Original subtitles

Only a handful of chefs in every generation

have what it takes to get to the top.

Somewhere out there, there's an extraordinary unknown chef,

a hidden gem.

I want to find that chef.

Michel Roux Jr, legendary chef at the Langham,

is offering a life-changing opportunity.

There's so much on the line here for me.

My reputation as a person, as a chef.

The chance to win the hotel's iconic Palm Court restaurant.

Ooh!

Oh...

Head chef in the Palm Court at the Langham.

It is an opportunity that could start their empire

and be worth millions.

I need finesse, man. I need finesse!

Ohh! It's a mess.

This is about more than cooking skills.

A successful restaurateur needs vision, charisma...

Do I have to dish it out?

...and, above all, they need to make money.

It's beautiful!

The Langham is the epitome of luxury five-star hotels.

I have to make the right choice.

Who will triumph... Agh! ..in the Five Star Kitchen?

Halfway through the competition,

it's getting to crunch time. One of us is the winner.

This means the world to me.

I'm not ready to go yet.

I feel like I can see the final now.

I've just gotta work and work. I can't make any mistakes.

It has to be perfect.

Did you guys sleep all right?

I dreamt again that we were cooking. Surprise, surprise!

It's getting a little bit intense.

The five remaining chefs are called to the Palm Court,

where afternoon tea service is just beginning.

The Langham is the birthplace of afternoon tea.

It's steeped in tradition.

What makes a good afternoon tea?

The finger sandwiches,

the cakes, the scones. It has to be perfection.

Keep reinventing it successfully

and you'll have a constant revenue stream.

Hello, chefs. ALL: Morning, Chef.

We're in the Palm Court.

Absorb the fact that one of you is going to be running this restaurant.

Today, I want to test your creativity and I want you

to bring your concept alive through afternoon tea.

I want you to show us your pastry- and dessert-making skills.

I'm asking you for three key elements.

One is a savoury element.

The second one is an entremets.

An entremets is a multi-layered, multi-textured cake.

It really is the measure of a good pastry chef.

The third can be anything of your choosing.

I expect precision,

consistency and creativity.

We're talking afternoon tea in the five-star dining world.

Yes, Chef. Yes, Chef. Yes, Chef.

OK, let's do this. Help me, help me!

I'm feeling good, but this is the

part of the challenge where it's always good, you know?

You're kind of like, "Yeah, I'm going to rock this."

Ask me in a couple of hours.

Each chef has three hours to create

a tiered afternoon tea in keeping with their restaurant concept.

So, my concept is three, so, yeah,

sticking with three flavours,

and we've got to make three elements as well, so that helps.

So, I'm making a sardine mousse choux bun,

a strawberry sherry trifle entremets.

We're doing my take on a Battenburg - rose, pistachio, and almond.

I hate pastry.

Jordan begins by making the pastry mixture for his sardine choux bun.

Pastry's very scientific.

I like to add a little bit of this and a little bit of that,

whereas pastry, it's you stick to the recipe or you do it again.

No, no, no, no, no.

I want to see original, creative ways

of reinventing afternoon tea.

It has to impress. It has to be dainty,

it has to be perfect beyond reproach.

Jordan has made his choux, and it failed.

He didn't put enough eggs in,

so it's just so thick and stodgy. He then added flour... Uh?

...to the mixture.

Gone.

It's gone in the bin.

Not good enough.

At Nordic, we don't have any afternoon tea,

so I'm doing my own way.

What I'm going to do is deer heart with

a soft cream cheese, with rye bread,

and Nordic berry cake,

with a lot of layers of the berries.

And then I'm going to have a sandwich of prawns.

I think this is the hardest challenge,

but I know what I'm doing in my kitchen.

That's why I want to share it.

My experience, my childhood,

my passion, my inspiration.

Amazing!

Igor's deer heart will be smoked in brandy-infused wood chips,

evoking the smells and flavours of the Nordic woodland.

It's all about the senses.

So, it's going to be something special for the judges

who can feel they're walking in the forest.

