I just finished watching episode 1 of the new season of Top Chef and I had to comment on it.

Season 8 brings back past chefs who were eliminated in their season. The elimination challenge for this episode was to improve on the dish that got you eliminated in the first place. The person who was told to pack their knives was Elia Aboumrad. According to the judges, there was no improvement from the original dish and the red snapper she used was raw. She said she was going for Medium, but she also said she never tested any of them to see if they were done. After she was eliminated, she said that it was a slap in the face to be eliminated and that she had been humiliated by the judges. She went on (online) to call head judge Tom Colicchio a sell out, saying he had changed and that no one liked him anymore.

As far as her blasting Tom, I can neither confirm nor deny them. Don't know the guy. never met him. so I would have no idea if what she said about him is true or not. but I do know this. According to the judges, she didn't improve the dish, there by essentially forfeiting the challenge. She didn't check to see if the fish was done, which is a rookie mistake and not one that someone competing to be Top Chef should have made. Those right there are enough of a reason to eliminate her as far as I am concerned. She walked into the competition convinced that she hadn't done anything wrong int he first place, and then continued that attitude with the challenge. If I had been a judge, I would have sent her packing as well.

The thing she needs to figure out is (other then dropping her ego) is that when you make a bad dish, even if you liked it and others say they like it, is try to figure out what went wrong and how to improve it. That is what this challenge was about. but her ego wouldn't let her do that and that is why she lost. she can complain about it as much as she wants, but in the end, the reason she was eliminated is on film for the whole world to see, and there is nothing she can do to change that.