For Washingtonians cheering for Mike Isabella during the finale of “Top Chef: All Stars,” the results were painful. After cooking a nearly perfect Italian-inspired tasting menu, Isabella lost to Atlanta’s Richard Blais in one of the closest competitions the show has offered its viewers. “I wanted to show my Italian flavor profiles, things I ate as a kid, and incorporate them into what I do now,” he explained. Isabella praised Blais after the finale on “Watch What Happens Live” with Bravo exec Andy Cohen and told Yeas & Nays Thursday that he wouldn’t have done anything differently. “I don’t have any regrets really, it is what it is,” he said.
But don’t expect Isabella to return to the franchise anytime soon. “I don’t know, enough for awhile, not for awhile, I proved everything I needed to prove to myself and everyone else out there,” he said.
He’s now focusing completely on Graffiato, the Penn Quarter Italian eatery he expects to open in May.
While he hasn’t quite gotten to the stage where he’s crafting the menu, he did reveal this: “That pepperoni sauce will be on the menu of Graffiato,” he said. What pepperoni sauce, you may ask? As part of his “Top Chef” final, Isabella created a pepperoni sauce to go with the pork shoulder that judge Gail Simmons raved about. “I did it by accident,” he said. “I make purees with chorizo, if it works it’s a big risk, I just wanted to build the flavor of the pork.” He thinks at Graffiato he’ll pair the sauce with some oven-roasted chicken.
In other “Top Chef: All Stars” news, D.C.’s Carla Hall was selected fan favorite, winning $10,000 that she says she will put toward her petite cookie line.