My version of an afternoon tea,

I've taken kind of really classic stuff and just kind of

added a Caribbean twist to it.

I'm making a patty with a Caribbean vibe going on.

My entremets, I'm doing a Guinness punch panna cotta,

and got scones on the menu,

which is influenced by Caribbean bun.

Dom is preparing the chocolate mirror glaze

for his panna cotta entremets.

The finest entremets you see are usually finished off

with a mirror glaze.

It's an incredibly hard skill to master.

The number one rule is that it must be glazed straight from

the freezer in order for the glaze to set.

These are my frozen entremets.

See how they've kept their smoothness all the way round,

and their shape? They don't like being hot,

and this kitchen's excruciatingly hot.

Having Chef Rav in the kitchen today

is definitely nerve-wracking, you know?

She's a super pastry chef, so, you know,

I see her eyes and I'm kind of like, "Is it all right, Chef?"

She's giving nothing away.

I've gotten my soil on, I'm happy with that.

It's actually made from quinoa, it's an ancient grain.

My whole concept is about making plants a feature,

so why not make the afternoon tea an actual garden?

We have on top dehydrated portobello mushroom burgers.

I'll also have my entremets shaped as a plant.

It's going to be a carrot,

it's going to have some lovely French butter cream on it.

Edible soil with garden vegetables.

We are all nervous about pastry, it's not going to be an easy one,

but I'm definitely going to make sure that I'm really representing

five-star cooking.

I'm going to prep my mushrooms a little bit now.

With her concept that reduces meat to just

a side portion,

Adria's afternoon tea is heavy on unusual plant-based ingredients.

Adria, over there, all I saw on her workbench was just

tonnes and tonnes of vegetables. Yeah.

Does she know it's afternoon tea?

She's making a burger, and instead of making bread,

she's using dehydrated mushrooms.

Ooh, OK. That really is true to her concept. Yeah.

I like that.

Do I know what I'm doing?

I ask myself this question every day, but I enjoy doing it,

and I think when you enjoy doing things, you can achieve your best.

Lara hopes to transform the Palm Court into a theatrical,

dining experience, blending food with performance art.

I'm doing a Mad Hatter's tea party.

On the top, you're going to have porcini mushroom mousse,

white rabbits and dice shapes.

My entremets going to be a banana mousse

and a peanut butter insert. For my finger sandwich,

I'm going to do a charcoal brioche,

and it's going to have Iberico ham and black truffle shavings.

So, it's pretty exciting to get

a little taste of what it would be

to serve your own afternoon tea at the Palm Court.

But it's not just about the food.

I've got a few secrets up my sleeve.

Yeah, really excited to just see the judges' reactions.

What we don't want from Lara is too much theatre and no flavour.

It's got to be in equal proportions.

Fun, theatrical, but backed up with proper good pastry skills.

So, Jordan's had to start his pastry again.

That second choux pastry he's made though doesn't look right either.

It's because he doesn't know the signs to look for.

Mistakes happen in the kitchen. I make them, I own my failures.

If that don't work, give up.

It's not going to do you any favours pushing it off or sweeping it under

the carpet. Own it, understand it and fix it.

No, not happy with "em...

Still a little bit dense, so I'm going to go for

plan B, a Yorkshire pudding.

Goodbye, my lovers.

Shame.

And how's that choux?

HE LAUGHS NERVOUSLY

Choux didn't work, Chef, I'm not going to lie to you. Where is it?

It went in the bin again. Plan B is a Yorkshire pudding.

I know I'll never get that one wrong.

Meanwhile, Dom's entremets are defrosting.

Dom is ready to glaze his entremets,

which have been out of the freezer for ten minutes.

MMmmm.

I don't think that's going to work.

Oh, no, that's not good at all.

Definitely in a bit of a panic now.

Surely they've got to be ice cold or frozen

when you put the glaze on, so it sets.

I'm having an absolute mare.

No! Another layer of glaze on it is not going to make it

any better, is it? I know, I know. It pains me. I know.

Now they're sticking to the tray. Yeah.

Hm.

