TVGuide.ca: Tony, I was sad to see you eliminated because I feel like I didn’t get to see your cooking style yet. How did you feel about being eliminated over a mistaken fruit in the Pressure Test, rather than being judged on one of your dishes?
Tony Carbone: It was heartbreaking because I wanted to go down fighting. It bummed me out a little bit because I’m not good at taking tests and to have a slip of the mind like that, a brain cramp — it’s not how I wanted to go out. I wish I did get to show my culinary skills more. I did get some good reviews from the judges and none of that was shown on-air. Such is life. I made the mistake so everybody has the same rules in the competition and I was an idiot.
TVG: What do you think audiences didn’t get to see with your cooking?
TC: They didn’t get to see some of the good reviews that I got from the judges. Everything was very positive. My halibut dish was good with Cat Cora. Gordon thought it was superb. A lot of good things were [not included]. I was disappointed about that. My signature dish, Gordon called tenacious.
TVG: Faruq, I was also really sad to see you go; you seemed really passionate about your cooking. You said that you regret not getting a chance to show what you can really do in the kitchen. If you got a second chance, what would you do differently?
Faruq Jenkins: Well, I feel like I was trying too hard during the show. Just the pressure of being in the situation, competition, trying to do things I’ve never attempted before as far as technique and skill. I really don’t think people got a chance to see what it is I do. I was trying to be other people and trying to compete with everyone else, so I was doing all this fancy stuff and I really didn’t need to do that. I should have stayed in my lane and cooked like me.
TVG: Overall, how did you both feel this experience on Masterchef helped you in your everyday cooking? What did you take away, skills-wise?
FJ: For me, preparation, organization and taste as you go because once you mess up, it’s really hard to go back. More importantly, the show gave me confidence — confidence that I do have the abilities to cook in a professional kitchen and I do have the abilities to become a chef if I want to.
TC: I agree with Faruq, it gave me a lot more confidence and I learned about cooking on the fly — putting something together with a lot more quality when I don’t actually have a thought out plan of what I’m making. When you get mystery boxes on the show and you’ve got to whip something up in a moment’s notice, you have to be on the ball. So I was pretty jazzed about these things I took away because I’ve always kind of questioned myself. I know I’m a good cook, but I was always saying to people eating my food, “Don’t just be nice; don’t just say that because you’re over for dinner!” I also think having three judges who are at the top of their game professionally to taste my food and give really good critiques went a long, long way in my brain because as you saw in the Pressure Test, I can get in my own head.
TVG: A lot of contestants seemed to be making negative comments about Sharone — what is your take on him is? A lot of people were saying they can’t trust him and that he’s a kiss-ass.
TC: I would agree with that! He spends a lot of time talking to production people on the side and he’s always being a kiss-ass with them. I don’t know if he thought it would help his chances. But … at the end of the day, the guy can cook. I think he was just more focused on the competition and show business than making friends with people who were there. For me, part of the overall experience is developing relationships with people. I think he missed out on that. I think he secluded himself from getting to know the bunch.
FJ: Yeah, I definitely agree with that. I was a little bit closer to Sharone than some because we were roommates at one point. He’s a special guy. He definitely tries to surround himself with people he felt would help get him ahead in the game and his career. He didn’t really talk to the other contestants very much. We’d all be hanging out and he’d be somewhere else talking to the producer. Very much a kiss-ass, but he had skills in the kitchen.
TVG: Who do you feel is the one to beat?
TC: I think Jake is. Out of the whole competition, he just seems to have the most talent in the kitchen. He talked a good game and he backs it up whether it’s baking, fish or meat — the man just brought it!
FJ: Now whether the kissing the ass makes a difference or not, I got a feeling that Sharone is going to be the guy to beat. Watching him in the kitchen and coming up with ingredients, his plating style, his presentation — I gotta give Sharone the head, but only slightly. And the one person I keep leaving, too, is Tracey. I think she’s a sleeper to beat.
TVG: Who is your favourite person to cook for?
TC: Mine is my wife just because she’s not afraid to try new things. She’s so much more open-minded. She’s like my test kitchen.
FJ: My mom because I’ve cooked her a few things that she claimed to hate, but when she tastes my version of a dish, she loves it. She hated catfish until she had my catfish and now she loves it. But I also love cooking for my three-year-old son because the boy is a monster. He’s a machine and just eats everything. His favourite meal is filet mignon and rice so I can’t really get mad at that.
TVG: What’s next for both of you? Will you continue to cook? Has being on Masterchef made any career changes for you?
TC: I left a 10-year career in radio before Masterchef. It was days before I found out about the audition that I was prepared to go to culinary school, but then I had to stop attending to keep being eligible for the show and now I’ve fast-forwarded things along. After the show, I’ve opened my own personal chef business here in Boston.
FJ: I’m still bartending right now. I’ve done some catering gigs at small events. I’ve got a wedding that I’ve been hired to cook for. If it all goes well, I’ll probably start my own specialty food event business. I don’t want to start a catering business with buffets and all that — something a little more special.
Masterchef airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET on CTV/9 p.m. ET on Fox.
Catch up with the latest eliminated participant every Wednesday.
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