. So they're gonna have to go up to the scene too.

[Ronnie Karam]

Walk around, stupid. So this time there's $10,000 up for grab and some special wins that they'll learn about on the edge of a tower. So they go up there to this tower and it's scary. Cause you're on the top of a tower and they've got this, of course, tourist leader lady, I don't know what you call them, who's like, all right, guys, we're on the top of a tower. We're climbing. I love heights. We're on ropes. So we're going to lean off. Okay, everybody, I'm leaning. Look at me leaning backwards. I don't care. What do I care? I'm going to die. I'm not. I'm not dead. I'm still here. Guys. You could die. Let's try it. Okay. All they have to do is walk around. They're all tied to ropes. I would shit myself though this high. Would you?

[Ben Mandelker]

Yeah, it's. It's scary. I think the leaning forward and putting your arms out was, like, scary. But it's so funny because on reality shows, the things that they make most reality stars do for like their Fear Factory kind of stunt things is pretty insane. They usually have to like walk across a gorge on a cable or like, I mean, just on the traders, they were dangling Dolores from a helicopter and swinging her around over the Scottish countryside. They had to do crazy things. But I love just for chefs, they're like, just, just, just walk on. Just walk on the circle a little bit and then lean forward. And now you're done. They're like, they're chefs still.

[Ronnie Karam]

They couldn't all do it. Like, Massimo couldn't do it. Masamo was like, no, I have children to take care of. No, I'm not doing it. And who was the other one that wussed out? Lana, right? She's like, nah, I'm not doing that. Sorry. But yeah, there was a lot of leaning and stuff, but, you know, if you got time to lean, you got time to clean. And she's like, I just made muscles in 20 minutes. I'm not doing this.

[Ben Mandelker]

Well, Gail just went up and did that. And now they've called it the Leaning Tower of cn. So.

[Ronnie Karam]

Wow. Gail climbed to the top of that tower and put all her weight on it. Now the tower gets a special accommodation of this final challenge.

[Ben Mandelker]

Sorry, I was distracted. I was just hanging out with Anne Boleyn. Hard to have a conversation with someone who doesn't have a head, even in ghost form. God, how lame.

[Ronnie Karam]

So they do this stupid challenge, and then. Let's see. I'm fast forwarding through this. Sorry.

[Ben Mandelker]

They did this whole thing. So they get back into the kitchen, and now they're going to go shopping. And Massimo reveals that his stunt that he's going to do is he's going to do something en crout. So basically, he will ultimately wind up making fish. Wrapped up. Wrapped in like pastry, essentially. And the stunt is that it normally takes, like, hours and hours to do this, but he's going to do it within two hours. So it is a stunt for people who know how to cook salmon on crude.

[Ronnie Karam]

Yeah.

[Ben Mandelker]

For everyone else, it's just salmon.

[Ronnie Karam]

It's a stretch. That's a stretch. That's. That's gonna be his. And the people who did the challenges get extra 30 minutes for their wins or whatever. So Vinnie also did the circle, so they also get 75 extra dollars or whatever. Okay. So now they go shopping, and then Massimo is talking about his on crude, and Lana's like, my mom has a crippling fear of heights. Like, she wouldn't have gone up, but, you know, like, she's awesome. She always pushed me to be my best, and I always ate good. So I said, mom, a lot. Can I win?

[Ben Mandelker]

Just like, I'm gonna make a fish mosaic. It's like, yes. Nothing. Nothing speaks of a stunt like a mosaic, especially one made out of fish. When I watched Mission Possible, I'm like, oh, I hope that Tom Cruise makes a stunt. This makes a mosaic. Oh, did Tom Cruise make that mosaic? Or do they have a stunt double while he. He made that? We put the tiles together.

[Ronnie Karam]

I didn't really get this either. I thought maybe she was going to do it in a way where it was resting on top of something that when you put your fork through it, it all crumbles. Or, I mean, I don't know. Like, it all comes apart like broken glass, you know?