Hopefully the rest of his afternoon tea is going to be up to scratch,

cos that certainly isn't.

I'm having a nightmare, like, an actual mare.

This is the deer heart. Nordic, very Nordic.

I hope the judge going to like it.

The texture, very smoky, a little bit meaty.

So, now I'm de-moulding my dices, which is the porcini mousse.

It's been a little bit tough to come out.

In keeping with her Mad Hatter theme,

Lara is making edible sculptures out of porcini mushroom mousse...

I've got a few cracks, so I'm just going to have to fix them.

...which she hopes will take on the shape of white rabbits and dice.

You need them to be neat.

It's very important that they look perfect.

It's not that easy to hide mistakes with such little time.

How are we looking on time, guys?

Chefs, you've got 45 minutes left.

Normally, a Battenburg is chequered.

Having finally moved on from his choux pastry,

Jordan is putting his own take on a classic.

My Battenburg,

instead of the normal chequered four, is going to be three layers,

so I'm doing it in a different way than normal,

putting our spin on it, making it five star.

It's the Battenburg from Three.

Jordan's making a Battenburg.

I mean, a classic Battenburg is chequered.

It has to be made up of four precisely cut

pink and yellow sponge squares,

not what we have right here.

It's a mess. Oh, my...

So, I don't know how we're going to get a beautiful Battenburg.

Focus, focus, focus. I'm going to pop these out.

So, that first one is a little bit broken, so I need to be

a bit careful when I'm removing my jelly,

and I'm going to get my butter cream on.

Adria is icing her carrot cake entremets using butter cream.

Baking just makes my nerves like something else.

Uh-oh, my butter cream is not solidified,

so I'm not really sure what to do.

If the butter cream doesn't work out,

I'm going to try and turn it into a glaze.

Don't do it. Just send your cake naked, honestly. Yeah.

It's take two for Dom,

as he attempts to glaze his entremets again.

Don't start clapping for me just yet.

What saved me was, when I saw it wasn't working out,

I put 'em back in the freezer. Do you know what?

I said I just needed to kind of calm down a bit,

so I was all kind of in my feelings about it,

and pastry's everything that's not that.

Agh. This does not look good.

Don't know how to rescue...

Does anyone know how to rescue a butter cream?

Oh, gosh! Oh, I really don't want pastry to get the better of me.

Chefs, you've got 15 minutes left.

Yes...Yes, Chef. Thank you.

OK. I'm just going to have to go with what I have.

Oh, I'm not enjoying this.

Just move it straight, it will look very nice.

Hopefully, this will be the key to success.

It's a key to the not success. I broke my key.

SHE SIGHS

Done it. I think you can see I've tried.

Jordan, are you finished?

Yes, Chef.

Chefs, you've got five minutes left.

Five, four, three, two, one...

OK, stop what you're doing.

I'm going to see you in the Palm Court.

Yes, Chef. Look at that.

Needs a bit of work, but... Man.

I'm really happy with my entremets. Taste this.

I can't wait to taste some food.

Me too.

Afternoon tea is a super competitive business.

Staying ahead of the competition is essential

to the success of the Palm Court.

I'm looking for an inventive and perfectly executed tea

that will keep diners coming back for more.

With the Palm Court full of diners enjoying its legendary

afternoon tea, Lara steps up to present her version.

The Mad Hatter's tea party.

I'm just hoping it's not too mad, or too over the top.

Hello. Oy!

Welcome to the Mad Hatter's tea party.

Mad Hatter! Oh, God.

Did somebody say Mad Hatter?

You told me I must come today to bring some mad hats

to accompany your dish.

I did indeed.

This beautiful purple hat is from my private collection.

Yes, this one's finely picked for you.

You're insane, and I love it.

You must have one of my finest creations.

I bet you're going to enjoy it a lot.

Lara, I can't be serious with this on my head.

And now is the place to be serious.

Oh, thank God, thank you.

I'm going for the bunny.

Do you want me to give this to you? Oh, yeah, go on.

The entremets was almost there.

I love the combination of the banana and the peanut,

but the creativity, it's incredible.

