Sara Bates recaps the second episode of FNS for season 9!

Food Network Star – Season 9, Episode 2

Who caught episode 2 of FNS this weekend?  It was a great episode.  I can really see a few of the finalists emerging as front runners.  Who are your favorites?

For this week’s challenge, the finalists were taken to the Mansion at Culver Studios where movies such as Gone with the Wind and The Wizard of Oz were filmed. They were told that they were having a “Burger Bash,” similar to the Food & Wine Festival events.

Finalists had an hour to prep a signature burger that they had to cook for 100 burger enthusiasts.  The catch?  They each had 2 minutes to do a presentation to the group and then each person from the group had to choose just one burger to try.  Basically, they needed to convince the crowd that their burger was the best. The burger enthusiasts had the fun little dials to use again to gauge how much they liked or disliked each finalist’s presentation.

So let’s talk about a few of the burgers…

Russell created a Deadly Sins Burger, which was a mix of beef and lamb and was topped with an onion and bacon marmalade.  The mentors loved the burger and it was actually ranked one of the best burgers of the day by the group.

Chad made a Memphis style BBQ with fried green tomatoes.  The tomatoes were Giada’s favorite part of the burger.

Stacey’s Baja Betty Burger was a combination of chorizo and ground beef and was topped with a jalapeno aioli.  The mentors loved her presentation and thought the burger was good, but it needed more spice.

Nikki’s Veggie Bang Burger was a flop.  Alton didn’t like it at all, remarking that the texture was bad and that there was no flavor.

Viet really delivered with his presentation, focusing on the fact that he won battle ground meat on Next Iron Chef America versus Bobby.  He felt more comfortable in front of the audience this time around.  The mentors liked the flavors and acidity of his Banh Mi Burger.

After the competition was over we found out that Russell, Chad and Stacey were the top three this week. The others in the “middle of the pack” and safe for this week were Viet, Chris, Lovely, Rodney and Damaris.

That left the bottom three of Danushka, Nikki and Andres.

I was feeling, again, like Danushka should go home.  She doesn’t present well and her food isn’t anything special.  Is anyone else feeling the same way?

After the judges did some deliberating, we found out that Andres was sent home.  I believe he should have done more with his weight loss story and helped others to eat more healthful.  Unfortunately, the mentors thought his time was up.

I have to say that Chad and Stacey are probably my favorite two finalists so far, followed by Viet, Chris and Nikki.  Who are you routing for?

Next weeks’ episode looks great, as the finalists will be competing in a Chopped Challenge.  See you next Sunday!