[Ben Mandelker]

Well, the other thing is that, like, a lot of them interpreted stunt like an illusion. Like an illusion is a stunt, because in their mind, they're thinking, oh, when you cook something that looks like something else, it's kind of like it is a bit of a stunt because you're relying on this, like, perception thing to give the audience a thrill. But I think that the challenge wants a more of a literal stunt. And so the mosaic but the thing is, the mosaic isn't even an illusion. It's just a mosaic of fish. It's just fish, different fish in a pattern.

[Ronnie Karam]

I don't know. I didn't really get it. So Shuai is like, well, my mother and my grandmother love making me turducken. Okay. And that's where you shove a duck into a turkey, and then you shove a chicken into the duck into the turkey. So it's called turducken. And there's nothing trashier than that. And I'm gonna make it.

[Ben Mandelker]

I'm like, that's fine. But why is this a stunt? I mean, I think that he just had a plan to make sure.

[Ronnie Karam]

You're just making a food representation of Gail.

[Ben Mandelker]

You're just making Gail camping. You know, when she. Late at night, she goes in the log cabin and wraps herself up in some duck and then turkey and then chicken.

[Ronnie Karam]

That's when you shove a turkey into gale and then a duck into the turkey and the gale, and then a chicken into the duck into the turkey into the gale. Okay. Get it right.

[Ben Mandelker]

And just like that, it is dangerous.

[Ronnie Karam]

So that's just lunch.

[Ben Mandelker]

And then you take the entire Gail ducken and put it into some culottes. Wow. You've never seen some threads really pushed to their limits until you've seen that commercials.

[D]

Here comes one right now.

[E]

At 24, I lost my narrative, or rather, it was stolen from me. And the Monica Lewinsky that my friends and family knew was usurped by false narratives, callous jokes, and politics. I would define reclaiming as to take back what was yours. Something you possess is lost or stolen, and ultimately you triumph in finding it again. So I think listeners can expect me to be chatting with folks both recognizable and unrecognizable names, about the way that people have navigated roads to triumph. My hope is that people will finish an episode of Reclaiming and feel like they filled their tank up, they connected with the people that I'm talking to, and leave with maybe some nuggets that help them feel a little more hopeful. Follow Reclaiming with Monica Lewinsky on the Wondery app or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to Reclaiming early and ad free right now by joining Wondery plus in the Wondery app or on Apple podcasts.

[Ben Mandelker]

They're at Whole Foods and they're. They're ordering stuff. They're ordering chicken. There's nothing really happened. They just. They were. They get all their food, everything's fine, and now they get to cooking. And Massimo, his Whole thing is that, like, he has not a second to spare. He's got 30. Everything is. It's, like, rigorously planned out. He's got to make his dough and he's got to get it cool. But it can't go in the fridge. It won't be fast enough. He can't go in the freezer, so he's got to get that done perfectly. And then he's got to get in the oven. He's got a. Everything is precision based, and this is his stunt. And I'm like, I literally don't care. You've done this to yourself. This is not a stunt. This is just a. This is just a high precision dish that you've decided to make in a short amount of time. It's not a stunt. It's just. It just kind of. It is actually a flex of your culinary prowess.

[Ronnie Karam]

Yeah. So then Cesar is going to do Arctic char with a custard, because that's a very interesting idea. And he wants to plate it in a tall glass that could represent the CN Tower. And then you have to break into it and shatter the glass, which is going to be a fish tool. And then you have to wreck. You have to rescue the Arctic char. This is a stretch too, but at least he's giving them something to break.

[Ben Mandelker]

Yeah, at least he's, like, trying to do the stunt, even though this feels wildly misguided, because the glasses he chooses are, like, just a little bit taller.

[Ronnie Karam]

Yeah.

[Ben Mandelker]

They didn't really look like the CN Tower. Why doesn't he. He should have made something that was architectural and tall, maybe. And, like, it's not. You know, it's almost like you should have made a tower and it had, like, a scallop dangling off of it. And then, like, the scallop has to, like, bungee jump into, like, a sauce or has to dive into the sauce, and then you eat it out of the sauce.