It's flawless in terms of texture.

You can definitely work on getting every single thing neater.

You need to spend more time thinking about the food

and less on the theatrics.

I disliked the set mousse.

OK.

Not to my taste at all... Cool. ..and in a place like this,

I don't think the Mad Hatter would be fitting.

Thank you, Lara.

I'm going to go back home tonight with this.

I'm not sure what Mrs Roux is going to say.

THEY LAUGH

That was so funny!

I wasn't happy at all with it.

The look of it wasn't neat, sharp, but it was fun.

Wow! Hi!

Here we have the world's first Nordic afternoon tea.

OK.

I think visually, very nice. Thank you.

The reindeer heart - I love.

Delicious. The cake?

Too big, too heavy.

Igor, you can do better than this.

I think everything is quite heavy, it's quite creamy,

but there's no acidity to cut through any of it.

In terms of the flavour,

it hasn't hit the notes that we know you can hit.

Thank you, Igor.

Like it? Very good.

Some of them was too big. That's it, it's good.

Nice one, Chef.

Whoa. Good afternoon, chefs.

Hello! Wow!

Dom!

I want to put my fork into that so badly.

Mm. That stout chocolatey mousse. Ah, yes, please.

Thank you.

The flavour of that.

That glaze...

Just well done for keeping your head above water,

when you really could've slipped today.

Oh, yeah.

The patties are lovely, they're so delicate,

and I love the spicing in there.

The scone - chunky, big,

really enjoyed the jam. Very, very nice.

I was the most worried about afternoon tea with

the Caribbean concept.

You absolutely smashed it.

Ah, thank you, Chef.

Well done, Chef.

I'm actually going to eat the rest of this patty. I'm eating the plate.

My God. It was insane.

They said I smashed it. Oh, man, I am chuffed.

I literally left my soul on that section, I can't even lie.

It looked amazing. There was a point where I was, kind of like,

"This isn't going to happen for me."

Well, visually, it fits your brief.

I'm not sure about some of the finishing... Yes.

...but let's get stuck in. Yeah.

The carrot cake is delicious, and you've got such neat,

defined layers, Adria,

and that in itself is extremely difficult.

Thank you, Chef.

The carrot here looks as if it's dead, it's wilted.

The burger, I actually quite liked it.

Salty, punchy. It's good.

I've never seen a dehydrated mushroom as the top of a burger.

I could see those, with some work,

sitting on an afternoon tea, I really could.

You've got the makings of something quite fantastic here. OK.

Well done.

Hmm.

Mmm. Ah!

Ah! Hello, judges.

Hello, Chef. Well.

I feel offended looking at this.

There was about ten minutes to go,

you were stood there doing nothing.

This, to me, is inexcusable.

That is not a Battenburg.

Would this pack this incredible dining room?

On looks alone, no, so I hope you deliver on flavour.

Yeah. Yeah. Right.

I'm slightly struggling to speak,

because I'm so disappointed. And I'm sorry.

Jordan, the sponge of the Battenburg is dry.

It's really not nice. Not nice at all.

I like your sardine pate in there.

That's about the only positive I can find on this whole plate here. Pfft.

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, I do feel like I let myself down.

Cheers, Jordan. Thank you, chefs.

Mm. My word.

Ugh.

I was so looking forward to the Battenburg.

Tough. Tough. Tough. I hate pastry,

so today was always going to be the toughest challenge

for me, so, yeah.

But nothing I wasn't expecting, so...

The judges were brutal today.

I was always up against it with a pastry chef.

Rav was always going to tear me a new one, and that's what she did.

Go again. Go again.

We're always standing on thin ice.

We have to prove ourselves every day.

Five of you left.

Tomorrow, the challenge is to cook a five-course tasting menu at

a Chef's Table. You'll be taking one course each,

but you will have to cook

and plate the dish in front of some friends that I have invited.

I want to see your charm, your character, your passion,

not just on the plate of food,

but how you present it to our guests,

cos that now is part and parcel of being a head chef.

OK, enough said.

Maybe have a sneaky beer. You deserve it.

