I have no doubt that Mattin is French.

He is from the Basque country and the name Mattin is Basque, not French, but it is very unlikely that Basque is his native language. I think he just had an odd moment. And he has been living here for some time.

Having been complemented many times on my English while living in France, I don't find Robuchon's comment odd at all.

they already know each others' movements in the kitchen! They do not even need to speak to communicate! They are so connected!

I don't even watch the show and I'd say, they are already "doing it".

I really thought Epperson was going to win--he was getting the winning edit, and that dress was terrific.

Yeah, I sort of thought Althea's was a cool concept, but looked like a hot mess. And, if Heidi has an issue with boobs, I thought her model looked worse in that regard.

I'm happy with the boot, she's done nothing that really interested me.

Yeah, I sort of thought Althea's was a cool concept, but looked like a hot mess.

Me too. I kind of hated it, a lot.

Because I really thought that it seemed, once again, like more like Bryan's creation.

It seemed to me like it was totally Bryan's idea and Mike just had to execute it. From reading Tom's blog, it sounds like the judges recognized that it was Bryan's too.

if Heidi has an issue with boobs, I thought her model looked worse in that regard

A good bra would have fixed that, no problem, and since any straps would have been covered by the jacket, she could have put one on in the workroom beforehand. Epperson should have sewn in some cups into his dress to take care of his model's droopage.

It seemed to me like it was totally Bryan's idea

Didn't Bryan have to show Mike I how to construct the sauce so they could deconstruct it?

Yeah, I think the deconstructing was Mike's idea, but it was Bryan who had the know-how to actually make it work.

huh. I was on Bravo's blog page and Blais has a new picture up and it looks really different than his previous look. He has a modified fauxhawk, but his face looks really different as well. It's a little weird!

That new picture is totally weird! He looks like a Hollywood Househusband or something.

From Bryan's blog entry:

Deconstruction of a dish or sauce is only successful if you pull it off in such a way that the classic favor combination is not compromised. Making a classic Béarnaise is not what Michael I. wanted to do and I agreed. I have experience making this same sauce and knew of ways to incorporate into the dish in a way Michael and I were both looking for. So I was confident in pulling this off.