Since she doesn't drink alcohol herself, I think it was really smart of her not to attempt a mixed drink she couldn't taste herself. By making a soft drink, she maintained control over the flavors.

Actually, they were asked to do Creole (New Orleans), not Cajun (Lafayette), cooking. They both use roux, but, put simply, Cajun is more country cooking (fried catfish, gumbo) and Creole is fancier. The oyster stew that Carla did fit the description of Creole much more than some of the others.

ETA: Bummed about Fabio going home and not Stefan, but I really think the "bring back eliminated people" trick is unfair, so I'm happy Jeff didn't stay, even if his food deserved a place. I'm glad he got to go out on a more positive note.

Actually, they were asked to do Creole (New Orleans), not Cajun (Lafayette), cooking. They both use roux, but, put simply, Cajun is more country cooking (fried catfish, gumbo) and Creole is fancier.

The fact that Emeril explained this to the chefs before they started cooking and Hosea immediately started blathering on about how he wants to do something simple and home-style and full of soul made me want to tear my hair out. HE MUST GO HOME.

The fact that Emeril explained this to the chefs before they started cooking

Did he? I might have missed it, I was fast-forwarding a lot to get through it before having to leave for work. Good to hear it. Since LSU is our biggest client, I have had to learn to be careful about that distinction.

Yeah, he said something to the effect of "Creole is the city version of Cajun - it's more refined and not as heavy." And then served them a 5-star Creole dinner at his restaurant to demonstrate. And Hosea STILL DID NOT GET IT.

OK, I remember him saying that now, but I ff'ed through the dinner where it was probably illustrated.

I missed the first half hour (damn dvr screwed up the recording somehow, which I didn't realize until the last showing of the night was already at the :30 mark), so I started watching just as everyone was scrambling to get their meal assembled for transport. I was confused as to why Jeff was there, but assumed it was the big finale twist (thanks for explaining about the Quickfire).

I wonder what the twist will be next week?

I ff'ed through the dinner where it was probably illustrated.

There was no explicit mention in the edit that what they were eating was Creole food, but they have to know by now that the guest judge's restaurant is always relevant to the elimination challenge and that they should pay attention to what they're eating.

His cockiness will be his undoing. But, he's been called on it, so maybe he'll step up in the finale.

Stephanie Izard makes an interesting point about that -- he's watched himself on TV by the time they taped the finale, and he STILL comes out like that?

The fact that Emeril explained this to the chefs before they started cooking and Hosea immediately started blathering on about how he wants to do something simple and home-style and full of soul made me want to tear my hair out.

Gah, seriously!

Interesting about Jeff from Tom C's blog:

That night, however, Jeff was never in the running for a reason that didn't make it into the final edit. He did a very fine job, however he used some sort of sterno chafing dish to keep his oysters warm that, for whatever reason, imparted a taste of burning sterno to the oysters. We all smelled it and remarked on it while the chefs were setting up their stations, and then we tasted that horrible taste when we sampled his selections. So, unfortunately for Jeff, who otherwise was cooking very well, he could never have taken the top spot of the evening.

Which explains why all the comments about his oyster were "I loved the idea of it" and not "I loved the way it tasted."