The afternoon tea task wasn't my strongest,

but obviously it's given me a bit more of a fight today.

My guests are going to be in for a surprise today.

I don't want to reveal too much,

but I think there'll be some smiles around the table.

Each chef has two hours to prepare their course,

part of which must be cooked table side.

Morning, chefs. Morning, Chef.

Adria, you're up first. You got it, Chef.

Don't let the team down. I won't, Chef.

A Chef's Table should be personable. It's got to be fun.

You've got to be able to hold a table.

People want to see, you know, elements of the dishes

coming together right in front of them.

Everyone loves a bit of theatre in gastronomy now, you know?

Everyone wants to have that element of, "Wow!"

The pressure's on.

So, today I'm doing a Indochine,

so Indian Chinese, bao bun. So, mushroom's going to be the star,

it's going to be in a soft bun, there's going to be a nice slaw,

and there's going to be some elements of duck.

There's so much on the line for me, I mean,

it's been so much hard work.

As a chef, it would be that kind of validation that,

you know, I am good enough to compete in a five-star environment.

Don't underestimate the seriousness and gravity if you balls this up.

Today I'm doing a lobster bondage.

I'm going to do an apple, vanilla, ginger glaze,

and then I'm doing turnip discs which I'm going to compress.

I'm going to make little mango gelatine flowers

and just some simple avocado puree.

Can't go wrong? Now everything goes wrong, watch.

Little did I know I'd be doing little blindfolds

for lobsters in my career.

Mm.

Wow.

50 shades of lobster.

Pretty much.

Some of my dish is a little bit kinky.

I love to make people blush.

Don't worry, you'll be safe.

I feel like Michel Roux is ready for wackiness.

I'm going to under cook the lobster a little bit,

and then finish it off in front of the guests,

and give them a little surprise.

Any thoughts, Chef?

My guests are just arriving now, yes?

ALL: Yes, Chef.

Remember, this is for a place in the semifinal.

If you're running the Palm Court,

you need to be able to execute a Chef's Table

with finesse. It's an art form,

and the chefs needs to be able to dazzle their guests

with their food and their personality.

How good does this courtyard look?

I know. Look at that. No?

Chef Roux has invited some of the Langham's most senior

and influential staff to meet

the five chefs who will entertain them

while serving up their individual courses.

The guests include Managing Director Bob van den Oord...

I'm so excited to meet the chefs and see what they've come up with.

I think it's going to be a great dinner.

...the hotel's Head of Food and Beverage, Sarah Kundi,

the Executive Chefs, Berwyn Davies and Millie Simpson,

and the Senior Maitre D', Luigi Varavallo.

I hope they deliver today for you all,

cos they are some cracking chefs in there.

Do you think they're nervous today?

Oh, they're nervous every day.

Ah, here we have our first chef, Adria.

Today, I want to make everybody proud.

I really need to execute something that will wow the judges.

Hello. My concept is all about making vegetables the star.

And today I'm going to be preparing a Indochine bao bun,

and then while I'm plating up here, I'm going to be talking.

I could talk for ever.

We're going to be cooking our star vegetable today,

which you're going to cook yourselves.

De-ne-ne-ne-ne-ne-ne-ne-ner. What is the star vegetable?

I have some wonderful, lovely golden chanterelles

and some wonderful oyster mushrooms as well, which I've marinaded.

We wanna get some really beautiful caramelisation.

That's always what brings, you know,

the sugars and the flavours and the spices

and that brownness and that kind of almost charring effect.

A lot of chefs find it very difficult to run

a Chef's Table.

It can be very awkward.

It's finding that right balance.

We need protein in every meal.

Talk too much and it turns into a lecture,

talk too little and your guests will get bored.

But it's a fine line.

Nuts, seeds, pulses, legumes...

Adria? Yes.

You weren't joking when you said you could talk.

I am talking way too much.

OK, so I have that in there as well,

20 minutes in, Adria has yet to serve up her course.

I'm ready, just give me one second.

All right, and then we are ready. Thank you very much.

That looks great.

