After Zoi was sent home last week on "Top Chef," Jenn began to dedicate her cooking to Zoi. Spike was feeling a little sorry for himself and was hearing through the grapevine that people thought he should have been sent home (even though many thought Richard's scales on the fish was a bigger no-no).

Dale and Lisa talked about their explosion from the last episode. Dale apologized for acting the way he did, but he didn't really back down on his argument. Dale felt that Lisa's negativity was wearing on the rest of the chefs, but Lisa didn't feel like she had to change for anyone.

The chefs got to the kitchens and found a bunch of beer and bar paraphernalia. Padma announced that the Quickfire Challenge will involve "Simple Pleasures," creating a dish that works well with beer. There are 16 types of beer, and each chef got to try only three before deciding which one they would use.

Some chefs went simple like Richard with his grilled tuna salad sandwich and Lisa's burger. Others went a little bit more complicated like Spike's charcuterie and Stephanie's mussels. After a walk through with guest judge Koren Grieveson, the least favorites were determined to be Nikki, Spike (to which Jenn laughed for obvious reasons) and Dale. Favorites included Richard, Stephanie and Jenn, with Jenn as the winner of the Quickfire.

For the Elimination Challenge, the chefs were tailgating at Da Bears game, baby! For this challenge the chefs had 30 minutes to shop for ingredients and two hours to prep and pack before heading to the game the next day to cook. Spike played it safe and immediately went for the chicken wings. Many of the chefs went with traditional tailgating food from chicken wings to burgers and sausage with peppers and onions. There was one, however, that stood out immediately and that was Ryan. For some reason, he thought it would be a good idea to do a bread panzanella salad for tailgating. Hmm.

This time, it was not only the responsibility of Gail Simmonds, Padma, Tom and guest judge Paul Kahan to pick a winner. Bears fans were given cards to judge "touchdowns" and "fumbles" based on their favorites. It wasn't long before it becomes obvious which three were in the bottom. Nikki started running out of food before the judges even got to her station, Mark was unsanitary and a mess at his station, and Ryan'a dish didn't fit the environment.

Judgement. Antonia, Dale, and Stephanie were called to the judges' table first, denoting that they are the top three favorites of the Elimination Challenge. Stephanie's dish had a great combination, Dale's flavors were unusual, and Antonia's dish was highlighted through her use of pineapple. The winner of the challenge was Dale, giving him not only an awesome Bears jersey with "Top Chef" on the back, but he also won the Weber 650 Gas Grill that he used during the challenge. Pretty sweet.

Dale had to call back the bottom three, consisting of Mark, Nikki and Ryan. Big shocker. They were called out for the same problems that we saw during the tailgating, only the other problem the judges had was with the fact that Mark's chowder didn't have a pleasant texture, and Nikki didn't make her own sausage. She was surprised to discover that the fans were not fans of her dish.

In the end, it was Ryan who ended up packing his knives. He knew his mistake was that he tried to go too big and different. His reasoning behind his dish was bringing California flare to Chicago fans. A fumble, for sure. His touchdown remark came when he said the show makes you realize, "Wow, I'm not the sh**", which couldn't possibly have been said any better.

Next time, the chefs will try their hands at making pastries, and I'm pretty sure Second City is going to be involved in the elimination challenge, which, if you have ever been to Chicago, is sure to be INCREDIBLE! See ya next time, food fans!

Story by Kristin M. Koltz
Starpulse contributing writer