[Ronnie Karam]

I don't know. But none of them sound as gross as. I don't know. I can't even think of one because it's just such a challenge. Honestly, that. That sounds better than most of the stuff we've heard. I was just visualizing it as you did it, and I was like, I don't know. I think it's just this challenge is flawed, you know? So then Tristan sounds really gross. Okay, here's Tristan's. He's like, I got this idea for this stunt based on Mission Impossible because someone pumped their armful of a virus to transport it. So I'm gonna stuff Chicken wings with a virus of chicken mousse. Gross.

[Ben Mandelker]

This is down there with the restaurant wars where Michael, the Voltaggio brothers, and that one Chef Michael. What's His Face, they decided to make a restaurant. And, like, so the Voltage Brothers, they're Voltage. And the other guy was like. His first name was. His last name was like, Re Something. Another. And they combine the two names of Voltaggio and Re. Whatever. Ronaldo, let's say. And to Re Volt. So they named the restaurant revolt. Here's some revolting food. Disgusting.

[Ronnie Karam]

Yeah, yeah.

[Ben Mandelker]

How about.

[Ronnie Karam]

So, but here's like.

[Ben Mandelker]

Let's not like, yes, sorry.

[Ronnie Karam]

No, go ahead, be like.

[Ben Mandelker]

Let's. Let's not be like, hey, what you're about to eat right now represents a virus.

[Ronnie Karam]

Well, yeah. Okay, so then. So it's going to be stuffed with a virus, which is fucking chicken mousse, which also sounds disgusting. I'm sorry. Chicken. Moose.

[Ben Mandelker]

I love chicken mousse, actually.

[Ronnie Karam]

So, okay, you've got a chicken wing stuffed with goo with mousse, which already is gross. Okay, so then you've got an antidote on the side, and then they have to get the antidote within a certain amount of time and then pour the antidote over. And the antidote is the sauce. Right. Well, that's cute. But then you still get into the wing, and the wing still is oozing with the virus. So then how did the antidote fix the virus? You know what I mean? This was not thought out.

[Ben Mandelker]

Okay, you take the wing with. With the. With the moose virus. All that from a tower and make that fall into a sauce. I just want something to take a dive off of something into a sauce. That's all I want. I want something to drop. I want something to drop and splatter.

[Ronnie Karam]

Yeah.

[Ben Mandelker]

And that's the stunt.

[Ronnie Karam]

Yeah. Okay, well, Lana's still talking about how her mom does fish, so she's gonna do. Her mom does this fried fish thing, and she uses corn. So she's going to use the cornmeal component, but she's not going to bread the fish. She's going to put it on the bottom of the fish, which. I don't know if anybody here just had raw cornmeal, but.

[Ben Mandelker]

It'S a stunt. It's a cornmeal stunt. In the spirit of Mission Impossible, I'm gonna separate the cornmeal fry from the fish.

[Ronnie Karam]

Yeah, I don't know. I don't know how any of this is going. So her first attempt at the. At the crumble cornmeal thing isn't Working because she put too much butter. So she's like, caesar, is there Tapioca malidextrin.

[Ben Mandelker]

That sounds like a drag name. Tapioca malodextrin. And he, of course, is like, yeah, no, that'll be great. So she's doing that. I feel I don't even know what tapioca malediction does, really. But I just know that anytime anyone reaches for these things or, like xanthan gum on Top Chef, it always backfires.

[Ronnie Karam]

I mean, Vinnie, that's why I pointed it out. But tapioca is like a corn starch type thing. When you use the top, you use it to thicken. Yeah.

[Ben Mandelker]

So Vinnie, meanwhile, at least he's trying to do a stunt. He's like, okay, for my stunt, I have breadstick lasers, and they're going to sit on top of a bowl, and then you're going have to reach through the laser beams to get the golden key.

[Ronnie Karam]

And.

[Ben Mandelker]

And once you have the key, then you can break the lasers over the tartar and enjoy. I was like, you know, that's not really how lasers work, though. You don't break lasers, like, with a key.

[Ronnie Karam]

But I have to say, in Vinnie's defense, at least he's trying. And he hasn't said nomad yet, so I like that. And he did not say he's making holidays, which I also liked. So so far, Vinnie's doing pretty good. So then. Oh, God.