Got the Langham I on here. Yeah. Amazing. Really nice detail.

Bon appetit. Thank you, Adria.

Thank you very much.

Straight away it's going to be delicious.

There's so many flavours going on, isn't there?

She lost a lot of time with the cooking,

just by the explanation.

I like how fresh the whole dish is.

The vegetables really are the star of the show.

I'm excited. I could win this,

but I know the others could win this too.

Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen.

My name's Lara and this is my beautiful assistant Ellie.

My restaurant concept is

a theatrical, immersive dining experience.

So, today I'm presenting you a lobster bondage.

Lobster bondage? Have they been blindfolded?

They have been blindfolded.

Bringing a bit of kinkiness today to the table.

Gotta let go a little bit, guys.

What is going on here? Bondage? Blindfolding?

Guys, has anyone seen my blowtorch?

Wow!

I'm not going to lie, I'm very scared right now.

At the Chef's Table,

Lara is bringing her theatrical dining concept to life

by using a human blowtorch to cook her lobsters.

I don't know who to watch, you or...

No. You can come back to me later.

Give my blowtorch a bit of attention, please.

So, on the top of the lobsters,

we have a compressed turnip, bit of avocado puree

and a mango gelatine.

Assistants? Oh, there they are.

Oh. Here we go.

Oh, my goodness.

THEY LAUGH

I have to say, this is a first.

Yeah. Not the last, I hope.

Wow. I'm just thinking Palm Court.

It's terrifying.

Thank you, Lara.

Reveal your treasures.

Thank you, Lara.

Oh, that's a very beautiful treasure, isn't it?

Yeah, the lobster looks beautiful.

What did you think of the theme?

For me, it was too much.

OK, out of ten, how, like, what...

I don't know. It's like, it was just so awkward.

Oh, man, I feel a bit crappy.

I guarantee you, Lara. It was awesome, and they loved it.

There was a moment where I felt uncomfortable,

and I saw a lot of skin around me.

OK, right, let's have a look at this.

Are you thinking the same thing as me?

Yeah. Is everybody's lobsters cooked?

I don't think so. It's too translucent, isn't it?

Yeah. It's, like, very raw.

It's not cooked enough.

No, you can't eat that.

Damn. That's a shame.

Today, I'm going to do venison with the lingonberry,

and then we have the salsify as a side,

together with herbs and panko,

and then I'm going to do a burnt beetroot puree

and edible white moss.

So, will be very Nordic,

will be amazing.

I'm looking forward to impress the judges.

I need to show that I can pick myself back up.

The judges, you know, have said that I can cook.

It just gives me more determination to keep going.

I'm doing a suckling pig,

served with a compressed apple terrine,

then I'm going to serve that with a fabada,

which is a Spanish stew.

For my flatbread, I am using three herbs,

so thyme, rosemary and sage.

Just in keeping with the three elements.

There is an artistic element in

the way that I'm plating up in front of the guests.

I'm hoping that the art shines through.

So, I've got plantain tart, with some Italian meringue,

orange curd, cherry compote, two ice creams,

molasses ice cream, sea salt ice cream.

It should feel like a mixture of kind of food,

but with an art kind of element to it.

I'm really excited today,

I'm going to show I'm back on top.

I'm going to work harder than expected.

Hello, everyone. Hello, Igor.

Today we're going to have something unique. A Nordic style.

Please can we change here to my Nordic style? Yeah.

Thank you.

So, now they are doing this,

I will start with the venison. I will start to grill it.

Wow, look at this.

Reindeer.

This is part of my concept,

so people will feel a part of the nature.

I don't feel the forest here, so I got some juniper berries,

and I will put it in the fire.

It will be something unique.

I like it. Do you feel the berries smoking? Yeah...

Yeah. ..definitely.

Perfect. My plan is done here.

It's a great colour.

Beautiful colour, isn't it? Yeah.

Colour is one of the most important things for me,

because food is like art.

I love Picasso,

and this is a little bit same style of that.

Now I'm using the white mousse as a garnish.

And then I made a cranberry sauce.

I think I counted 15 elements.

