The Hoddle of Coffee: Tottenham Hotspur news and links for Tuesday, May 23

good morning —

Good news for all those who don’t care about Top Chef Tuesdays: It’s almost over!

After this week’s episode there are only four contestants left in the competition: Buddha (USA), Ali (MENA), Gabri (Mexico) and Tom (Germany).

Quickfire winner: Buddha

Elimination Challenge winners: Buddha, Gabri

Eliminated: Sara, Amar

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After a blip last week, Buddha is back in full force and will be carrying serious momentum heading into the final stages of this competition. Heck, I’d even say it’s his to lose at this point. The Australian-born American champion won this week’s Quickfire that focused on water conservation and then was the standout in one of the most difficult challenges ever.

For the elimination challenge, our cheftestants were split into three pairs:

Team one: Buddha and Gabri

Team two: Ali and Tom

Team three: Sara and Amar

Only this time, there’d be a double elimination. At this stage of the competition? Crazy!

For the elimination challenge our chefs had to make not one - but THREE wellingtons. One seafood, one meat and one dessert wellington. After all this time I thought there was only the beef wellington that existed.

Buddha’s had the most experience with this tricky cook among the other competitors, so he (and by extension, his teammate Gabri) had a leg up on this one. And they delivered with a salmon wellington, a beef wellington with truffle demi-glace, and a peach melba wellington with raspberry sorbet.

Deciding the winners this episode was easy. The hard part? Which two would be going home.

Both Ali & Tom and Sara & Amar had big issues this week. But here’s the deal - you can’t really expect to get away with raw lamb at this stage, even if the flavours are very good. Judge Tom also took exception to their use of phyllo dough in their apple pie wellington.

So that means Ali and Tom are safe, and it also means there are only men remaining in the competition - for now.

There’s still Last Chance Kitchen! And next episode will feature the return of the winner of that web series who’ll jump back into the competition. It’s the last cook they’ll have before the real Final Four make their way to finish the season in Paris.

Fitzie’s Top Chef tiers:

Front-runner: Buddha

Also in the mix: Ali

Well behind: Tom, Gabri

Probable Last Chance Kitchen winner: Sara

Fitzie’s track of the day: Be My Beach, by Funkadelic

And now for your links:

Djed Spence who? Bryan Gil what? It’s the Tottenham loanee roundup!

Dan KP: Spurs see bleak picture of life without Harry Kane

Newcastle secure place in Champions League as Leicester on brink of relegation

Brazil’s Christ the Redeemer statue switches off lights in support of Vinicius Jr