[Ben Mandelker]

Sorry. May I pontificate? I think what you do is you do, like, sugar work. You do a dessert, and you make your lasers out of, like, you know, sponge sugar, right? Like, you melt the sugar. You do the whole thing, and you make them, like, maybe you can add some food coloring in there so they're, like, red. And then you make some sort of dessert, and you, like, you, like, layer the. The sugar work, like. Like, you in your bowl high up above. So in order to get to the dessert, you have to get your spoon through the lasers. And I think that's an homage to, like, the most famous Mission Impossible scene of all time.

[Ronnie Karam]

And she said, kristen just did it climbing over the lake.

[Ben Mandelker]

He literally did it. Yeah, yeah.

[Ronnie Karam]

So then, let's see. So Massimo, we already know what he's doing. Okay, so the judges arrive at judging to sit down, and we have Benit, and we've got our guest judges and stuff. Whatever. And Tarzan's there, and they're like, so, Tarzan, you're going to be looking out to my left. Check out that view. We're on top of this high building. Do you just Want to jump off something? And he goes, I am tempted because I'm in films, action films, and I'm in one currently with Tom Cruise. Let me tell you a little bit of something about Tom Cruise. He's put that adrenaline bug in me. I know Tom Cruise. I might jump just from having one lunch with Tom Cruise. Let me tell you, Tom Cruise is something. Am I right, Tom Cruise fans.

[Ben Mandelker]

Lights, camera, action. Am I right being an actor? So Kristen's like, well, in honor of Mission Impossible and you being here, we wanted a stunt along with every dish. Okay. Oh, and Buddha, you're here too. Buddha, what would you do? This is Taylor made of you. Buddha's like, well, I would have brought my favorite mold, which was a mold of a laser, and then I would have made a laser out of pureed lettuce. Oh, that's pretty good. That's a pretty good stone.

[Ronnie Karam]

Unlike all of your clothes, Buddha, this challenge was tailor made for you. He's like, yeah, or I loved it. Or I've always had a vision of a floating island, and the dream was that the meringue actually floats with helium. That's what I would have done for the. I love Buddha and I love seeing him back here. Can I just say, Buddha is the cutest guy. Like, he's so supportive of everybody, and he's, like, so happy when they do well. He's like, this was amazing. I've never tasted anything like it. It's shattered the inside of my perceptions and let me know what true food could really be.

[Ben Mandelker]

Buddha, I love your fantasy about your floating meringue. I take it Gail's not on your island because it's floating.

[Ronnie Karam]

And Tarzan's like, wow. I will say, this pantry looks way different from mine, right, guys? Because let me tell you, mine's got Tom Cruise hiding in there, okay? I'm like, tom Cruise, can I just get to some Nutter Butters? Get the hell out of my pantry. God, that guy.

[Ben Mandelker]

An actor's pantry is really something to behold. I mean, craft services, what they do for us. I mean, it is. They are the real heroes of our industry. So then back in the kitchen, Lana is filling heart shaped pipettes with hot sauce. Perfect to go with your fish mosaic. That's a big stunt. And she's like, I thought RJ Pipettes looked super cute because it's a dish for my mom, but also a fish mosaic. And also Mission Impossible. I was like, great, Nice. Makes no sense. This from.

[Ronnie Karam]

Okay, but this. This challenge isn't about your mom. Like, she keeps leaning into this. Like, I love my mom so much. I'm gonna make my mom's dish. This is how my mom did it growing up. My mom made it this way. So I need the cornmeal because my mom made the corn. Did your mom pretend to get run over by cars and then stand up and she was really fine? Like, did your mom set her arm on fire and run in circles to, you know, make it?