Did you? Yeah.

It's going to be quite a Picasso we're getting.

I feel tired watching him.

Ready to go. Hold on, it's just this.

30 minutes later,

Igor's dish is finally ready to be served.

Everything here done.

Beautiful. You can see why it all took so long.

Igor... Yes, Chef. ..thank you.

Thank you. Thank you very much. Thank you.

It looks absolutely stunning as a dish.

I was sitting here going, "OK, Picasso, if you say so,"

but it is a work of art. It sure is.

There is a heck of a lot going on on this plate.

But there are some amazing flavours, I must say.

Jordan is about to arrive here

with his lovely suckling pig, and flavours of Spain.

He got really destroyed in the last round, and you never want someone

to be that destroyed... Yeah. ..like, he copped it.

So, yeah, he's got a lot to prove, and here he is.

This is my last opportunity

to prove that I've got what it takes to be

a five-star chef in a luxury hotel.

Ladies and gentlemen, my name's Jordan.

Before we start, you will need your boarding passes.

So, one for you. Thank you.

With the Chef's Table well under way,

the guests are about to embark on their next course.

Where am I off to, Jordan?

Flavour Town, Chef. Wa-hey!

I like that.

So, today's dish is going to be a fabada,

which is a Spanish stew,

and that will be topped with a glorious suckling pig.

We have some three-herb flatbreads to go with that,

and a apple terrine.

So, I'm just going to go get my Spanish friend Porket.

He's come out with confidence. It's great to see.

Hope you're all excited. Very excited. Very.

Ooh. Yes.

This dish I think is probably one of

the best things I've ever eaten in my life.

Last time we sampled your food,

we did give you a bit of a grilling. Yep.

Would you agree that you've got a lot to prove with this dish?

I have had my downfalls,

but I've taken all the comments from all of the judges

and tried to implement them into what I'm doing today,

so that's why I've tried to keep it simple.

Do I have to dish it out?

Wow, look at that.

Mm. Mm.

I'm salivating.

Come on, Chef.

Flatbreads look nice as well.

Yeah, they look great.

OK, service, please.

Thank you very much. Thank you.

Fantastic. Thank you, Jordan.

All aboard. Yes.

RAV: I think we all wanna get stuck in, don't you?

It just looks delicious.

There's a story here that could work very well in the Palm Court.

But, like, literally I was carving it with a spoon

and they were like, "Wow, look at that!"

Oh, good! Yeah.

I think he would need training if he's carving in front of guests.

Wasn't quite polished enough for my liking,

but the food tastes delicious.

I think it was endearing.

I was so worried that he would have a real difficulty today presenting,

but I was sitting here quietly so impressed with him.

I'm just kind of growing in confidence,

got good feedback on my afternoon tea so,

you don't wanna be at the bottom, you know what I mean?

You get that feeling from being at the top.

Yay, we get dessert.

This had better be good.

Here he is, the man himself with a smile on his face.

Good afternoon.

Welcome.

Well, actually, not welcome, thank you for having me.

My name is Dom, and my dessert today is plantain tart

with flavours of orange and cherry,

with molasses and sea salt ice cream.

My concept is really about just kind of

bringing Caribbean and British flavours together.

So, I'm going to get started. So, this is the orange curd.

That is my plantain, which has been diced,

it's got some orange juice in there. We've got some plantain puree.

I just really want to eat this. Oh, do you want to do yours?

Oh, I'll leave it up to you, shall I?

Do you want me to blowtorch?

Yeah. Perfect. OK. Luigi? Yes, Chef.

If I could, please, five pieces. Five on each, please. Five pieces?

OK. Thank you. It smells lovely.

This is your molasses. This is my molasses.

I love that you've managed to rope in everybody.

That looks good.

He left himself too much to do, but none of us cared.

We all pitched in. Couldn't agree more, yeah?

It was almost like a dinner party, wasn't it, and everybody

was just helping each other out. Felt really warm.

All of our guests would love him.

The pastry is a little bit thick, a little bit rough.

I'm really liking the ice creams. The flavours are quite something.

