Now that's the Adam Pechal that most of us know around Sacramento. The chef and co-owner of Tuli Bistro and Restaurant Thir13en turned bossy and saucy on Tuesday night's episode of "The Taste." Gone were the niceties and we're-all-in-this-together vibe of the first couple episodes. Pechal butted heads with members of his cooking team, turned all alpha-male saying his dish was the best, and even described another fellow chef's dish as "crap."
Drama!
Still, Pechal fared well on Tuesday's episode of "daring pairings." He whipped up a squab with red wine reduction to be paired with an Alamos malbec, which was picked to represent Team Malarkey in the group challenge. However, the dish was deemed too rich by the judging panel.
For the individual challenge, Pechal created a seafood dish with saffron aioli to be paired with Napa chardonnay. (The above pic shows one of Pechal's seafood dishes at Restaurant Thir13en). Judges Anthony Bourdain, Ludo Lefebvre and Brian Malarkey, Pechal's group mentor on "The Taste" all dug the dish. The one holdout was Nigella Lawson, who thought the seafood was overcooked. Still, the effort was strong enough to keep Pechal going another week.
Judging by a preview, next week's episode also looks to be heated. Pechal was shown slamming his hands down, evidently during a deliberation of his dish. Could Week 5 be the end of Pechal's run? We'll have to tune in and see.
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