[Ben Mandelker]

Her mom never loved her. Her mom never loved her. So this is her pursuit of finally getting approval of her mother, which is why it is truly a Mission Impossible. So that got really dark. I apologize. I was like, wow. My Mission Impossible is getting my mom to say, good job, Lana. Good job. So Bailey is making. She's. Bailey's making something. It's like a. She's making a lasagna, but she's making it look like a terrible Sue. That's her stunt. I guess you could say that's kind of like Mission Impossible. Because they do often, like, rip the masks off their faces. And turns out that Tom Cruise. This is like a tiramisu. That's like, guess what? I'm a lasagna. Which, by the way, I don't know if I want that in my. In my Mission Impossible.

[Ronnie Karam]

Well, she could have done something like where you make the crepe and then you wrap it over, like, a face mold. You know what I mean? Or like a wig head mold to make it look like it's a mask from there, and then you have to rip it off and the real thing is under there. Something like that.

[Ben Mandelker]

Could you imagine?

[Ronnie Karam]

I'm gonna make another Italian dessert.

[Ben Mandelker]

Like, you're watching Mission Impossible. It's like Kristen Scott Thomas. And then she pulls off her face, and she's just a lasagna. Wait, you're a sentient lasagna? Yes, I am.

[Ronnie Karam]

So here we go. Massimo's up first, and he's like, I did a real stunt. I made an crute. And they're like, wow.

[Ben Mandelker]

Tarzan's like, I don't get it. But I'm an actor, so being an actor is being an actor. I'm an actor.

[Ronnie Karam]

I'm sorry, did you say you made a salmon on Cruise? Because I know Tom Cruise.

[Ben Mandelker]

It's like, there's a huge variable of success when you. That is out of your control. When you cook a protein and pastry. The dough was made today. There was an emotion with saffron and a fondue dramat. Louis the 15th. My favorite Louis. And Buddha's like, I love this guy. I wish I had a mold of this guy that I could just make.

[Ronnie Karam]

Little dishes of this thirstiest chef I've ever seen. It's adorable. And Kristen's like, okay, Lana, what's your dish? What's your stunt? And she's like, I love my mom. Okay. My mom loves me. My mom made fried fish. I love my mom's fried fish. You might notice little sauces and hearts. My stunt is loving sauce and hearts. So you poured over this. Now on the side is tartar sauce hollandaise. Because I think that Vinnie would also like my mom.

[Ben Mandelker]

So my stunt is trying to make you figure out why some sauces are in a pipette and others are not. Enjoy.

[Ronnie Karam]

Yeah. Semi pipetted.

[Ben Mandelker]

So.

[Ronnie Karam]

I didn't really get this. But the fish also looks crazy. And there's no stunt. It's just different fish kind of wrapped together in a circle and then cooked.

[Ben Mandelker]

It's a mosaic. It's a small mosaic in the shape of a circle. And the mosaic is squares of fish that are all the same color. So it's like grid of salt fish in a circle.

[Ronnie Karam]

Did not get. And also served over the cornmeal, which is just like in a lump on the plate. I got it.

[Ben Mandelker]

It's with pipettes. Heart shaped. Heart shaped pipettes too. Yeah.

[Ronnie Karam]

Hello there. This is a two part recap. Okay. This is the end of part one. So thank you so much for listening to this. Just come back a little later for part two.

[Ben Mandelker]

Watch what Crappens would like to thank its premium sponsors. Ain't no thing like Alison King. It's always a party on Allison Block.

[Ronnie Karam]

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Ringing the funk. It's Leslie Plunkett.

[Ronnie Karam]

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[Ronnie Karam]

McMurdo she gets an A It's Kelly B.

[Ben Mandelker]

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[Ronnie Karam]

The incredible edible Matthews sisters She eases our woes it's Melissa St. Rose we're on the floor with Molly Dorsett There's a chance of meatballs It's Rebecca Cloud.

[Ben Mandelker]

She'S the queen bee It's Sarah Lemke Shannon out of a cannon Anthony. Let's take off with Tamla Plain.

[Ronnie Karam]

It's always a good time when you're wasting time with Bravo. She ain't no shrinking violet Coutar. We love you guys. If you like, watch what crappens. You can listen ad free right now by joining Wondery plus in the Wondery app or on Apple podcasts. Prime members can listen ad free on Amazon Music. Before you go, tell us about yourself by filling out a short [e-mail] survey.