Yes, the pastry's too thick, but it's delicious.

It's like a dessert I've never tasted before.

Dom has made us all smile, and made us very, very happy, I must say.

Well, thank you for joining us for a spectacular dinner.

Thank you for having us.

You've got some really tough decisions to make here.

Not going to be easy.

No, not at all. Not after this round of cooking.

We've got one that bowled us over.

Shall we say their name after three?

One, two, three...

ALL: Dom.

The other four?

I was underwhelmed by Adria.

Her food is always not quite there.

Igor? Beautiful plate of food and stunning to look at.

There was almost a little bit of arrogance, of "I am Picasso,"

and I didn't find it endearing.

What about Lara?

The performance was too much,

and the fact that the food then didn't back it up...

It was raw. How can you serve that up? Yeah.

I just think she needs more years in a kitchen

to deliver the same level of food as she does entertainment. Yeah.

Argh, Jordan.

I felt the carving of the suckling pig was a little bit clunky...

Messy?

...but it was, phwoar, spot on when it comes to flavour.

Yeah. We can't forget about just how bad that afternoon tea was.

That's a genuine concern, absolutely.

It's not going to be an easy decision.

I'm very happy I don't have to make it, Chef.

Cheers, guys.

Good luck. Thanks.

Hm.

Well, that certainly turned everything on its head.

Dom. Yes, Chef.

You made us all feel at ease within a minute.

Afternoon tea? You blew us away with some great flavours.

Well done. Thank you, Chef.

Igor, afternoon tea?

Not up to your usual standard.

Today, lovely plate of food.

Adria, some of that afternoon tea wasn't great, was it?

Concept was there.

Today, all of the table was suitably impressed with the buns.

Loved the fact that they were fresh, light.

The emulsion could've been done better.

Jordan, you had a mare on afternoon tea, didn't you? Yes, Chef.

You seem to have reined it back, cooked us a very good pig.

Thank you, Chef.

Lara.

It was theatrical, which is what we expected from you.

Is it style over substance?

Hope not.

And the lobster wasn't cooked.

Did you realise that?

No. I thought... I didn't want to overcook it, cos with the fire...

You'd have needed a flamethrower to cook that lobster.

Yes, Chef.

It really is a tough decision, but I have to think about...

...who, out of you guys...

...would I feel most confident to give my restaurant to?

So, the chef leaving us is...

...Lara.

I'm afraid it's the end of the road.

Yes, Chef.

Dishing up raw lobsters, I'm afraid we can't do that.

Thank you for a beautiful experience.

Smash it, guys.

Create some magic.

Of course, any chef would be gutted.

I'm there with you guys.

At the same time, I've been grateful for this experience.

I want a hug.

I want a hug too. Keep it up. I will. The stakes are great,

I would say they're a powerful tool.

So, I'll come back, I'll give you a good cooked lobster.

Being able to cook for Michel Roux, that's really a win.

You're an amazing chef... Thank you, Chef.

...amazing personality. Thank you.

Yeah, and you will succeed, for sure.

Thank you, Chef. Well done, Lara.

Love you! Thank you, guys.

I'm still here. Like, wow.

It's shown I've got the mentality to get knocked down

and come back up, you know? That's kind of been the story of my life.

I'm just going to keep pushing.

You four live to cook another day, so please deliver.

I think I arrived here not really sure that I belonged in this space,

and today, I'm feeling like I could win.

I'm not ready to go home yet. I will come back,

fight to the top, no matter what.

Thank you, Langham. It's been a pleasure.

Next time on Five Star Kitchen... Good morning, Chef.

...four remaining chefs must create

a centrepiece fit for a celebration...

It's the semifinal.

Ten minutes late already, what's going on?

It's all getting very serious.

Brave attempt. Didn't really work.

...and deliver a five-star ballroom banquet.

A hundred plates per course.

Let's see if it tastes good.

They're not even peeled.

Peel some potatoes, man.

He's going to delay everybody else.

These ones are quite raw, Chef.

We're starting behind again.

The chef leaving us tonight is...

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